Custom Engine
JavaScript
Harmonic Odyssey: The Five Gods is a top-down RPG adventure for Windows, Mac and Linux. It features hand-drawn artwork and animation, a unique time-based combat system, and a robust choose-your-own-adventure styled storyline.
Harmonic Odyssey runs on a customized RPG Maker engine and a JavaScript code base, making it cross-platform and web compatible.
Overview
The Idea: Inspired by choose-your-own adventure stories and classic Japanese Roleplaying Games (JRPGs), Harmonic Odyssey began as a concept for a simple visual novel and morphed into multifaceted gameplay experience. Uniquely, the game borrows elements for its wholly custom combat system from rhythm-based music games, such as "Dance Dance Revolution" and "Guitar Hero". With branching plotlines and multiple outcomes, players will find a lot to discover within the world, though they aren't necessarily guaranteed a happy ending.
Execution: Rather than build an engine from scratch, the user-friendly but robust RPG Maker MV engine was selected to bring this game to life. This set of tools is based on a JavaScript core, and thus developers who wish to work outside of a stock engine can easily do so. The battle script, menus and UI were redone and a modified version of a timed arrow input system was added with custom JavaScript plugins. The art, music and animations were composed in Photoshop, Garage Band, DragonBones and other applications, then imported for a wholly customized look via further plugins. The result is a game that looks nothing like other titles that utilize the same engine, and a completely unique gameplay experience.