Making Magic with a Brand New Update
over 2 years ago – Tue, Sep 07, 2021 at 02:20:42 PM

37k and Climbing!

With 15 days left in the campaign, we've hit new heights today with $37,578  in funding! Working all day and dreaming of the Nintendo Switch port all night, we've got a new round of updates for you guys. From influencer feedback, art updates, and a Q&A with Programmer Valdir Salgueiro,  we're excited to keep this party going!

Rave Reviews for Roniu!

The support of the community has been tremendous and people have taken notice of the magical journey we are on, so it's exciting to hear feedback from people all over the world. Pixelated Gamer  was ranked on of the Top 100 Video Game Review Sites of 2021 by Feedspot and they had the following to say: 

"Our introduction to Roniu’s Tale shows tremendous potential.  The gameplay is already impressively balanced and precise, offering excellent challenges on each level.  The graphics, music, and overall presentation are top-notch.  We absolutely cannot wait to see the final game from Mega Cat Studios and the Kunjee team, as this has all the ingredients in place to be a huge hit with retro gamers, collectors, and anyone that enjoys the Puzzle Action-Adventure genre." Read more

Across the Atlantic, the guys from NESCommando in Germany have included us in their list of new releases. We are proud to be part of their quest to complete their NES-PAL B full sets, if you are passionate about game collecting and reviews you should definitely subscribe to their channel! You can watch the footage here: 

Art Magic & Rewards

This update wouldn't be complete without a brief check-in on how the rewards are doing! We've been brewing up some magical sketches, and we're pleased to announce there are two more finished manga pages! While the game's intro leans towards brevity, the comic book takes a deeper look into Roniu's world leading up to his adventures in the dungeon.

We are putting together the final touches for the posters cards and vinyl covers for the OST records and will be sharing some new photos next update! 

Q&A with Programmer Valdir Salgueiro 

"What aspects of Roniu’s Tale are you most proud of ?"

I'm really proud of some of the tools we developed to improve game development speed. At the moment they are mostly useful only to me - but I plan to someday organize and release at least some of them.

We made scripts to parse maps from tiled direct into levels with enemy data, keys, and orbs.

I am especially proud of the “sprite parser” since it made the pipeline similar to something, like say, Unity 3D. We work with PNGs and use tools to validate and extract metadata information that is useful to NES automatically. This way Rafael can use his preferred tools like Photoshop or Aseprite.

There's also a cutscene parser used to input the music, text, and which level it will appear and it compiles to C headers - you can build the game and test after a very useful change. Also, all the images are compressed to LZSS and name table data is RLE’d so we can get around 7 cutscenes for each bank. I like to make tools that abstract complexity from the underlying architecture and I think with Roniu we achieved a lot in this way, increasing team productivity."

We've Got Updates and Great News A'Plenty!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Aug 29, 2021 at 02:22:58 AM

Hey Magical Friends,

It is Day 9 of the Roniu's Tale Kickstarter and we've reached 332% funding! Thanks to the support and feedback of backers like you we are well on our way to making Roniu's Tale a reality. For today's update, we wanted to dive into some backer & player feedback, take a sneak peek at backer-exclusive rewards progress and have a quick Q&A with Roniu's Tale Composer: Diogo Bazante!  

Feedback Frenzy

One of the best parts of being on this journey with you guys is the real-time feedback we receive from backers and players alike. Being able to receive your first impressions and suggestions helps us on our quest to bring Roniu to life! 

Many of you have mentioned that some of the levels have some design quirks that make them harder to play, and while we love giving you a challenge - we do want players to have a great experience as they traverse the dungeon. 

Some of the fixes that will be in the final version will include overall level design improvements and we've taken into consideration the adjustments you guys have suggested in regards to collision detection! These and other various bug fixes are currently being workshopped -  Roniu's Tale remains in active development and we are excited to share an updated demo VERY soon! 

We have also gotten some exciting coverage by influencers across the internet including reaching the top 3 of Best New Indie Games Trailers for August 2021! (Thank you, Clement :) ) Be sure to follow his channel for the latest and greatest in indie games:

Rewards, Where Art Thou?

In addition to the various improvements we are implementing, we’ve also been working hard to put together the Roniu’s Tale comic book (in manga style!). The manga will be a physical book - jam-packed with pages of art and details to give you an in-depth dive into Roniu’s world! We’re currently working on the script and completing the art, but we couldn't resist giving you a sneak peek at what we have worked on so far:

Backers of Wandering Wizard tiers and above will get to enjoy a digital version of the comic book (as well as other goodies in the digital package),  but both the physical editions of the manga and artbook are sure to be collector's pieces once the game is released! We are also hard at work collaborating with artist friends to bring you three different variations of our Roniu's Tale postcards- stay tuned for further updates on their art and other backer-exclusive rewards! 

Q&A with Composer Diogo Bazante

Tell us a bit about your origin story and what the development process has been like for the Roniu OST:

“ Since I was a kid, I was astonished by video game soundtracks such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Alex Kidd, and Zelda DX Awakening. One day, though, I saw the Sega Saturn console with Nights Into Dreams for the first time and I got shocked for a few minutes. Hearing those fresh chords stunned me and at that moment, at the age of 10, I decided to become a musician. I wanted to feel that same excitement, but while playing the keyboard instead of playing a videogame. "

" I just kept studying and playing the keyboard with no expectations of working professionally in the gaming industry until  I noticed that at school, I was known in the hallways for the game songs I used to play during class breaks. This fact made me meet some friends who were a bridge to my first job. Since then, I have worked professionally in the gaming industry.

The Roniu’s Tale soundtrack was especially difficult. I  had experience with chiptunes in general, but this time I was focusing my attention not only on the songs but also on the small storage space. By the end of the process, I had all the songs but no space remaining! So, I spent a lot of time trying to save some bytes - I didn’t want to alter anything in the melody or harmony so it was a challenge. Happily, though, my mission was successful!”

Thanks, guys, please stay tuned for further updates and a secret surprise coming soon! 

25K & Upgrades for Everyone!
over 2 years ago – Sat, Aug 21, 2021 at 12:47:25 AM

Shooting For The Stars: Roniu Reaches 25K!

It's time for another update and boy are we excited about the news we have to share. That's right folks: WE HAVE HIT 25k IN FUNDING! Our jaws are on the floor, within only three days we have blasted by two incredible stretch goals and the numbers keep on climbing. We are so thankful for your help and can almost taste the Nintendo Switch port! So, what does this mean for you guys? Well let's check out what we've unlocked:

Thanks to your help, we have added additional Limited Edition Tiers! Not only will more people have the chance to grab the Limited Edition tier during the campaign, but backers who miss out will be able to purchase the Limited Edition cart & the Limited Edition complete inbox after the campaign ends.

You Get An Upgrade & You Get Upgrade: Everyone Gets One!

Given the success of the Kickstarter, we are upping the "Wandering Wizard" digital package tier to include the Rom, OST download, Poster PDF, Manual PDF, Comic book PDF, and Artbook PDF! But that's not all, all over the higher tiers will include this digital package as well. That's right folk - no matter what tier you choose, you will get to enjoy all the digital goodies we have in store! 

Anything Is Possible With The Help of A Friend!
over 2 years ago – Thu, Aug 19, 2021 at 01:17:37 PM

Hey everyone,

It's been another amazing day for the Roniu's Tale Kickstarter, and we owe it all to you guys. We've blown past our first stretch goal, been featured on Kickstarter's Project We Love, and reached 20k with your help! It's time for another update so let's take a closer look at the unlocked stretch goal and the limited edition cartridge, as well as have a quick Q&A with Game Designer Rafael Valle Barradas.

Let's Talk About Stretch Goals! 

Yesterday you guys blew us out of the water by funding our initial goal within the FIRST 6 hours.  We are still floating on air knowing we have your support!  But "what now?" you may ask - well the adventure is just getting started! We ultimately would love to port Roniu's Tale to the Nintendo Switch,  and have planned some fun stretch goals along the way.  Today, with the help of backers, we already unlocked the first one! 

Who says we can't bring a little magic to real life? While fireballs are still out of our reach, there's nothing stopping us from unlocking the power within.  With a little help from our friends,  the cool cats at Mega Cat Studios are going to be learning some magical skills and creating a video to share with you all so you can try it at home! 

A Closer Look At The Limited  Edition Cartridge

You ask and we deliver! One of our backers  (Hi Nadiim!) suggested we showcase the limited edition in a short video so you guys can get a better look.  The LE is the same size as an NES cart so it will fit into your system with no issues. It also lights up!

Q & A with Rafael: How Did Kunjee Studios come to be and what's working together like? 

" Back in 2013, we were hired by the same game company: Musigames. During that time we became close friends and never really stopped talking. Later on, when I first thought about creating Kunjee Studios, they were the first people I thought of.  The work dynamic between everyone has been really nice, everyone is very proactive and skilled. Valdir is a talented programmer, solving bugs quickly and constantly creating solutions. Diogo is one of the best game composers I know, he learned AND mastered the Famitracker to create Roniu's beautiful. And Fabio, his experience provided invaluable ideas and advice for the group. I think we're all on the same wavelength and that has been great." 

Fully Funded in 6 HOURS?!?!
over 2 years ago – Tue, Aug 17, 2021 at 11:17:40 PM

HOLY BATBALLS: WE DID IT, GUYS! THANK YOU!

We want to bring you the magic, but it's backers like you who make us believe! Only six hours into our launch, and you guys have fully funded our initial goal!  We are just in awe of the generosity and support of our community - and are so excited to take this journey with you.

 Our friend MC Apex a.k.a Stony Starx put together a smooth flow to commemorate the moment, check it out:

The Adventure Has Just Begun!

 There's tons of work to do, and we have big dreams for little Roniu! Some of you have spied our stretch goals section and have been wanting to know more: stay tuned for tomorrow's update! We'll be talking with Game Designer Rafael Valle Barradas,  exploring some of the levels from the game, and taking a closer look at what lies ahead for Roniu's Tale!