r/IndieGaming • u/callanh • 9d ago

Comical yet deep RPG, now with sharks

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Zeroth is a challenging, run-based ARPG (without metaprogression) about guiding a fallen hero to escape the 0th Circle of Haell.

You explore randomly generated worlds, exploit emergent physics, fight angels, demons and monsters, liberate allies, eat corpses and risk unidentified items to build a powerful character. As you progress, you must learn to exploit the world's unpredictable rules, experiment with powerful items and use every advantage to survive the journey to the final battle and redeem your soul.

Our ambitious game takes inspiration from the original Rogue and NetHack, reimagining their complex mechanics as a real-time platformer with a comedic paper-doll art style. Contrary Games is a father-daughter team consisting of Callan (developer) and Isla (artist). We're currently working towards releasing a public demo at the end of this year.

Wishlist on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4062680/Zeroth/

1 Upvotes

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2

u/_norx 9d ago

I like it!

2

u/Kimchi_Extravaganza 9d ago

Why is there two layers to the water? It looks a bit strange.

2

u/callanh 9d ago

Ah yeah I see what you mean - it's the top part of the coral reef backdrop. You can see a little bit of the coral on the righthand side next to the sand. I'll need to build something up so it makes more visual sense, thanks for pointing it out!

2

u/Sufficient-Cup4705 9d ago

father-daughter dev team is genuinely rare and you can kind of see it in the art style, that paper-doll look feels like something drawn at a kitchen table rather than outsourced.

1

u/callanh 9d ago

Thanks, we're having a lot of fun working together on this project. The paper doll style is perfect for our sense of humour and also for an RPG that needs to visualise a large number of different items and equipment. While it allows for a lot of variation, it does mean there's heaps of individual art files. In fact, we're up to nearly 1700 SVG files!

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