DREAMTONE Progress report #1
Welcome to the first ever DREAMTONE progress report.
…What have we been doing? We’ve been makin’ VOLUME 1!
"What have you guys been doing? IT’S BEEN A YEAR!"
Well… Game development… Yeah… Game development. In all seriousness, it really does take a while! No idea comes out of the metaphorical brain womb fully formed. While we’ve been mostly silent, we can assure you that we’ve been developing DREAMTONE almost every day for the past year! We’ve been working on VOLUME 1, the first episode. It serves as an introduction to DREAMTONE, introducing its world and characters. Here’s a snippet of the writing:
We’ve been revising DREAMTONE’s art to fit with the comic book aesthetic we envisioned. Specifically, we’ve gone back and replaced a lot of the minimally animated cutscenes with actual comic book styled panels. Here's an old version of a cutscene on the left with the new version on the right:
Oh, and we also changed Nathan’s hair color from blue to black, look!
"So, how playable is it?"
The prologue is playable from start to finish, but isn’t fully polished. Since the prologue is half of VOLUME 1, that means VOLUME 1 is 50% done!... But, again, not fully polished. We’re not going to preemptively toss out any numbers or promise anything, but we’re confident in where we’re at. Sorry!
"...Oh...Really?"
Please take this writeup as an apology!
STEP INTO THE STRANGE WORLD OF DREAMTONE!
DREAMTONE is an episodic traditional RPG that whimsically harkens back to the long-gone days of the mid-1980s. Join our protagonists Nathan Bloom and his older brother Neil. After Neil drags Nathan to a party in the woods gone wrong, they find themselves caught in the throes of a conspiracy that’s rocking America! Forced to make friends with a rotating cast of weirdos, they road-trip across Michigan. Our accidental misfit heroes will encounter bombastic gangsters, ancient demons, and creatures straight out of your Saturday morning nightmares!
Simply put, DREAMTONE is a turn-based RPG packed with old-school charm, brain-bending battles, and a heavy dose of the unexpected. Think you’ve seen everything? Think again!
PUMPED-UP BATTLES!
DREAMTONE throws you into complex battles where timing is everything. For example, if you press X just as the enemy flashes, you can launch a counter attack! Counter-attacks negate all damage the enemy would've done, and even allow you to hit back!
And not every move is a one-tap trigger pull. Special attacks will give you unique mini-games. The one down below is Nathan’s Zap ability. Tap repeatedly to charge, and then watch it spin up! The more you tap, the more powerful the attack will get, but also the more ENERGY it’ll use!
Sometimes, you’ll get lucky and your attacks will strike critically and deal extra damage! But don’t think you’re the only one who can get lucky ‘round here! Even the enemies can strike critically, and if you’re super unlucky, they’ll throw a chain of critical attacks your way!
Chain together attacks, unlock new abilities, and swap out strategies on the fly. Don’t forget, it’s brains over brawns! Trick your opponents and even sidestep battles altogether if you’re clever enough!
SWITCHIN’ IT UP!
Have you ever wanted to walk a mile in another person’s shoes? Great! In DREAMTONE, you can switch between your party members to get a different perspective on the world. Every character has their own dialogue and little interactions, so leave no stone unturned if you want to see everything a character has to offer! When you switch it up, you gain access to a party member’s overworld ability. This allows you to perform a special action exclusive to that character. Want to break a log? Switch to Neil. Want to charm an NPC out of the scene? Also try Neil! (Almost) everyone’s vulnerable to his charming personality!
INVENTORY!
Hey, wait, no, stop! I see what you’re doing! Stop hoarding every item, you’ll become encumbered! When you carry too many items, you become over-encumbered. You’ll lose some speed in the overworld and perform badly in battles while overencumbered. So, make sure to tidy up every now and again!
Fret not though, not every item will take up a slot in your inventory. Items in DREAMTONE can stack on top of each other.
…
Yes, yes, I hear you! The locations! The people! Where will we go? Well…
KNOWHERE & SUMPLAICE… plus HIERE FOREST
Knowhere — A town out on the prairies, remarkable for being… Unremarkable.
This is Neil and Nathan’s humble hometown. It’s a little rundown but hey, home is where the heart is!
Sumplaice — The city on the bay!
Located in Sum County, once a booming Industrial hub, now home to aging hippies causing mellow mayhem. It’s seen better days, and the mayor’s counting on you to “gently” keep the peace.
SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
If you’re into RPGs, urban legends, or UFOs, then this game is just for you! Grab a bat and pack your bag, ‘cause DREAMTONE is coming to your dreams!
"Will you do these blogs often?"
While it would be cool, no. We’re too focused on developing the game! When you hop in for the first time, we want it to feel new and exciting. If we showed off too much of the game, you’d know way too much - you wouldn’t be excited at all! As a parting gift, please accept this humble yet ominous screenshot!
And alongside it, two music tracks by the talented Supabubba and Dim Widdy respectively.
"...Is that all?"
Remember that previous answer? I lied. VOLUME 1 will be released this November, free of charge! Alongside it will be the launch of our Kickstarter. We’ll put out the pre-launch soon after this blog. For now, we appreciate your patience. And we hope to see you again soon!