KickStarter BioSynth: Rising - a turn-based sci-fi isometric RPG

[Abu Antar]

Sounds good, but he didn't tale Codex feedback well.

 

[NeptuneGames]

Lots of videos:

The turn-based combat system in this isometric RPG offers you a variety of choices. Thanks to many skills, different environments, enemy diversity and much more, you'll enjoy fun and deep combats.

Colour me interested. Terrible placeholder audio fx though, makes you realize how important good audio fx are to the general feel of a game.

Thank you for the feedback, much appreciated. Can I ask you some details about this? Are you talking about some specific SFX (e.g.: the push of a button), a specific type of SFX (e.g.: all of those related to UI) or is it all the SFX?
If you could be more specific, it would be of great help to improve. Thanks!

 

[NeptuneGames]

Sounds good, but he didn't tale Codex feedback well.

Yep, I'm sorry about that. I was in the darkest part of my life, my attitude sucked on so many things. It is not an excuse... but I'm aware of my mistakes.

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-intoducing-the-modular-skill-system/

Update: Intoducing the Modular Skill System​

Can you imagine playing an RPG without skills, spells or any type of special action?

Like a Diablo 2 without skill tree, where you limit yourself to spam normal attacks. Or a Baldur’s Gate 3 where every class plays as a fighter who can’t shove, do special attacks or drink potions.

Yeah, such combat system would make you bored to death.

In short, a skill/spell/action system has the power to make or break a game.

And that’s why it’s crucial to spend enough time on developing and refining such system.

Bringing BioSynth’s Skill System to the Next Level​

From late December to early February, my major focus has been on the skill system that I mentioned in the last update.

It’s a part of a bigger picture: improving BioSynth based on the players’ feedbacks.

About that, let me say that there have been progresses about other aspects of the game too… I’m really happy about the direction that the game development has taken.

BioSynth is shaping very nicely and it’s becoming more solid each day. But we’ll talk about this another time.

Back to the skills…

Well, this major update to the skill system took a lot more than expected… but the final result is also way better than I could anticipate!

It has been a really hard job, but it’s worth the effort. Also because it exposed some weaknesses of other systems that I got to fix – and this is good.

What’s so great about it?

This: with the new system, we can create skills in just a few clicks.

Provided that you have the animations, the VFXs and the SFXs, you can create a new skill in less than 30 seconds.

Or in other words, we don’t need to code skills anymore, because all the possibilities are already coded.

This is huge for the game because it allows us to easily and quickly:

• Create skills for the new classes that we eventually add to the game
• Create skills for items
• Fix all the skills that need a certain adjustment in one go
• Update specific parts of a skill with no need to touch the code
• Create skills for bosses and enemies in general, once we adapt the system to NPCs
• Allow us to realize a very cool skill feature that we’ve been considering for a while and that would make your build customization options go through the roof

In short, this make skills highly scalable and it’s just great.

How did I accomplish this?

Thanks to modular skills.

I looked at the 72 skills that are currently in the game and break each one into pieces. Then, I tried to reduce the number of different pieces to the minimum and ended up with only 7 building blocks.

After this first thinking phase, I got to work. It took a ton of time to figure out a way to build a system that could use these 7 building blocks and make everything work smoothly. But in the end, I got where I wanted to go.

Thanks an endless testing phase, I succeeded in fine tuning the system and the building blocks so that everything was as customizable as possible.

The final result is so good that I can say that this has been one of the best choices made for BioSynth’s development since its beginning a little over 3 years ago.

This is one third of the previous skill system. It was huge and really complex.

The new skill system isn’t just way more powerful than the previous one. It’s also way simpler – because it keeps using the same 7 building blocks for all the skills.

I want to show you something more than just images… but at the moment I’m totally absorbed by another big work, so I won’t be able to make a video any time soon. But it’s my intention to show you more.

Let me close this post by saying this…

I put down on paper all the missing pieces of the puzzle in great detail. There’s a ton of work waiting for us, so I won’t be able to share many posts or videos, but the following months are a turning point for BioSynth. I hope you’ll fogive me if I stay a little silent and do my best at developing the game

Just a small spoiler… what’s ahead could mean an Early Access before the end of the year.

 

[Infinitron]

Second attempt at Kickstarter: https://neptunegames.net/update-towards-a-second-demo-and-more/

Update: Towards a Second Demo… and More​

It’s been a while since our last post… many good things happened, the game is headed in a great direction.

I’ll be brief and go straight to the point.

Working on the the Feedbacks​

As I mentioned in a previous post, after releasing the demo for BioSynth to a closed group of players, we gathered their feedbacks and started working on those.

We almost finished this work and it’s adding a lot to the game.

Here’s a few of the many things that we accomplished:

• Improved navigability a lot
• Improved the camera so that it allows an easier navigation
• Fixed some problems with the ladders
• Created the “Info Handler”, a big function that improves the mouse cursor and skill casting by a lot, gives more accurate information during combat, avoids forbidden actions that were previously available due to certain bugs, and does so much more…
• Added many sound effects to the levels
• Added sound and visual effects to some skills that were missing them
• Rewrote the quest dialogs to flesh out the NPCs
• A lot more…

When we finish working on the list of feedbacks, we’ll release the second version of the demo.

That said, there’s something important that we have to announce.

We’re Going Back to Kickstarter​

After careful thinking, I concluded that the future of BioSynth lies in a new Kickstarter (follow it from here).

By looking at BioSynth now, I envision a game that is way cooler than what I imagined when we launched the Kickstater in 2021. All while making the game less ambitious – it’s not about having an endless amount of content, it’s about having the right ideas and putting them to work in the best possible way.

Succeeding with the Kickstarter launch would mean that we’ll be able to transform this vision into reality.

I feel obliged to give you a freaking cool game.

Trust us, help us and we’ll deliver.

PS: if you aren’t subscribed to our newsletter, subscribe now. We’ll keep you updated about the game, let you know when the Kickstarter starts so that you can grab the best deals and even allow you to play the demo before we release it to the public.

 

[Dishonoredbr]

They didn't got the fund huh sad. but looks decent

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/kickstarter-sneak-peek/

Kickstarter Sneak Peek​

On the last update I announced the return to Kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/neptunegames/biosynth-rpg

Here’s a sneak peek…

BioSynth: Rising’s Kickstarter Preview​

It’s hard to summarize the key points in a paragraph, but I’ll do my best!

Player/companion classes:​

• Bounty Hunter – think about it as the ranger/archer cyberpunk equivalent
• Surgeon – think about it as the cleric cyberpunk equivalent
• Hacker – think about it as the mage cyberpunk equivalent
• Ninja – think about it as the warrior cyberpunk equivalent
• [Still considering if this will be a stretch goal or will be a “base class”] Machinist – think about it as the summoner/shapeshifter cyberpunk equivalent
• More could be unlocked based on game funding

Skill trees:​

• Confirmed 3 skill trees per class
• Confirmed a minimum of 8 skills per skill tree – so a total of 24 skills per class, minimum
• When leveling up, you can pick any skill from any skill tree (as long as you have the requirements, like a high enough character level), so you’re free to fully customize your play style
• All the skills in the skill trees are castable ones. It means that these aren’t passive, you’ll actively use them
• There will be a respec button for skills (that we already built and it’s available in the upcoming demo), so you can experiment. I’m still considering if there will be a price for the respec…

Items:​

• 4 item rarities: common, rare, epic, masterpiece
• Weapons, armors and “quick slots” are the current equipments. There’s one more secret piece that we’re considering… but it could end up as a stretch goal
• Certain items grant you skills (remember that skills in BioSynth are always active castable skills). For example: a certain shotgun that can grasp an enemy with a chain, bring it closer to you and shoot if from close position.
• It isn’t 100% decided yet, but we’ll likely add AoE weapons like area flamethrowers, rocket launchers, etc…

Combat:​

• You can leverage destructible objects (like radioactive barrels, acid pipes, electrical wires, hologram projectors, etc.) when you encounter them in a fight
• Different terrains will require different strategies
• There are 15 statuses that provide a variety of effects
• Additional “things” will be revealed in the future

Quests, Reputation and Stories:​

• Some of the sidequests are branched, so you can solve them in a few different ways
• Companions will have their own quests
• Confirmed the Fame, Karma and Faction reputation system

There are 3 big outdoor maps confirmed:​

• Freedom Streets – the slums of the city (the only map of these three that we have showed up to this point)
• Downtown
• “Glimmervoid” – I’m borrowing this name from Magic the Gathering as a code name

This is all I can say.

If you haven’t followed the Kickstarter yet, do it now. Also subscribe for updates so that you’ll know when we have exciting news.

When Is the Kickstarter Launching?​

I don’t have a date yet.

We’re getting ready for the demo 2.0. Once that is ready, we’ll do a close launch and let all the email subscribers play it (if you aren’t subscribed, subscribe here).

As for the previous version, we’re going to ask players for a feedback. When we have enough feedbacks collected, we’ll start working on those.

Once we finish that, we’ll have the demo 3.0 and, at that point, we’ll be ready for the Kickstarter.

It took about 6 months to go from the demo 1.0 to the demo 2.0, so I suppose the Kickstarter will be at the beginning of 2025. Could be earlier, could be later.

The only sure thing I can say is that I’m aiming at creating something good.

Once the quality is where I want it to be, we’ll move forward.

In the meantime, if you can help me sharing this post and the Kickstarter page, it would mean the world to me! Thanks!

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-minimap-dynamic-combat-camera-and-more/

Update: Minimap, Dynamic Combat Camera and More​

We’re getting very close to the second version of the demo – which, unless something unexpected happens, is likely going to be ready before the end of the month.

At the same time, we’re preparing for the Kickstarter (follow it here if haven’t already).

The progresses are good and wanted to share some of those with you.

The Minimap​

We added a minimap to help you navigate the locations that you’ll visit.

This is very important in big locations, like for example the slums. This will allow a smoother navigation without needing to open the map every time you want to know where you are.

We’re still working on the minimap, since map markers are yet to be added – like the active quest markers. But most of the work has been done, it’s just about details now.

Dynamic Combat Camera​

Now, during a fight, you can move your camera to better see the battlefield and search for enemies.

Also, when enemies are attacking/doing their actions, the camera will show you everything that matters. So, for example, if the enemy is far, the camera will frame it and if it shoots at one of your party members, the frame will enlarge so that the camera shows everything.

This is quite a complex function and we expect it to have some bugs. And it probably needs to be refined in certain situations. We’ll keep improving it, but we’re proud of what we already built.

Bug Reporting and Feedback​

We added a couple of buttons on the bottom left corner of the screen to allow all the players to easily report a bug and/or share their feedback about the game.

Feedbacks are crucial to keep improving, so this was a necessary addition to the game and it’ll help us a lot.

HP Bars​

We added art style for the enemies’ HP bar.

And we improved the way of showing HPs for all the characters involved in combat. Whenever you see a character picture, you’ll also know its HP. This will make combat clearer, especially when you face enemies with the same character picture – you’ll know which one has received more damage.

Fixed Bugs​

Apart from developing new features, we got to fix quite a few things.

Most of the bugs have been fixed. The remaining are all rare ones that we are still investigating, since they are hard to reproduce.

Luckily, most of those are just small bugs that won’t mess with the gameplay.

What’s Next?​

Our next update is likely going to be about the release of the new demo. Or maybe a new art piece before that? We’ll see…

Talk soon!

PS: seriously, follow the Kickstarter, you’ll get to save on BioSynth by reserving your launch discount.

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-demo-2-0-is-here/

Update: Demo 2.0 is Here​

I’m excited to announce that the demo 2.0 is ready.

If you’re subscribed, you already received an email from us with the details to access it. And if you aren’t, subscribe from this page and play the demo now.

Bugs Fixing​

If you’ve played or are playing the demo, please report the bugs that you encounter.

We built a button just for this to make it as convenient as possible for you to report a bug.

In the following weeks we’ll try to address as many bugs as possible (prioritizing the most urgent ones) and aim at frequently releasing patched versions of the demo.

You’ll get updates both via email and from this website.

Bringing Your Feebacks Into the Game​

Your feedback about the demo is even more important than signaling a bug, so after you’ve played enough, please send us your feedback.

We built a button for this too

It’s below the button to report a bug (look at the image above).

It’s thanks to your feedback that we’ll be able to improve the game and turn it into an RPG that you absolutely love.

But keep in mind that it’ll take more time to act based on the feedbacks than the bug fixing. So these updates will likely be less frequent than the bug fixing ones.

Towards the Demo 3.0​

Bugs fixing and improving the game based on your feedbacks it’s the foundation, but we won’t stop there.

In fact, the goal before the Kickstarter is to build the demo 3.0.

We got a few aces up our sleves for that. I’m sure you’ll love them!

That demo is going to be on Steam and will be streamable.

Anyway, it’s going to take a while for this, so you’ll hear from us way before it

Talk soon!

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-fixed-black-screen-and-other-bugs/

Update: Fixed Black Screen and Other Bugs​

Just a quick post to announce that we released a new demo version (demo 2.0.2) where we fixed some bugs – including a crucial one that prevented the game from starting.

Bugs Fixed​

Bugs fixed:

• In version 2.0, many players got just a black screen when launching the game. In current version this is fixed an the game starts with no problems.
• There were companion and quest starting location markers in all the maps. Now these markers appear only in the map where they really are.
• Pressing Q didn’t open the menu. Now it works.
• A certain ladder in the map Freedom Streets was impossible to descend. In the new version, it works as intended.

As more bugs are signaled, we’ll keep fixing them and release updated version.

Please, help us signaling the bugs and sending us your feedback about the game: it’s the best way for us to build a BioSynth that you’ll love.

Import Old Savings​

Notice that if you already started the game and want to play the new version without losing your old saving, you have to manually copy the save files – the released update isn’t a patch, but a new demo version.

To import the old save files into the new version, you have to navigate to this destination:

BioSynth Rising DEMO (folder for the version where you have your game saved) > BioSynthRising > Saved > SaveGames

Copy the whole SaveGames folder into the same destination of the new version. Now your savings are back.

Sorry for this inconvenience, we’ll move as soon as possible to a patching system.

Where Do You Download the Updated Demo?​

You’ll find the updated demo version (2.0.2) in the same page where you received the previous version. We’ll keep updating that page with the latest version available.

If you are subscribed via email, you received an email with a link to that page. If you are not subscribed, click here and subscribe to play the demo.

 

[luj1]

What are your core design pillars? I kinda think the game looks interesting now NeptuneGames

 

[NeptuneGames]

I kinda think the game looks interesting now NeptuneGames

Thank you! It means a lot to me!

I want to do better and the goal is to keep improving the game more and more.

What are your core design pillars?

These 3:

1. Fun gameplay. Strategic combat with many nuances, a number of customization options for your build, etc...
2. Deep world building and writing. It has to make you wonder what's out there and craving to meet the next unexpected NPC with its fascinating story.
3. Visual appeal. Cool characters, beautiful equipment and gorgeous scenery.

It is not an easy task, but step by step I'm determined to turn these into reality.

 

[Nikanuur]

I like what I see so far and thanks for all the info, too!

Are there attribute stats, derived skills, passives, or something like that? IF {yes} THEN GOTO {penultimate sentence} ELSE = 8 talent's per tree and none of them levellable would've seemed a bare-bones RPG and probably not that much fun, to be honest.
On the other hand, that one shown talent, the target moving Air Bomb, does something palpable. That alone promises several times more fun than what certain AAA projects could've mustered with hundreds of employees worth of developing power, i.e. +10, 20, 30, 40% damage per level of talent

 

[NeptuneGames]

I like what I see so far and thanks for all the info, too!

I'm glad to hear it and you're welcome!

Are there attribute stats, derived skills, passives, or something like that?

There are attribute stats.

The passives are something that I'm still pondering about... not a big fan of stats increase passives like +20% precision. I think that something like "now you can wield 2 guns simultaneously" is a cooler type of passive... but at the same time, why not give the option right away? I'll have to think more about it, then release the feature and hear the players' opinion.

8 talent's per tree and none of them levellable

No one ever said they are not levellable I am not saying they are going to be levellable... but why do you think I built this feature? https://neptunegames.net/update-intoducing-the-modular-skill-system/

8 talent's per tree

It's 24 per class. You can pick from any skill tree.
I'm also considering some "base class skill", like for example the ninja could have a base skill that allows it to throw a grappling hook to an enemy to pull that to close position.
And, I already confirmed that items can grant new skills. For example, think of an armor with the ability to activate a force field. And there are "quick slot items" that basically are additional skills.

Anyway, more skills will mean a more complex game and a harder job at balancing things. So we'll have to pay attention to not overdo.

On the other hand, that one shown talent, the target moving Air Bomb, does something palpable. That alone promises several times more fun than what certain AAA projects could've mustered with hundreds of employees worth of developing power

Thank you so much! It's great to hear it!

I hope to be able to deliver more skills with that level of "fun power".

 

[Nikanuur]

I'm glad to hear it and you're welcome!....

Terribly sorry, I got confused initially. 24 talents to choose from per class is a rich amount of possibilities, indeed. I am also glad to read about the attributes, all that stuff about items, base-class skills, and then some, and above all, you mentioning the effort to not overdo things. Nice!

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-new-class-reveal-and-demo-update-preview/

Update: New Class Reveal and Demo Update Preview​

The demo 2.0 has been out for about a month and we’ve collected important opinions and bug reports.

Soon we’ll be releasing the updated demo version 2.1 that has all reported bugs fixed and a great new feature that improves navigability quite a lot.

Here’s a preview of this feature:

We’ll take a better look at it on its release, but for now let me say that it’s a big step forward.

In the meantime we wanted to share some content about the new class.

New Class Reveal: the Ninja​

The ninja is the fourth class coming to BioSynth: Rising.

It’s an agile and elusive killer who uses melee weapons and some ranged white arms/utilities.

Since the ninja mainly uses melee weapons, they have to be good at closing the distance with their target… that’s where a few of their skills will come in hand.

Not sure when this new class will be playable, since we have to take care of a few important priorities first.

But we’ll keep you updated

And finally, a reminder to follow the Kickstarter and share it: by spreading the news about BioSynth, we’ll be able to produce better and better content for the game.

Talk soon!

 

[Tweed]

Black people...

 

[SixDead]

Just came across this thread and don't know the details, but tb isometric rpg with Ninjas? Fuck yeah!

 

[NeptuneGames]

Just came across this thread and don't know the details, but tb isometric rpg with Ninjas? Fuck yeah!

Thank you! I'm glad you like it!

If you want to know more, here's a page with quite a few details about the game: https://neptunegames.net/kickstarter-sneak-peek/
It's about an upcoming Kickstarter, but it basically gathers all the key current features and content about the game.

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/update-demo-2-1-released/

Update: Demo 2.1 Released and Many New Things​

We have quite a few news and topics we want to talk about, let’s dive in.

First things first: the new version for the demo (2.1) is live. If you’re subscribed, you got the email to access the new demo. And if you aren’t, sign up to download the demo.

Bug Fixing​

There were just a few bugs reported – more or less, all about the same few features.

This made us very happy: it means that the game is getting more and more polished.

Among the few bugs mentioned, there were a few bugs about the ladders. They seem fixed now and we have the impression that the ladders are getting smoother. Of course, the final verdict is up to you, so we look forward to hear your opinion about those!

Another bug worth mentioning was a rare one that locked the player in the Tutorial Map, which was especially unpleasant. Now that’s fixed.

Apart from the bugs that you players reported, we had a few newcomers due to our recent migration from Unreal Engine 5.0 to 5.4.

We had to upgrade to Unreal 5.4 soon or later because it introduced a feature that’s crucial for the animation of the more complex robots and mutants that we want to bring to life inside the game. But this isn’t a thing that we are going to use soon… so I wanted to wait for the upgrade.

This was true till Raffaele, the other developer on the team, after testing a feature, said that it was going to be a lot smoother in the version 5.4. So here we are.

The new bugs created by the new engine version were few and small. Like for example, NPC walking started to walk in circle instead of carrying on their usual behaviour.

Anyway, it seems like we fixed all of those too.

Material Disappearance​

To improve the navigation we created an auto-zooming camera that automatically zoomed in when an object was between the camera and your character.

As discussed in a previous post, we tought this was going to be the best solution for BioSynth for a variety of reasons.

Well, according to players, that feature was a pain.

This meant that we had to go back to other solution for the navigability problem: making objects between the camera and the active character disappear.

Raffaele did a hell of a job on this feature and I think that finally we are in a good spot as for the navigation.

The active character – be your hero, a companion or the enemy during its turn – will always be visible because all the objects covering it will turn invisible around the character. And of course, you can click through that invisible radius.

Potentially you could navigate all the levels without ever rotating the camera… even tought that isn’t ideal.

New Features: Moving Camera, Control Mapping and Minimap Compass​

Previously you could move the camera only while in combat. Now you can always move the camera by using the arrow keys on your keyboard – or any other key that you want to set… more about this a few lines below.

And with the press of a button you can go back to the default camera view.

Another feature: wow you can change the control keys, so you can play in way that you find the most comfortable.

And we also added a compass to the minimap to improve your navigation.

Coming Soon – Quick Slots​

Along the other things, we’ve started working on the “quick slots”. These are items that you can equip to grant your characters some additional abilities.

The most basic example: some pills to recover HP.

Of course, these items aren’t limited to defense, but they can be quite useful offense tools. Like, for example the electrostatic bomb shown below. Or maybe some drugs to enhance your offensive abilities…

The items mentioned above are consumables, so you can use the item just once. But there are also quick slots that you can use multiple times.

These items aren’t in the demo yet, but we’re working towards adding them.

What’s Next​

We’ll be working on fixing the bugs reported for this Demo 2.1.

After fixing these and releasing the updated demo, it’ll be time for us to move towards the next goals. We have to build some cool things that I can’t anticipate… but once you see the results, you’ll love BioSynth even more!

One last thing before closing: don’t forget to follow the Kickstarter

See you soon!

 

[NeptuneGames]

A super-quick update to let you know that we're taking the skills very seriously and are putting a ton of work on those. The idea is to let you have fun

 

[Infinitron]

https://neptunegames.net/whats-the-vision-for-biosynth/

What’s the Vision for BioSynth?​

BioSynth has been in the making for quite a while (it started the 20th of August 2020, it’s been more than 4 years) and if you’ve been following the game for a year or more, you may have noticed quite an evolution.

We developed many features, created a lof of new content and improved the game in so many ways – play the demo and take a look for yourself.

But there’s something that’s still the same: the direction where the game is heading.

I have a crystal clear vision about the final spot where I want the game to be. It’s a compass that allows us to take decisions even when it’s hard to decide.

The are 3 pillars on which we’re building BioSynth:

1. Fun gameplay
2. Deep world building and writing
3. Visual appeal supported by the right sound

Let’s take a look at the 3 pillars so that you know what I mean.

Pillar 1: Fun gameplay​

What makes an RPG fun?

There are so many answers to that question… but I think we all agree that one of the key aspects is the combat system.

For turn-based combat, it’s crucial to involve strategy and present a proper challenge.

Then it’s important to add variety – even the coolest things become boring when you get exposed to them over and over.

And there are a couple non-obvious aspects like doing cool and powerful/impactful actions, facing strong/unusual enemies.

For example, it’s more fun to shoot the target with ten homing rockets than just firing a gun at it. And facing a huge mutant with a variety of attacks is cooler than fighting an average human with no armor and basic weapons.

But there’s more, you can have fun outside of combat too. For example, growing your character, customizing their skills and tuning your build feels great if the game provides enough options and they are cool.

We’re doing a number of things to get there.

For example, we’re putting a ton of efforts into creating cool skills both for the player and for the enemies.

Not only from the skill trees but also by having items that grant additional abilities.

We want you to have all the tools to fight some tough guys in an epic combat.

One of the long term goals for the game is to bring to life a handful of high complexity bosses that will make you have an incredible time. Just to properly convey the idea… we are talking about something as complex and as cool as some of the Path of Exile 2 bosses.

Not an easy task, but we’ll do our best.

Pillar 2: Deep world building and writing​

Maybe I’m biased because the first Baldur’s Gates and Fallouts were the first RPGs I played… but I think that the way in which they handle world building and storytelling is still unmatched to this day.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some really good contenders.

But when you play Baldur’s Gate 1 or 2 there’s something more.

You can’t wait to visit places and see what’s out there. You get sucked in the lore and just want to learn more.

Even items in those games are fascinating. A talking sword like Lilarcor or a weapon that you have to assemble piece by piece and could end up in different ways like the Flail of Ages… and those items have their own story.

When you talk with NPCs, they hint at places and events with the result of letting your imagination run.

That’s the type of feeling we want to recreate within BioSynth: it has to make you wonder what’s out there and craving to meet the next unexpected NPC with its fascinating story.

Or, in other words, the world and the stories you’ll find have to suck you in.

Other than investing in the writing, we built a powerful tool to create branched dialogs: the Dialog Maker.

Well, we are refining the tool to make it even easier to turn the writing into an amazing experience for you.

Not only that, we planned the making of a new tool, the Quest Designer, to help us bring complex quests into the game more easily. Below there’s an example of a quest currently in the game (yes, you can play it in the demo) that offers many different ways of progressing and completing it.

And to let you know that we take dialogs seriously, below there are the branched dialogs that take place in a side quest.

Pillar 3: Visual appeal supported by the right sound​

BioSynth is an indie game and we aren’t aiming at having crazy graphics, ultra-realistic characters, etc…

… but this doesn’t mean that we can’t do well from an artistic point of view. The overall idea is to make everything as cool and as appealing as possible.

The art direction that we want to give to the game is about building a dark/grim atmosphere, which is particularly fitting for a cyberpunk/sci-fi environment and could bring an awesome contrast with the endless neons, lights and holograms.

I think this is something that I carry from the “old school RPGs”. For example, play the old Fallouts for a while and you’ll feel a sense of despair just from their art style.

Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2 were grim games too… just think about the location where you start BG2.

I think that such art direction adds a lot to an RPG.

Set the background tone, we aim at creating beautiful sceneries that are supported by the audio part to make everything more immersive and emotional.

We already have plans to improve. For example, by building tools like the Hologram Maker and the Pipe Maker that allow to create richer environments more easily and quickly. Basically tools that work like the one you can see below, where a few clicks allow powerful customizations:

We won’t make a miracle, but if we get you to stop and gaze at the environment here and there during your adventures, we’ll be happy.

Of course, it isn’t all about the environment. Actually, there are visuals that are as, if not more, important than the environment to us: the characters.

But I think you could already tell that from what we already showed during the years.

In BioSynth’s lore, you’ll find so many fascinating characters and it’d be great to have quite a few of those in-game. Other than creating the terrific bosses I talked about previously in this post.

Obviously, we also want your character to look amazing.

There’s still a lot that we have to accomplish for this and that we haven’t been working on yet. For example, the armours. But we’ll get there.

Conclusion​

As you notice, we have been moving in the direction described for quite a while. It takes a little of time to see the bigger picture, but I think you can already have a glance of it

Having a working demo where you can already experience the foundation of what will be, is also great.

And after hearing some feedbacks, it seems that we are on the right track.

We’re working towards the Kickstarter for the game that will help us get everything to the next level. If you like the direction that we are giving to the game, follow the Kickstarter and help us share it, it’s of big help.

See you in the next update!

 

[Nortar]

https://neptunegames.net/whats-the-vision-for-biosynth/

Pillar 3: Visual appeal​

 

[NeptuneGames]

https://neptunegames.net/whats-the-vision-for-biosynth/

Pillar 3: Visual appeal​

As you probably noticed, we changed our approach to concept arts for playing characters:

 

[Nortar]

As you probably noticed, we changed our approach to concept arts for playing characters:

What is the point of a hood over a helmet with glowing bulbs?