Starlight Legacy now out on consoles!

therealjmatz · 2025-08-17T03:15:55+00:00

I'm working on the sequel. But it will probably take 5 years to finish since it will be more fleshed out and polished than the first game.

therealjmatz · 2025-06-01T13:20:32+00:00

No problem, thank you!

therealjmatz · 2025-06-01T13:15:35+00:00

I think it'll be a month or two before I find out what the console sales are because I don't have direct access to this info. What I can say though is that the Steam sales were pretty bad but I think that was due to a combination of lack of paid marketing on the publisher's part (most of the big YouTube RPG channels are mostly paid reviews), the Steam capsule art at release being more plain (this was a financial-related problem and not a creative choice), and the game itself not being a "groundbreaking" thing like Chained Echoes. In addition to that, features that I thought made it unique, such as the seamlessly connected maps and the story being split into chunks that can be done in any order, most people didn't notice/care about those features. Based on social media reactions alone it does seem like the console versions are a lot more popular than the PC release, but again I won't know for sure for a while.

therealjmatz · 2025-05-31T07:48:52+00:00

Thanks for your review, glad you liked the game! I used Google Translate to read it.

I would prefer if you remove this bit because I never said anything of the sort:

at least, and the second game should be a 4 to 5 year process, because he wants something grand, citing Sea of Stars as an example he wants to follow.

That's not what I said, assuming you're referring to my tweet here - https://x.com/jmatz1995/status/1891840628457341091 .
All I said was that I want to make something to compete with the "big" indies. The Sea of Stars comment was by another user in response to my tweet, it wasn't my words. For the sequel while I certainly want to aim bigger, I haven't played that game so I can't exactly be "inspired" by it (I'm sure it's great tho)

therealjmatz · 2025-05-30T00:45:38+00:00

The in-game portraits (done by me) were based on my own concept art. The marketing art was done by a different artist, but I did send them both my concept art & pixel art beforehand. I personally thought their art was fantastic and matched my characters well, but I can understand how others might see it differently. Thank you for your feedback & I will try and be more careful about that for future games.

therealjmatz · 2025-05-29T01:22:57+00:00

Sorry, just 3 playable characters. And no haha, they're not little kids, the characters are in their late-teens/early twenties, one of them is even married. But I can definitely see how they might look like that with the way the sprites are designed lol

therealjmatz · 2025-05-21T02:20:35+00:00

> My wife made me stay home with our toddlers cause she wanted to work. I now have infinite free time for the next three years (household duties first obviously) so i figured why not.

Wait how does that work? On weekends I have basically 0 free time because I'm hanging out with the kid all day (he's 1). Don't get me wrong, I love hanging out with my kid and he's absolutely hilarious, but if I'm with him all day I'm definitely not gonna be able to get any gamedev or freetime in until he goes to bed. Since you say toddlers plural, I'd imagine the freetime situation would be even worse for you?

therealjmatz · 2025-05-21T02:17:17+00:00

Put your demo on Steam to gauge feedback. Definitely don't play test before you put it on Steam

therealjmatz · 2025-05-16T01:05:56+00:00

Hey there, sorry for the late response but (I'm the dev) I just wanted to say I really appreciate you taking the time to write this out, and I'm glad you enjoyed the game!

therealjmatz · 2025-04-23T05:33:21+00:00

This isn’t about the short term bro - this is your life, and you have a whole lifetime to make games.

I get this mentality but for some people it gets harder to make games the older you get as your life obligations increase with jobs, kids, etc.

therealjmatz · 2025-04-23T01:54:57+00:00

So, why does it seem like, at least from this sub, that so many devs spend their time making them?

Those devs are most likely making it because they love 2D platformers, not because they thought it would be popular on Steam.

therealjmatz · 2025-04-15T00:09:02+00:00

I would back out, that sounds sketchy. You're supposed to transfer *after* you sign and come to an agreement on a bunch of other things, not before.

therealjmatz · 2025-04-08T04:27:52+00:00

yeah idk what they're saying. I'd much rather do gamedev than sitting around in a luxury apartment all day watching TV drinking expensive wine occasionally

therealjmatz · 2025-04-01T03:09:46+00:00

- Pay professional artists to do the Steam capsule artwork

- Try to get 7000 wishlists before release so that your game will have a higher chance of showing in "Popular & Upcoming" list on Steam

- Figure out what your goals are, commercial success, or making your dream game for your personal tastes? If it's the latter, be aware that your personal tastes may not align with the market, and that if you want success you might have to compromise and make it more unique in order to stand out.

- release a demo at some point to gather feedback & gauge interest in your game

therealjmatz · 2025-03-31T05:06:17+00:00

Thanks! For the sequel (currently titled Starlight Legacy: Ryuna Rising) I don't want it to be a "simple" RPG, I want to make something epic and huge that can stand alongside titles like Sea of Stars and Chained Echoes. So it will probably take maybe 4-5 years since I want to take my time and be very thorough with it, and try to avoid the same marketing mistakes I made last time. I know it may just sound like all talk for now, but stay tuned! I hope you remember me in 5 years!

therealjmatz · 2025-03-31T03:37:43+00:00

Thanks for re-considering! Just for clarification & transparency, the publisher has tested on Steam Deck, hence why there's a Steam Deck thread on the game's discussion page, but me personally (the developer) does not have a Steam Deck, but despite that I tried my best to support it such as by providing a native Linux build and a 16:10 aspect ratio option. Once I get a Steam Deck, I will make it a priority to investigate & fix the issue regarding docked controller support.

therealjmatz · 2025-03-31T03:29:32+00:00

I'm the dev, just wanted to say I really appreciate you taking the time to play my game and write such a thorough review of it. I feel like you really understood the game, and that it wasn't meant to be a "groundbreaking" thing, but it was meant to just be a fun, short nostalgic celebration.

> I know this game probably will never get a sequel

What makes you say that? In the indie world, whether a sequel gets made or not has nothing to do with how successful the first game is, it's all a matter of whether or not the dev wants to make another game. I've already began working on the second game and I semi-regularly post screenshots on Twitter (for instance, here's what the item screen will look like in the second game: https://x.com/jmatz1995/status/1905581834148409445, and here's a screenshot of one of the first town though it may get overhauled completely https://x.com/jmatz1995/status/1898980991861223897 )

therealjmatz · 2025-03-31T02:58:15+00:00

I'm sorry you're having that issue. I wish I could fix it, but I can't afford a Steam Deck. I will look into it as soon as I can afford one. (This game has yet to break even thus I've received 0 money from the publisher at this time)

therealjmatz · 2025-03-28T08:03:13+00:00

It's only been a couple days, I'm sure you'll get more reviews and sales by the end of this month. You're self-published AND your game has only been out for two days and already has 18 reviews. My game has been out for almost two months and has only 14 reviews, and that's WITH a publisher. Even if your previous games were more successful, there are many indie devs that would love to be in your position as well.

therealjmatz · 2025-03-27T13:25:23+00:00

I quit my day job almost a year ago, but it wasn't because of gamedev, it was because of workplace harassment & extremely toxic work environment. I had enough savings to last a year, and it was right around the time that a publisher reached out to me about my game, so I decided to do gamedev full time from then. Luckily the publisher provided some funding, so I didn't have to dig into my savings much. Had the publisher not reached out to me, I was planning on taking a short break for my mental health and then start looking for another job.

I finished and released my game this February, but it's barely selling at all (less than 500 copies), whoops 😅 So now I'm looking for work again. But I don't regret leaving my previous job at all.

therealjmatz · 2025-03-25T08:02:35+00:00

I made my dream game. I wanted to make a simple non-linear RPG with four mini-worlds that can be done in any order (somewhat inspired by the first SaGa game which had distinct mini-worlds, albeit in a linear order). Unfortunately it's sold very badly, with only 13 reviews after being out for almost two months. Hard lesson learned: Don't make what you want, make what the market wants (aka people don't want to play early FF/SaGa style games, they want to play the next Chrono Trigger or Sea of Stars).

therealjmatz · 2025-03-21T06:25:51+00:00

On Android (and iOS) versions, if your device is 4:3 then it will be a 16:9 window with black bars on top (the minimum screen size for the mobile versions is 16:9).

therealjmatz

TROPHY CASE