Editor's Choice

A Gentleman and a Scholar

The net outcome of that research is one of the most visually distinct platformers in recent history, a game that has earned a small but devoted following and the Odd Gentlemen their first publishing contract. In August, the Gentlemen announced that they had signed a deal with 2K Play to exclusively distribute the game via Xbox Live Arcade.

"We actually had met with the head, [Take-Two Chairman] Strauss Zelnick - he was at USC and we had lunch with him," Korba says. "He has a really strong opinion about just letting creative people be and giving them the support they need to do what they need to do."

That wasn't the case with the other companies the Odd Gentlemen spoke to about Winterbottom. "Some other publishers we went to, everyone really liked the idea, but some of them wanted to put their own spin on it - make it in color and all that kind of ridiculous stuff," says Korba. "We got pitches about, like we should take Winterbottom's mechanics and put licensed content in it. So like have the Tasmanian Devil instead of Winterbottom."

For Korba, that approach misses the point. It's not about making a game that will appeal with the largest number of players - it's about making a game that he would want to play. "When a team is passionate and they put love into their work, it shows. And I think people can tell that this isn't just some generic super-hyper character that was designed to shoot down a bunch of baddies. It's genuine."

Of course, true innovation spawns imitators, a lesson that indie developers have learned the hard way in recent years. "I think that more and more people are starting to look toward the indies," Korba says, "and unfortunately games like Crayon Physics have been straight ripped off - before Petri [Purho] could even release his game there were rip-offs and clones of his mechanic."

When Winterbottom sidles onto Xbox Live Arcade in early 2010, expect larger studios to notice. Indeed, one company may have already been inspired by the pie pilferer's time-shifting antics: Insomniac's most recent installment of Ratchet & Clank, A Crack in Time, features a similar recording and playback mechanic. When pressed, Korba acknowledges that the timing lines up, but says it's more likely the result of a "time zeitgeist" in game design than anything else.

"Everyone can copy a mechanic," says Korba, "but it's your particular game and how you're using it that makes it unique." And whether there will ever be another character like Winterbottom again, this is one student project that will likely be studied - and hopefully enjoyed - for years to come.

Jordan Deam would create his own time paradox if it allowed him to enjoy some delicious pumpkin pie any sooner than this Thursday.