On the way to Kirlic
Good afternoon,
There are a few topics I'd like to talk about today, starting with the finally finished bonus scene, then about my plans for the coming update and also about the next content poll.
Let’s start with how glad I am to finally have Katherin’s scene finished. I had originally hoped to be done by Tuesday evening, but fixing all the bugs ended up taking the entire Wednesday as well. I already mentioned this on Discord, but I don’t plan to add any more characters to the campfire scene. For the ones already there, I’m happy to add more interactions in the future, but no new faces, there’s simply no room left in the frame. Even now, it was impossible to have Katherin and Hiba on screen together, so I had to get a bit creative to make it work. Overall, this has been the most complex bonus scene so far, even without counting the crash incident. I’m really happy it’s done, and that it also kind of served as groundwork for Tia’s upcoming update, but it definitely ended up being bigger than I intended. That’s mostly on me of course, if I had shortened or cut some parts, I would’ve been finished a lot sooner.
Now, moving on to the next update, one I’ve been looking forward to for quite some time. Honestly, I was hoping to start working on it much earlier, even last year. I want to talk a bit about my goals for it, since not everyone may have seen my messages on Discord.
The main focus will be on the MC’s storyline. As you might remember, you found Marcus’ letter in the basement of his house, pointing toward an investigation in Kirlic. That’s where the main story focus will be. Naturally, that means I’ll need to create the city itself, an inn, and a few smaller surrounding locations. I’ve already started roughing out the layout for the city and will keep refining it over the coming week. If things go well, I might be able to show a preview image next week.
I’ll probably split the city across multiple maps and expand it in later updates. There will also be a small quest required to unlock access to the city and the journey there.
Then of course, there will be new NPCs, which means creating new models for them. I won’t be introducing all the new characters at once, that would simply be too much for 0.6.2.0. As for scenes, I’ll be working on ones focused on the group members, meaning Tia, Lyvia, and Bianca, maybe even someone new, we’ll see. The idea is that the animations would then also work to invite them into the MC's house, we will see if that works out or turns out too much work.
Now about the next content poll. Since the work on the 0.6.2.0 update has now started I want to also launch the next content poll in the coming week. And since Kirlic will then be implemtend I can finally introduce options that are related to it. In the past I made prevotes about what option will be added to the poll on discord, today I want to do it here so that everyone has access to it:
Liandra: Depending on your route, you’ll travel to Kirlic to meet her father. In the end, this will lead to her returning there one way or another, either as Dave’s wife or not. I’ll be implementing the Baron’s villa in Kirlic along with his household.
Melissa: She’s in open conflict with the Crow. Depending on the route, she might even have been kidnapped and will need to be rescued. Her storyline will revolve around the brothel in Kirlic.
Sabrina: Ever since she became Gwen’s apprentice, she’s been driven by thoughts of revenge. When she suddenly disappears, it’s clear where she’s gone, to Kirlic’s university to settle the score with her former headmaster. I’ll be adding the university to Kirlic, along with a few new students there.
Frisha: It’s time for Frisha to finally get married. Depending on the route, that might not just be the MC’s intention but also Giron’s (he couldn't have Emily, now he wants her daughter). The focus here will be on deciding the future of Arenfield and who will be in charge moving forward.
Kate & Claire: Preparations for smuggling into Kirlic are complete, and it’s time to uncover what Kate’s father was hiding. Depending on earlier choices, this could lead to a confrontation with her father’s associates. One of the other key goals for this update is Kate’s wedding with the MC and a completion of her storyline.
Ophilia: It’s time to investigate the disappearance of her father in Kirlic. Did he go into hiding, or was he murdered? The goal will be to follow the trail and uncover the mystery behind his disappearance. Will also lead to more content for her around the inn in Arenfield.
Unlike the usual content polls, there can only be one winner this time, and the votes won’t be carried over for the next pre-vote. I’ll keep this poll open over the weekend, and early next week I’ll launch the next content poll adding the option that won (votes on patreon and Subscribestar will be counted together).
That is all for now, thank you all for reading (was a lot of text this time)
And I wish you all a nice weekend!