Blogs - SymbolOfSacrifice

Hello Everyone and welcome to the first Symbol of Sacrifice (SoS) Devlog!

There will be a video series made, but to keep myself consistent I think it's faster to keep these logs via text. This will essentially be a quick rundown of a bunch of stuff every really ambitious gamedev I've met (with a solid idea off the bat) essentially goes through. Hopefully you learn something that helps save you some pain.

So let's start from the beginning of the journey, I started crafting the Symbols universe on February 8th. It's only been 3 and a half months but I've been tinkering with this concept story for much longer in my head. As you can see on the indiedb page, SoS is meant to be a turn-based JRPG game built in Unreal Engine 5 with an emphasis on story/narrative.

I spent months crafting the lore, the world, the characters, the script, the references, etc. I've been writing my whole life so this came pretty naturally to me. Within a month I had a 60 page script that - while still rough around the edges - told the story I wanted. While doing this I was learning Unreal and creating the art direction along with hiring artists to start turning my sketches and references into "real" concepts.

On this journey I realized a few things. 1, game devving is ridiculously difficult and the amount of jobs one man teams need to fulfill is insane. And from jobs I mean whole careers... Game design, texturing, world building, narrative, technical art, concept art, environment art... you get it. These are singular jobs people are hired for at studios. 2, marketing and dev costs are ridiculous. 3, there's no way I could afford the ~2-3k I was being quoted for the quality of 3D models I would *require* for the game. And even some of those weren't that great. And after just one attempt at blender and 3D modeling/animation I realized why people get degrees in it.

But the vision I have for SoS is something I'm deeply attached to and am not willing to sacrifice quality for a release, and everyone says your first real game shouldn't be your baby. So while I *will* get there... I can't get there with a one-man team. So now here's the problem everyone runs into after they get to this point, build a "vertical slice" and get a demo into people's hands. My thought was I could put something together on Unreal with filler assets, and I could... but the main draw of what I'm building is the story and the "feel". I felt like a vertical slice that doesn't embody the visuals is not going to "hit" like the game should. It'd just feel like another turn based combat game. Which is great and all, but not the vision I'm aiming for.

So... how do I best share my story, characters, and art and get the validation I need to see if people even like it? A visual novel.

Perhaps there's other ways, but this is what I landed on. After just a couple days of learning the ropes I've made more progress in Renpy than I made in any other game engine. It's designed to be built like a Script, and that was literally the most defined part of my project. So the first release, much to my own surprise (if you asked me 3 months ago), in the SoS universe will by Symbols of Sacrifice VN. With VN obviously standing for visual novel, it'll play as an introduction to the world and characters and (hope) to gather a community around these new worlds I'm going to build.

That's about it for now. There's been a looooot I've done in these 3 months. Maybe I'll do a bigger breakdown in the video. But that's it for now, bye!

Akirath is a young country, gaining independence just 60 years ago. But its beauty is ancient. Its sprawling mountains, deep green valleys, blue rivers, and twinkling skies are home to humans, elves, creatures, monsters, and more. Akirath’s South Eastern border lies the Runara River and, next to it, a small farming village named Alezia. This is where our story begins.

Azil’s lived a peaceful life full of hard work and discipline. He’s been running the farm since his brother left for the military academy, and his father’s age made him sickly. The game opens with a heartwarming scene depicting the relationship between the siblings. The prodigy of an older brother, Itori. The aloof but gifted younger sister, Lillia. And Azil, the strong, dedicated, and hard-headed.

Explore the enchanting realm of Sonir, a planet steeped in elemental magic and ancient mysteries, as you follow a humble farming family of three young siblings – Azil, Itori, and Lillia. The sprawling mountains, deep green valleys, and blue rivers of their native country, Akirath, provide a backdrop to their dreams of a life beyond the fields.

Each sibling possesses unique talents in a world where magic is common and coveted. Lillia, with her exceptional magical prowess, Itori, a genius in skill, and Azil, a jack of all trades, embark on a quest to confront the cosmic force looming on the horizon. As they face this mysterious threat, their abilities become essential in the struggle to push it back and protect their world. That is until Azil faces an impossible decision...

From here, the Symbol of Sacrifice truly begins. What you choose will affect what Azil focuses on and who joins him on his journey. You discover the threat facing the world and why your family was targeted. Or maybe you want Azil to go it alone, chasing his desires above the sanctity of the world. The choice is yours.