Downstream Games

It's time to announce what we've been up to! Introducing Masque: A Trickster Tale, a story-rich adventure RPG about a child lost in the realm of tricksters from around the globe.
Lie, cheat, steal--do whatever you can to get back home! Stay tuned and Follow for more 💛 #indiedev #indiegame

For thousands of years, we've associated kids with slingshots. We're keeping the Brats with Slingshots tradition alive in Masque: A Trickster Tale 💛 #indiegame #pixelart #rpg

The fifth devlog for Masque: A Trickster Tale is up now on our website! This week, we take the stage to talk a little bit more about Shows! We'll be showing off our work on shows in the next few months, so we hope you enjoy this first look 💛 downstreamgames.com#devlog #gamedev #indiedev #devlog

Oh no, the Alux got to Kid! There's only one way to settle disputes in the Trickster Realm: It's time for a Show! #PixelArt #Art #IndieGame #TurnBasedThursday

🎨 STREAM REMINDER 🎨 I'll be live in 2hrs working on some dialog portraits for @downstreamgames.com's "Masque: A Trickster Tale"! I've gotten permission to stream the work too! You'll be able to watch on Twitch and now on @altstream.online!!! 🟣 twitch.tv/karatebugmom 🟠 altstream.online/sonomikan

Downstream Games is proud to announce that we're about $80 billion more profitable than one of the leading tech giants 😎

"AHHH, IT'S A WOLF, IT'S A WOLF!! PLEASE BE AWARE OF THE WOLF!!!" Wow, that wolf crying kid is good! #GameDev #Art #IndieGame

We've gotten a lot of new followers recently, so we want to reintroduce our game, Masque: A Trickster Tale! We're working on a story-rich adventure RPG about a young child lost in the realm of tricksters. We're doing this from scratch, no GenAI. 💛 #IndieGames #Mythology #AdventureRPG

It's National Wolf Awareness Week! To help us be aware of wolves this week, we've hired this child from Ancient Greece who has a solid resume for looking out for wolves. 🐺 👀 #CharacterArt #Art #IndieGame

While exploring the Trickster Realm, you'll come across some friendly faces...and some not so friendly faces! Run from that Alux, Kid!! #PixelArt #Art #IndieGame #ScreenshotSaturday

Using Masque as a Lantern, you can find all sorts of treasures in the Trickster Realm! Tricksters try their best to hide their secrets from one another, so what could be hidden by these torches...? 🤔 #indiegame #pixelart #pixelanimation

Another sneaky animation preview from my work on @downstreamgames.com's Masque: A Tricker Tale! There's no reference quite like being a former bird owner, tell you what. #indiegames #aseprite #pixelanimation

The fourth devlog for Masque: A Trickster Tale is up now on our website! This week, our Art Director and Jr. Artist, @doodleconner.bsky.social and @vesperaluna.bsky.social, take the spotlight! downstreamgames.com#devlog #gamedev #indiedev #devlog

They're no flying carpet or somersault cloud, but sometimes a fallen log is all you need to get to where you're going! 🪵 #IndieGame #WIPWednesday #PixelArt

I can finally show you some of my animation work for @downstreamgames.com! Ya like indie games?? You should keep tabs on "Masque: A Trickster Tale"! #indiegames #pixelart #aseprite

Have you ever noticed how many kids in media have slingshots? 🤔 Dennis the Menace, the other Dennis the Menace, Bart Simpson, Bev, Rue, Link, Conker the Squirrel...It even has its own trope name: Brats with Slingshots! Kid is no brat, but he is armed! 🎯 #gamedev #indiegamedev

Inspired by this year's Festivals of Aloha theme--Ea mai ke Kai mai (rise up from the sea)--we're diving into a character showcase for the legendary kupua (demigod) Māui 🪝 We're bringing this heroic member of the Campfire Crew to life in Masque: A Trickster Tale! #GameDev #IndieGame

Happy Frankenstein Day, aka Mary Shelley's birthday! 🥳 Did you know the full title of Shelley's seminal novel is actually "Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus"? Prometheus is the most prudent member of the Campfire Crew in Masque: A Trickster Tale thanks to his foresight!🔥 #GameDev #IndieGame

In honor of International Actor's Day, we're showcasing our resident thespian, the Pantomimus! 🎭 Pantomimi are Joker type opponents in Masque: A Trickster Tale. They have a unique ability during shows that allows them to dawn comedy or tragedy masks, each with their own effect! #GameDev #IndieGame

Early on in the project, our director knew that he wanted cool lighting and shadow effects for more interesting level design, which is why he decided to switch engines. We think we're making good progress towards achieving those goals! #gamedev #indiegamedev #ScreenshotSaturday

After a vacation-induced break, it's time for the 3rd devlog for Masque: A Trickster Tale! This week, we're featuring two of our talented artists: @pandattack.bsky.social and @ovelhart.bsky.social! downstreamgames.com#devlog #gamedev #indiedev #devlog

Your lantern does more than just protect you from thick fog and poisonous spores. It can also be used to burn poisonous mushrooms blocking your path! 🔥 #indiegame #gamedev #pixelart

With the release of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, we thought now would be a good time to drop in on the original spider man: Anansi 🕷️📖 In Masque: A Trickster Tale, Anansi is a member of the Campfire Crew, trickster deities that help Kid and Masque at the start of their journey! #GameDev #IndieGame

Congratulations to @anpshawn.bsky.social and Armor Games Studios for the successful launch of Signy & Mino: Against All Gods! 🎉 If you love turn-based adventure RPGs with a fun combat twist, then you might like how Signy and Mino adds fighting game-style combos to the mix!

When you have a lantern that runs on hellfire, you can use it to light other things on fire. Ignite torches around the forest to guide your path (and maybe reveal a secret or two!) #indiegame #gamedev #rpg

Early on in the project, our director knew that he wanted cool lighting and shadow effects for more interesting level design, which is why he decided to switch engines. We think we're making good progress towards achieving those goals! #gamedev #indiegamedev #ScreenshotSaturday

It's scary when the light is running low, and the shadows start to grow, but that's what lanterns are for! Plus, with a lantern that runs on hellfire, you can easily make it though the fog of the Trickster Realm 🔥 #indiegame #animation #rpg

Last week we shared our Art Bible, which we use to collaborate and organize art assets. This week, we're sharing the Design Bible! Design Bibles are typically long, printed documents that plan out the entire design of the game, but ours is much more fluid and visual! #indiedev #screenshotsaturday

They have many names: feu follet in France, guǐ huǒ in China, andaru in Indonesia, devil's lantern in the Deep South. In many English speaking countries they're known as will-o-the-wisps, and in the trickster forest, they'll actually guide travelers through the deep fog 🔥 #indiedev #indiegame

Here's a look behind-the-scenes at a tool we use to organize our art: The Art Bible! 🎨 This is a huuuge board split up by References, the Style Guide, Characters, Environment, and UI. We can't show off too much, but hopefully the scale comes across! #gamedev #screenshotsaturday

The second devlog for Masque: A Trickster Tale is available to read on our website 😎 This week, we're taking a look at our studio's values, pillars, and workflows for the game! downstreamgames.com#devlog #gamedev #indiedev #devlog

After 4+ years spent tinkering, Bravest Coconut is available on Steam. It's a Point & Click Adventure with no pointing and clicking, taking the quirky puzzles from games like Monkey Island and mixing with the exploration and action of retro Zeldas: s.team/a/2913190 #Godot #PixelArt #IndieGame

The forest in the Trickster Realm can be an eerie, disorienting place. When you find a friendly face, it's best that you take a moment to rest! #indiegame #pixelart #animation

We want to shine a light on the alux for #WorldChocolateDay! 🍫 Originating from the Yucatán Peninsula, aluxo'ob, or aluxes, are one of the first junior tricksters you'll encounter. They can buff their allies with Bark Up or throw cacao pods at opponents using Podcast! #characterdesign #indiedev

Starting later in the summer, we'll have devlogs dedicated to the members of our art team. Sign-up for our email list to be the first to hear about it 💛 www.downstreamgames.com

Beware the forest's mushrooms!! ⚠️ Breathing in their spores has got to be bad for your health... #gamedev #pixelart #animation

This is what game dev feels like sometimes 😵‍💫 #gamedev #pixelart

To make development easier, we have a level dedicated just to stuff in the overworld, which we call the Interaction Gym! 🏋️ Here we can test tricky obstacles, dialogue, items, and more (even before the artists get to them 💀) #screenshotsaturday #gamedev

Our very first developer log, or "devlog", for Masque: A Trickster Tale is available to read on our website! 🥳 We discuss what a Trickster is, what the game is all about, and reveal what your adventure is going to be like in the Trickster Realm! downstreamgames.com#devlog #indiedev #devlog

In Masque: A Trickster Tale, you play as Kid, a Victorian-era foundling, and Masque, a magical mask with a flippant attitude. Explore the trickster realm together and find a way home! 🎭 #characterdesign #indiegamedev

Our items screen is still a work-in-progress, but we've come a long way since our initial wireframe! In user interface design, a wireframe is a mock-up of what you want the interface to look like. 💛 #indiedev #gameart