Angry Mango Blog

06 March 12

Henry, Greg, Kate, Ahmed and Matthew make up Angry Mango, the team behind Mush, an atmospheric 2D platform puzzle game. In their first BAFTA blog each team member reveals how they're felt about being nominated and the results on awards night.

On The Night...

We all had a fantastic evening at the BAFTAs and it was great to be reunited again with the other nominees. The teams had mostly continued development in the run-up to the awards, so it was great to be able to catch up and see how we’d all progressed. The standard of the final games was exceptionally high and none of us really knew for sure who was going to win.

Everyone was enthusiastic about our game and we’re going to stay in touch with some of the great contacts we met.

Although we were a little disappointed that we weren't victorious, it came as a bit of a relief, especially when That Game Studio made such an awesome acceptance speech. They thoroughly deserved the award and we wish them all the best in their future endeavours. We all really hope they continue development on Twang as it’s far too good a game not to be made public.

The other developers we met at the awards were inspirational and some in particular were able to bust a move on the dance floor. Everyone was enthusiastic about our game and we’re going to stay in touch with some of the great contacts we met.

We’d like to thank everyone that’s helped throughout our ongoing development, especially Dare to be Digital, The University of Wales, Newport and particularly Microsoft who have been working closely with us since prototype development. Everyone has been exceptionally supportive and we’re hugely indebted to the time, expertise and encouragement these organisations were able to provide.

We hope that one day we’ll be able to attend the BAFTAs again as nominees and have no doubt that we’ll continue making games together as a team. We’re now focusing on commercial release of Mush and expect more news to be announced in the coming months. Follow us on twitter @angrymango !

BAFTA Build Up...

The BAFTA Ones to Watch Award has always seemed like the unattainable Holy Grail. At every stage of making our game, we were always sure we wouldn’t get through to the next round of the competition – the other games were always so fantastic. From the moment we started our game, to the moment we found out we were nominated it’s been a crazy rollercoaster ride. Now that we’re nominated and have less than a week until the ceremony, the butterflies have well and truly set up camp in my stomach.

I can’t wait for the ceremony and even if we don’t attain the Holy Grail, I can’t wait to speak to other attendees. Limbo is a game I’ve followed and adored from inception and I look forward to having the opportunity to meet the team, along with all the other talented developers. We’re really hoping that we can continue working together and one day we’ll join the ranks of the other medium-defining developers in attendance. The GAME British Academy Video Games Awards have well and truly given us the motivation to do so.

It was in August last year that we were nominated for the BAFTA Ones to Watch Award which was announced at the end of the Dare to be Digital competition. Everything is a blur from the moment our game was announced to getting up on stage in front of all of my friends who were a part of the competition and my parents. I'm sure I saw a tear in my Dad's eye and I have never felt so proud of myself. I can't think of a better possible start to my career in the games industry than a BAFTA Ones to Watch nomination.

We wanted to make our game feel as unique as possible, which led us to constantly challenge ourselves throughout the development process. Picking a mobile platform allowed us to be more experimental in the way the player interacts with our game. This has enabled us to distance, yet still retain aspects of, the 2d platforming games that I loved as a child. Watching someone play our game brings me great pleasure. Witnessing my creation bring a smile to someone's face is an amazing feeling that I hope I can continue to experience throughout the rest of my career.

Today, instead of making any progress on my dissertation, I spent my afternoon in a ridiculously overexcited frenzy following the realisation that the GAME British Academy Video Games Awards are a mere two weeks away, and also the news that we will be able to take a plus one. I quickly convinced myself that my only truly formal dress definitely doesn’t fit me anymore and that if there was ever an excuse to crack open the savings account, an outfit for the BAFTAs probably qualifies.

I am really, really looking forward to it, despite my concerns about being a nervous mess at the ceremony, and next fortnight I don’t think I will be able to concentrate on my final year work at all! I am also debating whether to send my friends and family the URL to watch the ceremony live online, as knowing they are watching will almost certainly pile on extra nerves. I think some more herbal rescue remedy might be a good investment.

I still remember the moment when Angry Mango won the Dare Awards in 2010 and received the BAFTA Ones to Watch nomination - all I could feel was intense excitement and relief. I know we had all worked hard and put a lot into our creation so being nominated is a huge pay off. I only wished that my mother were there to see us on stage, I would have loved to see her reaction.

Until now, this nomination seems rather surreal to me, but when I think about the massive impact it will have on my career I feel very proud of the achievement.

2D platformer games have always managed to tickle my fancy and getting the opportunity to develop one was really very enjoyable. Because of the nature of our platform, we had to create intuitive ways of interacting with the game world, heavily engaging real world actions to affect the game world. Working with those kinds of standards and creating something like Mush has shown me our potential. I certainly look forward to working on more titles with Angry Mango.

I am a little nervous about the award night, but looking forward to having a great time. Best of luck to all the nominees from every category!

Being the last team announced at Dare to be Digital was incredibly emotional - disappointment from thinking we hadn’t possibly won, to the extreme high when our name was called out. I was so shocked I couldn’t walk properly on stage. The moment we then received our certificates and the BAFTA Ones to Watch nomination sank in, I couldn’t stop thinking about the great opportunities we have all unlocked.

It was clear to me even when I was growing up that I would work in the video games industry. The games I loved were always 2D puzzle games and I spent far too much time playing them and not doing my homework. Hopefully this neglect of school work paid off in the end as games have become my work! It is already a great achievement to be nominated for a BAFTA Ones to Watch Award and this has given me a huge push to keep working hard at making video games for the public to enjoy.

I am really excited for the GAME British Academy Video Games Awards and I hope my team has a great night (and that my nerves don’t get the better of me!)

• Find out more about Angry Mango on the Dare website.

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