2_9_ScanMag_75_April_2015_Text_Q9_MADS_Scan Magazine 1 07/04/2015 21:41 Page 65
Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Nordic Gaming - Norway
discovered a way to turn his idea into reality. “Stikkmenn is my passion; I’ve been drawing stickmen since I was a kid, and it has become a way for me to express artistic ability – I can be very creative using stickmen,” explains Haugen and adds: “At one point, I did discuss Stikkmenn with some high-up executives at my previous job. The feedback was that it was a cool idea, but the industry was looking for hyperrealism and my idea was seen as too simple, so I put it in my pocket and moved on to other things for a while.”
Being the grandchild of Norwegian migrants, Haugen paid numerous visits to his grandparents’ home country, and eventually he moved to Oppdal to fix up an old farmhouse of a family friend. It was when Haugen and his wife decided to settle in Oppdal that Stikkmenn jumped back into life. “When smartphones and tablets became prevalent, I took Stikkmenn out of the pocket again. I think the way people want to play today means that there is much more need for games like Stikkmenn, people just want to relax and play something funny on the bus,” Haugen says and adds: “The support of kids, families, and the local government in Oppdal was what it took to help me push this snowball down the hill.”
will help lift up the Norwegian gaming industry and encourage more talent to take part. “My main mission is to make Stikkmenn and bring it to the world. My side mission is to do my part to help raise the profile of Norway’s gaming industry,” he finishes.
For more information, please visit: www.facebook/stikkmenn
With the financial support of Innovation Norway and the creative support of local students and gaming enthusiasts, Haugen and his indie team, Eight Legged Steed Studios AS, are now ready to launch the spearhead version of the game by early summer. For everyone – everywhere Essential to the development of Stikkmenn has been the help of Haugen’s five-year-old son Jonas and other kids like him. “Some of the best ideas we have so far came from small kids. My son, for instance, is my partner in the project and the boss of the kids’ stuff, and there are no lies with him. If he likes something, he tells us and if he does not think something is funny, he tells us. It is the most honest test to our game, and we are using the feedback from kids all along the way,” says Haugen.
Eric Holten Haugen and his five-year-old son Jonas working together; Jonas is the boss of the kids’ stuff.
Stikkmenn is set in Norway’s nature and combines Viking ancestry and Norse mythology.
Though Haugen’s wife is not a gaming enthusiast herself, he stresses that she too has been important to his work. “My wife is not a gamer, but she knows that I am following my dream, and she is very supportive. She knows that my son and I are doing it together, and she is really the best cheerleader I’ve got.” With all the support and help of his family and the local community, Haugen is positive that Stikkmenn will have a bright future. But he also hopes that the game
Issue 75 | April 2015 | 65