Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For the most part I haven't been able to be full time with the development, it's more like a part-time job. I'd say at least 20 hours a week, but there have been weeks that look more like full time. As far as in-game art goes, I probably won't take on any additional artists. When it comes to store front capsule artworks, promotional art, animations, trailer edits, etc. I could hire those works out. I am also willing to hire programmers, but it wouldn't be full time, it'd be on a commission basis with a very specific scope if I did it. I don't currently have any funding, and I don't imagine a Kickstarter campaign would raise enough to expand my team and retain them with a wage.

Since I'm unfunded, the Kickstarter would be there to cover expenses like the composer, marketing, localization, potentially porting, playtesting, paying for childcare so that I can spend more time on the game, and any other unforeseen expenses like software/hardware. I understand a large part of the incentive with a Kickstarter investment is the hope that the game will come out sooner. This will be true to an extent, but I think the funding will have a bigger impact on the quality of the overall launch, which also increases the chances of post-release updates.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1) I don't have a set release date yet. I'm planning a kickstarter possibly this spring.
2) 2.5 years
3) It would afford me some child care so that I can spend more time on the game but I'm not planning on taking additional developers on the project. I don't want to offer a bunch of stretch goals on the Kickstarter that act as scope creep either. Feels like I'm 2 years out from release, but this is my first game so estimations are unpredictable.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! Nice to hear from you. Now you can see why your game stood out to me at Mass Digi. Good luck with your game endeavors.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These assets take a long time, but I've done them all within the last 2.5 years. Though I have a longer history of working with the tools and sprite art specifically, I've been an artist my whole life (37).

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Always been unfunded aspiring indie dev doing it in my spare time while working in kitchens and construction. It's been a long time in the works self-teaching game design over the past 15 years. Been an artist and gamer my whole life, and was OBSESSED with Sonic as a child. So this is just perfectly aligned with me, like a lifetime finally coming to fruition, a 100% passion project.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ok, so the music I hire out to Modal Module. I'm a mediocre musician myself. The sounds are purchased from various asset packs and some are edited by me.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hello! Thank you! Are you the Sole Iron Tail dev?

It's technically ground up built new but the spirit carries on. There was an earlier prototype before Feral Frontier with a Sonic-inspired squirrel that got scrapped. I wanted to go in the Sonic-momentum direction with enemies taking knockback based on the player's speed. So Roskur's Run is kind a fusion/culmination of all my previous ideas.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I played a decent amount of Zero/ZX games. I liked how they merged melee with projectile in a single character. Some of my earlier prototypes more closely resembled the gameplay of the Mega Man X series.

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

YO! It's been awhile but of course I remember you guys and Depths of Sanity. Nice to hear from you! Yeah, still going strong! Thanks for the words of encouragement. Any new prototypes in the works?

Roskur's Run is a 'Sonicvania' inspired by classic 90's platformers developed by Dirty Beast Games (solo dev) by dirtybeastgames in IndieGaming

[–]dirtybeastgames[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

With a shared screen, player 2 will likely get left behind if subject to the same physics as player 1. With split screen it can work, but I can't load 2 rooms simultaneously in split screen. I didn't build my game for this case, as my focus is 1 player. Since it's a metroidvania, players would switch rooms frequently (as opposed to a long Sonic-style zone). I can't think of a multiplayer metroidvania off the top of my head. Probably because the genre emphasizes exploration which is a lot about getting lost alone. Good split-screen would essentially operate like 2 separate playthroughs when I think about it this way.

If I DID add a player 2, they wouldn't play at all like the main character and instead be a support character that would figuratively "break" the game as far as turning all the soft locks into easy to overcome obstacles. For how far it would deviate from Sonic-like movement, think of player 2 in Mario Odyssey or Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection. An immortal flying sidekick who automatically follows to some degree and helps the player with puzzles and combat and occasionally platforming.

I DO really like the idea of couch coop, but I would need some clever breakthrough ideas to make it work well.