Hello everyone!

I'm excited to share that I've recently announced my new original game, XANNIBAN!

With it being announced alongside @Kane 's BMC Creator Showcase, I'd like to thank him as well as @Yu_Ro & @YEPmulti for giving me the opportunity to be a part of it.

While the trailer already gives a glimpse into the setting and theming of the new title, I figured it would be nice to make a quick F.A.Q rundown post where I give some more details.

You'll see a lot more of this game later in 2023, including gameplay! This post will be updated over time as I reveal more about the game.

For now, though, here are some common questions:

Q: What is XANNIBAN?

XANNIBAN is my first commerical game, coming to digital storefronts like Steam.

(XANNIBAN is an original project - not a fangame!)

In it, you take the role of 'Trespasser' - a resistance squad member who has been separated from the rest of their group as they're thrown into the facilities of a rogue technology corporation.

Tasked with locating its founder, you will need to dash from room-to-room, manage resources, and lure autonomous machines into containment using only the help of your flare-gun and various other tools. Dodge, parry, and counter adaptive AI to survive as you delve further beneath.

Q: Is this a direct sequel to your previous game, TEALERLAND?

Not exactly. Although it does share the same universe (you may have noticed a familiar name in the reveal trailer!), it's really more of a spiritual successor / soft reboot than anything.

You'll be seeing a new cast of characters, new environments, etc. To reiterate, this is an original game! Not a fangame based on any existing franchise. You'll be able to play through XANNIBAN and understand what's going on without relying on having played another game beforehand.

With XANNIBAN I do intend to carry the torch of the unique point & click inspired movement-based gameplay that TEALERLAND started. Having listened to feedback pertaining to my previous game, I feel I've really evolved & refined some of the general ideas initially used in it to a completely new level.

I'll be able to share more upon the release of a gameplay trailer, but it's exciting stuff. If you enjoyed the chaotic gameplay of TEALERLAND, this new title will be right up your alley.

Q: When/where is the gamepage?

Considering that XANNIBAN is my first original project, right now the focus is putting together the game's Steam page. You can expect to see it published alongside a gameplay trailer very soon.

Other platforms like GameJolt and Itch are being considered, but that will be something that's decided upon at a later time. It's just easiest to focus on one platform at this time, being a solo dev - this is why the game doesn't have a GameJolt page at this time.

This leads into the next question...

Q: Is this game free? If not, what will it cost?

The game will be sold at a fairly low cost. Somewhere between $10 to $20, but a final price will be decided upon at a later time.

This will be a full length game, multiple times the length of my previous game - and of course, including lots of features to encourage replayability.

Developing a game requires an obscene amount of time, resources, playtesting, marketing... you get the idea. Selling this game will give me the opportunity to continue supporting it after launch, as well as help fund future projects.

I'd like to still make some small free games every now and then on here for fun, but I intend on selling my major projects on Steam (and maybe other platforms down the line).

A short demo after launch is being considered, but no promises yet. There won't be any pre-release demos - when the game releases is when it's done.

Q: Will this be an 'Early Access' title?

Probably not.

Q: When will gameplay be shown?

As mentioned in the reveal trailer, sometime in Q2 this year.

Progress has been going well on the gameplay front, but it'll still be a little bit of time before I can show anything - but I think it'll be more than worth the wait.

Q: What engine is this made in?

I won't reveal the exact engine I'm using until gameplay is shown, but I have made the jump from Clickteam to a FULLY 3D engine. The preview above is actually rendered in-game!

And yes, that means free-roam (although maybe not in the traditional sense... ).

Making the switch to full 3D for this title has streamlined the development process in quite a massive way. Everything is rendered in realtime, which means I won't have to spend half of development just rendering things out - and changes are extremely easy to make.

I'm still going to give the game somewhat of a pre-rendered feel in terms of visual style and some gameplay aspects, but I'll be able to do far more dynamic animations and environments this time around.

I'm very familiar with this engine as it's the one I've already used prior to make some small games & prototypes. I've found that it suits a lot of my needs and has one of the quickest workflows personally, so it was an easy choice coming from Clickteam. A lot of other indies use it as well!

Thanks for reading! As stated before - this post will be updated over time.

Also, thank you all for your feedback on the reveal trailer! It means a lot.
I'll get back to working on the game now - be sure to check in for when more content is shown!