Children of Terra
New member
I spent 20 years trying to create a sequel to Final Fantasy IX. From a fanfic in a school notebook to a playable Visual Novel (available now).
Hey! My name is Arthur.
Back in 2004, I beat Final Fantasy IX for the first time. The game blew my mind so hard that I became obsessed with a naive but sincere dream: I was going to make a sequel.
It all started with a cringey fanfic in a standard 48-page school notebook. Being a kid, I even started learning Japanese. I seriously believed that one day I’d walk into Square Enix’s office, slap my notebook on the table, and they’d say: “Great kid, let’s make it happen!”
Obviously, as I grew up, I realized how delusional that plan was. But the itch to expand the universe of my favorite game never went away. In 2017, inspired by the indie Visual Novel scene, I realized: this is my chance. I can’t build a AAA RPG, but I can tell a story.
That’s how Children of Terra was born.
The Path of a Thousand Li (And My Mistakes)
Development kicked off in the winter of 2018 using Ren'Py. Like many rookie devs, I had zero clue how to scope a project. I promised to release the full game by July 2020 to celebrate FF9’s 20th anniversary. Making a massive game solo in 2 years? Yeah, pure madness.
The hardest quest was finding artists. I went through it all: looking for volunteers, cheap commissions that turned out awful, and eventually finding talented people who actually believed in the project.
By the 2020 deadline, I managed to release Version 1.0. But to keep my promise, I had to use stock backgrounds and random assets I found on Google. Looking back, it makes me cringe. I’m still ashamed of that decision, but it gave me massive XP and feedback.
Redemption Arc: Version 2.0
I decided to nuke the old build. I realized quality > speed. Now, I have a team of artists working on the game, and an amazing composer who wrote over 100 tracks (some recorded with live instruments!).
We are redrawing everything.
What is this game?
Children of Terra is an unofficial spin-off. The plot is designed so you can enjoy it even if you’ve never played the original FF9 (though fans will catch plenty of references). It’s a story about war, freedom, and trying to keep your humanity when the world is falling apart.
Current State of the Build:
This is a non-profit passion project. I’m doing this for that naive kid from 2004 who just wanted the adventure to continue. I hope this story makes you smile and maybe feel that specific "warm melancholy" we all love JRPGs for.
You can play it for free (PC/Linux) on itch. link in the comment
Let me know what you think! Any feedback is gold.
Hey! My name is Arthur.
Back in 2004, I beat Final Fantasy IX for the first time. The game blew my mind so hard that I became obsessed with a naive but sincere dream: I was going to make a sequel.
It all started with a cringey fanfic in a standard 48-page school notebook. Being a kid, I even started learning Japanese. I seriously believed that one day I’d walk into Square Enix’s office, slap my notebook on the table, and they’d say: “Great kid, let’s make it happen!”
Obviously, as I grew up, I realized how delusional that plan was. But the itch to expand the universe of my favorite game never went away. In 2017, inspired by the indie Visual Novel scene, I realized: this is my chance. I can’t build a AAA RPG, but I can tell a story.
That’s how Children of Terra was born.
The Path of a Thousand Li (And My Mistakes)
Development kicked off in the winter of 2018 using Ren'Py. Like many rookie devs, I had zero clue how to scope a project. I promised to release the full game by July 2020 to celebrate FF9’s 20th anniversary. Making a massive game solo in 2 years? Yeah, pure madness.
The hardest quest was finding artists. I went through it all: looking for volunteers, cheap commissions that turned out awful, and eventually finding talented people who actually believed in the project.
By the 2020 deadline, I managed to release Version 1.0. But to keep my promise, I had to use stock backgrounds and random assets I found on Google. Looking back, it makes me cringe. I’m still ashamed of that decision, but it gave me massive XP and feedback.
Redemption Arc: Version 2.0
I decided to nuke the old build. I realized quality > speed. Now, I have a team of artists working on the game, and an amazing composer who wrote over 100 tracks (some recorded with live instruments!).
We are redrawing everything.
What is this game?
Children of Terra is an unofficial spin-off. The plot is designed so you can enjoy it even if you’ve never played the original FF9 (though fans will catch plenty of references). It’s a story about war, freedom, and trying to keep your humanity when the world is falling apart.
Current State of the Build:
- Story: 5 out of 12 chapters are available right now.
- Language: Fully translated into English.
- Updates: New chapters drop every 2 months.
- Gameplay: It’s a VN, but with interactive elements. Battles are designed as logic puzzles rather than a grind.
- Mini-games: Card games, trivia, and shell games.
This is a non-profit passion project. I’m doing this for that naive kid from 2004 who just wanted the adventure to continue. I hope this story makes you smile and maybe feel that specific "warm melancholy" we all love JRPGs for.
You can play it for free (PC/Linux) on itch. link in the comment
Let me know what you think! Any feedback is gold.