99Vidas

99Vidas
Developer(s)	QUByte Interactive
Publisher(s)	QUByte Interactive
Producer(s)	Marivaldo Cabral
Designer(s)	Bruno Carvalho
Composer(s)	Rafael Langoni Smith
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Playstation 4, Playstation 3, Playstation Vita, Xbox One
Release	December 22, 2016 Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux WW: December 22, 2016 PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita NA: July 18, 2017 Xbox One WW: TBD
Genre(s)	Beat 'em up
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

99Vidas (Portuguese for "99 Lives") is a side-scrolling beat 'em up video game developed and published by QUByte Interactive, inspired by the classics of the genre of the late 1980s and 1990s, such as Double Dragon, Final Fight, Golden Axe, and Streets of Rage. It was first released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux in late 2016, followed by PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in 2017, after a successful crowdfunding campaign in 2015.

Gameplay

99Vidas is a side-scrolling Beat-em-up featuring six playable characters (with five more unlocked through multiple play sessions, bringing the total amount of playable characters to 11), and multiple cooperative and competitive game modes, for up to four players, which can be played either locally or online.

Each character has unique attributes, like speed and strength, as well as an elemental alignment (Fire, Water, Wind, Lightning, et al), which modify their regular attacks, combos and special moves. Different from more traditional games of the genre, characters gain experience points by defeating enemies and collecting special items which can then be used by the player to upgrade their abilities and combos, or even unlock new ones.

Game Modes

Campaign

Playable either Online or Locally. Can be played solo or with up to four players cooperatively. Players progress through the story, fighting the enemy forces, in pursuit of the 99Vidas.

Versus

Playable either Online or Locally. Two to four players can play head-to-head competitive matches, until there's only one standing.

Survival

Playable either Online or Locally. Can be played solo or with up to four players cooperatively. Players face several waves of enemies, with a limited amount of lives and an ever-increasing difficulty, for the top spot on the Leaderboards.

Plot

99Vidas is set in a fictional anachronic universe, inspired by video games and the pop culture of the 1980s and 1990s. The game begins when an artifact known as 99Vidas goes missing. This artifact is believed to hold such great power it could bring darkness and chaos to our very existence, should it ever fall into the hands of those with evil intents. As the Guardians of the 99Vidas, granted the Power of the Elements, bound to live through the ages to protect the artifact, it is your responsibility to face the forces of evil, defeat the Evil Boss and his six henchmen, and retrieve the 99Vidas.

Development

The development of 99Vidas started in early 2015 as a project of developer QUByte Interactive in partnership with the Gaming Podcast 99Vidas from Brazil. The idea was to develop a brand new Beat 'em up that would both pay tribute to the classics of the genre while also updating the gameplay with more modern elements.

Prior to initiating a crowdfunding campaign the developers wanted to have something to show the backers so they could better understand the concept behind the game, so a first demo was developed using Unity featuring hand-drawn sprites and sound samples to emulate the look and feel of the 16-bit. After the demo was completed the decision to start a crowdfunding campaign was announced in July 2015.

The initial goal was to raise R$ 80,000.00 Brazilian Real for the Steam version of the game. The campaign went on to raise a total of R$ 127,309.78, enabling the development of the console versions – Playstation 4, Playstation 3, Playstation Vita, Xbox One. Simultaneous to the crowdfunding campaign the games was also submitted to the Steam Greenlight process, which was cleared in less than a week following approval by the Steam Community, allowing the developers to self-publish the game on the Steam digital marketplace.

The game was then released on December 22, 2016 on Steam and on July 18, 2017 on PS Store for Playstation 4, Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita.