I was fortunate enough to nab an interview with Fugazo’s Eric Esteb, the game designer for the upcoming game Frobot, a puzzle action game coming to PC, Mac, and most importantly, WiiWare.

For those still in the dark, can you give us a brief rundown of who Frobot is, and what kind of game he’ll be staring in?

Esteb: No one really knows who Frobot is.  He is a bot of great mystery.  What we do know is that he is the baddest bot in the galaxy.  His hobbies include dancing, kicking ass, and taking names.  He is starring in a puzzler shooter with an attitude.  All his robot ladies have been kidnapped, and he must scour the galaxy to rescue them.

Frobot is coming out for WiiWare next year, but it’s also coming out for PC and Macs. Will there be anything differentiating the versions? Will the WiiWare version have extras, or easter eggs added?

Esteb: We are planning for WiiWare to have the king of all extras.  Local multiplayer support for up to four players, with unique multiplayer maps.

How will we be controlling Frobot, can you discuss the controls in depth?

Esteb: Sure.  The nunchuck will control movement, Z will pick up objects and C will give you a short burst of speed.  You will point at the screen with the Wii remote to aim, and press B to shoot.  The A button will activate your special weapons, such as missiles, mines, crazy guided disco balls that follow your cursor around the screen, etc…  You can switch between weapons using the D pad.

Frobot wields a pretty funky (literally) arsenal of weapons. Which one is your favorite, and why?

Esteb: The Jive Stalker, hands down.  Its a whirling disco ball of sparkly death.  It follows your cursor around the screen like a little lost puppy, so its really useful for laying a smackdown in those hard to reach areas. The trick is guiding it where you want without running it into a wall.

We’ve seen tons of enemies, but are there any boss battles? With an enemy like “Microshaft” I can’t help but wonder.

Esteb: There are in fact boss battles.  Epic boss battles. There is a boss every five levels or so, coinciding with the frequency with which you gain powerups, so each boss is going to require you to use your new powerup to defeat him.

If Frobot is a success, can we expect a sequel?

Esteb: I surely hope so.

Anything else you’d like to tell my readers about Frobot?

Esteb: This game is a must for anyone interested in galactic domination.  To my knowledge, no one has ever gained dominion over the entire galaxy without first playing this game.

And before I let you go, can you tell us just how Frobot manages to score with all the robot ladies? What’s his secret?

Esteb: His gruff, masculine facade is his way of trying to compensate for the deeply sensitive soul within.  I happen to know for a fact that he cried when he watched “Titanic.”  Chicks dig that. ~

Thanks again to Mr. Esteb for the interview. Stay tuned for the sequel with Frobot’s Lead Artist Peter Lim!

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