We Happy Few first started floating around several years ago. After bringing it to PAX East, the developers partially funded continued development through a Kickstarter in 2015. Last year, they released the early access version of the game for those who clamored to play. Currently, the early access game has about 30 hours of play. GeekMom Karen sat down with one of the developers, Sam Abbott, to discuss how We Happy Few came to fruition, how their art director researched the aesthetic, and how the feedback from the early access helped shape the direction of the game. Also, Mr. Abbott gave us a PAX East Exclusive insider tidbit about the next upcoming update.
Sitting in a corner at PAX, Mr. Abbott and I spent about a half hour discussing some of the shifts that We Happy Few has gone through since its conception. As a Bioshock fan, for a game to interest me, it needs to have a good combination of unique aesthetic and excellent story. Unfortunately, the early release of the game doesn’t incorporate the story, keeping that as a teaser for the final release whose date is yet unknown. I learned, however, that the newest update will, “blow people’s minds.” As a cheap person, I only downloaded the preview for Xbox. After talking to Mr. Abbott, I definitely plan to download the entire game and await the new update before continuing. In addition, one of the things that sets We Happy Few apart from other similar games is that it’s really about hiding in plain sight. The AI interface, which is about to be massively reinvigorated with the upcoming update, also acts as a unique playing experience. Finally, one of the most interesting aspects of talking to Mr. Abbott was learning how responsive to player feedback Compulsion Games has been and how early access needs to be viewed as development opportunities and not debugging for pay.
