[RPG] Swords: RPG ~ Mission Statement (Patreon)

When I post new comics, I get a lot of comments like this:

And that is why I am working on a RPG Maker title for Swords. And it is going to take a long time. And it will change a lot in that time.

Firstly, let's consider the bigger picture:

I'm still working on the Swords webcomic

I have other medium-term commitments to STARS and DREAM TEAM SUPREME

I am working on the Cut The Deck "Choplet's Dungeon" expansion to take to two conventions for player feedback in May

I have a lot of sticker club mail to send!!

I have a low desire to do another Kickstarter while there are loose ends on the last one (about 200 people haven't contacted us about their copies of the game) - during the first Kickstarter, ex-patrons threatened to dox me because the Patreon Swor'nment wasn't done and I don't need that kind of energy a second time

What I am actually aiming forI want to make an RPG that feels like the comics. Short storylines that converge at the end in one final, epic battle.

A prologue, then 8 chapters that can be played in any order, each focusing on one of the series iconic characters, that all play a little differently, structured something like this:Using Kishōtenketsu, the four-act structure used in Mario games:

Introduce a new mechanic

Develop the new mechanic

Add a twist on the new mechanic

Conclude using the new mechanic

Using the Story Circle, as popularized by Dan Harmon:

You: Establish the protagonist

Need: Something isn't right

Go: Crossing the threshold

Search: The road of trials

Find: Meeting the goddess

Take: Paying the price

Return: Bringing it home

Change: Master of both worlds

Using the Boss structure of the Megaman games:

8 bosses that can be dealt with in any order, and each one gives you a weapon that is really good against 1 of the other bosses

Visual novel style sections with the capacity to be fully voice-acted (but that's not a dealbreaker for me currently)

Non-negotiable Character arcs or you guys will definitely bully me:

Quest Sprout

Choplet

But other characters like Early Bird don't really need their own bespoke storyline so there might be other ways to unlock characters.

Finally, it all comes together with the 8+ characters you've unlocked as you head into the final battle against The Big Bad Evil Guy.

This structure opens up the ability to add more chapters, with their own balancing, that build new layers into the Epilogue.

I've got lots of ideas for unique mechanics - some I can definitely pull off in RPG Maker, others... maybe. MAYBE.

Why its important to do this by myselfAdding more people adds risk and risk makes funding harder to obtain. Growing a team means spending less time making the game and more time managing the other people who make the game. Lots of people are asking how they can help and I appreciate the passion to work for free, but free means you can walk away at any time and leave me with code I don't know what to do with. It's not a practical relationship. I'd rather pay people.

There's a real risk of vibe-coding and AI use nowdays too. I'd rather make something small, borderline prehistoric and artisanal that I can proudly say is authentically Swords. I'd rather stand out as the greatest RPG Maker game of all time than make an AA Unity game that gets lost in the noise.

Even so, all of the art is being made in 4k and scaled down to 720p for RPG Maker, so it's all future proofed if I do change engines. There is a new 2.5HD RPG Maker coming soon that can make games in the style of Octopath Traveller, there's a good chance I'll move to that one.

My credentialsI worked for PikPok as a Senior Quality Assurance Tester for 7 years, doing QA for all these titles:

Into The Dead, Into The Dead 2, Into The Dead (Gear VR), Into The Dead (Oculus VR), Into The Dead 2 (Switch)

Shadow Wars

Breakneck, Breakneck (Steam/VR)

Doomsday Clicker, Dungeon Inc, Rival Stars Basketball

(Adult Swim) Robot Unicorn Attack 2, Monsters Ate My Metropolis

(Third-party) Scorch Trials: The Game, Glow Worm Adventure

Several titles under NDA

And then Clusterduck (Lead Artist)!I've also been doing artwork at Big Adventure studio this year:Dream Team Supreme (Social Media Marketing Specialist)If you missed it, the demo is available now with my artwork on full display.

So I am very familiar with waterfall, agile, jira, Nintendo lotcheck and the general reality of making games. I've also seen a mismanaged studio I didn't work for completely break people I know who did nothing wrong. I don't wanna be that guy.

What is the next actionable step

All I am interested in doing right now is making one of the 8 chapters playable and polishing it to a high standard. If I can't make one of them fun, I certainly don't want eight boring adventures "just because".

Currently, I'm still picking up short term creative contracts to keep up with the rising cost of living in the most expensive city in the country. I'm not saying that to panhandle, I'm just reiterating that right now this is a solo venture and a part-time one too.I appreciate that a lot of people are doing things rough right now and asking for your support on a project without a lot more proof it's going to get finished isn't fair. I just want you to know I'm not doing nothing and I'm aware of how many people are foaming at the mouth for Quest Sprout and Choplet to have a team up.

There are methods for me to seeking external funding which I will definitely explore when the game has a solid foundation. The Choplet Makeship plushie might be the difference between me picking up more unrelated work this year too.

I know dreaming big about Swords becoming a game and a TV show and a web series and a Durengal body pillow are all part of the reading experience that comes with making a high-quality webcomic, and I will keep striving to deliver great stuff - but I'm happy to take the slow and steady road to mastery. Swords will be here for a good time, it will be here in the bad times and it will also be here for a long time. Thanks for being here with me. The qwest continues.