River Tails: Stronger Together - A Co-op Adventure Like No Other

In the vast landscape of indie games, "River Tails: Stronger Together" stands out as a gem that promises an unparalleled co-op experience. Developed by the talented italian team at KidOnionStudio, this 3D co-op adventure platformer breaks away from the ordinary with its vibrant visuals, engaging storyline, and innovative gameplay mechanics. But why Play "River Tails: Stronger Together"?

The game takes you on an extraordinary journey through visually stunning natural-world environments. From uncharted rainforests to magical river caves, each level is a feast for the eyes. The attention to detail and the vibrant color palette make "River Tails" a visual delight. What sets "River Tails" apart is its 3D action-adventure platformer designed around a unique couch co-op system. Whether playing with friends using Steam Remote Play together or Parsec, the game fosters collaboration and teamwork. Players can choose between Furple, the curious purple kitten, or Finn, the independent fish with attitude, as they work together to overcome challenges.

Do you know Steam Remote Play together or Parsec?

Steam Remote Play Together is a feature offered by the Steam gaming platform. It enables players to enjoy local multiplayer games with friends online, even if the game itself doesn't inherently support online multiplayer. With Remote Play Together, one player hosts the game, and others can join in remotely, allowing for a shared gaming experience over the internet. As the previous one, Parsec is a game streaming service that allows users to play video games remotely with others. It enables low-latency, high-quality streaming of games from one device to another, making it possible for friends to join in and play together as if they were in the same room. Also Parsec supports both local and online multiplayer games and provides a versatile solution for gaming sessions across different devices.

But back on River Tails! The characters, Furple and Finn, add a delightful touch to the game. The unexpected alliance between a kitten and a fish brings a unique dynamic to the co-op experience. Embark upstream with these charming allies on a quest to save Furple's family from mortal danger, unraveling an engaging storyline as you progress.

"River Tails: Stronger Together" requires a controller to play, ensuring a smooth and immersive gaming experience. The controls are intuitive, allowing players to focus on the adventure rather than wrestling with complicated mechanics. You can start to check it playing the FREE DEMO. It is uploaded also on indiexpo website. The demo lets players explore a snippet of the visually diverse environments featured in the full game. Encounter local wildlife and decipher friend from foe as you navigate through rainforests, river caves, and treacherous swamps. The varied landscapes keep the gameplay fresh and exciting. Experience the innovative couch co-op system during the demo, getting a taste of the unique challenges and puzzles that require collaboration. "River Tails" transforms multiplayer gaming into a seamless and enjoyable adventure.

Few words about KidOnionStudio and his Achievements:

KidOnionStudio, the Italian development team behind "River Tails," has earned recognition not only for their creative prowess but also for successfully navigating a Kickstarter campaign. Their notable presence in various gaming events in Italy and selection for the Guerrilla Collective 2023 showcase attests to their commitment to quality game development.

Now "River Tails: Stronger Together" is finally out also on Steam, and, as you can see, it is more than just a game. It's an experience that transcends the boundaries of typical indie titles. With its captivating visuals, engaging co-op mechanics, and the promise of a heartwarming adventure, this game is a must-try for any gaming enthusiast. So, grab your controllers, invite your friends, and dive into the enchanting world of "River Tails."

User Stories: Mike Coeck - Getting through Greenlight

I am sure that many devs are asking themselves the question:

How do I get through the Steam Greenlight process before Valve changes it and starts charging me horrendous amounts of money? 

For those who don’t know yet, Valve announced that Greenlight in its current form will change. It’s about to be replaced by a new system that will charge up to 5000$ to put your game on the system. Now most will agree that this is a necessary change. 

Too much bad games made it through the process, mostly bad ports of mobile games who don’t have a place on any pc. 

So why would you want to go through Greenlight now before it changes, except of course for the obvious money reasons? 

Well, the good thing about going through the process is that you don’t have to publish your game right away, you can take all the time in the world once the game is lit. Valve has also informed the community that anyone who has gotten through the process, will not be charged any extra money or will not have to go through the new process. 

Let’s break down what we did with Antigraviator to get through Greenlight. First, we started by panicking, not what I recommend you to do, but you might if by reading this article you are just finding out about the changes and realize you probably have one month or less left. We already had plans to put our game through Greenlight, but not immediately, so we had to move some deadlines around.

Our next step was to read up a bit on the Greenlight process and what was needed. I will sum it up for you here: A video showing gameplay, some screenshots and an interesting summary of the games features. Interestingly to note is that you don’t need a demo. I can only recommend to read up on how to do an interesting gameplay video, how to take great screenshots and how to write interesting summary texts for you game, because I am not going to cover that in this article. 

After we created these things, we did make a demo, but in all honestly, looking back at it and seeing two Youtubers trying to cover the game, the demo should have been focused more on the single player element of the game and not the split screen multiplayer. There is really something awkward in seeing one person trying to control two players. 

The last thing was to put everything online and trying to start a buzz. One thing we learned is that people are not waiting to see your game on steam. They are not sitting behind their computers looking for the next greenlight entry that is put online. You must tell them and inform them that your game is on the platform and that they should go and vote. Use social media to do this! There are a couple of interesting groups you should be following on Facebook, the biggest being Indie Game Developers. Also on twitter you should know about using #screenshotsaturday. Getting picked up by a bigger game news site will also help, 

I didn’t happen for Antigraviator, but then again that was not our focus for this campaign. 

We did make a special skin for people who helped us, but that did not bring the success we had hoped for.

- Mike Coeck, CyberWalrus