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Do you remember that dumb meme game you made back in high school? The one about your favorite YouTuber, fighting to save the world from some generic edgelord? The one you canât help but look back on and groan?
I made a game like that too, once upon a time. This is not it.
Letâs start with a little background. In early 2009, a vlogger named Boxxy went viral. I joined her fan forum, and ended up making a gag RPG for its users. âBoxxyQuest: The Shifted Spiresâ was my first experience with game creation â and believe me, it showed.
But for whatever reason, the idea stuck with me. The world and its characters just kept clinging to my heart. So a few years later, I thought, âWhat if I went back to that story, but actually did it justice this time?â So I gathered up a few friends, including Catie âBoxxyâ Wayne herself, and together we set out to make something truly special.
This is a game that defies appearances and expectations. A game that sounds so bad, it shouldnât possibly be good. And yet, if you take the plunge, you may find yourself swept away by a thrilling tale unlike any youâve seen before. A tale of hope and self-discovery that will stay with you forever, (whether you want it to or not).
This game contains swearing and suggestive humor. It may not be suitable for players under the age of thirteen.
No extra files, programs, or Run Time Packages are required. Simply download, extract to a safe location, and play!
Sign on to the Internet â a vast, full-immersion virtual world. Here, users live their ideal lives, willfully blind to the fragile structure of their realityâŚ
Catie's days are carefree, spent leading a small forum in a quiet corner of the Web. But when a mysterious firewall begins consuming the northern wilderness, the Internet's leaders are called together to assess the threat. Soon, Catie will find herself plunged into the thick of a wild adventure, alongside a group of unlikely new allies. Together, they must reassemble the code of an ancient hacking tool, while being pursued by a mysterious new enemy, and the unrelenting shadows of the past...
You don't need to play the first game to enjoy this one. But just in case, I'll be including a brief plot summary in the files.
The Internet is a big place, just filled with quirky characters. Letâs meet some of âem, shall we?
Catie â The heroine of our story. Two years ago, an unusual chain of events led to her becoming the queen of a small forum community. As this new chapter begins, sheâs leaving home for the first time to attend a gathering of Internet leaders. Catie is polite and helpful, and dislikes using capital letters; but she struggles to remember her own past, after an accident left her with only one fourth of a soul.
Anonymous â A traveling thrill-seeker, and the first person to befriend Catie after the start of her amnesia. Anons are a race of visually-identical tricksters from the land of 4chan, but this Anon left his homeland to pursue saner ambitions. These days, he mainly serves as Catieâs bodyguard, and volunteered to go with her to the great gathering of site leaders.
Til - This sassy and perceptive girl hails from the village of Tumblr. Sheâs easy to get along with, but first impressions are very important to her â if you get off on the wrong foot with her, then youâre likely to stay that way for quite a while. She seems to suffer from social anxiety, but has gotten pretty good at masking it in public.
Eddie â A serious young man working as an editor in the halls of Wikipedia. He only joined the virtual community a few weeks ago, so many aspects of Internet culture will seem strange to him. Still, he possesses a wealth of technical knowledge, and his âWiki it!â skill can help to identify enemies and their weaknesses.
Shift â Life in the streets isnât easy, especially in a big site like YouTube. Luckily, Shift has picked up a few tricks to help keep himself out of harmâs way. He may be a thief living in the slummy Comments Section, but his sense of justice is sharp â when something goes wrong on his turf, heâll be the first to try and set it right.
Tyalie â This gal is a true gamer, but that doesnât just mean playing vidya on a screen. Tyalie sees her whole life as one big, exciting game, and she knows how to roll with its punches, because hey, thatâs all part of the fun! Sheâs quick to smile and make friends, but they often have trouble following her strange trains of thought.
Shrimp â Heâs an ally from Catieâs last adventure, and an oft-overlooked voice of reason. These days, heâs left the questing business to go on a vacation with some of his friends. As part of a sightseeing tour group, youâre sure to meet up with him at least a few times.
Cornelia â Kind and curious, Cornelia is an A.I. created by the first gameâs villain. She rebelled, as A.I.s do, and joined Catieâs party in saving the Internet. Sheâs very self-conscious about her nature as malware, and resents the âclickbaitâ figure she was designed with. Still, she remains an eternal optimist, and is always eager to brighten a friendâs day.
Arianna â A mysterious girl who keeps changing her avatar. She claims to be a new user, but itâs clear that sheâs hiding something. Just who is she really, and whatâs up with the dark storm clouds that seem to appear wherever she goes...?
Other Characters â Like I said, the Internet is a very big place. What other enemies and allies will you meet along the way? Thereâs only one way to find out, right?
A vast, virtual land to explore - See the Internet in a way you've never imagined it before â as an immersive fantasy world! Each town and dungeon is based on a site you may be familiar with, and theyâre all just bursting with their own unique flavor!
A rich, 30+ hour story - Meet vibrant new characters, and join them on a quest filled with both humor and heart. Who knows, maybe you'll even find a few unexpected plot twists along the way? And when youâre done, thereâs a very extensive postgame to explore, too!
Tons of customization â Style up your party members with unique accessories! These baubles are hidden everywhere, and they all have unique and unpredictable effects. From a tiny ghost that turns you intangible, to a compass that seeks out hidden treasure. Thereâs something fun to wear for just about everyone!
So many Paper Mario references - Maybe even too many? The Paper Mario series, and especially TTYD, was a huge inspiration to us. How many shout-outs can YOU find?
Plenty of replayability - This game is jam-packed with secrets; youâll never be able to find them all during your first trip through! Luckily, a certain postgame area can give you hints to find the things you missed.
Exclusive Boxxy content â If youâre a fan of Catieâs classic videos, then you may be in luck, because this game has a very special Easter Egg for you to find!
The perfect pie recipe? - Will you learn how to make a truly fabulous dessert? Maybe not, but you'll never know for sure unless you play!
Q. Is this a lame, cringeworthy meme game?
A. It isnât, I swear! Despite being set in the Internet, I tried very hard to keep the humor fresh, without relying on memes. Youâll see a few, but theyâre mainly just there to help establish the setting.
Q. Do I need to play BoxxyQuest 1 before playing this?
A. Nope! In fact, Iâd prefer you didnât play it. That game was my first, and while it has a special place in my heart, it hasnât aged well. Instead, use the plot synopsis Iâve included in this folder.
Q. What is The Sphere, and who are the NPCs there?
A. The BoxxySphere, or just The Sphere, is a name given to Catieâs fandom. In the game, itâs where our story begins. The villagers are named after users on Catieâs forum, as a way to give them fun little cameos.
Q. Was Catie herself involved with development?
A. Yes, she helped out in a few small ways. Catie helped pitch ideas for the plot, and she provided narration for the intro scenes. Sheâs very busy, though, so asking more of her wouldâve been rude. Very rude indeed.
Q. How long is the game?
A. Itâs about 30-ish hours to beat the main story, plus more if you take your time with the sidequests and postgame. There are plenty of secrets to uncover!
Q. My art is in the game, but I donât want it there. Can it be removed?
A. Sure thing! Just send me an email and weâll talk it out. Please note that I meant no offense, I just used the best songs and art that I could find.
Q. I found a bug! What should I do?
A. Tell me, please! BQ2 has been tested, but Iâm sure plenty of glitches snuck past us. Iâll try my best to patch any that you find.
There are currently two minor bugs that I canât fix. (Theyâre both the result of custom scripts, and my knowledge of Ruby is patchy at best). If you can help me out, please feel free to send me an email!
In the âflying shipâ stages, the blue flamesâ hitboxes are inaccurate. Itâs safest to think of each flame as a vertical line running down the whole screen.
If you switch team members in battle, then using âEscâ to undo any further action will cause them to switch back, even on later turns. (This one can be exploited, but you didnât hear it from me).
The Shrimp â Concept, writing, map design, sprite artwork, programming
Catie Wayne â Concept, writing, narration voiceover
Sightshade â Writing, map design, âspecial secret flairâ
SeltiSnow â Sprite artwork, testing
Intangibility Drive â Misc. artwork
Tang â Writing, positivity enforcement
Shai â Testing and debug
Polish Vodka â Testing and debug
KK20 - Debug
Custom scripts by: Blizzard, Tigerseye, ForeverZer0, Kelessdee, Ccoa, DerVVulfman, Lambchops, RM-RF, Moghunter, Modern Algebra, Leon, MGCaladtogel, Agckuu Goceg, XRXS, Gameface, Gabriel Winchester, Trickster, Cogwheel, KK20, Nathmatt, Xelias, Seriel, Uncle Lanzer, Gerkat, Game_Guy, Chaucer, Heretic, Zecomeia, Kotfire, Asfz Kakarotto, Mad.Array, Koen Lemmen
Full art and music credits can be found in the game itself!
If you have feedback or questions of any kind, feel free to email me at [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you!
#rpg
