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Zeboyd Games

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Zeboyd Games
Company typePrivate
IndustryVideo games
Founded2009
FounderRobert Boyd, William Stiernberg
HeadquartersLake Arrowhead, California, United States
Key people
Robert Boyd (Co-Owner), William "Bill" Stiernberg (Co-Owner) (2009–2023)
ProductsEpiphany in Spaaace!, Molly the Were-Zompire, Breath of Death VII, Cthulhu Saves the World, Penny Arcade's On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3, Penny Arcade's On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 4, Cosmic Star Heroine, Cthulhu Saves Christmas, This Way Madness Lies
Number of employees
2
Websitezeboyd.com

Zeboyd Games is a indie developer specializing in retro-style 16-bit role-playing video games. Zeboyd is most associated with its co-creators Robert Boyd and William Stiernberg, who did the great majority of the work for their games. Stiernberg left the studio in 2023, but it continues onward under Boyd.[1]

Much of the studio's work is comedic in nature and parodies Lovecraftian horror. Its first games were the interactive fiction works Epiphany In Spaaace! and Molly the Were-Zompire for Xbox Live Arcade; which were remastered for Windows in 2023. Soon afterward, the studio released its first RPGs, Breath of Death VII and Cthulhu Saves the World. The studio was then contracted to develop the third and fourth installments in the Penny Arcade Adventures series. In 2017, Zeboyd released the original IP Cosmic Star Heroine, a sci-fi adventure. The studio subsequently returned to comedy games with Cthulhu Saves Christmas and This Way Madness Lies.[2]

The studio's games are typically short in length, and have been positively received by critics and commended for their writing, gameplay and value.

Games

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Epiphany in Spaaace! and Molly the Were-Zompire

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Epiphany In Spaaace! is an interactive fiction story released on October 20, 2009 on Xbox Live Indie Games. A sci-fi parody, it follows the travails of Philemon K. Bort (possible Captain of the U.S.S. Epiphany, one of the latest additions to the Universal Galactic Space Corps fleet).[3][4][5] Molly the Were-Zompire was released shortly afterwards on December 10, 2009.[6] It follows the character Molly Desper, who is turned into a were-zombie-vampire.[7] Both titles sold about 500-700 copies.[8]

A remastered compilation pack of both games, under the modified title Molly the Werezompire, was released for Windows on December 29, 2023. Sam Wachter of RPGamer reviewed both games as "hilarious", saying that despite their short length, they were well worth the price.[9]

Breath of Death VII: The Beginning

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Main article: Breath of Death VII: The Beginning

Co-created with William Stiernberg, Breath of Death VII: The Beginning was released on April 22, 2010, on Xbox Live Indie Games.[10] A retro-style comedy RPG, Dem the Skeleton Knight, Sara the Ghost Historian, Lita the Vampire Techie, and Erik the Zombie Prince are customized via a branching ability tree.[11] Robert felt that most turn-based RPGs were too slow, so Breath of Death VII battles employ a combo system based on player character choices with non-player characters receiving a strength bonus based on how many turns the fight has gone, giving the battles a pseudo time limit.[12] Additionally, the number of encounters in an area are limited.[13] With more than 40,000 sales, Breath of Death VII has a 2/3 conversion rate from the trial.[12]

Despite its title, it is the only game of its "series", and the previous "six" do not exist. The title is simply a parody of serial RPGs whose sequels are often not in chronological order.

Cthulhu Saves the World

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Main article: Cthulhu Saves the World

Co-created with Bill Stiernberg, Cthulhu Saves the World was released on December 30, 2010 on Xbox Live.[14] Cthulhu, the squid-faced, winged god created by H. P. Lovecraft emerges from the sea after centuries of slumber only to find his dark powers immediately sealed away by a mysterious holy wizard. A narrator then informs the player that the only way to break the curse is to become a true hero. Quickly breaking the fourth wall, Cthulhu informs the narrator that he was eavesdropping and now knows how to break the curse.[15] Like Breath of Death VII, Cthulhu Saves the World has a branching level-up system and caps random encounters in an area (there is an option where the player can choose from the menu to have additional encounters).[16] The "Hey There, Cthulhu" music video was produced by Nakatomi HMC[17] using the parody song written and recorded by Eben Brooks.[18] All in-game music was composed and recorded by Gordon McNeil.[19]

Zeboyd Games began a Kickstarter fundraiser towards development of an enhanced version of the game for PC and Xbox 360 platforms; it was more than successfully funded on February 16, 2011, garnering over twice the fundraiser's goal. The new version was officially announced on March 14, 2011, retitling the game as "Cthulhu Saves the World: Super Hyper Enhanced Championship Edition Alpha Diamond DX Plus Alpha FES HD - Premium Enhanced Game of the Year Collector's Edition (without Avatars!)". The PC version was released on July 13, 2011 together with Breath of Death VII on Valve's Steam service. The Steam version was a financial success, making more revenue in its first week of release than in a year and a half on the Xbox 360.[20] By November 21, 2011, the "Zeboyd Games Combo Pack" (Cthulhu Saves the World & Breath of Death VII) had sold over 100,000 copies on Steam in less than four months after release.[21]

Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode 3

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Zeboyd Games developed Episode 3 of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness,[2][22] which was released on June 25, 2012. Robert Boyd and Bill Stiernberg, along with Jerry Holkins and Jeff Kalles, hosted a panel at PAX East in Boston on April 6, 2012.[23]

Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode 4

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Zeboyd Games developed Episode 4, which was released on June 7, 2013.

Cosmic Star Heroine

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Main article: Cosmic Star Heroine

Cosmic Star Heroine is a science fiction RPG that was released in April 2017 for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4. A PS Vita and Nintendo Switch version followed in 2018. It received positive reviews.[24][25]

Cthulhu Saves Christmas

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Zeboyd officially announced Cthulhu Saves Christmas, a prequel to Cthulhu Saves the World, on their personal website on July 29, 2019.[26] It was subsequently released on PC on December 23, 2019. In the side-scrolling JRPG, Cthulhu teams up with Santa Claus’s granddaughter to stop Jack Frost before Christmas is cancelled forever. Along the way he fights Krampus, Mari Lwyd, and other “Christmas League of Evil villains” in turn-based combat. He also builds “R'lyehtionship” levels with his friends.[27]

This Way Madness Lies

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This Way Madness Lies is a Shakespeare-themed magical girl role-playing game. It was released on November 10, 2022 for Microsoft Windows.[28]

References

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  1. ^ Steinberg, Bill [@bill_creates] (July 7, 2023). "pic.twitter.com/KRhysMugt3" (Tweet) – via Twitter.; see also https://zeboyd.com/about/ where Stiernberg is listed as a "Friends of Zeboyd" as of 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Zeboyd Games Resurrects Penny Arcade Adventures". RPGamer.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 2013-07-05. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
  3. ^ "Epiphany in Spaaace! Review". Go!GamingGiant. 28 Oct 2009. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  4. ^ "Full Game - Epiphany in Spaaace!". Xbox Live. 20 Oct 2010. Archived from the original on 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  5. ^ "Epiphany in Spaaace!". Metacritic. 20 Oct 2009. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  6. ^ "Full Game - Molly the Were-Zompire". Xbox Live. 10 Dec 2009. Archived from the original on 2012-07-10. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  7. ^ "Review: Molly the Were-Zompire". Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  8. ^ "RPGamer Feature - Breath of Death VII: The Beginning Interview". RPGamer. Apr 2010. Archived from the original on 2012-10-06. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  9. ^ Wachter, Sam (2024-03-08). "Adventure Corner ~ Molly the Werezompire & Epiphany in Spaaace!". RPGamer. Retrieved 2024-03-09.
  10. ^ "Full Game - Breath of Death VII". Xbox Live. 22 Apr 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  11. ^ "Breath of Death VII Released For XBLA:This retro parody RPG is dying for your support". RPGFan.com. 29 Apr 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-08-17. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  12. ^ a b "Interview: Zeboyd Games Creator Shares 3 Secrets of Good RPG Design". bitmob.com. 6 Jul 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  13. ^ "Hidden Xbox Games You Need To Know About". Kotaku. 31 May 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  14. ^ "Full Game - Cthulhu Saves the World". Xbox Live. 30 Dec 2010. Archived from the original on 2012-06-06. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  15. ^ "Xbox Live Indie Gems: Cthulhu Saves the World". Joystiq. 6 Jan 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  16. ^ "Cthulhu Saves the World Review". Eurogamer. 11 Jan 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  17. ^ "Nakatomi HMC Videos". Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  18. ^ Eben Brooks (2008-06-02). Hey There Chthulhu [a Lovecraftian song] (Youtube video). Retrieved 2024-08-09.
  19. ^ "Indie Developer Pow-Wow - Cthulhu Saves the World Interview". rpgamer.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-06. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
  20. ^ Walker, John (20 July 2011). "Zeboyd PC Sales Leave XBLIG In The Dust". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  21. ^ "Cthulhu Saves the World bundle sells over 100,000 copies on Steam in less than 4 months". 21 November 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
  22. ^ Rossignol, Jim. Zeboyd Are On the Rain-Slick Precipice rockpapershotgun.com. Retrieved 2012-03-04
  23. ^ PAX East Schedule Archived 2012-02-08 at the Wayback Machine. Penny Arcade Expo. Retrieved 2012-03-04
  24. ^ "Cosmic Star Heroine for PS4 Reviews" Metacritic, Retrieved 2 August 2017
  25. ^ "Cosmic Star Heroine for PC Reviews" Metacritic, Retrieved 2 August 2017
  26. ^ "Cthulhu Saves Christmas – Zeboyd Games". 5 September 2019.
  27. ^ Bolding, Jonathan (2019-12-25). "Comedy JRPG Cthulhu Saves Christmas is out now". pcgamer.com. PC Gamer. Retrieved 2019-12-28.
  28. ^ "This Way Madness Lies". Gematsu. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 2024-02-12.
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