Studio Élan Explained

Studio Élan
Type:Private
Industry:Video games
Hq Location Country:U.S.

Studio Élan is an independent video game developer and publisher founded in 2017 by Josh Kaplan.[1] They specialised in yuri visual novels and are best known for their first two titles, Highway Blossoms and Heart of the Woods.

History

Studio Élan first began as an amateur game development group under the name Alienwork. Between working on another project within Alienwork, Syon Santeria pitched fellow member Josh Kaplan on creating a yuri visual novel as a smaller side project, the idea interested Kaplan and the pair began development of Highway Blossoms.[2] Sekai Project announced the game at Anime Weekend Atlanta on September 26, 2015,[3] and in 2016 opened a Steam Greenlight page for the game.[4] Highway Blossoms was initially released without any voice acting and its sound was limited to an acoustic soundtrack. An adult content patch was made freely available.[5] [6] The developer later released a remastered version of the game featuring voice-overs for the characters.[7]

Highway Blossoms received positive reviews for its visuals, story, and soundtrack.[8] [9] [10] [11] Kaplan also noted that the game "ended up being unexpectedly successful," stating that "it found an audience of primarily LGBT readers who appreciated what they felt was a more realistic approach to same-sex relationships."[12] Due to the game's success, Kaplan went on to found Studio Élan in February 2017. In October, Highway Blossomss publisher Sekai Project announced that Élan would be working on two further visual novels.[13] One of these was Heart of the Woods, which would be released in 2019.[14] The studio's work would go on to garner a reputation for commonly featuring LGBTQ+ and sapphic themes.[15] In a 2018 interview, the head of the studio stated that "the majority" of studio members are LGBT women.[16]

In 2019, the studio announced Lock and Key, a magical girl yuri visual novel.[17] In February 2020, Studio Élan announced that they would begin publishing visual novels under their newly formed "Bellhouse" label, with First Snow as their first title.[18] They further released Highway Blossoms: Next Exit, downloadable content (DLC) for Highway Blossoms in 2020.[19] Also in February, the release a trailer for Summer At the Edge of the Universe, which was set for release in 2021.[20] [21] In April 2021, Studio Elan announced plans for a console port of Highway Blossoms.[22]

In October 2022, the studio merged with Studio Coattails.[23] In November, the studio released Please Be Happy.[24] In April 2023, Heart of the Woods received a limited physical release.[25] Later in October, the studio published Twofold, a visual novel following non-binary college student Olive Penn.[26]

Games

Games developed

Title Platform(s) Publication date Ref
Highway Blossoms [27]
The Waters Above: Prelude Windows [28]
Heart of the Woods [29]
Please Be Happy Windows [30]
Summer At the Edge of the Universe TBA TBA [31]
Lock and Key: A Magical Girl Mystery Windows TBA [32]
Our Home, My Keeper TBA TBA [33]

Games published

Title Developer Platform(s) Publication date Ref
National Park Girls Studio Coattails Windows [34]
Without A Voice L³ Windows [35]
First Snow Salty Salty Studios Windows [36]
Who Is The Red Queen? 4noki Windows [37]
Twofold Salty Salty Studios Windows [38]
Love In a Bottle lovelandisle Windows TBA [39]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Studio Elan. Gematsu. 28 January 2022 . April 11, 2023.
  2. Web site: Preparing for a Yuri Road Trip: An Interview With Highway Blossoms Developer, J. Kaplan. Yuri Empire. June 3, 2016 . July 7, 2023.
  3. Web site: Sekai Project Adds Wagamama High Spec, Darekoi, More Visual Novels . April 11, 2023 . Anime News Network . en.
  4. Web site: Estrada . Marcus . February 17, 2016 . Take a Yuri Road Trip with Highway Blossoms . April 9, 2023 . Hardcore Gamer.
  5. Web site: Friedman . Erica . Erica Friedman . June 20, 2016 . Yuri Visual Novel: Highway Blossoms (English) . April 11, 2023 . Okazu.
  6. Web site: Tarason . Dominic . September 17, 2018 . Steam's first sexually explicit Adult Only games are out now, but not in every region . April 9, 2023 . Rock Paper Shotgun.
  7. Web site: Manente . Kristina . March 26, 2019 . Nerdy Jobs: The voices behind dating sims and visual novels . April 9, 2023 . Syfy.
  8. Web site: Jones . Rebecca . Gremillion . Mexi . January 1, 2023 . The 10 best visual novels on PC in 2023 . April 9, 2023 . Rock Paper Shotgun.
  9. Web site: Valens . Ana . May 20, 2021 . October 26, 2019 . Eroge, visual novels, and hentai: Your guide to adult visual novels . April 9, 2023 . The Daily Dot.
  10. Web site: Terese . Tyler . May 22, 2018 . 15 PC Visual Novels That Every Gamer Should Play . April 9, 2023 . GameRevolution.
  11. Web site: Ahlbrand . Maddison . February 9, 2023 . 9 Best LGBTQ+ Visual Novel Games . April 9, 2023 . TheGamer.
  12. Web site: Rowe . Willa . February 21, 2023 . Studio Élan on Doing Romance Right in Video Games: "Fans Want Nuanced, In-Depth Stories" . April 9, 2023 . Inverse.
  13. Web site: Estrada. Marcus. Studio Élan Creating Two New Yuri Visual Novels. Hardcore Gamer. October 3, 2017. April 11, 2023.
  14. Web site: Romano. Sal. Heart of the Woods launches July 8 for Switch, in August for PS5, Xbox Series, PS4, and Xbox One . Gematsu. June 12, 2021. July 9, 2023.
  15. Web site: King. Jade. Pride Month Picks: Studio Elan Is The Master Of Sapphic Visual Novels. TheGamer. June 29, 2022. January 4, 2024.
  16. Web site: Jay. Mitch. Studio Élan Interview – Visual Novels, Yuri, Steam and More . Rice Digital. September 6, 2018. May 11, 2024.
  17. Web site: Hart. Aimee. Lock and Key, a yuri visual novel that includes magical girls, is announced . Gayming Magazine. December 9, 2019. May 11, 2024.
  18. Web site: Branching Out: Bellhouse. Studio Élan. February 29, 2020. July 7, 2023.
  19. Web site: Behind the Scenes with Studio Élan. VN Game Den. April 7, 2021. April 11, 2023.
  20. Web site: Studio Élan Unveils New Solarpunk Visual Novel Summer at the Edge of the Universe. Hardcore Gamer. February 12, 2020. April 11, 2023.
  21. Web site: Hart. Aimee. Studio Élan announces Summer at the Edge of the Universe, a lesbian visual novel . Gayming Magazine. February 13, 2020. May 11, 2024.
  22. Web site: Hart . Aimee . Studio Élan reveals popular lesbian game Highway Blossoms is coming to console - Gayming Magazine . April 11, 2023 . Gayming Magazine. 21 June 2021 .
  23. Happy Halloween everyone! We've got several announcements for today ✨ Studio Élan is growing bigger with our merger with Studio Coattails! They're the co-developers of Highway Blossoms and we've worked closely with them for years- and now, we're joining forces.. vnstudioelan. 1587187901481328641. October 31, 2022. April 11, 2023.
  24. Web site: Hart. Aimee. Please Be Happy is Studio Élan's new lesbian visual novel. Gayming Magazine. November 23, 2022. April 11, 2023.
  25. Web site: Yuri visual novel Heart of the Woods to receive limited physical edition. Gayming Magazine. April 6, 2023. January 4, 2024.
  26. Web site: Hart. Aimee. Studio Élan releases Twofold, a visual novel featuring a non-binary protagonist, today. Gayming Magazine. October 27, 2023. January 4, 2024.
  27. Web site: Highway Blossoms on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  28. Web site: The Waters Above: Prelude on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  29. Web site: Heart of the Woods on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  30. Web site: Please Be Happy on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  31. Web site: Summer at the Edge of the Universe. Studio Élan. July 9, 2023.
  32. Web site: Lock & Key: A Magical Girl Mystery on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  33. Web site: Our Home, My Keeper. Studio Élan. July 9, 2023.
  34. Web site: National Park Girls on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  35. Web site: Without A Voice on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  36. Web site: First Snow on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  37. Web site: Who Is The Red Queen? on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  38. Web site: Twofold on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.
  39. Web site: Love In a Bottle on Steam. Valve. July 7, 2023.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Studio Élan".

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