Orion’s Odyssey is one of Kickstarter’s latest success heading exclusively to a Nintendo platform. To find out more about the game, and the developer behind it, we\’ve interviewed Ryan Morrison, the CEO from Island Officials….

Don\’t forget to check out our huge Kickstarter feature, which highlights every game coming to the Wii U & 3DS,

Can you explain to our readers who Island Officials are, and what games they may have played before from you?

Island Officials is a diverse group of developers from the southern New Jersey area who have been developing games and mobile applications since 2008. Prior to Orion’s Odyssey, we developed the predecessor, \’Hands On! Tangrams\’, as well as a number of mobile apps. This quarter we plan on releasing a PC game called Pixel Lincoln and a iOS Android title called Frantic Frog.

What did you play when you were growing up? Do you have a favourite game, system or gaming memory?

One of the things we pride ourselves on is that our team comes from vastly different walks of life, each with their own experiences and influences which inspire their work. Games like EarthBound, Mega Man, Resident Evil, Splinter Cell, Rampart, Fire N Ice, Sonic, Mario, Final Fantasy, Halo, Silent Hill, Assassin’s Creed, Bioshock and more are all talked about regularly around the office.

Orion’s Odyssey is billed as a comedy-puzzle game for DSiware and the 3DS eShop, but what actually is Orion’s Odssey?

Orion’s Odyssey is a puzzle game that tells the story of a robot named Orion who finds he has the unique ability to create anything he can imagine as long as he understands the basic geometry of the object. He decides to come to Earth to use his ability and help people with their various problems and make a few friends along the way. The player assists Orion by creating the items he makes using pattern blocks on the bottom screen. However, Orion only knows about the planet through research he’s done on his spaceship, so his solution to problems and the items he makes for people tend to be rather unique.

You had originally planned to release this on a cartridge and alluded to fact on your Kickstarter page the market has changed and you were having trouble finding a publisher. Why do you think this is? Do you think Nintendo could do anything to regain this lost market?

As mentioned on the Kickstarter, it wasn\’t really a matter of the game itself, it was the Nintendo DS format. We began developing the game when the DS was still a big ticket item but only months before the announcement of its successor, the 3DS. Now that the 3DS is out, retail space for Nintendo DS games has shrunk and publishers are, understandably, moving on to the next big thing. While we believe that the original DS still has a lot of life in it, with over 100 million units sold and many users who haven\’t moved on to adopt the 3DS yet, we also understand the tough business decisions made by publishers and retailers who need to cater to those who have as well as push the 3DS to the same heights as its predecessor.