Fountains is now available on Xbox after John Pywell spent roughly five years developing it alone. The soulslike action RPG and its DLC turn his love of Dark Souls and Hollow Knight into a maze-like world built around combat, secrets, and discovery.
In an Xbox Wire interview, Pywell discussed the long road to launch, his inspirations, and the skills he had to learn along the way. A computer science graduate from Canada who works full time in programming, Pywell created Fountains during his free time.
A mysterious world shaped by Dark Souls and Hollow Knight
Pywell wanted Fountains to feel like a place players could uncover for themselves. The game offers little direction about its goals or intended path, leaving players to uncover the story while moving through an interconnected world.
Progression follows the familiar Metroidvania loop of finding a barrier, acquiring the tool or skill needed to pass it, and returning later with a new route forward. Combat also feeds into exploration. Striking enemies restores the player’s magic resource, a system Pywell credited to the influence of Hollow Knight.
The game’s setting is presented as one seamless dungeon filled with items, abilities, secrets, and environmental storytelling. Adjustable difficulty options are available, and an online message system lets players leave hints for others or send them toward a less helpful surprise.
Five years of learning pixel art
Programming was already part of Pywell’s background, but pixel art proved to be a different kind of challenge. Early builds had what he described as an “MS Paint” vibe, and he replaced much of that work as his skills improved. Later areas also feature more polished character and enemy animation, while some of the earliest movement work remains visibly stiffer.
Fountains was made in Godot, which Pywell chose because it is free, open source, and well suited to 2D games. Despite the game’s apparent depth, its environments are built from flat 2D sprites using forced perspective. Pywell only used 3D modeling to help visualize one spiral staircase sprite, while an early prototype was a top-down 3D game before the project became fully 2D.
Music, movies, and the secrets left behind
Travis Moberg composed the soundtrack after Pywell described the mood he wanted for each scene. The result moves between eerie, tense, and calm tones, while the 1986 fantasy film Labyrinth also helped shape the game’s strange world, riddling characters, and sense of mystery.
Pywell said the finished game became much longer than he expected to make on his own, though he still wished he had time for more deeply hidden bosses. He specifically imagined a secret encounter that only a tiny portion of players would discover. Even the final boss was added only a few months before release.
What began as a project Pywell expected his friends to play eventually reached audiences overseas, including players in Japan. Fountains is now available on Xbox, giving players a chance to see how five years of solo work translated into a full action RPG with a world designed to reward curiosity.
Will you be checking out Fountains for its interconnected world, its combat, or its Dark Souls and Hollow Knight influences? Share your thoughts and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, Telegram.
