You wrote a tweet last week, at the time of writing, that caught my eye. It details how it was challenging to start a new project following the release of Starlight Shores, and that you found motivation within a game jam and even a deadline. Why was this and what would you tell developers in the same boat?
I got hung up on never being able to recreate the feeling of developing a game I love. When I started new projects, I’d feel creatively drained very quickly. A big part of it was still working on Starlight Shores in the background and comparing it to new stories. I’ve also been developing other games outside of visual novels, so that drew my attention away.
Spooktober and Halloween have a special place in my heart, so that kickstarted my creativity. My advice to other devs is not to force it. I know that’s super general, but if you need a break, you should take one. You can write notes, make inspiration boards, sketch, do whatever your creativity drives you to. However, you don’t need to force yourself to write and code when it’s not working.
If visual novel development is your hobby, you should be enjoying it to a certain degree. If that’s not happening, readjust your approach and expectations.
It’s no secret that I have a phenomenal amount of adoration for your writing in Starlight Shores, but I also loved everything else. It’s a team effort after all, whether it’s art, music, or UI. Could you tell me about the team working alongside you? Anybody coming back from Starlight Shores?
I’m thrilled that you brought this up, the Graveyard Team is constantly blowing me away.
First off, our Sprite Artist is MintsTea. You’ll probably remember her name from Starlight Shores, as she created CGs and Background Art for that project! She’s our only returning team member, and I’m so glad she joined us for this project. It was nice to have a familiar face! Mints has delivered beautiful and stylish characters that captured my heart the second she sketched them. She’s a joy to work with.
Pommu was one of the first members to join the Graveyard Team, she’s our CG Artist and also created the UI! Her drive and dedication to this game have been astounding. Out of the entire team, I’d say I’ve spent the most time working with her. She’s consulted on nearly every artistic aspect of this project and had an extreme workload, eventually taking on the role of a Creative Director. She’s also an Art Streamer/VTuber!
Dalton Attig was the wildcard of the Graveyard team. Originally, I planned to use Creative Commons music because I felt the workload of an entire soundtrack would be too much to ask for on a strict deadline. Dalton reached out and proceeded to astound me! He composed the entire soundtrack and expanded its scope multiple times. His work was the first to be completed and his speed did not impact the quality of the music. Now, I cannot imagine this project without his soundtrack.
Waikikired is our Background Artist and was one of the early team members. As soon as I saw his portfolio, I was sold. His style truly brought the autumn-themed settings of Graveyard Girls to life. It’s an amazing feeling when an artist can take your concept and run with it. He’s been great to work with and I’m a big fan of his artistic style. I catch myself constantly admiring the cemetery background in particular.
Gwynne Moore of GSE Studios created the Graveyard Girls logo. I sent her the welcome package that each team member received on day one and I didn’t have to give her any further direction. She dove into her design work and created a logo that went perfectly with the themes and symbolism of the game. I’m in love with the delicate beauty of the logo.
MelonPanne was the last to join our team as a secondary CG Artist. She’s a student and freelance illustrator. Her work on Graveyard Girls fleshed out emotional scenes that would be lacking without CG’s, such as Lucia giving Elle a rose during the opening chapter. Despite a strict deadline, she persevered and surprised our team with the distinct beauty of her work!
Speaking of things that are going to be different. Graveyard Girls is going to be a yuri visual novel. I’m an avid fan of yuri and tons of people in our audience are as well. Whether it’s for the approach to self-evaluation, or the sheer cuteness of girls finding comfort in each other. How did you come to the decision of making Graveyard Girls a part of this genre? In addition, what do you find most intriguing about girls’ love?
I should intro with a big spoiler warning!!! Okay, done.
My absolute favourite aspect of writing Starlight Shores was the Theo x Lena storyline. Whether it was their friendship or budding romance, I couldn’t keep a smile off my face when those two were onscreen. That pushed me into revisiting a yuri romance, this time putting my entire focus on that storyline. Honestly, I’d love to take on a larger yuri project in the future.
I think the intriguing part for me is exploring how girls’ relationships develop over time. I’d typically start with a friendship, but this time around I’ve left romantic undertones to a first meeting. It was tricky to write, and I didn’t want to default to them outright declaring their attraction. There’s a certain beauty to subtlety.
Graveyard Girls is still very much in development and there’s tons to be excited about just from your answers to this point. I’m equally as sure that there are people wondering about what the plans are for the game as a whole. Is it going to be longer than Starlight Shores? Is it releasing this year? What can you tell us?
I’m excited to share that at the time of writing, the game will be launching as a completed story. This trims the scope down from what you would’ve seen in Starlight Shores, but it feels complete without any planned story extensions post-launch.
However, we could be refining the art direction in October, possibly adding a few assets that would’ve polished the game further. We had an artist leave early in the project due to scheduling conflicts, so we adjusted accordingly.
Like before it’s been a pleasure to have you on for an interview, and we wish nothing but the best for the development of Graveyard Girls. Is there anything you would like to tell our curious readers and fans of yours alike?
One thing I’ve learned in writing short visual novels is that the scope of your project does not limit it.
You can spend five weeks on a no-budget jam project, or years on a vast and expensive one.
Those qualities do not define your story.
What matters is how the culmination of your work impacts the player, and the emotion it elicits.
What did your players feel? Did they care about the characters?
That defines the success of my work.
There you have it! Our first interview in a while and it’s a lengthy one. Once again, we’ll be thanking Sam of Delphinium Interactive for their time and thank you for reading this far. Starlight Shores was an exquisite read and Graveyard Girls looks to be even better! We heavily encourage you to follow the small developer, they have a ton of promise.
