More New Stuff

That's actually exactly what I want to do with the new combat spankings! I'd like to have 2 sets of CGs for each enemy, one of them giving a spanking, and one of them getting one.

Godspeak

Been travelling so not really noticed the "polling" in this post until now, but I really like the solution you found! What I really wanted to write about is the fighting system. I REALLY liked the fighting in the first DoaS, and personally felt it only lacked randomisation elements. Like, the bandit might carry an implement or be really strong, and you would have to use your (differing) strengths and abilities to overcome the bandit. The new "storyline spankings" work well (certainly better than fade to black), but I think the fighting could have some sort of flair to them. The first iteration with sound effects spanking back and forth worked, but I missed the animation from DoaS. The second (current) iteration took me by surprise. It's an instant win or lose thing, so you can do more of them without tiring the player. That's good, but maybe you could have the option of seeing a spanking (win or lose) after each fight? I realise these are early days, but those are my two cents. Eagerly looking forward to every release!

So, I know I'm a little late to the suggestion box, but since you mentioned paramour stories "intertwining..." maybe if they're all available for the majority of the game and you run around with a bunch of them, the different characters could, well, come into conflict with each other? I'm just saying, you did an awesome job writing that fighting ring content so more of that sort can only make the game better!

Icewolf

That's wonderful that you found the clarity you were seeking. I'm looking forward to the journey, and seeing all the fun adventures you have in store for us as development progresses. Thanks for all that you do for the enjoyment of so many folks.

Jonathan

Thanks for your feedback guys, I think I've decided on something! I will not be locking out any of the character stories, since they begin in different towns and don't really need to interact with each other, but towards the end of the game, you have to choose one character who will accompany you to the final confrontation of the game, so we've got a Mass Effect style thing happening. Thanks again for your ideas, they were all very helpful!

Godspeak

That can be arranged!

Godspeak

My personal preference on this sort of thing from a design perspective is to give the player ample time to get a feel for a particular character first, and then explicitly state to them the permanent nature of the upcoming choice when the time comes. That way there is no confusion about the finality of it, or frustration from feelings of being misled or not really having a good idea of what that character was like yet. So in this case for example, if you decided to make the player choose just one, perhaps consider allowing the player at least one or maybe two more encounter/rendezvous scenes into the game with every potential partner character regardless of who they chose at the start. That would be enough time to get to know each of the special characters more (and perhaps knowing more about each character's situation and personality/preferences would further entice players to want to see the whole story of the ones they don't pick) and then when it comes time to make that "final" choice, let the player know that hey, from here on in you're sticking with this one and you won't be able to go back and seriously pursue the others in this playthrough. If you're particularly torn on what approach you like best, you could always come up with some hybrid method like what Psyclone alluded to in their comment, or perhaps still lock down a specific character choice but have one or two characters that are always available regardless of main choice to spice things up. One other thought I had: while the complexity starts growing with this approach, you might also consider weaving the two ideas together on a per scene basis, or saving the locked down parts of the game till closer to the end of the total game content. That way the player is free to play however they wish and experience a majority of the content that makes sense to leave open ended, but you can at certain points funnel them into specific scenes or specific story resolutions based on who they were the most cozied up to during the course of the game or etc. I feel like that was sort of how you approached things with the first game in the series and I think it worked well. (Feel free to correct me if I'm mistaken about that though.) At the end of the day as long as you're satisfied with your choice, that's the most important thing. People will enjoy it regardless since you already have a lot of great content so... pick whatever way feels like it will be the most fun and interesting to you, and that will make the game into the kind of experience you envision it to be.

Jonathan

Also, have you considered adding in a 'skip prologue' option?

Monkeytoster

I wouldn't say locked out, per se, but more of a mutually exclusive kind of thing, but with a way to change your selection post-escape. If you escape with the first person you run into, not knowing that it locks you to them, that could be a little annoying. Alternatively, some of them could be more open to you bouncing around with other people (and may even wish to join you), while others may prefer you being faithful to them; both of which could build upon their personalities.

Psyclone

Glad to see progress. And personally. I don't think that that should lock out a relationship. Maybe have a throwaway line or two about running back into them by coincidence?

Monkeytoster