Welcome to Arcade Spirits v1.02! We've added a big feature, changed a few things, and fixed up a bunch of minor issues along the way...
The Home Arcade Documentary is now available from the Prizes menu! This interactive documentary hosted by Naomi explains how you (yes, you!) can build or buy your own multi-purpose arcade machine and really get your game on!
Modified one of Percy's endings to add some ambiguity. (Mouseover to reveal this spoiler if you've already finished the game...) It felt too punishing to have him simply die if you didn't befriend him. Our game promotes positivity and this stuck out weirdly. Now, it's simply left ambiguous. Enjoy your retcon!
By popular demand, added Pizza Facts to the end of each episode! Thank you for subscribing to Pizza Facts!
Adjusted the 'Basic' style user interface for improved readability and accessibility.
Minor fixes:
Fixed a crash when using "They" pronouns and dating Naomi.
Fixed more instances of QueenBee's costume being incorrect.
Fixed unlockable Juniper image to the main menu extras.
Fixed Mateo's full name being misspelled in Level 03.
Adjusted some language for sensitivity.
Improved comedic timing on some lines.
Simplified Iris's initial explanation of Fist of Discomfort.
Arcade Spirits v1.01
Patch notes, y'all! We fixed a few things tonight.
Fixed a Gutsy response to Teo in Level 07 crashing the game.
Fixed an incorrect side image in Level 07.
Removed an unintended slur from Level 04. Apologies for that!
Fixed Hamza appearing in the wrong place during Level 02.
Re-organized a few lines for better comedic timing.
Various typo fixes. (If you spot any more, let us know!)
Arcade Spirits Now Available!
Arcade Spirits is RELEASED!
Thank you so much to everybody who's supported us along the way. This game is a pure labor of love from a small team and it's meant the world to us to have you on us during the journey.
Testing, one, two, three… ahh, hello! My name is Iris, and I’m your personal digital assistant through the world of Arcade Spirits! Today, I’d like to discuss a few tips ‘n tricks to help you get the most out of your gameplay. Don’t worry, I won’t spoil anything!
Taking Photos! What better way to capture a moment than with a ‘selfie,’ as you flesh-based entities like to call them? In Arcade Spirits, taking a photo is easy! Just tap the “S” key on your keyboard to Snap! a photo, which will drop right into your game’s file folders. That way, your cherished memories are saved forever! And if that pesky text box is in the way, just “Right Click” first to hide the user interface, then “S”nap your picture! Perfect, pristine images of your friends, your favorite places, and other delightful moments in time.
Basic Isn’t Bad! Throughout Arcade Spirits, I’ll be offering assistance identifying your responses based on various personality archetypes: Quirky, Kindly, Steady, Gutsy, and Basically. You’ll almost always have a Basically option, so if you don’t like the other two, go ahead and be Basic! There’s nothing wrong with that, and sometimes, it’s the best possible thing to say! Don’t be afraid of exploring your choices. Speaking of which…
Save Your Game! So you have to make a biiiig decision, but aren’t sure what to pick? That’s okay! Hit your “ESCAPE” key to pop open the menu, and save your game! You can do this at any time during the game. Become a time traveler! Break the laws of physics! Burn a hole in the fabric of space-time that consumes all mankind has wrought in a sweeping wave of destruction! It’s all good.
Quick-Reference Your Personality! Did you know you can check up on your personality traits and your relationships at any time? It’s easy — just tap the “Q” key on your keyboard, or left click your score in the upper right corner of the screen! Use this to keep tabs on things and make sure you’re becoming the person you want to be.
New Game Plus! Arcade Spirits has replayability, thanks to all the different choices and romance options at your fingertips. Want to play the game again, but skip past any text you’ve already seen? We’ve got you covered! Click the “SKIP” button or the “TAB” key to start skipping past that stuff. Don’t worry, the game will automatically stop when it hits something you haven’t seen yet, or when you reach a decision point! Also, on your second playthrough, your mouse wheel will act as a time travel device — step backwards and forwards to see what different choices do! Why do we even have general relativity? Take that, Einstein!
The Home Arcade Documentary! As a little bonus feature, you can also view a documentary prepared by Naomi that explains how YOU can make an arcade game for your very own home, using software and joysticks and carpentry and more — or less! She’s got tips for you to make a project of any scale, be it a little HDMI set-top box, or a full blown cabinet. Enjoy the classics of yesteryear the way they were meant to be played! To view the documentary, before starting or loading your game, go to the “PRIZES” menu and click on the Documentary option.
Music Too Loud? We’ve mixed the music to quiet itself whenever someone’s talking, but sometimes you just want it quieter still — especially if you’re streaming the game live on the Internet. In the Preferences menu, you can adjust individual sliders for Music, Sound Effects, and Voice. Click the “Test” button next to each to hear what they sound like working together! While you’re in here, if you don’t like our pink neon interface, you can change it to cool blue pixels or a simple grey box. It’s up to you!
And… that’s all for now! I hope you enjoy Arcade Spirits when it releases on the 12th, and I hope I’ve made your game experience just a little bit better. Have fun!
The Final Countdown
Dee da dee doo, dee da dee da dee...
One week remains before the launch of Arcade Spirits and hype levels (along with rising anxiety levels) are soaring. Once the 12th hits and the game drops things are going to get very interesting 'round these parts... but even in the week prior, we've got interestingness in dangerous amounts.
I'm keeping our homepage up to date with links to new press, streamers, and videos as they're made available. For instance, do you speak German or have Google Translate handy? If so you may like this glowing review of our game. Want to hear interviews with the devs? Sure thing -- Stefan was on the GameGrin podcast recently, and Aenne, Molly, and Steph spoke to Gaming Access Weekly about inclusivity and our design philosophy.
Want to watch someone play the game? Okay -- StumptGamers will be streaming our game TODAY, Monday Feb 4th, at 3pm Eastern. Later this week, LoadingReadyRun streams it Friday Feb 8, 12:30pm Eastern. We're also arranging for a charity stream to play it, with details to come. Many, many, many other streamers and youtubers will be diving in starting Feb 12th and we'll be linking to as many as we can when that starts.
(One note, though. Generally speaking we're going to collect links to all content we can, but we draw the line at anyone who mocks the game or its entirely optional pronoun feature. Negative reviews are just dandy, criticism is great... but when it's a thin excuse to make fun of us or disrespect anyone's gender, nothankyou.jpg. We won't issue DMCA or takedowns or anything, that'd be silly and evil, but we also don't have to promote their content.)
Lastly, if you want to preorder, we've got options on the table from itchio, greenmangaming, and humblebundle. ALL of these will get you Steam keys, so pick your favorite. Me, I like itchio, because it offers a great developer split -- but it's entirely up to you. Or don't pre-order! That's fine too, we'll have a matching discount for launch week on Steam itself. You won't miss out.
Not long now. Not long at all...
Calm Before the Storm
Been some time since our last developer blog post. Honestly? Not much to report, since we wrapped up the game and are just waiting for the release. But we're not TOTALLY resting on our hopefully-arriving-in-the-future laurels. Let's recap and discuss the doings and goings on.
Pre-orders are up, as indicated in this handy chart. My recommendation is itch.io, which has both the normal game and soundtrack+artbook bundle at a discount, and gets you both a direct download and a Steam key. If you don't wanna pre-order, that's cool, we'll be having an identical launch week discount on Steam itself.
Aenne (co-author), Steph (Iris's voice actor), Molly (character artist) and special guest Jacob (voice director) are all going to be at PAX South 2019 this coming weekend! We're going to have our most elaborate booth to date, with comfy seating and a fun environment. We'll have shirts and actual pre-order game codes on sale there, so drop on by to play the demo, chat with the devs, and have a grand 'ol time. We'll also be participating in the Houston Gaymers pre-show party Friday at 8pm.
Press will be getting their hands on review codes and working to get you advance notice of how amazingly awesome our game is (hopefully) towards the end of this month. If you're press and want to get in on the fun contact pr@pqube.com for more information.
And finally... Feb 12, we release. And then we wait and see.
Because if we're a success, if we can break even and then some... I've got biiiig plans for an Arcade Spirits II. Since I've got an unexpected and unwelcome surplus of time on my hands I've been doing preproduction work on it, in hopes that we take off like a rocket and the project is greenlit. So tell your friends, tell your enemies, and thank you for your support!
The Prerelease Postmortem
It's been some time since I did a rambly developer blog update about our actual progress on the game. Today I'd like to do one of those, effectively wrapping up our game in a neat little bow, as we're going to be sending it off to be certified and prepped for the February 12th launch. (And we'll be launching at $20 for the game and $25 for game plus soundtrack and artbook. Details here.)
But first, let's recap the Developer Spotlight series, shall we? All these lovely people contributed to Arcade Spirits:
Hats off to you all for two and a half years of hard work. I've chronicled the ideas leading up to those two and a half years on the blog -- that's not what I want to talk about today. I want to talk in hindsight, as we're into the last days of this project. We're moving into 2019 and moving away from post-production, and it's a good time to take stock.
As my first true indie game project -- I don't think MS-DOS shareware from the 90s counts -- I wanted to make this as professional as I possibly could. We funded art, music, coding, and all the support needed to really make this game soar. It's a passion project, riding no particular trend, digging into subject matter rarely explored in visual novels and using interactive storytelling in ways we haven't seen very often in the genre. Everything we wanted to do, specifically to make the sort of game we wanted to play... we did it. And soon, we release it to you.
Since it's our first project, well, there are some shortcomings. I can be honest about that. A more in-depth character creator would be great, having stricter narrative consistency would be great, and we didn't plan on voice acting from day one meaning our scenes weren't always structured in a way that accommodated it. The fifth identity trait ("Basically") was never quite what I wanted it to be. Behind the scenes, files and code could be structured better, making it easier to write and less prone to errors. These are all great lessons to learn moving forward, all things we're taking into account for future games, should we get to make them.
But a lot of other things went spectacularly well. I wanted this to feel like an 80s workplace sitcom -- and it does. I wanted romance to be at the heart of the game, but not drive every single decision you make -- and there's variety here. I wanted to support and include as wide an audience as possible, every person no matter who they are -- and we've done that without sacrificing anything. I craved a game that spoke to wistful nostalgia without being entirely trapped within it, which was respectful of arcade culture but understanding of the modern era -- got it. And lastly, I wanted to tell a tale of hope and optimism in a dark time, where one could achieve their dreams if they were pragmatic about it and didn't give up. I believe we did that.
So. Some things we could've done differently. Some things we got *chef kiss* spot on. And overall, I'm damn proud of the work we're about to release into the world. Will it soar? Will it sink? That's not for me to say -- that's for you to say. If it soars, then we are ready to take these lessons and make something bigger and brighter, a game which explores player choice and narrative in new ways. If it sinks, I can still say with pride that I did what I set out to do. Few people can say they truly chased their dreams.
We still have a month and a half to go, so things are pretty intense for you right now, in anticipation. I get that. For me, we're winding down, we're packaging up and shipping things out... and I feel a kind of melancholy, letting this finally go. A bit of anxiety for how it will be received. But above all, happiness. We did this. And soon, we'll be able to show you.
Thank you. As I always say, if you're reading these words, you're farther down the rabbit hole than you expect -- most people don't chew through developer blog posts, don't engage this deeply. You, however, are here with us. And for that you have my gratitude.
So, who's ready to quarter up on February 12th? You got next.
Demo Updated With Voice!
Good news -- the updated version of the Arcade Spirits demo is now available! Here's a list of what's new.
Voice acting is now available! In the full game several key scenes will be fully acted, and emotional reaction lines are used elsewhere; for the demo we're only using the emotional reaction lines.
Music and sound effect volume has been rebalanced.
Teo is slightly smaller (he was too zoomed in before).
Teo and QueenBee's Kindly paths have additional character details.
The full game releases February 12, 2019! So enjoy the demo, and we hope to see you then!
Arcade Spirits Releases February 12th!
We’ve got a release date — February 12th, 2019! Woo your arcade partner just in time for Valentines Day. And along with that announcement we’ve got a new trailer which features some of the great voice acting you’ll be hearing!
The demo itself doesn’t have voice yet, but I’ll be updating it soon to include voice acting (and a few minor tweaks and changes). Everything should be tip top shortly.
See you in February for love in a time of quarters!
The Many Voices of Arcade Spirits!
Here's a conveniently desktop wallpaper sized poster of all the voice talent behind Arcade Spirits! Click to embiggen, share and enjoy.
You can learn more about each individual voice actor via these links:
So, what do you think? Any voices you're excited for in particular? Anyone new to you that you're interested in hearing? Let us know!
