Local game studio's debut accepted to Gen Con
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Fractured Oath is in the playtest phase. Photo: Courtesy of Nomar Reyes
RetroMonki, an indie game studio founded by six students and recent graduates of IU's Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering, will publicly playtest their debut game "Fractured Oath" at this year's Gen Con.
The big picture: Getting "Fractured Oath" off the ground is the first step toward the group's much larger mission to create a game studio right here in Indianapolis to support the next generation of designers.
- "We're trying to make our studio be where people can get a chance to intern, to get their foot in the door," RetroMonki CEO Nomar Reyes told Axios.
State of play: "Fractured Oath" began as a class project and won IU Indy's "best game" award this spring.
- It's a 2–4 player, deck-building, rogue-like board game in which players battle enemies, collect powerful cards and then turn on each other in a climactic "Final Stand."
- "It's the culmination of all the games that we love," Reyes said. "We mashed them all together, made different mechanics … and now we have something that a lot of people have really liked."
Between the lines: Getting into the convention's First Exposure Playtest Hall, where designers bring new prototypes to connect with players and get feedback to help refine the game before publishing, is a big deal — especially for a small independent game company like RetroMonki.
- Developers have to apply for limited spots and, if they're accepted, pay to secure a table.
- Reyes said he can hardly believe it's actually happening, after a lifetime spent playing other people's games and years working at Gen Con.
- "To see our company name in the program book, that was really exciting," he said.
What's next: Getting the handmade prototype in front of as many players as possible.
- The RetroMonki team will spend all four days of the convention teaching "Fractured Oath" and gathering feedback about what works well — and what doesn't.
- "I'm super excited," he said. "I'm also super nervous. All the guys are nervous right now. It took a lot of hard work to get where we're at."
If you go: "Fractured Oath" has daily playtest sessions from 8-10am and noon-2pm in the Double Exposure Playtest Hall, rooms 107–110.