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Things are getting dangerous. With all the regular posts I do each month here on Patreon I feel like I'm posting enough... But in fact that's all just updates, polls, and special render stuff. I haven't writen a proper Development Update in over a month.
No, that can't be right... I had to double check. Last Dev update came out on September 1st and I used it to vent against Patreon.
Well, we have some catching up to do. I tried writing the next update, but I eventually noticed that what I wrote was out of character not only for the MC, but also the women of the story. And looking back, I started to grow frustrated at how lose and inconsistent the magic system was in this story. I've been writing novels on the side to pass boredome and get my creative kick, and I know I'm not good at putting limits on magic. Or in this case it's abilities, but basically the same thing. Magic system is the writers term for the supernatural happenings in the universe of your story. The more you know, right... Anyway, I didn't like what I had. While it sounds nice to say that an ability could be anything, there is real value in putting lables on things, not in the least so readers can know what to expect.
And that's how we got a reworked scene of when Tracy explains to MC how abilities work. Do you like categories? Well, there are six of them now, and they are kind of fun but also still loose enough to allow for everything. Just like before but there are labels now, and people can know what to expect. Did I mention that that's a good thing?
Like the third category, Mind & Perception, is clearly meant for Amber, but if Tracy was in a fight, and her opponent can think ten times as fast, how come Tracy would still win? Explanation, Tracy, which clearly belongs to the second category, Body Enhancement & Transformation, of course has enhanced senses, quicker reaction times, and even though she can't think at ten times the speed, she can keep up while fighting on instinct, rather than concious thought. Parts of her ability can therefore be categorized under the third category, just like Amber's.
Do you understand what I mean? My example would be Volleyball related, because I know a thing or two about that. A hitter looks at the block and defenders and might spike the ball at the place where there is a hole in the opposing teams defence. Few if any players can make a concious decission in that split second. But in the end, they took in all the input and made... Something. Some would call it a decission but it's not like they thought about it. No internal monologue required. That's Tracy. She can't think as fast as Amber, but she sure as hell could keep up with her in a fight.
^^ Now that I gave a lengthy explanation, even though I didn't even get into so much detail during the story, I guess we can move on. I went back and reworked certain aspects of the story. Mainly things that have been bugging me for a while. The way abilities work and what they can do has been tidied up a little. It's not perfect, but nothing is. I think I can work with it and bring the story to a satisfying conclusion using the framework I created. There are a couple of little scene snippets that had to be adjusted, like that Tracy no longer is 100% confident she can defend against a bullet, and Aurora can't just nuke a city, but she is confident she could be hit by a nuke and not die. Little details you might discover in your next playthrough.
And with might, I mean, you absolutely will, since I made it so if you try to load your latest save file which you probably all have to continue the story once the next update comes out, you get to see the changed scenes once. This doesn't trigger with new playthroughs, but if you haven't seen the new explanation, then don't worry. MC is going to dream of the past right after the thing with Cecilia.
And can you believe it. Now it's obvious that I haven't posted a dev update in a while. I'm still not done. People often asked about why you can't reject Fiona. I always said she is a vital part of who MC is. But what can I say... With the next update you will be able to reject Fiona if that's what you want. She'll still be around, but you basically shot her down. For that I'm afraid, you'll have to start a new playthrough, though. You would have to start rejecting her once she comes to the house, and then you can shoot her down for good after they went bowling.
Surprise. There are three more things. With the waterpark update people claimed that Lucy's scene where Tracy is present doesn't really fit her character. I replayed that scene, and I dissagree. Still, some claimed that her solo scene which wasn't easily accessible before was more enjoyable. But to see it you basically had to reject Tracy 6 times in a row and nobody did that. Now you don't have to reject Tracy at all, you can get to Lucy's solo scene after the waterpark, even if you slept with Tracy before. So if you thought the scene was a bit lackluster, maybe give it another shot and aim for Lucy aline.
Speaking of Tracy, there is a secret scene between her and the MC which you could only get if you rejected Tracy a few times, and then told her in the kitchen at night that you do indeed have feelings for her. That allows you to get her in the shower the next time you train... It's pretty complicated and honestly, no longer all that relevant. Once again, you can now get this scene much more easily, as long as you are pursuing Tracy. It's a great scene, which ends with her telling you more about her thoughts, her feelings, her grief, and also the guilt she feels for running away with only nine people. Did I mention the sex? No? I would recomend you try to see this one. It's great.
Lastly, you might be wondering what this thing is that I attached to this post. It's a screenshot. A screenshot of what, you might ask. Well, it's a screenshot of the new Achievements that I added to the game. There are more. I think 19 in total. Some are easy to get. others are a bit harder. In the end, all but one are doable.
I should mention, that similar to how you are force fed the changed scenes when loading your save file from the end of Episode 7.5, at that point you are also granted all the achievements you already accomplished in said playthrough. This means you won't have to go back just to look for achievements in scenes that you've already seen.
I wrote way too much. Now I no longer have anything for next week. Great. Well, maybe you'll hear from me in a month again (even though I aim to post dev updates eavery two weeks).
Until then. Enjoy!
