It's been nearly two years since I last wrote a general update. Here's what's new - one finished jam game, one big game in the works, and a lot of new stuff added to the site!
Villain Sword II: Ash Returns
For reasons explained further down, I wasn’t planning on releasing a game this year, but last month, John Thyer hosted the RM2k3 Cookie Cutter game jam, in which all the participants had to make a game in RPG Maker 2003 using maps. I got drawn into it.
The game that I made was Villain Sword II: Ash Returns, a sequel to Vaudeville & Sword… and also a sequel to American Wallrunner and Bug Mystery? The Explosion Speaks!, a prequel to Card Games vs Literary Characters at the End of the World, and a game of indeterminant chronological relationship to Digital Toilet World. You don’t need to have played any of these other games to enjoy Villain Sword II.
After the events of Vaudeville & Sword, Ash finds herself in the uncanny and unpleasant “Johnworld,” and she wants to leave. With the help of other allies from other dimensions (and screen resolutions), she prepares her escape, but along the way, she discovers writings from a struggling game developer and begins to question the nature of her existence.
Playtime is about an hour, there’s a little humor sprinkled here and there, and you get to assemble a party of characters from my previous games of varying screen resolutions. RM2k3 has a reputation for having the worst underlying combat system of any entry, so while the combat isn’t as deep as it is in the Danger Zone Friends duology, it at least feels pretty good.
This time, I’m not gonna write too much about what it was like making the game, because that would spoil the metanarrative! Thanks John for hosting the jam, and thanks to everyone whose played it for the warm feedback. I had a lot of fun adding the animations, and it was fun to make a game with Ash, Moby Dick, and the Cleaner again after 3, 6, and 13 years respectively!
I want to give a quick
You can play Villain Sword II here.