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Progress Report #130 - Aiming for the top
Hey lads!
I've just closed the poll since the 2:1 ratio was maintained basically from the beginning, and those few percentage points won't make much of a difference. It's clear to me that both patrons and non-paying players alike want me to update the engine, but I still can't ignore the 1/3 of people who want me to keep working on the project. Thus, I've decided to continue releasing updates for the current Unaware in The City build. Naturally, updates will be much smaller and will continue to come out on a monthly basis, but the majority of my work time will go into an engine update. Keep in mind that I can't add any new art files or create new animations, although I still can re-use existing animations and create new events. Just creating any new art or animations will be duplicating the work amount, so it's a total waste of time currently, and time is crucial here.
Regarding the progress that I've made for v36b, well, not much, honestly. I mostly did bug-fixing and started working on non-sex events, as I was busy as hell with hiring new team members, calculating risks and the amount of work, experimenting with Spine, and so on. There's so much work, so many things to take care of, and things are piling up, and I feel overwhelmed at times... But it will get better. Beginnings are always hard, and I'm trying to do everything at once to cover as much as possible, but sooner or later it will get smoother and less stressful.
Anyway, v36b is scheduled for May 19th, and I will keep releasing content for v36 until the end of May. Then v37 in June and so on.
The roadmap on Discord is no longer up to date, as the majority of the mentioned stuff there won't make it to the game this year and will be postponed until 2025. Yeah, I know, it sucks, especially for people who waited for the features that were around the corner, like exhibitionism or lesbians, but I can't do anything about it. Hopefully, you will appreciate my choice once the engine update is done, and the game becomes much better than ever. If for some reason you feel cheated, scammed, or whatever, all I can do is issue a refund. Sorry about that.
Ok, now to the "crazy" stuff, as the title suggests. I've decided that I want my game to be number one in its genre, and I will aim to achieve it. Not money-wise, but I want my game to be recognizable when people talk about side-scrollers or open-world games. So I'm gonna start with a pretty messed up idea - I'm gonna take a loan and hire a Spine animator, a proper writer, and most likely a 2nd graphic artist, and do more than just an engine update this year. All existing animations will be remade from scratch in Spine. Front & back character views will be added (not sure if I can make it in time & with my budget to finish character art this year, but I'm attaching an early draft for you to see). Many dialogues, especially old ones, will be rewritten and extended with bonus choices and more emphasis on the story, some core mechanics will be remade, and I want to update the UI, and other stuff I'll mention in the process. That's the plan for the upcoming ~7 months. Yes, that's really a lot, but work goes much faster when you don't have to build the game every few weeks, make sure it's compatible with saves, split mechanics into multiple updates, test every little change etc.
So I either pull it off, and you get a much better game, or I go bankrupt and sell my kidneys full of stones ^ Joking aside, if things go south, I will be forced to find employment somewhere, and I'll work on this project in my spare time. So it really depends on your support during development and how well-received the game will be once I'm done. Either way, I'm motivated and I will try. Naturally, I will post progress reports from both game versions, so you won't be kept in the dark all this time. If you are afraid that I won't deliver, because let's be honest, many Patreon games "suddenly" disappear after announcing big updates and never finish them, then I can't blame you if you decide to cancel your subscription. But, as always, I'll be active on a daily basis on my Discord, and I'll try to post those progress reports at least once per month.
Ok, earlier I've said that I'm gonna hire a Spine animator, but I've already hired an experienced one in the middle of writing this progress report, so please greet LustFire. He is definitely not a worse animator than me :D But check it out yourself, as here's a little preview of his side-project using Spine (these are all early works in progress).
https://mega.nz/folder/L6BiFB7C#3nNV014H-_5Ev9wyzkrNCQ
As you can see, Spine is a really powerful tool. For example, I could add support for changing character height or width, as you can see on the screenshot below as a proof of concept (keep in mind it's just a test).
If possible, I want to release the engine update on the game's anniversary - December 10th, 2024. But honestly, I have no idea how feasible this date is, so please don't take it with a grain of salt, but with a full cup of it :P But I'll still try to have something playable by then. I'm a guy who needs to have a goal and deadline set in order to work because once I announce it publicly, it's either a 'do or die' situation, and I have to deliver. And... That's also why you get a lot of delays... :P
Also, I had a gastroscopy today, and... It doesn't look good... So I'm a bit down currently, but I'll have official results in around a month.
Cheers!
