Hi everyone!
How are you doing? For this dev update, we’re sharing a quick check-in on how some of the Eastward plans we have in the works are going, along with some exciting news! ✨
German & EU Spanish Localisation
Full game localisation is now complete by our partners at Riotloc, however we’re anticipating a slight delay before the text can be fully LQA’d and implemented into the game. Sadly the development team at Pixpil have had to go back into lockdown in Shanghai, after a big increase in Covid infections in the area. This means the dev team has no access to their office, and some of their internal servers are once again down.
Those of you who followed Eastward’s development might remember the team already faced big delays when lockdown blocked access to their office and servers for many months in early 2020, forcing them to re-make large sections of the game (you can read about it here). Delays are never fun, but the safety and health of the team are always the priority, so we appreciate your patience and understanding, and will share more news as soon as we can!
Iam8bit Physical Release
Exciting news! We have now revealed the release date of the Nintendo Switch physical version with iam8bit and Skybound Games. The standard retail version will be available instores from May 24th for $34.99, and pre-orders are now live on iam8bit’s website for the Collector’s Edition and composer Joel Corelitz’s limited vinyl soundtrack which will be released later this year. The cartridges are region-free, with all in-game languages.
The Collector’s Edition features its own Eastward-flavoured original tabletop board game, by designer Erich Meyr and illustrator Ryan Brinkerhoff! It’s a 2-4 player co-op game, where you’ll take on the roles of the game’s heroes to rescue townsfolk from the looming miasma and take out monsters as you go. The fold-out Collector’s Edition board game also pairs with the special edition Vinyl, which also includes the board game as a gate-fold, and can also act as an expansion to the base game with different pieces!
You’ll notice the Collector’s Edition also spotlights some new art – this is a beautiful exclusive cover sheet, created by artist Laura Bifano. We’re also pleased to reveal that the vinyl soundtrack will be made using recycled materials. We hope you’ll love it!
More Merch Incoming!
We previously revealed that a Sam Plush was in the works over at Fangamer, and now the wait is over! The ever-so-squishy Sam Plush is now available on the Fangamer site, alongside a new enamel ‘Friends Til the End’ pin set of John and Sam, and something we know players have been eyeing up since the Japanese Collector’s Edition was revealed… The adorable Sam figurine is now available to purchase separately via the folks at Fangamer!
This figurine was inspired by the clay Earthbound models we love so much, and the original 3D concept for Sam’s “clay-style” design was created by artist Ian Zell. Thanks very much to our friends at Kakehashi, Happinet and Fangamer for making this possible. Send us pics to us via Twitter @ChucklefishLTD if you grab one!
Awards
We’re incredibly proud to share the news that Eastward has been nominated for Best Debut Game at the 2022 BAFTA Game Awards! This is a huge accomplishment to be nominated alongside such awesome games, so wish us luck for the big night on April 7th, streaming live on Twitch!
That’s all for now. Until next time!
-Chucklefish