PLEASE START US OFF BY INTRODUCING YOURSELF:

Hi, I'm Ross McRitchie, I am a solo game developer based in Scotland. I'm developing Cairn: Mathair's Curse.

TELL US ABOUT CAIRN.

Cairn: Mathair’s Curse is a Scottish JRPG with turn-based combat, about a boy and his mum. When a mysterious cult unleashes an ancient curse on his home, Alex must embark on an adventure, fighting wacky enemies, solving puzzles and meeting new friends along the way!

Cairn: Mathair’s Curse came about almost entirely as a reaction to some bad news our family had gotten during my first game development job out of University. My Gran had just passed away from cancer and within a week my Mum was diagnosed with the same thing. My creative outlet has always been video games and so, in my spare time I started on a small hobby project that would go on to become the full game it is today. You can still see the core concepts coming through from those early days, with Alex, the main character dealing with the sudden loss of his family.

It's been tough but rewarding and there have been many ups and downs. There have been the expected technical and mental challenges of game development bundled with family illness and job instability on top. I decided eventually to go full-time with the project after being let go from my job and it has been an incredible learning experience. My partner even joined the project to do the music!

WHICH GAME ENGINE DID YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?

My engine of choice way back in 2019 was RPG Maker MV. At this point most of my experience was in Game Maker and Unreal, but I knew I wanted to make a classic style JRPG and thought the engine offered exactly what I needed for the project.

WHAT'S BEEN YOUR BIGGEST DEVELOPMENT HURDLE SO FAR?

The biggest hurdle so far has definitely been underestimating the scope of the project as it has scaled up, and naively not anticipating the emotional impact to development that family illness can cause. I've learned a lot through the project's development.

ADVICE FOR FELLOW DEVS?

Always start small! It’s very easy to fall into the trap of aiming big, especially if you don’t have clear goals before the work begins. In particular, treat yourself well, game development is a difficult and complex beast. Sometimes it can be hard to step back and remember to look after yourself (and others if in a team) when a project gets out of hand or you feel lost. Having clear, thought out aims for the end of a project and a good chunk of buffer time can help alleviate unexpected technical and mental hurdles.

ANY FINAL THOUGHTS?

Good luck! I hope this was helpful if even a little for someone else’s Game Dev Journey!

If you’d like to help the game along you can find me on twitter/X at @RossGameDev and you can wishlist the game on Steam below!

- Ross 🍎

Cairn: Mathair's Curse on Steam