• Exoversary Celebrations

    Happy fourth Exoversary everyone! We’re celebrating 🍄🚀 I Was a Teenage Exocolonist 🍄🚀 a bit early this year to coincide with the Choices Matter Festival and our first game update in, well, a while!

    🛠️ Steam Workshop Modding Support!

    I’m stoked to announce we’ve added Steam Workshop support to I Was a Teenage Exocolonist. This should make it a little easier for modders to share simple text-based mods which change story files or data files. These sorts of mods can translate Exo into other languages, or add new events to the game. Changing gameplay or adding new images is still a little more complicated, and for the meantime easier done via fan-maintained tools like ExoLoader.

    In addition to supporting Steam Workshop, you can now install text mods directly via the filesystem. Here’s a guide on how to make, upload, and install story and data file mods:

    Exocolonist Workshop Guide

    And here’s a link to our shiny new workshop page, ready for you to upload your game mods:

    Exocolonist Steam Workshop

    This update (build 6602) also includes a few small bug fixes related to language translation, but I tried to avoid messing with too much, to minimize breaking stuff. I was tempted, but game updates are scary! I did unfortunately break the extremely cool and extensive ExtraColonist fan mod, which is now up to year 14! They’ll have an update soon but you can also revert the base game to the old version (3127) if you need to by swapping to its beta branch in the Steam client.

    If you find any bugs, please report them through the in-game feedback menu!

    💬 Discord AMA with the Exocolonist Team

    On Thursday, August 13th at 2PM PT / 5PM EDT, join Lindsay, Mei and I for an AMA in the official Finji Discord Server to celebrate the game’s 4th anniversary! Mei will be working on a new anniversary doodle. Visit the Discord event page to set a reminder, and let us know who you’d like Mei to draw on Thursday. Get your questions ready for us and we’ll see you then!

    📖 Choices Matter Festival

    Running from August 10th to 17th, the festival will include talks, announcements, demos and sales from select games which feature branching storylines and impactful decisions. We’re honored that I Was a Teenage Exocolonist is included among these titles.

    Check out the Choices Matter Festival here

    🧸 Plushie Giveaways all this week

    We have some very special merch giveaways planned this week on the Finji Discord Server. Ten fan-made plus dolls from the incredible artist and Etsy seller Poayo! The Backerkit campaign for these dolls has ended, but I managed to snag ten different characters to send to giveaway winners when they’re finished manufacturing.

    In the meantime, Poayo does still have some Dys dolls from an earlier run for sale on their Etsy shop. They’re cute af in their little onsies and catmaid outfits holeeeee!

    Happy Exoversary!

  • Glowing Eyes Vriki plushie campaign

    I Was a Teenage Exocolonist’s most popular Makeship plushie, the vriki, is back for a limited time! This upgraded second edition sports a jauntier mushroom cap with glow in the dark embroidery on the spots and eyes. So it can watch you. In the dark.

    🍄👀🍄Get yours before April 6th 2026!🍄👀🍄

    The glowing eyes vriki is a three week Makeship campaign. If we succeed in meeting the minimum 200 preorders, this glowing cutie will be made and ready to ship out in early summer. The plushie campaign will run through to the Easter long weekend and end on April 6, so make like a hopeye and bounce over to Makeship and catch your vriki before they’re gone again.

    Will there be more Exocolonist plushies? Is there another one you desperately wish we’d make again? Let us know on the Finji discord server.

  • Faceless and Friends

    🍄🚀Happy Exoversary!

    I Was a Teenage Exocolonist has been everyone’s favorite solarpunk time loop stats-raising coming of age narrative/sim game for three years! As is tradition, we’re celebrating our Exoversary with a half price sale and free demo on Steam, a dev stream, and our biggest ever (physically big that is) plushie campaign!

    🎨🎙️ Developer draw & talk

    Join us on Thursday, August 28 at 9am PT / 12pm ET on the Finji Twitch Stream for chatting and doodles with devs Sarah, Mei, Lindsay, and our host Aster from Finji. There will be giveaways!!

    👾🧸Faceless and friends

    We’re doing another limited time plushie campaign with Makeship! This time for a jumbo-sized faceless plushie that comes with two mini accessory sized dolls of Dys and Sym!

    Yes I lied before when I said we wouldn’t make any more! Who could resist taking that big squiggly wiggly stompy baddie and turning her into the cutest eldritch puppy dog? Just look at that face! (what face?)

    ✨Get yours before September 16th✨

    🕒🛒Limited time only campaign

    This time we have three weeks to get a minimum of 200 orders. On September 16 the campaign ends, and if we’ve met our goal then every plushie will be made-to-order for our backers and delivered in December. After that, no more will be made!

    There’s a special bonus of a free Steam key for the first 200 orders which will be delivered at the end of September.

    (Sol doll for scale)

    📏🐙She’s big!

    This faceless plush is jumbo sized, quite a bit bigger than our previous Makeship dolls. And Dys and Sym are keychain sized little fellers that tuck snuggly into those squiggly wigglers (you can tell at least Sym enjoys it). It would be pretty easy to actually turn them into purse charms if you’re crafty.

    ✨Get yours before September 16th✨

    Happy Exoversary! Come join us on Discord to celebrate with the devs!

  • Exocolonist Fan Merch and Mods

    Not only has the I Was a Teenage Exocolonist fandom kept the story going with fic (336 works and counting on AO3), they’ve been busy modding the game and making rad fan merch. Northway Games has always granted permission for anyone to sell fan merch of our games using their own original art. It feels so amazing to have a piece of Exocolonist fandom hanging from my bag or dangling from my ears, out here in the real world.

    So here’s a showcase!

    Official-ish Merch from Mei

    Mei’s wooden charms

    Exocolonist artist Mei (@bkomei) just announced preorders for the cuuuuuuuutest wooden character charms, with unique shapes and different pictures on the two sides. They’re so slick! I love that they’re in a different chibi style than Mei used in the game, but they still give 100% Exocolonist vibes.

    Preorder them here: https://bkomei.bigcartel.com

    Mei’s also selling several prints of their in-game illustrations, and making these cool interactive CD jewel case charms that are just beautiful and all kinds of nostalgic. These will be a limited run so get one while you can!

    Official-ish Merch from Lindsay

    Glow Season by Lindsay Ishihiro (on my wall o stuff)

    Exocolonist writer/artist Lindsay also has semi-official prints available on Inprnt. I love this one of the gang telling stories around a campfire, the colors are sooooo purdy. There are also prints available of Lindsay’s creature art from in the game.

    All here: https://www.inprnt.com/frames/neomeruru

    Poayo’s Etsy Empire

    Poayo’s shop recently added keychains from guest artist Begonia

    With everything from stickers to acrylic standees to body pillows, Poayo’s Etsy shop covers a lot of ground featuring their own fanart style. They regularly post new goodies on r/Exocolonist (Reddit profile) and the Seraphic Discord, so keep an eye there to snag the new-and-hots before they sell out.

    Yes even body pillows I wasn’t kidding

    I’ve come across a few other online stores with Exo merch out there, but let’s move on to one of my favorite fan creations:

    The ExtraColonist Mod

    Available on NexusMods.

    This overhaul of the first year of the game introduces a bunch of new characters, even animated and on the map. New storylines, locations, backgrounds, cutscenes, activities, items. It’s really a LOT more than you imagine.

    They’re calling it a beta and I hope we get to see more, but in its current state ExtraColonist is absolutely worth playing once you reach the end of the official content and want more. It’s easy to install and jump into with a fresh game (you can keep your groundhogs/past memories). Team Seraphic (Patreon / tip jar here) has done an amazing job. What an absolute labor of love.

    New scenes with characters old and new

    I love this kid

    Download it from Nexus Mods: https://www.nexusmods.com/iwasateenageexocolonist/mods/5/
    Team Seraphic socials: https://seraphic.ju.mp
    Poayo is part of the team and sells ExtraColonist merch too: https://poayosuniverse.etsy.com

    Official-official Merch

    The Finji Store still has pinnies, stickers, tees and hawaiian shirts available. We’re selling a physical card game at cost via Gamecrafters. And you’ve seen my posts for print-on-demand xmas sweaters and other clothes.

    We’ve done five plushies through Makeship and although these are one-off productions, I have a few squirreled away under the bed (literally) for some future giveaway. Makeship has also been bugging me to do another doll so you never know… join the Official Discord to hear more!

  • Limited time Hopeye and Socks plushies!

    💜💜 Two years of Exocolonist

    🚀I Was a Teenage Exocolonist🚀 is two years old this week! We’re celebrating our second Exoversary with a Steam daily deal (let’s make that a week) and two new Makeship plushie campaigns. The first 200 sales of each doll includes a free Steam key!

    ✨ Get yours before September 25 2024 ✨

    🐸🐀 The Hopeye

    Xenofelis monopodus

    Hopeyes leap around on a single foot and live in colonies with up to 100 others. They can be fierce little creatures when their friends are threatened, so don’t underestimate them!

    They love cuddles.

    🐲🐛 The Dillypillar (Socks)??

    Xenosaurus polyped

    Dillypillars can sometimes be seen in the western Wresting Ridges. They’re generally solitary, and can grow up to 100 pairs of feet!? This particular dillypillar is just a wee four-legged juvenile, named Socks for her white-colored feet.

    She loves cuddles too.

    🍄🚀 Crowdfunding-style campaigns

    Makeship is giving us one month to reach a minimum of 200 orders. On September 25 the campaign ends, and if we’ve met our goal then every plushie will be made-to-order for our backers. After that, no more will be made!

    The estimated shipping date is December 14th so you miiiight get yours in time for the holidays, but if you’re planning to gift one to somebody, maybe have a nice card ready just in case your xenofauna is a little late. (Steam keys will be given out to the first 200 backers as soon as the campaign ends.)

    🕘🕚 Limited time only

    We did Nomi, Sol and vriki campaigns earlier this year, but Socks and the hopeye are the final Exocolonist plushies we have plans to make. I may change my mind later because you know I love making merch, but you’ve been warned: these might be the last!

    So ✨ visit Makeship ✨ to preorder one (or both for 10% off) before the campaign ends on September 25th 2024!