We'd been hearing a lot about this new Beer Pong related game for Wii the past couple weeks. Even TIME Magazine reported on it. Apparently, America isn't ready to acknowledge their leaders of tomorrow are spending today binge drinking with a couple rounds of Beirut. We decided it was time to get to the bottom of the matter, so we went to the creators of "Pong Toss" and the Frat Party game series, JV Games, to find out how we too could get digitally drunk.
What led to the creation of a Beer Pong related Wii game?
The main goal for Frat Party Games is to create simple and fun games were a player doesn’t have to invest hours of game play. We want to create simple, fun and competitive games. We were always talking about the college style games we used to play and how much fun they are. A light just went off, those styles of games fit perfectly into our goal model. We choose Pong Toss as our first release based solely on its popularity.
What is your take on all the negative press, the name changes, and TIME Magazine?
I feel it’s really silly, we never anticipated such a severe reaction to the word "beer". I don’t think anybody did, especially with much worse imagery being out there. [Changed the name to "Pong Toss"] and the angry people are happier. The original game’s reference to alcohol was minimal - the name and a couple of static images.
If the games influence vs. rating is the public’s concern, then compare it against the movie industry where “G- Rated” Disney films have shown alcohol or primetime TV like the Simpsons or Family Guy where the main characters are irresponsibly using alcohol.
Do video games have more influence than any other form of media? We don’t believe that it does. How about going to a ball game and seeing your parents getting a tall cool beer and enjoying it. A real life interaction (in my opinion) will always be more influential than anything else. I’m still having a hard time wrapping my mind around the sensitivity to all this.
What would be the benefits of a game of digital Pong Toss over the obvious benefits of an actual basement game of beer pong?
Many benefits, foremost you don’t have to worry about “Disease ball or Nasty ball as some call it”. You get rid of the pain of setting everything up as well as the cleanup. In a small dorm room there may not be any space for a table, or some colleges do not allow a table or ping pong balls in the room for fear of students playing Beer Pong. Also there is a variation [in the videogame] called “Speed Pong”, which is a much faster paced version that would be impossible to play in real life, offering quick and very intense games.
The biggest benefit is that many women love to play Pong Toss.
Traditional beer pong games are sort of testosterone driven - but I know Wii is popular with the female demographic. Are you expecting a lot of girls to get into this as well?
When creating Pong Toss it was always our intention to make a really fun game for all sexes. Our #1 priority was to create an easy control system. We wanted to eliminate the complexity that is typically associated with video games. People, especially woman who usually don’t play video games are competing with everyone in minutes. Pong toss creates a great atmosphere were men and women can compete equally.
When can people plan on picking up a copy of Pong Toss?
Right Now! Pong Toss is available on the online Wii shopping channel in “WiiWare” for $8.00 dollars.
What other games are you thinking of for the Frat Party series? A Flip Cup Hero?
We are still in discussion on the next game, Flip Cup and Corn Hole have been discussed a lot but our focus right now is to release Beer Pong globally with the European market being next.
For more information, check them out at FratPartyGames.com
Awesome screenshots thanks to JV Games Inc.
