Ex-Borderlands 2 developer J. Kyle Pittman is in the process of creating two NES-style games at once: Gunmetal Arcadia and Gunmetal Arcadia Zero.
Pittman says that they’re both informed by classic action platformers like Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, The Battle of Olympus, Faxanadu, and Castlevania. It also emulates their look with Pittman’s own CRT simulation tech as seen in Super Win The Game.
But what’s the difference between the two? It’s easy: Gunmetal Arcadia takes cues from modern-day roguelikes by emphasizing replayability over bite-sized procedurally generated levels, while Gunmetal Arcadia Zero focuses on “classic action and skillful play across a number of handcrafted levels.”
Currently, Pittman is developing both games with his own funds and those coming in through community-based support. The plan is to release both games simultaneously for Windows, Mac, and Linux later in 2016. You can keep up with development on the Gunmetal Arcadia website.