A game trailer for
the ages!
Our animation and film departments got cracking on an animated intro and gameplay footage sequence that would blow a bald man’s hair back. Before we describe any further, please do enjoy the trailer!
Frame-by-frame animation
We chose a comic book-inspired 2D animation style for a few reasons. First and foremost: we’re nerds.
Much of the style and attitude of the world of Fenderball is inspired by underground fanzines from the late 80s and early 90s. And particularly the Jamie Hewlett comic book series, Tank Girl. We wanted to achieve this raw, punk feel. So hand-drawing was the way.
We also knew we wanted to tap into a general shared nostalgia for the cartoons we grew up watching as kids born the mid-to-late 80s — the era of Fenderball and its eerie arcade.
Lastly, no medium gives you more freedom than 2D. It’s hard and time-consuming to hand draw so many frames, but the way you can nail the vibe you’re after is incomparable.
A 3D base for more realistic movements
Notice how the gum balls follow a natural spiral-rotation into place? Re-creating these physics-based movements in 2D is tough work, and the end result still won’t get it perfectly right — which is why we used a 3D base with 2D shading on top of it.
The result is movement that feels inherently natural. The smoke billowing from beneath the pinball machine is another great example of this technique.
After more than a thousand frames were drawn, and just about as many conversations had, we ended up with a trailer that we feel really dang proud of.
If you dig the look of Fenderball and want to play, please do wishlist it on Steam!
