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hacked-by-jake · 2 years

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Reddit Interview with Everbyte

-> On the occasion of Duskwood’s third birthday, Everbyte and the moderators of the r/Duskwood Reddit community came up with the idea of making an interview as a special.

I thought it would be nice to share the interview here for those who don’t have and use Reddit. However, if you have a profile there, make sure you go to the post and like and maybe leave a comment as a thank you for the effort.

Again: I have no rights to the interview and I just share it, all credits go to the Reddit moderators and Everbyte!

-> Here is the link again!

And now, let's go!

Who is Everbyte? How did you meet? Where did everything start? Introduce yourself!

Hello reddit! We’re Vanessa, Jan & Kevin better known as Everbyte. We first met at university where we studied media informatics. In 2016, we started to release games on Google Play and the iOS App Store. Most of them were kind of experimental and none of them has been successful. However, we’ve learned a lot with every project and kept improving. Then, Duskwood happened. Since the release of Episode 1, we didn’t do anything but workon Duskwood, for two and a half years straight.

What would you say were your main influences (be it video games, books, movies…) for making Duskwood?

We’re living in a small town surrounded by dense forest… sounds familiar, right? It is a two minute walk from our office to the edge of the Blackforest - which basically looks like a fantasy movie. This obviously inspired and influenced Duskwood a lot. Another influence worth mentioning is various works by Stephen King. Vanessa, our author, is a big fan.

Where does the idea of the legend come from? Did it maybe sprout from a real legend in your (home)town?

When Vanessa was a child, she was often told stories by her grandmother. These stories were passed down from generation to generation and were often scary or even cruel. Not the best bedtime material for kids, but Vanessa and her granny loved them. The legend in Duskwood is made up and is not based on facts … or is it?

Were characters based on anyone you know?

No, not directly. However, we would enjoy hanging out with them and hoped that others would enjoy their company as well.

Did you ever think you would end up casting your family, at the start of development?

We had absolutely no budget at all. So hiring professional actors was no option, but we were convinced we needed real people for Duskwood. We ended up making a list of friends and family members that we could see in each role and started calling them one by one. Luckily everyone agreed. We think they did very well!

What character do you resemble the most?

We sit in front of our PCs as much as Jake does. We enjoy good food as much as Cleo. We (try to) crack jokes like Richy. We sometimes cross a line in order to achieve our goals just like Lilly does … it depends on the situation.

Did you have any experience in film-making, directing and editing before Duskwood?

We studied media informatics, so this kind of stuff wasn’t completely new to us. However, having heard of things in theory and doing them is quite a big difference. The production quality has gone up a lot since episode 1, as we learned on our way up to episode 10.

How complex was it recording media in two languages?

Not complex at all - at least not for us. Our actors however are not used to speak English in daily life so they struggled quite a bit. We’re happy our players are a bit forgiving in this area.

Can you tell us roughly how many people were involved in helping with the development throughout the process, in addition to you three?

We usually cover the whole development process on our own. This goes from writing, programming, video- and audio editing, graphic design to support emails. We still do everything ourselves. An exception was the ending scene of episode 10 where we worked with a film crew of 8 additional people as the sets were quite complex.

What was the most challenging thing you faced during development?

This is hard to answer as there is quite frequently something that sets a new standard. Game development is quite demanding as everyone in our small team has to fulfill many roles. Needless to say, you can’t be an expert in every field, so usually one big challenge is followed by another.

What really takes it out on us are problems that occur during the release of a new episode. On release day of a new episode, it is almost guaranteed that problems arise, whether it is a bug in the game or something server-related. The fact that there is hundred thousands of people looking forward to this particular moment and are now unable to play (or worse) hits us different. These problems need to be solved asap under heavy pressure. These days always leave marks.

What is something about the game you are most proud of?

If we need to nail it down to one thing, it is the community. We’re blown away by how many people gather online and share their theories, thoughts, drawings, songs, memes, fan fiction, love letters, … you name it. We’re especially proud of how cohesive and supportive the community is.

What made you realize that Duskwood was taking off?

At first we started to see unusual increases in downloads, followed by many more emails than usual. Players started to send in suggestions and wishes, or simply messages to let us know how much they enjoyed the game. Our social media channels (like instagram) blew up and we started to receive written letters and gifts from all around the world. It is very touching for us to see how many people enjoy Duskwood, which is a huge motivation for us. Thank you!

Were you expecting such a response and the creation of big communities around the game?

No. Never. Some of you might have read the post Vanessa did a while ago on her instagram (@hen_with_pen). We were very close to giving up on our dream of making games. No one cared for what we did, let alone supported our developments by purchasing something. We couldn’t pay our bills and it was very obvious that we couldn’t afford making games any longer. Duskwood was basically our last attempt. However, Duskwood players were different. They showed their support in many ways and encouraged us to continue. None of us expected this and we’re very thankful for that - as we already said, the community is what we’re most proud of. It’s beyond our wildest dreams and we’re still not 100% convinced this isn’t just a dream.

What was it like for you and for the actors to notice that you had so many fans all around the world?

We’ve not been able to travel a lot in our lives unfortunately. And even for people who do travel a lot, there are too many places to be able to visit them all. However, most places have at least one Duskwood player, which kind of connects all of us. The world has gotten a lot smaller - in a positive way.

Did you feel under pressure when you noticed that the game was getting more popular? Were you afraid of disappointing the fans, somehow? If so, did the pressure have a positive impact in the end?

Yes, the pressure was quite extreme and hard to handle, not only psychologically but also physically. We’ve worked for two and a half year straight without major vacation. This can be quite difficult, especially when creativity plays a big role.

With each episode, we tried something new in order to keep Duskwood interesting and pushing the boundaries of the genre. If you experiment in such a way, there is always a chance to fail and disappoint. But it is a necessary risk to take if you want to surprise even the most hardened detectives ;)

Do you remember reading theories that came extremely close to your story? What was your reaction?

We love it when this happens! It is definitely more of a ‘proud moment’ than a ‘bummer moment’. It has always been important to us, for the story to be comprehensible. However, we would like to note that this can also apply to theories that are far from the truth. As a detective, you have to make hypotheses, and being wrong is part of it. Some of the wrong theories are so detailed and well thoughtout that they impress us just as much.

How do you feel now that the game is finished? Most of the community (on reddit, at least) has been in a weird grief-like state. Is it the same for you?

When Duskwood was finished, it really shook us up. It was a bit like losing a good friend. We felt empty. It really helped that we started working on our next game right away. The desire to fill this void helped us to nail the important things, like feelings, atmosphere etc., especially in the early conceptual stages. We are very happy with the current progress, and the fact that it shares the same universe makes it already feel like home. We know everyone is on the edge of their seats and ready to play, but good games need time - there is no shortcut. We want to develop a successor that everyone agrees can follow in Duskwood's footsteps.

#everbyte interview #duskwood birthday #duskwood #everbyte studio #duskwood game #duskwood everbyte #everbyte duskwood #everbyte game

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rw47vr-key · 2 years

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Dear everbyte,

Now that we got the most unexpected interview from you, do you have any behind the scenes/unshared script or dialogue/anything unsaid about duskwood? We would like to know👀❤ (Am i the only one? Thats too much to ask,i guess haha )

But on a serious note,Our heartfelt gratitude for your efforts and creating this marvellous game!!!and take your time for the next masterpiece❤ . We love you!! ❤

#duskwood #duskwood everbyte #everbyte studios #duskwood fandom #duskwood 3rd birthday #duskwood jake #duskwood mc #duskwood jake x mc

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duskwoodraven · 3 years

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Hello! So I was thinking... maybe the man in the video is not Hanna's father but Jennifer's? We know that she went missing on her way to her father's house in Duskwood, so apparently her parents weren't together anymore. I was so excited that Hanna's parentes would finnaly show up but then it hit me something that Jake said, that he didn't want to break her familly apart so they are probably still together... I can't wait to find out though, I'm so happy it's almost here! Love your blog!

Very likely and I agree ;) I had honestly forgotten the part about Jennifer going to her dad’s before she went missing so thank you for the reminder! Perhaps we will find this interview through Hannah’s cloud or Jake will find it once we tell him the name is Jennifer Hanson instead of Manson.

There is going to be so much to unpack and so many mysteries we have left to solve. I hope some of them will get cleared up for my own sanity, but then again Everbyte does love their cliffhangers 😅

Thank you as well for the lovely words 💚💚

#duskwood #duskwood everbyte #duskwood game #everbyte #duskwood hannah #duskwood jennifer

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hacked-by-jake · 2 years

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I think this is my favorite part of the interview. Everbyte is so sympathetic!! 💚

#everbyte interview #duskwood #everbyte studio #duskwood game #everbyte game #everbyte duskwood #duskwood everbyte #hbj dw talks

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hacked-by-jake · 2 years

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... 😶

Please don’t tell me they really read also the fanfictions. 👀

#or my random duskwood thoughts category #oh lord please no 😭😂#HELP #everbyte studio #everbyte interview #duskwood fandom

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hacked-by-jake · 4 months

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Hello HBJ!

Hope you are doing well! I am the anon who talked about the news report in Moonvale. I am so glad you like my idea! It made me so happy!

Well, I haven't finished the game yet, you know life and other games... But I am at the part where we talk to Darkness and he asks us to write the story about Avali. (I am trying not to spoil too much just in case.) and I am surprised nobody decided to write it as if they posted it on the forum? Unless someone did which shouldn't be kept a secret and everyone (Me) should read it! I am not a big fan of horror story but knowing the true story I think it would make a good read!

Or even making it like a part of a story where we get to read snippets of the MC writing it for the forum.

Anyway, thank you for reading and replying to our asks! you are a lovely person!

Take care of yourself and have a good day/evening

Glad to see you back here, dear Anon. Always a pleasure to see people more often or several times.

Well, yeah, real life and other stuff can be very distracting. But at least also other games. I think there could be worse things that keep you from keep playing.

And yes, true. I thought about this several times. I was hoping to see an entry in episode 9 or 10 but sadly nothing. But it would be so cool to have it there in the Forum. The forum itself became very popular and Everbyte kept going to do some little things there. So maybe, I hope, we will have it back again. At least only as app installed on our 'phone'. And seeing the story posted there would be very cool. Who knows, maybe it could also be written by Jessy or bei Hannah herself. But I doubt that Hannah would do it. It would be too triggering. But I general. And seeing other forum members reactions to the story. Maybe even a reaction from Darkness self. I mean, we're buddy's now. There was a bond. A very weird and funny but still. Would love to see how Mr forum themselve would react. If he would mention we "know" each other? 🤔 Or maybe Darkness could question us and write it himself. Like an interview. It would be so cool and interesting. We will see. As we know Everbyte they still have small specials built in, for example 'doodle friends' back then. I could imagine that something similar still happens with the forum. After all, MC seems to be known now. Hehe.

And it would probably mean we’re still using the account that Jake created, and our name is still Nymos. Which would also connect us a bit more with Jake again.

It's true. The story is interesting and exciting and a tragedy. It would definitely be a good read.

Seems like we have to wait and to hope. But even if it’s not, I’m sure Everbyte has a few other special features for us.

Thank you once again for sharing such an interesting thought with me and us. As mentioned, it's a very interesting idea and I would love it. *-*

And I have to thank you for continuing to send asks. I love hearing your thoughts and ideas and opinions. And it's always a honour for me to see people want to share it with me. And you all are always so kind and lovely. And especially thoughtful. It means a lot to me. And thank you so much for the lovely compliment. Hearing this makes me so happy! I hope you are going to have a wonderful day/evening/night. Take care of yourself as well and stay healthy and safe. 💚

#cute dw anon #hbj dw answers #duskwood thoughts #moonvale thoughts #duskwood x moonvale #duskwood episode 8 #duskwood forum #duskwood darkness #duskwood mc #duskwood amy bell lewis #duskwood avali #duskwood dark mystery forum #duskwood #everbyte studio #duskwood game #duskwood everbyte #everbyte duskwood #everbyte game #<3<3<3<3<3

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hacked-by-jake · 2 years

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Any guesses when Everbyte will release the new game? I'm getting super impatient here and I don't know how many times I can replay Duskwood. I need more! At this point I'm just replaying to chat and flirt with Jake. :') Keep up the good work. I hope you'll continue entertaining us just as much when the new game drops!

No, unfortunately I have absolutely no idea when the new game will be released, so really absolutely no idea.

There’s hardly any information I could use to estimate how long it might take. I think we will definitely have to wait a bit. After all, the beginning is what probably takes the longest and needs to be planned best etc. I guess we might not be able to expect it this year, maybe at the beginning of next year. Maybe I am absolutely wrong, I really don’t know.

I can definitely understand that waiting is really hard. For me it’s also because I’m so excited, but in the end the result will be all the better and I hope Everbyte will take all the time they need and not stress themselves. And believe me, I’ve played Duskwood about 50 times, and that’s no exaggeration, the number fits. I know, I find it a bit creepy, too. I still love it and I hope it will be the same for you. And I think I’ve never played Duskwood for any other reason than to flirt with Jake. 😂

I know it’s hard to wait but I think we need to hold on a little longer. Everbyte knows how excited we all are and I’m sure they will do everything possible.

Here’s again what Everbyte said about the new game in the Reddit interview, I think it’s nice words and a nice reminder. 🥰

(Quote @Everbyte)

Waiting is very difficult but together we will make it! :D

And thank you for the compliment, I’m really happy that you seem to like my posts. 🥺 And sure, I will continue to post, I can only hope that it will continue to entertain you. But I will definitely try everything. :D

Thank you so much for asking and I hope that my answer has helped you somehow, probably not. I wish you a wonderful day/evening/night! Take care of yourself and stay healthy! 💚

#??? anon ask #everbyte studio #everbyte game #new everbyte game #everbyte ??? game #hbj ??? answers

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