Sojourner - An NES Dragon Quest & Earthbound-inspired JRPG

[michaelsquirrel]

Hi everyone, my name's Michael Squirrel. Thanks for having me. I'd like to share my game with you. It's called Sojourner. It actually released back in July 2017, but I was hospitalized shortly after it was published. While I was in the hospital, I was supposed to be starting grad school as well as a new job, but I had to push those things back because of my illness, and so when I was released, I spent all my time getting caught up, never having the chance to share my game with anyone. But now I'm on summer break and am happy to finally have a chance to venture out onto the web and tell people about the game. So, I present to you, Sojourner:

Description and features:
Simultaneously a love letter to and a parody of classic role-playing games, Sojourner is the retro RPG that the world has been craving, but just didn't know it. By gracefully mixing modern gameplay elements with a familiar retro aesthetic, Sojourner features everything that you loved from the 8-bit RPGs of your childhood and leaves behind everything you didn't. Drawing heavy inspiration from NES classics like Mother (Earthbound), Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, and Legend of Zelda, while bringing in an original style and quirkiness all its own, Sojourner is a glorious blend of the old and the new, making for a very playable, very fun adventure for anyone who is a fan of the classics or simply a fan of RPGs in general.

• Embark on an epic, heartwarming, and sometimes silly quest in a large fantasy universe, featuring more secret areas and sidequests than you will ever be able to find without using a strategy guide
• Create your own party of highly-customizable characters, with 10 classes to choose from, and a class change system
• Recruit monsters to your party with a unique spin on creature-capturing
• Multiple endings based on how you interact with characters in the world
• NO GRINDING
• Random battles can be turned off completely
• Humorous dialogue and nostalgic references
• All graphics use the NES color palette
• 8-bit music and sound effects
• Runs at a buttery-smooth 60 frames per second
• Typical completion time is 15-20 hours

Screenshots:

(More screenshots can be viewed on my website)

More
If you play the game and need any help, there are a bunch of walkthroughs and guides on my website

Here's an interview I did with Siliconera about my inspirations for how the game became so weird

If you want to learn about my extremely unconventional process to make this bizarre game, read this blog post I wrote

With all that said, if you're interested in picking up the game, it's currently on sale on Steam for $1.99 (usual price is $4.99)

Of course, for folks who are willing to write a review of the game, even a short one, I would be happy to provide a free copy. Just shoot me a DM or email me at contact@michaelsquirrelgames.com, and we can discuss details.

I'm going to try to check back here fairly often throughout my remaining days off. If folks have questions or comments, I'll do my best to respond!

 

[Kes]

Just a heads up. Steam rules are such that reviews from people who have a free key do not count towards your review total. Also such reviews tend to be distrusted by other players.

 

[lianderson]

Love the trailer you made. lol

"Actually, I'm your dad. Did you know that? What a creative name for a dad; daddyo."

Also, don't feel bad about the lack of reviews. There's been a mass oversaturation on steam that I'm sure you're aware of. And besides, your game has almost three times more than mine.

Will you be making a new game by chance?

 

[michaelsquirrel]

Just a heads up. Steam rules are such that reviews from people who have a free key do not count towards your review total. Also such reviews tend to be distrusted by other players.

I actually did not know that. Yet, I care more about getting my game into peoples' hands. And I would want to encourage folks to post their review to their own blog/gaming site/wherever in addition to Steam. I'm not really trying to make money or start a successful career, just want as many folks as possible to play my game, if they're interested.

Love the trailer you made. lol

"Actually, I'm your dad. Did you know that? What a creative name for a dad; daddyo."

Also, don't feel bad about the lack of reviews. There's been a mass oversaturation on steam that I'm sure you're aware of. And besides, your game has almost three times more than mine.

Will you be making a new game by chance?

Thank you. I made that trailer in like 30 minutes, and even though I'm pretty much done with Sojourner since I released a rather large update last week, the idea of making a new, proper trailer is something that will forever be on my to-do list.

Thanks, I don't feel bad about the reviews. I never really told anyone other than personal friends and acquaintances about the game, until now, so I never expected to get too many.

I am working on another game, in RMMV, and it's about ten times as ambitious as Sojourner and a huge visual improvement. Perhaps I'll make a forum topic soon.


Thanks for the replies, guys.