iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Though I consider myself a digital artist, SOOOO much of my planning starts off on pencil and paper. Something about doodling makes my ideas flow so much quicker. Here's how I planned the character styles for Welcome to the Syndicate! #gamedev #indiegame #gameart #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A big THANK YOU everyone who's checked out Welcome to the Syndicate since it's demo release! I've been quiet since the demo dropped but the brief vacation was just what I needed to come back swinging ✨️ Looking forward to posting a bit more regularly now, so keep an eye out 👁👅👁 #indiegamedev #demo

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

📰 EXTRA! EXTRA! 📰 Emerald Times presents: Welcome to the Syndicate has officially released its FREE DEMO on Steam‼️ store.steampowered.com/app/3235320/... #gamedev #indiegame #indiedev

NEW EMERALD TIMES
Headliner: Demo Out Now!
Solo Dev Finally Releases Her Playable Demo
Welcome to the Syndicate has officially released their long awaited demo onto the Steam Marketplace.
According to highly reputable sources players will be able to experience the game up until their 3rd upgrade, to which the game will then lock itself irregardless of which upgrades they choose.
While the full game is under construction, even the demo will be expecting new features, including:
paychecks, unlockable stories, jail time, heists, special team abilities and more!

The game’s creator, Kay Illustrations, admits that the game’s intended release date was for August 26th, though due to unforeseen veterinarian emergencies she had to postpone. Kay thanks everyone for their kind wishes during that stressful time and assures that her focus will return to game development now that her fur baby is back to her healthy routine."

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

GUYS WE ARE AT 100 WISHLISTS‼️ not only that but 📣📣DEMO DROPS AT THE END OF THIS MONTH 📣📣 Don't miss out! Head over to the steampage and wishlist to tet notified when it's 🔴LIVE🔴 #indiegamedev #demo #upcominggame #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Oh ❓ What's this? 👀 Its a sneak peek at Welcome to the Syndicate's new color upgrade before the demo drops ‼️🎨 Do you like the old or the new colors more? 🤔 #indiegamedev #managementgame #gameart #wtts

the old color scheme. colors are more subdued and sepia toned

new colors. contrast is bumped up and now there's a pink overlay. The old Sepia-tone is gone, but colors are more eye-catching

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

*hacker voice* I'm in 👓 Don't be fooled, the demo isn't yet live, but this is a huge step forward for me. Now I just need to finish upgrading the save/load system and we are golden ✨️ #indiegamedev #demo #steamnextfest #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Yooo who's going to be my 69th wishlister?!?!?! #indiegamedev #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

🫴 Will you join her ❓ In the spirit of Welcome to the Syndicate dropping it's demo soon, I redrew one of my favorite Clara artworks from a couple years ago. If you ARE interested in joining, please go wishlist it on Steam 💌 DEMO COMING SOON!!!! 🔗 below #redraw #illustration #creepycute #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

👋 Hey all! I'm currently working on a lil game called WELCOME TO THE SYNDICATE! Its a clicker management sim where you get to build and manage a team of femme fatales in 1930s NYC. If you're interested, please go wishlist it on Steam 💕 store.steampowered.com/app/3235320/...

store.steampowered.com

Welcome to the Syndicate on Steam

Rise to infamy through hits, heists, and upheaval as you build and manage your own mob of femme fatales in 1930s NYC. Will you be able to succeed against the odds and fight for those who cannot?

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Welcome to the Syndicate is rocking a new look! After some careful consideration, I deemed that the old cover just didn't give the right impression. What do you think? Do you like the new or the old design better? #indiegame #clickergame #managementsim #wtts #solodev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

So excited to be showcasing Welcome to the Syndicate at Anime Ohio on July 11th! If you're a non-local supporter and want to support me still, please go check out and wishlist my game on steam! store.steampowered.com/app/3235320/... #gamedev #clicker #Incremental #indiegame #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

Ive officially wrapped up the playtest so thank you to everyone who took the time to offer me this invaluable feedback! The itchio page is now public! There's nothing to download yet but there'll be screenshots soon 👀 kayillustrations.itch.io/welcome-to-t... #gamedev #indiegame #clickergame #wtts

kayillustrations.itch.io

Welcome to the Syndicate by kayillustrations

Build and manage a mob of femme fatales in 1930s NYC

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Queen Clara is keeping me hard at work this week! Once I get through these final bugs, it's on to the Pre-Alpha stage!!! #gamedev #solodev #indiegamedev #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

While I wait for the last few playtests results to roll in, I've started working on the marketing art for Syndicate. I gotta thank past Kay for doing the heavy lifting here tho. You won't believe how much art I'm repurposing for the capsules 😂 Here's a sneak peek! #wtts #gamedeveloper #indiegame

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Wow! I've been getting so much awesome feedback from my playtest 🤩🤩🤩 My list of improvements is growing and I'm so excited to implement more into Syndicate! Eeeee!!!!! #gamedev #indiegame #wtts

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Want to join the early playtest for my clicker management game called "Welcome to the Syndicate"? Just fill out the form below and be added to the email list to get access TOMORROW!!! forms.gle/NUDom3hveM2G... #indiegame #solodev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Life gets crazy. Step away if you need to. Even if you're solo. But keep your game in your thoughts. Just sitting down for 30 minutes to think and reflect is invaluable to the process. Study inspo. Analyze milestones. Reflect on your accomplishments. Game dev is far more than just production.

media.tenor.com

a girl wearing headphones with a face on them

ALT: a girl wearing headphones with a face on them

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

It's been nearly a year. I won't beat around the bush: Cryptid Camp has been and will continue to be on hiatus. Like most gamedev hobbyists, I underestimated the scope of my project and didn't properly prototype. I'd rather pivot now then promise something I know I cannot accomplish yet ...

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 06/03/2025

Lots of behind the scenes managers being worked on these past 2 weeks, so nothing super cool to post yet😥 BUT❗❗❗Hopefully I'll have some NPC sprites to showcase this coming week so look forward to some mothmom-ahem I mean mothwoman! #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

Out of energy or health? 💔 Want time to fly faster? Hop on into your trusty tent and nap the night (or day) away!💤 It's a little janky, but working and that's all that matters to me right now lmao😂 #indiedev #cryptidcamp #gamedev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

⌛Time is an illusion... but also a fun excuse for colorful overlays!🌈🌞 For testing purposes I sped up the sec/hr to showcase the new implementation of passing time (definitely not a jojo reference😉) #indiedev #cryptidcamp #gamedev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

❓Can a game object be both 2D AND 3D❓ With the power of layers and spite it can! Here's a super secret behind-the-scenes look of how I accomplish the 2.5D look on the larger items in Cryptid Camp :3c #indiedev #gamedev #gameart

On the left shows the layers of 2D art for a car before they are layered with even space between them within the game engine.

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

Is the car 3d or 2D? Why can't be both😉 Had lots of fun playing around with the 2D layers to get the car to look convincing 🤩🤩🤩 Seriously, the things I put myself through just to avoid 3D modelling is wild🤣 #indiedev #gamedev #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 19/01/2025

This is not a drill ❗❗ Cryptid Campsite is expanding 😱 So excited to finally get the scene switch working 🤩🤩🤩 Each scene properly saves and loads when player triggers the "doorway". Eventually I would like it to trigger upon enter but I'm just happy it works lmao #indiedev #gamedev #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

Hm... I wonder what's being hidden behind these locked gates? 🤔🤔🤔 Guess you'll just have to wait to find out 😊 #indiedev #gamedev #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

🎆Happy New Year!🎉 With the new year comes new changes‼️ I've started a new job so updates on Cryptid Camp might be slow to start, but as I settle in, I'm excited to finally wrap up production on my demo! 🗓️Stay tuned for timeline reveals in the coming week #indiedev #gamedev

small capsule image of the cryptid camp cover image. Illustration of a wooded area with creatures sitting on the grass near a cabin. The words "Cryptid Camp" are written in bold letters in the sky.

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 16/12/2024

I'm thinking about making some #cottagecore #pixelart pack that I can make available on itchio 🤔💭 So far my list of things to add are: 🌿flowers and succulents 🐞bugs and mushrooms 🍶 jars and pots 🏡wooden/earthy interiors 👩‍🌾gardening tools Anything else you'd want to see? #gameart #indiedev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 08/12/2024

Wow! Another amazing #artfair at Columbus College of Art & Design. Thank you to everyone who supported my #smallbusiness 💕 I'm super proud of the turnout to my booth! This was my best year yet in sales 🤩

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

A tool hotbar that can be customized through drag and drop??? Sign me the HECK up! 🤩 This was my first time making a hotbar so let me bask in this glory for a moment 🥰🥰🥰 #indiegame #indiedev #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 23/11/2024

Worked some of my colors into my cover design for Cryptid Camp(site?) and I wanted to get some opinions first on the feel and placement of everything. ❓ Anything feel off to you? ❓ Is the image too busy? Too empty? ❓ Does the vibe fit my game? #indiedev #coverart #gameart

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 16/11/2024

Cleaned up lots of the visuals for the foraging 🏞 ✨Particles : Damaged Grass, Trees, Rocks 🎞 Animations: Trees shake / fall opposite of Player 🖼 Sprites: 1/2 Clipped grass disappears when damaged Not the most fun, but necessary for that good feel 👌 #indiegame #gamedev #cozygame

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 10/11/2024

🎨Playing around with some logo design today for my game cryptid camp(site?) Thinking of leaning more into the campfire motif... Thoughts? 🤔💭 #indiedev #gameart #LogoDesign

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 08/11/2024

Blacked out Wednesday and woke up the next day with a finished Save/Load system😳😳😳 Funny how much can get done when you're disassociating from reality. Silver linings I guess 😅

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 03/11/2024

Lmao I finally figured out the reason I'm not getting reply notifications. Weird setting is off now 😎👍

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 02/11/2024

YOOO forageables can now auto generate for players to collect daily!!! 🤯 🤖Spawning only occurs in viable locations on the map that are not already taken up by another object #indiedev #indiegame #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 27/10/2024

As a gamer myself, I'm always critical about the inventory of other games 😤 So it was a no-brainer that I needed to implement drag-drop to Cryptid Campsite's inventory system too! It so satisfying to just shuffle items around now~ 🥰 #indiegame #gamedev

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Reposted by Kay 🔪

Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 22/09/2024

Cryptid Campsite is now a farming sim ⁉⁉😱 Okay maybe not actually a simulation but at least it now has gardening which is fun lol 😂😂😂 #indiegame #gamedev #cottagecore

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 19/10/2024

🎨🖼 My favorite art hack is making the scene in Sims and playing around with angle and lighting to find the perfect reference image. The actual cover art for Cryptid Camp is COMING SOON ❣❣❣ So excited to show the before and after🤩 #indiegame #gamedev #conceptart

Sims 4 screenshot of the campgrounds. In the foreground there is a tent and camping supplies. in the middle ground there is an overgrown community center, and in the background is forest scenery

WIP sketch of the Sims 4 scene, with greyscale colors blocking in most important details and shapes

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 13/10/2024

Really proud of the journey this camping bag has gone through. 😊✨ To think it all started by me sitting on the floor at work just doodling ideas while waiting for smoothie orders to come in 😂😂😂 #indiegame #gamedev #gameart #cottagecore

Final image of inventory working in game. The inventory is designed to look like a camping backpack, and currently holds a bundle of grass in the first slot.

Camping backpack after its been lined and colored color but not yet implemented in game

the first very rough sketch of the backpack design. the drawing is done in a spiral notebook with tools doodles into the inventory slots. a journal and map have been labelled sticking out of the top of the backpack

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 10/10/2024

Landing Page LIVE 🔴http://cryptidcamp.carrd.co 🗺Explore Cryptid Camp's journey with ease and follow us on all your favorite socials!🌐 Hope to see you there!👋💕 #indiegame #gamedev #cozygame

screenshot of the cryptid campsite landing page. includes links to various information pages as well as social medias to follow

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 07/10/2024

I'm going to try and remember to add alt text to my images and videos from now on. It's not something I've done before but I don't want accessibility to be the reason people can't enjoy the things I create... [1/2]

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 07/10/2024

My, My... What do we have here? A finished dialogue system perhaps? Yes! Yes it is! How delightful~💕 #indiegame #gamedev #cozygame #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 02/10/2024

[To-Do]: ✅ import big titty moth mom to motivate dialogue feature implementation Am I doing game dev right? #cryptidcamp #indiegame #gamedev #mothman

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 27/09/2024

Added some new juicy gardening visuals🤩 ✨Particles : Water, Success, and Failure 🎞 Animations: Weeding, and "tutorial" cursor 🌱Watering Minigame: Progress bar's root length based on watering amount needed #indiegame #gamedev #cozygame #cryptidcamp

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 24/09/2024

I've been dreading working on my inventory and... my god I almost completed it in a single day.l without a single tutorial 😱 I think I might actually be a programmer now 🤯🤯🤯 #indiedev #gamedev #solodev

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Kay 🔪 @kayillustrations.bsky.social · 22/09/2024

Cryptid Campsite is now a farming sim ⁉⁉😱 Okay maybe not actually a simulation but at least it now has gardening which is fun lol 😂😂😂 #indiegame #gamedev #cottagecore

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