VN Ren'Py Blood Spirals [Ep.2 v0.2.3] [Modern Degenerate]

[Alias#2]

Every episode has a credits roll - you just need to continue. Episode 2 opens after you click through the credits - it's a 3 second Fade transition from black... Unless the "End of Part One" confused you. This is the first part of episode 2 - the second part will come at the end of January, if I can make up the time from being sick the last ten days. Flu has messed with my output - but I really want to keep to my own internal schedule so the game can be completed by the beginning of 2027 - so I'll be trying to make it up.



The discord is currently a Patreon perk - but this is actually detrimental so I am likely to reshuffle and make the base channel available to all and have specific channels that are for Patreon members of various tiers. It won't happen today, I'm coughing up a lung, and any moments of clarity are being spent on writing part 2 - but I'll get to it when I can.

I cannot even begin to tell you how important discord can be. It has even saved a few developers who were nearly forced to abandon their game. Mostly because it attracts many people who are very serious about keeping AVN's alive.
It is easy to have private channels for Patrons, so nothing needs to change there. I have found a lot of games on discord. The truth is, I found F95 because of discord.
Not the other way around. Once you find the right people there, you get connected to very good info.

 

[Mortarion]

I'll probably have to - there have been a lot more choices and variables than I had originally intended. I can't get it done immediately, but once I have finished the script for the next update, I'll add this to my list of to-dos.

First of all, I like the story really much.

Now to the quoted part:

Would appreciated something like a WT, or better to say a hint system - not something that shows you the optimal choice for every decision.

I will be honest to you and try to not become unfair. The game seems be really punishing in terms of missing content without even noticing.

For example, I got through the cage scene in EP1 with Aneta in good terms.

MC stays the night in Aneta's bedroom.
Best outcome reached?
Check!
At least I thought so.

After the fallout with her, and the later meeting with her, Rosa and little munchkin the girls have a happy sleepover. Never I had thought that there would be a big scene more. Without someone talking about this here I hadn't thought I had anything missed. Only with URM was I able to trace the scene without a replay.

Anyway, I have now replayed, the game and have a question about the kitchen scene with Aneta.

Whats that meaning on the variable anetaWall



I have no desire to bork my game again, just because the way I would play this is stripping me of this points and I have no clue what are they for.

The discord is currently a Patreon perk - but this is actually detrimental so I am likely to reshuffle and make the base channel available to all and have specific channels that are for Patreon members of various tiers. It won't happen today, I'm coughing up a lung, and any moments of clarity are being spent on writing part 2 - but I'll get to it when I can.

Beside the stuff Alias#2 has mentioned in this post there is also the the not to underestimating possibility to have a additional way to communicate.
Imagine your patreon is under review or completely gone without any hope of getting it back online - I'm sure you will appreciate the possibility to tell whats going on.

 

[ModernDegenerate]

I have no desire to bork my game again, just because the way I would play this is stripping me of this points and I have no clue what are they for.

There will be around 20 points available over the course of time to get this variable to 0 by episode 4, so double the maximum value of 10.

Aneta has a more complicated setup than Emily because of her proclivity to push people away, and the possibility that she falls in love with MC - but cannot shake the behaviours and bad habits she has formed over the years to protect herself. So she can fall in love with the MC - but continue being self-destructive, or by spending time with him, she can come to terms with her past and recognise her harmful adaptations to stressors.

There will only be small variations in episodes 2 and 3 caused by this.

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As of ep 2-part two, I'll add feedback when choices change variables, and your suggestion is a good one - giving a small hint as to the outcome for most choices will be fine. There will still be some blind choices because my "gameplay" is about paying attention to the characters and making decisions as you would real people in your life.

When it comes to discord, I will be opening it up to public participation in the very near future.

 

[Mortarion]

As of ep 2-part two, I'll add feedback when choices change variables, and your suggestion is a good one - giving a small hint as to the outcome for most choices will be fine.

That sounds good.
That reminds me of the one or other game here that has the same approach.

A little notification in the top left/right corner of the screen like:

"Aneta/Emily likes/dislike that"

Or after a creampie "xxx's wombi will remember that"

But keep it discreet.

There will still be some blind choices because my "gameplay" is about paying attention to the characters and making decisions as you would real people in your life.

That's for sure, but there is also a problem a other user here has already mentioned it.
Most players, who have some experience in playing avn's have often the feeling that this or that is a major choice and save at this point to check the results.
But sometimes there is no visible difference in the facial expressions if I chose A or B, even when it's clear that the picked choice is shit.

 

[Yupyup123123]

Every episode has a credits roll - you just need to continue. Episode 2 opens after you click through the credits - it's a 3 second Fade transition from black... Unless the "End of Part One" confused you. This is the first part of episode 2 - the second part will come at the end of January, if I can make up the time from being sick the last ten days. Flu has messed with my output - but I really want to keep to my own internal schedule so the game can be completed by the beginning of 2027 - so I'll be trying to make it up.



The discord is currently a Patreon perk - but this is actually detrimental so I am likely to reshuffle and make the base channel available to all and have specific channels that are for Patreon members of various tiers. It won't happen today, I'm coughing up a lung, and any moments of clarity are being spent on writing part 2 - but I'll get to it when I can.

Its not going to episode 2 for mre?!?! is that a patreon exclusive? it sends me to main menu after it shows the end of episode 1 screen?

 

[Mortarion]

Its not going to episode 2 for mre?!?! is that a patreon exclusive? it sends me to main menu after it shows the end of episode 1 screen?

Did you use any kind of mod?

If yes, you have to wait until that specific mods is updated to the current version of the game until can can proceed.
Remember, a save game created from a modded game will stay borked forever and can't be used with a vanilla game

If not maybe try to download the game from a other file host in the OP, or use the torrent links from the post my signature points to.

Or maybe you have played the game on a version das was borked and needed a hotfix. Using a save from before the hotfix may lead to missing variables and the game has no clue how to proceed.

 

[ModernDegenerate]

That's for sure, but there is also a problem a other user here has already mentioned it.
Most players, who have some experience in playing avn's have often the feeling that this or that is a major choice and save at this point to check the results.
But sometimes there is no visible difference in the facial expressions if I chose A or B, even when it's clear that the picked choice is shit.

I'll keep this in mind for blind decisions - off the top of my head, I do not remember a big decision that is currently in the game not altering the immediate responses (small things for sure - trying to balance speed and quality is difficult), but I'll make sure to look into it while polishing part 2 for release.

Its not going to episode 2 for mre?!?! is that a patreon exclusive? it sends me to main menu after it shows the end of episode 1 screen?

If you haven't modified the game for episode 1, try rolling back before the final sequence and letting it play again - there's a possibility you saved on a screen that is no longer in the game. I don't recall deleting anything, but it's the only possibility I can think of if you're running the game without modifications.

 

[Yupyup123123]

I'll keep this in mind for blind decisions - off the top of my head, I do not remember a big decision that is currently in the game not altering the immediate responses (small things for sure - trying to balance speed and quality is difficult), but I'll make sure to look into it while polishing part 2 for release.



If you haven't modified the game for episode 1, try rolling back before the final sequence and letting it play again - there's a possibility you saved on a screen that is no longer in the game. I don't recall deleting anything, but it's the only possibility I can think of if you're running the game without modifications.

Nope first time playing,,, "by the way good story so far!" must be the site i downloaded it from or something idk

 

[ModernDegenerate]

Nope first time playing,,, "by the way good story so far!" must be the site i downloaded it from or something idk

Did you get it from itch? There's two links there - you need v0.2.3.

 

[Filipis]

Every episode has a credits roll - you just need to continue. Episode 2 opens after you click through the credits - it's a 3 second Fade transition from black... Unless the "End of Part One" confused you. This is the first part of episode 2 - the second part will come at the end of January, if I can make up the time from being sick the last ten days. Flu has messed with my output - but I really want to keep to my own internal schedule so the game can be completed by the beginning of 2027 - so I'll be trying to make it up.

Just to triple-check here... the current content ends on the ominous message that Kieran and Grant come across in their apartment, correct?

 

[ModernDegenerate]

Just to triple-check here... the current content ends on the ominous message that Kieran and Grant come across in their apartment, correct?

Correct.

 

[Filipis]

Correct.

Good work on Blood Spirals, MD, but here's some feedback on you as a developer:

• I was thinking of joining the Patreon to support you, but seeing how the cheapest tier is still 5$/month, I had to pass. Especially as it doesn't even give access to the game before a public release, which is not a good thing.
  • Either the price needs to be lower, or it should give access to the game files at some point before a public release.
• Then I noticed you are also "developing" another AVN in parallel, which does not inspire confidence in getting my money's worth; doesn't matter if it's just a sporadic render here & there, it still takes away your attention from the game which I do not appreciate as a (potential) paying supporter.
• No feedback about the game, except maybe 'shrink' down Aneta's yapping. Sometimes her rambling is a little too tough to read.

The story is very interesting, but not making Rosa a viable Love Interest is something I can't forgive - all she wants is to drain MC dry, give him a bunch of kids, and cook lunch for him. Literally every man's dream.

 

[ModernDegenerate]

Good work on Blood Spirals, MD, but here's some feedback on you as a developer:

• I was thinking of joining the Patreon to support you, but seeing how the cheapest tier is still 5$/month, I had to pass. Especially as it doesn't even give access to the game before a public release, which is not a good thing.
  • Either the price needs to be lower, or it should give access to the game files at some point before a public release.
• Then I noticed you are also "developing" another AVN in parallel, which does not inspire confidence in getting my money's worth; doesn't matter if it's just a sporadic render here & there, it still takes away your attention from the game which I do not appreciate as a (potential) paying supporter.
• No feedback about the game, except maybe 'shrink' down Aneta's yapping. Sometimes her rambling is a little too tough to read.

The story is very interesting, but not making Rosa a viable Love Interest is something I can't forgive - all she wants is to drain MC dry, give him a bunch of kids, and cook lunch for him. Literally every man's dream.

It's fine - you can join as a free member and get the public updates. Patreon rips developers off below a certain point - $3 (but I work in £ because I am British). It's a waste of the subscriber's money to go lower because Patreon takes most of it - not much is going to the artist. I'd rather offer sizeable free updates than waste people's money with a £1 tier.

For this project, I've kept early access to a minimum (2 weeks max), and made the ceiling much lower than the typical $50+ tier with a max tier cost of £15.

 

[Filipis]

It's fine - you can join as a free member and get the public updates. Patreon rips developers off below a certain point - $3 (but I work in £ because I am British). It's a waste of the subscriber's money to go lower because Patreon takes most of it - not much is going to the artist. I'd rather offer sizeable free updates than waste people's money with a £1 tier.

For this project, I've kept early access to a minimum (2 weeks max), and made the ceiling much lower than the typical $50+ tier with a max tier cost of £15.

Aren't the fees & taxes always the same? I'll be paying a 25% "Tax" on subscription prices no matter the cost. The lowest tier being 3$ is the most reasonable price for still contributing, but being above a "free" member, IMHO.

 

[ModernDegenerate]

Aren't the fees & taxes always the same? I'll be paying a 25% "Tax" on subscription prices no matter the cost. The lowest tier being 3$ is the most reasonable price for still contributing, but being above a "free" member, IMHO.

I'll be honest, I haven't looked at it since I started the page. I took a quick glance at the page that gave me the information regarding the increased fees for sub $3 tiers... Today it doesn't mention it and makes no reference to anything other than the standard 10% platform fee before VAT and currency fees.

I'll look into this a bit more, and consider altering tiers based on the feedback. Can't promise anything, but it's a reasonable suggestion considering I appear to be operating on erroneous information.

 

[Merlin-Magic]

I'll be honest, I haven't looked at it since I started the page. I took a quick glance at the page that gave me the information regarding the increased fees for sub $3 tiers... Today it doesn't mention it and makes no reference to anything other than the standard 10% platform fee before VAT and currency fees.

I'll look into this a bit more, and consider altering tiers based on the feedback. Can't promise anything, but it's a reasonable suggestion considering I appear to be operating on erroneous information.

Depending on where you live, the actual fees change quite a bit. Even though I do not have to pay extra taxes to donate, I do have to pay transfer fees to send the money to wherever the developer actually is. This does add up, but it is much less than the taxes that many have to pay. If I had to pay 25% more than I do, it would kill me. Fortunately you are also on Itch. That works even better lately, since there is no limit (that I know of) to how much I can pay for the game. I also can buy the game more than once. I can always create another account if for some reason Itch does not let me buy the game twice or more. That has only happened once.

There is much more I want to say about how much I like this game, but that will have to wait until I have more time. The real world is calling.

 

[ModernDegenerate]

Depending on where you live, the actual fees change quite a bit. Even though I do not have to pay extra taxes to donate, I do have to pay transfer fees to send the money to wherever the developer actually is. This does add up, but it is much less than the taxes that many have to pay. If I had to pay 25% more than I do, it would kill me. Fortunately you are also on Itch. That works even better lately, since there is no limit (that I know of) to how much I can pay for the game. I also can buy the game more than once. I can always create another account if for some reason Itch does not let me buy the game twice or more. That has only happened once.

There is much more I want to say about how much I like this game, but that will have to wait until I have more time. The real world is calling.

Thanks for the kind words.

Itch no longer pays out to adult content creators due to collective shout's economic warfare against games with sexual content - so it's actually just a worse version of F95 these days. They stole $10 from me when making this change, so I'm not particularly happy with them.

If you want to support financially and avoid Patreon, Ko-fi is an option - but honestly, at this "amateur" stage of my development as a creator - I appreciate support via just talking about the game online and spreading the word just as much as money. That will probably change when I come to the end of my savings - but we have at least until BS is completed before worrying about that.

 

[Mortarion]

Itch no longer pays out to adult content creators due to collective shout's economic warfare against games with sexual content - so it's actually just a worse version of F95 these days. They stole $10 from me when making this change, so I'm not particularly happy with them.

Wait, what?!

Did I just understand correct?

You open a page on Itch for a adult game, the players buy your game on these page for whatever price, and itch keep the complete money for themself?!

 

[Filipis]

Wait, what?!

Did I just understand correct?

You open a page on Itch for a adult game, the players buy your game on these page for whatever price, and itch keep the complete money for themself?!

To be fair, you can't open new NSFW content pages, and those that already exists are blacklisted/shadowbanned on their site, so the random Joe can't accidentally have his money stolen by Itch.

Unless you enter the page via a direct link, where Itch will happily steal your money in the name of... morals??

 

[Merlin-Magic]

Wait, what?!

Did I just understand correct?

You open a page on Itch for a adult game, the players buy your game on these page for whatever price, and itch keep the complete money for themself?!

I am not so sure this is completely true. I know for a fact that some developers that I bought games from on Itch did receive the money. They even told me so on discord. I will look into this further, because I support a lot of developers through Itch. Every time I look into problems with gaming, it is not started with Collective Shout, but Apple. They have been going after games far longer than anyone else. They have millions of times more money than Collective Shout and it is always good to follow the money. Apple has gone after Itch in the past.
Anyway, I intend to test this by buying this game on Itch. It there is any problem with the payment, I want to know. Of course if Modern Degenerate is in the UK, that alone might create problems. They seem to have their own set of rules lately.

Edit:
Well it seems you cannot buy the game on Itch anyway. You can only download it for free.
It seems the best laid plans can fail completely, and not just go astray .