The October 2021 Development Update

Hey y’all! Hope everyone’s been doing well and staying safe lately.

Also, how the hell is it already October? Wasn’t it, like, JUST summer? You’re telling me it’s already spooky season?? And the holiday season and all of its BS will be here in less than two months??? And NO ONE told me???? Seriously?????

Growing up sucks, bro. But I digress...

Anyway, it’s been an exciting, if not massively busy time over here since I last hit y’all up. We recently wrapped up our showcase at this years’ Game Devs of Color Expo (aka my favorite gaming event) and it was an amazing time! Be sure to check out the GDoCExpo Direct if you haven’t yet; there’s so many dope games and developers out there, so definitely show ‘em some love! Many thanks to everyone who attended our shenanigans, and much love to the organizers who continuously pull off such a welcoming, wonderful event time and time again. Y’all are the best <3

We also revealed our new cover art and logo! Our illustrator, Yanina Nesterova, has been KILLING IT with her artwork, and I’m so beyond blessed that she’s a part of this project. It’s nice to have someone who can transform your weird-ass ideas into complete masterpieces, y’know?

So how about the game itself?

Let’s get the big one out of the way first - if you haven’t heard by now, She Dreams Elsewhere has been pushed to a 2022 release. It sucks, I know, but it’s the best move to ensure the game’s quality while also taking care of ourselves in the meantime. I promise you the wait will be worth it, so I hope you can bear with me and be patient a little while longer, yeah?

With that being said, I’m very excited to announce that we’ve got a new member of the team! Everyone please give a warm welcome to EMiSpicer, the new producer of She Dreams Elsewhere! EMi, do you wanna say a few words to the fine folk reading this?

Oh gosh, Davionne's putting me on the spot here... Hey y'all!! Honestly I can't put into works how excited I am to be a part of this project. She Dreams Elsewhere is really something special, and I'm so proud to be able to offer my helping hands to help carry it over the finish line so it can make it into your homes. I'm not stranger to long-term projects that have taken longer than expected, so I'm very happy to be able to put my existing skills to use as a new part of Team Studio Zevere and maybe learn some new tricks along the way. We're gonna finish this game and help it be its best, I promise!!

EMi has been a huge help with development, and I’m constantly thankful for all that she (and everyone else on the team!) has done. I’m still making most of the actual game myself, but lately I’ve felt the need to add in collaborators that can help out with things I’m not so good at or don’t have as much time for. Making a game is like raising a child - it takes a village, y’know? And sometimes you need a village to transform your trauma into capital gain because you have dreams to follow and student debt to pay off :)

So yeah. For any indie devs reading this - hire a producer. It’ll change your life, guaranteed™

Other than that, development has been proceeding along smoothly. I’ve spent a lot of time lately writing and doing level design - both of which are some of my favorite parts of gamedev, but also the most time consuming. But I really do love how it’s coming along so far, especially as more details are filled in and finalized. And this game is absolutely filled to the brim with those little details and secrets (the amount of NPC dialogue alone is insane)… so it definitely takes its sweet time to get all that in there. I can’t wait for y’all to experience it - I think it’ll really be something special in the end.

...or not, and it could just be a piece of forgotten trash in a sea of mediocrity. But hey, I can’t predict the future; I can only try my best.

Note from EMi: ...Well let's hope not.

And drink.

Heavily.

Note from EMi: SIR!!

…anyway.

Here’s some fresh screenshots <3

This past summer I’ve also finally been able to hold more in-person playtests… and for some reason, every single one of them has turned into a dance party by the end of it. I don’t know it happens, I don’t force anything, it just kinda… happens? Who knows. I’m guessing the soundtrack has something to do with it....

Speaking of that soundtrack, we’ve got some new snippets to share with y’all today! Our composer, Mimi Page, has been hard at work on the original score, and she’s done an AMAZING job with every single one of the new tracks. Much love to Ronnie Heard as well - he’s been KILLING IT in the live saxophone sessions. Have a listen, why don’t you?

Anyway, that does it for this update! Expect more fun stuff to come soon.

In the meantime, if you’d like to keep up with She Dreams Elsewhere, make sure you follow the game on social media - Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube! Wishlisting on Steam would be great too if you haven’t done so already. Oh, and spread the word about the game! That always helps out a ton~

‘Till next time, y’all stay safe and be well out there! Happy spooky month <3