Salthill man hopes to make hay with labour of love game

On the day he celebrated his 30th birthday, Salthill computer games developer JP Vaughan had an even bigger milestone to feel proud about.

It was the day his first game, Hay Ewe, hit the global market on the App Store.

Living in a cabin at the back of his parent’s house, slogging for 12 hours a day in front of a screen and subsisting on endless supplies of cheap Pot Noodles, there were times when he thought about giving up.

Even more so, when fielding lucrative job offers from companies eager to snare his prolific computer programming skills.

But he and Sligo business partner Christian Schinkoethe were determined to soldier on, quitting their jobs last December to work full-time on bringing the game to market. They have set up a company called Rocket Rainbow.

“The rewards are just so big. I never feel as if I’m doing work. I just love it. At one point there were five us working on this game, between friends and freelancers – in Dublin, London, Galway and the Netherlands,” JP recalls.

Punters who nonchalantly download a game for free on their mobile device as they relax on the train probably have no idea the work that goes into it.

JP estimates his game has cost in the region of €120,000 to get to where it is this week.

If he sells 40,000 units – at €4.49 a pop, creating €179,600 in revenue – he will be happy as it will give him the impetus to start working on the next one.

Centring on the adventures of Matilda the sheep, Hay Ewe is a described as a fast-paced puzzle game set in a world full of characters and colour. Matilda is a natural-born leader with the unfortunate task of rounding up the ever-mischievous lambs. Gamers must navigate challenging puzzles and avoid treacherous obstacles such as a hungry fox to deliver the lambs to safety.

Hay Ewe is available to download for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch via the App Store for €4.49.

Read more in this week’s Galway City Tribune