Below the Stone - A Pixelart Caving Roguelike about Dwarves

A Sneak Peak at the Game!
over 2 years ago – Thu, Sep 02, 2021 at 06:48:42 PM

Below the Stone has been in development since 2018. This is the first biggest project we have ever worked on, and the first one that we have "taken professionally"; in the sense that,  we have promised ourselves to finish and sell on Steam.

Below the Stone has given many challenges to us, which I think has kept this project enjoyable and engaging for us as developers. We have made many mistakes but learned many things along the way. Like understanding "Chunk Based Levels", and loading those said chunks. And what exactly the significance is of breaking up a level into a grid of chunks in the first place.

Also, when we started this project, we had virtually ZERO experience with Unity Engine; the engine Below the Stone is built on. We made many mistakes, and this ultimately slowed us down A LOT. If we had plenty of prior experience with Unity Engine and game development in general, I believe the game would be a lot further along than it is now. But we obviously can't change that. What we can do is commit ourselves to not give up, and finish what we started. We know there are tons of people who show genuine interest in our game and want to see it be completed. That is what has driven us to this day to never stop.

The development process might be slow and clunky, and we might not always be able to deliver when we want, but when we do deliver, It'll be done the way we want it. And it'll be an enjoyable experience.

For those of you who have just discovered us through the Kickstarter launch, you might have actually seen much from the game. If you search around on YouTube, you will find clips from older versions. But I think you all deserve to see some fresh gameplay. So I decided today to record an 8-minute video of what the game looks like in our latest version. To help introduce newcomers to what there is to come, and update those who have been keeping up with us. Enjoy!

Keep in mind, there is plenty more that has yet to be seen here. Plenty more biomes, more items, more enemies, more structures. This slice of the game gives you a good idea of what it's like.

And I hope you all like it so far!

Right now we are sitting at 65% of our goal, and this is only day 2!

We hope to see a boost at PAX West as well, so be ready for that.

And thank you all who have backed, and have shared us on Twitter or wherever else! ⛏

- Andrew

10k in 10 Hours! What a rush!!!! ヽ( ▀ ͜͞ʖ▀)ﾉ
over 2 years ago – Wed, Sep 01, 2021 at 05:04:47 PM

You guys are epic. No, seriously.

You never know what's gonna happen when you click that launch button, so many uncertainties, and you want to make sure you've done everything right. And I think we have.😊

Thank you so much to those of you who have backed so far. You are the true legends of the depths.

To summarize our excitement, I want to point out we attempted a Kickstarter in late 2019. Which unfortunately did not reach its goal; Though we did succeed in finding a load of new fans! We made a promise to those who did back us that we would come back stronger, and we have! Our original goal in 2019 was only $10,000. And as you can see, we have already (metaphorically) smashed that goal in LESS THAN 24 HOURS. Our 2019 Kickstarter only reached 50% by the end, and right now. We are sitting at 50% of a higher goal, and we still have 30 days left to go. This is both mind-blowing and humbling at the same time. And we are very thankful for the community we've grown over the past years. ⛏

For those of you who don't know, we will have an exhibitors booth at PAX West this week! So if you're going to be there, come say hi! And if you see a sign that says "Apogee", you're not far ;)

So thank you all for the support so far. If any of you want to support us but can't afford it, sharing the Kickstarter with people you know is support enough! You never know who might be a fellow adventurer. We can't wait to see what has yet to come! The future is bright (even from here under the ground).

 - Andrew