Meet The Devs Casper Swann who kickstarted Heart Fragment

There are thousands of indie game developers out there and therefore it is easy to miss out on a lot of them. Indie Game Reporter makes a change. In Meet The Devs we interview a new game developer every Monday and Friday. With this series of the article, you can learn about interesting indie developers, creative new videogames and stories on how developers worldwide try to entertain all sorts of indie gamers

Today we interview Casper Swann, an indie developer getting started in the world of otome game creation. He is aiming to do something totally new and different from the Otome genre. He likes to create something that’ll appeal to the typical romance fans as well as anyone who isn’t normally interested in that type of game. Casper has always been a fan of the fourth wall break.

Working on Heart Fragment

“I always experimenting with it. To add some new “life” into that, I’ve decided to create a game that gives an extra twist. Players will be shocked to find out the true meaning of the events” In march, he successfully kickstarted Heart Fragment. A game within this genre. 180 backers pledged $4,291.

Which of your game development achievements made you must proud of yourself?
“Unless someone had formal training with the program they’re using or have some in-person showing them the ropes, we tend to look at what other people do. When we start out we try to work on things based on that. One of my proudest moments was when I realized I wasn’t doing that anymore.

I suddenly had an idea for something one day, and instead of googling steps to help implement it, I knew off the top of my head how to go about it. Never thought I’d get to that point!”

Inspired by The Neverending Story

Still there are well-known persons inspired that inspired you, isn’t it?
“Sure! I’ve gotten inspiration from a lot of games throughout the years. I’ve especially found inspiration from three games. The Higurashi series, the Cheritz otome game ‘Nameless ~ the one thing you must recall’, and The Neverending Story. They’re inspiring to me because I feel like they’re all stories that managed to take their respective genres. They create something that elevated their genre.”

What is the hardest part of being an indie game developer?
“For me… funding. It’s not easy to fund everything when you’re working independently. I was able to tackle this problem with a Kickstarter, but unexpected costs still pop up. I’m disabled and hope to make a game development career. In the meanwhile, I have had to scrap together whatever extra funds I need by taking freelance jobs that I am able to manage with my disability.

One thing I know now so much better than I did when I ran the Kickstarter campaign is how many hidden fees you can run into. I also learned how to market your game and advertise your Kickstarter, how to design graphics that’ll attract backers, and how to keep people interested in the project even after funding. I’m always happy to share Heart Fragment Kickstarter tips and tricks with other new indie devs.”

Heart Fragment after the Kickstarter

Could you tell a bit more about Heart Fragment?
“Heart Fragment is the game I’m working on right now. The current demo is in its infancy; the story has had rehauls and so has the interface. A new updated demo will be released on August 16 with a ton of new features and updated artwork, and the full game will release early 2021!”

The demo can be downloaded on the Steam store and the Itchio store, but I highly recommend waiting for the updated demo! Follow the Steam page and Itchio for more information!”

Are there other Indie game developers that deserve a shout out?
“I can think of plenty of people who deserve a shoutout, but to keep the list short I narrowed it down to five developer teams: @teamrobogames@JagoGames@Featherboxgames@sabitah_studio@EXPressoMutt. You should definitely check their projects by following them on Twitter.”

If you want to read more about developers, you will find more articles in Meet The Devs. Every Monday and Friday we will publish a new article in this series. That way you can meet new developers!