I could tell you about how much I love this game, but instead I'm going to tell you what I know about it's journey.

Matt White was a simple gamer, just like us. He liked Super Metroid, he liked Dark Souls, he even liked fighting games. It had been years since Nintendo had touched the Metroid franchise. So, he thought to himself, why don't I make one?

It was 2012. Matt had already been toying around with Flash sidescrollers. Having fun dipping his toes into making stuff, just for fun. Matt was also an excellent artist already; he drew comic book art, in a style similar to those old 80s sci-fi anime's. He didn't really know anything about programming, but after conversations with a mutual, they agreed to partner up and try to make something special. Try and make a Metroid-like that was somber, yet lively, and hauntingly beautiful.

So a Kickstarter was made. Matt didn't really know anything about making games. Few people outside of the industry really talked about it back then. They did some math, guessed about how long it would take them, and a goal was set - mere $15,000. A measly amount compared to even most indie games of today. It seemed like enough back then. And the Kickstarter was a rousing success, funding waaay above goal. Not quite enough to reach the oft-joked about Wii U stretch, but a windfall nonetheless. The money was divided evenly between the two bright-eyed and idea-filled partners. This was it. It was time to hunker down and get started.

But then the programmer's work started to slow. He would miss calls, skip out on meetings. He stopped returning messages. Slowly, he himself became a ghost of the project. He had taken the money, but wasn't producing the work. There was so much to do! But only Matt remained. And only Matt would continue the project.

Stencyl is a good engine to work with visually, especially if you are new to making games. Although shaken by the silent departure of his once-partner, he soldiered on; dutifully creating all the artwork, pulling from sound libraries and implementing his ideas into the game engine. It was rough going, for a single man. But it was going. And that was all that mattered, with the weight of the fully funded Kickstarter behind him, and the growing coverage of his dark, yet vibrant take on the (for the time) neglected genre.

However, Stencyl just couldn't keep up with Matt. Fixing bugs was a struggle for this new developer. And the more content and artwork and ideas he shoveled into the engine, the longer and longer it would take to compile, sometimes up to 45 minutes for each change! Instead of smoothly moving forward, working on the game was becoming frustrating. This couldn't go on. A change had to be made.

So Matt makes the tough decision to switch engines, communicating this to all the Kickstarter backers. It is an understandable, if regrettable choice. The game was already at least halfway done! But it was also necessary. The engine was pushed as far as it could go, and Matt, burning the candle at both ends to make his dream a reality, had no choice but to start over.

The next years are spent learning to code. Unity has plugins to work visually, like Stencyl. But so much MORE could be done by directly coding it. Ideas exploded forth. The animations could now be expanded upon. Even more options for including melee and different weapons were now a possibility. Matt hadn't stopped playing other games during these years, and they all helped to shape and grow this new vision of Ghost Song.

A vision I hope you will enjoy in its completion as much as I have.

Thanks for reading.

I could tell you about how much I love this game, but instead I'm going to tell you what I know about it's journey. Matt White was a simple gamer, just like us. He liked Super Metroid, he liked Dark Souls, he even liked fighting games. It had been years since Nintendo had touched the Metroid franchise. So, he thought to himself, why don't I make one? It was 2012. Matt had already been toying around with Flash sidescrollers. Having fun dipping his toes into making stuff, just for fun. Matt was also an excellent artist already; he drew comic book art, in a style similar to those old 80s sci-fi anime's. He didn't really know anything about programming, but after conversations with a mutual, they agreed to partner up and try to make something special. Try and make a Metroid-like that was somber, yet lively, and hauntingly beautiful. So a Kickstarter was made. Matt didn't really know anything about making games. Few people outside of the industry really talked about it back then. They did some math, guessed about how long it would take them, and a goal was set - mere $15,000. A measly amount compared to even most indie games of today. It seemed like enough back then. And the Kickstarter was a rousing success, funding waaay above goal. Not quite enough to reach the oft-joked about Wii U stretch, but a windfall nonetheless. The money was divided evenly between the two bright-eyed and idea-filled partners. This was it. It was time to hunker down and get started. But then the programmer's work started to slow. He would miss calls, skip out on meetings. He stopped returning messages. Slowly, he himself became a ghost of the project. He had taken the money, but wasn't producing the work. There was so much to do! But only Matt remained. And only Matt would continue the project. Stencyl is a good engine to work with visually, especially if you are new to making games. Although shaken by the silent departure of his once-partner, he soldiered on; dutifully creating all the artwork, pulling from sound libraries and implementing his ideas into the game engine. It was rough going, for a single man. But it was going. And that was all that mattered, with the weight of the fully funded Kickstarter behind him, and the growing coverage of his dark, yet vibrant take on the (for the time) neglected genre. However, Stencyl just couldn't keep up with Matt. Fixing bugs was a struggle for this new developer. And the more content and artwork and ideas he shoveled into the engine, the longer and longer it would take to compile, sometimes up to 45 minutes for each change! Instead of smoothly moving forward, working on the game was becoming frustrating. This couldn't go on. A change had to be made. So Matt makes the tough decision to switch engines, communicating this to all the Kickstarter backers. It is an understandable, if regrettable choice. The game was already at least halfway done! But it was also necessary. The engine was pushed as far as it could go, and Matt, burning the candle at both ends to make his dream a reality, had no choice but to start over. The next years are spent learning to code. Unity has plugins to work visually, like Stencyl. But so much MORE could be done by directly coding it. Ideas exploded forth. The animations could now be expanded upon. Even more options for including melee and different weapons were now a possibility. Matt hadn't stopped playing other games during these years, and they all helped to shape and grow this new vision of Ghost Song. A vision I hope you will enjoy in its completion as much as I have. Thanks for reading.