Though the Roguelite genre isn’t the most common in video gaming, it has continued to grow recently. Many Indie games have utilized the permadeath gameplay that the genre brings with it; however, some Indie games have been able to take the genre in new directions, just as Holomento will be attempting to when it is released next year on Steam.
Holomento is a Roguelite game in which players can travel through the mysterious Eventide Hollow. On their journey, players can take on the game with a variety of different classes, and as they overcome challenges that the Indie game lays out for them, players can also upgrade the Castle area to give themselves advantages in future runs and help out NPCs. Game Rant was able to speak with Sam Weech, the game’s developer, on different aspects of the upcoming game.
Q: What pushed you to start developing Holomento?
A: I have been playing games for almost all my life. As a kid, I tried to expand on the video games I played by making “real world” levels using my toys. I knew from a young age that games were going to be a big part of my life. In Junior High, about the age of 13, I started to play around with this program called GameMaker. Throughout Junior High and High School, I tinkered around with this program and made dozens of odd projects here and there. In college, I started to use Unity and made other hobby projects. Finally, towards the end of college, I moved on to using Unreal Engine and made more hobby projects.
The problem with doing these mini-projects is that I would start developing something for a week or two, get distracted, and move on from whatever project it was. I never put the time in to see any of these little projects through. Although, I gained a lot of knowledge by just playing around with the different programs and software, by late 2019, I finally decided it was time to complete something. I looked at all my past mini-projects and realized that I had been “developing” games for 12 years, but I didn’t have much to show for it. I started to experiment with ideas and came up with this concept I had thought would be fun in a game. The idea was that of a Roguelite game with an emphasis on permanence and improving the world around you. And so, Holomento was born in late December of 2019.
Q: What game has inspired you the most when creating this game?
A: Stardew Valley.
That may sound weird because there aren’t many obvious similarities between Holomento and Stardew. But Stardew Valley and its creator, Eric Barone, have inspired me in a lot of ways.
Firstly, Stardew is simply a phenomenal game and, in my opinion, it is the gold standard for a one-man indie game. The core gameplay loop is fun and extremely rewarding. The narrative and characters are immersive and relatable. The game has this incredible way of making me feel nostalgic for a genre I never played as a child. I have over 180 hours on Steam and another 100 or so on my Switch, across several save files. Few other games have captured me in the same way, and a lot of elements of Stardew Valley can be shared across genres.
Secondly, Eric Barone is my game-dev hero. His dedication to his project and his willingness to put the time in to learn the necessary skills/tools to bring his vision to life are extremely admirable. I enjoyed reading articles describing his growth as a developer over the years. It’s something I’ve seen in myself a bit in these first 9 months; as my skills grow the game gets better, and it’s really exciting. I hope Eric knows he’s inspired at least one person to follow their indie game dreams (although I’m almost certain I’m not the only one).
Q: What feature of Holomento are you most excited to share with players when the game is finished?
A: I like to think of Holomento as a “soft introduction” to the roguelite genre. There are some games where you play for a while, die, and that’s it, it’s over. With Holomento, it’s different because even when you die, a lot of the progress you still made is still there, you’re simply a new traveler with new items. Not all is lost in Holomento, your world upgrades, shortcuts, quest progress, and money remain.
I believe this is a very forgiving roguelite in that you could do terribly every run and still be making progress. At the same time, for players who want to challenge themselves, many enemies and areas are skippable if they want to attempt to speedrun. This will give the player their own challenge as they won’t be leveling up and picking up items to make the run easier. So in a way, Holomento has elements of “make your own difficulty”.
Q: What do you enjoy most about Holomento?
A: In these early builds, the ability to explore the world is one of my favorite elements. I’m taking the approach to build a medium-sized, densely populated world. This makes it worthwhile for the player to explore every nook and cranny as I fill them with collectibles, items chests, and Easter eggs. I want this to be a world you can get lost in and discover new things every run.
As the project develops, I think the combat loop and sense of progress through shortcuts will be a lot of fun for the player. Holomento is a game that takes what you’ve done in one run and builds on it for future runs. The game will have a wide appeal because casual players can just pick up and play a quick run if they want, while hardcore players may spend the night grinding through multiple runs to get those coveted shop and world upgrades.
Q: You’ve previously related Holomento to Breath of the Wild. What other games would you relate to Holomento?
A: The combat takes a lot of inspiration from Risk of Rain 2 and Dark Souls, while the items and synergies are inspired by the Binding of Isaac. I like the concept that no two runs will be the same as item pools are heavily randomized through chests and enemy drops. NPCs and dialogue are in the early stages but I take a lot of inspiration from the Paper Mario series and Undertale. The Eventide Hollow may be a cursed and battered land but that doesn’t mean the characters throughout can’t have fun personalities and dialogue.
Finally, the world upgrades are something I haven’t experienced in any other game within this genre. I think that will be a great differentiating factor to help make Holomento stand out. I have played so many games where I defeat a boss or a level and think “Well, now what?” and there’s no reward or anything to prove what I’ve done. I like rewards and feedback that are highly visible in games. I think that Holomento will give players the satisfaction of tangibly seeing their progress.
Q: If Holomento is well received on PC do you think a next-gen console version might be possible?
A: If the game is well received I would love to do a console release. Although controller support isn’t fully integrated yet, Alpha testers have told me that what is supported is fun already. I think consoles are naturally the next step post-release. I think PS5 and Xbox Series X are good targets especially considering the comparable-to-PC specs we’ve seen. What I’d really like to try is to get the game onto Switch. It’s been my dream for a very long time to have a game of mine on a Nintendo console. I think that porting the game to Switch would come after the other systems, but I’d like to think that it’s in the realm of possibility.
Q: As an Indie game developer, what are some misconceptions you’ve heard about the Indie gaming space?
A: I believe that a lot of people think that this is a one-person effort and in many ways, it is. However, there is much more that goes into creating a game and it really wouldn’t happen without the community. My sound designer, Wilfried Nass, and music composer, Adeel Jafree, have played key roles in making my game sound fantastic and give that extra element to it. Watching a movie without music and sound is a completely different experience, and that’s the same for video games. I think these two have helped me immensely. I also have a great appreciation for my community and my friends. They have helped me play-test, generate ideas, and supported me along the way. I really wouldn’t have the game I have without them.
Q: What are some things you would like people to know about Indie games and Indie game development?
A: Developing an indie game is difficult, and you have to work hard at it, but it can be incredibly rewarding. Seeing the community get excited about updates, memes, music, and fanart about the game is heartwarming and makes the long hours 100% worth it. You create more than a game, you create a community. When you have even just a few friends excited about your game, then it’s worth it. It doesn’t matter if four people or four million people play your game, what matters is that you feel happy creating your work. I think that’s the biggest difference between working as a solo or small team developer as opposed to being on a larger team or with a huge studio, you have much more creative freedom and you’re welcome to go as fast or as slow as you want. There’s no wrong way to create your own game.
Q: Is there anything else you’re excited to share about Holomento?
A: I think Holomento will have a little something for everyone. My goal with the game is to make something everyone can enjoy, in some capacity. For some players, it may be combat, for others, it may be chatting with NPCs, going on quests, or upgrading the world.
I’m also excited to grow this community. I’ve come to befriend quite a few of the fans of the game and I think that having conversations with them has helped keep me motivated to work on the project. My imagination stretches only so far, and I can integrate much more into the game with their advice.
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Holomento is currently in closed alpha and is scheduled to launch for PC in 2021.
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