itch.io

that makes sense! giving players a reason to venture into the ponds makes the water feel like part of the strategy rather than just somewhere to move through. I also like how the TOAD perk becomes more useful because of that change.

By the way, how has getting the game in front of the right players been going so far? Have most people found it through itch.io, or have you been trying other ways to get more players interested?

mind continuing this talk on email, I would love to know more about these game
lawalmichael250@gmail.com

Well not bad though, I can refer you to someone with the English tongue, I mean a engish native
Here goes his discord link https://discord.gg/TYRv8wgq9

hey man do mind doing this in a more personalized way, I mean DISCORD?

Thank you, are you on discord?

That’s exactly what makes this approach so effective. When players start questioning what they’ve seen, the tension stays with them even after nothing obvious happens. I think that subtle style could also make for some really engaging promotional clips, especially when viewers notice something unusual and go back to watch it again.

I’m a professional video editor and social media manager who helps indie game developers showcase their games through engaging short-form videos and strategic social media content. I can see real potential in using those easily missed anomalies to spark curiosity and help your game reach more horror fans.

Would you be open to discussing a potential collaboration? If so, could you share your email address so I can send you a more detailed proposal, or would you prefer that I send you mine?

wow, really Nice though, how are the game lovers getting to know about the game, are you just posting updates on itch or you are trying to work something out, well if that something you are struggling to do I can help with that aspect,  would you mind sending your email or I should send my to discuss about the collaboration?

That’s great to hear! Even with a small audience, the feedback you're receiving can help Copper & Ember grow into something special as you continue expanding the story.

I’m a professional video editor and social media manager who helps indie game developers reach more players through engaging gameplay videos, character-focused teasers, and strategic social media content. I think Copper & Ember has an interesting premise that could appeal to more fans of story-driven RPGs, and I’d love to explore a potential business collaboration to help increase the game's visibility while you focus on development.

Would you be comfortable sharing your email address so I can send you a more detailed proposal? Alternatively, I can share my email with you if that’s more convenient. I’d be happy to discuss some ideas tailored specifically to your game.

I apologize for the use of AI, the thing is am not a Engish native, so I find it kinda hard to communicate in English, I would love to introduce my self well, if you would not mind sending email, I will also share my past work, I mean portofolio

Thank you for such a thorough answer, and I’m sorry my comment came across that way. There’s a real person behind this account, and I did read every word. Hearing that Mops & Mobs started with no card game at all, then grew out of paper prototypes and ideas borrowed from Mondar’s Dungeon, was far more interesting than a polished answer would have been. Admitting that most of the testing was just the two of you is also refreshingly honest.

I’m a video editor and social media manager, and I work with indie developers on getting their games in front of more players. I’d like to talk with you about a possible business collaboration. Would you mind sending me your email, or would you prefer I send you mine? Either works, 

hey, I saw you latest update, how development going?

I completely understand that, especially since Open Doctrines is both a game and a way for you to keep learning and improving as a developer. I respect that you want to build your experience with the project before moving on to something bigger.

You don't have to take on everything yourself, though. I offer video editing and social media management for indie games, helping developers turn their gameplay, development progress, and unique mechanics into content that can reach more players. If you decide to explore X or other platforms later, I'd be happy to help with that side of things while you focus on developing the game.

 When you feel ready to put more attention into growing the game's audience, would you be open to discussing how we could work together?

That’s a clever way to approach it. I like the idea of Opportunities acting as the opposite of Threats, giving players something exciting to work toward rather than only reacting to problems. Formalizing plot threads could also make it easier for game masters to keep the story moving when players aren't sure what to pursue next.

how has getting Pathwarden in front of the right tabletop RPG players been going so far? Are most people discovering it through itch.io and the existing community, or have you been exploring other ways to reach new players?

That makes sense. Letting the more urgent plot thread take the lead for a while could give the story room to develop without losing Ash's personal motivations. I like that you're thinking carefully about how to pace the different parts of the story.

how has getting Copper & Ember in front of the right players been going so far? Are most people discovering it through itch.io, or have you been exploring other ways to reach readers and players who enjoy story-driven RPGs?

I love how an experiment turned into something much bigger than you originally planned. The openness behind Open Doctrines is a great part of its identity, especially with you sharing the development process and being honest about what still needs work.

I think TikTok, X, and Reddit could help you reach more strategy game fans beyond the people already finding you through itch.io and Discord. TikTok could showcase interesting gameplay mechanics in short clips, X could help you share development updates and connect with strategy game communities, and Reddit could bring valuable discussions when you share relevant mechanics, design decisions, or development challenges in the right communities.

I do offer video edtition and scoial media management,I helps games reach the right audiences through content and community engagement, and I can see opportunities to build on what you're already doing without losing the open, experimental spirit of the project. Have you considered having someone help you manage that side of things while you focus on developing the game?

That’s a really thoughtful way to handle intelligence in a strategy game. I like how you’ve made information about enemy  and fort levels more better than simply giving surprise attacks 

 damage. It makes the player’s decisions before a battle feel just as important as the battle itself, and I appreciate that you’re also being open about where the AI still needs work.

 with so much thought going into these mechanics, how has getting Open Doctrines noticed by players outside itch.io been going so far? Have you been exploring other platforms or using social media to reach strategy game fans?

I like that you're revisiting the opening  to make the world easier to understand without dumping too much lore on new players. The premise itself is fascinating, especially the idea of powerful elites trying to combine AI, nanotechnology and necromancy to create a workforce that can't escape even through death.

 with Ash's personal struggle to provide for her younger brother sitting alongside such a much bigger dystopian conflict, how do you balance those personal moments with the wider worldbuilding without overwhelming players early on?

The detail I really like in this devlog is how even something as subtle as breathing or a small twitch can make a CCTV scene feel wrong. I imagine that makes the anomalies much more unsettling because players have to question what they saw instead of just waiting for an obvious jumpscare. The way you separate and rig the artwork to keep the movement natural is interesting too.

 when designing these animations, do you deliberately make some anomalies easy to miss on the first viewing, so players start doubting their own eyes as they watch the footage?

The part of Microlandia 2.0 that really interests me is how the city's growth now comes with environmental consequences. I like that building a bigger city isn't just about filling the map with skyscrapers, because pollution and trapped heat can actually  the people living there. The nighttime skyline and terrain reshaping are great visual additions too.

 when you decided to make pollution and urban heat affect residents more directly, was the goal mainly to add another layer of city management, or did you also want players to think differently about how real cities grow?

The change that caught my attention is how health now affects stamina too, so taking damage doesn't just make survival harder, it also limits how  you can fight. The idea of having to risk  down in the water to catch fish and increase your health sounds like it could create some tense decisions during a run.

 do you want fishing to become something players actively plan their runs around, or is it meant to be more of a risky option when their health gets low?

Just wanted to make the English well clear, I must apologize am not a English native, how is the development?

I like that you're still polishing One Last Goodbye after release, even with a smaller update like this one. Fixing crashes and cleaning up the experience across web, Android, and Mac might not be the flashiest work, but it makes a real difference for players.

 now that the game is out, have you mostly been focusing on fixing issues reported by players, or are you also thinking about ways to help more people discover the story?

The part I find most interesting about this Open Doctrines update is the fog of war, especially how even the AI has to operate without seeing the entire map. That makes reconnaissance and espionage feel like meaningful strategic decisions rather than just extra features. I also like that you've been working on getting the game running on phones.

 with fog of war enabled, can a player completely change the direction of a campaign through intelligence and surprise attacks, or will military strength still matter more than information?

I like that you're approaching Pathwarden 2 with a few years of experience behind you, rather than simply adding more rules to the original. The idea of introducing Opportunities to the campaign map caught my attention, especially if they give players plot threads they can hold onto and develop throughout an adventure.

 do you want Opportunities to help guide the story more clearly for game masters, or will they mainly give players more freedom to shape where the campaign goes?

The thing I like about this update is that you're not just adding voice acting to A Little Inconvenience. The new backgrounds, soundtrack, illustrations, UI, and accessibility options sound like a lot of care has gone into making the whole experience feel more complete.

I'm curious, with all these changes coming together for the October 17 demo, which part of the revamp do you feel has made the biggest difference to the way players experience the story?

The part I really like about the latest Terraformer Wars update is being able to see enemy starting positions before combat. It makes the preparation side feel just as important as the battle itself, especially when you're managing different units and equipment.

I'm curious, do you see players changing their whole setup based on where the enemies start, or is the idea more about giving them a chance to make small tactical adjustments before each fight?

Terraformer Wars by 16bitnights

I was checking out the v0.6.0 update for Mops & Mobs, and the card combat overhaul caught my attention, especially replacing the single broom card with a deck of broom cards and adding different challenge modes. I like that you're changing the actual combat decisions rather than just adding more content.

I'm curious, was the new deck system something you had planned from the beginning, or did playtesting show that the old combat system needed more depth?

wow really cool though, have you  tried any other means of getting the game seen, I mean, social media?
Or would you be opened for a potential business collaboration concerning that?

Hi August, thanks for being so open about this. It is very common in the middle of a big development cycle, and it is exactly the part I take off a developer's plate.

I manage social media and community for indie games: short-form content, posting, replying to people, and keeping a Discord or Telegram active. For a project like yours, I would turn the updates you already share (the pivotal scenes, the bear and ferret scene, the CG moment with its foley and music, the cookbook, the returning voice actors) into small posts that keep people interested between Patreon and itch updates, and point them back to the page where they can support you.

I know you mentioned something is in the works already. If it would help to have a second pair of hands, or if the plan changes, I would be glad to send over a short proposal.. Thank you for the update, and good luck with Episode 2!

Thanks for explaining that. Honestly, I think that’s exactly where I could be useful to you.

From what I’ve seen with Explosive Chasers, you already have something very important: the game itself naturally creates a lot of content opportunities. The explosions, destruction, car builds, crashes, arenas, physics, development progress and gameplay moments are all things that can be turned into content that catches attention outside of YouTube and Itch.io.

The part I’m offering is to take that side of the work off your hands.

Instead of you having to spend your limited development time figuring out what to post, where to post it, how to adapt it, and how to find the right communities, I can handle the social media side and build a system around the content you’re already producing.

My approach would be:

YouTube → Short-form content → Social platforms → Communities → Steam → Players

I’d take the strongest moments from your development updates, trailers and gameplay and adapt them specifically for platforms such as TikTok, Instagram Reels and X, rather than simply reposting the same content everywhere.

For example, a single development update could become several pieces of content:

• A satisfying destruction clip
• A quick car-build showcase
• A new arena reveal
• A physics or crash experiment
• A funny development moment or bug
• A short “did you know?” post
• A before/after development comparison
• A question or discussion post designed to get players involved

I’d also handle the community side researching where the actual audience for Explosive Chasers is already active, including racing, destruction, vehicle, simulation, physics and indie-game communities.

eah, definitely. I actually think Explosive Chasers has a lot of content potential for social because the game naturally has things that are easy to turn into short-form content: explosions, destruction, car builds, crashes, new arenas, development progress and eventually gameplay moments.
The approach I’d take wouldn’t be to just repost the same YouTube videos everywhere. I’d build a content system around the game and use each platform for a slightly different purpose.
YouTube: Keep the development updates and trailers as the longer-form content. Then pull the strongest moments from those videos into Shorts instead of creating everything from scratch.
TikTok / Instagram Reels: This would be more focused on quick, visually satisfying moments. Things like a car getting completely destroyed, a crazy explosion, before/after comparisons, new arena reveals, car creation, physics experiments, funny bugs, short development progress and quick “did you know?” style clips. The first few seconds would matter a lot here because the goal is to stop people who have never heard of the game.
X: I’d use this more for development updates, GIFs/clips, screenshots, progress threads, announcements and conversations with other indie/game development accounts. It’s also useful for getting involved with the communities around racing, destruction games, indie games and similar titles rather than only posting on your own account.
The community side is important too. I’d actively look for communities where the actual players for Explosive Chasers already hang out. Racing games, destruction/vehicle games, car enthusiasts, simulation/physics communities, indie gaming communities, Discord servers, Reddit communities and creators who already make content around similar games.
The idea wouldn’t be to spam those communities with promotional posts. I’d look for places where the game genuinely fits, participate normally, share relevant development/gameplay content and gradually get the game in front of people who are actually likely to care about it.
Then I’d connect all of that back to the Steam page. Social content gets attention, but we need somewhere useful for that attention to go. So I’d also look at the Steam page, make sure the messaging is clear, and make sure the content we’re pushing on social matches what a new player sees when they click through.
The bigger system would basically be:
YouTube development → short-form clips → TikTok/Instagram/X → relevant gaming communities → creators → Steam → wishlists/demo/player interest.
And I wouldn’t want to just post for the sake of having a posting schedule. I’d keep track of which type of content actually gets people watching, engaging, visiting the game and eventually showing interest in it. Then we put more effort into the formats and topics that are actually working.
You already have a good amount of raw material to work with, so I think the first step would be looking through what you currently have and building the content direction around that rather than trying to force a completely new system.
That’s roughly how I’d approach it.

Let me know what you think!?

That's actually a really nice way of keeping people updated, especially with the progress post being updated as you work through everything.

I'm curious though, while you're working on Day 4, what have you been doing to get Mychael in front of more people and keep the game growing?

I'm asking because I'm a video editor who focuses on helping indie devs with the social media side of things. I help turn gameplay and game moments into short content that can be used to keep people interested between updates.

 I just wanted to understand how you're currently handling the social media/promotion side and see if there's any way I could potentially help.

I was checking out the latest Cultivation Stories update and I really like how much depth you're putting into the game. The new qinggong system especially caught my attention, with the different movement patterns and the active jumps that can add things like stun, attacks or extra defense.

I also really like the changes to the missions. Having past decisions actually come back later and affect other quests makes the world feel much more connected instead of every quest just being its own separate thing.

I noticed you've also been pushing updates pretty consistently recently, so I was curious about something. How are you currently handling the visibility side of Cultivation Stories and getting new players to discover it?

Are you mainly relying on itch.io and the existing community, or are you actively creating content for places like YouTube, TikTok, X or other social platforms?

I’m asking because there are quite a few things in this update that feel visually interesting enough to give people a reason to stop and look, especially the qinggong movement, combat and the way previous choices come back later.

I just saw that Malditos Roomies 2nd Edition is finally out, and I really like the concept behind it. The idea of vampires, ghosts, witches and werewolves all trying to live under the same roof while hiding what they really are is such a fun combination of horror and comedy.

I also noticed the new edition adds things like Frenzy Points, personal objectives, house events and new supernatural powers. That seems like it could create some really fun situations during a session, especially when things start going wrong.

Since you’ve just launched the second edition, I was curious about how you’re currently handling the social media and visibility side. Are you actively creating content around the new edition and its mechanics, or is most of the promotion happening through itch.io and your existing community?

I’m curious because there’s quite a lot here that could give people a reason to discover the game, especially around the characters, funny situations and supernatural mechanics.

I was checking out the new YouTube channel setup for Explosive Chasers, and I like that you've started separating the content into Shorts and Trailers. I also noticed you've been consistently putting out development updates, from the new arenas to the car creation process and the recent pre-alpha announcement.

It actually looks like you're putting quite a bit of effort into creating content around the game already. I'm curious though, how are you currently handling the social media side of all this?

Are you mainly focusing on YouTube right now, or are you also pushing the Shorts and game updates across platforms like TikTok, Instagram and X to get Explosive Chasers in front of more players?

I'm asking because you've already got a lot of material to work with, especially the explosions, car builds, destruction and new updates. I'm curious how you're currently getting that content in front of the right audience.

Fostering Apocalypse and I really liked the direction you took with the story. The whole Del and Barrett relationship caught my attention, especially the contrast between this hardened character moving through a demon-ravaged world and then choosing to protect a child who is literally supposed to be part of another apocalypse.

I also really like the pixel art style and how much personality you managed to give the characters in such a short experience. I saw that the game has also reached people through YouTube creators before, which made me curious about how you're handling its visibility now.

Are you still actively doing anything on the social media side to keep Fostering Apocalypse in front of new players, or has most of the promotion naturally slowed down since the original release?

I’m asking because I feel like a game with this kind of story and character dynamic still has things worth showing to the right audience.

Congrats on the upcoming campaign! Camp Geode with magically infused geodes that unlock powers is such a fun hook for an all ages game, and a rules lite camping theme sounds great for families and scout groups. I like that people who already own the digital version get the update for free. Pre-made adventures will make it much easier for new game masters to jump in too, and it's good to see new art from Leo Assis.

Quick question, are you planning a campaign video or gameplay clips for the pre-launch, or is that something you're still figuring out?

Thank you for the PSA, that's really useful for readers to know. Taking your time on Day 4 to avoid burnout sounds like the right call, and a slow burn yandere VN deserves it. It's great that the community has translated it into so many languages, that says a lot about Mychael and the story. Hope the next update lands smoothly before the end of the year!

Quick question, since you're much more active on Tumblr, is that where most readers keep up with Day 4 progress?

Respect for being open about the delay. Moving to Q1 2027 instead of rushing the locations and story is the right call, and it's clear the demo feedback has shaped the game, with all those updates since release. Life in a city under emotional surveillance is a really strong hook too, and a community that translates and shares the game says a lot. Hope the publisher search goes well.

Quick question, where do most of your players and wishlists come from, the demo on itch or socials as well?

Great update! Four of five pivotal scenes over the hill is huge, and a bear and ferret scene on a gorgeous background sounds like a treat. A CG scene between Nico and Gabe with a foley and music pairing you call comforting sounds lovely too. Taking extra time on the cookbook to get the cover right instead of rushing for MFF is a good call, and it's great that some of the motion comic VAs are returning.

Quick question, how are you keeping people engaged between updates while episode 2 cooks, mostly Patreon and itch devlogs, or other places too?