Omori was developed over the course of six and a half years, directed by pseudonymous artist Omocat.[9][lower-alpha 1] It is based on Omori (ひきこもり, hikikomori) , a webcomic Tumblr blog Omocat created to "help [them] cope with [their] problems during a confusing part of [their] life." Initially planned as a graphic novel, they switched its medium to a video game to enable the audience to make choices in the story. For the game engine, they chose RPG Maker, as they deemed it important to support an accessible platform and community.[10][11]