Tales of Monsterland
First Game Boy project, started during lockdown.
About
Hi, I'm Joel, solo dev and founder of the imaginatively titled Joel J Games.
Based in Manchester, UK, I'm a long-time Game Boy player and collector. I started dabbling with game development in lockdown 2021 with the first Tales of Monsterland, a homage to the classic 8-bit platform games like Wonder Boy and Kirby I grew up with.
Directly after that I start work on my multi-year passion project – Fall from Space, a non-linear, ambitious open-world sci-fi action RPG, for the Game Boy Color.
Tessarium followed as a side project: a tile editor built around the kind of level-building workflow I use for my own projects, designed to be used for any future projects and with everything I felt was missing.
Thank you to anyone who has shared, liked or given feedback on one of my games. It really means a lot, and I appreciate the support.
History
Joel J Games
A short version of the studio timeline, from first lockdown experiments in Game Boy development (Tales of Monsterland) to current games and tools.
Tales of Monsterland DX
Rebuilt for Game Boy Color with a commissioned chip tune soundtrack, updated art, extra features and a physical release as a Chromatic launch title.
Fall from Space
An epic open-world sci-fi action RPG for the Game Boy Color, four years in development, physical release due in mid-2026.
Tessarium
A tile-first editor for retro pixel art worlds and smoother GB Studio workflows.