Downstream Games

We're an indie team developing Masque: A Trickster Tale, a story-rich adventure game about a Victorian-era child lost in the realm of tricksters. Lie, cheat, steal--do whatever you can to make it back home!

[downstreamgames]

It's time to announce what we've been up to!

Introducing Masque: A Trickster Tale, a story-rich adventure RPG about a child lost in the realm of tricksters from around the globe. Lie, cheat, steal--do whatever you can to get back home! Stay tuned and Follow for more 💛

[downstreamgames]

It's scary when the light is running low, and the shadows start to grow, but that's what lanterns are for!

Plus, with a lantern that runs on hellfire, you can easily make it though the fog of the Trickster Realm 🔥 #indiegame #animation #rpg

[downstreamgames]

Last week we shared our Art Bible, which we use to collaborate and organize art assets. This week, we're sharing the Design Bible!

Design Bibles are typically long, printed documents that plan out the entire design of the game, but ours is much more fluid and visual!

[downstreamgames]

They have many names.

Feu follet in France, guǐ huǒ in China, andaru in Indonesia, devil's lantern in the Deep South.

In many English speaking countries they're known as will-o-the-wisps, and in the trickster forest, they'll actually guide travelers through the deep fog 🔥

[tyger-land]

𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗢𝗱𝘆𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘂𝘀. 1891. Oil on canvas: 148 × 92 cm (58 × 36 in). By John William Waterhouse.

[downstreamgames]

Here's a look behind-the-scenes at a tool we use to organize our art: The Art Bible!

This is a huuuge board split up by References, the Style Guide, Characters, Environment, and UI.

We can't show off too much, but hopefully the scale comes across 👀

[downstreamgames]

Our Second Devlog is Out!

The second devlog for Masque: A Trickster Tale is available to read on our website 😎

This week, we're taking a look at our studio's values, pillars, and workflows for the game!

[downstreamgames]

The forest in the Trickster Realm can be an eerie, disorienting place.

When you find a friendly face, it's best that you take a moment to rest!

[downstreamgames]

We want to shine a light on the alux for World Chocolate Day! 🍫

Originating from the Yucatán Peninsula, aluxo'ob, or aluxes, are one of the first junior tricksters you'll encounter. They can buff their allies with Bark Up or throw cacao pods at opponents using Podcast!

[downstreamgames]

When development started in 2023, we just had an artist and designer working on the game...

Since then, we've switched engines and brought on more artists!

We're still narrowing down our style, but you can already see a world of difference! 🎨

Starting later in the summer, we'll have devlogs dedicated to the members of our art team. Sign-up for our email list to be the first to hear about it 💛 https://downstreamgames.com/

[downstreamgames]

Beware the forest's mushrooms!! ⚠️

Breathing in their spores has got to be bad for your health...

[downstreamgames]

This is what game development feels like sometimes 😭

[downstreamgames]

To make development easier, we have a level dedicated just to stuff in the overworld, which we call the Interaction Gym! 🏋️

Here we can test dialogue, tricky obstacles, items, and more!

(...even before the artists get to them 💀)

[downstreamgames]

Our First Devlog is Here!

Our very first developer log, or "devlog", for Masque: A Trickster Tale is available to read on our website! 🥳

We discuss what a Trickster is, what the game is all about, and reveal what your adventure is going to be like in the Trickster Realm!

[downstreamgames]

In Masque: A Trickster Tale, you play as Kid, a Victorian-era foundling, and Masque, a magical mask with a flippant attitude. Explore the trickster realm together and find a way home! 🎭

[downstreamgames]

Our items screen is still a work-in-progress, but we've come a long way since our initial wireframe!

In user interface design, a wireframe is a mock-up of what you want the interface to look like 💛

[lpbestiary]

The Cat Sìth is a fey creature from Celtic mythology. It resembles an oversized black cat with a white smudge on its chest. It is well known in the Scottish Highlands and throughout that country, but stories about it also exist in Ireland, where it is known as the Cat Sidhe.

While most view the Cat Sìth as a malevolent fairy who can steal the souls of the recently deceased by walking over the corpse prior to burial, some say that it is in fact a witch who transformed into a cat nine times and thus became trapped forever in that form.

Image source.

Monster master list.

Suggest a spook.