Welcome to our first ever blog post! We at Foxglow games are excited to have you with us as we embark on our journey of creating fun, story driven games. Based in Tokyo, we aim to create fun, relaxing, multicultural games
Why?
We, well I guess it’s just me for now, are up and coming game developers. I’ve been working on projects for quite a while in my free time, though nothing really all that serious before now. I’ve made small FPS demos, RPGs, dabbled in Blender, etc. But I’ve never really finished anything, and that’s kind of a shame. Looking back, I had a few games with a solid foundations and good story potential, but I never went anywhere with them. Why? Well, it’s mostly because being a solo dev gets kinda boring, I guess. I mean, where’s the fun in spending hours programming and not having anyone to show it to? So I figured, what if I just showed everyone on the internet. And that, in part, is where Foxglow Games came from. The other part is less idealistic and more practical, so I won’t bother going into detail. I mean, games are meant to be a way to take a break from reality, right? Well, anyway, the other reason is simply that my chances of getting a job after graduating- second year international university student in Japan by the way- are way better with some sort of portfolio and accomplishments. Well, enough about my motivations, let’s get back into the real stuff, the hows and whys.
A Bit About Me
So, about our little studio. We’re a very small team of one(me), who wants to get out of his shell and put out his work. As for what we do, it’s pretty simple (and kind of obvious from the name of the website). Essentially, we make games. Being the (not quite so) super developer I am, I do everything along for now. This means I frequently take…shortcuts that I have to fix later. For example, I am guilty of what some people think is a horrible crime, using AI art. In fact, our logo is from AI, and as you might have been able to tell by the obvious watermark, so is the cartoon version of myself in the about us page. Now, I see where they’re coming from, I really do. making a living as an artist is really tough, and they do amazing work for sometimes very little pay. And frankly, they’re way better than any AI, especially since they can reason and understand what I want, even though I usually don’t. Then why, you may ask, do you not support the financially struggling artists? Well, it’s simple, I am a fellow financially struggling individual, who also happens to be in university in a foreign country. So while I definitely would love to get some of that awesome custom art, my wallet says no. But worry not, artists! If I ever do manage to release a game and, by any miracle, it makes some money, replacing all that discordant AI art with quality art that actually uses the same style will be the first thing I do. With a clear understanding of who we are, let’s dive into what we aim to achieve with Foxglow Games.
Our Vision
I know what you’re thinking, finally, he’s getting to the fancy business words! Maybe he’ll stop talking about himself for once. And you’d be mostly right, but I can’t promise I wont sneak back in there. So, our vision, what is it? Basically, our vision is to create fun, relaxing, story-driven games, that can be enjoyed globally. Well, globally might be a ways off since I only know English and (basic) Japanese, we’ll get there eventually. As the sappy type, I quite enjoy those deep, emotional stories (My favorite is Eternal Senia). And so, those are kind of my focus, eventually. But as a realist, I know that’s kind of not possible without a great artist and sound engineer, which I am not. SO for now, we’re keeping it simple. But the vision statement isn’t supposed to be realistic, right? so let’s dream big! We’re going to craft wonderful stories that focus on emotions and character development foremost. Hey, we’re based in Tokyo, right? Why not invade Comiket? Though I guess if I made that a goal, I’d have to translate all this rambling into Japanese… Enough about the future, let’s talk about the now; our current project.
Our First Game!
Now for the fun talk! Our first game as Foxglow Games! Have you ever heard of Mindustry? Well the basic game mechanics are coming from there, but getting adapted and expanded. I always enjoyed the core mechanics of Mindustry, but couldn’t stop thinking “Whats the point?” I mean, all it is is repeatedly conquering different parts of a planet, no reason why. The gameplay is fun and engaging, stealing hours of my time(this counts as work, by the way. One of the best perks of being a game developer). Despite playing for hours, I forget everything as soon as I close it. I mean, what’s to think about? Whereas after an RPG I think about it for days, even weeks. I mean, I still think of Eternal Senia sometimes. That’s the importance of story-driven games. So, I was thinking, if I added a great story to a Mindustry like game, it could be awesome!
Conclusion
As you can tell, I never broke that high school habit of labeling the finally paragraph the conclusion, as if I’m always writing an essay. Well, anyway, if you found our vision interesting, are interested in our new game idea, or just want to read more of my rambling for some reason, please follow us on the Twitter (yes, it’s still Twitter to me) or Instagram. I’ll even add special little links for you! Isn’t that nice? Well, I’m done rambling today, so I’ll say goodbye for now. I’ll post another blog here next week, and more frequently on SNS. (Hopefully) see you then!