Ten years ago today, we embarked on a trip that would change our lives…
Our first game, Highway Blossoms, was released a decade ago today. It's older than Studio Élan is, and has gone through a number of changes since that day. Amber and Marina's story has found an audience around the globe, taking their journey much further than we could've ever imagined. To this day, new people continue to discover the game and join our community through it, for which we'll always be grateful.
If you haven't had the chance to play the game yet, both the base game and the sequel DLC Next Exit are on sale on Steam for 75% off! We're also holding a special sale on our webstore, where you can get a physical copy in either the Classic or Webstore editions for half off! We also have a limited number of a special bundle available, featuring your choice of game style, the soundtrack, artbook, a commemorative postcard, and a random HB keychain for just $50!
And of course, to celebrate the occasion, we have a couple updates and things to share. First up, moekki drew this adorable illustration featuring the leading ladies. As one of the lead artists for Next Exit, moekki's style immediately added so much character and personality to the girls.
Secondly, we know there have been a lot of questions about the light novel adaptation that was funded as a stretch goal in our 2023 Kickstarter. While we don't have anything to share from it right now, we can promise that it hasn't been cancelled or abandoned, and we hope to have more on that later this year. The LN won't just be a retelling of the game, but will also feature some new characters and plotlines, more akin to how we'd plan the story if we made the game today.
Something else that was created as part of that Kickstarter campaign was a Highway Blossoms-themed short story called "Block Island." Written by Syon, it's a side story that features Amber and Marina several years after the events of the game. It was commissioned by a few of our backers, who have graciously allowed us to share with everyone. It's available for free on our Patreon, check it out there!
Finally, the big news for the day! After first being announced a few years ago, we're excited to say that Highway Blossoms will finally be coming to consoles later this year! We're looking at a Q3 release right now - we'll share a release date and all the platforms it'll be launching on once we've confirmed those details. Big thanks to Sometimes You for helping us with this release!
We don't know what the future holds for Amber and Marina's story, but we're very proud of what's out there already. As always, we appreciate the support - thank you for caring about these characters for so long. To end things, below are a couple brief messages from Syon and Josh, the original writers and creators of HB.
It’s difficult to articulate the sheer scope of impact Highway Blossoms has had on my life. I wrote it when I was 16 and 17, released it when I was 18, and now I’m here looking back on how it has defined my adulthood thus far as a 28 year old man. The Block Island novella is a reflection on that. I’ve grown up (arguably). So have Amber and Marina. They will continue to age with me, and I suspect they will also continue to foreshadow and inform my own life, as they’ve done so many times already. - Syon
Every time I look back on HB and the experience of creating it, I find myself profoundly grateful. It was one of the most exciting times of my life, where it really felt like the sky was the limit and we could dream as big as we wanted to. I was also pretty young at the time, without much of an idea of how the world worked. Although things have changed a lot since then, one thing hasn't: I'm still so, so glad to have met the people I did through this game, and the doors that it opened. Following HB's release, when I started putting together Studio Élan, a few of the first members I reached out to were folks who had played HB and gave feedback or criticism on it. I've made friends for life through some of those random conversations. It's sometimes a little hard for me to return to Amber and Marina's story, because I can see all the amateur mistakes that we made or things that I'd do differently now, or to get into the mindset of characters as young as them. But also, I know that many of those same things are what people love it for, and love them for. I wouldn't be here without Amber and Marina, or any of the team that first worked on the game. So here's to them, here's to you, here's to us. Thank you. - Josh
Thank you again for all of the support! You can follow us on socials below and check out our recent yuri visual novels on Steam here.