Inside Mahjong Mountain

Dennis chafiâ met Chris van der Linden at the gamescom 2009 and reviewed one of their games. Then we visited Kalydo and did a behind the scenes feature. A while ago they released Mahjong Mountain which we reported about and now we will give you an insider on that very game. So sit back and relax as you read through the interview and as a bonus; developer comment!

The interview:

Nisute: Mahjong is one of the most common flash games on the internet. Why did you choose mahjong to build upon?

Chris : It indeed is a common game that’s freely available on the web. We thought it was a nice challenge to re-make a classic like that but with a Kalydo twist.
The world of cube offered a good backdrop for this game because of the eastern theme and because it looks very colourful. To compete with free mahjong games we put alot of time and effort into making the game world a pretty one. Hence the number of scripted 3D camera angles, beautiful locations and more. Just to give you an example; have you ever played mahjong at the bottom of a waterfall? (as Chris finishes he smiles)

NiSuTe: We know that Mahjong mountain uses the same asian theme as Cube, but how did the style of Cube come to life?

Chris: The visual style of Cube is something we’ve made with the help of the art team. At that time we mainly were using the theme of our underwater game Nauticz. When the puzzleconcept of Cube proved to work out, i went back to brainstorming about what we could do with what we had. Together with Kirtsten Nuyts (concept artist) we came up with an eastern world in which everything is square. This worked so well that we soon had a working world with surprisingly humorous characters. Read more

First they gave us cube, now they deliver Mahjong

When we first took a look at Cube and played it ourselves we were already impressed by how solid of a browser experience it offered.

Now Kalydo brings us Mahjong, the most boring and uninteresting game on the planet and gave it the cube finish. Not only that, but they added so much to the feel of the game it isn’t just about playing Mahjong, it’s actually about the whole package. You actually play through  some cheesy storyline packed with humorous scenes on the island which gives it a nice twist.

Have you forgotten what Kalydo is or just never knew, check out our previous articles.
You can find Cube, Mahjong mountain and more on the Kalydo web page.

NiSuTe special: Kalydo

At the Gamescom a few months ago, Kenneth and I walked humbly over the “Holland Pavillion” at the business area where all dutch gamedevelopers could have a word with each other, and have their business appointments. Chris van der Linden, Creative Director at Kalydo, approached us, and we had a great conversation. If all this went past you, click here for a refresh!  The conversation wasn’t that long, so we decided to pay them a visit. After all, Eindhoven is very close to NiSuTe’s office!

Kalydo is a young development company settled in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Starting out with a small group of friends, the company has been growing ever since. Chris is one of those founders: “We started with 4 people to develop in 2005. In the beginning we were all volunteers, we had a lot of part-timers and interns so we have seen a lot of people come and go. At this point we have 20 people working here.” Read more

Kalydo: The Dutch at Gamescom

While social network websites like  Facebook and Hyves expand and become more and more popular for any age, Some game developers see a big market; From the possibility to place bubble shooter on your website, to the large contests of guessing the score at the world championships of soccer.

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