I'M STILL ALIVE! (RECKLESS SYMPATHY PROGRESS REPORT)

Whew! I've been busy!

It's a new year and I managed not to post any updates for all of January. Or December really, given that the full part 1 demo was the last thing I managed to get out. This post will be a bit longer, to make up for the radio silence.

So anyway, why have I been quiet for so long?? That's because I've been in the girls lab inventing new kinds of girls! Plus, a perspective change means that I had to throw out all the sprites I've made so far, so I've been drawing a lot.  Let's take a look at some of the new sprites I've been working on.

GLORY!

One of the main characters, the titular reckless sympathist herself! Her outfit hasn't meaningfully changed, she just faces the camera now. As ever, my favorite part of drawing her is her hair— it hangs around her like a cloak being blown in the wind. Otherwise the touchstones are the same. Her shirt's too big, her pants are tight, and she keeps at least one arm up between her and the viewer at all times. Oh, I did give her long nails though, that's an important detail. Perks of not having to have a manual labor job like the other main characters, it's easy to maintain her nails.

KON!

Kon's another important character, Anmarie's senior maid (still younger than Anmarie though). I've struggled with their design more than anyone so far, and while the details haven't changed much since the last version, I played with their proportions, expression, skirt length, and hair and am finally pretty happy with them. As a sort of aesthetic match with Glory's hair, Kon's skirt looks like it's fluttering in the wind. Also, they always keep the right side of their face covered up. They probably bump into a lot of stuff without depth perception, which isn't ideal for a maid. Still, they're so cute when they apologize that people can't help but forgive them.

INTRODUCING: EMILLA!

A new character? If you've gotten around to checking out the part 1 demo, you might recognize the name. Emilla is a member of the Vas Holy militia, and Kon's big sister. She's friendly to everyone she meets, and dotes on Kon, but she knows how to use her weapon and is fiercely protective of the Vas Holy bloodline. Namely, Glory. Her uniform includes a military coat over the vest, but since we only see her off-shift in part 1, I haven't had to draw it yet!

ANMARIE!

Wait. Why are there no pictures of Anmarie?

Well, I mentioned a perspective shift earlier. Previous builds of Reckless Sympathy included all characters in a scene on the screen at the same time, facing each other. However, I'm changing over to a first-person camera, so that the 'main character' who's interiority you're getting as you read isn't shown, so it's as if you're looking through their eyes. This will allow me to do some fun formal moves later on in the story, with an added bonus of meaning I don't have to draw a full set of sprites for Anmarie in time for part 1's release. The downside is that we'll see a lot less of everyone's favorite tall maid girl, but don't worry! She'll have her day in the cgs.

~~~

So, release huh. I'd love to finish and release part 1, so I can start work on part 2. Stuff gets really fun in part 2. However, I'm really in the weeds figuring stuff out. The latest I want the full release to be is June, in time for my birthday, but it really depends on how much I get done this month. Visual novel dev is something that starts slow and accelerates as you go, since so many of the assets can be recycled. Hopefully it takes less time to get part 2 out after I've got a steady base to build off of!

All that to say, wish me luck as I push on through! I appreciate everyone who's stuck around to support me as I work on a much longer term project, and the people who've signed up since. There are so many things I can't wait to show you!

~Benn