The Martin Experiment Survey Results Part 2!

Welcome to the second part of the survey results, where I will comment on all the free text answers we have gotten until now. The responses were enlightening and will help shape the development of The Martin Experiment and its community.

I will post a screenshot of a question at a time, containing all the gathered answers until now. I received many responses in Portuguese, my native language, and translated them into English to show you the whole picture.

Now, without further ado, let's see the first free-text question:

Here's a summary of what I learned from you guys' answers:

• Animations: you guys want the inclusion of animated sprites within the game. I still have to learn how they make those Ren'Py animated sex scenes. I'll implement it as soon as I get the hang of it (but it may take a while).
  
• Choice Tree, Text Logs, Gallery, and Character Progression: I understood that you want an interface to make it easier to visualize the choices and paths taken during gameplay and a text log to prevent missing important information during dialogues. Is that correct? You also mentioned a gallery for reviewing content and character progression throughout the game. I will put these items on my to-do list.
  
• Interactive Elements, Gameplay Options, and Variations: You enjoy activities involving performing interactive actions on characters and environments that provide a sense of freedom but without being overly grindy or difficult. It will be a challenging task. I want this game to play the same on cellphones and PCs, but many of my Ren'Py tricks and sorcery work better with a mouse. I need to think of some strategies to attend to these interactivity needs in touch screens. I want my point-and-click mechanics to look and feel the same on every platform.
  
• Personal Preferences: Some participants specifically mentioned their kinks, such as anal play and the representation of plus-sized women. Well, I have good news on that. The Artist is back, and he likes chubby women very much! He reviewed and enhanced my recent drawings to make Melissa look juicier and chubbier. I will post some before and after pictures in my next post. I prefer fit and slim women more, so we will have some of that, too! Also, anal action is a must! We will include that in this episode for sure! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
  
• Non-linear Story and Thoughtful Storytelling: A linear storyline is less desirable. A well-planned story with hints for observant players, replayability, and developed characters with varying levels of complexity are appreciated. Immersive elements that evoke emotions beyond the screen are valued. Participants desire the ability to share heroines for threesomes or gangbang scenarios. Except for sharing heroines (Martin doesn't know many girls yet), I already have everything else in the works for this episode.

Special mentions:

"fishing fish is good give me rod pls"

Hahaha! I found this answer very funny! Now I want to make a fishing minigame or something like that for Martin.

"Hot/Sensual scenes, dont need to be sex scenes."

Oh, I like your thinking. I want to make lots of them! This kind of scene enriches the storytelling and the overall experience. I got you covered.

Second free-text question:

Here, I have identified four key themes that will help me improve our communication with you guys:

1. Frequency and Content of Updates:

• You guys wanted to hear more often about how the game is going and suggested a preference for updates twice a month. I'll keep this pace from now on. It looks reasonable to me.
  
• Most of you suggested focusing on minor monthly-or-so updates instead of a big update a year. This approach would allow me to receive external feedback and ensure that the game aligns with the community's expectations and doesn't waste any effort. I'm already doing that, but these updates are only for patrons! What should I do? I'm afraid of you guys getting too tired of the story before launching the final release because the bulk of the updates consists of bug fixes and replacing placeholders with original artwork. At the same time, everything else remains untouched (because I finished the story already). I'm also afraid of losing support here on Patreon because the only significant exclusive content I have to offer is these monthly releases for patrons. I'm very insecure on this topic right now. Please help me out by commenting on what you think.

2. Community Engagement:

• A few participants mentioned the importance of community involvement. They suggested conducting occasional polls to gather input from the community regarding desired features or changes in the game. I liked very much the interaction I got through this survey. It is a good idea to make more of these!
  
• One participant highlighted the need to cultivate a larger community and gain more visibility for the game. A more prominent presence would attract people interested in supporting the project. It is true. My efforts in marketing and promotion could be better. They are far behind. I am directing all my time and energy to draw sprites to release this game as soon as possible. I have tried to research and learn about marketing campaigns and strategies sometimes, but only briefly, because I quickly feel wrong about pausing the development cycle and promptly return to working in the game.

3. Satisfaction with Communication but slow pacing:

• While some of you expressed well-putted concerns about slow progress since the release of the first demo, overall, there were positive sentiments regarding the developer's efforts in communication. I appreciate it very much! I'm trying to do everything right to make this game happen.
  
• One participant mentioned being satisfied with the communication but expressed doubts about the game's continuity, indicating a desire for reassurance regarding the project's long-term development. I get you. Most projects die before being released, but this is not true with The Martin Experiment. I've been working on it for years without wavering for a second. I will develop it into a full-fledged game and launch it no matter what.

4. Technical and Localization Improvements:

• Two participants mentioned specific areas for improvement. One suggested optimizing the artwork and response time, indicating a desire for better performance and visual quality. Another participant expressed the need for the game to be available in more languages. I'm always looking for ways of drawing better and faster and made some breakthroughs over these months. It could be premature to order translation services right now. Still, I'm very interested in translating this game into French, Italian, Spanish, and other languages as soon as I put all the pieces together.

Let's see the third question:

• You guys expressed personal spending habits, cultural factors, and financial constraints as a barrier to your support but also acknowledged my work deserves some recognition. I appreciate that very much. Thank you!
  
• The idea of offering rewards on Patreon is well-received. Yet, I need suggestions on what I should provide as a reward for patrons besides the monthly test builds.
  
• You guys see it as appealing to release Public game versions. But again, it would be unfair to patrons if I released what they were paying to see every month for free. I need to know your thoughts and how to address this.
  
• Additional suggestions included wallpapers, mentioning supporters' names in the game, and Creating a Discord channel to discuss visual novels to gather ideas. Inserting supporters' names in the game is easy! I'll put it on my to-do list for the final release. I liked this wallpaper idea. I will talk with the Artist about this to see what we can manage. As an introvert, I don't have the energy to create another Discord server to discuss visual novels. Still, I can start participating in existing ones and interact with them. I appreciate these suggestions!

Finally, last question:

• You guys suggested maintaining a balance between the plot, sensual content, and sex scenes in the game. You have also asked for more options and variations when interacting with the unconscious woman in the game. One participant emphasized that the idea of having control over such a situation is what interests them the most. These responses suggest a desire for a well-rounded experience catering to different gameplay aspects. I'm glad we are covering all these items already. You can count on that!
  
• One participant praised the game, qualifying it as good and impressive. Another one appreciated that we seek feedback and suggestions from the community, highlighting the importance of collaboration between developers and players. Another emphasized the importance of conducting more polls to gather insights into what players want or don't want to see in the game. Thank you all for your kind words! Conducting polls is a good idea. I'm enjoying the results of this interaction with you guys through this survey, and I want to do more of this!
  
• Some participants provided suggestions related to the game's visibility and development process. Dcee suggested releasing an updated teaser version to attract more subscribers and support. Another idea was to release the game in multiple stages, gradually increasing its length or considering selling it on platforms like Steam. Well. I will talk with the Artist about releasing a Beta version soon, with more gameplay on Itch, to see how much time we need to pull this off. Publishing on Steam will have to wait a little longer because they would charge me to release a game there. I also want to launch an iOS version, but first, I must learn how to rent and use virtual machines to compile the code on an Apple.
  
• Another participant mentioned that while they understand the game is in its early stages, they would appreciate a faster pace with more visually erotic content interspersed within the story. Feedback regarding the artwork and adherence to release schedules was given, emphasizing the importance of more rapid development and meeting deadlines. I agree with that. It isn't easy to nail a schedule and deadlines when I wonder if my current skills are enough to finish every task in an estimated time. Whenever I have to stop and learn a new and unexpected skill to complete a task, my entire schedule falls apart in a domino effect. Then I have to regroup and review my plan for the subsequent weeks from scratch. It's been happening a lot during this development, but things will run smoother now that our Artist hopped back to the project. Wish me luck!

We concluded the review of our survey results! Thank you very much to everyone who participated! I learned a lot by conducting this survey and reading your responses. This interaction and feedback pumped my energy back to the max to work even harder and release this game!

On June 26, I will release this month's development build, containing the first sprite revisions made by the Artist, which just came back! We can finally start taking more significant steps on sprite production in July since two people are drawing now!

Cheers!