The stealth sequel to Memoirs is released! You can find it here:
The stealth sequel to Memoirs is released!
You can find it here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2610440/Baldrs_Squid_Isekai_A_Parody/
It’s no secret that I’ve been less than happy with the combat systems in my released games. While they are serviceable, a combination of technical and design inexperience, as well as time pressures, meant that I was unable to make them what I wanted them to be. But that’s to be e
It’s no secret that I’ve been less than happy with the combat systems in my released games. While they are serviceable, a combination of technical and design inexperience, as well as time pressures, meant that I was unable to make them what I wanted them to be. But that’s to be expected, after all, game development is a learning experience.
I’ve said a few times during the development of Memoirs that I was refining the combat in that game to be more fun and open, but that came at the cost of challenge, and in many ways, it was a crude system that lacked mathematical elegance.
Of course, what I want is a combat system that could stand alongside any of its peers, both video games and tabletop RPGs, and still hold its own. A system that provides a crunchy simulation of turn-based combat, one that is simple but still contains depth, and above all is fun to play.
A lofty goal for any game designer. Veteran RPG devs, people who have been working in this field for years, are still striving towards this goal. It’s something that I’ve personally desired for a long time too.
I certainly wasn’t going to achieve it in my first two or three games. But on my fourth, I’ll give it a shot :D.
This isn’t a system designed in a vacuum. I spent months contemplating what RPG enthusiasts really like about turn-based combat, as well as my personal preferences from both tabletop campaigns and the cRPGs I’ve enjoyed. Low numbers vs high numbers, types of damage mitigation, RNG vs determinism, build balance and tactical considerations.
In the end, what I have can neither be described as unique nor startlingly complex, but hopefully as something that is robust and fun.
I am very excited to unveil the Memory Battle System 3.0 with the Early Access launch of Baldr’s Squid Isekai next month, my low-effort parody game that is getting decidedly more high-effort every passing day. The same system will also be present in Vampire Syndicate and That Which Rises, although possibly with changes.
I hope you enjoy it, and as always, I appreciate your feedback.
Hi everyone! Hope your new year is going off to a great start! I personally haven’t made any resolutions for 2024 since I have a ton on my plate :D. Like, look at this insanity of a to-do list: Release 2 new games (Baldr’s Squid Isekai, That Which Rises) by year’s end Continue de
Hi everyone!
Hope your new year is going off to a great start! I personally haven’t made any resolutions for 2024 since I have a ton on my plate :D.
Like, look at this insanity of a to-do list:
I’m used to working on multiple things at the same time (Tactics Arena and Memoirs shared overlapping dev time and I also wrote a 175-page lore book). But even for me, this is ambitious. But don’t worry, I’m not overworking myself, even though my future games are going to be on a hyper-accelerated schedule.
Some of the most time-consuming parts of gamedev is caused by lack of experience, whether it’s technical issues, mechanical balancing or content/writing. Being an inexperienced developer is a lot like being blindfolded. You’re groping in the dark, hoping you’re going in the right direction.
Now that I’m reasonably experienced, it’s like the blindfold has been removed. And there’s also one large benefit of being mostly solodev: you have a complete picture of what you need. Combine these two things, and you get an incredible amount of clarity. It feels like I’m playing Tetris, but I intuitively know the blocks that are coming and how to place them.
I understand that I am in a unique position compared to most other gamedevs, and that I’m lucky to be here. That being said, the training wheels are coming off, and I’m looking very much forward to what I’ll be calling the “Main phase” (or maybe “Make it or Break it phase”) of my gamedev career.
I’m especially excited for Baldr’s Squid Isekai, which will introduce my completely overhauled RPG system. For my future games, I want mechanics to be more thoughtful and elegant, and also stray a little closer to the cRPGs that motivated me to enter gamedev. This also means expanded dialogue and character mechanics!
I might be really busy, but I kinda feel like this doggo:
Baldr’s Squid Isekai is approaching Early Access launch, likely sometime in February (yes, that soon). Wishlist it here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2610440/Baldrs_Squid_Isekai_A_Parody/
Hi everyone! My parody game's kickstarter campaign is ending! We have one more final stretch goal to meet, so if you're interested in another (funnier) game in the MoonFall setting, please check it out :D
Hi everyone!
My parody game's kickstarter campaign is ending! We have one more final stretch goal to meet, so if you're interested in another (funnier) game in the MoonFall setting, please check it out :D
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1619485858/baldrs-squid-isekai-a-parody
Hi everyone! This is going to be a long rambling essay-type thing, so feel free to skip it if you’re not into those. The only practical item I have to discuss is that the next installment in the MoonFall series, Baldr’s Squid Isekai, is nearing the end of its crowdfunding period.
Hi everyone! This is going to be a long rambling essay-type thing, so feel free to skip it if you’re not into those. The only practical item I have to discuss is that the next installment in the MoonFall series, Baldr’s Squid Isekai, is nearing the end of its crowdfunding period. So if a weird parody game with meta elements is interesting to you, go check that out here.
Okay, moving on. Some of you may know that I trained and endeavored to be a novelist. This fact will explain a lot about why my games are like the way they are. The MoonFall setting and the characters in it have been rattling around my head for almost 20 years now.
At times I play off my work as “just porn games,” and this is not entirely false modesty. I do think that my games are the products of a lone hobbyist with limited resources and experience, because that is nothing but the truth. But I also have tremendous, impractical ambitions for the series, and I think some of you who have delved deeper in, and peered behind the curtain, may have been entranced by it. At least, I hope so.
Like many creatives, I want to create something beautiful. Something profound, that stirs the human spirit and questions the basic principles that govern how we live our lives. The fact that I’m attempting this through a bunch of porn games could perhaps be explained as part of my own brand of irreverent humor.
Because of the above, I don’t approach game development the same way that most others, even indies do. My games, individually or taken as a whole, are not profit vehicles in which to slowly milk consumers so I could live extravagantly. Each of them are created with intent, puzzle pieces of a larger design.
While they can be enjoyed individually, they are designed to be part of a whole, slowly filling in a grand tapestry of secrets, lore, mysteries and characters. My games are in many ways more similar to novels in a long series than games.
I won’t lie, these attempts can sometimes be clumsy. There are numerous obstacles in tackling alone a project that would normally take entire teams of people. But I think there is great value in preserving a singular vision for a work, that every element of a game is made by a small team, or even a single person.
The opening installments of the series (The Singularity Wish, Singularity: Tactics Arena, Memoirs of a Battle Brothel) were my initial forays into the medium. They were learning experiences for me. The tentative first steps into unknown lands.
Now that I have some measure of my abilities, I will begin attempting more serious work. Expect a significant increase in production value and overall quality, especially when it comes to narrative as we move into a more steady production schedule.
And there is no time like the present. As the names of my games may indicate, the issues of artificial intelligence and our shared uncertain future are of great interest to me. We are living in, dare I say with some humor, interesting times.
The MoonFall series is my (perhaps fumbling) exploration of truth and meaning. Is that wildly grandiose for a bunch of porn games? Yes. Is it good art? I can’t tell, creators are cursed to forever be distanced from understanding the quality of their work.
But I could do far worse than chasing an unreachable dream. Something something, even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.
And whatever comes, I’m glad I get to share the journey with you. I think this is the start of something really special.
-ManlyMouseDan
Steam links: Baldr's Squid Isekai: Vampire Syndicate: Memoirs of a Battle Brothel: Transcript: Hi everyone, it’s been a while and I’ve been really busy, but I thought I would post an update on what I’m working on so far. After the unsuccessful Kickstarter for Vampire Syndicate, I
Steam links:
Baldr's Squid Isekai: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2610440/Baldrs_Squid_Isekai_A_Parody/
Vampire Syndicate: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1833570/Vampire_Syndicate_Gangs_of_MoonFall/
Memoirs of a Battle Brothel: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1177380/Memoirs_of_a_Battle_Brothel/
Transcript:
Hi everyone, it’s been a while and I’ve been really busy, but I thought I would post an update on what I’m working on so far.
After the unsuccessful Kickstarter for Vampire Syndicate, I’ve been helping TORii with a project that we’ve been working on for a few years now.
It’s called That Which Rises, and it’s sort of a cross between a grand strategy game and a cRPG with some rogue-lite mechanics and lovecraftian horror.
If you’re familiar with my previous games, you probably already have glimpses of my specific brand of unsettling eldritch beings, but this game will probably provide a more complete look at what they are.
It also takes place in the MoonFall setting, about 400 years before Memoirs. It’s set mostly in the Kingdom of Dyavol after the events of the Second MoonFall and the fall of Gushan.
Development is about 30 percent finished and we expect to release it late next year.
In the meantime, we’re doing something that’s probably a little stupid. What started off as a joke grew into something bigger, and we will be releasing a parody game based on Baldur’s Gate 3, Squid Game, and Three Houses. We will call it, Baldr’s Squid Isekai.
It’s really just a giant, affectionate joke about RPG tropes in general, and it’s running on the same gameplay systems as That Which Rises, so it’s kind of a test run for us. Expect this to come out very early next year.
Finally, we haven’t given up on Vampire Syndicate, of course. It’s my most ambitious project and it’s also my favorite.
I don’t know if other writers often talk about this, but sometimes when we’re really invested in something, we daydream about it. Stephen King called it “peering through a hole in the page.” And it is, like you’re poking your head through to another reality.
So… I’m taking pains not to screw it up. And you’ll hear about it more next year too.
2024 will be a big year for me. Not in the least because it will probably answer the question of whether I’ll be doing this whole video game thing longterm or not.
Anyways, thanks for attending my ted talk. Wish me luck.
Oh, and before I forget, there will also be a small content update for Memoirs next year too.
Hi everyone! We are pleased to announce that the game is going into full development! What does this mean? Basically, we've started to build out the game with a schedule towards completion. Now, there've been a few hiccups on the way, the biggest of which is that our previous cro
Hi everyone!
We are pleased to announce that the game is going into full development!
What does this mean?
Basically, we've started to build out the game with a schedule towards completion.
Now, there've been a few hiccups on the way, the biggest of which is that our previous crowdfunding efforts have failed and we have returned to an older artstyle.
But obstacles are something to be overcome and learned from.
We are now working towards a more episodic approach to the game: releasing it in smaller bites but with all the content that we had originally envisioned for it. With a seamless save system that will be shared across episodes, we are considering imitating something quite different from the standard for games: that of a series of novels.
Not only will this be easier for us to develop and save money, but it fits better with our grand, overly-ambitious plans for the Memory of Eternity franchise as a whole.
Needless to say, we are very excited to bring this section of the MoonFall setting to life.
Below are some screenshots. I'll have more news soon.
Hi everyone! We are returning to one of the old pixel styles that we were playing around with before we moved to the 3d rendered tokens. After your feedback, we decided to return to it. Here's two very early screens: A knight in an empty open-air market. A warlock inside. Let us
Hi everyone!
We are returning to one of the old pixel styles that we were playing around with before we moved to the 3d rendered tokens.
After your feedback, we decided to return to it. Here's two very early screens:
A knight in an empty open-air market.
A warlock inside.
Let us know your thoughts!
Hi everyone! I'm very happy to announce that TORii is resuming development on this game, although it will be going through yet another art charge (as a result of feedback that urged us to change to a different style). The new style will likely be a return to pixel art. There will
Hi everyone!
I'm very happy to announce that TORii is resuming development on this game, although it will be going through yet another art charge (as a result of feedback that urged us to change to a different style).
The new style will likely be a return to pixel art.
There will also be some mechanical changes to the game.
Expect more announcements soon!
Hi everyone! As I've said before, we're taking a break from working on this project due to low interest (and a failed kickstarter), but we are forging ahead with a very similar (also NSFW) game called Vampire Syndicate: Gangs of MoonFall. If you would like to check it out, come o
Hi everyone!
As I've said before, we're taking a break from working on this project due to low interest (and a failed kickstarter), but we are forging ahead with a very similar (also NSFW) game called Vampire Syndicate: Gangs of MoonFall.
If you would like to check it out, come over to the steam page at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1833570/Vampire_Syndicate_Gangs_of_MoonFall/
Or visit our discord server, where download links are available for the alpha demo: https://discord.gg/TcJUSPQ
Bad news :( The project failed to gather enough momentum or interest, so TORii's gone ahead and canceled the kickstarter as it was unlikely to meet its goals before the campaign ended. The project will also be shelved for the foreseeable future. But it's not over! TORii says she
Bad news :(
The project failed to gather enough momentum or interest, so TORii's gone ahead and canceled the kickstarter as it was unlikely to meet its goals before the campaign ended. The project will also be shelved for the foreseeable future.
But it's not over! TORii says she intends to return to the project later down the line, when she has better funding and more time to work on it.
You should be able to see a download demo button on the store page now. Already got a 1000 downloads! It's pretty rough though. I'm still busy finishing up my own game so I haven't had a lot of time to help TORii on TWR outside of marketing stuff. Let us know what you think!
You should be able to see a download demo button on the store page now. Already got a 1000 downloads!
It's pretty rough though. I'm still busy finishing up my own game so I haven't had a lot of time to help TORii on TWR outside of marketing stuff.
Let us know what you think!
TORii made some more artwork describing the game.
TORii made some more artwork describing the game.
Just a head's up that a demo will likely drop in June for the Steam Next Fest as we are preparing crowdfunding to improve the production value and visuals for the game.
Just a head's up that a demo will likely drop in June for the Steam Next Fest as we are preparing crowdfunding to improve the production value and visuals for the game.
Hi everyone, Tyranicon/ManlyMouseDan here. This project is TORii's but I'm helping with updates and marketing because she is a notorious recluse. I understand the store page isn't super detailed so here's a text dump on what we want out of this project. So we're finalizing stuff
Hi everyone,
Tyranicon/ManlyMouseDan here. This project is TORii's but I'm helping with updates and marketing because she is a notorious recluse.
I understand the store page isn't super detailed so here's a text dump on what we want out of this project.
So we're finalizing stuff for the alpha build, and we'll probably have enough for demo in a month or two. My part in this (writing and mechanics) is already mostly done, and I think there's a lot in here that appeals to old and new school RPG enjoyers.
On a very basic level, it's like Battle Brothers, but different content.
Settlements
Non-player forces
Faction mechanics
Player chargen
Player retinue
Skill trees
Game length
Difficulty