July 2021 Update
Rabbit & Bear StudiosCreatore
28 luglio 2021
※日本語のアップデートは下の方にあります
Hey there heroes!
It’s time again for your July monthly update!
Important Backer Notifications
Slacker Backer Store Closing
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and so we are announcing the closure of the slacker backer store on August 28th, 2021. This is largely because the growing number of backers is becoming harder to manage logistically and the team would like to focus more of their energy on driving the development of the game towards completion.
Rest assured, this is NOT the legacy backer store, which will continue to stay open! Any current backers will still have the option to buy add-ons from the legacy backer store.
So be sure to spread the word, in case you have any friends, family or pets that would like to join the ranks of our backer heroes over the next month!
Join the Discord
We have been working hard distributing our three main discord roles alongside the special Noble backer role, and are working through any open customer service issues relating to this. Discord roles are handled through a bot that will send an email to the one you listed on your kickstarter survey, so be sure to keep an eye on it!
Because Discord is a way to chat directly with the creators of Eiyuden Chronicle, participate in a wide variety of fun discord games, discuss anything related to Eiyuden Chronicle, and accrue points that can later be used to purchase cool merchandise, the more heroes we can gather on the discord, the stronger the community becomes! And so, we will be sending a reminder email to everyone who has not joined us there yet after this update.
We know not everyone wants to participate via discord, however, so if you are not interested in receiving these notifications you can ignore or delete the email and we will not send any future notifications about Discord. Otherwise, if you are interested please do opt in so we can keep you updated properly.
Production Updates
Character Profile
Ormond
RACE: The Dwarves
GENDER: Male
AGE: 36
FAVORITE FOOD: Omelet
This dwarven miner's oversized pack is crammed with every possible tool he might need for the job. Ormond has keen ears and can locate ore just by striking the rock with his hammer and listening to the hum. However, he sometimes makes it seem like everything has to happen on the double. "Right, we'll pitch the tent here, and a hammock here. Oh, and if we'll be toiling here awhile, we must build a proper stove. Aye, with a little elbow grease, we'll be up and running within the hour!"
Kawano’s Comment:
In the first stages of the design process, I gave Ormond more attributes typically associated with dwarves and submitted a rough sketch of Ormond with a bushy, unkempt beard. But the team quickly pointed out that his meticulous personality would mean he’d most likely keep his beard neatly braided and wear colors that would mask the dirt on his clothes.
So here is the cleaner and more presentable version of him. What do you think?
Background Concept Art
Camp Village (Working Name)
Murakami’s Comment:
We still can’t reveal much, but here are some early images of the Empire and the Allied Forces’ camps.
Things often get changed, but we thought you’d enjoy seeing the differences between the production process and the final product.
I’m an avid camper myself, so I always feel a sense of excitement when I see the progress of the tent designs.
Murayama's Monthly Development Report
My story-writing process begins by having a general overarching plot which I then insert characters into. Afterwards, I try to explore what the characters would do or think within the setting they’re in.
I believe that a story revolves around the characters in it and its ultimate goal is to tell their life stories—through the thoughts that they have and the choices that they make. So I always put a lot of effort into making sure a character’s particular point of view accurately drives their actions. I feel characters lose their integrity when they end up doing things they wouldn’t normally do for the sole purpose of moving the plot.
Once I have a general plot going, I often find that some of my characters will go and do things that surprise me. Moments like that are a thrill to see, and I always end up giving those characters more screen time.
But when a character says a line that’s so true to their very being, it really moves me, and I get so into it that I end up acting out the scenes in my head.
I think assembling a group of characters that are so grounded and true to who they are, then seeing how they interact with one another is what really makes an intriguing story.
I can’t wait for all of you to meet these characters. Sometimes they give me so much trouble and other times so much joy.
A Word from the Team
Hello everyone. I hope you’re having a komu-tastic day.
It’s me, Komuta.
J wrote about it in the last update, but time really does fly! Too fast in fact!
The rainy season just ended in Japan and summer is in full swing! (I really don’t want to believe that half of the year is already over.)
I have been busy creating the world map for Eiyuden, based on the plot Murayama’s created.
Story, planning, design, programming—a lot of people in different departments are working in parallel with one another, which can sometimes cause delays.
One of my main duties is to make the final call on things so we don’t have any setbacks, but I just can’t pull myself away from working on the world map—even though I still have a ton of other decision-making calls to make... ^ ^;
Using some of the more finalized elements of the plot, I’ve come up with a rough idea for the map, and have been brainstorming with Murayama to fill in the gaps.
“There’s a village northwest of the town Perrier is in, and I want to put a dungeon southwest of that village.”
“That dungeon should also be southwest of the town where Perrier is located.”
Just when we think we’ve laid down the concrete foundations, we’ll get a message like:
“There isn’t any terrain warding off this area, but you won’t be able to access it until you reach a certain point of the story.” Sometimes, we’ll get directions that seem almost like a riddle, too!: “If you have the proper requirements, you can move forward with the design.” Other times, we’ll be given a keyword out of nowhere like “massive forest.” But with each new piece of information, the world map begins to take shape, piece by piece—a bit like Neo Atlas! (I love Neo Atlas. I hope they come out with a new one soon...)
It’s just so exciting to create the world map for an RPG game.
Murayama usually gives me the fundamental details from a story and game design perspective. After adding towns and dungeons, we go to J and the designers to discuss how we want the locations to look and feel—for example, “I want the view from this spot to have more impact.” Once we start to see the larger picture, everyone gets more and more hyped—"I want to take a stroll around this world! I want to go on an adventure!”
And that brings us back to the sweltering heat of summer. Here’s a little something to combat the heat, my Cold Tomato and Tuna Pasta (extra garlic)! It’s easy to make, tasty, and really good for you! Give it a try!
I hope you all take good care of yourself and let’s get through this summer together.
We appreciate your continued support!
Eiyuden Anniversary: Thank you for 1 year!
A message from Yoshitaka Maruyama
A whole year has already passed since we started this crazy Kickstarter campaign. Looking back on it now, I think the excitement of it all was way too much (lol).
But, you illuminated a path for us, and this year, we’ve been working to achieve the lofty goal waiting at its end! So thank you!!!!
From Junko Kawano
It’s been a year already…!
I’m still coming up with character designs every day and sometimes I wonder if it’ll ever end…
Which is why I have to ask you guys to wait just a little longer until we get this finished!
With all your support, I’m able to keep pushing forward every day!
Thank you all so much.
From Junichi Murakami
One year has passed since we started this Kickstarter, but every day of it has been spent thinking about Eiyuden Chronicle.
From a production standpoint, we wondered how to best use the funds you’ve given us to meet everyone’s expectations.
“How should we go about collecting any extra funds we need?”
“When will we need to onboard more staff?”
And so on and so forth… We were always scrambling with the mountain of things we needed to do.
Then from an art direction standpoint, we’ve rebuilt the prototype based on how the actual game is going to play. Creating graphic structures and images that are stable enough has been a daily back and forth of trial and error.
We lose our daylight hours negotiating ideals and compromises, while our evenings are dedicated to creating resources.
“How can I be this busy?! We’re running out of time! Will I ever get any rest?!” ...pretty much sums up the past year for me.
But I don’t regret it a single bit.
Probably because I know there are people out there who will enjoy what we create.
So lately, I’ve found myself thinking about how glad I am that we did a Kickstarter in the first place.
I’m sorry to keep all of our supporters waiting, but I’m going to keep doing my best every day. So, please keep rooting for me!
From Osamu Komuta
Can you believe it’s already been a year since the Kickstarter campaign last July?
That was the moment we started working towards making our dream of Eiyuden Chronicle a reality.
The passion I felt from everyone during that campaign still burns in me now.
Especially during our closing stream. The excitement we felt from everyone was off the charts.
Thank you so much! Please continue supporting us!
Now, to figure out a way to include footballfish merpeople... I need to seriously consider just making them a hero!
Recupero con questo, che bomba!
