The Layabouts Announce Collectems, New Indie Roguelike-Inspired
Monster-Collecting RPG   Verona, NY -- July 12, 2013 -- Today,
indie game studio The Layabouts formally announced Collectems, a
monster-collecting RPG. The goal of the project is to combine
influences from classic RPGs with modern roguelike elements and
a focus on player choice, exploration, atmosphere, and
replayability.  Assuming the role of an adolescent in the
relatively isolated Tamota Peninsula, players venture into a
land where strange mutant creatures called Collectems have
ravaged the natural ecosystem. Taken in as anything from
household pets and workplace assistants to biological weapons of
mass destruction, they captured the hearts of millions, becoming
a full-blown culture-defining phenomenon. A fire at their
father’s business, coupled with his mysterious disappearance,
leaves the player responsible for a lifetime’s worth of debt. In
order to pay back what is owed and rebuild the company, they set
out into the world, using the unique