VN Ren'Py Dual Family [v1.22.1ce] [Gumdrop Games]

[trumpthatbitch]

Thank you for keeping the forum up to date and this post of gumdrop encapsules much of what I find good and bad with "Dual Family".

On one side, with DF we have a game with a rather realistic storyline and many nuances, which is rare in hentai. Thumbs up for this. I think that to get something approaching a HEA ending, you will have to be careful in chosing esp. the "small" decisions, like hugging/not hugging the daughter when they get snacks and drinks in the Kino with her dance partner. Or the son during his airplane dream.
It might be just gutfeeling, but I think that for the Dad-Daughter arc (which is the one I prefer) to get a good ending, the Dad must at least try to help others and not rejecting the Dance partner too much, to gain enough "good karma" to balance the bad. It might end with the Dad-Daughter duo in a relationship for some years, then she moves over (with dad blessing) to her dance partner, which is rather openly implied to be a younger version of the Dad.

On the other side why, oh fraking why, does gumdrop spoil this with his habit of promising many things and then cannot or does not intend to keep them? As I wrote in a post above, I am the last one to raise a fuss when I know the situation as I write myself and are aware of the joys and problems. It is not fun, but ok if you know beforehand and why there is a delay or other things happening.
But gumdrop makes promises he does not keep ("I will be faster next update" - no he is definitely not!), worse more than once his explanations make it clear sometimes he did not even intend to keep his promise! Adding to this is that his explanations come extremly late and often are full of distress lies. That is unacceptable!
Gumdrop, if you read this a tipp: Explain early what is going on, keep promises and deadlines (even those you make by implication), if delays happen, see above (explain early) and fracking Holiness no lies! It might look an easy way to wiggle through, but in the long run you´ll get caught.
I considered pledging for the game, but that thought died the moment gumdrop lied. I do not pledge money to people lying into my face. If he starts acting responsible as I laid out in the tipp, I am sure that he can win part of the audience back and the many bashing posts will become fewer quickly.

Gumdrop can't be bothered to talk to his patrons nor update his game in over 4 months you really think he's reading this thread?

 

[Vanaduke]

Gumdrop can't be bothered to talk to his patrons nor update his game in over 4 months you really think he's reading this thread?

He actually does but he avoids direct interaction; this is the only forum he's not participating because this is the only forum that is completely honest about his incompetence. From all I know he's lurking under a different name or watching without logging in.

 

[EliteForever21]

Lucky Gumdrop still lets freeloaders play his godly game,I hate the son path anyway they need to get rid of it,the father is the only path I'll ever play

 

[Lotex]

So guys, just to change the subject a little bit and maybe have some positivism in this thread, what are the reasons why you like this game exactly ? What keep you excited with each updates and in the story ?

I wanna see what happens to Karen. The son stuff were always way too edgy and the Dad-Daughter recently became way to edgy and obsesses, so there goes the a lot of interesting opportunities.

 

[Asuna.]

To all the haters out there, Gumbear his game is amazing! To the people telling others that there is no update, that is partly true and not true. For people that do not contribute, there is indeed not yet a new free update. For people that do contribute, they actually are 2 entire chapters ahead of the free version. Just check gumbear his personal website to see his progress which is going pretty fast!

 

[Turret]

To all the haters out there, Gumbear his game is amazing! To the people telling others that there is no update, that is partly true and not true. For people that do not contribute, there is indeed not yet a new free update. For people that do contribute, they actually are 2 entire chapters ahead of the free version. Just check gumbear his personal website to see his progress which is going pretty fast!

Chummer, you know that you are most probably in the wrong thread? I do not want to rain on your parade, but we are discussing GUMDROP´s game Dual family, NOT GUMBEAR´s game whatever-name-it-has.
This gumbear might be a fast developer, but in gumdrop´s case even the patrons begin to get grumpy about lacking progress, not only the gallery.

 

[Dirkusmaximus]

Chummer, you know that you are most probably in the wrong thread? I do not want to rain on your parade, but we are discussing GUMDROP´s game Dual family, NOT GUMBEAR´s game whatever-name-it-has..

Maybe someone is making a Gummi Bears porn game.

Although Patreon would probably ban gummiberry juice.

 

[depechedNode]

 

[Deleted member 363645]

This is getting ridiculous. Feel sorry for his genuine fans. He obviously doesnt respect them

 

[itsyeboii]

This is the highest level of milking ive seen so far. I like the game tho

 

[FrenchXConnection]

if you don't like this game just stop to post useless messages on this thread !
Hop along, and stop bothering us !
Hope to see a new uptade soon

 

[Stefok]

honestly i love this guy art work , i love all the detail he put and the character he made. i love dual family game , he put 2 story in one game even though he can make it in another game and get more money. if he slow doesn't mean his don't care about this game, maybe he is perfectionist.

 

[Radoslaw Wolf]

if you don't like this game just stop to post useless messages on this thread !
Hop along, and stop bothering us !
Hope to see a new uptade soon

Good. Because hope is all you got..

 

[itsyeboii]

if you don't like this game just stop to post useless messages on this thread !
Hop along, and stop bothering us !
Hope to see a new uptade soon

The reason why people critisize it in the first place is because they like the game.

 

[itsyeboii]

hey bro have you played Depraved Awakening i took a break from it last year then i replayed the whole thing yesterday damn i wish i didnt take a break from it that game its really good

No I havent, will check it out tho. Thx

 

[Rekt.]

Part X Dev. Update: Morality, Amends, Slow Segs Dead!
Heyo!
The Part X progress tracker was recently updated -- I'd suggest checking it out after you read up on what's new, implied in the title!


The Conniver is the last of the ladies in line, demanding her own spotlight and pinups. I'll throw that poll up this week as usual, so find your way in if you want to vote.

Part X Progress!

Much anticipated, we've finally arrived: all of the slow segments are now complete! The tracker has been updated accordingly and now will resume progress on the fast segments, these segs rendering scenes between 5-60 minutes versus the 2-6 hour renders slow segs required. Between now and the next dev update, I should be able to fully complete at least one full seg, getting another near complete depending how posing goes. Keep an eye on the tracker -- it'll be updated more than once a week now that we've reached this leg!

With news aside, I'd like to share with you a conversation you may have missed in the comments. It consisted of Part X's progress, my site and Patreon content; a supporter expressed his concerns through a series of good questions. He posed some relatable points that merit viewing, if you don't mind the read:

"I have to say I am very disappointed and concerned. The last release from you was in April, which is now over 3 months ago. We keep getting teasers and all of these "pinup packs" but not a single game release. You seem to be making great progress on your personal website and payment systems but again, no release to the game. So you are focused heavily it seems on getting paid but not so focused on releasing content to your paying customers. The "progress page" on your new websites hasn't seemed to move much since it was created. So my question to you is this... Is this going to be a continuing trend? Making us wait for 4 months between releases and watch you spend more time and energy on parallel projects or other projects than you do on the game we are paying you to build?

I like the game and all but in 4 months time I can buy a complete game from Steam rather than watch you build a website. Why should I continue to give you money when my other pledges are delivering good content monthly? I am not trying to be a jerk here but this is an observation from the last 3 months and I don't see you finishing this Chapter until late August at the earliest. I can't be the only person that is frustrated with your lack of progress." - Bass

I agree with your general sentiment about longer spans between releases being frustrating, however I don’t think focus on Part X’s development and working on the site are mutually exclusive. The actual development process of the game allows me to render almost every hour I’m in the office, given I have a scene posed and lined up to render; rendering is a hands-off process and doesn’t require me to do anything other than watch paint dry. Because of this, any time that I spend working on other things relevant to the game such as the site, pinups, posts etcetera don’t necessarily distract nor subtract actual time away from Part X’s development.

To emphasize, working on the site and other quick post content aren’t the reason why the dev cycle spans months long, Part X’s content is. For example, if I were to hypothetically honor your request and terminate my site, pinups and other content additional to the game, the timespan between now and release would be unchanged. At least for this kind of development process, one that heavily utilizes rendering above all else, I’m able to work on multiple things simultaneously without realizing actual time loss for the most important aspect, Part X.

Something I’ve echoed before is specifically why the last two dev cycles (IX and X) span as long as they do, a response to “others release in a one month span/you used to as well, therefore why not continue?” The question heavily involves personal preference -- some people prefer a dev cycle to be as quick as possible, releasing in 4-5 weeks while some find a lengthier, chunkier amount of content per release to be more important. For the previous installment, I tested the waters using the latter; I personally found Part IX to be the first and only installment that was decently paced and fleshed with character interactions versus the jerky, teleport-y, certainly scene-brief nature of earlier installments. In those earlier 4-5 week cycles , I could only reasonably produce 4-5 weeks worth of content; with more weeks included in development cycle, I can flesh out individual releases instead of spreading the content out thin over multiple ones. There’s no content being lost, instead the individual distribution amount and frequency has changed in favor of more content per release versus less time between releases.

While I may possibly release quicker, more modest-sized releases in early areas of Act II, I’ve made my decision to not compromise content amount in favor of time for the Act I finale. I feel that rushing a story, most definitely at its defining event and climax, produces negative outcomes more often than not. I ask that you to please let me be brutally meticulous, especially attentive for this specific release; if you find that what you pledge isn’t equivalent to the quality of what content I’ve posted, you can always end/withhold your pledge until you feel it’s worth it. Waiting until after Part X’s release is a win-win that way!

While you may not share my concern on this subject, I feel that a secondary, unrestricted platform for pledging is an absolute necessity for longevity of this game. In last week’s dev update, I expressed how Patreon has become ruthless in their sanitization, now not even allowing “implied nudity” even on pages specified/warned to be for adult’s only. With Patreon’s reliance on PayPal and Stripe, both having rigorously defined policy prohibiting all adult digital content, I can’t guarantee Patreon will extend mercy to its adult creators -- including all adult categories, not just fringe/taboo games -- for any great length of time. With two more acts of this story waiting to be told, I’d prefer to not have Patreon and their processors pull the rug out from under me. The idea is that when/if that DOES happen, I’ll have somewhere to go that’s already existing and substantial enough to continue development seamlessly. That’s the reason why I’ve nurtured it the past two months, now verging release.

[end]

I always appreciate articulate, intellectually honest questions/concerns about the development; I try to answer them as concisely as I can manage, so shoot them my way if they're on your mind! Patreon, Discord, email or otherwise, I'd love to chat with anyone who shares interest in this story. :]

Part X Content!

Throughout Act I, there have been teasings of certain moral themes through the means of characters, their dialogue and motivations. I recently had a discussion with someone who was interested in these themes, especially in the context of the social apprehension and ramifications taboo relationships imply. This has been relevant for all of Act I, but Part X specifically provides the ultimate test of this moral system you've developed while playing, consciously or not. Let's delve into that!

Beyond the self-contained thrill/taboo involving two family members reaching the final, anticipated intimacy, there are so many interesting questions that can be explored regarding the social perception and repercussions of pursuing these relationships. At this point in the story, most interactions are contained within the family’s social circle, the story focusing more on the philosophy of a parent’s fight between hedonism and virtue. A mother and father have to decide whether or not pursuing a romantic, possibly sexual relationship is an act of indulgence and selfishness.

Since the consequences of initiating that kind of relationship are practically irreversible in a social sense -- at least between the participating members -- one must hesitate and carefully examine whether or not engaging in said relationship is in the best interest for their children, their family. The other party may not fully understand the long-term ramifications of these relationships, possibly damaging their ability to find genuine connections and romance in adulthood, if only because the social stigma surrounding incest almost always attached to coddling/abuse.

I’d say the most fascinating aspect of the hedonism vs virtue phase thus far has been the player, but more specifically what EXTREME lengths players will contort their moral systems for self-indulgence. The cognitive dissonance is astounding; saying how much you unconditionally love your child, wanting only what’s best for them, only to shelter them from ANY interaction with boys, their siblings or even their own mother. It harks back to a common, twisted fantasy of those who romanticize parenthood in an abusive way, how it’s a father’s duty to “have” his daughter since she’s his property by law and blood.

Exploring the player’s psychology, throwing barriers in their path that scream “hey, maybe there are actual repercussions for forcing this upon someone” -- these are extremely interesting to me, to see if the player will actually seek to reconcile the cognitive dissonance or choose to indulge anyway. The whole abuse aspect isn’t as relevant since the age of the participating parties are sufficient to give informed consent, however power dynamics, as seen with boss-employee and teacher-student relationships, do make things equally complicated.

Once the relationship moves past the emotional cold-war scenario, both parties unsure of what the other exactly feels combined with the deathly fear of rejection and embarrassment, I can begin answering the questions I mentioned earlier. There’s a lot to answer regarding social stigma and pressures when in these relationships -- they’ll be delved into when non-related members start to interact and join the player’s social circle in Act II and III.

All in all, my goal is to instill the idea in the player that there are very real, tangible repercussions for your actions -- that and this romanticized and fictional telling of incestual relationships has an almost impossible chance to manifest in the real world in a non-abusive, genuinely loving way. I’d say that most people play games in this genre with the intent of having sex, regardless of the means of getting there. It isn't very likely they're expecting to wrestle with any sort of philosophical oughts or anticipate carefully examining their moral system -- I don’t hold that expectation of them and I don’t think anyone should.

Regardless, I personally find it interesting to observe the player’s reaction to these challenges, their encounters in the story that make them hesitate for a moment and consider if what they’re doing is “right” and who that is “right” for. In the end, I won't be the one who forces the player's hand nor actually make a moral distinction between the two, I'll merely provide the outcomes. Indulgence, self-interest reigning above all and sexual satisfaction along with valuing platonic, amending relationships that honor the other party's virtue will BOTH reward the player equally. Since they have chosen the values that most closely adhere to their moral system, whatever outcomes proceeding will satisfy their desire, however "right" or "wrong". Thankfully there's a save button, holy heck!

During both campaigns, Part X will be the first major test of your moral system in a variety of ways. I can't wait to see the choices and rationale on both sides of the spectrum -- like I said, it's probably been my favorite part of writing this story. Feel free to shoot a message my way and share your thoughts, anytime! :]

Website Phase II - Users & Pledging!

I shared info in my pinup post yesterday; the website is still on schedule for this week, my processor contact telling me that the bank-side (final handshake between gateway company and customer statement) requests/reviews sent Friday should be the last. Their email Tuesday said the documents are approved and they are "finalizing". It's been a crawling process getting the pledging up, but soon I won't have to annoy you about it anymore, which is a definite positive!

With the pledge transferring opened up, I'll be replying again to everyone who messaged me on Patreon the appropriate transfer code when pledging is active. I'll be reposting relevant rewards/content such as pinups, previews and updates as well, so those will be oozing onto the site's feed. Similar to Patreon, there will be email notifications for all supporters and those who just want to follow; the nifty email preview thing patreon does takes some time, but that will also be added in the future!

Here's what's up this week. Thursday or Friday I should have final words from the processor:

• CE Club Nude Pinup Pack IX (Complete!)
• (Coming this week!) Web Phase II Launch (Users & pledges)
• (Coming this week!) CE Club Nude Pinup Pack X
• Dev updates, previews, pinups & other goodies for all patrons
• Part X!

All done! Find me in Discord, here or email if you've got a question or two. I appreciate you surviving another wall of my insane ramblings and I hope you'll find your way back next week. :]

Best, lads. See you soon!

Gumdrop Games

really? his patreon belive this bs

 

[Turret]

Considering gumdrop´s posts and explanations, there is a song perfectly fitting him.
"Donnerwetter-Tadellos!"(Gosh - impeccable!) is an old (1908) spoof march from famous composer Paul Lincke. Even those of you who do not understand German should get the meaning, Joseph Giampietro was a famous stage actor in Austria and Germany and delivers the song nicely. I do not translate it, but I think just stating one line "Gosh!Gosh! We are fellas!" should be enough.

 

[User_166761]

The funniest part is how he adds "rewards" that I bet nobody gives a flying fuck about except himself (because they are very convenient excuses). It's like he knows it and he wants to justify his extremely slow progress by pushing the idea that people are getting something in return or to distract from the obvious elephant in the room, to please the masses. It would be like facebook constantly reminding its users that their service is free in giant banners, so as to occlude any criticism of their questionable practices (like the massive amounts of data they harvest).

These "rewards" are only rewards for himself, since I can bet most of his patrons remain unaffected by them in any meaningful sense, while he gains a fantastic excuse to distract people from noticing/discussing the delay, while he delays the game's development even more.

As a side note, I'm 80% sure he is being purposely misleading about how he uses his hardware; plenty of other devs also render very slow scenes like sunsets consistently. And many of those even have full blown animations. I'm not 100% sure because I don't have a top graphic card, but he claims to have several of them. If he was not happy with the renders and he was doing a lot of rerendering he should be honest about it. That his bottleneck is the hardware is starting to be laughable. He would have to be a total noob on Iray (and a total noob on Gimp/Photoshop for that matter) to get such massive bottlenecks with his supposed hardware.

To sum up:

• CE Club Nude Pinup Pack IX (more pointless static images, which is what is already included in the normal game with the pointless puzzles or secrets. How is this a "reward" now? reminds me of his "remaster" that bought him almost 2 months for free).
• (Coming this week!) Web Phase II Launch (Users & pledges) (he is making 10k a month, so unless he is refusing to invest a single penny back, this is virtually orthogonal to the game's development since he should have hired someone, at least to do the most time consuming parts.)
  
• (Coming this week!) CE Club Nude Pinup Pack X (more pointless images that add nothing to the story)
  
• Dev updates, previews, pinups & other goodies for all patrons (so basically he is just admitting he will keep pumping out "rewards" or the bare minimum that any dev already does to justify his exceptionally slow progress.)

 

[FalseOath]

 

[Deleted member 42]

@zalook

Perfectly put.

I guess his patreons still trust him because "muh complex story", he hasn't released shit in what 4months? and he still earns 10k, can' blame him for milking it though, people are still paying him so why not. There are people with better animations/visuals than Gumdrop but they update frequently and almost never miss their deadlines. Gumdrop could hire a writer (not sure if he has one) if he can't write his own story, while he focuses on visuals but i guess he wont.