January Development

We've hit the ground running as we are starting 2024! To make the game as good as we can, we started this January by stripping down the demo you got to try last October back to the basics. This allows us to have a second pass on everything, and ensure all files are in the correct place and following the right structure - overall, allowing for a better, more optimised game! This is also the perfect opportunity to take your feedback on board and revisit some of the game fundamentals like the art style and game feel.

Publishers?

Alongside the technical development, we are still in talks with various organisations to see about getting a publisher for Skystead Ranch, we are still hopeful of finding a publisher that aligns with our company values. We can't say much more on this at the moment, but will keep you all updated with any news we can announce.

New Artist

The biggest news for ToastieLabs and Skystead Ranch this year so far, is our newest 3D Artist Laura! Going from 1 artist to 2 will greatly increase the quality and quantity of the assets we can create to flesh out the fantastical world of Skystead Ranch! Laura is already settling in well with the team and has started strong with these new 3D models for the game! Her amazing work lets Jack focus his efforts on making many more unique Skylets.

World Block Out & Art Pass

A large part of the development is revising the world layout, we concluded from the game Demo, that the starting world layout was far too large for tutorial purposes, with this in mind we have blocked out a brand new island layout, with the player house completely separate to the Skylet play area! We are excited about the possibilities this unlocks from a gameplay point of view and are excited for you all to try it for yourselves in future demonstrations.

We put additional early development effort into the starting island to allow us to pass on the revisited art style to the publishers we are talking with. It's looking more and more like how we envisioned Skystead to look when we initially designed the game concept. Specifically the revised toon shaders we are using for the Skylets and improved lighting make for a much more cosy experience than we demonstrated in the demo. We also have a couple of new Sky Ships if you look closely. Make sure you follow us on Steam and on our socials to stay up-to-date with the development process as we continue to make Skystead Ranch! We're still on track for release in early 2025!

[ 2024-02-05 10:56:43 CET ] [ Original post ]