- Thread starter The Anax
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Looks pretty awesome. Not a fan of puzzle game stuff but seeing these rendered in the VN would be great.Thanks for bringing these up, this demo is actually finished. But, yes, the real game (assuming I get enough patrons on Patreon) will be much more professional (which even this little paltry demo is if one asks me) but it will also be balanced!
Something some of the other boards have mentioned was that these are all girl characters, but to reiterate here, in case someone plans to mention it, there will be male and female playable characters. Seen below are my current concept art versions that would go into the real game (again, it will depend on funding).
Well, all my VN's are going to use these same models, so you are in luck! I will also, eventually, for consistency's sake, go back and redo the gigantic amount of art in my 4 finished projects that were done before I got Daz studio in January. The fact that people think my renders are so well done makes me very happy since I am a total noob at 3D!
- Feb 19, 2018
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You have to fulfill specific conditions. For Lilyana, that's Seduction twice, then Lilith's Kiss. For Cereborg, it's Cerebeam, and for Justine, it's defeating them while Parasite is active.
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Not meaning to sound rude, but the tooltips in the game also tell this to the player. And, none of this is set in stone. These were just easy to implement abilities (especially Chieko's). Balance, different resistances, items, minions, and more will have an effect on strategy, on the FULL/REAL version of the game. Assuming I can hit my patreon goal, of course!
Cool concept, love monster girls, and really like the transformation aspect. One issue though is the huge variance in difficulty in achieving the transformation conditions.
Absolutely understood! The balancing is something that my patrons will help Blank tweak for sure. Like I said, and want to reiterate for anyone new to the thread, this is just a proof of concept (yet as professional as my previously finished products) but is in no way balanced, finished, or polished to the degree we would like. If you did enjoy it and want to help me reach my Patreon goal so I can make the full game, please consider investing in me, and thank you!
So, you may or may not have noticed that I did not hit my patreon goal. This is very unfortunate. I am sort of stuck here, and please comment and leave me advice if you are interested in seeing Factions completed. As you all know, if I do not hit my goal, I cannot afford to make this game. AT best, I might be able to continue but, it will be insanely slow. I might be able to budget (if I maybe do not go out to do anything every month like eat out or watch a movie, and maybe eat a lot of peanut butter and bread for my meals), I might, get $200 a month or so. My life will suffer, but such is the life of an artist anyway, I suppose, however, that $200 will likely only buy the rights to one or two songs, or I might be able to talk Blank into taking it to do something, but it's not a lot of money.
To again put it into perspective the demo everyone played cost me about $4,000 of my money, and Blank programmed for free, so if my Patreon stays where it is, it might take 2 to 3 years for the next update? I guess. I honestly don't know. If Blank will keep programming for free, it might help, but, it will still be incredibly slow going. People vote with their wallets, I am told, and maybe they did not like Factions that much. I don't know what else I can do, so if you have any advice or comments as I said, feel free to let me know. If I can't hit the monthly goal, I just do not know how any real progress can be made.
Anyway, if anyone has tips/ideas on how I can increase my Patronage further, or if they think I should go ahead and let this one stay by the wayside and think about doing a different one, let me know.
To again put it into perspective the demo everyone played cost me about $4,000 of my money, and Blank programmed for free, so if my Patreon stays where it is, it might take 2 to 3 years for the next update? I guess. I honestly don't know. If Blank will keep programming for free, it might help, but, it will still be incredibly slow going. People vote with their wallets, I am told, and maybe they did not like Factions that much. I don't know what else I can do, so if you have any advice or comments as I said, feel free to let me know. If I can't hit the monthly goal, I just do not know how any real progress can be made.
Anyway, if anyone has tips/ideas on how I can increase my Patronage further, or if they think I should go ahead and let this one stay by the wayside and think about doing a different one, let me know.
- Feb 19, 2018
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Hrm. Even knowing that licensing music, getting assets and the like can be, put bluntly, hella more expensive than most folks think, paying folks fairly (a must, I feel.) I think maybe you overinvested for the product you got out.
Keep in mind, even in the adult game market, there's a fair amount of match-3, which, I think, is one of the core issues. Beyond this, you are somewhat known for your writing, and there is very little of that, so you kinda dropped one of your main draws. (I appreciate dialogue stuff in Unity can be a right sod, even with libraries like Ink to help out, or the almighty JSON)
Seems a bit harsh, considering you've modified the figure assets a fair bit, so you've clearly put work into it, but... If a project of this scale doesn't fit your current budget, it's usually a good time to think about how you can scale back.
Keep in mind, even in the adult game market, there's a fair amount of match-3, which, I think, is one of the core issues. Beyond this, you are somewhat known for your writing, and there is very little of that, so you kinda dropped one of your main draws. (I appreciate dialogue stuff in Unity can be a right sod, even with libraries like Ink to help out, or the almighty JSON)
Seems a bit harsh, considering you've modified the figure assets a fair bit, so you've clearly put work into it, but... If a project of this scale doesn't fit your current budget, it's usually a good time to think about how you can scale back.
Yeah, basically my scaling back would be to just put it on hold a few years until my Patreon hits a higher mark and once I release my ebooks and sell them on Amazon and such, to increase my monthly income. I will always be doing my writing, the idea was to also appeal to those that do not like reading and want video games requiring strategy and gameplay as from releasing all my novels, people who take the time to let me know they 'didn't play it because they like games not virtual novels', would then ALSO have something of mine they could enjoy.
First and foremost my novels will always be made. That's the investors I do have, and that's what they like/pay me for. However, to make those is why I need about 1200 a month. I'd need double that to do the games and the novels, anyway, thanks for the feedback. I'll continue monitoring all these posts around the internet and maybe I can find a solution. Like I also said, F:CoC is just one of many video games I have planned, so, even though I never saw another match 3 mind control game, maybe there's too many. I can always try to get a different game demo out on the side (using the models I made for Factions), and if that does not bring in money, rinse and repeat until people find something they feel is worth investing in.
First and foremost my novels will always be made. That's the investors I do have, and that's what they like/pay me for. However, to make those is why I need about 1200 a month. I'd need double that to do the games and the novels, anyway, thanks for the feedback. I'll continue monitoring all these posts around the internet and maybe I can find a solution. Like I also said, F:CoC is just one of many video games I have planned, so, even though I never saw another match 3 mind control game, maybe there's too many. I can always try to get a different game demo out on the side (using the models I made for Factions), and if that does not bring in money, rinse and repeat until people find something they feel is worth investing in.
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- Dec 17, 2017
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The thing about Patreon is you need to get eyeballs on your page. I don't think stopping one thing and starting another will work. The guys making the big bucks have been doing it for a while, putting out good product and building rep. The money doesn't come until you have a good product, and a track record.
I agree, that's why I have been on Patreon for over three years and I have 5 projects finished that have a total of over 6000 picture and almost a million words between them. I have definitely built up my reputation. So, I do not think that could be effecting it.
- Oct 5, 2017
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OK, I tried the demo out now it's available for Linux, and I'm not really sure what to say about it. If I had to pick one word, it would perhaps be "uninspiring". The renders are fantastic, you're certainly making excellent progress there (I'll still miss the photo manips of course; Slugs and Bugs starring Justine Joli was amazing). That's pretty much all it has going for it, however. As was mentioned above, there is no story to speak of, and while this is just my opinion, the gameplay was simply boring. When I think of erotic games with actual gameplay, I think of RPG or management mechanics, not matching games.
While I do like the idea of playing as the corrupter rather than the corruptee (one slight issue with previous games has been that the really juicy parts are seen when you make the wrong choices), and am curious how that would play out in the full game, given the reservations mentioned earlier (particularly regarding slogging through dull gameplay to see the interesting parts) I don't think I would be particularly inclined to spend money on this.
While I do like the idea of playing as the corrupter rather than the corruptee (one slight issue with previous games has been that the really juicy parts are seen when you make the wrong choices), and am curious how that would play out in the full game, given the reservations mentioned earlier (particularly regarding slogging through dull gameplay to see the interesting parts) I don't think I would be particularly inclined to spend money on this.
The thing is though, you can't assume your reputation with people looking for one product will translate to another. I've downloaded your other stuff but I couldn't get through it because it was too heavily focused on the writing, and there wasn't enough visual stimulus to go with it. People who are into your writing will probably not be interested in a match-3 game. Most of the match-3 games, if you look at them, tend to be very brightly colored and have a SFW mode so they can be marketed on platforms for casual gamers who want a bit of eye candy with their candy crush, and then have a NSFW patch for the porn crowd. They also tend to be extremely simple with a few hand-drawn poses for each character.
Your characters are much more my speed, and I played through the full demo because they were very well designed and the transformation effect was right up my alley. However, people like me do not tend to want match-3 games, and I suspect your previous followers don't either. Honestly you would have been better off investing in a fetish oriented RPG or VN with about two to five minutes of new erotic content for every 10 to 20 minutes or so of gameplay, in the vein of games like the Opala series, Elana Champion of Lust, or MGQ Paradox. That would translate well for your following that you already have for your writing and attract people who want the immersion fantasy of playing a character. Plus the monster transformation fetish isn't well catered to right now outside of text-based, since most of the transformation games out there with a heavy visual element or combined text and visual elements are forced sissification, which I think has a much smaller market cap than monster transformation. So your main competition would be something like Latex Dungeon.
You also have the female anti-hero element going for you, where you are playing a female who is corrupting other characters, bonus for being a non-succubus monster. So basically I'm saying you have a great premise but you went after the wrong market. Also it's only been a few days short of a month since you posted the demo, and honestly a demo like this doesn't scream "tune in next month for more awesome content," it feels more like a mini-game for your followers, so people who just look at screenshots and download a game aren't going to be looking to your Patreon page for more. If I may ask, where else have you posted the demo, and what kind of responses have you gotten on those forums? Between the amount of time since you've released the demo and your marketing strategy there hasn't been much time for you to have a turn-around for paying players.
So in summary:
-Your genre choice for this game won't carry clout with your existing fan base
-The hardcore MoGi/Transformation crowd doesn't overlap well with the match-3 crowd, open world/sandbox story-driven RPGs or VNs work better
-No draw (self-contained demo, no hint of what's to come)
-Not much turn around time for community response to your marketing strategy
Also as a bit of an aside, even a side scroller with easily modifiable save files and a scene gallery would work better for MoGi transformation in the vein of like MoGi Origins (although they've squandered a lot of their capital with the MoGi community due to delays despite having a kickstarter, donation drive, and a Patreon page), as those who don't want to play the actual game could just get a complete save to view the gallery. So honestly if your goal is a quick return on your investment, then you might have to rethink your whole strategy. Which really sucks considering how much you've already poured into this, but that's just my two cents.
EDIT: Just thought of something right now. You don't have to scrap the premise of the game. What you could do is add story elements before each showdown to add context to why they are duking it out Bejeweled style. So add some quick conflict beforehand, then bam! blow your opponent up by stacking bricks better than they can. Also, I don't remember if you did this or not, but for your next demo be sure to add something at end of each match that's something along the lines of: "Would you like to see more? then please support me on Patreon! Future versions will include FULLY ANIMATED SCENES (Caps, bolded, flashing lights) and story elements!" Obviously with a direct link.
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- Oct 5, 2017
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I'm sorry if I sound harsh, I'm just trying to be honest. It lacks a lot of what makes your other works great, and much of what's new isn't for me. If I wasn't already a patron, this wouldn't have enticed me to become one.
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Let's see, Hypnopics, of course, TF Games, itch.io, and then links on YouTube, Twitter, Reddit, and e-hentai. So far with the exception of a couple of people on this forum, all feedback has been 100% positive and the game well received. I am planning on uploading it to Steam as well, to help circulate it more. The idea of all these planned video games I have is that they will appeal generally to a completely different audience than those that enjoy my novels. It's mostly black and white where people either want very big depth to a title with meaning- which my novels deliver beyond any real competition I have seen.
The games should appeal to people that cannot handle much in terms of reading and plot, but rather, want something they can play for fun. A bit of strategy and game play mechanics. Then, I assume that some will cross back and forth as they will play one of my video games based on the lore and then check out my novels, or where someone that enjoys my novels might fancy seeing the characters they know in video games. In this way, I will generate income from different sources.
There will be story, voice acting, and more, in F:CoC, someday, when it is made. All my post is saying here is that I can't go further than I have, except in making models. I can't program them. I can't put any music into the game. I can't put any voice acting, but I can keep just making characters. It's to let folks know the current situation as I try and find a way to increase patronage so that I can continue the project. Only a short time has passed, and I am going to keep looking for ways to continue to make it so that I can tap into a different audience and revenue stream, it will just take time.
I understand, but, to use you as an example, I am not really marketing my video games to the audience that enjoys my virtual novels. I think I have mostly hit bedrock in that area. The only way I will be able to increase patronage will be through other types of people. Of course, I will constantly and forever be making VN's, so that audience will always have more to enjoy, thus, I'll never stop doing it. I had originally planned on making the video games in another two years from now, after releasing my novels in full and then also releasing them on Amazon as ebooks, and publishing them in physical form as well. That money was to be used to make the games.
But, with Blank offering to help, and with me already having to purchase 3D model assets for my novels, I thought, sure, let's just use the last of my savings, and get an early start to it. Anyway, the sky is not falling, as you know as a patron, I wrote my progress report yesterday, and I thought that bringing in more ideas of where I can post this to generate more income from it, would be pertinent on all the forums upon which I have posted this.