The 2009 Independent Games Festival celebrates independent and student video games. In this series, GameCareerGuide is stealing a peek at some of the games in the student competition.

In this Q&A, we learn from Andrew Williams about Impulse, an action and puzzle game with an emphasis on magnetic and explosive forces, built by students at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Game title: Impulse

Game description: Impulse is a student created action and puzzle game with an emphasis on magnetic and explosive forces. The player takes command of a ball and uses direct and indirect means of control to navigate the environments. Throughout the levels, the player will encounter explosions, black holes, and magnetic platforms that have been combined to create an entertaining experience.

School: Rochester Institute of Technology

Q: Tell us how Impulse came to be.

A: Impulse started off focused on explosions, but not in the sense to blow you up. We wanted to use the force of the explosions to propel a ball around. This idea eventually shifted to forces in general, through input from various team members on the design.

That's when we started to look at magnetism as one of the other means of moving the ball. Through talented engineers on our team and a lot of usability testing, we managed to build the game under a tight 10-week schedule.

Q: What was your goal in developing the game?

A: Impulse was built as a school assignment for a class called "Foundations of 2D Graphics Programming." The course definitely teaches you graphics programming, but more importantly, the only assignment is to build a 2D video game. The course is 10 weeks long, and you have to meet a minimum level of technical requirements. However, fun is a huge part of the grade, so we worked really hard to create a polished 2D video game that people enjoyed and we could be proud of at the end of the course.

Q: What do you think is the game's greatest asset? What sets it apart from other games in the IGF?

A: The game has two really important components to it.

First, the very core of the game is the physics. We spent a very long time building and tweaking this part of the game in order to get it to "feel" just right for the type of controls we gave to the player.

The controls are the second component that makes our game fun. We allow you to, for the most part, indirectly control the ball in the game. On the Xbox 360 controller, you can move the analog stick in any direction and press 'A' to explode off in that direction. This is on a short cool down that we came up with while balancing.

The other set of controls is based around magnetism. By holding down the left or right triggers, you can positively or negatively charge your ball. Some of the platforms are magnetic, so depending on the charge of the platforms and ball, you can attract or repel around the level.

The only direct control we give to the player comes when you are magnetically charged to any platform. Once magnetized to the platform, use the analog stick to roll your ball around the sides. In short, the way the physics feel, while controlling your ball, is what makes our game uniquely fun.