Guess what? I've been an independent game developer for 10 years now! When I left EA Chillingo at the end of 2014, I was just eager to make my own games I never for a minute imagined Id still be here 10 years later with my own little business! My first released game, One Night Stand, was made during Nanoreno Game Jam, and it exploded in popularity and kinda took over my life!
When things settled down, I realised my previous project I was working on would require a larger team to create the vision I had for it. So I started working on the semi-autobiographical Memories while continuing to work on One Night Stand localisations, console port and physical edition. However, in 2019, my personal circumstances changed. I became disabled and struggled to work at the same pace I did before. Then 2020 happened, and Memories didnt feel like the right game to be putting out in the world anymore. My life and everyone elses was changing, so I wanted to make something more hopeful (and bittersweet) In came VIDEOVERSE!
After three years development, VIDEOVERSE launched on August 7th 2023 to critical acclaim. I never expected the reviews to be as glowing as they were and it seemed like switching my focus in 2020 was the right call. Sometimes, I feel sorry for my unreleased projectsbut One Night Stand and VIDEOVERSE wouldnt have existed without them. And hey, I havent fully given up on finishing them either, but indie development is certainly more competitive now than it was 10 years ago, so for the time being Im focussing on smaller, more manageable projects!

What's next for Kinmoku?

Entering 2025, Im continuing support on VIDEOVERSE (including a Japanese localisation) and already far along with my next project ! The story is written, in-engine and even features character and background art...but there is still a lot to do! However, this next project will be smaller than VIDEOVERSE, so Im hoping to release before the end of the year. The tricky part nowis coming up with a title! To stay updated with my games, please follow me here or consider subscribing to my newsletter on www.kinmoku.games Thank you for reading and best wishes for the new year!

[ 2025-01-08 09:44:12 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone, A small new update has released for VIDEOVERSE, which contains a whole new look for Kinmoku (that's me, not the in-game corporation!) plus some minor bug fixes. Please update so you have the latest version of the game!
Inspired by the early roots of visual novels from PC-98 to Sega Saturn the new splash artwork features Kinmoku in their studio. If you look closely you can see references to Kinmoku's games, and even their dog, Goro! Please keep a look out for more VIDEOVERSE news in the coming months! videoverse_smile To learn more about the developer, please check out the new website at www.kinmoku.games

[ 2024-11-14 11:05:13 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, there will be multiple streaming events which will be announced here. Apologies if you see several announcements. The developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesfeatures Kinmoku playing the limited time demo and talking about how VIDEOVERSE was made, plus the inspirations behind it. A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event! Watch the developer broadcast here:

[ 2024-11-11 13:00:55 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, there will be multiple streaming events which will be announced here. Apologies if you see several announcements. The developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesfeatures Kinmoku playing the limited time demo and talking about how VIDEOVERSE was made, plus the inspirations behind it. A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event! Watch the developer broadcast here:

[ 2024-11-10 10:00:34 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, there will be multiple streaming events which will be announced here. Apologies if you see several announcements. The developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesfeatures Kinmoku playing the limited time demo and talking about how VIDEOVERSE was made, plus the inspirations behind it. A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event! Watch the developer broadcast here:

[ 2024-11-09 03:00:01 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, there will be multiple streaming events which will be announced here. Apologies if you see several announcements. The developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesfeatures Kinmoku playing the limited time demo and talking about how VIDEOVERSE was made, plus the inspirations behind it. A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event! Watch the developer broadcast here:

[ 2024-11-07 15:00:13 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, there will be multiple streaming events which will be announced here. Apologies if you see several announcements. The developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesfeatures Kinmoku playing the limited time demo and talking about how VIDEOVERSE was made, plus the inspirations behind it. A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event! Watch the developer broadcast here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2079180/VIDEOVERSE/

[ 2024-11-06 09:00:44 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello! I'm happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in AdventureX 2024 - A weeklong celebration of narrative-driven games! From November 4 to November 11, check out VIDEOVERSE's demofeaturing the first chapter of the gameand enjoy 33% off VIDEOVERSE (its biggest discount yet!). Additionally, there will be a developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesif you want to learn a little more about how VIDEOVERSE was made.
AdventureX is the UK's only convention dedicated to narrative-driven gaming, and there are over 140 games taking part this year on Steam! Check out their event page for more information.
A huge thank you to everyone at AdventureX for organising and hosting the event!

[ 2024-11-04 10:15:02 CET ] [ Original post ]

I'm happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE has been chosen for 'Selected Indie 80' at Tokyo Game Show 2024! To celebrate, there will be a 30% discount on Steam from September 18-30. If you're attending Tokyo Game Show and want to say hi, please stop by booth 28 in the Selected Indie 80 area. There will be stickers, 'Gamezines' and Kinmoku Shark game boxes up for grabs!
I'm looking forward to the event and hope to see you there!

[ 2024-09-16 14:51:07 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi all, Today's update fixes a bug at the end of chapter 1, where some players reported being unable to progress past Vivi's notification. It was a tricky one to fix but everything looks good now! There have also been a few sprite and text fixes. The VIDEOVERSE demo has also been updated with these improvements. Thanks again to those who reached out and helped fix the bug! You make VIDEOVERSE what it is :)

[ 2024-08-08 13:43:19 CET ] [ Original post ]

Wow, that was quick! There was a missing "else" in 1.2.0.0 which caused a crash. This has now been fixed in 1.2.0.1. Thanks again to you all for helping VIDEOVERSE be the best it can be!

[ 2024-07-31 15:04:34 CET ] [ Original post ]

On August 7, it will have been one year since VIDEOVERSE launched on PC, Mac and Linux! Can you believe it? So much has happened in this year! Firstly, VIDEOVERSE remains 'Very Positive' on Steam, with 90 on Metacritic and 92 on OpenCritic, which made it one of 2023s highest-rated games! It also won 'Best Narrative' at Debug Indie Game Awards and 'Critics Choice Award' at Indie Cup UK, and was nominated for several other awards, including 'Safe in our World Award for Mental Health', 'Everyone Can Award for Accessibility' and 'Best Hidden Gem'. In such a competitive year, this was an incredible achievement for such a small indie game!
So, to celebrate the first...VIDEOVERSARY, please enjoy 30% off during the PixElated Festival (July 29 - August 5) and the brand new Drawing Update (1.2), which contains the following features:

Gallery

Now, you can collect all the drawings across Videoverse, plus CGs and cut-scenes! Please note: You'll need to start a new game to unlock.

Drawing Opportunities

There are more opportunities to draw throughout the game via the Art Corner community. It's completely optional (for the artists amongst us!) but feel free to share your creations in the Steam community!

Art and GUI Polish

Artwork across the game has been polished, plus GUI has been improved in areas for smoother controller play!

Faster Messages

Due to popular demand, a new option Faster Messages has been added in the Preferences menu. This speeds up private chat messages and is recommended for repeat play-throughs and achievement hunters!
Thank you all again for the continued support over the last year. VIDEOVERSE's community maybe small but it's the sweetest out there! I hope you enjoy the new update and are able to collect all the drawings...and please share your own drawings in the Steam community!

"Bye eMMe-T_T. Good luck with your drawings. :)"

[ 2024-07-31 09:53:41 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello! Next week is PixElated Festival A weeklong event celebrating pixel art adventure games...and VIDEOVERSE is taking part! Enjoy 30% off (its biggest discount yet!) and keep your eye out for news about a very special update...
The demo, featuring the first chapter of the game, will still be available to play throughout the week. Additionally, there will be a developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesif you want to learn a little more about how VIDEOVERSE was made.
A huge thank you to Brave At Night for organising and hosting the event!

[ 2024-07-22 17:05:39 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone. I'm happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE will be at Brilliant Indie Treasures in Brighton, UK, next week. It's a free event (alongside Develop:Brighton) with 50 indie games available to play. The showcase takes place on July 10th 4-8pm, so if you're around, please stop by to say hi! There will be stickers, 'Gamezines' and NEW Kinmoku Shark game boxes up for grabs!
I'll also be around Develop:Brighton from July 9th to 11th, so if you're there and would like to meet up, it's not too late to drop me an email or reply. If you're unable to attend, you may still be able to see me at another event later this summer. Details to be announced soon... Until next time!

[ 2024-07-03 13:34:39 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi all. The Steam Summer Sale has kicked off and VIDEOVERSE + OST are both now on sale!
If youve already played VIDEOVERSE, my previous release One Night Stand is available for less than $1 right now! One Night Stand is a short mystery visual novel where you're thrown into a 'morning after' scenario. Do you find out what happened, seek a way out, or accidentally screw up? One Night Stand is playable in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese for PC, Mac and Linux I hope you check it out!
Enjoy 25% off VIDEOVERSE and 70% off One Night Stand until July 11 Happy gaming!

[ 2024-06-27 08:36:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi everyone, Just a small update this time which fixes a bug where some messages were arriving in the wrong order. Thanks again for continuing to support VIDEOVERSE!

[ 2024-06-26 09:46:50 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone, I'm happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE will be attending Digital Dragons Indie Showcase in Krakw, Poland! The showcase starts tomorrow at 10AM (CEST) and runs until Tuesday 5PM. Please come and say hi if you're able to attend!
On Tuesday at 6PM, the Indie Awards Gala will take place, so if you're at the event, please consider voting for VIDEOVERSE! There will also be some VIDEOVERSE freebies to enjoy:
I hope to see you there! If you're unable to attend, I will be at other events over the Summer. Details TBA.

[ 2024-05-19 08:46:35 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi everyone! A new build of VIDEOVERSE has dropped with the following improvements: - New community posts easier to find - Community scrollbar easier to navigate - Potential crash fix - Old/ unused files removed - Credits update Please update to 1.1.3.0 to enjoy. Thanks again for continuing to support VIDEOVERSE! ^_^

[ 2024-03-27 09:52:45 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi everyone. The Steam Spring Sale has just begun and both of Kinmoku's games VIDEOVERSE and One Night Stand are now on sale!
For those of you unfamiliar with One Night Stand, it's a short mystery visual novel where you're thrown into a 'morning after' scenario. Do you find out what happened, seek a way out, or accidentally screw up?? If you enjoy the realistic conversations and animations in VIDEOVERSE, I think you'll like One Night Stand! It's playable in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese for PC, Mac and Linux. Enjoy 25% off VIDEOVERSE and 66% off One Night Stand until March 21 Happy gaming!

[ 2024-03-15 09:48:19 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone, While playing the demo, I noticed a minor bug when commenting on a drawing; where Emmett's comment wouldn't go all the way to the bottom. There was also a bug where the phrase book tutorial would not appear under rare circumstances. These have now both been fixed, in addition to some typos. The demo has also been updated to align with this update! Thanks again to those who brought these to my attention.

[ 2024-03-08 16:02:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello! To celebrate Womens Day on Steam (from March 1-10), a new demo of VIDEOVERSE is live and available to play for free! The demo now contains features from the full game: Including Videoverse secret codes, new themes, and the ability to continue your play-through into the full version. Enjoy the first chapter of VIDEOVERSE today!
There will also be a developer streamwith commentary and subtitlesif you want to learn a little more about how VIDEOVERSE was made.
To new players: Id love to know your thoughts on the demo! And to VIDEOVERSE fans: Please tell your friends that this is a great time to try out the game! Happy gaming, everyone!

[ 2024-02-29 11:55:47 CET ] [ Original post ]

Three updates in one week? What's going on?! Yesterday, a Steam user found a bug with a MarKun666 conversation, where it would repeat under certain circumstances. It's somehow evaded detection until now, but update 1.1.2.7 fixes it. Please update so you don't encounter it as well. Thank you again for the support! Happy gaming!

[ 2024-02-15 16:18:43 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi all, In the previous update, achievements got disabled by mistake on export, so this update fixes that. If you believe you unlocked achievements between February 9-14 but didn't receive them, they should now appear the next time you open the game in Steam. There are also a couple of typo and UI fixes in 1.1.2.5. Thanks again for bringing these to my attention! :)

[ 2024-02-14 10:46:27 CET ] [ Original post ]

Last week, VIDEOVERSE won "Best Narrative" at the first Debug Indie Game Awards in Nottingham, UK!

A huge thank you to the fans, play-testers, players who've reported bugs (seriously, you guys are such a help!) and, of course, those who voted for it! It warms my heart seeing VIDEOVERSE get recognised for its narrative amongst so many brilliant games that released in 2023. VIDEOVERSE was also nominated for "Safe In Our World Award for Mental Health" and "Everyone Can Award for Accessibility" and, although it didn't win, just being nominated meant so much. VIDEOVERSE was a game I made to help me through a dark time and I really wanted it to do the same for others, while making it as accessible as possible so more people could experience it. I'm inspired to keep pushing for these efforts in future!
There's also been an update today (1.1.2.0), which contains sprite improvements, smiley fixes and a bug fix at the end of chapter 1. Please download to enjoy...and thanks again to everyone for your continued supported!

[ 2024-02-09 15:08:09 CET ] [ Original post ]

The Storytellers Festival 2024 has officially kicked off and VIDEOVERSE is taking part! From January 29th to February 4th, enjoy 20% off the game and its original soundtrack! Later today (January 30th), there will be a live broadcast at 10AM EST / 3PM GMT / 4PM CET featuring the developerKinmokuplaying the introduction of VIDEOVERSE whilst doing an AMA. Feel free to drop by if you want to ask a question!
The stream will be 1-2 hours long, but if you're unable to join, you'll be able to watch the recording shortly after the event ends here on Steam. Hope to see you there!

[ 2024-01-30 07:59:59 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone, happy 2024! A few players reported that their save files broke when saving and loading in the Videoverse communities. It took a very long time to track down the cause, but thanks the VIDEOVERSE Steam community, we have been able to fix the crash! Please update your game to the latest version to avoid the issue. This update also includes a few typo fixes, and the addition of sound effects to the drawing screen. Thank you for being patient on this update and continuing to support VIDEOVERSE! :)

[ 2024-01-12 12:03:46 CET ] [ Original post ]

Its that time of year again for the Steam Winter Sale Enjoy 20% off VIDEOVERSE until January 4th 2024...its biggest discount yet! If youve already played it, why not gift it to a friend this holiday season?

Also on sale, is my first game One Night Stand. For those of you that missed it, One Night Stand is a short narrative game where you are thrust into an awkward one night stand scenario. Its shorter than VIDEOVERSE but with more branching options and 12 different endings. If you enjoyed the animations and conversations in VIDEOVERSE, I think youll really like One Night Stand, too! In other news, VIDEOVERSE has appeared in a few more GOTY lists, on Digital Trends, SassyGamers and Stuff, in addition to some personal lists and podcast recommendations. I'm so happy to see people sharing their love of the game with others...mostly via word-of-mouth and print magazines, which is fascinating for a game about online connections! I think it's because the game is set in 2003... "It was the style at the time" after all! XD Thanks again for supporting me and VIDEOVERSE this year. I wish you all the best for 2024!

[ 2023-12-21 18:05:08 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, I'm happy to announce that Steam Community Items, including trading cards, badges, backgrounds and emoticons, are now live for VIDEOVERSE! There are 8 trading cards in total featuring Emmett and his Videoverse friends. Craft them to unlock Videoverse emoticons and special profile backgrounds, including rare, unseen development art and MarKun666's poster!
If you've already played VIDEOVERSE, don't worry! You'll soon receive some trading cards in your Steam notifications.
In other news, VIDEOVERSE has recently appeared in a few GOTY 2023 lists, including two from TheGamer. It's also approaching 100 Steam reviews and is still 100% recommended. Please leave a review if you've finished the game as I love to hear your thoughts! I'm really happy this little narrative game is resonating so much with people, and I look forward to seeing what 2024 brings.
Until next time!

[ 2023-12-11 11:17:20 CET ] [ Original post ]

Just a small update this time. A couple of typos and some UI text overflows have been fixed. Thank you for continuing to support VIDEOVERSE!

[ 2023-11-22 16:17:27 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello there! The Steam Autumn Sale and Steam Awards have officially kicked off and I need your help to get VIDEOVERSE in the running for a nomination! It would be awesome to make it in the 'Outstanding Story-Rich Game' category, but if you also loved the soundtrack, visual-style...or even "sucked at" VIDEOVERSE, feel free to cast your votes wherever Every vote helps! :) With your support, VIDEOVERSE can warm the hearts of even more video game fans across the internet...and fuel Kinmoku's future developments!
Also enjoy 10% off VIDEOVERSE and the VIDEOVERSE Original Soundtrack until November 28th (10AM PT/ 7PM CEST) when the sale ends. Thank you all again for your support of this little indie game! VIDEOVERSE is still number 3 in OpenCritic's 2023 Hall of Fame...and, in such a competitive year for video games, this blows my mind! I'm so happy the story is resonating with so many people as I really gave my all into this self-funded project. Thank you!!!

[ 2023-11-22 10:00:55 CET ] [ Original post ]

Im happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE is now running smoothly on Steam Deck! Please update your game to 1.1.0.0 to enjoy.
To celebrate, there is a 10% discount until 20th October (3 AM PDT / 12 PM CEST)! As Steam is still learning about VIDEOVERSE, there is no official badge yet, but hopefully that will change soon For now, this update allows you to control the game using the button controls, touch screen or on-screen cursor. Check out the official VIDEOVERSE controls when you load up the game on your Steam Deck for more info. In-game controls can be found here:
For regular desktop users, this update also contains some UI redesigns, alternate main menu music and message arrival bug fixes. 1.1.0.0 has also been updated to use the latest RenPy 7 engine. Thank you so much for waiting patiently for Steam Deck compatibility these last two months. I originally thought 1.1.0.0 would only take a few weeks to complete, but RenPy doesnt typically use controllers as the default input, hence there were a lot of obstacles and compromises to get here. I hope you enjoy this update and thanks again for your continued support of VIDEOVERSE!

[ 2023-10-13 10:15:03 CET ] [ Original post ]

Today's 1.0.1.0 update contained a bug regarding the new mouse cursor and attempting to change theme. This has now been fixed Thank you for your patience!

[ 2023-09-07 20:56:54 CET ] [ Original post ]

It's been one month since VIDEOVERSE launched on Steam! To celebrate,the VIDEOVERSE Original Soundtrack is nowavailable to download. Now, you can immerse yourself in the chill soundscape of the Kinmoku Shark, composed by Clark Aboud (Slay the Spire, Kind Words) and relive the days of your favourite retro gaming consoles! The soundtrack features 14 tracks, plus bonus startup sounds for the Kinmoku Shark and Kinmoku Dolphin by Alexandre Carvalho. Both MP3 and WAV formats are included.
This album artwork features a certain someone's Kinmoku Shark setup Can you guess whose? The latest version of VIDEOVERSE (1.0.1.0) includes this scene as a new, optional menu background. When you complete the game, it will unlock, and the button "Change Background" will appear at the bottom of the menu if you wish to revert back to the original. (If you've already finished VIDEOVERSE, you'll need to load up a save from near the end (or replay) to unlock this new background.)
A HUGE thank you to everyone who has supported me during VIDEOVERSE's release, whether it's leaving a review, telling a friend or just encouraging me during this busy time, it means the world to me. At the time of writing, VIDEOVERSE is the third in Open Critic's 2023 Hall of Fame Something I NEVER thought would happen! It's also received from The Guardian, "Bestest Bests" from Rock Paper Shotgun and 8/10 from EDGE Magazine. For such a small, self-published indie game, this is incredible to see and I'm simply overwhelmed right now, haha! Thank you all!

[ 2023-09-07 09:53:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

In this update, an issue was solved where avatar gear could be claimed too early. There are also other small fixes, such as typos. Thank you!

[ 2023-08-14 15:30:33 CET ] [ Original post ]

Small update that fixes a drawing bug in chapter 5. Thank you for your patience!

[ 2023-08-11 09:39:25 CET ] [ Original post ]

In this update, drawing collection UI is improved, plus a drawing bug has been fixed (where it was possible to send a drawing to MarKun666 too early). This update also included other small fixes, such as typos. Thank you all for the support in these early days! :)

[ 2023-08-09 16:00:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

Second fix today! This one fixes an issue where players sometimes couldn't log out when they were supposed to. Thank you for your patience!

[ 2023-08-08 15:02:26 CET ] [ Original post ]

A few small bugs were reported and have been fixed in this update. Thank you for informing me, I hope you enjoy the game!

[ 2023-08-08 11:20:43 CET ] [ Original post ]

I'm excited to announce that VIDEOVERSE has launched today as part of Steams Visual Novel Fest for PC, Mac and Linux. VIDEOVERSE has been several years in the making, so it's a little surreal to see it finally out in the wild, but I hope you find it worth your wait! To celebrate, enjoy a 10% launch discount, available from now until Monday 14th August.
For those that don't know, VIDEOVERSE is a narrative adventure game about love and friendship, inspired by Miiverse and MSN Messenger. Players are sent back in time to a fictional video game era, where they can foster friendships, share fan art and browse the lively gaming communities. Will they help Videoverse thrive, or will they get caught up in teenage drama, video game fandoms and corporate conspiracies?
Yesterday, Yogscast played VIDEOVERSE as part of Tiny Teams 2023 which celebrates games developed by studios with a core team of five or less people. The festival is running until August 10th so there's still time to check out other awesome indie games! Thanks again to everyone for the continued support and patience over the years. If you download VIDEOVERSE, please leave a review as it helps small indie games so, so much! (Plus I'd love to know what you all think!)

[ 2023-08-07 11:16:56 CET ] [ Original post ]

I'm happy to announce that VIDEOVERSE is taking part in Tiny Teams 2023, which is an annual festival celebrating games developed by studios with a core team of five or less people, hosted by Yogscast! The core team for VIDEOVERSE is just me, Kinmoku, but I've had tremendous help with contributions from: Clark Aboud (Music) DragoonHP (Programming) Mark Takeshi Ota (Voice Acting) ...plus many others! For a full list of contributors, please view the credits from the "About" screen in the game.
VIDEOVERSE will be streamed during the Tiny Teams event on Sunday 6th August between 11AM-2PM (BST) on Twitch and the Steam festival page. A reminder that the VIDEOVERSE demo will only be playable until 11AM (CEST) Monday 7th August, just before the full game launches at 12PM, so please check it out while you still can. I hope you're as excited as I am for the release on Monday!

[ 2023-08-04 08:50:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

With one week to go until VIDEOVERSE launches on August 7th, I thought it would be fun to share the design process of the fictional video game console 'Kinmoku Shark' where the online social network 'Videoverse' takes place! To weave the games story, I needed a gaming system which would release around the time of the millennium; where video game consoles were beginning to meet The Internet.

Naming the console

The name Kinmoku is my own developer name. After initially trying a few fake company names, I finally rested on Kinmoku as, because of the evil, corporate connotations later in VIDEOVERSE, it felt best to make fun of myself! The name Shark is inspired by the codename Dolphin for GameCube; a name I was fondly attached to as a young teenager. Kinmoku Dolphin even makes an appearance in VIDEOVERSE as a successor to the Shark.

The history of the Shark

Even though its a fictional gaming system, the Kinmoku Shark needed realistic specs and a release history. It sports a 1-bit pixel art aesthetic, unusual in our real world gaming timeline, but perhaps not so strange for a portable console focusing less on graphical fidelity and more on functionality. Since the internet became popular in homes around 1995, and the Sega Dreamcast (thefirst consoleto include a built-in modem forinternetsupport) released in 1998, I decided 1998 would also be a good year for Kinmoku to launch the Shark.

The design

Although the Shark was quite modern for its time (being portable with a rechargeable battery), I figured it would connect to the internet via ethernet cable, similar to old-school chunky laptops. However, this was something I only realised a little later, as my earlier designs were a lot like Nintendo handhelds with wi-fi functionality.

To match the 1-bit graphics the system supports, it needed to look older, chunkier and more unique, perhaps even taking 'Shark' literally in its design.
Inspired by the Vectrex, Sega Pico, Commodore and other retro machines, I tried many different designs incorporating a shark fin or sea motif. The console needed to have a cartridge slot, touchpad, stylus, keyboard, built-in screen, ethernet port and 2 controller ports. It also needed a webcam for the video chats the characters have in-game, but after a few sketches, I realised this should be a peripheral to match the era.



However, I still preferred the simplicity of the original handheld design, so I tried sketching a few variations of it with a webcam peripheral. I was super keen on the cartridge slot being on the front since that somehow feels more retro to mebut, in the end, I didn't think it made much sense alongside the two controller ports, so it got moved to the back.

But what about the controllers? I hadn't given them much thought up until this point (as can be seen by the rough sketches!). Whilst the Shark was designed with built-in buttons and touch screen, more complicated games would be better experienced on controller. So, should they have a shark/ sea motif, or match the latest console design? I tried a few ideas out:
The word "chonk" certainly comes up a lot in my sketches! I had a lot of fun designing these, but it was very important for me to remember that the controller would need to be drawn several times throughout the gameso a simpler, more practical design would be a better choice. Plus, it's important for it to feel like a genuine controller, too, which is why I went with the design console", which was similar in shape to the Kinmoku Shark.

Above is the final design with the chosen controller plugged in. However, I still hadn't come up with a design for webcam peripheral. I was still super keen on using the shark fin motif somewhere in the designso I subtly added it to the webcam's grip on the back of the console! You can only see it from a side-on angle. And, with that, the Kinmoku Shark console came into being! You can check it out yourself right now with the VIDEOVERSE demo...but this will only be playable for one more week until the full game's launch on Monday 7th August at 12pm CEST. I hope you enjoyed reading this design journey of a fiction video game console. I wouldabsolutely loveto make a real Kinmoku Shark with a Raspberry Pi one day, though! For now, I'll leave you with thisY2K magazine advert Would you have bought a Kinmoku Shark in 1998?

[ 2023-07-31 09:46:26 CET ] [ Original post ]

After three years of development, Kinmoku is excited to announce an official release date for VIDEOVERSE A narrative adventure about love and friendship, inspired by Miiverse! Set to launch Monday 7th August for PC, Mac and Linux, VIDEOVERSE sends players back in time to a fictional video game era, where players can foster friendships, share fan art and browse the lively gaming communities. VIDEOVERSE will launch alongside Steam Visual Novel Fest with a 10% launch discount as a thank you to all the loyal fans who have waited years for Kinmoku's next game. Honestly, thank you all so much for the continued support! To celebrate the release date announcement, there is a new trailer featuring the narrator Mark Takeshi Ota (LIVE A LIVE, The Great Ace Attorney) and new footage showing the eerier side of VIDEOVERSE. [previewyoutube=L3k_0_KQcDQ;full][/previewyoutube] The demo is still available to play until launch and was recently recommended by Kotaku and Rock Paper Shotgun! If you have any questions about VIDEOVERSE, please leave a comment or contact the developer via the details below: Website: https://www.gamesbykinmoku.com Press Kit: https://gamesbykinmoku.epizy.com/presskit/sheet.php?p=VIDEOVERSE Socials: https://linktr.ee/kinmoku

[ 2023-07-07 12:31:01 CET ] [ Original post ]

Yesterday, the winners of Indie Cup UK 23 were announced and VIDEOVERSE won the Critics' Choice Award!
Indie Cup said the following about VIDEOVERSE: "[Kinmoku]'s early internet period piece tells a timeless story through a very specific time period, and it hit hard with practically all of our jurors." "Jurors praised its atmosphere, attention to detail and brilliant narrative."
I still can't believe this incredible news and want to thank everyone who's supported me in making VIDEOVERSE come to life! Congratulations to all the other nominees and season winners, as well! The demo of VIDEOVERSE is still available to play until release (date TBC really soon!), so please try it out if you haven't already and let me know your thoughts. steamhappy

[ 2023-06-28 16:55:13 CET ] [ Original post ]

Steam Next Fest starts next week on June 19th and runs until June 26th...and VIDEOVERSE is going to be there!
To celebrate, there will be TWO livestreams where you can come and chat to Kinmoku, the developer of VIDEOVERSE. If you have any burning questions about retro games, pixel art or teenage drama, this is your chance to ask! Each stream will be about 1 hour long: Tuesday 20th June 2pm (ET) / 8pm (CEST) Saturday 24th June 8am (ET) / 2pm (CEST) There will also be an ongoing gameplay stream during the festival if you're unable to attend the livestream events. And, in the case you haven't done so yet, you can play the first chapter of VIDEOVERSE in the updated demo, which is available now until launch! I'm super excited to chat with you all soon! Don't forget to wishlist and follow VIDEOVERSE to stay updated.

[ 2023-06-16 07:47:02 CET ] [ Original post ]

Steam Next Fest starts next week on June 19th and runs until June 26th...and VIDEOVERSE is going to be there!
To celebrate, there will be TWO livestreams where you can come and chat to Kinmoku, the developer of VIDEOVERSE. If you have any burning questions about retro games, pixel art or teenage drama, this is your chance to ask! Each stream will be about 1 hour long:

• Tuesday 20th June 2pm (ET) / 8pm (CEST)
• Saturday 24th June 8am (ET) / 2pm (CEST)

There will also be an ongoing gameplay stream during the festival if you're unable to attend the livestream events. And, in the case you haven't done so yet, you can play the first chapter of VIDEOVERSE in the free demo, which is available now until launch! I'm super excited to chat with you all soon! Don't forget to wishlist and follow VIDEOVERSE to stay updated.

[ 2023-06-13 15:50:15 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE will be taking part in Summer Game Fest 2023 during the #FutureOfPlay direct by GLITCH! The direct launches on Saturday June 10th at 11am ET / 5pm CEST, so keep an eye out to see some new footage of VIDEOVERSE! [previewyoutube=03WtP_HZ1Co;full][/previewyoutube] On Steam, there will also be a stream of the game (with a brand new trailer!) from today until June 17th, where you can watch me play the demo and talk about game development. I hope you'll enjoy it, and please let me know if you have any questions or want to learn more about the game. steamhappy Yesterday, during the Best Indie Games Summer Showcase, I announced that the narrator in VIDEOVERSE is Mark Takeshi Ota. You may recognise his voice from LIVE A LIVE and as Ryunosuke from The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles: [previewyoutube=cOgc1Gaken0;full][/previewyoutube] It has been a pleasure working with him and I can't wait for you all to hear his full performance once the game launches soon. Until then, the updated demo is available to play for free, and I am very close to finalising a release date, which I hope to share with you in the next few weeks!

[ 2023-06-07 09:18:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE's updated demo is now available to download for free! Like the first demo released in March, it contains the first chapter of the game, but with the following changes and improvements:

• More avatar customisation options
• Community updates
• New chat animations
• History log
• GUI improvements
• Other bug fixes

If you played the March build and plan on continuing a save you started, there is a good chance you will run into crashes. I advise you to start afresh with this updated build instead. I hope you all enjoy the first chapter of VIDEOVERSE and I look forward to hearing any feedback you may have. The demo will be available until the game fully launches - exact release date TBD but some time during Q3 2023!

[ 2023-05-24 10:16:08 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone! I just wanted to give you all a quick update about VIDEOVERSE's development. Firstly, you may have noticed the updated screenshots on the store page. There are some new additions, showing the avatar creator and silly community drawings, plus the themes have been updated with their own unique graphics. I've also added GIFs to the description, showing more of the drawings and Emmett's favourite game, Feudal Fantasy.
Feudal Fantasy is the Kinmoku Sharks most popular JRPG, where Emmett meets other players in its exclusive Videoverse community. It's a clear nod to Final Fantasy, which was the game that lead me to making video games today! VIDEOVERSE is a story about inspiration, dreams and loveand, for me, that all started in the fan forums and chat rooms of my favourite video games!
VIDEOVERSE itself is about to enter beta testing, meaning it's getting very close to release. However, the release date is still TBD as I want to ensure there are no bugs or glitches when the game launches, so you can all experience the game as it's intended to be. In the meantime, VIDEOVERSE will be at tomorrow's Indie Live Expo event! You can watch it live on Youtube May 20th 7pm (JST) / 12pm (CEST). Also, the next demo of VIDEOVERSE will soon be going live, too. Please keep an eye out for it in the next few weeks. I thank you all for your patience and support as I finish this project that I started over three years ago. I cannot wait for you all to play it!

[ 2023-05-19 11:06:13 CET ] [ Original post ]

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who downloaded the VIDEOVERSE demo during The Storyteller's Festival. It was a huge success with many new followers and thousands of downloads, helping VIDEOVERSE find its audience! The first demo was intended to only be available during the event, but was extended until today as it was also selected to be part of the Women-led Games event from April 7-9. In case you didn't get around to playing the demo yet, there will be another chance soon with an updated demo that will launch before the full game's release. Also, thank you to everyone who sent me their thoughts and feedback about the demo. I received some great suggestions which I plan to implement next. VIDEOVERSE is now entering the final stages of development, so if you still have some feedback or thoughts on what you played, it's not too late to send them! I can't wait for you all to experience the full game soon. Until next time!

[ 2023-04-11 09:24:04 CET ] [ Original post ]

You may have seen earlier this month that VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in The Storytellers Festival, from March 25th to April 1st! So, on Sunday 26th March at 5pm GMT/ 9am PST, VIDEOVERSE's broadcast will start, featuring the developer, Kinmoku, play the first online demo whilst talking about VIDEOVERSE's development I'd love it if you could be there! The demo of VIDEOVERSE, containing chapter 1, will also be available to download and play during the festival, until April 9th!
Unfortunately, I am away during The Storyteller's Festival, so I the broadcast will not be live...but, on the plus side, there are now subtitles available for anyone hard of hearing. The broadcast will be available until the end of the festival, too, for anyone who misses it.
I can't wait to hear what you all think of the game! This is the first online demo of VIDEOVERSE, and it's still in development, so it's a great time to hear you feedback Whether you find a bug, typo or just really, really like it, I'd love to know! Also, there's new banner artwork on the store page featuring the Kinmoku Shark gaming system! I'm really pleased with how it looks I think it really shows off the game well but, more importantly, a release window of "Q3 2023" has also appeared Ooooh! So, not long to wait until you can play the full game for yourself!

[ 2023-03-23 08:55:29 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello! Im excited to announce that VIDEOVERSE has been selected to take part in The Storytellers Festival, from March 25th to April 1st. A free demo, containing chapter 1 of the game, will be available to download and experience during the event I cant wait for you all to play it!
The VIDEOVERSE store page has also been updated with a gameplay trailer, new screenshots, description and GIFs, which divulge more information about what you do in the game. I hope you like what you see and Id love to know your thoughts. As for VIDEOVERSE itself, Im happy to tell you that the following accessibility features have been added to the game:

• Closed captions
• Clear font option
• A tip button, which can be used to conveniently find your solution without needing to quit the game and hunt online for one

Plus, Ive recently added more chat animations, characters and side quests so Videoverse continues to feel like a living, breathing community! I'll soon be announcing the release date for the full game so stay tuned! Until then, please try out the demo available later this month on March 25th. There will also be a broadcast event about VIDEOVERSE on March 26th at 5:00 PM GMT/ 9:00 AM PST.

[ 2023-03-02 10:31:47 CET ] [ Original post ]

I have some excited news to share with you all... VIDEOVERSE has been selected to be part of Day of the Devs 10th Anniversary on November 5th in San Franciscoand Ill be there in-person, showing the first playable demo of the game! Day of the Devs is a free, public event where you can try out a bunch of cool indie games that are currently in development, plus there's food, drinks and live music! The event is at The Midway and general admission starts at 3pm (PT). More information and ticket reservations can be found here. If you're unable to make it in person, there is also a digital event on November 3rd at 10am (PT) which will be on The Game Awards Twitch channel, where you can see the games in the showcase! I hope youll join us all in the celebrations! :)

[ 2022-10-31 13:44:34 CET ] [ Original post ]

VIDEOVERSE is narrative adventure game about love and friendship, inspired by Miiverse, and will be releasing soon on PC, Mac and Linux. It's set in the days of the early internet and fan forums, and is named after the fictional online social network in which it is based (Videoverse). As the player spends time in Videoverse, they'll discover people in need, form friendships and help make the online community warm and welcoming. Some friends in particular are going through difficult times, and the game helps prepare the player navigate heavy topics. However, there are plenty of fun and silly moments to enjoy throughout the game as well (it is inspired by Miiverse, after all!). VIDEOVERSE can be enjoyed in around 6 hours, but there are optional side stories and various narrative branches. You can also personalise your experience by customising your Videoverse avatar, setting your personal quote and choosing a favourite theme. The music is composed by Clark Aboud (Slay the Spire, Kind Words), who's created a beautifully chill, retro-inspired soundtrack for the fictional video game console, the "Kinmoku Shark". Additionally, VIDEOVERSE will feature voice acting, though more details on this will be announced in future posts. You can find out more about VIDEOVERSE by checking out its home page, or subscribing to Games by Kinmoku newsletter. Thanks again to all the fans who have stayed patient throughout the years to hear more about Kinmoku's next project! :)

[ 2022-08-17 14:52:09 CET ] [ Original post ]