Hammerfight

Development

Hammerfight has a long history. Originally known as Hammerfall, it was first announced on June 14th 2007 when a user called GKosh (aka. Konstantin Koshutin) posted a demo for feedback purposes on the GameDev.ru forums (Google translate link).

Despite a low version number (0.2), the game was already at an advanced stage of development with many of the levels, models, weapons and features that would eventually appear in the full version. Also, thanks to an easy workaround for the demo's 60 minute time limit, players were able to spend as much time as they liked with it. It gained in popularity, also thanks to a rough English translation and a well-visited article on Fun-Motion.com.

At the 2008 International Games Festival (IGF), it was nominated for two awards - Seumas McNally Game Of The Year and Excellence In Visual Arts. It didn't win in either category (beaten by Crayon Physics Deluxe and Fez, respectively) but its profile was raised further.

Despite all this, there was little news, bar a few rumors, as Konstantin continued to polish the game in his available time and search for a publisher. Many feared Hammerfight had become vaporware before the appearance of the version v1.0 demo in July 2009, and the game's subsequent publication.

During all this time, Hammerfight was essentially a one-man project, with all art, design, programming, writing and sound by Konstantin Koshutin.

Most recently (April 2010), it received an officially-sanctioned PSP port in the form of Hammer Wars.