Proof of Life #250: What keeps me going
Added 2024-12-16 20:56:01 +0000 UTCHello you absolute legend- Ah, wait, I’ve heard that somewhere else. How are y’all doing in this fine morning/afternoon/evening? Here for some more HC3 news? Well, you’ve come to the right place~
Same old, same old. Development, writing the script, making maps. Rinse and repeat. This week passed by quite fast, and I didn’t get as much done as I’d hoped. Then again, half of my time is spent writing commissions and sending them to artists left and right. Improving the visuals has become one of my biggest preoccupations.
I’m almost up to the last scene though, I just need to add some more build-up before it happens. Some more CyannaxUlrod, right after two Rose scenes back to back. This will be quite an important scene, so I don’t wanna fumble it. After that, I’ll add the extra scene (probably Rose in the carriage), a bit of testing and polishing and we’ll be good for release.
I can’t quite give a date yet. It depends on too many factors, like the amount of the commission, the complexity of the scenes, how fast and accurately the artists can deliver, etc… I’ll definitely keep you updated though. I’m not taking a break until this update’s out ; )
Pretty off-topic, and on a bit more serious note, I’ve been watching Arcane recently, the LoL animated series, although I’ve never played League before. I was quite blown away by the masterful story telling, the characters, the dialogues, how they handled “show don’t tell”. Haven't felt that way since I finished the Witcher 3 back in early 2019. It got me thinking about my own game, and where I could improve. Man, writing a story is fun. That’s what motivates me the most when I sit in front of my laptop to work~ I’ve had people telling me they wished villains would be a bit more one-sided when it comes to NTR, or that we could get to the sex quicker, etc… and honestly, those are all valid criticisms. Still, if I did all that, making games would be a lot less fun for me. In my mind, a perfect game cannot be determined only by the audience, but it is a careful balancing act between what a dev can do, what they want to do, and what the audience expects from them.
Still, I do understand there’s still a lot of room for me to grow. People have had a hard time liking Ulrod as an NTR antagonist, and I get it. That’s my fault. It could have been done better, although I still like the guy. Live and learn, right? I’ve been having ideas popping left and right for what HC4 could be.
Anyway, sorry for the long post! I’ll try to keep it more concise next week~
Thank you for reading, and have a wonderful week!
N_Taii
Comments
Absolutely adore Ulrod, it's the Duke I don't enjoy as much (from a love/lust interest angle, I love his political shenanigans. I personally just really dislike generation gap and "ugly guy" NTR tropes). Jazon is also amazing!
Lady Aelora Vaelius
2024-12-21 08:37:52 +0000 UTCI've always loved your writing. Maybe things could be sped up a bit in the early stages I guess? I'm not an writer, but I guess the critique could be semi-valid? As for NTR tropes & villains, I've always gotten into the more simplified type characters in these types of games & my absolute favorite is the villain humiliating the MC's love interest. Treating them like an object. Like in HC 2 when the guy had sex with the sister character with the tent open & she was embarrassed being shown off in that way. Might be weird but whatever, I like what I like lmao can't wait for the next part, keep up the good work & hope you have a nice break for Christmas & the New year!
Kazuma saitama
2024-12-19 07:16:20 +0000 UTCI want to do a smaller game in-between HC3 and HC4. Partly because I want to have new graphics I wish to get used to through making a simpler, smaller game first, and I'm also planning on having it translated and selling it on all kinds of platforms to fund the new overall pixel art improvements.
N_taii
2024-12-19 01:33:58 +0000 UTCYou are completely right about that. Just looking at a discussion about what NTR is supposed to be, a lot of people think differently. I believe what you just described is the core of this genre. After building that bond you can spin it any way you want, and it will most likely resonate with people on some level. So like i said before, keep up the amazing work, loving HC3 so far :)
Decimus77
2024-12-19 00:05:21 +0000 UTCOn a somewhat unrelated note, where do you think you'll go after this installment of HC? Are you going to follow-up with a HC4 or an entirely different game?
fatalmaiden
2024-12-18 13:15:34 +0000 UTCNo need for the fucking drive by.
Iokua
2024-12-17 20:26:28 +0000 UTCThat's a valid point, but I believe Ulrod's issues go beyond what some editing here and there could fix^^
N_taii
2024-12-17 19:19:57 +0000 UTCYeah, people tend to have a different understanding of what NTR is/should be, and at this point, all sound pretty much valid^^ For me, NTR is a broken bond, and the nature of the bond matters little. Whether it's family, lovers, best friends, etc... As long as corruption tears it down, it's pretty much NTR imo. That's why I add all kind of characters.
N_taii
2024-12-17 19:14:51 +0000 UTCI've said this before but i'll echo it, the fact that the villains aren't one note is one of the main reasons that makes your game stand apart (and in my mind head and shoulders above) from other games. i've read some of the replies and i do want to echo one point is that it feels like the corruption (so far) feels like it's only reaching reluctant sex and never really a awakening for anyone, so i think with the current story of only have 1 main love interest, the main ntr feeling would have to come from his friends and family slowly starting to neglect him more and more because they are succumbing to their lust and pleasure, either way, criticism is always unavoidable but make no mistake, you have been and still are, in my opinion the best ntr game creator out there.
Crimescenekoala
2024-12-17 19:07:15 +0000 UTCYour writing is absolutely top notch N-Taii! As a writer myself i am amazed by your resourcefulness and fantasy. As for the NTR in HC3, i am loving it so far. The fact that Rose is the MC's true love interest makes me way more interested in seeing what the duke will do to her. The side note here is that the other characters are less interesting because of this. Having said that, keep up the amazing work! Just keep doing what you have been doing up to this point and people will continue to flock to your works :)
Decimus77
2024-12-17 13:28:33 +0000 UTCactually the real problem in my opinion, is that the only real love interest is Rose so the other characters are not really love interests if this game is anything like the 2nd one, then the MC has no sexual interest in the other female characters, so is it true NTR? will say the best part about your games is that at the end the MC s completely left behind, you have multiple endings and my favorite was the revenge ending.. I can't wait to start playing this game.. I have held strong so far ..
Cal Taylor
2024-12-17 04:46:50 +0000 UTCI think the problem with Cyanna's story is that what Ulrod is doing is actually a twisted form of love and possessiveness, and I can understand and feel that very easily, to the point that I find it hard to believe that what he is doing to Cyanna is a sin like the Duke's was, not to mention that she isn't actually in a loving relationship with anyone, which undermines the NTR attributes of the story to a great extent.There are even times when I have the feeling that Ulrod is indeed worthy of Cyanna's love. As for the sex, I was actually hoping that by the end of the story the girls would be completely depraved and then there would be more scenes of indulgence and orgies for me to enjoy, rather than having to rely on my own brain and imagination after reading the ending.
NTR一般兵
2024-12-17 04:23:49 +0000 UTCTrue brother why I been a fan for so long no other creator does storytelling like N_Taii
Abuus
2024-12-17 01:31:26 +0000 UTCPersonally always loved your writing and passion you put in and it shows with the quality of the work as always my dude keep working hard! And most people are here for your storytelling so don’t overthink things to much we here to stay for your works and appreciate you for them.
Abuus
2024-12-17 01:27:35 +0000 UTCIt's not that Ulrod would have been better off as a one-dimensional villain; it's that his attributes as a character don't fit together. From how he looks, he's a fearsome and powerful Darth Vader-type villain. If he wanted Cyanna, he could overwhelm her with his immense strength and ability, or pull rank on her. That would be a legit NTR villain. Taking off his helmet and trauma dumping on Cyanna is not what a deadly villain would do. Opening up his old wounds so early in their arc made him less powerful and more pathetic. Emotional manipulation, verbal abuse, and demanding sympathy is a strategy more fit for a total wimp who has to rely on those tools. The puzzle pieces for Ulrod don't match. If his back story is very important to you and it inspires you, that's fine. I just think it was revealed too early and too heavily for me to appreciate, and Ulrod using his past shouldn't have been his main tool to corrupt Cyanna. Maybe it should have been revealed much later to her, and reluctantly, so her Stockholm Syndrome develops more naturally. Oh god, am I turning into Oriandu? I'm gonna hang myself.
JagOvv SmearOvv
2024-12-17 00:25:25 +0000 UTCMan, I love your games. i love how you make a great story and the same time have sexy scenes that feel natural. You are a great developer. Yeah, the games are long but that is the best part!!! You feel the feel story and when the corruption happen...you can only say wow. You are amazing
Ricardo Ramírez
2024-12-16 23:45:43 +0000 UTCThey want your villains to be one sided how? As in just one note rapists? That works for a 23 page one shot hentai manga chapter, or a short and to the point game, but that's not HC3. HC3 is more in depth and detailed than most NTR games and as a result their content, characters, and story have to be as well. How the women are corrupted is very important in the HC games, and one note hentai villains don't make for good corrupters. As much as I may have found it a little annoying that there was a gap between Rose and Cyanna's first time having sex and their second times, it made sense from a story standpoint. The sex scenes and corruption will always be better if they're developed properly. Anyone who thinks otherwise is just plain wrong. The characters have to have more to them than simply being rapists, it's why the duke works as a main villain and Ulrod could never be one since Ulrod is a fairly basic one note character. The duke has a proper backstory, during the build up to scenes between him and Rose we see his motivations, we see his desires, we get introduced to his cynical world view, and now that he and Rose are more intimate we see that cynicism leaking into her. The duke's depth gives Rose more depth. Keep making what you want to make, don't listen to the whiners.
Iokua
2024-12-16 22:58:27 +0000 UTCSame!
newguy42
2024-12-16 21:46:40 +0000 UTCJust here to say that I love the Cyanna storyline
Randomletters
2024-12-16 21:31:20 +0000 UTCMaking antagonists more one sided?? There's tons of games like that. It sets your story apart that they have more depth than this. I hope you never go back on that in particular. The Duke is a great character for that reason. Ulrod ... yeah, not so much. He seems incredibly shallow and him and Cianna are the least interesting for me since they both seem to have soooo little tension (and agency) between them.
Dominique
2024-12-16 21:28:41 +0000 UTCOne of the hardest part of game development is that players are great at identifying problems exist, but terrible at telling you what the exact problem is or how to fix it. You just have to accept it, try to figure out the pattern, and throw the junk away. I think your problem with characters such as Ulrod could be helped by doing more editing. I know in your model you're always working on the next released, but going back and rewriting small things to improve characterization could really help. Thos happens to me all the time where I discover some trait of a character late in the process and have to go back and rewrite some things to seed that trait through the rest of the game.
Apollo Seven
2024-12-16 21:27:21 +0000 UTCTime to make speedrunning Henteria mainstream! It's good to hear you are always learning when it comes to your writing, and it shows since I believe your current game is the best and why I'm looking forward to 4 in the future; you reflect and improve. Taking suggestions from supporters is a good idea, as long as they don't take away from your plans. I've seen other devs cater too much to what the playerbase wants and in my opinion it makes the games weaker. If there is a good idea and it fits with your vision or improves it then great, if not you can always bank suggestions and use them for future projects if you like them. Looking forward to the update, need more Cyanna!
TSP
2024-12-16 21:23:21 +0000 UTCIf there's one thing I've gotten better at over the last 5 years, is figuring out what is valid criticism, and what is just personal preference disguised as criticism. Honestly, the things I've listed I found made perfect sense from the standpoint of a player. One dimensional bastards do make for better NTR antagonists, but they absolutely suck at holding a long story together. Still, Ulrod's "other dimension" wasn't handled well, and I wasn't able to tell what I wanted to tell the way I wanted to tell it. And people weren't convinced, which I can't blame them for it. Thank you for the words of encouragement though, I really appreciate it : )
N_taii
2024-12-16 21:19:23 +0000 UTCWhich quickshots told you to get to the sex scenes faster? The build-up is one of the best parts in NTR. The better the build-up, the better the climax when it finally comes to sex. And in case of Cyanna and Rose I'd say you handled it masterfully.
Akitsuki
2024-12-16 21:18:47 +0000 UTCI've had a LOT of people tell me what I should or shouldn't write about in my games over the years. The thing is, players don't know what they want. They know what they've seen or not seen, but they're just people, not gods. They can only express ideas they've had. Whenever you externalyze something out of your own head, it's a gamble as to whether other people will like it or not. Sure, you should probably ask some people if what you're thinking about is interesting before you sink 1000 hours into it, but in the end you still have to do your ideas, not other people's. The most important quality about a game is that it's actually made. If people don't like Ulrod all that much, but that idea and character inspired you to keep writing and making the game, then he's a great character. Write what you want.
Apollo Seven
2024-12-16 21:14:14 +0000 UTCYeah, I agree. But maybe I could do it more concisely without losing any of its impact if I was a better writer and planner, and understood better what makes a good build-up? But that's part of getting better as a dev ; )
N_taii
2024-12-16 21:12:44 +0000 UTCThe build-up to the sex is the best part! I wouldn't have your games be anything else
SpeedyCat19
2024-12-16 21:00:53 +0000 UTC
