Xavier Agulló

“KO Fighters” (aka “KO Legends”) was the first game I worked on as a designer. It involved managing a team of two developers and two artists all in sync with another team that was working on the 3D version of the same game. All under direction of a producer and the studio manager. We were also sending weekly builds to Gameloft HQ to gather feedback for the next sprint.

Originally I was a little disappointed that I was assigned to a “boxing game” as opposed to something fictional or more creative. But on the other side my motivation, and that of all my young coworkers, was amped to 200% because it was our first game. I did an intensive crash course on boxing and gave it all in the project ring.

In my previous experience in graphic design and advertising it was common to iterate a lot on a single element (ie: a poster or logo) until it looked perfect. In the world of games I quickly realized there’s so much to do, that you need to move FAST or you risk losing momentum. Making compromises between polish and scope is a constant in this field. Still to this day, “Velocity” (speed+direction) is a key concept for me.

“KO Fighters” had all you could ask for in a boxing game, including a career mode, training mini-games of different styles, special effects, boxer customization… and even a 3D ring! I configured boxer AI’s to offer varied fighting styles and ramp up the difficulty in the campaign. After beating career mode, you could unlock the “Universal Championship'' where you faced crazy rivals with funky palettes and strange names.

The best of all? All this had to fit in 600Kb, not a small feat!