Well, hello everyone! This is my first post, the very first one on this site. To begin with, I'd like to tell you a little bit about myself.

Let's start with introductions. You can call me Mety. As you've probably gathered, I'm an indie developer, and I'm a whole 17 years old!! Wow, cool, right?? I'm studying at college, also to be a developer, and I really love it! I have a great passion for creating something interesting and new; I've had a craving for creativity since childhood.

But how did I get the idea to create Chainsdream? Let me tell you about that now!

When I was about 13 years old, I discovered this interesting thing called D&D. Many people know this tabletop game. What I loved about it was the absolute freedom of action! You could be anyone, do anything, and it was incredibly exciting and engaging, especially with a group of people. Back then, I decided to create something of my own—my own unique story and characters—and invited a few people to play. It turned out really awesome! But playing D&D forever wasn't feasible, and my desire to create something of my own, something captivating and cozy, never left me. After that, I decided I would write a book, and I actually made some progress. I even changed the concept and setting several times, from post-apocalyptic to medieval fantasy. But just writing stories wasn't enough for me in the long run; I wanted some level of interaction, functionality within the story that a regular book couldn't provide. After another attempt, I took a break for a while. I got a computer and was eager to play all the games I had ever wanted to try.

I played through many popular and interesting games, but I didn't have much desire to return to most of them. I grew to love games that seemed simple on the surface but were deep and rich in gameplay—indie games like Hollow Knight, Cult of the Lamb, Undertale, Deltarune, Omori, and so on. I really enjoyed these games; some for their stories, others for their interesting gameplay and mechanics. For example, I completed Hollow Knight with the Radiance ending! And the new Silksong on the True Ending of the third act. As for Undertale, I completed the Pacifist and Genocide routes three times each. And the fan-made Undertale Yellow with all three endings.

Time passed, I gained experience with various indie games, and many of them became dear to me. Then, one day, I was ignited with the desire to bring my own unique world to life in a game! At that time, I was a complete beginner at programming; my only skill was being able to draw a little, and that was about it 😜. But with the help of YouTube tutorials, I discovered an engine called RPG Maker (just so you know, my current game is being made on a different engine). I started learning this program, watching tutorials, and slowly piecing things together. I spent some time working on one game, but the engine was tailored for turn-based RPGs, like Final Fantasy and similar games. It was very difficult, and sometimes impossible, to implement even simple mechanics. I decided I wouldn't make a game on that engine and scrapped the idea.

Some time passed again, until one day I was once again fired up with the idea of creating my own game, my unique world, but now with new plans for it! I started looking into different engines for indie games again, and my eyes fell upon GameMaker 2. At first, I didn't understand anything about its interface—so many different tabs and buttons, it was confusing. So, I decided to watch tutorials for beginners, and after a couple of days, I learned how conditions, variables, and other basics worked. I decided to practice my skills by creating a simple game where a little plane would fly around and shoot at enemies, with a battery charge and weapon upgrades. Within a week, I made a small game: you controlled a spaceship in space, the ship had three lives, and you could shoot by clicking the left mouse button. You could also speed up by holding the Shift key, but prolonged boosting consumed energy, which replenished over time.

After I got somewhat comfortable with GameMaker 2, I created a project, untitled. The moment had come to decide: what would my game be about? What would be its core idea, gameplay, overall look, art style, and so on? I started writing. My goal was to create a unique atmosphere in the game. I wanted the player to live in a small town like in Stardew Valley, be able to interact with the locals, etc. But I needed a unique story, characters connected to the plot, and a unique protagonist. I consider every character I create to be alive—please don't think I'm crazy 🤪. The characters in Chainsdream have their own unique histories, personalities, ways of speaking, feelings, interests, and dreams. I want to create a cozy world for the player, surrounded by interesting and lively characters, all tied into a vast world lore and a main storyline, with branches into different parts.

I started coming up with more and more interesting things for Chainsdream, developing the world's lore and its plot further, and I feel joy when I see what I'm creating. Believe me, I have big plans for this game, very big plans. But to avoid taking too long with the full release, I will release it in chapters. Between chapters, there will be various updates that expand the gameplay and some details of the lore.

Phew, I've talked a lot today, haven't I?? And this is only my first post 🙃. There will be more posts soon where I'll share details about my game! Details about the development process, the game's lore, and the story (spoiler-free, of course). So, stay tuned for more news about Chainsdream!! Your support means a lot to me! It will give me the strength to move forward toward my goal!! Good luck to everyone who read this post to the end. I will be happy to have those who join this small, but gradually growing world...