YahBoi-Blayke
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Apollo Studios (Model Update Proposal)
🕑 Added 2026-01-24 21:54:02 +0000 UTCOver the past few months, we’ve been having some big internal conversations about sustainability, creative burnout, and how Apollo Studios can continue to champion queer stories without losing the heart of what we do. It’s no secret that the current political climate is affecting queer visibility for indie creators. We have felt this struggle, as have many other creatives.
From those discussions, a new idea has emerged. Before anything is finalized, we want to bring you into the conversation.
The Proposal (In Plain Terms)
We’re exploring a shift in how Apollo Studios operates.
Instead of focusing almost exclusively on in-house projects, we’re considering expanding Apollo Studios into a creator-facilitation and mentorship model. A creative label that supports multiple queer creators and story-driven projects under one shared umbrella.
This would not replace Apollo Studios’ existing identity. We would still create our core Visual Novels and occasional short stories. The difference is that some of the time and energy that would normally go into side projects would instead be used to support other creators in bringing their stories to life.
What Would That Look Like?
Under this model, Apollo Studios would act as a curated creative home, offering guidance and support to independent creators working on story-driven projects.
Supported formats could include:
Visual Novels and story-driven games
Original written fiction or serialised stories
3D art and rendered narrative projects
Web comics and other visual storytelling formats
The unifying thread would always be strong narrative intent, emotional grounding, and queer storytelling.
What Apollo Studios Would Provide
Apollo Studios wouldn’t supply assets or licensed content — but we would provide:
Narrative and character development feedback
Emotional pacing and structural guidance
Visual storytelling and composition support
Medium-specific mentorship (VN development, prose, DAZ3D, Ren’Py, etc.)
Editorial-style critique aligned with Apollo’s creative standards
Marketing support and visibility
In short: guidance, mentorship, and curation — not ownership of the creative process.
There is no charge for creators to participate, but there will be an application process to ensure both parties are a good fit for one another. In exchange, projects would:
Be released under the Apollo Studios brand
Launch with a three-week exclusive early release on the Apollo Studios Patreon
Go through a review process to ensure they align with Apollo’s values and Patreon’s platform guidelines
After the exclusive period, creators may share their work elsewhere, but we ask that they include a visible credit to Apollo Studios, utilising the logo so we can continue to build brand awareness and drive traffic.
Why We’re Considering This
Apollo Studios has always been about emotional authenticity and queer stories that matter. But a purely in-house model can be limiting, exhausting, and fragile.
This approach could allow us to:
Support more queer stories without burning out
Reduce creative bottlenecks
Build Apollo Studios as a label and creative home, not just a single pipeline
Create a more sustainable future for the studio and its creators
We Want Your Thoughts
Nothing is locked in yet. This is still a proposal, and before we move forward, we want to know:
Would this excite you as a supporter?
Would you be interested in seeing a wider range of projects under Apollo Studios?
Are there concerns, questions, or ideas you’d want addressed before something like this launches?
If there’s genuine interest, the next steps would include drafting creator guidelines, defining clear terms and conditions, and running a small pilot program.
For now, we’d love to hear from you.
Apollo Studios exists because of this community, and any future we build should be shaped together.
Comments
Blayke
<3 Feel free to message me anytime to talk about stuff! Even if it's just laying down ideas for the moment.
Brian's Sandbox
I love this for you. Be a force multiplier. And I may take advantage of your services myself one day. But most of all, take care of yourself and work at a sustainable pace. We need you here for the long-haul.
Blayke
Thank you for the feedback :) I've already addressed your second point in another reply on here, so check that out just so I'm not repeating myself :) I think your first point is pretty valid for sure! As part of the guidance, we'll try to advise people to stick to more manageable projects that fits within the scope of the time they can spend working on it, and their skill ability. As for our own projects, we're working on wrapping up the Lonely Lights VN short so that the only VNs remaining will be New Hope, Hollow and Fortune Favors. Fortune Favors works along the same timeline as Hollow - so that can only receive narrative update when Hollow does as to not potentially spoil any future events that happen within Hollow. After the next New Hope update, there will only be around three/four additional updates to finish the game. They'll be large update with lots of content, but the story is entering the third act after this final remaster update is published. (As for all the short stories floating around: most of them will be finished this year once we have less of the other big projects still hanging around like loose threads.)
Blayke
I'm glad you like the idea! Could be an amazing opportunity to grow the community as a whole <3
MagSeb
I think you’re one of the best at creating great stories and visual experiences. Your dedication to strong narrative content is one of the reasons I follow and support you, and have done so for many years. I think taking on a mentorship role would suit you very well. I would be very interested in a wider range of projects under Apollo Studios. I think running a small pilot program is a great idea. I have two concerns. First, I worry that this more content will end up as more unfinished/ discontinued, and that’s something Apollo Studios doesn’t need more. Second, I’m a bit concerned that this will take up your time from doing your own content. I hope that I didn’t come off as too negative with my concerns, because I’m really hopeful that this new direction is going to work.
Malfuric
I like it. We need more queer visibility right now. Taking on the role of mentor can help facilitate that. I’m sure there are creators out there who have ideas but no clue where or how to start.
Blayke
Glad you're loving the idea! That's a valid concern and one I'm sure other people have too, so I'll do my best to answer and hopefully alleviate those concerns. When we do any side projects aside from the core VN games (New Hope & Hollow) all of that work still comes from myself and Adam. There's no outside support, no third party we involve, it's just us. However, with this model, that time would be instead spent on supporting other creatives (rather than actually creating the content ourselves.) That's the biggest distinction. We'd be there to help, guide and support; but not create the end product. That allows us to keep our creative juices and inspiration purely for the VN Games, instead of spreading them thin and shooting them in every direction possible because we get a new idea every other day. Helping and supporting others in that allocated time should help us put more focus and creative energy into the core projects that matter. New Hope and Hollow. Hopefully that makes sense and answers your concern! With all that being said, this is entirely reliant on people being interested in actually taking part haha!
Tahu
I really love this idea, honestly. I think Apollo Studios is one of the most creative and emotionally honest studios out there, and I can totally see how a mentorship or support role could be an incredible opportunity for a lot of queer creators who are just starting out That said, and saying this with a lot of appreciation and respect for your work, I do have a small doubt... Knowing how small the team is and how much heart and energy already goes into your own games and stories, I’m not fully seeing yet how this shift would actually help with the burnout you mentioned. From the outside, supporting and guiding other creators still feels like it could take a lot of focus, emotional energy, and time, even if it’s a different kind of work than creating everything in-house. I completely understand the burnout you’re talking about, I really do... I guess I’m just curious what would get lighter or simpler on your side to make this truly sustainable. Either way, I really appreciate how much you care about queer representation and about lifting others up in the industry. But, even with my doubts, I really like the idea. It feels generous, a very Apollo thing, and like something that could genuinely benefit both the studio and the community
Blayke
That's the vision! We're stronger together, and I want to help others creatives get the opportunity to share their work and grow a following. Hopefully this is something that gains enough interest and we can run a test pilot to see how it's received.
Sebbyear
This is a moment where I believe, more than ever, the community needs to stick together. With the experience and expertise you have developed (and delivered) over the years, this could be an opportunity for growth - both personal, and from an outreach point of view. I see this as potentially very beneficial for voices that need be heard.
Blayke
Ultimately that would be the goal. To try and grow and connect communities, and help new starters actually get their feet off the ground
SBBD
It's definitely an interesting concept and could introduce your followers to new content as well as your content to their's should they build an audience elsewhere.
