Indie Game Spotlight: Turovero
We’re back with another Indie Game Spotlight! This week we’re taking a look at Turovero, a traditional JRPG with a dark story and psychological themes. Four archetypal RPG heroes ascend the celestial tower Turovero in order to defeat an ancient evil known as the Dark One. But not everything is as it seems, and the group must uncover the twisted truths, hidden within the tower, about their world…and themselves. Oooooh!
We spoke with Queenie, the lead developer, writer, designer and composer for the game, who basically did about 80% of it on their own—assisted by a team of talented artists (all on Tumblr by the way: @genkaiko, @caffeineandcarpaltunnel, @pleasedrawmore, and @meakersneakers) who provided the major art assets.
What inspired the story and characters in the game?
I’ve always had a thing for games that start normally enough but then take a dark and twisted turn (my first game, Prom Dreams: A High School Love Story, was also kind of like that). I also love JRPGs and adventure games, as well as the storytelling inherent in a lot of RPG Maker horror games, such as Ib, the Strange Men series, etc. So, essentially, I decided to combine all of those things into one game, and thus, Turovero was born!
How long have you been working on Turovero?
In total, the actual development process took around 2 and a half years. You’d think I’d learn after the 16 months my first game took to complete…
How did you choose the style for the game?
Two factors: first, how can I get these characters as anime and JRPG-ish as possible, and second, how can I make it using the RPG Maker sprites and resources I have, along with my admittedly limited spriting abilities? I will admit that the final “look” of everything did require a bit of trial and error.
Are there any funny or unique stories to how you created a certain character?
I must confess that the knight character, Sigurd, was designed with one thing in mind: whatever I personally found attractive in fictional guys, LMAO. He’s an amalgamation of every video game boy I ever had a crush on. Sorry, not sorry. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What genre of game would you like to make next?
I’d like to keep making dark, horror-themed games. As for gameplay type, I’m actually considering doing a visual novel at some point, in addition to RPG/Adventure games.
Which game completely changes its plot when you change one letter in its title?
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Tim. Please give Tim his ocarina back. It’s special to him :(
Ready to start playing? Turovero is available for exactly $0.00 on RPGMaker.net, itch.io, GameJolt, and as a direct download from the game’s Tumblr blog! The original soundtrack is also available to download for free on each of these sites, as well as Queenie’s previous game, Prom Dreams: A High School Love Story! Game on!
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