#secretcharacter — Public Fediverse posts on home.social

Spotlight Interview: Ping Jirakorn from Secret Character

Secret Character is a Bangkok-based indie game studio that has steadily built a following through a series of distinctive and unconventional projects. Co-founded by Ping Jirakorn, the studio is best known for Yakiniku Simulator, a surprise hit that gained attention for its simple yet engaging take on the experience of grilling meat, as well as titles such as Banchou Tactics and the recently released Neko Odyssey. By focusing on original concepts and polished execution, Secret Character has established itself as one of Thailand’s notable independent game developers. We spoke with Ping about the studio’s journey, the lessons learned from its successes, and the challenges of building games from Thailand for a global audience.

Check out their website – https://www.facebook.com/secretcharsg

Q: Give the readers a short introduction about yourself and Secret Character. What is your role? What is your “origin” story?

My name is Ping, and I am the Producer and Co-Founder of Secret Character. Our team originally started with just three members: myself, Best (Programmer), and Kums (Artist).

Q: What challenges did your company face when it first started? What challenges does your company continue to face now?

Regarding our early challenges, about ten years ago we developed an iOS game called Zombie Hero: Revenge of Kiki. Upon release, it received a fantastic response achieving over one million downloads within a week and getting featured on the App Store globally. Unfortunately, we didn’t make a single penny from it and almost lost our IP because our publisher declared bankruptcy.

Due to legal reasons, they couldn’t return the IP to us. This incident caused our development to stall, and Best decided to leave the team. However, we were fortunate to welcome a new member, Pond, shortly after.

As for our current challenge, it is navigating and selling games in a highly competitive landscape where Steam sees over 20,000 new game releases every year.

https://youtu.be/z-JU5KF9ugw?si=JKl0gfb91kI4_QYl

Zombie Hero was one of the earliest games developed by Secret Character that features a villain fighting back against superheroes who have turned to zombies.

Q: What are your favorite games or examples of entertainment media? Is there someone or something that has greatly inspired you?

Since we are all 90s kids, our main sources of entertainment are video games, manga, and anime. My favourite games are Final Fantasy Seerie, Chrono Trigger, and Live A Live. A major inspiration for me personally is Square Enix.

Q: What is your company’s work environment or culture like? Any strange or interesting stories you would like to share?

Our team works 100% remotely. I schedule a meeting with Pond once a week during the weekend. For other projects, I don’t micromanage at all; I give everyone full freedom and responsibility over their own work. There is no pressure unless we are getting close to releasing a full game or a demo.

I highly prioritize the mental health of our team members because I firmly believe that if our mental health is good, our creative output will be excellent as well.

https://youtu.be/DiwzMEF8TCo?si=D2SrgDXdk2pHNygv

Developed in 2022, Banchou Tactics is a strategy turn-based role-playing game where bloody struggles happen between three Japanese high schools.

Q: Your portfolio of games cover a wide range of genres and tones. What connects all of them creatively as “Secret Character” games?

All of Secret Character’s game ideas originate from me, and I am very lucky that the team trusts my vision. The connecting thread between all our games comes from my personal interests whether it’s food, cats, or the game genres I naturally enjoy. I then try to adapt these elements into concepts that have the potential to resonate well with players.

Q: Your upcoming projects like Ramen Simulator, Neko Station, and Eternity Breaker all sound wildly different from one another. What excites the team most about exploring such varied ideas and genres?

The games developed by Secret Character mainly fall into three distinct genres.

Food Theme (Ramen Simulator): This game was specifically designed with VTubers in mind. The game design allows them to easily create highly entertaining content for their audience. The reception has been great, and even famous Japanese VTubers have played our demo.

Tactics Turn-based (Eternity Breaker): As I mentioned earlier, I am a huge fan of Square Enix, so Eternity Breaker is heavily inspired by their work. However, since we are a small team, creating a full-scale JRPG isn’t feasible. Because of this, we adapted it into a Roguelike that heavily focuses on engaging gameplay.

Cute Cat Theme (Neko Station): Based on the feedback from Neko Odyssey, we learned that there is a massive audience of cat lovers out there, which makes it an easy concept for players to grasp. Therefore, I reached out to Sunny Syrup Studio, the developers of Not Monday Cafe, to co-produce the Neko Station project.

https://youtu.be/-UnNplmMBhM?si=-GCEeYV3N61DGEHn

Eternity Breaker is a 2.5D turn-based roguelike where the skills you gain become your class.

Q: How does Secret Character decide whether a new game idea fits the studio, especially when your projects can vary so much in style and gameplay?

First, I should explain our team structure. Secret Character has only three core team members. It is practically impossible to develop multiple games simultaneously with just this core team. Therefore, I utilize a partnership approach. Each game has partners such as Sunny Syrup Studio or individual solo developers who join us to help and share the workload and revenue based on their contributions. I carefully assess their skills, expertise, and passion to determine which specific project they are best suited to help develop.

Q: What are your views on the local game industry in Thailand and its position in the global market?

From what I have experienced, the local game industry has been growing steadily for a long time. Thai people spend a significant amount of money on games annually, though most of that revenue goes toward major international titles.

Consequently, Thai developers today must focus their efforts on selling to the global market. Currently, there are quite a lot of games being developed and released by Thai creators each year, and many have managed to sustainably build a living in this industry. Personally, I believe it won’t be long before Thai developers become a prominent focal point in the global market.

Try out other food games from Secret Character like Yakiniku Simulator and chill out as you do simple cooking.

Q: Do you have any tips for aspiring entrepreneurs who want to enter the local game industry?

While I might not be in a position to give sweeping advice, there is one important lesson I’d like to share. Because game development requires a tremendous amount of resources and considering the overwhelming number of games released on Steam every year it is crucial to conduct thorough research before starting a project. This includes understanding the game structure, technical requirements, target audience, and marketing strategies so that we can make the most efficient use of our limited resources.

For example, if you plan to make a 2D Platformer right now, you must understand that the standard for this genre is incredibly high. Your graphics must be striking enough to compete, and since it is a genre that is inherently harder to sell compared to others, there is a real risk that your sales may not justify the production costs.

Q: Looking forward, what is your ambition for the company?

My ultimate ambition for the company is to be able to develop a high-quality, full-scale JRPG with a playtime of over 30 hours.

If you are looking for a game about cats, try their game Neko Odyssey where the main gameplay centers around taking pictures of cats.

Q: If you have anything more that you would like to talk about, feel free to add them here.

One thing I’ve learned from developing and selling games is that in this industry, the game you put the most effort and dedication into doesn’t always yield the best returns. The equation just isn’t that simple. Instead, success often comes from a game that people truly enjoy and that successfully hooks its target audience.

For instance, out of all the games we’ve sold, Yakiniku Simulator which we developed in just one day and released immediately ended up being the most successful. It served as a profound lesson, highlighting the importance of truly understanding what players want, alongside putting in the hard work.

#Food #Interviews #PingJirakorn #SecretCharacter #Spotlight