VN Ren'Py Being a DIK [v0.10.1] [DrPinkCake]

[shazba]

This leads me to believe that Zoey hasn't broken up with her boyfriend. In general, what makes you think that Zoey and her boyfriend broke up? This is not stated anywhere in the game. This dude and Zoey could have left San Diego on their own. Perhaps the tattoo parlor owned by this dude (judging by the background picture of the interlude) went bankrupt and they had a lot of debts. This guy got a job as a security guard in a bar while Zoey works as a waitress, for example. At some point, Zoey decided to remember about Tremolo and visit Neil.
DPC can turn the plot in the Sage style again, but only his opponent will not be gay, but a brutal tattoo artist.

That would be kinda boring.

Whilst that kinda shit is great in real life (catching up with old friends that have moved on in life can be a great fun, laughing about old time and all that), in this game, where we (the player) have not yet established an affinity with Zoey, the interest in bringing her back is not the past, but the future i.e. I don't care that the mc fucked her when he was a kid, we want to fuck her now.

Do we need another “I’m with someone else” story line? If Zoey is with this guy we may as well rename the game “Being the Other Man”.

This wouldn’t bother me in the slightest if DPC actually explored the intricacies of relationships formed this way. I don’t need to see them in relationships with other guys but if you’re gonna tell me they are I wanna see that impact the plot.

Sage is basically monkey branching from Chad to MC and nobody bats an eye. Maya/Josy both cheated and never address that, just shrug and form a triad. Bella has discussed the finer points of orchid care more than her marriage thus far… I don’t mind that the girls are in relationships but why have them in relationships if it has precisely fuck all influence on the plot? That nobody mentions it? It’s ripe for characterisation. Maya and Josy might win back some sympathy from certain elements if they showed some level of remorse. Sage could define herself as a DIK leaning character justifying her infidelity.

We just don’t see consequences of these girls being in relationships which leads me to believe it was a catch all stalling tactic. If Zoey is in a relationship or was and it’s now complicated… I’m not fucking about with that for the 5th time. All the other times it’s been to the individual story arcs detriment that they’re technically with someone else. For all the difference it makes DPC should have Zoey in the army reserves or some shit to stall romance.

“I’m sorry MC, I never looked at you that way because my mind was elsewhere thinking of those 40 days a year im in military training”

“Oh we can’t be official, my heart belongs to the 335th Signal Command.”

It would make as much sense as her being with another guy.

I agree completely. Her coming back to the game can bring some complications, but they have to be fun complications. Her coming back with a boyfriend is not a fun complication, it's a meaningless addition to the game.

Example of fun complications:

The complication: Jade having a domestic with her husband, yelling at each other through a locked door.​

The fun: The mc was fucking her doggy style the whole time. ​

​

The complication: The mc hiding under a table trying no to be found by Tybalt.​

The fun: He was balls deep in Cammy's ass. ​

​

The complication: The mc couldn't find Quinn or Sage at the prep party.​

The fun: Mel and Sarah were polishing his cock while Heather watched on, diddling herself. ​

​

The complication: The mc had to play tennis with Tybalt to interrupt his date with Jill.​

The fun: Tybalt's face and balls were destroyed by the end. ​

​

The complication: Maya is a lesbian.​

The fun: She's a lesbian that likes the mc's cock. ​

​

The complication: Jill is a virgin.​

The fun: Not anymore. ​

Now compare this to the idea of Zoey coming to visit with her boyfriend.

The complication: Zoey returns with a boyfriend.​

The fun: Going back and playing the first 8 episode again...​

Like others are saying. It's not about being jealous, it's about her having nothing to add to the story if she's with anther guy. She was a significant person in the mc's life. Her showing up with another guy just seems so boring...

Maya and Josy are a different matter in that their story at least is real

you are right but how can you give depth to the other LIs stories when they all have to be technically illibate?

once it's established that Chad wouldn't touch Sage with a stick what does their relationship matter?
once it's established that Tybalt will do anything to win Jill over except do something sensible, why should we care about him?
when the whole world (including MC) is pretending that Bella's marriage is just a formality, what do we care about her husband?

the fact that the girls are "engaged" would be a plus in the story if it was a real obstacle, instead it is not so much that with Sage Mc had to invent the rebound guy issue otherwise he would arrive too early on the Crossroad

another iconic scene from an Italian comedy "tomorrow I'm getting married, but nothing serious".

in a context like this Zoey would be noticed more if she was free and in love with MC, that would create a real conflict, but if she arrives with her problems she would get in line

All of the other characters' stories mattered at the time. But like all problems, once they are resolved, they don't matter anymore. But not all problems were equal:

• Chad was an issue until he wasn't.
• Tybalt was only ever just a speed bump.
• Bella's story hasn't unfolded yet, I still think we're in for something unsettling with her.

The fact that they were mostly resolved without too much misery is a good thing. We don't need the issues to be so great that they scar the characters for life, at least not yet. We're still supposed to be enjoying the story.

But at the same time, if Zoey turns up and she's just got more problems for the mc to solve, that will be annoying. Her advantage will be there's gonna be an hour dedicated to her story, so by the end of it we may feel more inclined to accept her.

Okay but those are all big ifs, how will we know unless he actually tries it out? There is really no risk to trying it out for a month or two, and in the end everyone will profit from such an arrangement: DPC gets more sales, while still making the game he wants to make, fans get faster releases. Why abandon such a possibility?

There's something you keep forgetting. He prefers doing it the current way.

There is no reason why he should choose to do it differently if he's already happy with how he's doing it.

Your desire for him to churn his game out more quickly is blinding you to the fact that there is no benefit to him doing what you want.

Can you tell me one benefit for DPC?

 

[PedroBanana]

There's something you keep forgetting. He prefers doing it the current way.

There is no reason why he should choose to do it differently if he's already happy with how he's doing it.

Your desire for him to churn his game out more quickly is blinding you to the fact that there is no benefit to him doing what you want.

Can you tell me one benefit for DPC?

The benefit is the whole reason why you make games that you intend to sell: profit. I am not blinded by anything, it's something that everyone would benefit from, which is why I don't understand where is the actual issue.

 

[Ivivanov]

When the next update is expected?

 

[shazba]

The benefit is the whole reason why you make games that you intend to sell: profit. I am not blinded by anything, it's something that everyone would benefit from, which is why I don't understand where is the actual issue.

If he hires people, he has to pay them. He'd have to get another 1000 subscribers to offset the new guy's wage. If he hires 5 people, he needs another 5000 subscribers.

He probably earns between 500K to 1M a year. He enjoys what he's doing and he's proud of what he's achieving. And we are all loving it.

So you're suggesting he should change the way he runs his business, introduce others into it, make an initial reduction in his income, and deal with all the headaches that come with management and delegating intricate designs, all in order to earn more than the 500K to 1M a year that he is currently pulling?

The game is a labour of love. That love would eventually die once he introduced more people into the development. He already said that, and anyone who truly understands what he means would agree with him.

Money isn't everything, and he's already making enough.

In case you didn't see his Q&A on this subject (from a week or so ago):

With the game's release in Steam and GOG, the load and stress increased. Will you hire more staff to help work on the game?​

​

This is a popular question, and my answer has been the same from day one, and it won't change. This setup I have right now with being independent is just how I like it.​

​

Many want me to hire more people because they want the game faster. But getting the game made faster doesn't mean it's the same product. The way I see it, if it were released faster, it wouldn't be the same game that I would create on my own. I know the game would suffer because I wouldn't enjoy making it that way. The reason why many enjoy my games is that I enjoy making them.​

​

As for the load increase with Steam and GOG, the workload increase is now minuscule after setting everything up. After the Season 2 release, the workload has decreased back to normal, and I can focus on game development again.​

​

Increased workload comes from increased popularity; more players means more time for customer support. Luckily, I have awesome mods/admins/testers and a whole community helping out with that.​

​

I am confident I will be making games this way until I stop making games altogether. Expanding is not on the map for me. ​

 

[DavDR]

That doesn't make any sense. More content in less time = more money in less time. Not to mention that the game is also being sold on Steam. After season 2 released on Steam it got the biggest record in players ingame - the first record was upon release of the first season on Steam, that is around 1100 players, after season 2 released it got 5700 players. The lowest playercount was in around the middle of between the release of the two seasons where player count hit less than 150 players.

That's Steam sales, on Patreon when DPC delivers an episode after six months he get's six monthly payments from his Patrons, when it goes to seven months he gets 7 monthly payments.

 

[AchedCroissant]

And most likely they are just exercising

 

[ename144]

Do we need another “I’m with someone else” story line? If Zoey is with this guy we may as well rename the game “Being the Other Man”.

This wouldn’t bother me in the slightest if DPC actually explored the intricacies of relationships formed this way. I don’t need to see them in relationships with other guys but if you’re gonna tell me they are I wanna see that impact the plot.

Sage is basically monkey branching from Chad to MC and nobody bats an eye. Maya/Josy both cheated and never address that, just shrug and form a triad. Bella has discussed the finer points of orchid care more than her marriage thus far… I don’t mind that the girls are in relationships but why have them in relationships if it has precisely fuck all influence on the plot? That nobody mentions it? It’s ripe for characterisation. Maya and Josy might win back some sympathy from certain elements if they showed some level of remorse. Sage could define herself as a DIK leaning character justifying her infidelity.

We just don’t see consequences of these girls being in relationships which leads me to believe it was a catch all stalling tactic. If Zoey is in a relationship or was and it’s now complicated… I’m not fucking about with that for the 5th time. All the other times it’s been to the individual story arcs detriment that they’re technically with someone else. For all the difference it makes DPC should have Zoey in the army reserves or some shit to stall romance.

“I’m sorry MC, I never looked at you that way because my mind was elsewhere thinking of those 40 days a year im in military training”

“Oh we can’t be official, my heart belongs to the 335th Signal Command.”

It would make as much sense as her being with another guy.

I still say Maya and Josy's relationship did add something to the game; it explains both why they were initially reluctant to hook up with the MC, and why they are willing to try the throuple once all is revealed. It's been underdeveloped since then (again, I blame the crossroads), but I don't there's an easy way to replace it without completely reconceptualizing those characters.

I agree on the others. Sage being Chad's girlfriend initially seemed fine - it's a classic trope, after all - but has collapsed the more we've learned about how completely dysfunctional their relationship was. And Bella's Mysterious Past(tm) is a tease that has long overstayed its welcome IMHO.

I'm not eager to get more of the same with Zoey. Especially since that would imply her boyfriend must have returned with her, which would give us yet another peripheral character to develop and make Zoey's visit to see Neil extremely bizarre.

Okay but those are all big ifs, how will we know unless he actually tries it out? There is really no risk to trying it out for a month or two, and in the end everyone will profit from such an arrangement: DPC gets more sales, while still making the game he wants to make, fans get faster releases. Why abandon such a possibility?

But they're smaller ifs than the alternative, and that's what matters. We know DPC doesn't want to manage people, and we know there would almost certainly be growing pains if he tried to do so. As Felice pointed out, we know it would cut into his profits and we know finishing the game faster means DPC gets paid for fewer months total.

*If* the experiment works, DPC would release content quicker (though DPC has always preferred to release more content in the same time instead and it's not clear having a team would change that). Either should make the fans happier IF the content is of the same quality, but we don't know how high a priority that is for DPC. In either case, happier fans only translates to more money if he can add new Patreons on a scale that would offset the lost revenue from the extra time it would have taken DPC to do it alone.

That seems unlikely. The game is already wildly popular and very well known, so the only way increased release speed seems likely to increase revenue is if people paid for a month at a high level to get the release faster. That's possible, but it's also possible people would just skip a release and keep their overall pledge level roughly constant (or just retain the same low-level pledge they already had and pirate the updates when they come out), in which case he doesn't even make much money off the faster releases. Plus, there's always the risk DPC is right and the game would suffer from diluting his creative control - in which case he'll slowly lose Patreons over time, meaning now time and money creating a product that will have fewer Patreons for less time.

You say there's no risk but that's just not true. It seems to me that the downsides are guaranteed and it's the upsides that are highly theoretical, especially from DPC's point of view. That's why it's not going to happen, but my point is we might be better off that way anyway.

 

[DavDR]

That would be kinda boring.

Whilst that kinda shit is great in real life (catching up with old friends that have moved on in life can be a great fun, laughing about old time and all that), in this game, where we (the player) have not yet established an affinity with Zoey, the interest in bringing her back is not the past, but the future i.e. I don't care that the mc fucked her when he was a kid, we want to fuck her now.


I agree completely. Her coming back to the game can bring some complications, but they have to be fun complications. Her coming back with a boyfriend is not a fun complication, it's a meaningless addition to the game.

Example of fun complications:

The complication: Jade having a domestic with her husband, yelling at each other through a locked door.​

The fun: The mc was fucking her doggy style the whole time. ​

​

The complication: The mc hiding under a table trying no to be found by Tybalt.​

The fun: He was balls deep in Cammy's ass. ​

​

The complication: The mc couldn't find Quinn or Sage at the prep party.​

The fun: Mel and Sarah were polishing his cock while Heather watched on, diddling herself. ​

​

The complication: The mc had to play tennis with Tybalt to interrupt his date with Jill.​

The fun: Tybalt's face and balls were destroyed by the end. ​

​

The complication: Maya is a lesbian.​

The fun: She's a lesbian that likes the mc's cock. ​

​

The complication: Jill is a virgin.​

The fun: Not anymore. ​

Now compare this to the idea of Zoey coming to visit with her boyfriend.

The complication: Zoey returns with a boyfriend.​

The fun: Going back and playing the first 8 episode again...​

Like others are saying. It's not about being jealous, it's about her having nothing to add to the story if she's with anther guy. She was a significant person in the mc's life. Her showing up with another guy just seems so boring...



All of the other characters' stories mattered at the time. But like all problems, once they are resolved, they don't matter anymore. But not all problems were equal:

• Chad was an issue until he wasn't.
• Tybalt was only ever just a speed bump.
• Bella's story hasn't unfolded yet, I still think we're in for something unsettling with her.

The fact that they were mostly resolved without too much misery is a good thing. We don't need the issues to be so great that they scar the characters for life, at least not yet. We're still supposed to be enjoying the story.

But at the same time, if Zoey turns up and she's just got more problems for the mc to solve, that will be annoying. Her advantage will be there's gonna be an hour dedicated to her story, so by the end of it we may feel more inclined to accept her.


There's something you keep forgetting. He prefers doing it the current way.

There is no reason why he should choose to do it differently if he's already happy with how he's doing it.

Your desire for him to churn his game out more quickly is blinding you to the fact that there is no benefit to him doing what you want.

Can you tell me one benefit for DPC?

The biggest benefit to DPC would be that he may be able to hold on to some of his Patron's when people finally get tired of his shit and just walk away.

Or more likely, when something else becomes 'the next big thing'. Like I said earlier a lot of things can happen in ten years. Fully animated games is a growing trend in AVN's. In two or three years games like BaDIK could look like old shit.

What will happen then? Once again most likely DPC will just slap together a hasty ending and move on.

 

[Kellermann]

That would be kinda boring.

Whilst that kinda shit is great in real life (catching up with old friends that have moved on in life can be a great fun, laughing about old time and all that), in this game, where we (the player) have not yet established an affinity with Zoey, the interest in bringing her back is not the past, but the future i.e. I don't care that the mc fucked her when he was a kid, we want to fuck her now.


I agree completely. Her coming back to the game can bring some complications, but they have to be fun complications. Her coming back with a boyfriend is not a fun complication, it's a meaningless addition to the game.

Example of fun complications:

The complication: Jade having a domestic with her husband, yelling at each other through a locked door.​

The fun: The mc was fucking her doggy style the whole time. ​

​

The complication: The mc hiding under a table trying no to be found by Tybalt.​

The fun: He was balls deep in Cammy's ass. ​

​

The complication: The mc couldn't find Quinn or Sage at the prep party.​

The fun: Mel and Sarah were polishing his cock while Heather watched on, diddling herself. ​

​

The complication: The mc had to play tennis with Tybalt to interrupt his date with Jill.​

The fun: Tybalt's face and balls were destroyed by the end. ​

​

The complication: Maya is a lesbian.​

The fun: She's a lesbian that likes the mc's cock. ​

​

The complication: Jill is a virgin.​

The fun: Not anymore. ​

Now compare this to the idea of Zoey coming to visit with her boyfriend.

The complication: Zoey returns with a boyfriend.​

The fun: Going back and playing the first 8 episode again...​

Like others are saying. It's not about being jealous, it's about her having nothing to add to the story if she's with anther guy. She was a significant person in the mc's life. Her showing up with another guy just seems so boring...

That's it exactly.
And I just don't think DPC has the bravery to make these two a couple because he needs players to be very interested in Zoey in order to create drama back at B&R when she arrives. Giving her a San Diego boyfriend (current or ex) will cause half the players to check out and just focus on their existing B&R harem. It would be much more DPC-like to make Mr. Baldy gay and just have zoey lez out all over San Diego. Interlude is probably going to be boring conversations about feelings, surfing mini games, and a small measure of scissoring.

DPC has to do something significant to make players become emotionally invested in zoey's arc at B&R. Something to do with Neil? Some new piece of information regarding MC's past? Something completely unforeseen? Don't know, but as it stands right now, the only people who are interested in Zoey are those who just want to fuck a blue-haired tatted chick. I haven't heard any interest in her other than wanting to get some naked time with her. A fuck and forget character right now unless DPC can dial up the drama. Zoey lags far beyond the other LIs who have actually had time for investment beyond jsut lewd scenes.

 

[DavDR]

the only people who are interested in Zoey are those who just want to fuck a blue-haired tatted chick.

Yeah, some people are just fucking weird like that.

 

[shazba]

That's it exactly.
And I just don't think DPC has the bravery to make these two a couple because he needs players to be very interested in Zoey in order to create drama back at B&R when she arrives. Giving her a San Diego boyfriend (current or ex) will cause half the players to check out and just focus on their existing B&R harem. It would be much more DPC-like to make Mr. Baldy gay and just have zoey lez out all over San Diego. Interlude is probably going to be boring conversations about feelings, surfing mini games, and a small measure of scissoring.

DPC has to do something significant to make players become emotionally invested in zoey's arc at B&R. Something to do with Neil? Some new piece of information regarding MC's past? Something completely unforeseen? Don't know, but as it stands right now, the only people who are interested in Zoey are those who just want to fuck a blue-haired tatted chick. I haven't heard any interest in her other than wanting to get some naked time with her. A fuck and forget character right now unless DPC can dial up the drama. Zoey lags far beyond the other LIs who have actually had time for investment beyond jsut lewd scenes.

Yeah, some people are just fucking weird like that.

Kellerman is so obsessed with red hair, he sees blue as the enemy,

 

[DavDR]

Kellerman is so obsessed with red hair, he sees blue as the enemy,

Yeah? So?

 

[Kellermann]

Kellerman is so obsessed with red hair, he sees blue as the enemy,

Mate, it's ginger, let's get the terminology correct!

 

[TuffyTenToes]

Fuckin' hell, Zoey has nipple piercings as well.
The blue haired goddess just keeps getting better and better

 

[DavDR]

Fuckin' hell, Zoey has nipple piercings as well.
The blue haired goddess just keeps getting better and better

Yeah, but what about the smell?

 

[felicemastronzo]

All of the other characters' stories mattered at the time. But like all problems, once they are resolved, they don't matter anymore. But not all problems were equal:

• Chad was an issue until he wasn't.
• Tybalt was only ever just a speed bump.
• Bella's story hasn't unfolded yet, I still think we're in for something unsettling with her.

The fact that they were mostly resolved without too much misery is a good thing. We don't need the issues to be so great that they scar the characters for life, at least not yet. We're still supposed to be enjoying the story.

But at the same time, if Zoey turns up and she's just got more problems for the mc to solve, that will be annoying. Her advantage will be there's gonna be an hour dedicated to her story, so by the end of it we may feel more inclined to accept her.

in fact they were all bombs that were defused well before they exploded.

when Sage kept telling us that she still felt like Chad's girlfriend (a pretty terrible situation for MC) we already knew that Chad was not interested in her at all, so besides considering Sage a poor fool what do we have to worry about?

 

[TuffyTenToes]

Yeah, but what about the smell?

I'm guessing that the nipples has had enough time to heal and there is no smell involved

 

[felicemastronzo]

That doesn't make any sense. More content in less time = more money in less time. Not to mention that the game is also being sold on Steam. After season 2 released on Steam it got the biggest record in players ingame - the first record was upon release of the first season on Steam, that is around 1100 players, after season 2 released it got 5700 players. The lowest playercount was in around the middle of between the release of the two seasons where player count hit less than 150 players.

if instead of 6 months it would take him 4 months to make the next chapter, why should he earn more money?

from patreon he would have practically the same money, a few more donations, but i don't think there would be a substantial difference

he would anticipate the release on Steam... ok, but it's not more money, it's anticipated money, between the first and second season his numbers have improved even there, instead of cashing in 2 years he would cash in a year and a half. some more sales maybe, but nothing shocking

and to all this you have to take away how much he should be paying to associates.

the only scenario in which it would suit him and should he no longer feel like it, in that case he would be fine with earning less, which is always better than nothing despite the inertia of patreon.

 

[felicemastronzo]

Looking at Zoey’s face, I’m gonna say her boyfriend was abusive and she’s had to escape to the mc to save herself.

The boyfriend will follow her and the mc will have to beat him up, finally putting his martial arts to the test in a serious battle rather than just all the scuffles he gets into.

Zoey will be so appreciative that she will throw herself once again at the mc, causing confusion in his new relationship with his chosen LI.

Either that, or she’s trying to sneak out a fart…

to me he seems much more concerned than she does....

That Zoey was the one beating her partner....

or he knows Zoey's terrible farts....

 

[mindern]

Something that could be interesting if Zoey does have a tag along from her time on the coast (boyfriend or not)… the MC’s dynamic with her and her friends could be flipped from what it usually is.

MC has been the “poor” kid for a lot of the game. It’s how DPC defines him relative to everyone else in the blurb for the game. It isn’t the be all and end all of his personality but there’s a certain dynamic with most of the cast (Maya/Josy, not so much).

If Zoey turns up with nothing and bring along friends equally with “nothing” the MC would suddenly be the “privileged” one. Dude has a fairly spectacular living situation relative to a bunch of beach bums. A literal mansion, a room unlike anything anyone else on campus has. The almost absolute loyalty of his frat. A stunning girlfriend (or enough gorgeous fuck buddies to field a rugby team)… there could be some mileage in Zoey thinking the MC has changed. She knows him as a poor outcast. They bonded over that… she was basically his only friend if I recall correctly. His future is (choice permitting) looking bright too. Engineering degree and close personal ties with some incredibly powerful people?

Maybe Zoey spins this whole thing on its head and she’s the alternative to “being a DIK”. He chose college over her once. Maybe that choice can come back around.