Maroon Ink Studio: Home
We are an international game development studio producing fairy-tale-inspired otome visual novels.
Our games feature spirited heroines and sensual male leads, all of whom carry deep secrets. We blend romantic plots with fairy-tale settings, including magic, martial arts, and mystical places.The thread that binds them all together is hope. Hope for a better future, hope for a life well-lived, and hope for that stubborn ML to finally smooch the FMC!
Nozomu:
School Daze
Nozomu: School Daze is a slice-of-life, romantic visual novel set in the blended setting of fantasy and modern life of Nozomu. Join Sari as she tries to take the most important university exam of her life, but keeps getting thwarted by those stupid boys! Find more info about N:SD here!
Fond Familiar
Follow Melanie as she tries to navigate both new relationships and old — none of which she remembers. Find more info about Fond Familiar here!
Latest News
Keep up with the latest devlogs from Maroon Ink Studio!
Maroon Ink Studio: Nozomu: School Daze
Because of her stellar studying habits and top-notch grades, Sari is allowed to study at a university for nobles far above her station. The most important exam of her life, however, is about to be rudely interrupted!Those "dumb boys" just don't know when to quit, but Sari's life changes the moment her opportunity to sit for her exam is stolen from her.But her biggest problem isn't the boys, despite her scathing thoughts on them. Her most difficult challenge is hiding a secret that, if discovered, will have the whole port of Rabban raising torches and pitchforks!You get to decide her fate in life and love! Will she end up with the brave and silly martial artist, the gallant and refined knight, or the mischievous and strong catboy?Nozomu: School Daze is a non-canon comedic romp through the Nozomu universe, told with sensitivity by an international team. It features all original art and music with no AI.
"Awww, hello, little one! Here, let me help you…"
Smart, capable, and with boundless energy, Sari dreams of someday taking her place as a renowned healer. More concerned with her exams than with boys, Sari is about to have her world turned upside down.But what's this about a damning secret...?
"How could I ever have doubted you? I've no doubt you'll do just fine."
Touted by his rabid fangirls as "the perfect man," Julius is rich, kind, attractive, and a consummate fighter. He supports the causes of the oppressed and wishes to raise a family of his own to carry on the Van der Geest name.But what lurks beneath the surface of all the glitz and glam...?
"I didn't want you to go hungry, Sari..."
Seki maintains the three classic components of a himbo:
• pure of heart
• strong of chest
• dumb of butt
He is generous to a fault, a martial arts master who defends the vulnerable. Despite being a goofy prankster, he does know when, how, and why to take things seriously!
"That kiss didn't mean anything!"
A prince of his tribe and an aggressive brawler, Seth is a Beastman, a class of people looked down upon for their inhuman traits. As a catman, Seth is proud of himself and his people to the point of arrogance, but don't let the gruff boasting fool you.Somewhere, buried deep, is a softer side of Seth. It's up to you to coax it out!
• "Battle" system never before seen in an otome!
• Approximately 30,000 words with eight separate endings
• Three romanceable male leads
• Original character sprites from DaCeroNine
• Newly composed backgrounds and soundtrack by Kaeyari
• Art direction & stunning CGs provided by Caitlin Dumas
• Album featuring CG viewing and featured fanart
• Two and a half himbos
Maroon Ink Studio: Contact
Drop Us a Line
Questions? Feel free to contact us using the form below.
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Maroon Ink Studio: Streaming Guidelines
Streaming Policy & Guidelines
Can I stream your entire game and make money off the videos?
Yes, please!Can I record content from your games and post them as Let's Plays? Can I place ads on these uploads?
Yes! But please do add some creative value of your own - we do not endorse "commentary-free" or "silent playthroughs."We also require a working link to the game in the description of your video, which can be found on our Steam Page.How can I use music from your games?
You may only use music from the games in live streams, Let's Plays or other recordings, or videos featuring the game. No other use is allowed.Do you have any press kits with screenshots, assets, and other materials I can use to make my videos?
We do!Can I join your press list to get press releases and other updates?
Yes!You can also sign up for our newsletter for exclusive studio updates.Disclaimer
We are not affiliated with any persons using this policy; these guidelines are free for all to use. We reserve the right to remove content that is against these rules.Thank you for streaming a Maroon Ink Studio title!
Maroon Ink Studio: About
Our Team
Caitlin ~ Art Director & CG Artist
American artist and writer based in the Rocky Mountain region, Caitlin Dumas has a passion for character-driven drama, comic-style art, and grounded stories. She has multiple past and present story projects as well as a comic in development.
Cass ~ Writer
Primarily a fanfiction writer, Cass loves to write sweeping romances that don't shy away from difficult topics, such as toxic relationships or mental health struggles. Cass also writes short and long memoir about raising children in the Pacific NW.
Maroon Ink Studio: Fond Familiar
When Melanie wakes up on the ground with no knowledge about herself except her own name, she is forced into a situation out of her depth and must navigate the strange world she finds herself in: Meridia.It's a world that includes magic of all kinds, wielded by all manner of people, and strangely enough, everyone but her has a familiar: a magical companion that reflects the innermost heart, which people don't wear on their sleeves.As Melanie comes to terms with her new life in Meridia, she must forge her own path in the shadows of six interconnected men who all seem to have plans for her that she did not and would not choose for herself.But why does she get visions every time she touches one of them?
"You storm in here, place a hand on my chest, and manhandle me? How dare you!"
Despite her allegedly head-injury-induced amnesia, Melanie has no issue standing up for herself – if you choose for her to. She is fiercely intelligent but often confused, and she runs into several people who know her but refuse to explain how.To save herself, Melanie needs to figure out who she can trust and who she can't – fast.
"My brain just works like that, I guess. Pity yours doesn’t!"
Despite being scatterbrained and disorganized, Rainer manages his own alchemical practice. He cheerfully brews potions for the commonfolk of Meridia while specializing in earth magic.His familiar, Kevin, a gecko, watches out for him, making sure he eats, showers, and avoids being sucked in by the "new shiny."Will his next hyperfixation be you?
"'De-plor-a-ble.' Now that’s a ten-gold word."
Rough on the outside and considered nothing more than a loudmouthed hired muscle, Leander has a no-nonsense attitude and hates it when people are afraid of him.That's true even though he kills people for a living. Oh, well!His familiar, a white tiger named Bel, is a shy and delicate contrast to his gruff attitude. But Bel also holds secrets of her own, and will defend her beloved Leander if necessary.
"Mind if I clean up your wound and take a look to see if you need stitches?"
If there's one thing you need to know about Dr. Dobrovsky, it's that he's obsessed with blood tests, and few people know why. He has a charming bedside manner and loves to treat children, but his fixation on blood and his platonic, protective preoccupation with his assistant, Vivian, have made them outcasts.His familiar, Boo, suits him: a leech whom he dresses in tiny outfits specially made for Boo by one of his frequent patients.
"Chip, this is no time for pleasantries. Return to my side at once."
As cold as the ice magic he specializes in, Caelix is a powerful mage and recently promoted Records Keeper. The position consolidates his authority in Meridia, which he wields over Melanie and everyone else like a tool.He knows Melanie better than she knows herself, and despite his insistence that she remain by his side to be "cared for," he refuses to elaborate on their past relationship.His beloved familiar, Chip, by contrast, is a fun-loving and childish penguin who isn't afraid to call Caelix out for his frosty behavior.
"You’ll never believe what Melanie asked for the other day..."
Atlas, a mysterious ML who clearly doesn't understand the culture of Meridia, has a shocking amount of knowledge about Melanie that she lacks herself. He is more than happy to provide context about her, to her, but should you trust him?His familiar, Sisyphus, is a rock that he pasted googly eyes on.Yup. Just a rock.
"Do the... you thing you do."
As a knight, Soren issues commands and expects them to be followed. He is unfamiliar with the customs of Meridia, so he apes them to pass as a native of the culture.Hairy, his unmagical capybara, is the love of his life, whom he happened to pick up from the street to fit in when he saw the Meridians all had familiars.But wait, why does Soren have a secret agenda with Melanie?
Devlog 1 - How to Tell if an Image is AI Generated 🎨
When designing the logo for our visual novel, Nozomu School Daze, Cero reached out to a friend of his (whom I will not identify for reasons that will be made clear).Maroon Ink Studio makes creative decisions in a direct message on Discord. Before he reached out to his graphic designer friend, Cero drew an original logo heavily based on the Nozomu webcomic’s logo and sent it to the MIS DM for approval.Our otome expert, Mari, pointed out that the original green logo didn’t fit the theme of other visual novels set in schools, as their logos tend to be much more bubbly! She provided examples, and we agreed the font needed to be changed.Cero then reached out to his friend and described what Mari had told him. Cero’s friend immediately sent him several mockups, which Cero sent to us. Mari and I asked for color changes, and we settled on orange text with a blue outline for “Nozomu,” and light blue text for “School Daze.” 🎉
However, when we posted the finalized logo in the chat, Caitlin, our art director, pointed out that the logo seemed AI-generated. 😬 Upon further examination, we found “artifacts galore,” and several mistakes that humans would not have made. Yikes
Similar nonsensical hue-shifting was found in the logo colors itself, and the lettering had suspicious lumps in areas that you would just use the line/path tool for.It seemed to us that human edits were made, but that it was heavily AI-generated, unfortunately.... Or at the very least, the risk was too great to move ahead with the design. All right, back to Cass!]We are an anti-AI studio (🚫NO AI), so we decided to scrap the design entirely. Cero volunteered to compose a new logo from scratch with the colors we chose: orange, dark blue, and light blue. Cero laid the letters over a heart (picture 1), adding the Nozomu wing, and we thought, “Awesome!”After Caitlin polished the design – moving the wing, changing the highlights on the heart, and raising the saturation – our logo was complete (picture 2). That’s the logo you see today for Nozomu School Daze, our up-and-coming visual novel featuring Sari and three romanceable martial artist MLs! ♥️
Latest News
• Devlog 1 - How to Tell if an Image is AI Generated🎨