DevLog Update

Sup,

So it's been kinda quiet over here since the last update. For those not in the higher tiers that don't have access to the conversations, I was taking a bit of a breather after the emotional rollercoaster of the past two updates. While I'm not the most emotional guy externally, I'm a big softy on the inside and I have to go to some pretty dark places to write the type of ideas and exchanges that are currently in the storyline spotlight. 

Soooo... I'm back and the story goes on.

Percentage of Completion on Patreon Site

So to save you reading back through old-ass posts, contrary to popular belief, I do not have a complete outline for this story. I'm writing it as I go. To me, it's more fun this way and I sorta get to sit back and watch what happens along with you guys. The upcoming v0.12 is as far as my last detailed outline was written. I have several other checkpoints and a clear ending in mind but I'm sorta just enjoying the journey to get there. That being said, if you've noticed inconsistent reporting of the percentage on the Patreon site, it's because I'm getting to that part of my current outline that's a bit more fuzzy. In short, I have to know where I was going to end this one before I could actually measure my percentage of writing completion.

Basically, my plan was to complete v0.12 and then take the month like I did before to restructure and write a new outline covering the next few updates again. Last time I did this and pumped out another 4 updates. I like this style of writing and hell, it's been working so far right? If I take a more extended break, I'll let you know the plan. Odds are, we would give the story some closure if that was done rather than leave the typical cliffhanger.

Current Status

So, roughly speaking the initial outline is sorta done. I'm waiting on the public post of the game partially to see if anyone else spots any plot holes and stuff. I'll also probably post a more interactive topic thread on here to get feedback from the community on the events that are going to take place in v0.12. Because some members who have access to the DevLogs haven't had a chance to play v0.11 yet, I'm going to refrain from giving specific details yet. So stay tuned on that part...

So I've started the dialogue and started rendering a few scenes. Realistically, the current writing progress of 30% listed on the Patreon page is probably pretty accurate for a ballpark estimate but who knows, I always change stuff.

New Zones and Problems

So...I know... I feel like I always have bad news. I promise after this section I'll write good news though. I just need to bitch first...

So kinda good news: I'm adding two new areas to the game. One of which was teased as the background in the anniversary pic. Another is obviously suggested at the end of v0.11 so I won't spoil that right now (but you'll figure it out). 

So yay: new zones. Bad part is these two new zones have been a nightmare to render. My previous render times were around 2 hours per pic. Well, the new zones are apparently more graphic intense or something and are running around 12 to 16 hours for a damn pic. Which is seriously clogging up my CG creation time over here and making me a little irritable. I've spent 3 days trying to figure out what the problem is to no avail. But it's driving me nuts for realz. So this should explain the essentially 0% I have for CGs right now. I have several done and ready to render, they're just not actually rendered because I can't figure out what's slowing it down so much. So expect that to stay low for awhile but I'm still working on things. I'll probably just end up stockpiling some and then queuing them all up for a week and see how it goes.

OK...the other Good News

So this part is way more optimistic and is a continuation from the previous griping I was doing. Basically, the proceeds and financial support from the Patreons has allowed me to upgrade the whole fucking computer now. For those following for a bit, I've been slowly upgrading this 10 year old system over the past year. Well, the added frustration this week was the catalyst and I'm biting the bullet and buying a brand new system!

For you folks, this means a few different things. First off: you get to see your support actually go back towards the game a bit. I'm excited when I'm able to do things like this because it seems meaningful and it would make me excited to see a creator do things like this when I chip in money.

Hopefully, I'll be able to render things faster and even up the quality in the long-run. There's many times that I just settle for the quality of this game just because it takes sooooo long for me to make things. Lighting effects get cast aside along with many other visual ideas that I have. I do expect some adjustment when I get the new system to get files moved over so expect some initial delays.

To put things into perspective, the lag on my old system is horrible when I'm creating things. For example, just to position the characters for the anniversary pic, took me over 3 hours. There's a lot of click and wait for the screen to catch up and I've freaking had it with waiting. So I bought a new system. Downside is it has to be built and I think it's scheduled for shipping around 10/22 so basically I still have to deal with this old clunker until then. I am concerned about the slow rendering delaying the next update but I'm going to keep working on it. Long run: I'm more optimistic than I've been in the past. Makes me excited that I could include more things like that surprise I dropped in v0.11 :)

Summary

Basically, I just want to give some context to the lack of updates on the Patreon and let you know that there's work being done despite the obvious gains. I want to again thank you all for the support. While I constantly consider all types of support meaningful, this time around it was the financial part that really pushed things forward. I'll keep you posted and will, for sure, post pics when I get the new rig on here and the tumblr site. Hell, I may even start using the Patreon Lens feature again for behind the scenes stuff.

If you have questions, let me know. Sorry, this update is also vague af but I really don't want to spoil v0.11 for the lower tier supporters. 

-Aaryn