Factsheet

Developer:

Necrosoft Games
Based in Oakland,
California

Publisher:

Ysbryd Games

Release Date:

2023

Platforms:

Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC (Windows/macOS/Linux)

Website:

demonschool.com

Regular Price:

USD TBD

Description

Demonschool is a new-style tactics RPG where motion equals action. Defeat monstrous creatures in between the human and demon worlds as Faye and her misfit companions, while navigating university life on a mysterious island. The game has a deep story, loaded with side quests, characters to find and befriend, new setups for your clubhouse, and an irreverant horror-tinged vibe. Demonschool marries 2D sprites with stark lighting and 3D backgrounds and effects to create something akin to a 70s Italian horror film.

History

Demonschool wears its influences on its sleeve - the lighting and colors are influenced by vintage Italian horror, and the avatars are influenced by manga and illustration horror giants like Suehiro Maruo. We started from those visual touchstones and then abided by certain specific visual and hardware constraints in order to achieve a cohesive look and feel. Essentially, we conceptualized a fictional game console, and stuck to its hardware "rules" when making this game. The music complements the vibe with its 70s tinged synths, chorals, and fretless bass, and (hopefully!) combines to create something that looks and feels somewhat familiar, but is ultimately wholly unique.

In terms of the battle system, we started from the idea of removing as many "clicks" as possible from traditional tactics games. You don't have to choose your enemy, choose what kind of attack, confirm all those things, et cetera. You move in a direction, and your character reacts accordingly with whatever is in their path. We find that this makes for a smooth tactical experience that still gets your brain moving. It is also a "perfect information" game - you always know what damage you will do, what enemies will move where, and you can rewind your moves in the planning phase at any time. The game is still challenging, but you are working with all the information at hand, and the challenge becomes "how well can I do this" as opposed to "can I even do this at all?" There are no dice rolls!

Features

  • Tactics: Rewind any action during the planning phase and create combos to dispatch your foes. The bigger the combo, the more efficient your play, the greater the reward becomes.
  • Story: A light horror narrative told through huge avatars with side quests aplenty. Even a few minigames.
  • Schedule: Plan your school schedule to level your characters and build their skills. Equip new skills to change how your characters interact with the battlefield.
  • Friendship: 15 characters with whom to build relationships. Choices you make will determine who you get closer to, which can also influence the game's endings.
  • Clubhouse: Gather new furniture sets for your clubhouse and watch your characters' interactions change!

Videos

Teaser trailer

Images

download files as .zip (12.7MB)

Logo

download file as .zip (21 KB)

About Necrosoft Games

Boilerplate

Necrosoft Games is a distributed game developer with members all over the dang world! We try real hard to make games that we ourselves want to play, because that's all you can really ask for in the world today.

More information

More information on Necrosoft Games, our logo & relevant media are available here.

Credits

Brandon Sheffield
game director, writer, designer

Brent Porter
3d modelling, pixel art

Catherine Menadbe
3d modelling, pixel art, ui

Gustav Samuelson
pixel art

Lotte May
code, porting.

Jenna Stoeber
marketing

Michael Kerwin
gameplay programmer

Son M.
producer

Shane Marks
technical director

Vincent Diamante
sound engineer

Kurt Feldman
Music, SFX