Tiny foreword from Derrick:
First of all, welcome to the blog for Pio the Pioneering Penguin! This "Development Log" series started in July 2025, which is over a year (!!) after development of Pio began! So it is back-dated to the best of my ability to the dates when that first year's development milestones happened. I'm excited to retread these memories and turn them into stories! Just writing this first one out feels like I'm writing an autobiography, but I promise not to be arrogant in my writing!
Once these stories catch up, the back-dating will end. However, the development will continue, because just like Pio's ambition, my desire is for Pio to grow and explore more of the world!
"Maybe even bring a small toy buddy with you!"
I was hanging out with my brother and some friends when the topic came up of going on some day trips. However, with every group there comes challenges, like scheduling, and everyone's schedules just didn't seem to line up with anyone else's. It seemed like a big trip was not going to happen any time soon, but I still wanted to do something! So my brother had this idea (I'm going to paraphrase, but these quotes give the gist of what he said):
"Just go on your own, maybe even bring a small toy buddy or something to take with you".
And yeah, I could just go on my own, but that second part really resonated with me. I just responded with a "like what?", and he elaborated:
"I don't know, just go to the dollar store and pick up some silly plush toy and take it with you on your trip, and send us pictures"
I thought it was a funny idea! It seemed innocent and something I can just do very quickly. But the more I thought about it, the more this foolish ambition came over me. I could get a random toy, but surely there must be a service that turns ideas into plush toys. Heck, I bet it would be even better if they had a drawing that I can turn into a plush toy. Maybe I can make it myself! Spoiler: I could not. But I figured that out later. What came first was the character.
The Binder Paper Sketch
I have seen the trope time and time again where someone designs a whole computer algorithm or a logo design on a napkin at a restaurant. The idea comes so quickly that this genius takes a napkin and scribbles a rudimentary idea for what their whole future is going to look like for the next 20 years (wasn't this the whole macguffin of the second Knives Out movie?).
I'm not going to suggest that I'm a genius by ANY means. I'm just a guy in Hayward, CA that wants to take a toy to a cool place. But I ask my brother and his wife for a piece of binder paper, which his wife has and I start drawing. I haven't drawn on a piece of paper in what has felt like half a decade, but it felt right instead of finding my phone and sketching with my finger. So I sketched.
What came out was a combination of a few things that I really liked! I love penguins, and while I don't have penguins decorating my room or very many toys or images of them anywhere, I do have a love for the adorable animals. I also love the latest Zelda games, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, and the koroks are a cute inspiration for Pio's backpack and how big it is in comparison to him.
I made two sketches at that time, the first with this clumsy pose, and the second with something more grounded. I knew from the beginning that Pio would be a wonderfully ambitious fella, someone who, despite his size, is always ready to move with a pep in his step.
So, who is Pio?
At the time when I made him, I really didn't have a clue who Pio was. There were very few details I came up with for him, most of which have stuck with him through his entire development thus far:
- Pio is an ambitious little buddy! He doesn't back down from a challenging trek if it means that he gets to see something cool or if he can do something with his friends!
- Pio is a friend! He is kind, fluffy, and filled with a warm personality that wants to go with all his friends to do amazing things!
- Pio is an adventurer! From the massive pack alone, you can tell that he is overly-excited to get out there and make some new memories. He might have packed a little too much, but that just means he is ecstatic about the upcoming journey.
At this time, I hadn't really done a full improv-style brainstorm on who Pio is, but for a character like Pio, maybe it is better not to! I want Pio to be an encouraging blank slate to get young adults, kids, parents, teachers, students... everyone outside, exploring, and admiring the beauty of our planet. While this principle is what started to guide a lot of my future decisions in what direction to take Pio, I didn't realize it yet, and as of the sketch, I was designing a personal adventure buddy. Little did I know that he was going to turn into so much more!
