Roadmap Update: From Steam Launch to Future Projects

 It’s been roughly seven months since the last update, and with the upcoming release of Cook or Be Cooked on Steam, I think it’s necessary to update everyone and also put my thoughts in order.

Cook or Be Cooked

Cook or be Cooked Key Art

The project wrapped up production around January of this year and is ready for release. Although I was planning for an earlier launch, I wanted to give the game the chance it deserved and see if it could get a strong release. I’ve presented the game at Athenscon convention last year and the people who played it really loved the story and the artwork, which motivated me to apply to Gamescom through the Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center.

The game was selected in the top 10 from the Center, giving me the opportunity to attend the biggest convention in the world once more. This time I focused on finding a publisher as well as participating in the Steam event, hoping to gain several hundred or even thousands of wishlists, which could boost the game’s visibility. As you might know, you usually need around 7,000 wishlists before release, otherwise the Steam algorithm won’t pick it up.

Greek Video Games Booth at Gamescom (Business Area)

On publishers: I talked to a handful, and two were interested in the game. The first thing I did after returning from Gamescom was to immediately send a working build as well as a pitch deck. It’s been three weeks since then with no replies, which is a clear indication they’re not interested. My plan was that if I could get enough funding, I’d expand the game to 6–8 hours of gameplay. Since I don’t have the funds, the game will release as is—which, in my opinion, is in a good state, and the story is self-contained for this type of game, so no harm is done.

Unfortunately, the Steam event didn’t go well this year. I got only 200 wishlists, and from the other developers I spoke with (around two dozen), the results weren’t good for them either. The game currently sits at around 400 wishlists, which indicates it’s heading for a weak release and won’t recoup the money I invested. That’s acceptable, since I wanted to familiarize myself with Godot engine more than anything.

The game is scheduled for an October launch on Steam, but it is already be available on Itch. I’d also like to thank a couple of people who supported the game more generously than expected, it truly means a lot. Those of you who supported the game’s release, if you’d like a Steam copy, please reach out ,and I’ll send you one. I honestly appreciate your contributions and hope you’ve had a fun time playing the game.

Parallel Pulse

Parallel Pulse's Protagonist: Laios

I made very little progress this year on my main game. I felt downcast and rushed to finish it but Cook or Be Cooked taught me that I should take my time. This game should be released when it’s ready, not only because I love the artwork and story, but because I need to focus on learning the engine better.

The reason I’ve managed to release a dozen games so far is because I did most of the programming myself, and the same should be true here. The most costly part of Parallel Pulse would be the programming part, and the budget would have been enormous. If I hadn’t gone through the process of releasing Cook or be Cooked, I might have poured money into it only to realize I didn’t have the funds to finish.

On the bright side, a big publisher is interested in Parallel Pulse, but I’ll need to create a proper vertical slice for them to evaluate. I also submitted it to the EU Commission this year and scored 72 out of 100. While I passed the threshold, the enormous number of applications meant I didn’t get funded.

Still, things aren’t all gloomy. I now have a much clearer sense of what needs to be done to complete this game. I love the story, and even more so, I love the beautiful artwork the artists created. That said, I still lack the programming experience needed to build the combat system and the dialogue UI, so for the time being I’ll focus on learning the engine more. From time to time, I post updates on Bluesky, so feel free to follow my progress there.

All things considered, development on Parallel Pulse will resume at the beginning of next year.

Project Rogue Shifters (Codename)

AI generated Aat with the protagonist of the game

I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned this project here, but the history behind it is interesting. It’s an old project I started about three years ago. The initial characters for Parallel Pulse were first developed for Rogue Shifters, though the story and setting were entirely different—it’s basically a yaoi visual novel. At the time I was burnt out and decided to shelve the project, which was the right call since Parallel Pulse is the priority when it comes to allocating funds. I tried to find a publisher for Rogue Shifters during Gamescom but had no luck.

I considered shelving it again, since I had little faith it would recoup its costs, let alone become a success. The only thing I really had was the story and script, which are basically finished. So, I had two options: kill the project once more, or use it as a training exercise to learn the engine better.

I’ve decided to use it as a training opportunity to learn Godot and the Dialogic plugin better. Although I’ve used the plugin before and released two games with it, I wasn’t the main programmer, so my contributions were limited. This means I still don’t know how to create a save system or complete the full UI. Like with Ren’Py visual novels I made in the past, I’ll gradually build my skill set here too.

I’m not someone who learns well by studying blindly, I’m project-driven, and I think most people are. To improve, I need to work on new small projects, finish them, and polish them. In the past, that was either time-consuming or expensive, since I had to join game jams (which meant also handling project management, not my current focus) or pay for assets to make non-profitable games. At the current state I’m in, I don’t have the money or time for that. The alternative is to use AI-generated art, which allows me to focus on programming and writing.

I know some of you might not agree with this approach, but I plan to use technology to improve myself so I can eventually commission proper artwork for my main game. Rogue Shifters was dead anyway, but now it can serve as a stepping stone for Parallel Pulse. The script is around 50K words, and the dialogue UI I need to implement is nearly identical to Parallel Pulse, making it the perfect training opportunity.

Project Edenfall

This isn’t a full project yet, and I don’t know where it’s going, but I’ve been delving into Unreal Engine on and off. For those who remember, I first tried developing Parallel Pulse in Unreal, but it wasn’t the right fit, which is why I switched to Godot.

Even if I don’t know where Edenfall will end up, the important thing is that we can iterate fast and learn the engine along the way. Similar to Rogue Shifters, we’re trying to establish a pipeline to generate materials and 3d AI assets where needed, so we can focus on the parts that matter most to us. What’s great about this endeavor is that my partner is an artist, so when we have a blocker he can easy resolve things.

Final Thoughts

This summarizes the current state of my roadmap. Honestly, I was close to quitting game development for my personal indie project because of the pipeline problem: either join and manage game jams or pay for smaller projects just to practice. Some might disagree, but incorporating an AI pipeline into my smaller projects is what motivates me to keep going and improve as a game developer. Thanks everyone for reading and supporting me.