Star Rift Saga has been a game that I've been working on for a long time now. SRS is an action-platformer with some light RPG elements and some metroidvanian ideas. It has platforming, exploration, and various weapons as you'd expect, but also status effects and inventory management like an RPG. I've been working on it almost exclusively by myself since the beginning, so everything you see is placeholder pixel art and assets drawn mostly by me. The game started relatively small, but has quickly grown into the largest game I've ever made by a long shot. Today I'd like to talk about where the game is and where it's going, and how you can help make the game a reality.
The Current State of the Game
To start off, I'd say the game is about 90% content complete. The main story is playable from the opening to the credits roll, with the exception of the final boss and some optional bosses. There's also a lot of skill chips that I have to add from a large master list that I have, as well as other collectables that I keep on adding. Of course, there's no shortage of balancing, adjusting, and refining that goes on (it feels like there never won't be, especially as I have more people playtesting the game internally!) but the game itself is nearly finished. So why is the release date so vague and distant? Why isn't the game in your hands?
What's the next step?
Video games are a fairly complex medium, and they involve a wide variety of disciplines to make. While I'm a decent game designer and coder (just don't look at the spaghetti that is my code), I don't have all of those skills on my own. This is where I need the most help. The next major step is crowdfunding. While most video games that are crowdfunded are asking for funds to create the entire game, this one is going to be a little different since the core game is mostly already done. I don't need funding to create a game, I'm not trying to sell you an idea for a game. I've already made the game, and I'll be seeking funding to hire people with the talents necessary to create the pixel art and audio to make the game worth your time and money. I want SRS to be all that it can be, and that requires some money to pay artists what they deserve for their work. Expect to see news of the campaign soon.
In the meantime...
I try to post to social media twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. I tend to post screenshots and short videos highlighting specific mechanics and previews of the state of the game. If you want to see more, that's a great place to start. It really helps if you follow along at whatever social media channel you use, and you get a sneak peek as things develop. I'll try to respond to any questions or other comments there as well.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
My goal is to be transparent about where things are, what the plan is, and what the current roadblocks are. This will be especially true after the crowdfunding campaign. These channels will be where most updates will happen.
-JCV