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Today’s feature from our friends at the Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase at Super MAGFest 2025 highlights Infinity, a gripping RPG-strategy hybrid developed by Incube8 Games!

Originally designed for the Game Boy and Game Boy Color, Infinity takes players deep into a richly woven tale of war, loss, and ancient evil. As a forsaken knight, you'll traverse a fractured land plagued by dark powers and political unrest, uncovering a sinister plot that threatens to consume everything. With over 50 locations to explore, 100+ items to discover, and a tactical combat system that rewards thoughtful planning, Infinity delivers a grand adventure in classic 8-bit style.

Curious how this long-lost gem finally saw the light of day? Dive into the development story behind Infinity and the passion that brought it to life!

Tell us about how your game was born.    

Incube8 Games: "The journey of "Infinity" began in the late 1990s when developer Justin Karneges helped by  Hideaki Omuro set out to create a Game Boy Color-exclusive RPG as a spiritual successor to Justin's popular TI-83 calculator game, Joltima. The game was groundbreaking on TI calculators and gathered a dedicated following. "Infinity," originally named Joltima 2, was designed to build on this success, retaining elements like class-based characters and trailing party dynamics while evolving into a much more ambitious project. The game gained momentum at Affinix Software, but as the market moved to the Game Boy Advance, development was halted and the game remain unpublished. Thanks to a resurgence of interest and a successful Kickstarter in 2021, Incube8 Games revived Infinity, bringing the dream full circle with the backing of original creators and new talents."

What was the development like?

"(Development is still ongoing) Developing Infinity is both inspiring and complex. We’re working with decades-old code, a unique challenge for both the original team members and new developers. From porting old tools to modern systems to crafting tools for efficient testing, the process has been incredibly involved. Fun highlights include adapting the original battle system and creating visually detailed environments that fit within Game Boy Color limitations."

What's your favorite memory as a gamer?

"The first game I finished—and in fact, the first game I ever purchased—was The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening on Game Boy. I remember each time I obtained a new Instrument of the Sirens, I’d rush to the giant egg to hear how it enriched the melody. It all culminates in that unforgettable moment when you gather all eight Instruments, play the Ballad of the Wind Fish, and open the giant egg for the first time—defeating the boss and finally uncovering the truth!"

What games influenced Infinity the most?

"Infinity draws inspiration from many classic RPGs, particularly Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior. The original team admired these games for their rich stories, character-driven adventures, and complex battle mechanics. Our goal was to capture the same magic but tailor it to the unique hardware of the Game Boy Color."

Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

"One of the biggest moments was the addition of legendary composer Yuzo Koshiro to our soundtrack—a thrilling milestone! Another memorable event was discovering and revamping our original tools and assets, a true time capsule of early 2000s development quirks and nostalgic challenges. And there’s been plenty of debugging fun with the Game Boy Color’s very limited hardware, which has brought out the team’s creative problem-solving side."

Do you think preserving older gameplay mechanics in new games is important?

"Absolutely. Older gameplay mechanics carry a timeless appeal that resonates with players of all ages. Preserving these mechanics, while enhancing them with modern polish, allows players to experience a blend of nostalgia and fresh excitement. Infinity captures this spirit, preserving turn-based battles and retro pixel art while adding a modern layer of quality of life improvements."

What makes this game unique?

"Infinity stands out as a full-fledged, modernized RPG on a retro console, the Game Boy Color. It’s a labor of love that merges 20-year-old assets and code with fresh updates in art, music, and gameplay mechanics. Plus, the journey of bringing an abandoned game back to life adds a special history and appeal for players and collectors alike."

Anything else you'd like to add? Promote?

"Infinity’s journey highlights the passion behind game development, and we can’t wait to share it with you on platforms from Game Boy Color to Steam and Switch. If you want a taste of classic RPGs reimagined, Infinity is the game to watch! Plus, our amazing backers made this all possible, so thank you for believing in Infinity and helping us bring it to life."

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Infinity is a tactical role-playing game for the Game Boy and Game Boy Color, set in a world teetering on the edge of war and consumed by an ancient evil. As a disgraced knight, you’ll navigate political turmoil, personal grief, and dark forces in a rich 8-bit world featuring over 50 explorable areas, 100+ items, and a unique turn-based combat system.

Originally developed by Affinix Software between 1999–2001, Infinity was shelved due to shifting market trends. Two decades later, Incube8 Games—alongside members of the original team—has revived and completed the game for its long-awaited physical release.

Follow Incube8 Games on X to get more updates about the game and check out Infinity on their website! 

Watch the trailer:

Today's Interview Spotlight from our friends at the Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase at Super MAGFest 2025 features the charming action-puzzle game Discrete Orange by Tardigrade! In this quirky adventure, you'll play as a cute little Orange, and you must navigate through puzzle-filled levels and collect chocolate, using non-continuous turn-based movements.

Curious about how this fruitful concept came to life? Read on to see the development story behind Discrete Orange!

Tell us about how your game was born.    

Tardigrade: "I wanted to build on a game idea I had back in 2007—a platformer that felt like a Game&Watch. I made a prototype for the PSP back then, but I barely scratched the surface. When the GBA Jam 2024 was announced, I thought it would be great to create something for the GBA, and that’s how the project started."

What was the development like?

"Balancing work on the game with a full-time job and family life made finding time challenging. Thankfully, using public domain assets and a relatively simple library (butano), certainly helped. One of the main focuses became level design, a task I had a lot of fun doing."

What's your favorite memory as a gamer?

"Not surprisingly, some of my favorite gaming memories come from playing Game & Watch LCD games back in the '80s. I still have a deep love for them to this day."

What games influenced Banana Bash! the most?

"The discrete movement mechanics are inspired by Game & Watch games like Donkey Kong. As for the turn-based element, I've always enjoyed games of that type, especially
a 1996 puzzle game called D.R.O.D. (Deadly Rooms of Death), which had a really strong
impact on me."

Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

"Not especially fun or wild, but a nice development was having my sister create the artwork for the game. She's a talented artist but had never used digital drawing software before, so she took this opportunity to learn, and I think she did a great job."

Do you think preserving older gameplay mechanics in new games is important?

"I don’t believe we should cling to outdated gameplay mechanics if they don’t hold up. I prefer to explore interesting ideas, drawing inspiration from both old and new games without distinction."

What makes this game unique?

"The idea of discrete movement and turn-based platformer was never done before
to my knowledge, and I think it opens up possibilities for interesting puzzles."

Anything else you'd like to add? Promote?

"The version of Discrete Orange playable at MAGFest is a demo. The full release, featuring new mechanics and levels, is set to launch on cartridge in 2025. If you enjoyed this demo, stay tuned for more updates! 😀"

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Discrete Orange is a homebrew game for the Game Boy Advance. It's a turn-based puzzle platformer with discrete movement.

Play as a cute little Orange, navigate through puzzle-filled levels, and collect chocolate, using non-continuous turn-based movements.

Follow Tardigrade on X to get more updates about the game and check out Discrete Orange on itch.io! 

Watch the trailer:

We've got a new feature for our interview spotlight with our friends from the Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase at Super MAGFest 2025, and today, we have the winner of Best Gameplay, the action puzzle game Banana Bash! by Brian Flanagan, and Robbie Dieterich. This reimagined Japanese folk tale is brought to life in an 8-bit world that blends classic action-puzzle mechanics with unforgettable charm. The game gives a funky remix to an ancient legend, turning it into an adventure brimming with vibrant, ultra high quality pixel art, wacky characters, and a head bobbing soundtrack like nothing you've heard on the NES!

Time to look into the development of the game! 

Tell us about how your game was born.    

Brian, and Robbie: "I took a simple, familiar mechanic and pushed it to its limits, exploring every way to keep it fresh and engaging.

The game is a remix of Japanese folklore, (loosely) inspired by an ancient Japanese legend that shapes its world and aesthetic."

What was the development like?

"Long, way too long! But had we rushed it, it wouldn't be the game it is now."

What's your favorite memory as a gamer?

"Late ‘80s arcades—the thrill of walking in and discovering something completely new, with no previews or spoilers. Every game was a surprise, and that sense of discovery was pure magic."

What games influenced Banana Bash! the most?

"Games like Don Doko Don, Snow Bros., Bubble Bobble, and Rainbow Islands were major influences. Their tight mechanics, creative level design, all played a role in shaping the game."

Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

"Not exactly wild, but bringing in my former iNiS programming compatriots to help finish the game was a lifesaver. Their expertise and camaraderie made all the difference.

Also seeing what our hired gun, Antoine did for the water effects was a major boost!"

Do you think preserving older gameplay mechanics in new games is important?

"Definitely! Especially in 2D games, where movement is still mainly limited to two axes, looking to the past is key to shaping the future. Retro mechanics provide a foundation that can be refined and reimagined in new ways."

What makes this game unique?

"The game stands out with its unique mechanics and a super poppy soundtrack featuring genres like disco, ’60s pop, and ska styles rarely, if ever, heard in NES games. We also have a vs. battle mode!"

Anything else you'd like to add? Promote?

"Huge thanks to Mega Cat for giving us a spotlight, and a fistbump to the judges for voting us with for gameplay! 

I hope you all enjoy our homage to ’90s arcade action! We’ve poured our hearts into this game, packing in tough bosses, rewarding endings, and nonstop fun. If you’re excited to play, you can register your interest on our Kickstarter."

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Join Ooki the monkey on a whimsical journey across a mysterious island to reclaim his stolen bananas from a cunning clan of crabs! Navigate through lush jungles, sandy beaches, deep lakes, and perilous oceans, each filled with its own surprises. But beware: the crabs are calling in backup—bigger, tougher family members who’ll stop at nothing to keep Ooki away!

Jump, punch, smash, warp, and swim through mind-bending traps and puzzles. Will you outwit the crab clan and reclaim your treasure? Embark on this epic journey in Banana Bash! and rewrite a legendary tale, 8-bit style!

Follow Work3 Studio on X to get more updates about the game! Follow Banana Bash! on Kickstarter to get notified of its launch

Watch Banana Bash! trailer here:

We are back again for our interview spotlight with our friends from the Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase at Super MAGFest 2025, and now, we’re shining the light on the winner of Best in Sound, the action-adventure game Cronela’s Mansion by STRAYNUS. This spine-chilling, pixel-perfect adventure enchanted audiences with its hauntingly atmospheric soundtrack, perfectly balancing eerie ambiance and retro charm. Let’s look at the game that claimed this title and how its development went.

Tell us about how your game was born.    

Straynus: "As a big fan of Maniac Mansion, I always wanted to create a point and click video game inspired by it, and this was easy if the idea was to create it for modern consoles and PC.

Then I realized that many people wanted a point and click game inspired by Maniac Mansion but compatible with retro consoles! like the original, and there was none, how difficult was it to create a similar game?... Well yes, it was very difficult, but not impossible.

After creating the NES version, nothing could stop us! I wondered if it would also be possible to create it for Game Boy Advance, and then Super Nintendo and Game Boy.

All versions are created from scratch due to the limitations of each system. Each version has its own music and graphics, as well as the puzzles, which makes each version unique."

What was the development like?

"I wouldn't know where to start hehe, it has been more than 4 years of development, where we have had to create our own engine with 6502 assembler. We have fought with each line of code to make it work, and there are thousands and thousands of lines! Creating the cursor, inventory, objects, collisions, characters, scene animation, texts, music and much more.

We have suffered a lot to make everything work, but we have also had continuous joy, days of celebration when we finally achieved something important, and after all the effort the moment of truth arrived, recording it on cartridges and testing it on the native consoles, when I saw the game working on my original console and my CRT TV, it was a great night, I had achieved something that I set out to do so many years ago, and I had a strange feeling...

In the 90s I played games created by other people, these games excited me, made me happy and I learned a lot from them, I will always remember them with affection and nostalgia, and now that I have created a game I wonder if anyone will feel these same things with something I have created, will they fondly remember my video game as time goes by? I hope."

What's your favorite memory as a gamer?

"I am 8 years old, it is 7 in the morning, it is summer, I wake up and go down to the first floor of the house, where my maternal grandparents live. My grandmother prepares me a glass of milk with some biscuits while I turn on my Nintendo NES on her television and get ready to play Maniac Mansion, Marios Bross, Turtles... My grandfather tells me to play quickly, we will leave in two hours to the field to pick watermelons and melons and today he will let me drive the tractor!

For years everything was the same, then I changed the NES for the Super Nintendo, but my grandparents never changed, their energy and vitality was magical, it seemed that those days would last forever. Today, my grandmother and I miss those days, we miss him so much. When I play with my retro consoles, I feel like he is here with me, waiting for me to go to the field to farm."

What games influenced Cronela's Mansion the most?

"All LucasArts and Sierra games, but without a doubt, Cronela's Mansion is totally inspired by Maniac Mansion, both the artistic style and the dark and strange story with a touch of humor (Ron Gilbert and Gary Winnick are geniuses). I've added my own ideas and some different mechanics, and I think they fit the game very well!"

Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

"Many funny or memorable things have happened to us during development. But I will tell you one of them, I will put you in situation.

One room, the bathroom of the mansion, in the middle of the room there is a huge bathtub, so far so good, the character can go behind the bathtub, but he must also be able to go in front of it, which means that the bathtub has to know when the character is in front or behind, this is difficult.

If the character passed in front, his head would be cut off, and if we passed behind him, his legs would be seen under the bathtub. We had this error for days! In one of the tests it finally worked! I jumped for joy, I called my partner! we laugh, we celebrate! we had it working! What a good night!... then... I realized that I had left the pizza in the oven for more than half an hour, and it was the only one I had left.

That night, I didn't have dinner, but nothing took away the joy of being able to pass in front of and behind an object."

Do you think preserving older gameplay mechanics in new games is important?

"Totally, before I thought that old game mechanics were only liked by people who grew up playing these video games, people who are already over 30 years old, but I see more and more young people who love these types of retro games and their mechanics and they do not have our nostalgia, which means that retro games were very good in their time but they continue to be so in new times."

What makes this game unique?

"Cronela's Mansion is the first point and click adventure of the century, compatible with NES and SNES, and the first in history compatible with Game Boy and Game Boy Advance.

But what makes this game unique is that it is created for those people who wanted a Maniac Mansion 2, or a Monkey Island on Nintendo consoles and that never came.

With this game you will feel the same sensations, and it will take you back to those wonderful years.

Cronela's Mansion has been created with care, polishing every detail, with the intention of being remembered over the years."

Anything else you'd like to add? Promote?

"If you like the project and want to see it come true on a physical cartridge, you can help me on Kickstarter.

See you at the Mansion more manic than ever!"

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Cronela's Mansion™ is a point-and-click adventure game compatible with classic consoles, PC, and modern consoles. Inspired by Maniac Mansion but with its own unique identity.

 Compatible with:

* Nintendo NES
* Super Nintendo
* Game Boy / Color
* Game Boy Advance
* PC and Nintendo Switch

Follow Straynus on X! The game has been fully funded on Kickstarter, but you can still back the game here!

Watch Cronela's Mansion trailer here: