DevBlog - We're So Back

What Have We Been Working On?

• Pivot to Unity

As a team we have decided to pivot to Unity because of prior experience and to meet our upcoming deadline for GDC. 

• Game Demo

Our story is almost written and we are excited to share our game demo in March of this year! 

• Bigger and Better

The team has grown a lot since our last update and we have added just the right stuff needed to make this game look and feel amazing. 

What’s Next?

• We will continue to update the blog as events unfold and we are ramping up for our pre-alpha. 

• We are currently looking for investors so if you or someone you know is interested in helping out please visit our donation page!

Until next time,

Aaron Santiago

DevBlog Update: Evolving

Howdy Everyone, My name is Aaron Santiago and I am the Co-Founder of Unspecified Studios. We are making a lot of progress and are excited to announce that we are attending the ASU Inferno Invitational Startup Cup!! 

What Have We Been Working On?

• Motion Capture

Sage has been working on our in game feature that   captures the players face to get realistic emotions in our socialization and npc interactions. 

• Mini Games

The game currently has 3 mini-games and we are working on adding more to increase the games replay-ability. 

• Learning Unreal

The team is also currently working on learning the Unreal 5.5 Engine for our future game releases. 

What’s Next?

We are super excited to see you at the ASU Invitational event. We are also working on our next big update which will include a day/night cycle and more features to get ready for our Alpha release.

If you are interested in play-testing our product join our discord to get a copy of the current game. The link for our discord is on our Home Page tab.

Peace,

Aaron Santiago

Dev Update 6 – We Won Demo Day! KOI Is Leveling Up! 🏆🔥

Hello Everyone my name is Aaron Sheshan Abraham, and I'm part of the team at Unspecified Studios, here to bring you the latest and greatest updates straight from behind the scenes!

WE DID IT!!!

Kingdom of Influence (KOI) took 1st Place at Demo Day, and we're still buzzing with excitement.

The response was incredible. Before the judges even announced their decision, people spoke to us with questions, genuine curiosity, and tons of enthusiasm about the game. One audience member mentioned having ADHD and said they were especially excited about KOI’s unique blend of wellness and gameplay. That moment really resonated with us. It reminded us of our mission: to create something fun, meaningful, and personal that truly connects with people.

What's New in the Kingdom?

We’ve been building nonstop. Here’s what’s fresh in KOI:

• 🐄 Chickens and cows are now in game
  They’re hanging out near the farm area just outside of camp
  And yes, you can chase the chickens — it’s glorious chaos
  
  

• 🔥 A cozy fireplace has been added to the camp
  Perfect for relaxing, reflecting, or roleplaying around the flames
  
  

• 🎸 You can now play the guitar by the fire
  It’s calm, it’s cozy — exactly the vibe we were going for
  
  

• 💬 The dialogue system has been built
  NPCs are becoming more interactive and full of personality
  
  

• 🧭 A quest system is also being implemented
  It will guide players through storylines, events, and meaningful choices
  
  

What We Are Working On

• 🎮 Two minigames are currently in development:
  
  

  • Apple Picker
    
    

  • Chicken Chase (because chicken chaos never ends)
    
    

• 🧠 These games will connect with wellness based mechanics, such as:
  
  

  • Breathing techniques
    
    

  • Color recognition
    
    

  • Self soothing tied to hobbies and in game stats
    
    

• 🧍‍♂️ More fun and quirky NPCs are being added
  Each with unique personalities, dialogue, and roles in the world
  
  

• 📊 Systems currently in the works:
  
  

  • Favorability meters for both the NPCs and the kingdom, either collectively or individually
    
    

  • Stat based progression that evolves based on your actions
    
    

• 🧪 Personality based progression is also being explored
  A short in game quiz might shape your class or starting stats
  Still just an idea — but a promising one
  
  

• ⏳ The full stat system build begins mid May
  
  

What’s On the Horizon

Here’s what we’re planning as KOI continues to grow:

• Finalizing the game proposal and design document
  
  

• Launching a stronger marketing push to grow the KOI community
  
  

• Preparing our first playable build for itch.io
  
  

• Rolling out fresh social media content:
  
  

  • More behind the scenes footage and dev updates
    
    

  • The launch of the KOI Podcast
    
    

  • Possibly some Patreon exclusive content
    
    

We’re building something special here —
A kingdom filled with life, warmth, chickens, music, and stories that actually care about who you are as a player.

Catch us at Inferno Day at ASU on May 19 from 3 to 6 PM

Come hang out, cheer us on, or just vibe with the campfire energy.

– The KOI Dev Team

🔥🐔🎸

DevBlog Update: Kingdom of Influence – The Fire is Lit

Hey Everyone,
My name is Aaron Sheshan Abraham, and I’m proud to be part of the amazing team at Unspecified Studios, working on something that’s about to change everything: Kingdom of Influence (KOI)!

What Have We Been Working On?

It all begins with fire. 🔥🏕️

We have officially set up our first tents, the humble beginnings of a future kingdom, gathered around a newly built fireplace.
This isn’t just a campsite.
It’s the spark of a civilization. The first breath of a world about to explode into life.

Alongside that, we have planted trees, brought NPCs into the fold, and are slowly shaping the living heart of KOI.

Meanwhile, Devin and Sage have been killing it with world building and animation work.
Devin also brought to life a dialogue system, laying the foundation for the stories, politics, and drama that will define the Kingdom.

And even bigger news:

• We officially launched our Website 🌐
  
  

• Our Discord Server 🎮 (Already 50 new citizens standing with us!)
  
  

• Our Instagram Page 📸
  
  

• Our YouTube Channel 🎥
  
  

(Basically, we are the new kids on the block, and people are noticing. 😎)

Special thanks to Cathy, one of the brilliant cofounders of Unspecified Studios, who has been chronicling this adventure through blogs on all our social media. Without her, the story of KOI would still be whispered in the shadows.

And it gets even better:
We are introducing a brand new NPC — The Town Drunk (because no kingdom is complete without colorful characters 🍻) and adjusting player customization so you can finally create characters closer in size to the NPCs, making the world feel that much more alive and real.

And guess what?
It’s officially Day 1 of Game Jam at Cathy’s, the birthplace of our wildest ideas!

What’s Next?

The road ahead is lit, and it is only getting hotter. 🔥

In just 4 days, we charge into D Day at Venture Studios with these plans on our war table for the future:

• We will have a Playable Prototype for Beta Testers by the End of May ⚔️
  
  

• Shifting KOI into Unreal or Unity with full custom built assets and characters 🎨
  
  

• Crafting stunning environments: forests, valleys, mountains, kingdoms 🌄
  
  

• Creating unique, mood driven music, handcrafted or AI assisted, to give KOI its own heartbeat 🎶

KOI isn’t just a game.
It’s a dream built out of canvas, stone, sweat, and fire.
It’s a story of building something from nothing, of rising from tents and fireplaces to castles and crowns.
It’s already growing into something bigger, more alive, and more legendary than we ever dared to imagine.

We would love to see you at our upcoming events — every single voice cheering us on makes a difference. 🫶
Come be part of the beginning. Build the Kingdom with us.

See you soon,
– Aaron Sheshan Abraham

Hi Everyone, 

My name is Cathy and I'm one of the Cofounders of Unspecified Studios.

What Have We Been Working On?

AHHH! We have land! Our incredible developers, Zach, Devin, and Sage has completed a lot of work on KOI. 

Zach made personality customization actually mean something. It's not shown in the photos but there are numbers and things running in the background and hopefully in the near future, we will be able to show you how your personality traits will affect in game. 

Devin and Sage has been working closely on animations and world creation! For this first development of the game, our goal is to have a premade site for people to play with. A kingdom isn't built over night, so for testing purposes and deadlines, having a premade site allows us to focus more on mechanics and gameplay. 

What Are We Doing Next?

Our deadline of early May is right around the corner. Next week we will be having a company Hack-a-thon to quickly add features to the game for Venture Studio's Demo Day. We will be competing with other startups and idea owners to get the chance to win a position at ASU's Inferno to win up to $100k. 

We are producing KOI out of passion but money definitely helps! We would love to see your support at either of these event by just being in the crowd for us. I hope to see you there and you meet our incredible supports in person. 

-Cathy Ly

Hi Everyone, 

My name is Cathy and I'm one of the Cofounders of Unspecified Studios.

After winning First Place at Venture Studio's Lean Start Up Weekend 2, there has been a big moral boost within the team. I just want to take a moment to thank my team and everyone who has supported us through our development. Without the love and support we receive, there would never be a prototype of KOI. 

What Have We Been Working On?

Sage, Devin, and Aaron put in a lot of work learning Godot and adding different assets into the game. You can now interact with a plant to watch it grow and interact with other people to have conversations! We are still working on all of there actions for the game but it's major improvements for the game. Also, when you select a character in character creation, it will now show up in game! No more Mr. Blob. 

-Cathy Ly