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Happy Birthday, Sam!

On the 24th of December, many people think of Christmas Eve.

But as of 2017, that date has an additional meaning to us at the Knights of Bytes: It's when Sam's Journey on the C64 was released to the public! And thus we say ...

Happy 5th Birthday, Sam!

Sam's 5th Birthday
It's Sam's 5th birthday on the C64 - and he's about to hit the NES

We would like to send Greetings of the Season to our faithful supporters and all retro gamers out there! See you in 2023!


Sam in 3D?

After a COVID-19-related hiatus, we're back with a new post!

Sam in 2D and 3D
2D Sam meets a 3D version of himself

What's happening here? Is Sam done with 2D and planning his leap into the third dimension??

Of course not, but that 3D version of Sam may have something to do with the limited Ultimate Edition which we are currently creating for Sam's Journey on the NES!


The World Of Sam

Sam begins his journey at the bottom of the Lowlands. But this is only a small part of the world he's about to travel!


Map Of The Lowlands Where Sam Begins His Journey

In total, 3 overworld maps, 27 huge levels and over 2000 screens are waiting to be explored!

Sam will be starring in Sam's Journey, a scrolling platform game for the NES with huge levels to be explored, hidden items to be found and secret passages to be discovered.


Box Samples Arrived At Poly.Play

Our friends at poly.play have received the first batch of box samples for Sam's Journey on the NES!

Now, some craftmanship is being called for to get them assembled...

Sam's Journey NES Box Sample Arrived
Box Samples for Sam's Journey on the NES

If we are satisfied with the quality of the results, we will have found our boxes! Their dimensions match those of the typical NES game boxes so they are going to look great in your collection!

Are you interested in Sam's Journey on the NES? We're going to start a pre-order campaign soon, but you can already create a customer account at poly.play who will eventually handle the production and distribution of the game.


Boot Testing Sam's Journey On Real Hardware

It's always exciting to check if the game we're currently creating runs on real hardware, so let's give it a quick spin on the NES!


Sam's Journey Booting On Real NES

Fun fact: The game does indeed have sound, but the camera's microphone somehow didn't catch it. However, it did catch the squeaking lid!


Retrogame Publisher Poly.Play To Produce Sam's Journey On The NES

Sam's Journey on the NES is nearly finished, but the game wouldn't be complete without an awesome physical edition!

That's why the Knights of Bytes teamed up with retrogame publisher poly.play who will handle the creation and production of some cool Sam's Journey game packages and also take care of the (pre-)order and billing process as well as the distribution.

poly.play Logo
Logo Of Retrogame Publisher Poly.Play
Visit Online Shop | Create Customer Account ]

Who are poly.play?

Poly.Play As Publisher

Based in the EU, but shipping internationally, poly.play are an aspiring retrogame publisher who have already published numerous small and large scale game productions, mainly for classic home computers such as the Commodore 64, the Amstrad CPC, the Apple II or the Atari 800.

poly.play Products
A Sample Of Poly.Play Products

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Poly.Play As Exhibitor

Apart from creating all those beautiful editions, poly.play also present their products on public events like the retro section of the gamescom exhibition. Interested retro gamers can try the latest demos of games in development and also buy copies of available titles right on location.

poly.play Stand At Gamescom Exhibition
Poly.Play At The Gamescom Exhibition

Poly.Play As Distributor

Games from poly.play can be ordered directly in their online shop. All you need is create a customer account. The registration is free. To ease the process for international customers, poly.play offers a variety of payment methods and ships world-wide.

poly.play Processing Orders
Poly.Play Processing Your Orders

Poly.Play And Sam

Stay tuned for updates on what poly.play have in stock for Sam!

poly.play And Sam


Evaluating Cartridge Boards For Sam

Creating a video game like Sam's Journey is very much about writing code, designing worlds, drawing graphics and composing tunes. All of those tasks result in a huge bunch of digital data.

But digital data alone is not the end of the story. If we want our Sam to look cool on the store shelves, things must get physical! And one of the things we need is a cartridge board to store the game on.

Evaluating NES Cartridge PCBs
A Collection Of Circuit Boards For NES Cartridges

There are quite some circuit boards available for NES game productions, all of them with their own benefits and flaws. We ordered a collection of those boards to evaluate which model suits best the requirements of our game.

This is a very exciting step in the development of Sam's Journey on the NES as it also marks the game's transition from a project to a product. Stay tuned!


Sam's Journey NES Sneak Peek #5: A Twist In The Sky

It's been a while since our last update on Sam, but that doesn't mean we've been idle! The game took a huge step towards its release and we are very happy to present you another video.


Sam's Journey (NES) · Sneak Peek #5 · A Twist In The Sky
Watch on YouTube | Download MP4 ]

Some fiery creatures await Disco Sam in the sky, but thanks to his signature twist, he can delay his fall gently and stomp them precisely!

Sam will be starring in Sam's Journey, a scrolling platform game for the NES with huge levels to be explored, hidden items to be found and secret passages to be discovered.


Website Revived!

The Knights of Bytes website has finally received its long-due update!

Website Revived

Browse the news archive to see how Sam's Journey on the C64 has performed since its release.

You will also find screenshots, videos and further information about our upcoming port of Sam's Journey to the NES.

We're going to post regular updates here, so stay tuned!


The Old Spirit Is Not Amused

It looks like the lord of this castle isn't too fond of Sam's visit...

Sam's Journey NES Spirit Boss
This Welcome Isn't The Warmest (NES)

Although just a spirit, its attacks are quite physical: Sam has to deal with chains, balls and axes here!

Sam will be starring in Sam's Journey, a scrolling platform game for the NES with huge levels to be explored, hidden items to be found and secret passages to be discovered.


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