• Interview
• Video

Tri-Ger developer on color-matching schmup design & indie game development

Tri-Ger developer Joseph Hooker spoke to us about the color-matching shoot-'em-up design of the game, as well as his experience in indie game development.

TJ Denzer

April 20, 2023 12:30 PM

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Tri-Ger is a very interesting kind of game. Inspired by the likes of Galaga and quite a few other classic arcade games, it’s a color-matching shoot-‘em-up in which players must navigate space levels and destroy geometric insects by changing to their color to do damage to them. We caught up to designer Joseph Hooker to speak about how this game has come together so far, as well as the challenge of being a solo indie developer and getting one’s foot in the door of a publisher.

As mentioned prior, Hooker was inspired by the likes of Galaga, as well Asteroids and Ikaruga, but Tri-Ger has quite a few notable aspects about it. As you fly through levels, enemies will appear in different colors. The best way to fight them is by switching to their color and lighting them up with matching laser fire. Creating a satisfying arcade vibe was key to Hooker, who did tons of play testing to get the movement down, as well as cadence of the enemies and rate of player fire.

When asked what it has been like to be a developer in the indie scene, Hooker shared that the biggest challenge is getting one’s foot in the door. He found it especially challenging because he had just gotten out of college when he started work on Tri-Ger. However, after being introduced to key people from The Mix and Bitsummit, Hooker has found footing for Tri-Ger and he hopes to share major updates about the game soon.

You can find out more about Tri-Ger on its webpage on The Mix, as well as on Joseph Hooker’s Twitter. Want more videos like this Tri-Ger interview? Be sure to check out our YouTube channels at Shacknews and GamerHubTV to see our latest video interviews, gameplay, unboxings, and more on the latest video games, technology, and toys.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.