The release of the sequel to Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is getting closer and closer, a singular crossover created in Italy that has won over 10 million players, won a Game Award and a BAFTA Award, all combining the most famous Nintendo characters in an unprecedented mix. and the chaotic Rabbids created by Ubisoft.
Let’s face it: Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is one of the most anticipated Nintendo Switch exclusive titles of 2022. Ubisoft Milan’s latest effort is already causing a lot of talk, from the positive reception of gameplay trailers to the announcement of a DLC dedicated to Rayman who surprised us during the last UbiForward, even conquering the prestigious Edge cover. But with great expectations comes great responsibility.
On the occasion of our preview of Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope at the Ubisoft Milan studios we met Cristina Nava, Senior Associate Producer of the Milan office since 2008 with a multifaceted career, who told us what lies behind the development of the title out on October 20.
Eurogamer: How did you manage the load of player expectations after the success of Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle? How do you feel at the dawn of this upcoming release?
Cristina Nava: For Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle there was curiosity and concern to see how gamers, Nintendo fans and the Rabbids would take this mix. When we saw that the title was working and that players were enjoying and enjoying it, we released the DLC in 2018 and we said to ourselves that, after a game that went well and allowed us to gain the trust of both Nintendo and Ubisoft, we would I could develop another one because we still had so much to say. At this point there is no longer the unknown of the brand that offers this mix of Mario and Rabbids, there is the responsibility of having to meet expectations.
The idea was to continue surprising the public with gameplay innovations and our approach was not to be frightened by these expectations and not to be conditioned by the fact that, usually, when something works you don’t change it. Instead we decided that the game worked and that is why we wanted to change it, revolutionizing the gameplay of turn-based tactical combat while maintaining some fundamental pillars. Then it will be you, playing, to tell us if these changes have worked or not. We want to continue first of all to have fun as a development team and to feel the pressure of the challenge, we do not want to rest on our laurels and we want to continue to dare and risk, hoping to meet the public’s favor this time too.
Eurogamer: Already Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle was in itself a very innovative title compared to the tradition of Mario games, what do you think was the biggest challenge in development given the many innovations of Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope?
Cristina Nava: The biggest challenges were two. The first is to have wanted to insert a more complex narrative than Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and the beautiful but very simple stories of Mario games. Our story is more layered and, consequently, we wanted to convey it in the right way through animations and cinematics, which involve a very large production effort. The second challenge, perhaps even greater, was to revolutionize the combat system by introducing elements in real time.
This was really risky because often in a turn-based tactic the real time element tends to be a bit out of tune and risks taking away the importance of the tactical part, also because the player of this kind of titles loves to stop and think about their moves. We have not taken away the ability to think deeply about the actions, but we have added dynamism by allowing the player to move on a battlefield without a grid. I do not deny that we have made many prototypes to find the balance and the right balance between the tactical layer and this new dynamism which, among other things, is less scary for the non-tactical player. Our intent was to give hardcore gamers bread for their teeth; at the same time, a player who instead approaches the genre for the first time will be able to balance his experience in order to find a game that welcomes him.
Eurogamer: What do you think is the Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope feature you are most proud of?
Cristina Nava: It’s hard to say because we are a very large team, so everyone has their own. I personally am fond of the game in its entirety. Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is made of many parts and developed by many talents and many teams. It is thanks to the synergy between the parties (unity is strength!) That everything works. What I am most proud of is having found a balance in multiple senses: initially in the brand which is the fusion of Rabbid madness and anarchy and Nintendo cleanliness, color and order, then between dynamic combat and at the same time a shifts.
And again, having found a balance in exploration with a story that from the narrative point of view is linear but that allows you to wander at will within the planets, and finally a visual balance in visual design. Compared to Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, which already worked from a visual design point of view, we changed the art direction to raise the bar and give players something new. All these elements make me proud to say that we have found a balance that we think works, that we enjoy and like both in terms of design and rules of gameplay and visual and animation, but also in storytelling, which we find fun.
Eurogamer: Speaking of the narrative, which already in our test we noticed to be more full-bodied than Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, we were very impressed by the character of Edge, which we are sure will affect the dynamics of the group of heroes. In this period in which there is a lot of talk about female representation in video games, what do you think was the contribution of Sparks of Hope?
Cristina Nava: We have always loved strong female characters. Already in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle there was Rabbid Peach, very brave and very proud. Peach herself comes to rescue the heroes at a certain point in the game: already in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle the women defended themselves well! In Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope we wanted to include new heroes such as Bowser, Rabbid Rosalinda, who is also a beautiful peperino, and Edge, a very mysterious and very strong character (in fact Rabbid Peach is a bit jealous!) To find a balance between male, female and undefined gender characters.
The “standard” Rabbids, in reality, have no gender, unlike the Rabbid alter ego of the Nintendo characters and the new ones: Edge, for example, identifies as a woman. Our narrative team is varied, made up of people who come from different cultures and backgrounds, and includes both men and women from different countries (Italy, France, United States). In Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope the will was to have a strong female character like Edge with his equally strong motivations that I don’t want to spoil.
Eurogamer: Coming to your work at Ubisoft Milan, you have a background as a screenwriter and have chosen to devote yourself to production. How do you approach the creative side in your work as a producer? What is your personal experience developing Sparks of Hope?
Cristina Nava: Having a creative background has allowed me, as a producer, to understand the needs of creative teams and to meet them. My vision of my role is that of help: it is true that we producers organize, coordinate and are managers, but in my case I decline my role as an aid to the creative team: from the creative director to the designers to the narrative designers. In Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle for a while I returned to play the role of screenwriter and narrative designer in the main game writing the scenes and the lyrics of the song of the Phantom.
That was a parenthesis within my journey as a producer because we needed to flesh out the narrative team. In Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope I totally returned to my role as associate producer, therefore an organizational and support role, but coming from the creative field allowed me to better decline my role as manager.
Eurogamer: We conclude with a great classic: what is your favorite character?
Cristina Nava: Very difficult question! I don’t have a favorite character. Depending on the moment I love shuffling the cards of my team of heroes. There may be a time when I enjoy the indolence of Rabbid Rosalinda, a time when I prefer to have a team made up of only Nintendo characters: for example, a classic team made up of Mario, Luigi and Peach who have a very interesting synergy, being fighter, long range, and defender respectively. At other times I can’t help but choose Edge with his multiple slides, at other times I still like to use Rabbid Luigi who hits multiple enemies at once, perhaps making them jump into the air, and then let Mario’s Hero Sight intervene, which shoot opponents.
Or Bowser who has a disruptive effect on the pitch. By choosing just one character, I would feel like I was doing the others a disservice, because I really love them all. I have to admit that I love the humor of Beep-o, who has been one of my favorite characters since Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, but I’m not doing anyone a disservice because he’s not a playable character! Of the non-playable characters you saw during the test, I love Augie and Captain Rion.
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