Burden of Proof is 3 Years Old!

3 years ago today, I hit the release button for Burden of Proof. I honestly didn't know what to expect when my game became available to the general public. Though I was unsatisfied with many aspects of the project during development and had to cut out certain ideas due to time constraints, I pushed through and presented the game as best I could on social media and Steam. Now, the game has sold over 350 copies and is my most positively reviewed product by far. I want to once again thank everyone who has tried out the game and experienced the narrative adventure that I crafted over 3 years ago. The overwhelming amount of responses and feedback I received has been incredible. It means a lot to me that even years later there are still plenty of people picking up the game and trying it out. In that regard I'm hoping the game still has a long lifespan ahead of it. Getting it in the hands of many new players is still an ongoing goal for me. To that end I'm continuing support for bugfixes or other issues, so if you see something don't be afraid to make a post in the Bug Report section of the BOP Steam forums.
To celebrate this milestone, Burden of Proof will be 50% off as part of the Week Long Deal for 7/26! If you haven't yet already, you can get the game here.

2021 Roundup

Following Burden of Proof, I had my sights on developing something more action-oriented while still telling a fulfilling story. It took many months of work and skill improvement, but with the help of friends and family I managed to make something I felt was worthy to release. Last year, I published my fantasy action-adventure title called Iron Reckoning! It was the first game I completed that featured full voice-acting, a completely original soundtrack, and real-time cinematic sequences with synced sound effects.
If you haven't already, you can buy the game at the Steam page for Iron Reckoning here! It's been over half a year since Iron Reckoning was made available, and in that time I've been hard at work at yet another project. In fact, I've actually been working on this game since just a week or two after Iron Reckoning went live. Today, I'm finally announcing the title of this spiritual successor to Burden of Proof...

Shinogi Chess Club

The courtroom-genre identity has been both a blessing and a curse for BOP when it comes to promotion. My goal this time was to make a brand that could stand on its own legs, while still following the Burden of Proof formula that many seemed to enjoy. Much like that previous title, Shinogi Chess Club will be a 3D hybrid visual novel experience that focuses on puzzle solving, mysteries, and exploration!
It features a whole new cast of characters and an original soundtrack with plenty of references & connections to my past games! In fact, this story takes place in the same universe as Burden of Proof and will follow some key characters that relate closely to the BOP plotline. This is far from a proper sequel, but I hope you'll all enjoy these linked threads and I do intend to return to BOP when the time is right. I don't want to spoil too much, but I would like to talk a bit more about Shinogi Chess Club and the improvements I've made to my workflow! As a return-to-form of sorts, I've decided to follow the BOP cartoonish/anime art style for my characters. This time, however, I've taken a lot more time to study and perfect my character designs. Each character goes through a rigorous process of concept thumbnail -> final design -> 3D Model -> texture & material work. Here you can see some of the early stages:
Followed by a final concept:
And finally, many hours were spent modeling the character for use in game:
Every piece of art was created by me; I handle all 2D concept work and 3D modeling as well as texture work and rigging for practically everything in the game. This sort of process is a lot longer to complete than what I did for BOP's characters, but I think the quality speaks for itself. Improvements like this are being made all across the board, from UI to sound design and level art. The character you see above is actually the player character for this story! I've posted about this character I'm calling "Himiko" before on Twitter!
As you can probably imagine, Shinogi Chess Club will put the player in the role of an upcoming Shinogi Chess competitor. This is a fictional game of my own design which extends and alters the ruleset of traditional chess. As a result, the "chess sections" of this game are not intended to require any skill transfer from the chess games that you may be familiar with, and difficulty options will be available to improve the accessibility. All this goes to say that the puzzle solving aspect of the experience is mainly about learning these new rules and improving your skill at the game to take down bigger opponents as the story progresses! Burden of Proof veterans should notice the similarities and opportunities this format provides for character interactions and introductions! As for the story itself, you can expect a thrilling drama that follows our main character as she uncovers a dangerous threat lurking in the shadows of her school. That's all I'll say about the game for now, though you can expect more news in the coming months! Thanks again to everyone that follows my work and supports me! As always, you can see my latest updates on Twitter! Please keep an eye out for more info on this new project! Stay safe, and I'm happy to answer any questions in the Steam forums or anywhere else :) -Matt