Hi — I’m Tobi and I’ve been working on a new game for two years now. I want to use this platform to take you along on the journey, to show what has happened so far and what will happen in the future. For me, this devlog is also a kind of diary: it records how things develop and will give me the chance, when everything is finished, to reflect on the process and maybe learn a little about myself as a game designer. I know game development isn’t a sprint but a marathon, and I want to document this marathon — for myself, other developers, and of course interested players.

The game I’m working on, PAUL, is a turn-based action game. As I mentioned, I’ve been on this journey for two years and hope to reach my destination within the next year. I’ll jump around a bit in time to summarize how and why certain things developed the way they did — sometimes just out of nostalgia. My plan is to post an update once a week (if I have something interesting to show), and I would, of course, be delighted if anyone is interested in this devlog. Comments are highly appreciated.

I’ll start with a little look back: the last two years have truly been a wild ride. The game has changed significantly several times, yet the core idea has always remained the same: an action game without stress or time pressure, where the concept of time also plays a central role in the backstory.

One remarkable change was the transformation of the main character. I’m not entirely sure how it happened, but Paul started out as a fish, was briefly a handyman, and is now a mix between a cat and a rat — a “Crat.” This probably evolved because I’m a fan of both cats and rats. Here are some ancient sketches followed by the current version of Paul.

I can say that I’m now very happy with how Paul has developed as a character, and I believe he has finally reached his final visual design.

But who knows — maybe there’s still more to come. :)