I'm old enough to remember computer games back in the 1990's, and 'A Life Lived' reminds me of those days when there was hardly any handholding by the game. I didn't care so much for it with my first try with ALL, but now its nice to have a game where you got to work to find solutions. Of course, on my second try I screwed-up and went to a empty school (either too early or it was the weekend). Luckily I was able to hide my shame, got a phone call and just quit the game without saving.
Fingers-crossed for Version 2.
Im going to take that a compliment.. I think lol..
You are right that the original game and what I wanted it to be was not a visual novel.. and therefore also not a follow a guide and this is a step by step of what you need to do.. But after alot of feedback, I have rolled that back a little and the v02 will have an intro quest.. and also there is more in game help on what to do.. but yes if you are think of a game say like monkey island, then yes that is a fair comparison for what I was aiming for orginally.
I think, looking and play alot of the games here. There are many games (and please I am not putting them down in anyway) that cater for people who just want 3 clicks and all chars are bent over, servicing you in whatever ways you want.. And there are a smaller selection of games that have, like you put it, worked for content. This is particularly more so in the "real porn" games (i think).. Games like SOB and Tower are good examples of what id like this to develop to be more like. Girl Life is another good example, but I think Girl Life falls down on two things (for me).. The lack of hand holding goes to the other extreme and it is really the purest of sandbox games, as there is nothing to point you in any direction. And secondly the content uses different actors for every clip. Which for me them means you lose the connection with the NPC. But again, want to stess its a very good game.
Hopefully you will find the about to be released V0.2 will have a bit more content and direction while also keeping an aspect of having to working for your rewards.
Look forward to hearing more feedback from you as the game develops