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

[Lostanddamned]

I know, and he can't even decide on one good preview that won't "spoil?" Just grab anything outside of the Halloween party. An Li with a short skit in class, Josy in gym clothes working out, anything. The Halloween party free roam must really take up a large portion of the episode if he is having trouble finding something.

I have a feeling it's going to be something like that party in the HOT house like in episode 7 or whenever it was, that took such a big portion of the episode that you had a feeling that nothing else significant happened in the episode.

Like again if this Halloween party only involves HOT-related characters it's going to be pretty disappointing with how much it has been hyped up. I'm saying it again - I have a feeling DPC put his foot in his mouth with the hype he put in the Halloween party that if it doesn't turn out to be the best thing that has happened since the beginning of the game, it's going to be a disappointment.

 

[AchedCroissant]

Hey, man, you never know. There's always that crazy chance that it'll be a poll about Zoey's new hairstyle when she surprises the MC.

As the only fan of Zoey I think DPC should just send me a private message and ask me directly what I want

Yes I know I'm not the only one I just said it to joke

 

[sixart]

I have a feeling it's going to be something like that party in the HOT house like in episode 7 or whenever it was, that took such a big portion of the episode that you had a feeling that nothing else significant happened in the episode.

Like again if this Halloween party only involves HOT-related characters it's going to be pretty disappointing with how much it has been hyped up. I'm saying it again - I have a feeling DPC put his foot in his mouth with the hype he put in the Halloween party that if it doesn't turn out to be the best thing that has happened since the beginning of the game, it's going to be a disappointment.

 

[PashafromRussia]

I have a feeling it's going to be something like that party in the HOT house like in episode 7 or whenever it was, that took such a big portion of the episode that you had a feeling that nothing else significant happened in the episode.

Like again if this Halloween party only involves HOT-related characters it's going to be pretty disappointing with how much it has been hyped up. I'm saying it again - I have a feeling DPC put his foot in his mouth with the hype he put in the Halloween party that if it doesn't turn out to be the best thing that has happened since the beginning of the game, it's going to be a disappointment.

I think part of the episode will be devoted to preparing for a party, dating your girls and solving problems with Jade/Burke. The party will be big, but even in episode 7 it didn't take up all the main time. Besides the party, a lot happened in episode 7.

 

[PashafromRussia]

As the only fan of Zoey I think DPC should just send me a private message and ask me directly what I want

Yes I know I'm not the only one I just said it to joke

Zoey is perch. Why is it that when I look at her face I imagine a perch with blue hair?

 

[Casiope]

this is one reason that I keep saying BaDIK will be DPC's last, fully hardcore AVN. I believe he will go mainstream with his next game. It will have some lewdness, but nothing like what he is currently doing. Next games will be more story focused with a titty on the side. I doubt MC will be jizzing all over a girl's face in he next one. You get mass effect level of lewdness.

That's also what I told myself after playing the interlude that has two optional sex scenes (the story would have stayed the same without). DrPinkcake favored its heroine's introspection on her relationships with others rather than the carnal desire as it is emphasized in the previous episodes.

However, there is no lack of qualitative narrative games (Life is Strange series, What Remains of Edith Finch, Firewatch, Telltale games, Quantic Dreams games, etc.). With a limited budget and a limited development team, it is easier to stand out on games for adults, the vast majority of which are mediocre.

So there is a financial interest in continuing in this niche market, but the wish to work on a more mainstream and respectable project can not be excluded after many years of dealing with pornography content.

 

[slackster]

Getting a sinking feeling that Episode 9 will be just the buildup to the Halloween party, the girls designing and finalizing their outfits after the fallout of MC's choice's in Episode 8

 

[Antonirecser]

Yo guys, i was wondering if anyone could enlighten me about this: if ure using the mods so you can stay with all and see all the scenes, can this lead to a bug or error in the future uptades or the game simple runs trought all scenes and there is no problem in that? i already have my saves with the path i want with the girl i like the most, but will be nice to see all development in the relationships

 

[sixart]

Yo guys, i was wondering if anyone could enlighten me about this: if ure using the mods so you can stay with all and see all the scenes, can this lead to a bug or error in the future uptades or the game simple runs trought all scenes and there is no problem in that? i already have my saves with the path i want with the girl i like the most, but will be nice to see all development in the relationships

It will fuck the game up... the story would flow through the persistent data but since that data is an invalid one the game cannot go on... So you got the summer to create an unmodded playthrough with every interested routes

 

[OFT]

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Thanks to everyone who voted in last week's survey regarding previews. Although votes are split, there are some trends I have reflected upon.

It's impossible to please everyone, but most of you don't want to see any costume spoilers, so I'll try to limit them in previews.

And if I choose to post something, I'll make sure to hide the image as an attachment so you can choose if you want to see it or not.

Some episodes will be like this when previews can spoil the episode badly, and it's too hard to find something worth showing. I had the same issue during the development of the final two episodes of Acting Lessons.

It feels comforting knowing that most of you are fine with not seeing renders if it were to spoil content. But as a creator, I still want to create and give you content monthly, between updates. Posting nothing has never sat right with me, so I felt I needed to do this survey in the first place.

I'll have a new poll up and running early this month.

Have a nice weekend

Dr PinkCake

To hear him talk about the poll, it sounds like he has seen all he needs to see. The poll is supposed to be live for another week, but I thought 14 days was too long anyway, and my thoughts seem to be like his - the trends won't change given 7 more days or 70.

Anyway, here are the trends he's talking about. Remember, these results are not across all tiers, but it should give you an idea of how patrons are voting.




Sometimes the patrons are stuck with poor choices, and sometimes they simply make poor choices (IMHO). BUT WHO THE FUCK ARE THE 118 PEOPLE THAT WOULD RATHER SEE RENDERS OF GUYS???

None of the choices seem to be mutually exclusive. For instance, you can vote for all three of these:

• I am OK with seeing costume spoilers
• I'd rather NOT see any costume spoilers
• I'd rather see costume spoilers than Special renders

You can also vote for both of these:

• I'd rather see previews of Side characters than Main characters
• I'd rather see previews of Main characters than Side characters

So it is conceivable that some or all of the 118 idiots might actually have voted for guys AND girls. Maybe that would lessen their idiocy, but not by much.

 

[Train of Thought]

With each status update I'm starting to believe more and more that DPC has mastered the art of inarticulate talking. Like look at the amount of text he posts and like 90% of it is pointless. Hopefully we'll get some previews next week so we roughly have an idea at what we are getting.

We got updated information on all the relevant things DPC has mentioned in the last few weeks (the big animation queue he had stacked up for several weeks, his current progress on the scene count, which was mentioned last week, etc.) and some news on the polls at the end. It's pretty much your typical status update from DPC, so I fail to understand what exactly you expected from it.
Additionally, we've got a preview approx. every 2 weeks, which doesn't seem too irregular for me + we'll be getting many more in the near future (the poll is there for a reason). The only thing missing potentially is the total animation count (which could and will be approximated by our statistician mpa71 according to DPC's own words, incl. the updated info) and total static render count, of which we only have DPC's early estimate of ~800 from an update back in April. Considering DPC has been massively engaged in writing the last few weeks and him saying in this one that he has 'a lot of art to produce - thousands of renders', we could gauge the current situation in the art department (there's still a lot of work to do) because it's transparent and not hard to put together. Therefore, I barely see any 'inarticulate talking' in today's status update

 

[Lostanddamned]

We got updated information on all the relevant things DPC has mentioned in the last few weeks (the big animation queue he had stacked up for several weeks, his current progress on the scene count, which was mentioned last week, etc.) and some news on the polls at the end. It's pretty much your typical status update from DPC, so I fail to understand what exactly you expected from it.
Additionally, we've got a preview approx. every 2 weeks, which doesn't seem too irregular for me + we'll be getting many more in the near future (the poll is there for a reason). The only thing missing potentially is the total animation count (which could and will be approximated by our statistician mpa71 according to DPC's own words, incl. the updated info) and total static render count, of which we only have DPC's early estimate of ~800 from an update back in April. Considering DPC has been massively engaged in writing the last few weeks and him saying in this one that he has 'a lot of art to produce - thousands of renders', we could gauge the current situation in the art department (there's still a lot of work to do) because it's transparent and not hard to put together. Therefore, I barely see any 'inarticulate talking' in today's status update

He's like the Ron Dennis of adult games. Ron Dennis was the McLaren F1 team principal and was a raging paranoid and asshole. Like they'd ask him a simple question and he'd give long winded answers that had nothing in common with the question, in fear out of giving away information related to the team/car/upgrades etc.

He said that the queue is done, but we have no idea how much is left or when we can expect an update (though my estimate is around early or mid October seems plausible).

 

[nyrek]

Sometimes the patrons are stuck with poor choices, and sometimes they simply make poor choices (IMHO). BUT WHO THE FUCK ARE THE 118 PEOPLE THAT WOULD RATHER SEE RENDERS OF GUYS???

hakuna-matata?

 

[joaodasdesgracas]

this is one reason that I keep saying BaDIK will be DPC's last, fully hardcore AVN. I believe he will go mainstream with his next game. It will have some lewdness, but nothing like what he is currently doing. Next games will be more story focused with a titty on the side. I doubt MC will be jizzing all over a girl's face in he next one. You get mass effect level of lewdness.

It would be a weird choice, since his main focus besides writing the story itself has been improving the animations and quality of the renders. Most of it would be pointless in a mainstream VN, since you're not expected to get that there except for some special bits.

Meanwhile, he can't do a game that isn't a VN with this quality since he works alone, and it'd be insane amounts of works for a single person.

Plus, if DPC is focusing on maximized earnings, he has two options: found an Indy studio and expand, and then go mainstream, or keep where he is and making tons of money. He found his niche, he earns incredibly well and is still slowly expanding.

Changing genres would be a significant risk, and for what? To write a non porn VN in a bloated and mostly dead market? And not to mention that his style, Realistic 3D isn't what mainstream VNs are, since those are almost always japanese or Japanese inspired, both visually and plot wise.

This isn't the early 2000s where things like Fate Stay exploded and created a mainstream franchise. People have much higher expectations and there's a lot of good to mediocre products there.

This reminds me of 2 stories:

Worm's author, Wildblow. One of the first niche internet authors to get really big from Patreon and his writings. His first story was wildly successful considering the predecessors. After finishing Worm, Wildbow decided to change genres from Superhero to a weird Horror/Fantasyesque story. It tanked and now he's back to writing a Worm sequel.

The entire Nostalgia Critic/That Guy with Glasses attempt at killing off the NC character and creating and directing a more mainstream humor show. It imploded quickly, made him lose a ton of money and he had to go back to critique videos to salvage his paycheck.

 

[Oliver Wendell Homely]

This is one reason that I keep saying BaDIK will be DPC's last, fully hardcore AVN. I believe he will go mainstream with his next game.
[/QUOTE]

You may be right, but I think that if DPC, or frankly any successful AVN developer active on this site, wanted to go mainstream, they can expect their revenue streams to shrink massively or disappear altogether. DPC is a hard worker and seems to have developed a lot of technical skills that he could bring to bear on a mainstream game, but what mainstream Ren'py games out there make any money? Of course there are indie non-Ren'py games that become hits now and again, but those are few and far between. There is just SO MUCH more competition for every dollar in the mainstream gaming world.

The adult gaming space, on the other hand, is an arena where a highly skilled developer and even mildly gifted storyteller (like DPC) can really mop up because there are so few really high-quality competitors. Based on the number of patrons he has, DPC is making a very nice living and he retains complete independence. Any effort to get into mainstream content is going to increase his costs, too. Even if he could continue to operate as a lone wolf in development, marketing and publishing his content will require outlays of cash. For example, currently his game is distributed via Google Drive, Mega, and other hosts that charge him virtually nothing. He can't publish mainstream games that way. He would have to rely on Steam and similar platforms, all of which take a sizable cut of sales.

Of course, if he feels somehow embarrassed or inadequate over his legacy being a porny college comedy game, maybe he will retire and work on mainstream content while resting on the piles of cash BaDIK raked in. In such an event, all most of us would ever know is that DPC retired and was never heard from again. I highly doubt he would use the "Dr. Pinkcake" moniker on non-adult projects.

 

[dreamgoat]

Interesting. You accuse someone of being wrong, but your argument is total bullshit.

If the fans didn't support DPC, DPC wouldn't be able to develop BaDIK full time because he would have to work a "normal" job to support his family. As a result, up to 10 hours a day would go to his "normal" job, which certainly wouldn't lead to shorter update times.

On the subject of employees
DPC can no longer hire employees and form them into a team. He should have done that before BaDIK was launched to ensure consistent quality. But he simply didn't have the money for it at that time and would have had to make large investments for a project whose success on this scale was not foreseeable, certainly not after AL's shitstorm.

Now DPC has the money to hire staff, but bringing those staff to his quality line would not work, as each person is different and different creative impressions would go into BaDIK, with the risk of losing the authenticity of the previous game. To prevent this, DPC would spend much more time on corrections, which would lead to longer update times.

DPC has already let it be known that it already has ideas for a game based on BaDIK. It would make sense for DPC to hire people and form a team before he starts producing a new game, because that team would establish a common level of quality that would apply from start to finish.

My personal thoughts
The people who don't support DPC financially, in my eyes, don't even have the right to complain about the way DPC operates. They are consuming his product without his permission and should be happy that they can get updates at all.

Many here in the thread are decent people who enjoy the game, appreciate DPC's work, and have stimulating discussions and debates about the game's content. That actually shows me that DPC has done everything right so far, because otherwise this thread wouldn't have reached this size.

These decent people are why I like this thread and am here regularly.
Yes I know that I am dalli_x.

Interesting and very well put out. I wonder if that would shorten BaDIK life time of DPC working a lone and would like to start another game with a team to reduce the load.

 

[JETracktor]

BUT WHO THE FUCK ARE THE 118 PEOPLE THAT WOULD RATHER SEE RENDERS OF GUYS???

Simply - women or gays

 

[Skeltom]

I know, and he can't even decide on one good preview that won't "spoil?" Just grab anything outside of the Halloween party. An Li with a short skit in class, Josy in gym clothes working out, anything. The Halloween party free roam must really take up a large portion of the episode if he is having trouble finding something.

That part of the update had me scratching my head as well. Like you said unless episode 9 is 100% Halloween party content, by this time he must have hundreds of static renders from normal scenes like conversations with the cast. It cant be that hard to show a pick of the MC sitting down for a chat or in class with on of them without a "spoiler".

 

[Train of Thought]

He's like the Ron Dennis of adult games. Ron Dennis was the McLaren F1 team principal and was a raging paranoid and asshole. Like they'd ask him a simple question and he'd give long winded answers that had nothing in common with the question, in fear out of giving away information related to the team/car/upgrades etc.

He said that the queue is done, but we have no idea how much is left or when we can expect an update (though my estimate is around early or mid October seems plausible).

I don't think he can really estimate it himself, it's too early for that right now, so it wouldn't make sense to give a total when we're months away from the release... Also don't think he's purposefully withholding information because there's no reason to and because he's always been transparent in his communication. The picture will get clearer to him and us the further he gets in the development, we'll also probably get a task checklist when nearing the end of the dev cycle like last time

 

[OFT]

My biggest concern is he wakes up one day and says, "What the fuck am I doing with my life!?", when he realises his legacy will be a porn game that's only appreciated on the far corners of the Internet.

this is one reason that I keep saying BaDIK will be DPC's last, fully hardcore AVN. I believe he will go mainstream with his next game. It will have some lewdness, but nothing like what he is currently doing. Next games will be more story focused with a titty on the side. I doubt MC will be jizzing all over a girl's face in he next one. You get mass effect level of lewdness.

Changing genres would be a significant risk, and for what? To write a non porn VN in a bloated and mostly dead market? And not to mention that his style, Realistic 3D isn't what mainstream VNs are, since those are almost always japanese or Japanese inspired, both visually and plot wise.

Of course, if he feels somehow embarrassed or inadequate over his legacy being a porny college comedy game, maybe he will retire and work on mainstream content while resting on the piles of cash BaDIK raked in. In such an event, all most of us would ever know is that DPC retired and was never heard from again. I highly doubt he would use the "Dr. Pinkcake" moniker on non-adult projects.

I swear I've seen DPC talk about why he chooses to create within the adult genre, and how he would like to see the reduction or elimination of stigmas surrounding more graphic lewdness as it is perceived in mainstream media. But I can't find it in either the Patreon Q&As or his posts in F95. Maybe someone among the group remembers it as well?


Speaking of searching his F95 posts, I came across this gem:

One thing I know from my experience with Acting Lessons, is that DrPinkCake has thought the game through before he even started it, and doesn't change it's trajectory based on what we say, request, demand, plead, speculate or bribe. He's pretty damned stubborn in that regard.

So, whatever is planned will happen. He will make minor balancing changes, and how these mini-games work, but that's about it. Personally, I'd like him to change the MC's ridiculous haircut. But I doubt that will happen either.

It's indeed the same for BADIK. The story has been outlined and, as you said, I'm stubborn and it won't be changed for anyone. I have allowed myself more flexibility with the episode count this time around and it won't be a fixed number until we're closer to the end. There are multiple endings planned.
If you want to imagine how it is being a developer, by the way, just read 5-10 pages in this very thread and see how it is impossible to please everyone. So no matter what I do, I expect to receive both praise and insults. The only one I know that I will please, for sure, is myself. I hope most of you guys will enjoy the game, too!

Almost 3 fucking years later, he changed MC's hair for you, Walter Victor! (Well, maybe not just for you, )


Another thing DPC used to do here sure was fun to see. A couple of folks posted pics of real-life women that they thought resembled DPC's characters, and he responded with renders specifically mimicking them:

Real-Life "Melissa" and DPC's response:




Original Post



Real-Life "Sage" and DPC's response:




Original Post



Another interesting note from that same original Sage post:

Good thing I'm aware that people are peeking at the code. I wouldn't try to put red herrings in it, now would I?

Great. Just when I've started delving into the code myself rather than relying on others to do it, I have worry about whether or not he was serious?