Great new devlog:
And we are back! Not that I've ever left, but still... you know what I mean.
After having (hopefully) done almost all the work necessary for the Steam Release for AR1 (only thing that should be missing is implementing all the achievements), doing a bunch of custom stuff for the game and finalizing the designs for all the main characters and most of the environments for AR2, I've finally started rendering it!
Since I'm not bound by the lower definition and lower quality assets I was forced to use at the beginning of AR1, when I had the shittiest PC imaginable, this time I'm not holding anything back using everything I've learned in this past year and pushing my workhorse of a 3060 to it's absolute limits.
Added to the fact that I need getting used to posing and dressing the new characters, as well as the way they speak and their personality, this means that I'm starting off a bit slow, but I'm sure I'll pick up speed and find a good pace as things progress.
But since the outline of the first chapter has been written and work on the game has officially begun, I wanna talk a little about what to expect from the game, what will be similar to AR1, what will be different, etc... :
- One girl with many: the plan for the relationships is the same as AR1, no girl's path will be mutually exclusive with another. You'll be able to romance all 6(7) main girls with a sprinkling of secondary girls on the side. There is one kind of exception, but more on that later. I'm not interested in writing about cheatings, betrayals and relationship dramas of that kind.
- Deeper characters, hopefully: in AR1 the result of the combination of me not knowing what I was doing, rewriting things at the last minute and trying to keep the main story fast-paced, was that some characters felt really underdeveloped.
By shifting the story to more of a slice-of-life type of things instead of a gigantic corporate conspiracy (though don't worry, ridiculously dumb shenanigans will still happen) I want to find more times to actually develop the 6(7) main girls personalities a bit more and hopefully create deeper relationships.
- Still very dumb: the jokes literally start from frame 1. There will still be something very fucking dumb that may or may not lead to a shirtless fight on top of a tower. Everyone is still very fucking horny. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
- Better sex: one of criticisms that I received, and the one that I'll keep in the back of my mind the most, is that the sex scenes kinda get a bit boring and formulaic towards the end of AR1. I admit I was quite tired by the time I got to the last 2 chapters and I kinda phoned it in, going for quantity over quality. I want to do better than that and I'll try my best.
- STILL NO NTR OR DICKS: ...this is pretty self-explanatory, really.
- Cats: there is at least one cat.
Now... let's talk poly:
One thing that got asked often is "why don't the other girls do anything to each other during sex" or "why are they only romantically involved with MC and not each other too".
This was, and still is, a deliberate choice on my part. I personally have nothing against polyamory (and if you are poly, keep reading, trust me), but it never FELT right to have it happen in AR1.
Also my adult gaming "career" was shaped by hanging around places where if another person aside from the MC even so much as looked at one of the LIs there would be pitchforks raised and heads rolling.
But I'm nothing if open to "experiment" and to challenge myself creatively, so here's my plan to appease that crowd and not alienate those who just want uncomplicated horny lesbians...
The reason I keep writing 6(7) girls is that there are 7 main Love Interests, but only 6 relationship paths.
Becky and Miho are a couple and will be very upfront and very open about their relationship and the potential involvment of the MC in it (after some optional fun in chapter 1).
For the Polys, I hope that I can treat the subject with respect.
For the nons, I hope that you can trust me in not getting you burned and to keep things drama-free on the romance-side.
...that said the farm girl that is still in the closet is not going to stick her fingers in the metalhead that literally starts drooling the moment she sees MC in a crop top.
I think I've yapped long enough. Next week I'll dive into the game's "mechanics" and talk more about the potential story paths.
I also may annoy all of you to go and wishlist AR1 whenever Steam is done with their review process.
See you next week!
