It's been a massively emotional (and quite draining) six years getting to this point, so I couldn't be more proud to announce my new game A Story Beside is finished and available now in full. Step into the sleepy mountain village of Pyreside and experience a charming, poignant, and deeply personal journey through the life of a humble innkeeper named Lyric. I'm incredibly happy this story has resonated so strongly with early access players and am overjoyed to finally be sharing it with the wider world.
So, next steps now that the game has launched in full? I'll be active in the forums and across social media in the coming days, listening to your feedback and continuing to improve the game experience... so keep that feedback coming! Once I'm confident the story and gameplay are as polished and bug-free as possible, I'll be turning my attention to supporting other languages and platforms so that more players can jump in.
In the meantime, I truly hope you all enjoy the game! I poured my heart and soul into it and send it out into the world today with all of my love.
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your patience and support.
After nearly six years, a battle with cancer, a global pandemic, and countless other challenges, I'm thrilled to announce my new game A Story Beside will be launching in full this Tuesday, May 24!
I know many of you World's Dawn fans have been waiting for the game to leave early access before diving in, so I'm overjoyed to finally be able to share Lyric's story with you all. This is hands-down the most personal and emotional project I've ever written... so it stands to reason it's also been the most draining in many ways. At the end of this long development journey I find myself incredibly proud but also incredibly exhausted. I sincerely hope everyone enjoys the finished product!
I won't ramble too much longer but I do want to extend a most heartfelt thank you to those who have stuck with me through all this time. As we now cross the finish line together, I want you all to know this project could not have happened without your encouragement and support.
See you all in Pyreside on May 24! Be sure to tell a friend and join us there.
Hey everyone, I'm happy to announce that the final chapter of my new game A Story Beside is out now — meaning Lyric's story can be experienced in full for the first time ever! I have waited so, so very long to say those words.
To celebrate this long-awaited release and to encourage more new fans to jump in, World's Dawn is 50% off this week. Feel free to share either link with friends and family and help spread the word! Your humbling response to my little farming sim was the reason I was able to commit myself fully to its spiritual sequel, and put out a deeply emotional and personal story that I'm incredible proud of after nearly 6 years of strained development.
For anyone who has been following along all this time, through all my health issues and personal struggles... thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for your patience over an agonizingly long development cycle. Thank you for your support, your encouragement, and your incredible understanding as I went through some of the hardest challenges I've ever had to face these last few years.
I hope you enjoy the final chapter, and I'll be back with more updates soon!
Hey everyone,
I wanted to apologize for the delays of Chapters 4 and 5 and ask for your patience as I polish them up before release. As you might expect, this has been a busy time of year in my personal life (holiday happenings, a new nephew, and more than a little seasonal anxiety around the one-year anniversary of my lymphoma diagnosis) and things have taken longer than planned. I'm sure it's been frustrating for everyone awaiting the next part of the story, so I am truly sorry.
I think once you get to play these next couple chapters you'll understand why they've been such a hurtle for me. Not only are we approaching the emotional apex of Lyric's story, but as the game goes on, more and more of your personal choices will branch off and offer different outcomes... which of course adds to the development time of even the simplest scenes. I sincerely hope the full story is as meaningful and satisfying as everyone is expecting and certainly don't want to rush to the finish line.
So! I am pushing back Chapters 4 and 5 once again, and this time I won't make the mistake of promising a release date. It will most likely be early January and sincerely hope the wait will be worth it. This community means so much to be and I don't want to let you down.
More updates to come very soon!
Happy holidays to all!
Any and all feedback is welcome! At the moment I am planning to release a new chapter every other week, and your comments and suggestions will be invaluable in making the final product as polished as possible.
I could talk at length about the journey it took to get here, the personal battles I've fought along the way, and the inspiration this community has offered through the most difficult year of my life... but instead I'll just say I truly hope you enjoy the game 😊 and thank you for waiting.
How could I possibly follow up the exciting news that my lymphoma cancer has gone into remission? How about a release date! I'm thrilled to announce that the first chapter of A Story Beside is coming to Steam Early Access on September 26!
I am planning to release a new chapter every other week, which I believe to be the perfect length of time between installments — long enough for me to incorporate feedback and bug-fixes as they come up, but short enough that devoted players don't lose interest and can follow Lyric's journey as it unfolds. I know some people don't love the idea of Early Access, so it's totally up to you whether you want to jump in now or wait until later in the year when the full game comes out. If you decide to purchase the game now (even if you plan on waiting until the full release to play it) you'll save some money, as the final version will cost a little more than this early build.
It's been an incredibly emotional journey for me getting to this point and I am so happy to finally share this project with all of you. Much love and more news to come 💚💜🧡
Hey everyone,
I'll be taking a break from World's Dawn let's plays for a while, so I thought I'd post a quick video update. Thank you for all the lovely comments and feedback over the last few months!
https://youtu.be/H7aYXsdVEcs
Rest assured I am working as hard as I'm able on A Story Beside and should have more to share soon. I know it's not the first time I've said that, so I appreciate your patience for now! I can only the hope the game will be worth the wait once it's finally released.
Hey all!
As a way to decompress and stay connected with the community after my recent diagnosis and ongoing treatment, I decided to sit down with a good friend and record a World's Dawn developer let's play! We're planning to share behind-the-scenes stories, community comments, and laughs aplenty as we revisit the game I care so deeply about.
Check out the first episode and let me know what you think:
https://youtu.be/uAh0hY2krFg
I've never done any of this sort of casual content before, so any and all feedback is appreciated! I'd love to get the community involved and make this series a fun, cozy return to Sugar Blossom for anyone who could use a little levity in their lives.
Hello everyone,
I have some rather unfortunate news to share today. I've always tried to be open and honest as a developer, and in that spirit I'm going to delve a little deeper into my personal life than I have in the past.
Over the last several months I've been struggling with a variety of health issues that have kept me from being as focused and creative as my usual self... things like constant fatigue, swelling, soreness, and chest pain. These symptoms are the reason A Story Beside was taking longer to complete than I'd originally hoped, and I was dealing with a lot of frustration trying to figure out what was causing them. I would sit down at the computer to work and just be overwhelmed by all kinds of stabbing pains and discomfort. I couldn't focus.
After several trips to the doctor, in December I was officially diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, a very treatable — but still scary — form of cancer. In a way it's been a relief to finally know what's been going on, and why my physical health dropped off so quickly, but it also means there's a long road to recovery ahead.
So. What does this mean for Wayward Prophet and A Story Beside?
First of all, know that I'm still fully committed to completing this project. But as things are now, I simply can't make any release date promises... I have to make the physical and emotional health of myself and my family top priority. I understand how disappointing this news must be for everyone who's been waiting to play A Story Beside. Please know that I'm planning to spend every moment I'm mentally and physically able working towards release. It's become a challenge I'm eager to tackle and I'm hoping it will give me a lot of strength and motivation to get through the difficult times ahead.
Thank you for your understanding and support in the meantime! This humble community means the world to me and I'm certainly not going anywhere.
(bonus pic of my two fuzziest fans)
I appreciate everyone taking the time to read this update and apologize that I don't have better news. Rest assured there are still plenty of exciting things ahead for Wayward Prophet, and I can't wait to share them with you.
For anyone who hasn't been following the project, it's a narrative-driven adventure game set in a magical fantasy world and starring an ordinary innkeeper. There's lots more information on the Steam page, including screenshots and the newest official trailer for those who missed it.
Thank you as always for your enthusiasm and support! I'm working really hard on this new game and the positive energy from the humble World's Dawn community keeps me going. I appreciate all of you so much =)
