The musical road from Halo to Starbloom

By Tracey Lien on Dec 11, 2012 12.11.12

Developers at the table take out their iPads and show off rough builds of their games. Burns watches as they give impromptu tutorials to anyone who will listen. After a while, he takes out his own iPad and places it on the dining table. "Not all the sound has been put in," he says as he fires up an early build of his music game, Starbloom. Burns doesn't say or do much to sell his game. He's quiet and reserved, unsure if he should tell people how the game should be played. He pushes his iPad across the table, inviting another developer to try it out. Little planets appear on the iPad screen and begin circling a galaxy. As they hit certain points, bursts of energy emanate from the planets. The player uses their index finger to tap at the explosion before quickly realizing they're meant...