Major Development Progress Update!
Hello everyone!
This is quite an important report.
First of all, I have to confess that the actual progress I had planned to show in the future is much greater than you might have expected, and now I want to update the data by showing these developments now, rather than stretching it over months.
The most important aspect is the graphical improvements. I've created temporary sprites for NPCs; they only have 4 frames, but as temporary assets, they will do for now. Most likely, I will keep them this way for the demo and release an early publicly available version of the game with them.
Secondly, I have significantly expanded and improved the game mechanics of working in the tavern. Now NPCs can sit at tables, get angry in certain situations, and comment on the player's actions. Additionally, NPCs have learned to harass with the heroine.
Thirdly, I've designed some interface elements, sprites for the first tavern employee, and made various Quality of Life (QoL) changes that have made the game much better.
There's still much more that I haven't mentioned, which you'll see when I release the general demo.
And lastly, and most importantly... I've encountered serious health issues, and I'll be forced to take a break from project development for at least a month. Because of this, there may not be a new progress report.
What are the future plans? I've finally gotten to developing one of the two most important mechanics: the "Combat System." This is essentially the core system around which the entire game will be structured. I already have a rough idea of what it will look like, but implementing it will be challenging and will require a lot of time. Below is an early concept of a scene that will be included in the demo. I suspect that its development will take around 4-5 months, with the main effort focused on animations. To speed up the development process, I will likely reduce the level of detail and frame quality.
Also, I'll be updating the introductory post.