I do all of Wayfarer’s writing, narrative/gameplay design, and coding myself. I have previously vastly underestimated my workflow, which lead to me pushing myself too hard to meet self-imposed deadlines. This ultimately led to me overworking myself throughout most of 2021 (which was not--surprise, surprise--great for my health). 

Completing and releasing Episode 1 taught me a lot about how my workflow actually functions and how long it takes me to complete a section of the game. While the 2022 roadmap outlines a vague timeline for each of my goals and I am intentionally overestimating the amount of time I need, there is always the possibility some may take more time than anticipated.

In addition to the game, I am also working on two related side-projects. These are resources for novice IF gamebook developers and include a Twine template and annotated guide, and an interactive fiction design/writing compendium. The creation of these resources will not overtake Wayfarer's development (development always comes first), but they are projects I am excited about and I am looking forward to working on them. If you're interested in either of those, you can read about on the Patreon version of this post here. 

2022 ROADMAP

WINTER • January to March

During Winter, my main goal is to complete the alpha version of Episode 2 and begin development on Episode 3. If all goes well, Episode 2 should be complete by early March.

As Episode 3 is one of the shortest episodes in the game, I am hoping I can get the bulk of it finished during March and heading into April.

Additional Goals:

• Start designing and writing the annotated Twine template and guide
• Applications for new playtesters will open when Episode 2 is complete

SPRING • April to June

While I am working on finishing Episode 3, Episode 2 will be playtested and prepped for its public launch. When the alpha version of Episode 3 is complete, Episode 2 will launch publicly. The public launch will hopefully occur sometime in April.

After Episode 3 is complete, I will start work on Episode 4. Episode 4 is unique because it splits into three separate versions of the episode based on a choice the player makes at the end of the previous episode. While each version itself will not be overly long individually, the sum of their parts makes Episode 4 a content-dense episode.

Patrons in voting tiers will be able to vote on which version of Episode 4 I work on first.

Additional Goals:

• When Episode 2 launches publicly, I will be changing Wayfarer's game page from a comment-based page to a community discussion board. This will make it easier for me to sticky important development notes (such as the post about common launch errors) and an update post to keep non-Patreon players informed about the alpha build's progress.

SUMMER • July to September

Summer will be primarily devoted to developing Episode 4. I will be releasing the Twine template and annotated guide during this quarter (likely towards the end of it) and I will continue to playtest and prep Episode 3 for public launch.

I am taking the entire month of July off. I’m hoping to prepare some additional bonus content for Patreon which will release while I’m away, but regardless, I will not be working on the game during this month.

FALL • October to December

If all goes well, Fall will see the completion of Episode 4. When Episode 4 is complete, Episode 3 will have its public launch. Provided I am not behind schedule on the game’s development, I will be releasing the interactive fiction design and Twine compendium at the end of December.

Additional Goals:

• Applications for new playtesters will open when Episode 4 is complete
• I would ideally like to start work on Episode 5, but I am not going to push myself to finish it by the end of the year