Indie developers of the horror-adventure game "Temple of the Children" are seeking 12-15 million rubles for development. The project already has a demo available
We continue our column "Developer/Publisher Wanted," where indie teams share their stories and projects. Up next is Children Play, which is creating the narrative horror-adventure "Children's Temple."
If you are an indie developer ready to talk about your project and also seeking investment, a publisher, or someone to join your team, be sure to contact us on the Telegram column — https://t.me/overwordly.
Yegor Rumyantsev, the project lead, talks about "Children's Temple."
Yegor Rumyantsev
About the Team
We are Children Play Studio, a team of newcomers. For all of us, "Children's Temple" is practically our first experience in game development, aside from some small or academic projects for programmers.
I, Yegor, can be considered the main servant of the Temple: I've worked on the game alone for a long time—drawing concepts, animations, locations, and working on the plot. Initially, "Children's Temple" was my personal project, but since 2024 I've started to gain "followers." The first to join me were Alina Stepanova as a community manager and Aigerim Almazova as a programmer, with whom we laid the foundation of the game's mechanics.
The team has gradually evolved. For instance, over time, Aigerim detached from the project, but new people joined.
For a significant period, the project's development was sustained by money from my primary job, savings, and the proceeds from selling an apartment. However, as it turned out, many people worked for the idea, and now the project has no funding whatsoever. Yet, we are in dire need of it.
Development has been in full swing for a year and a half.
Currently, the team consists of 6 people:
- Yegor Rumyantsev (story, game design, art and animations, manager, SMM, QA);
- Alina Stepanova (community manager, SMM);
- Kirill Sedoykin (programmer);
- Ksenia Karapats (programmer);
- Pyotr Rumyantsev (QA);
- Alexander Sazykin (sound design and music).
About the Project
The project started from my love for horror and Russian horror literature and creepypastas. I wanted to create my own world and story.
"Children's Temple" is a narrative horror-adventure about the value of childhood. It's about an ordinary girl from the Russian provinces who becomes part of horrific events, witnessing her reality turning into a nightmare. To survive, she has to unravel a secret kept by the children.
The project is made in Unity, and almost all animations in the project are frame-by-frame. We place great emphasis on atmosphere and visual style.
The basic game mechanics are ready, and there is a demo that will soon be available for download from Steam. The demo takes about an hour to complete. The full game is expected to last around eight hours.
About the Gameplay/Mechanics
This is a classic quest game, but with direct character control. Additionally, there will be a monster-stalker in the game that will keep the player on edge. Gameplay feels more like the old Silent Hill games (but in 2D) than classic adventures.
Project Features
- A deep atmosphere and an intriguing storyline in the spirit of childhood tales and urban legends, inspired by creepypastas and the best horror authors.
- The action takes place in the Russian provinces of the early 2000s.
- A unique 2D style and frame-by-frame animation.
- The game will have three chapters filled with many terrifying locations and characters.
- The game requires exploring locations, solving puzzles, and hiding from the monster-stalker.
About the Target Audience
We are targeting all fans of:
- horror (including psychological and body horror);
- creepypastas and urban legends;
- the aesthetic of Russian cities.
Our project is for those who've played:
- Fran Bow;
- Distraint;
- Sally Face;
- Little Nightmares;
- Lost in Vivo;
- Zaychik;
- all parts of Silent Hill;
- ...and are now looking for something similar.
Our project is for those who aren't afraid of explicit cruelty and complex themes. And for those who are drawn to the mysterious and mystical. There are many of us.
About the Business Model
We expect at least 100,000 copies sold. We took this figure as the average sales of similar games. This level of sales we consider a "moderate success."
In a conversation with one publisher, we learned that our project has potential and that we can aim for more.
However, even selling 100,000 copies will recoup the project's development costs and allow both us and the publisher to earn from the game. The revenue will be sufficient for the development of our next game.
We have a detailed spreadsheet where we calculated everything.
About the Metrics
As of 01.08.25, we have:
- Steam — 9,058 wishlists;
- VK — 1,471 subscribers;
- Telegram — 574 subscribers;
- YouTube — 1,430 subscribers;
- Trailer on YouTube — 39,452 views.
The full game will cost about 500 rubles for Russia and CIS, and on average about 10 dollars internationally.
Who We’re Looking For
We are looking for a publisher willing to finance the development, or simply financial support.
We need 12-15 million rubles and two more years to develop the full game.
The funds will go towards salaries. We need 500,000 rubles per month for a team of 6-7 people. We plan to hire another artist.
How to Contact Us?
- Alina (Community Manager): https://t.me/Cherstvaya
- Email: ChildrenTemple@yandex.ru