The Eternal Cylinder Evolved from a Family
With the new Anniversary Update of The Eternal Cylinder available today on Xbox, the unforgettable adventure part is obvious. But there’s an underlying theme about family too. Your first family is the herd of Trebhum. Family is part of our history too. Founded by three brothers our studio is ACE Team = Andres, Carlos, Edmundo.
Gaming was a part of our childhood. We were very into cooperative games as soon as that was obviously an option. I’d say we were very good about playing games together. Which I think was one of the things that worked so well later when we started working together; since we had this team mentality for gaming it worked very well for development, where we’d share tasks.
Our parents are very proud of the awards we get. They always share it with family members. At the very beginning…they were very scared, I’d say, at the prospect of a game development career. It was not an easy thing for them because you must understand that here, in Chile, basically there was no games industry, and the industry that exists now is tiny. So, I can totally understand why there would be a fear that we were getting into something that had no serious prospects for life in the future. But we managed. It all worked out in the end.
I don’t know which is the weirdest creature in the game, but the design of some of them were inspired by the biology books my dad would have at home. He had some classical art books. Hieronymus Bosch was one of those painters you would find there – with all these weird crazy designs with creatures from this very famous triptych that would be a big influence for us. You could go through the pages of his books and look at the photographs or illustrations of germs. If you look at the Unifier in the game, it’s a virus. And I remember my dad, we would ask him “what is this weirdly shaped microorganism” (it had this long neck and diamond shaped head and these spider legs) it almost looks like a creature from a science fiction novel. Germs aren’t animals but some of the crazier creatures of Eternal might be more closely inspired by germs than actual animals.
My kids are big fans of dinosaurs growing up – I was too when I was a kid. They do very much enjoy seeing The Eternal Cylinder and all the weird little creatures that we came up with. But I would say they aren’t as necessarily into them as we were when we were kids. My boy’s taking different interests. He likes programming and other stuff. I took a more artistic interest growing up. It’s been different. I have the older kids, who appear in the end credits of The Eternal Cylinder. Playing video games with kids can be a very rewarding experience. Especially co-op games or games where you can help them. I think there’s really an opportunity to have a lot of fun.
The fact that families love this game has been a bit of a surprise. I don’t think when we originally made the game it was like “we’re gonna make a game for kids.” Not that we wanted to make a game for adults. It was always meant to be what it is. But as the game got discovered by people, and seeing how my children reacted, they ask me to play it all the time and they always get very jumpy when the cylinder starts rolling. I think it’s a good game because of the Trebhum, definitely. Because they’re cute and you can name them. I think it’s easy for children to connect with the little creatures and feel invested in them. For instance, if I’m playing the game, my kids focus on one specific Trebhum and they ask me to name them with their names. And they get mad if those Trebhum don’t get the best mutations…or die. So, I need to play pretty carefully depending on if they’re present or not. But it’s a good game because of the puzzle solving. It allows parents to explore solutions with their kids. It’s a very imaginative world and that allows for children to develop their imagination.
We’re thrilled to see the new Anniversary Update launch on Xbox and can’t wait to see new families enjoy the two new wild creatures in it: the Buddugh Gropp and the Gharukuk. It’s amazing what the community is saying they remind them of. There’s also a change to the Pyrogenic Trunk mutation that makes it more dangerous to mess with the tiny Trebhum. We also got to play with our tech and add 4k resolution on Xbox Series S and Ray Tracing as an option on the Xbox Series X, so it’s a win-win. We hope you make many special memories playing, by yourself, or watching with those you care about.
The Eternal Cylinder
Good Shepherd Entertainment
$24.99
“You were born on a dangerous planet. Surreal and fantastical environments, teeming with exotic creatures that defy description. This world is both terrifying and awe-inspiring, as full of wonder and mystery as it is dangerous. But whatever dangers can be found pale in comparison to this world’s biggest threat: The Cylinder. This gargantuan, ancient rolling structure crushes everything in its path. But where did it come from? And how can it be stopped?
In this place, you are but a tiny creature called a Trebhum. While you may not be the fastest or the strongest, you have the most powerful ability of all: adaptation. Trebhum can mutate and evolve new physical attributes and abilities that can help them defend themselves against predators and navigate through this perilous world; what you lack in size, you’ll need to make up for in improvisation and resourcefulness. So, prepare yourself, little Trebhum. Gather your family for the dangerous journey ahead and save your world from The Eternal Cylinder.”