In development: The Dreamstone

THE DREAMSTONE
a fantasy adventure from the creator of Last Rose in a Desert Garden and The Infinite Ocean

Close your eyes - and awake.

A shadow falls on the Lands of Dream. The powers of Urizen bring war and death, and the forces of imagination are shackled. The chains must be broken, the powers of the False Prophet overthrown, or all shall be broken and lost. Behold: it is the time to rise.

The flowers sing. The trees whisper. The stone speaks.

The Dreamstone is a fantasy adventure game currently in development. It will feature beautiful and unique graphics, a powerful story, and great music. It will also be a long game, longer than any of my other games, and will hopefully be unlike any other indie adventure game out there.

You can see a couple of preliminary images at http://jonas-kyratzes.net/viewpage.php?page_id=12, but they don't really say much about how the game will look. I am planning on doing the graphics myself, as in my previous games, but if you are an artist (or know one) who would like to work on this kind of project, you should contact me. I'd love to have some assistance this time around, and I'm sure there are people with greater graphical skills than mine (even though the graphics of my previous games were praised).

If anyone has any questions, I'd love to answer them.

Oh, and yes, this will be a point and click game. No need to worry.

It sounds wonderful. I'm very curious about the story -- especially as to how anything could shackle the force of imagination. Imagination is so strong!

Please let us know more about the game as work on it progresses.

Sounds intriguing, Jonas! Can't wait to hear more about it!
You might want to contact Jonathan, on this board known as DarkFallGame, who I bet could point out some graphic artists.

I started Last Rose in a Desert Garden, Jonas, and I'm really enjoying it. Great writing! I'm looking forward to going back to it and to your new game.

Melanie

Jonas-

Thanks for letting us know about the new game and your a peach for adding the part about point and click, I was about to email you when I saw that. I will have to add this to my list, I am really BAGGING this summer.

Thanks so much

Maggie

I Love fantasy, dreams, and imagination!! What a great recipe for an awesome game!!! It does sound intriguing, and I'm with Maggie, very happy it's a point and click!!
Please keep us posted, I'd love to hear more!!

Sandy Sleuth

Hi everyone,

I'm very glad that you're interested. I'm actually enjoying myself quite a bit, too - I've always had a love for fantasy, and I've always thought that there weren't enough fantasy adventure games.

If any of you enjoy the stories of Lord Dunsany, they should definitely enjoy this game, as my style of fantasy writing is -in some ways- similar to his. And if you've never read Dunsany, then ignore this post and go do so. He's wonderful.

As for the story... I don't want to give away too much, you see, because it might ruin some of the fun for you. My games' stories are always the most important part, and this one is particularly enjoyable (to me, at least), because it's BIG.

But I can say this: the central theme is the conflict between the forces of imagination/passion/love and 'false reason'/repression/authority, all of it played out in the Land of Dreams. If any of you are into the poetry of William Blake, you'll see how much he has influenced me. And, like Dunsany, he is definitely worth checking out, although he's considerably more challenging.

I'll keep you posted on the development of the game.

I have a love/hate relationship with Blake, so I'll be eagerly awaiting your game.

This sounds like my kind of game! And yes, please keep us updated.

Really? How so? I'd love to know what you think about his poetry - I love it, but that does not mean I agree with him on everything. However, I do think that he was one of the few ever to fully live the life of an artist, and I admire him greatly for that. He feels like a teacher to me; I don't have to believe everything he says, but his influence on me goes deep, and I have learned much from him. In another way, he feels like a friend, because we have many of the same concerns: freedom, imagination, art...

I think Blake wrote the five words that fully express everything that I believe:
"Everything that lives is holy."

That philosophy will be pretty central in the game.

To discuss Blake would take a lot more room than we have here, and would bore a lot of folks silly. But as a man, I admire him for standing up for his ideals (such as the Gordon riots), and I admire his philosophy of imagination over materialism. His influence on many forms of art today is stunning in number. Never an adventure game though, that I know of, so you may very well be a first, and I am so interested in your project! Where I am conflicted on Blake is his poetry, mainly Songs of Experience. While it's brilliant, it's also sometimes shockingly depressing. Rather than wanting a social or religious commentary in poetry, I have to admit I am so much fluff and enjoy a more light hearted approach to life.

Well, my IF work called 'The Great Machine - a fragment' is definitely Blake-influenced, so The Dreamstone would not be a first. The approach in The Dreamstone is different, though, and while dark, certainly less depressing.

If you prefer light-hearted poetry, I think Blake is not quite ideal for you.

Right. I am awed by it, but it doesn't make me feel warm and fuzzy.

Hello everyone,

Just letting you know that I'm working on the game, mostly on the writing at this point (always the most important part for me). Things are looking good, and I will start regular programming work in September. Still not sure about whether I'll use my own graphics or those of an outside artist; I guess it'll depend on whether I can find someone who has the right style.

I'll let you know when I have something new.

thanks Jonas--it is great to be kept in the loop

I'll be watching and waiting with great interest.

Hi. This is just to let you know that I'm still working on my game. Unfortunately, there have been some problems with my getting an internet connection, and I still have to wait approximately 10 days before I have access at home. As soon as I don't have to login from the library anymore, I will post a longer update.

Good to hear from you Jonas, and hope your internet worries are soon over.

So here, finally, is an update:

In terms of design, story, and programming, everything is set. Not all the code is there, of course, but the basics (interface, loading/saving, interaction, inventory, etc) are all functioning. The framework, you might say. As for the writing and design: again, while I obviously haven't written every line of dialogue, the shape of the game is all there. The beginning of the game is playable, if a bit ugly .

What I'm missing are the graphics. As I've said before, I *could* do the graphics myself, but I'd so much rather have a genuine artist do them, someone with more flair at these things. Unfortunately, the indie game development scene is often defined by its lack of realism (no offense, but it's true), and despite my experience and previous games, I have not been able to find an artist with the right style who'd be interested. The problem is mostly one of size: adventure games are *big*, and a lot of people don't want to deal with that reality, so they're rather sign up with projects that will never be finished because the designers have no experience and promise all kinds of unrealistic things.

(I'm not being bitter. It's an old story. Just trying to explain the nature of the problem.)

So - I shall continue my search for a while longer, while working on a side project (another adventure game, a shorter one) and editing my film; if I can't find a nice artist to work with me, I'll do the graphics myself. Which means you will hopefully be seeing the first screenshots in a month or two, no matter what happens.

One way or another, this game *will* be finished.

I hope you find an artist that's a match made in heaven.

Good on you Jonas for resolving to finish your game - many games get started but never finished.

The indie scene is marked by a lot of solo efforts in my (limited) experience.

Thank you! I do believe that's the nicest wish I've ever heard.

Absolutely. I think something like 90% of all projects fail, mostly because of a lack of realism on the part of the designers/producers. It's a real shame, especially when one sees projects that attract really talented artists and musicians and ultimately result in a bunch of really great images and musical pieces, but no game, because the people who organized the whole thing didn't know how to program or were depending on a programmer who couldn't handle the workload. A real shame. Thankfully there are also plenty of projects that do get finished - more of them these days, actually, than a few years ago.

in finding an artist whose vision is the same as yours! I love fantasy. I think a fantasy, adventure blend would be wonderful

Just another small update for ye all: I found a brilliant artist (http://terrashadow.de) whose style fits the game perfectly, contacted him, he said he was interested... but he doesn't have the time right now.

I am now looking for another artist while working on my other project, Part One of The Urthona Revolution. One that is finished, I will complete The Dreamstone, artist or no artist.

Jonas, I have someone in mind for you. I'll email you with his name shortly.

Thanks! I sent you a reply - I hope you got it.