WIP (Free Version) + Update

First off, Happy New Year, everyone! 🎉

Gosh, where did the time go? It’s crazy to think I started this journey almost five months ago (I think?), and here we are, already diving into our next project. Let’s get into the juicy details right away!

Quality Improvements

I’ve been working on reworking some of the characters I’ve been using because I want to push the quality of my work even further. Here’s how I plan to do that:

• Better Armatures:
  One of the biggest parts of animation is setting up key poses, and honestly, the armatures I’ve been using just weren’t cutting it. I’ve enhanced them to be more animation-ready, so posing is way more comfortable and efficient now.

• Visual Fidelity Upgrades:
  Genshin and anime-style models are typically optimized for EEVEE with a more stylized look. But I like a little more photorealism in my work, which has made these models look, well, awkward at times when rendered in PBR. After experimenting with ways to make them more detailed without veering into the uncanny valley, I think the results turned out great! Let me know what you think!

• Improved Morphs:
  Anyone who’s been following my work for a while knows I’m a little obsessed with details like skin pressure and body proportions—especially with super tight clothes. Lately, I’ve been exploring new ways to make cloth look better and skin deform more realistically under pressure. It’s a small change, but I’m really happy with how it’s coming along!

The attached images show off these updates and serve as a little sneak peek for the next small projects I’m working on.

Workflow Changes

As proud as I am of the Makima project overall, I can’t stress enough how much I appreciate you all sticking with me through the delays. But let’s be real—it took way too long. That’s why I’m changing how I work moving forward:

• Monthly Short Animations:
  These will ensure supporters are consistently rewarded while I chip away at the bigger, more ambitious projects.

• Mini-Comics & Single Images:
  I’ll still create these smaller pieces in between to keep things fresh and fun!

Tier Rework

This is something I’ve been planning for a while, and I’m aiming to roll it out this month. Here’s the breakdown:

• Shorter Early Access Periods:
  I’m cutting down the early access window to just 1-2 weeks. Let’s face it: the longer periods made things convoluted and also opened the door to internet piracy.

• Pricing Adjustments:

  • The $9.69 tier is dropping to $5 (yeah, it was just an inside .69 joke, honestly).

  • A new $3 tier will offer 1-week early access.
    My goal is to make my content more accessible while keeping it a great value for everyone.

• Redundant Tiers:
  I’m still figuring out what to do with the $15 and $20 tiers. I might keep one and repurpose it, but I’d love to hear your thoughts or ideas! I might even run a poll to get your input.

What’s Next

Right now, I’m hard at work on the next mini-comic, which is all about size stealing. I might even tie this month’s short animation into that theme.

As for the next big animation (featuring Jane Doe from ZZZ), I don’t have all the details yet, but I’ll keep you posted as I start working on it.

Thank you all so much for being here and supporting me. It truly means the world, and I’m so excited to keep bringing you content I’m proud of. Much love to you all—stay hydrated, and here’s to an amazing year ahead!