Ojiro Fumoto
Ojiro Fumoto, also known by his pseudonym Moppin, is a Japanese indie game developer. He is best known for Downwell, Poinpy, and his contributions to UFO 50.
Career
[edit]Before 2014, Fumoto had graduated in opera singing at the Tokyo University of the Arts, but felt like that was not the way he wanted to go in life.[1] At the end of February 2014, Fumoto canceled his studies and went on to make multiple "game-a-week" projects, after he read about that idea in Rami Ismail's article on Gamasutra.[2] Upon starting his thirteenth project, he instantly saw a high potential and decided to continue its development,[3] and it was eventually released in 2015 as Downwell. Downwell recieved critical acclaim, being nominated for and winning many awards such as Destructoid's best Mobile Game of 2015 award.[4]
Fumoto announced in January 2018 that he had started working for Nintendo, saying "I'll do my best".[5] It is believed that his success with Downwell was a large factor in his hiring.[6] Fumoto previously stated that "[i]t was super fun developing games as indie" and that he "[could not] wait to see what it's like to develop games as part of a bigger team."[7] At the beginning of 2019, Fumoto announced he had quit his job at Nintendo and returned to indie development.[8]
His next game, Poinpy, was designed partly in response to the reception of Downwell.[9] It was released in 2022 to positive reviews. Sometime between 2017 and 2024, Fumoto also contributed development work to the mass game compilation UFO 50. He spent a half-year on the development team, directing Seaside Drive and working on various other games.[10] UFO 50 released September 18, 2024 to critical acclaim.
Works
[edit]| Date | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Downwell | Director | |
| 2019 | Ring Fit Adventure | Minigame design | |
| 2020 | Spelunky 2 | Voice talent | |
| 2022 | Poinpy | Director | |
| 2024 | UFO 50 | Director of Seaside Drive | Various additional development |
References
[edit]- ^ Ellison, Cara (11 April 2014). "The Japanese Developer Of Downwell Used To Be An Opera Singer". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
- ^ Crecente, Brian (23 March 2015). "Here's the one-dev, 8-month, 'gunboot' game that won over PAX East". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
- ^ Ellison, Cara (31 October 2014). "Embed With... Ojiro Fumoto". Embed with Games. Archived from the original on 18 October 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
- ^ "Nominees | The Game Awards 2015". The Game Awards. Ola Balola. 12 November 2015. Archived from the original on 14 November 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
- ^ Kerr, Chris (23 January 2018). "Downwell creator Ojiro 'Moppin' Fumoto has joined Nintendo". Gamasutra. UBM TechWeb. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ Tucker, Kevin (23 January 2018). "Downwell Developer Ojiro Fumoto Joins Nintendo". Shacknews. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ Sarkar, Samit (23 January 2018). "Downwell creator joins Nintendo". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ Fumoto, Ojiro [@OjiroFumoto] (January 1, 2019). "I was working at Nintendo for most of 2018 but I quit at the end of the year to pursue being an indie dev again. Working there was an incredible experience but ultimately I found my passion to simply be making a thing I want to make. So yeah, I'll get working on that this year!" (Tweet). Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ Kyle Hilliard (19 July 2022). "You Might Be The Bad Guy In Poinpy According To Its Creator". GameSpot. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
- ^ Castle, Katharine (28 February 2024). "After seven years, Spelunky creator's retro compilation UFO 50 will release in the second half of 2024". Rock Paper Shotgun.