#let go.

Cautionary Tale

It's up! We're so happy to share our #NaNoRenO2018 game with you! We hope you enjoy Cautionary Tale: a trio of short stories, each with its own voice, each a tale worth playing!

Beyond Yesterday’s Grasp

"When she is given a full scholarship to a prestigious boarding school, Alex Kartha feels hopeful for the first time since the accident that killed her parents and took her forearm. However, she soon realizes that old challenges cannot be easily ignored. Will you solve the mystery of Artemis Hall? Or will you turn away from your duty and value your life?"

Let Go.

"Today is like any other Winter day. Snow's on the ground, there's a chill in the air, and Eli is about to confess to his childhood friend. Terrified of rejection, he practices his lines underneath a tree in the city, preparing for whatever may come. There's nothing to be afraid of - he's known her forever, right? But unbeknownst to him, something feels off… Hasn't he done this before?"

If in Your Dreams; the Flood

Day 50: Empty the trash

A year hits an end. Fob off all negativity and anger trash that seeped in during the last era and relegate it to the bin. Don’t take past pain, trauma or pent-up emotions along and wake up with a new light.  I pledge to flush all frustrations down the drain and unburden the self, free from whatever anger bugged or held me down during the last year. Isn’t it the true and real purpose of decutter!

Which one of the three games did you work on?

I worked on Let Go.

What assets did you create?

I created the sound effects, the ambiences and part of the music. I also composed the four credits themes and made sure that most of the audio was mostly consistent volume wise.

What program(s) do you use to compose?

I mainly use Cubase for music creation. In regards to instruments (VSTs) I mostly used the Hollywood Orchestra by East West and the Ilya Efimov Nylon Guitar for this project to keep the style mostly consistent.

Why did you dedicate so much time, effort, and passion to this project for no monetary reward? What fueled your creativity and drove you to keep pushing?

The great thing about game jams is that due to the short time frame the game doesn’t have a big chance of landing in development or feature hell, which decreases the risk of one’s work being for naught. I also knew that Watercress is an organized studio which has published games in the past which made me trust that this game would definitely be a great hit! Wanting to meet and interact with new like minded people was also one of the greatest reasons for me joining.

How do you feel about the finished product?

I haven’t had a chance to play through all the games yet, just the game I was working on, “Let Go”. I think it’s really amazing and really does the “sadistic” nature of Wolf, the director, justice. I knew what was coming from reading the scripts and yet it really hit me hard.

What advice would you give to someone wanting to do NaNoRenO for the first time?

Organization and planning is key! I don’t think this game would have been able to be made if it wasn’t for Watercress being used to handling and managing a big team. Many things were planned out precisely and that really helped to make sure that the game would get out in time.

Was this your first time doing NaNoRenO? If so, was it what you expected? If it was not, how was this different from previous NaNoRenO’s you’ve participated in?

Yes, this was my first time. I really didn’t expect the game to end up being this huge. What I did expect though were great stories and that’s exactly what I got!

What did you gain from this experience?

I met a lot of great people and got a better picture of what it’s like to work with a bigger team under time pressure. Until now I’ve only participated in game jams in smaller teams, so this was really new for me.

What would you like to tell someone who is considering playing our game?

Prepare for eternal sadness.

How did you get started in your field?

I’ve been a fan of video games since forever, so I decided to combine my passion for music and video games. At first I composed for small amateur projects and even though most of them didn’t make it I still gained a lot of experience. Many projects and studying a lot of music later I ended up here!