​The Epic Store version is going to be delayed. Because I added Steam achievements at the last minute, Epic Store requires you to then have achievements on their platform as well. Needless to say, the process of getting them set up on the Epic Store was way more complicated than it should be. They should be ready to go, but in order for me to use them, I had to go through a domain verification process. That took several days and required customer support, which took several more days. Finally got passed that part, just to run into another roadblock that required more customer support that took many more days, but it is getting closer and closer to being resolved. I will let you know when the new release date for the Epic Store will be. Thank you.

Edward's Journey is getting closer and closer to release.  Though I don't have a set date yet, I'm shooting for the end of this year sometime.  It is also currently available to Wishlist on Steam and I am working on making it available on the Epic Games Store as well.  Thanks for your continued interest in Edward's Journey and I hope you have a lot of fun playing it when it releases!

Hello everyone.

Wanted to let you know Edward’s Journey is coming along just fine.  I have been working on boss fights in the game the past few weeks.  I have 3 that are almost completely finished.  They each have various phases and mechanics to put little Edward to the test.  The final boss has been designed for quite some time, but I have yet to give him any animations or programming.  

I had spent a lot of time redoing the inventory system and crafting system by reducing coding and increasing the efficiency of those systems as well as others.  Mob data is also stored differently so as to more easily change the creature’s levels in certain areas as needed.

A big thing in the game in regards to combat is that Edward can add items to his fighting stick on the fly.  Items such as fire runes, rocks, nails, etc.  To make this even more efficient, I have added several extra alt slots to place other equipable weapon items to.  Now, while in play, you can scroll through the items and they will automatically change on your stick.  No need to go into your inventory each time and switch it out manually.  One reason for this is if you want to save your magic for a big fight.  While runes are equipped, Edward will be burning through magic points.  If you don’t want to burn through your magic while killing easy mobs or smashing barrels, then you can just hit a button to scroll up or down to equip the next available item.

So, things are coming along just fine.  Sorry that I do not update very often.  I am the sole developer, also work a full-time job, and have kids.  I work on this after work and want to spend most of the time moving the game forward.  I usually try to do updates when I have a few days off.  Making videos, screenshots and posting updates ends up usually taking a lot longer than I would like.  I sometime post extra stuff on Facebook that I don’t post on here.  If you haven’t already please like that page and share.  I could use any exposure that I can get.        https://www.facebook.com/JLSSoftworks

I also may try Kickstarter soon.  The game will be finished for PC regardless if I reach the goal or not.  The main reason for wanting to do that is to be able to afford Dev Kits for PlayStation, Xbox, and/or the Switch.  I also would love to have a composer write music for the game.  I do have marketplace music in the game now, but would like to replace that by final release.  More artwork would be nice to add to the game as well. 

Ok, that’s it for now. 

​Thanks for showing interest in my game.

Haven't posted anything in a while, so I thought I would share what I have been working on as of late.  

I have been spending a lot of time setting up all the creatures I have made to this point.  I currently have ~70 unique creatures in the game.  Many more to come.  This does not include variations of the same creatures.  Most creatures have a couple elite forms and a very rare gold form.  I have been working on setting up their patrol areas (if they patrol), their attacks, and how they take damage from the player.  Since Edward can attach magic runes to his weapons, each creature has to react to the type of magic you use on them.  For instance, freezing creatures with an Ice Rune or setting them on fire with a Fire Rune.  Some creatures are resistant to certain types of magic or all magic entirely.  Runes can also be placed in one of your quick slots and can then be used to do AoE damage.

I have also been spending a lot of time populating the large zones with tons of foliage and props and creating new and unique looking trees and plants for each zone.  The same goes for many of the dungeons and caves.  

I have created a portal system that allows you to warp around each map a lot quicker.  You must find a portal first in order to warp back to that portal.  

I have also been working on setting up music throughout each of the zones that will hopefully fit the atmosphere of those zones well.  

I now have a few pets that you can get along your journey.  Have more along the way.  Each pet will help you in some way.  Some will provide healing to your health or magic and others will provide stat boosts to the player.  One even finds jewels for you here and there.

Updated fishing a little bit also.  You've been able to craft a shovel for digging up treasure, but now you can dig up worms which you will need in order to cast your line.  Recipes can be found throughout the game, but you do not need them if you can figure out the recipe yourself.  

A lot more left to work on, but it is coming along great.  I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

After completing Trail Breaking I started work on my next project and have finally gotten to the point of uploading some very early screenshots of the game.  It is a top-down RPG.   Please let me know what you think of the screenshots so far.  Gameplay video to come soon.  Thanks!

Well I thought it would never come, but I've finally finished my first solo project in Unreal.  Trail Breaking is releasing this June 25th on the Steam Store!  It's been fun and a great learning experience.  Thanks to everyone who helped out with the beta, gave suggestions and those who have been following the games progress.  

As you can see by the front page of the site, I have my store page up on Steam as "Coming Soon"!   So I'm very close to release.  No exact date yet, but should be spring sometime.  I've also been working on creating Steam cards, badges, backgrounds, emoticons, and achievements.   That has been a time consuming process, but fun.  When it becomes available for purchase from other sites I'll post that information.
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The game works best using Keyboard and Mouse but for those who would like to use an Xbox-style controller, I've been working on implementing gamepad controls for the game.  Who would have thought that would be such a pain.  For some reason that isn't already something that Unreal has setup for navigating through the game menus.  It apparently isn't as simple as clicking a mouse button on a menu item and then running code.  So I've been working on getting the gamepad setup from scratch for days now.  That was not fun and I lost a lot of hair in the process.  It's is mostly all working good now.  Still need to fix up some rough edges but the framework is there.