This Is Pop

On Game Design
Whenever possible, we like to start every game design project with a non-digital (unless you consider fingers) prototype that allows us to test basic gameplay before committing to pixels and code. You can usually tell that F. is on to something good when every one begs to be a play-tester long after the developmental stage has ended. To wit, the LEGO-and-paper prototype of Supercubes, a rolling-block puzzle game, has won an enthusiastic following among people who have other work they ought to be doing.

The Origins of POP
We’ve been Known to work up a particular enthusiasm for objects owned in childhood that mom discarded right before they became valuable, or objects we might have owned if we hadn’t had the sort of mom who believed in the importance of learning some lesson about not getting every last thing you could possibly want after watching Saturday morning television.

So, after scouring suburban tag sales and the pages of eBay, the golden era of hand-held games is now being relived at POP. Everything from Blip to Coleco Sports games is in perfect working order with spare batteries at the ready. At last, a truly happy childhood. Stop by some day and go head to head with V. Just don’t go crying to your mama when he eats your lunch.

Winning at Your Own Game
Game Testing is a competitive blood sport here at POP. First, there’s the competition to determine who can find the most random and nearly-impossible-to-recreate-bug. Once the inevitable bugs have been identified and repaired, the next level of competition begins. We play the game intensely (some might say obsessively), shattering previous high scores and furiously scribbling the numbers on the white board. Until finally, at last, some one achieves a score so ridiculously huge that the others cede victory.