It Was That Summer, A Choice Driven Visual Novel

📍 London, UK (GB)

🏷️ Video Games

It Was That Summer is a story driven visual novel set in Cambridge in 2006. It follows Leon, a seventeen year old exchange student who arrives in a new country and tries to navigate friendship, love and the pressure to grow up faster than he feels ready for.

This game was inspired by a real summer that stayed with me for many years. It was a short moment in life, only two weeks long, but it changed how I saw myself and the people around me. I wanted to capture that feeling in a game. Quiet conversations in old courtyards. A sudden crush that makes your whole day brighter. The sound of a city you do not know yet but want to understand. The sense that you are becoming someone new without noticing it.

We are raising funds to finish the game, expand the art and animation, and complete voice work and localisation. Our goal is to make a warm coming of age story that feels honest and grounded. The full game will have multiple routes, different endings and a focus on choices that shape who Leon becomes. Every small decision can shift your relationships and your emotional journey.

The world of the game is painted with a mix of hand drawn backgrounds and soft character art. We took care to make Cambridge feel alive: the chapel, the paddock, the dining hall, the river, the little corners where students disappear between classes. The story is influenced by Japanese visual novels and European literature, especially the feeling of quiet nostalgia that comes from returning to a place long after the summer has ended.

What the funding will help us achieve

• More character sprites and animations
• Additional backgrounds and environmental art
• Polished writing and editing
• Original soundtrack and sound design
• Full English voice acting for key scenes
• Localisation into Japanese and German
• Improved UI and accessibility features

What backers receive

Everyone who supports the project will get regular updates about development and a look behind the scenes. Supporters also receive digital rewards like artbooks, wallpapers and other extras. Backers will also receive access to the demo two weeks before it becomes publicly available. This early demo contains the first day of the story and helps us collect feedback before the wider release.

Who we are

Echo Bay Studios is a small team based in Europe. We grew up with Japanese visual novels and anime, and we wanted to create something that blends that style with the atmosphere of a European summer school. We are writers, artists and developers who want to tell stories that stay with players long after the credits roll.

Thank you for taking time to read about the project. If you choose to support it, we hope the game gives you the same warm feeling that inspired us to make it in the first place.