Northway Games

Factsheet

Developed by:
Northway Games
Based in Vancouver, B.C. Canada

Release date:
August 25 2022

Platforms:
Steam (PC / Mac / Linux / Deck)
Playstation 4 and 5
Nintendo Switch
Itch.io
Epic
Humble

Website:
exocolonist.com

Regular Price:
USD $25

Metacritic Score
91 (Universal acclaim)

Steam Score
97% (Overwhelmingly Positive)

Description

I Was a Teenage Exocolonist is a narrative RPG with a card battling system and a queer-friendly science fiction vibe.

Explore, grow up, and fall in love. The choices you make and skills you master over ten years will determine the course of your life and the survival of your colony.

History

Exocolonist was created by Northway Games, and published by Finji.

Features

800 story events - too much to experience in one lifetime, but luckily you'll have many.
250 battle cards - loosely based on poker rules, make the best hand from cards like Up to your Knees in Mud (adjacent cards get +1) and Testing on Humans (cards to the right become blue)
30 endings - find every way to die, aim to become Governor one day, or live a simple life as a botanist and let others take care of the monster-slaying.
25 jobs - goof off behind the counter as a depot clerk, or join a survey team and chart the Valley of Vertigo.
15 skills - will you focus on empathy and organization, or train up your toughness and bravery?
10 dateable characters - dogboys, aliens, hot politicians and cold-as-ice killers. Can you guess what your childhood friends will grow up to be?

Videos

TrailerYouTube

Developer festival demo playthroughYouTube

Images

download all screenshots as .zip (4MB)

download high-resolution screenshots as .zip (47MB)

Logo & Keyart

download logo files (including alternates) as .zip (9MB)

Awards & Recognition

"Canadian Screen Awards" Winner, Best Video Game, 2023
"BAFTA Awards" Finalist, Game Beyond Entertainment, 2023
"Game Developers Choice Awards" Finalist, Best Narrative, 2023
"IndieCade" Winner, Procedural Design, 2020
"Canadian Game Awards" Winner, Best Narrative, 2023
"The Game Awards" Finalist, Games for Impact, 2023
"Independent Games Festival" Finalist, Excellence in Narrative, 2023
"Games For Change Awards" Winner, Best Gameplay, 2023
"Golden Joysticks" Finalist, Best Storytelling, 2023
"Gayming Awards" Winner, Authentic Representation, 2023
"Dice Awards" Finalist, Outstanding in Story, 2023
"Canadian Game Awards" Finalist, Best Art Direction, 2023

Selected Articles

"I can’t think of any other game like it, and I can’t think of a game I’ve ever played that’s made me want to dive immediately into another playthrough right away as much as this one did. - 9.5/10"
- Noelle Warner, Destructoid
"Wonderfully engrossing and hiding so many worthwhile character moments and gorgeous secrets well worth uncovering - 4.5/5"
- Jade King, The Gamer
"I Was A Teenage Exocolonist might just be the greatest game I’ve played this year. It’s funny, heartfelt and completely devastating. And I want to play it again, and again, and again... And again. - 5/5"
- Aimee Hart, Gayming Mag
"It's one of the best distillations of growing up I've ever encountered in a video game. - 9/10"
- Nathan Birch, WCCF Tech
"Interview with Exocolonist creator Sarah Northway"
- Gavin Lane, Nintendo Life
"Exocolonist preview with Sarah Northway"
- Jamie A. Nicholas, Startmenu

Additional Links

Development Blog
Articles about design and development of Exocolonist NorthwayGames.com.

Twitter
News on our Twitter account twitter.com.

Instagram
More media on Sarah's Instagram account instagram.com.

About Northway Games

Boilerplate
Northway Games is Sarah and Colin Northway, partners in life and in indie games. We alternate taking the lead on games and collaborate with different artists on every project. We spent years traveling full time while making games in 25 different countries, and are now semi-stationary in Vancouver, Canada.

More information
More information on Northway Games, our logo & relevant media are available here.