Jumplight Odyssey, the latest game from Australian studio League of Geeks (Armello) has officially launched in early access via Steam, after several years in development. To celebrate, the team behind the game has shared more about its journey on Twitter, detailing the challenge of being an independent Australian game studio, and releasing a game with such a unique, space-faring vision.
‘Being indie isn’t easy,’ League of Geeks said. ‘We’re in the ring with games that have serious $$$ to marketing + development. There comes a point in every indie game’s life cycle where it needs to make some hefty waves to see any success at all – Jumplight Odyssey‘s time is right now.’
There are high hopes for Jumplight Odyssey, with its early access period designed to improve and expand the spaceship colony simulator in a major way. That depends on player engagement, and to that end, League of Geeks is encouraging anyone curious about the game to consider supporting it during this phase.
‘There WILL be bugs in EA [Early Access],’ the team said. ‘We’re doing our best – we are small, but mighty! But to wait until the game is perfect for purchase will damage our odds of success. Plus, your early feedback is GAME CHANGING to our dev team (quite literally). Your voice will shape JLO’s future.’
Read: League of Geeks talks Jumplight Odyssey, Solium Infernum, and learning as a studio
Notably, Jumplight Odyssey is one of two major video games concurrently in the works at League of Geeks. The other is Solium Infernum, a remake of the original turn-based political strategy game set in hell. Between these games, the studio is set for a massive year, with both Jumplight and Solium Infernum defining an ambitious next few months.
‘We know where we are headed, but we also know the power of player investment. With our previous game Armello, we worked with our community for over seven years to realise our ambition of bringing tabletop adventure to life,’ the team said. ‘Thanks to those players, we achieved far more than we ever expected.’
‘Now, as we merge the structure of an FTL roguelite with colony sims like Dwarf Fortress or Rimworld, with so many systems to refine and decisions to make, we knew from the very start of development that we’d be returning to Early Access, and to all of you.’
Jumplight Odyssey is now available in early access via Steam.
