''Viva Piñata'' is a video game franchise created and produced by
Xbox Game Studios
Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...
and
Rare. The series' first game, ''
Viva Piñata'' (2006), was conceived as a mobile gardening game before
Rare was acquired by Microsoft. It was released on
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
. It launched alongside an
animated series
An animated series, or a cartoon series, is a set of Animation, animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series ...
produced by
4Kids. The game received two console sequels: ''
Viva Piñata: Party Animals'' (2007) and ''
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise'' (2008), as well as a handheld release, ''
Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise'' (2008), for the
Nintendo DS
The is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens worki ...
.
Development
Tim Stamper, the co-founder of
Rare, conceptualized a gardening game for the handheld
Pocket PC
A Pocket PC (P/PC, PPC) is a class of personal digital assistant (PDA) that runs the Windows Mobile operating system, which is based on Windows Embedded Compact, Windows CE/Windows Embedded Compact, and that has some of the abilities of modern ...
platform around 2002. A small (three-person
) team began work on a simple prototype while
Rare was still affiliated with
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles.
The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
, prior to its
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...
acquisition. The game's development transferred to the original
Xbox
Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...
and, ultimately, to the
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
for its graphics capabilities.
Rare wanted its animals to have a unified style, which was how the game's concept artist arrived at the
piñata
A piñata (, ) is a container, often made of papier-mâché, pottery, or cloth, that is decorated, filled with candy, and then broken as part of a celebration. Piñatas are commonly associated with Mexico.
The idea of breaking a container fill ...
concept. The idea was exciting to
Rare, as piñatas were not commonplace in England. The connection between piñatas and candy-filled insides led to new gameplay directions.
The ''Viva Piñata'' team was a model for productivity and regular output within
Rare and
Xbox Game Studios
Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...
.
Though compared to the 12-person teams behind earlier Rare games, the company's
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
development teams consisted of 50 to 60 people.
The ''Viva Piñata'' team included about 50 people at its zenith. Microsoft also transitioned its development teams to use the company's
XNA package to streamline and reduce duplication in engineering efforts. Microsoft pressured the ''Viva Piñata'' development team to keep the game's themes kid-friendly,
as the parent company planned for the game and resulting franchise to increase the market appeal of their
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
. In 2006, a Microsoft Games executive called the game its most important franchise, but its reception was tepid.
As Rare released the original ''Viva Piñata'' for the
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
in 2006, its development team saw it as incomplete. The developers had cut partial ideas from the release in order to meet their deadlines.
Rare's
Gregg Mayles
Gregg Mayles (born 29 April 1971) is a British video game designer currently working for video game company Rare as creative director. He is one of the longest-serving members of the company, having worked there since 1989.
Career
Mayles be ...
said that the game sold well and steadily on par with their expectations
and Xbox's
Phil Spencer added that the game was considered a success inside the company.
The team incorporated player feedback and worked towards a "more definitive version" of the original.
Mayles left the team to work on ''
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts'' and Justin Cook became the team's lead designer.
The sequel was built atop the original and the developers re-used many of the tools from the original game's development.
In both the sequel and the original, the development team volunteered to record the sounds used for the piñatas.
One of the team's new ideas was "Piñata Vision", a feature that detects printed cards via the
Xbox camera to change the in-game environment (e.g., adding piñatas or altering the weather).
Near the time of the sequel's release, Rare's Mayles figured that the team would likely not have enough new gameplay ideas to warrant a sequel to ''Trouble in Paradise'',
though Cook said that he would work on the game's shop interface had he more time.
The games were later re-released on the 2015 compilation of Rare games, ''
Rare Replay
''Rare Replay'' is a 2015 compilation of 30 video games from the 30-year history of developers Rare and its predecessor, Ultimate Play the Game. The emulated games span multiple genres and consoles—from the ZX Spectrum in 1983 to the Xbox ...
'',
but the server that handled their piñata sharing features had been shut down by that time.
In-between the two series releases, Krome released ''
Viva Piñata: Party Animals''.
In early 2007, a Microsoft Games executive had expressed interest in continuing the series onto the
Nintendo DS
The is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens worki ...
platform.
Rare had attempted to make ''Trouble in Paradise'' camera features work with ''Pocket Paradise'', but chose instead to release the games on time.
Games
* ''
Viva Piñata'' (2006)
* ''
Viva Piñata: Party Animals'' (2007)
* ''
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise'' (2008)
* ''
Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise'' (2008)
Animated series
''Viva Piñata'' was planned as a larger intellectual property. 4Kids TV had agreed to make a ''Viva Piñata'' cartoon before the game was released. 4Kids selected the series out of several Microsoft properties offered. 4Kids also handled the series merchandising. The cartoon is tied very closely to the game, and its animations are based on the game's own 3D character models. Its episodes are approved by Rare's
Gregg Mayles
Gregg Mayles (born 29 April 1971) is a British video game designer currently working for video game company Rare as creative director. He is one of the longest-serving members of the company, having worked there since 1989.
Career
Mayles be ...
for their applicability to the game. The cartoon was also designed to give viewers tips on how to interact with the in-game piñatas.
The animated series' storyline later influenced the plot of ''Trouble in Paradise''.
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Viva Pinata
Video game franchises introduced in 2006
Rare (company)
Microsoft franchises
Video games adapted into television shows