We usually don’t have many drawings from the development of our games, but for Paleteria, we created a lot of sketches while planning how the game would work. We thought it would be fun to do a special edition of Flipline Rewind, sharing some of these early sketches to give everyone a small peek into what goes into the game development process. Click each of the sketches below to see a larger version!
 

Build Station

 
Initially, we thought the paleta molds would be upside-down, meaning you’d add the top layer first, then the middle, and finally the bottom, which is how real ice pop molds are usually set up. Many of our sketches show the paletas and molds this way. One of our main concerns was how what you see on the ticket matches what the customer holds in the end. If you were adding fillings upside-down, they would need to appear upside-down on the ticket too, so everything would be flipped when the customer held it! Ultimately, we decided it was more important for the paleta to stay right-side-up at the Build Station, so Papa Louie has specially-made molds with tubes and channels for the fillings.

Layering Paletas

 
We also had to decide how we wanted the paletas to look once they were made, as this would guide the design of the layering system and all the components needed to achieve the final appearance. You’ll see in these sketches that the paletas are still shown upside-down, as we hadn’t yet rotated the molds. Early on, we decided to always have three fillings, rather than keeping it open-ended like Bakeria’s pies.

Topping Station

 
We wanted to do something different with the toppings for Paleteria: Instead of just adding shakers and drizzles across the entire pop, we wanted players to be able to change the angle of the toppings being added. We had seen some great examples of fancy paletas decorated this way, and we wanted to capture that look for this game. This, of course, introduced new challenges, especially regarding the hands-on experience. Instead of dragging food left and right to pour toppings evenly, the “precision” part of the gameplay would involve dragging the paleta to the correct angle before adding the topping. Some initial sketches had the paleta suspended above, where you would dunk it into a bin below. When we decided to move the paleta into a falling “waterfall” of toppings instead, we needed to come up with a way to choose the topping first.

Drizzles

 
Drizzles were tricky to figure out, especially when we were thinking of dunking the paleta into round bins below. We brainstormed a bunch of ideas for nozzles and revolving sprayers, but streams drizzling downwards made the most sense. We sketched out how the drizzles might interact with the top edge of the paleta, and ultimately wanted it to ribbon across the whole surface.

Tickets and Rotations

 
We spent a lot of time thinking about how to make topping angles and rotations clear on the ticket. Originally the paleta was upside-down in the Build Station, and upside-down on the Topping Station if we were dunking it into bins. Should we make the rotation symbols relate to how the paleta looks right-side-up when the customer is holding it? Or also make them upside-down since the paleta is built that way? When we decided the paleta on the Topping Station would be sideways, we had the symbols relate to that position, and also made them look a bit like arrows so it was clear how to angle them. We also needed a natural way for molds to transition to this sideways rotation so players could keep track of what they were working on, so we had the molds turn sideways on the Chill Station once you add them to the freezer.

There were many other adjustments made as we worked on the game, but this provides just a glimpse into the planning stages before we begin programming or designing the final assets used in the game!
  
Papa’s Paleteria To Go! is available on iOS and Android!
 
                

Hey Everyone!

After a grueling FIVE day wait…

Papa’s Paleteria To Go is finally available for ANDROID PHONES & TABLETS!

Get ready to tantalize some taste buds in Papa’s Paleteria To Go, where you’ll craft mouthwatering paletas and ice pops in the seaside town of San Fresco, serving up seasonal delights, unlocking new ingredients, and growing your skills to satisfying even the pickiest of customers! MORE INFO…

Game Features

• Hands-on ice pop shop in the Papa Louie universe
• Multi-task between filling molds, chilling paletas, and topping the pops
• Custom chefs and drivers
• 12 separate holidays to unlock, each with more ingredients
• Earn and master 40 unique Special Recipes
• 90 colorful Stickers to earn for completing tasks
• 148 customers to serve with unique orders
• Use Stickers to unlock new outfits for your customers
• 129 ingredients to unlock
• Free-Play Mode in the Food Truck

Hey Everyone!

Today is the day! Papa’s Paleteria To Go is here and ready to play on iPhone and iPad!

Get ready to tantalize some taste buds in Papa’s Paleteria To Go, where you’ll craft mouthwatering paletas and ice pops in the seaside town of San Fresco, serving up seasonal delights, unlocking new ingredients, and growing your skills to satisfying even the pickiest of customers! MORE INFO…

Note for Android Users

UPDATE: Now also available on the Google Play Store!

Unfortunately, there is a delay in the availability of the game on the Play Store. The reason for this delay is not entirely clear to us, but according to Google Support, the game is still processing within their system. We are hopeful that the game will be available soon, and we will promptly update you as soon as it becomes accessible on the Play Store!

Hey Everyone!!

We have some big news for you all today! Papa’s Paleteria To Go will be playable on iOS and Android devices on Thursday, March 7th, 2024! Hey, that’s only seven days away!

Hey Everyone!

This week, we wanted to share an update on how development is going with Papa’s Paleteria To Go, and we’re thrilled to say that we’re in the middle of final playtesting right now!

What does this mean exactly? While we do plenty of playtesting as we’re working on the game, this final round of testing is where we play through the entire game and figure out if there’s anything we missed or anything that needs adjustments, and then fix those issues before submitting it to the app stores.

This first involves making sure everything works correctly on a variety of screen sizes, and testing on both slower devices and more powerful ones to see what needs to be optimized. After that, we test touch-screen and multi-touch controls at various sizes, and then it’s on to the final playthrough of the entire game. We make sure all the ingredients and customers are unlocking at the correct times, make adjustments to scoring and pacing, and test all of the Specials, mini-games, and stickers. We’ll work on fixing any issues as we go, and making sure everything is playing smoothly before preparing the final version of the game.

This time around, we’ve had to deal with issues with our development tools and new phone devices (which are thankfully fixed now!), so the process has taken a bit longer. To make sure all of the issues are fixed, we’ve also had to test the game on a whopping 14 devices this time, so it’s been a bit more time-consuming.

When we’re finished with final playtesting, we’ll then have to wait a bit for each of the app stores to review the game, and see if there are any adjustments they need. This part of the process can take a while, but as soon as we have a release date available, we’ll post about it right away on the blog!

We’re working hard to get the game to everyone as soon as possible, and we can’t wait until you can all play Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!
 

Happy Valentine’s Day!!

Not only are we commemorating this delightful occasion on the blog, but you’ll also have the joy of celebrating it in Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Hey Everyone!

We’re back again this week with another Sneak Peek! It’s been nearly EIGHT long years since this Foodini mini-game has seen the light of day, but in Papa’s Paleteria To Go, we are proud to say…
BURGERZILLA IS BACK!!!

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Hey Everyone!

This week, we’re excited to showcase a new feature we’ve added to Papa’s Paleteria To Go: Clothing Filters!

When shopping for clothing in the game, finding the perfect item can be challenging due to our extensive range of options. However, with the new green Filter button, you can quickly and easily narrow down your search.

If you’ve played Papa Louie Pals, this system might seem familiar, though it’s been spruced up to match the shop colors. By clicking on the Filter button, you’ll see icons for all the available subcategories. To refine your search, simply select a subcategory, like ”Tanks”.

Then, you can swiftly scroll through all the available Tank Tops to make your purchase! This new feature should save you a lot of time during your shopping sprees in Papa’s Paleteria To Go.

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Hey Everyone!

We’ve been super busy getting Papa’s Paleteria To Go ready for you all. We’re making good progress, though we did hit a few snags along the way – turns out, some of our game-making tools aren’t playing nice with the latest phone updates at the moment. It’s been a bit of a scramble to sort it out, but we’re on it! In the meantime, we thought you’d like a little teaser. Check out this sneak peek of the Food Truck in Papa’s Paleteria. Thanks for hanging in there with us – we promise it’ll be worth the wait!

As with past To Go gamerias, the Food Truck will be parked along the parade route, where you’ll see San Fresco’s iconic sailboats in the distance.

We’ll try our best to continue giving you sneak peeks when we have them, but rest assured, as soon as we have a launch date, we will let you know!!

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!

Hey Everyone!

This week, we are finally headed to the last station in Papa’s Paleteria To Go! The Top Station is where you will add all the finishing touches to the perfectly chilled paleta. This station has three main points of interaction. The green button attached to the paleta allows you to properly angle the pop before it gets topped. The second point of interaction is the topping dial, where you can scroll through all the ingredients that are available. To select a topping, all you need to do is drag its icon to the center slot and watch as that topping starts to cascade down inside the topping tumbler. The ticket indicates the angle at which each topping needs to be placed on the paleta.

Once you have chosen the correct topping and angled the paleta perfectly, it’s time to top the paleta. All you need to do is pull the tumbler towards the paleta by dragging the adjacent green arrow button.

As you drag the tumbler, the paleta will lock in place and slowly slip into the waterfall of toppings.

Once completed, release the arrow button to quickly return the tumbler to its original location.

Continue this for all the toppings that your customer has ordered.

When finished, drag the ticket to the green holder to present the delicious paleta to your patiently waiting customer.

Be sure to check back here for more Sneak Peeks of Papa’s Paleteria To Go!