Fate of the Squire (demo)
A downloadable game for Windows and macOS
The lion, the wolf, the serpent - which knight will you choose?
In the kingdom of Somalaire any youth may enter the fête of the squire, competing for a knight's favour over the course of a year – the winner is declared the knight's squire and will eventually become their successor. You are one such youth, Leith, who hopes to lift his family from poverty to nobility by winning the contest. To do so, however, you must outdo scores of rivals and win your chosen knight's patronage... and their heart.
This is an English visual novel/dating sim game! It's currently a work in progress with a playable demo. This is a male/male romance game and features explicit adult content and nudity. There's plenty to do besides watching sex scenes, but they are there. Please bear that in mind before downloading anything!
Update Oct 2020: THIS PROJECT IS CURRENTLY ON HIATUS. Extra work stresses on account of the current world situation have limited how much time and energy I have to dedicate towards visual novels so I've decided to stop monthly updates and close the Patreon page. I'll keep working but it's likely to be at a snail's pace. You're welcome to download the demo but please keep in mind that the finished product will not be ready for a long time.
Download
Install instructions
The download is a .zip file, so just download, unpack and run the .exe.
Struggling to get a good ending? Check out FotS guide for download below!
Development log
- AUGUST SHOWCASE - SQUIRE HIATUSAug 27, 2019
- JULY SHOWCASEJul 30, 2019
- JUNE SHOWCASEJun 25, 2019
- MAY SHOWCASEJun 04, 2019
- APRIL SHOWCASEApr 29, 2019
- MARCH SHOWCASEApr 08, 2019
- FEBRUARY SHOWCASEMar 03, 2019
- JANUARY SHOWCASEJan 28, 2019
Comments
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The download links are broken. Were the files taken down?
missing this game
I'm coming back to this page periodically to check whenever you find time and energies to keep working on this game! I love the story to bits, and it was getting to the saucy parts, too <3
Hey, I know this game is on hiatus right now, but I just wanted to tell you how much I've enjoyed it so far. I first played it nearly two years ago, and didn't reach an ending at that point, but I'm going back to see what's changed and what I missed initially. Take plenty of time for yourself (I get that burnout sucks, trust me); I'll be waiting patiently when you decide to come back to this game!
Was there something to happen in December? January?
The demo was soo good! I enjoyed very much play Lyall's route <3 Also, the gameplay was pretty entertaining and satisfactory when I was able to obtain all the points that I want ;)
Great work! <3
At the beginning of the game, the plot seems a bit far-fetched. But the more you read, the deeper you plunge into the story. And you notice how many interesting concepts there are.
Usually in such a game... MC is a "hero", and everyone just loves them. But in fact, the player must pretend to be someone in order to find a way to interest each LI.
In this game, from the very beginning, you know that you are pretending... trying to fit into the perfect image of a squire. And it really refreshes that there is no lie.
Interesting style of BG and CG. This game really has its style.
A financial element when you need to choose what to do, make money or spend it on the study...
MC family... You really believe how difficult their lives are, how desperate they are...
And, of course, the Knights... Interesting characters. I would like to know them better... know their stories...
Therefore, I look forward to the full version of the game. It seems really promising...
It downloaded and im madly in love with this game :o . the art is wonderful can't wait for more content !! (Serpent is my favorite )
ok im confused after november compitition it continues to go through the schooling through august and does everything all over again he dont see the knights or his siblings well his oldest sister is so annoying you would think she thinks shes the mother but i need help with this issue
I love this game, I definitely love VN with stats raising/mini games going on, it feels nicer as a mechanic for me.
thanks for releasing the chapters for free, it is such a quality game to enjoy, and i'm very tempted to go to your patreon, to get early content. As a question, is the courtship meant to be the whole game? or will there be content related to being an actual squire?
also, as a slight mechanism problem, maybe, whenever i scroll back to see the history i missed by skipping or to re-choose things, the menu bar dissappears [the ever present one, with back and skip, etc], and pressing ESC just gets me to the save menu, with no option for the load or prefs or the rest of the menu. idk if this is a problem or not? just to point it out, cuz it does become bothersome to be unable to skip for the rest of the game if i scroll back once.
thanks again for this great game, cheers!
EDIT: also, while trying to click your patreon, the link in this page and in the upper side of your profile don't like to it. Thankfully in the text in your profile the hyperlink was right, but you may want to check that, so people dont get lost trying to reach your patreon.
Hello Chankir, thanks for playing the game so far! To answer your question yes, the courtship is the entire game - it ends with the (almost) titular Fete of the Squire in which the knight picks their successor, namely Leith if you've got everything right! I have considered the actual squire part as a sequel, but that's a distant dream for now I think.
Thanks for pointing out that bug, I'll look into it and see what can be done in the next build.
Thanks also for pointing out the Patreon link problems, these should now be fixed!
Trying balance all stats and be Jack of All Trade so the Squire can choose the Knight when Saving the data: self-deprived, not elected, pathetic brother of the poor
Focus in one out of three preferable types of training (for each Knight) so the stats go beyond 50: wild dreams and finally get the colored handkerchief
...okay, I finally understand the playthrough lol
Hey this game looks great, but I can only seem to get the bad end. Is there a guide or a list of what stats are needed?
There is indeed! Under the downloads you can see one called FotS guide, which will give you hints on what to level and (if you're getting truly frustrated) outright numbers you need to achieve.
Thank you! Probally should have checked there to be honest, but again thanks.
Hello, I really want to play this tutorial, but everytime I click install it just goes grey and says downloading and a second later install is back and i cant play the game. Can someone please help me fix this problem?
How weird! Which system are you on (mac/pc) and are you downloading the right version? If you have, maybe try re-do loading?
I'm using a macbook, and it hasn't even asked me which version I want to download. I just click the install option, it goes grey with a spinning loading circle beside the word downloading, then a few seconds later it pops back to the install option.
You definitely clicked Fots 2.2 - MEGA download (Mac) from the options on the game page? The file hosted on Itch.io itself is PC only, so I doubt it could install on a mac.
For reasons I don't entirely fathom, Itch-io also sometimes won't let downloads happen if it's an external link. Try the direct MEGA download here: https://mega.nz/#!gvA0mSJA!Zu9-ophla4L1WCReybsvNClk8ljXXSieXVSGiU6tZEg and let me know if you have any luck with that.
If the download is working fine but the actual installation doesn't work I'm not sure I can help, as I don't own a mac, and FotS isn't really intended to run on that system.
Yay! The link you sent me worked perfectly, thank you. No, I didn't click on anything other than the install option, which for other games gave me the options to choose what to download, but it just went right through and I guess downloaded the PC version and thats why it wasn't working. Again, thank you for your help! I am excited to play this game :)
I really like this game, first off. The art is great, the mix of skill-building and visual-novel works and keeps the story moving. The skills can be a bit frustrating and I couldn't find the walkthrough link, so I was just wondering what the skill requierments for the knights are? Thanks again and keep working.
Additionally, I noticed a file entitled 'favor' that seemed to insinuate that it's possible to get favours from all three knights; I was curious as to how this would be possible and if it was implemented into this build of the game. Thanks, keep up the fabulous work!
Hey there! There's a download link named FotS guide on the main page that should give you a .txt document telling you everything you need to know - including the scores you need to actually achieve right at the bottom, for those who don't want any guesswork whatsoever ;) I know stat raising isn't for everyone, it's mostly there to include -some- manner of gameplay.
Can I ask what you mean by noticing a file - do you mean in the game directory? To answer your question though, it is indeed possible to get favours from all three knights; all you have to do is match all their requirements and you'll have a scene receiving multiple favours, and the option to choose the one of your fancy.
Thanks very much for playing and the lovely compliments!
It shows potential; the art is good, the story seems interesting and I like the fact it's a full NSFW game focused on M/M relationships... the only downside (though this is just personal opinion) is that I'm not a big fan of stat-raising sims. Could you spoil me on which ones are necessary to unlock each knight? I'm afraid I'm more interested in the story than the trial-and-error it takes to get there. Also, will it be free or commercial?
Hello there! There is in fact a guide you can download on the itch page that will give you some hints (and if you scroll right to the bottom, the outright answers) on what to do. Stat raising is there for the sake of having some gameplay, but I know it's not for everyone.
As for free or commercial, a little of both! You can play up to September in the demo and up to October if you support me on Patreon. However once I've finished November and December I'll start releasing chapters publically, for free. So the patron thing is more like early access!
A very interesting game so far. I really like the aesthetics and the music choices are awesome. The story is appealing to me, though a small part of me feels like it's a missed opportunity to forbidden romance (I like BL games in medieval settings where homosexuality would be a sin), but the twist the other way around is interesting too.
Unfortunately, I'm bothered by the stat raising - I don't really like when visual novels use stat raising mechanics and I'm SO BAD at it... I didn't manage to get a good outcome from the demo yet, despite multiple tries - it's a bit frustrating haha.
I think it would be nice to know the actual scores we must reach in order to succeed - I don't mean telling the player which stats they need to raise for each knight, since it's up to us to figure it out, but simply know how high the stats should be.
I'd love to know, if you'd be willing to tell me, but if not, could I at least know if my assumption of needing 3 stats per knight is accurate? And do all knights need the stats to reach the same numbers?
Haha, I'm so sorry for all the questions - stat raisers are SO not my thing, but I want so badly to play this game XD
Also, an important note I can't stress enough in games like that - you should put a warning on the store page telling that the game is NSFW. I don't mind, but some people may not like it, or simply want to know before playing with people around.
On a side note, I must say I love Errol so much. I'd really like to do something for him, and I feel like the plow plot is related to that, but being so bad at the game I don't think I'll be ever able to purchase it without a guide haha. But anyway, I hope there will be a longer plotline related to him!
Well, that's about it! I'll probably be trying again later, but now I'm getting tired. Good luck with finishing the game too! Do you have a planned release date (or an estimation, at least)?
Hello Konoi! Thanks so much for playing the demo and leaving a comment. Even to say the demo is difficult to play - that sort of feedback is very useful. I had anticipated that the stat requirements were too high - when I testrun my own games I don't pick up on these things since I obviously know exactly what to aim for. However the new demo is due Monday 25 Feb and I have considerably lowered the requirements so as not to punish players for trying a little of everything. I'll see if I can put a guide download link as well.
Each knight has three main stats yes, but they actually have a fourth as well - literacy, since a squire needs a decent reading/writing skill. Lyall also needs a higher literacy than the other two.
You make an excellent point about a NSFW warning, I'll be sure to put it on the new demo release.
Without too many spoilers, there is definitely a longer plot centred around Errol in later stages of the game, but that's a long way off yet. Initial final game release was August 2018 but I strongly suspect it won't be done by then - more like end of 2018. I do plan to release content month by month though (first on Patreon, then public), rather than making you wait a whole year for a finished product.
Oh I see, thank you!
I've tried to train literacy in some of my playthroughs, but since I'm too bad to even get high scores in the other things, it was impossible haha! I'll wait for the updated demo then!
And I understand, don't worry - it's better to take your time and make the game that'll make you proud rather than rush things. It'll be most satisfying for the players too!
Hi again!
Okay, so, I've played the updated demo - though I didn't visit absolutely every option for now - I'll leave that for the full game or for when I'll have time to spend on it. I must say it was nice playing without being frustrated by the stats haha! But that makes me curious - what were the requirement tiers before? Either there is a huuuge gap between what was asked before and what's asked now, or I was always unlucky and trained the "lesser" skills more than the most important ones (then again, I'm really bad at that stuff haha)
I also love the improved art - the small adjustements and the new backgrounds both! Which makes me think I believe I didn't say that before, but I really enjoy how the art style for the characters really is reminiscent of old medieval paintings on wood - in the poses, the style of the faces and all that stuff. It's obviously intended that way, but I'm curious - is it actually your "normal" style (well, or the artist's, if you're not the person who's drawing) or is that peculiar style made for the game? Oh and also, will the map on the menu screen be colored or left as it is?
I would also like to make another suggestion - wasn't able before since I couldn't "win" the previous demo. Maybe you should change the music for the last day if the players gets a favor? At least once the courrier arrives, I mean. That music feels pretty sad considering the scene - I got an immediate reaction of "don't tell me I failed AGAIN even now?!" when I heard it play haha!
Anyway, thanks for the awesome update and good luck with your other project!
Hi! There was a fairly significant difference between the stat requirements in the first demo, yes. There was still ample time to meet the requirements, but while testing I hadn't properly factored in that people would experiment with all the choices, or not know which knight they planned to aim for from the getgo. Plus 1 point could mean the difference between a good and a bad end so you may well have come very close to winning the original a few times without realising it.
I'm glad you like the art style! I'd say it's fairly close to my usual drawing style, but maybe I took inspiration from tapestries and stained glass windows without realising, haha. Certainly some of the poses are quite formal.
The map will be coloured eventually. I did a rough colouring of it but it honestly just made it look unfinished and I didn't have the time to make it all neat (or the patience, after staring at it for three days straight). I'll revisit it eventually! There are definitely a few things in the game that need retouching or even redoing, like the opening CGs.
Hmm, good point about the music - though playing the emotional music for both was intended to make you unsure if you'd won or lost, with hopefully surprised delight if you hadn't! But you're right, it's probably a little too sad for the good ending and I will likely change it in the next release.
The sad music isn't bad for the start of the scene, but I'd change it when the courrier arrives, since at that point you know it's good haha
This game is absolute perfection. I love stat raising games and visual novels and you mixed the two magnificently. The characterization is great and I can't wait to see how this ends up and I will be sure to fund you on Patreon.
Good luck
d (^ w ^ ) b
Hey, thank you so much for such a nice review! There's a lot of work to be done for sure, but it's feedback like this that keeps me going. Thanks again for brightening my day, and I hope you enjoy all future content!