VN Ren'Py Friends in Need [S1 v0.85c] [NeonGhosts]

[Joshy92]

Damn guys you have me a bit nervous now. I just assumed Nicki would be totally cool and maybe even like that I banged Risa & Mason.

I'm going to have to think things through when we restart.

 

[Adhdclassic]

Nicki is the MCs I am guessing is his main love interest but for me I feel he matches with Ashe better.

 

[AlexMpog]

for me I don't have the heart to cheat it's just not me

Yeah, solo routes/endings are the only ones canon for me (when it's possible).
All other paths - 3somes, 4somes, harems or whatever - always my last option, I play it mostly to see content I might miss on a solo route.
So far my canon here will be romantic ending with Risa.

Damn guys you have me a bit nervous now. I just assumed Nicki would be totally cool and maybe even like that I banged Risa & Mason.

Dunno about Mason, but from what I remember - Nicki wanted to beat the shit outa Risa after MC told her about what happened with Lucien. Though, truth to be told, Nicki also wanted to beat MC as well so...

 

[Vidal the king of Pervert]

Yeah, solo routes/endings are the only ones canon for me (when it's possible).
All other paths - 3somes, 4somes, harems or whatever - always my last option, I play it mostly to see content I might miss on a solo route.
So far my canon here will be romantic ending with Risa.


Dunno about Mason, but from what I remember - Nicki wanted to beat the shit outa Risa after MC told her about what happened with Lucien. Though, truth to be told, Nicki also wanted to beat MC as well so...

I know but for me brother I don't give a damn about seeing less content

as long as I get content with my girl that's all I need

even if I have to skip a couple of updates until it focuses on my girl

I've even played visual novels where I've only played one route

and I've never been curious about the rest

 

[Jarulf]

Am I the only one who likes to have one save in games like this? I feel like my decisions are more important if I only have the one.

And it will be the same when we need to restart.

I certainly trend towards that. I usually have a head canon and focus mostly on just the girl(s) I'm the most attracted to. Since I'm attracted to petite girls with small boobs, there are usually not too many to pick from. Obviously personality, story and their different backgrounds matter too, I'm not completely shallow even if I play porn games.
I know I've decided to try a different path in a game, only to end up with the same girl I like...

 

[Jarulf]

You can bang everyone you want for now anyway it's what I'm doing. Sure, late in game it might change but that's a long time from now. The only stuff I miss on my playthrough is the dark content and I don't care about that anyway.

I think I've only had sex with Gabby and Nicki.

 

[Jarulf]

Damn guys you have me a bit nervous now. I just assumed Nicki would be totally cool and maybe even like that I banged Risa & Mason.

I'm going to have to think things through when we restart.

I don't want to cheat on Nicki which is the reason I haven't banged Mason to kingdom cum yet.

 

[soldano]

Nicki is the MCs I am guessing is his main love interest but for me I feel he matches with Ashe better.

I think Guy could fit with any of them. Well, maybe "fit" in a game where you can fuck anything that walks isn't the right word. Or maybe it is. But you get my point.
It also depends on how you play the character, of course. A bastard Guy is unlikely to fit with Viola, for example. Although we don't really know the Slavic blonde's story either, so who knows. Maybe Viola has her dark side too.
In my opinion, though, she fits with Nicki on any path you choose. Sure, if you treat her like shit she'll eventually disappear. Which makes perfect sense. But even a bastard Guy has a lot in common with Nicki.

 

[HiP1]

Am I the only one who likes to have one save in games like this? I feel like my decisions are more important if I only have the one.

And it will be the same when we need to restart.

I only ever have one save in every game now. I go for the most content possible, without considering the consequences, and bracing for the drama. that's when you get to know the LIs the most.
when I started AVNs, I had multiple saves, but the current AVN landscape is pretty much just "cut content" when you are not on a path. it's rare to see an actually good non-route content. BaDIK is the reference bar to pass for that kind of content, especially with Sage as a friend. this game manages to be above that bar with quite a bit of margin.

yeah I can't ever do 1 save for 2 reasons. I am a bit of completionist so I like to see most of the content unless there is a LI or something I really do not like or want to see. But that might be because I don't self insert but rather I see the MC as a tool and rarely care about them and I play from a spectator or viewer point of view. #2 with a game like this there is no way in hell I can just pick only 1 LI as I perfer solo paths if im picking 1 path / save to play im gonna be faithful to that one LI. I won't even flirt and get on another path even if I never have sex.

My take on completionist for AVNs is to seek every single line of content that was written in every alternate branch.
I don't self insert either, even though I do rename the MC. There is a good amount of empathy though. understanding motives and backstory for each character is one of the most important thing to me.

I agree with Dessolos, you'll be missing out on a lot of content. For this one I have 3 saves for the moment, one for Nicki, one for Ashe (though there isn't really an established romance yet like with Nicki but maybe later on), and one where I don't commit to anyone and just play the field (no raping people, just in a wholesome way)

what do you mean there isn't really an established romance for Ashe ? there is. she is pretty much in love with MC and almost lets it slip. she is also very possessive of him, especially after the trauma from her ex cheating. you don't get the official label, but she behaves like it and expects it from you too. you literally met her parents in an official manner, and her best friend knows all about you. what more do you need ?

sure you can, but not sure you can romance Nicki properly and for her to agree to be your girlfriend if you do that... it's possible, haven't actually tried it, but then you'd be cheating on her, which I won't do on that route.

when not being on the girlfriend path, she does say that she is ok with MC having one other girl. so, because of the unbalanced relationship and how she is with her boyfriend, she might forgive and let it go even on the girlfriend path. as long as MC is still the same loving and caring guy she wants, it might not be that important to her that he sees other girls. though it will sting when she finds out

I honestly didn't really think. I just thought Nicki would be okay with it. Neon said we can bang everybody without consequences, didn't he?

she is not ok with it. she is when you don't have the girlfriend label. even brent didn't cheat on her if you go all romantic route on her, and the way MC presents it when he asks, there is implied exclusivity and loyalty. it's never said clearly, so he could be able to bend the truth and she could accept it. long term though, it's a risky bet.
maybe Neon said that for the current situation, but it might change in the future.

It's a state of mind, some people just don't like to cheat, especially when it comes to characters they care about.

I go for maximum drama that's where the writer's skills are truly tested.

Damn guys you have me a bit nervous now. I just assumed Nicki would be totally cool and maybe even like that I banged Risa & Mason.

I'm going to have to think things through when we restart.

she might ok with threesomes and stuff where she is involved after being asked, but you are doing it all behind her back.
Mason says it. "I can keep a secret". when you do stuff with him with Nicki just waiting downstairs. it's fucked up
both Mason and Risa will interact with your official girlfriend knowing they helped you cheat. especially Mason's loyalty could waver if Nicki is the one that helps him.

 

[HiP1]

I think Guy could fit with any of them. Well, maybe "fit" in a game where you can fuck anything that walks isn't the right word. Or maybe it is. But you get my point.
It also depends on how you play the character, of course. A bastard Guy is unlikely to fit with Viola, for example. Although we don't really know the Slavic blonde's story either, so who knows. Maybe Viola has her dark side too.
In my opinion, though, she fits with Nicki on any path you choose. Sure, if you treat her like shit she'll eventually disappear. Which makes perfect sense. But even a bastard Guy has a lot in common with Nicki.

Viola is very pragmatic, even more if you corrupt her. so she could fit too eventually. that's one of the point of the game. all the choices we have will change the girls around MC to fit him.

 

[MilesEdgeworth]

Am I the only one who likes to have one save in games like this? I feel like my decisions are more important if I only have the one.

And it will be the same when we need to restart.

I have one save, but I cheat by rewinding alot

 

[NeonGhosts]

if I recall correctly only gonna be up till chapter 3 or so that is being reworked. So I might honestly just check out the new content and wait till chapter 11 to replay the game and make my saves.

It's really just Chapter One, and if I have enough time, I want to see if I can make some little alterations to Ashe and Gabby's stories. I mentioned this on Discord, but basically I think I can elongate Gabby, Madison, and Ashe's time with Guy, with minimal fuss. After Guy meets Ashe and takes her home or doesn't, I'd like to bounce ahead 1-2 weeks. If they're on a relationship path, this gives them a little time off-screen to get to know each other, and make their relationship feel a little more natural. With Gabby, I'd like to do something similar and have Guy show up to the bookstore and tell Madison he'd like to work there for a couple weeks, before making a decision on whether or not to invest in their remodel. This gives them a little time to get to know each other. I could also introduce Jamie a little earlier, and hint at some of his bad habits. It'd also give Jamie a better reason to immediately be suspicious and antagonistic at Britt's photoshoot. Then, Gabby's blow-up plays out similarly, but there's an added facet to the interaction, since they've been working alongside each other.

I'd also welcome the chance to completely redo the initial bookstore scene, since it's all super poorly lit (or over-exposed), and I didn't really have a handle on rendering Madison, yet. Nowadays, I have a much better idea of how to work with her model.



That initial bookstore scene is only 50ish renders, so I could redo it in a day. But, I want to keep my scope as narrow as possible for right now, because the goal for next year is at least four chapter updates. So, I don't want to spin my wheels redoing too much old stuff.

Will chap 11 have lucien contents?

I plan to advance that plotline a little, if you're helping Risa. The player will have the option to ask the cops for help. Otherwise, it'll just be establishing that Guy and Risa are communicating and working on the problem. But, we won't see Lucien in person for a little while.

aren't we supposed to get some points for telling the truth to Viola about Gabby and MC ? and for telling Mason not to pretend to be a girl outside and just be himself ?
and subtly threatening Madison like that should have added a dark point to MC, I think.

If a variable wasn't directly needed for the update, I didn't really screw with it. Once Chapter One is remade, I'll be going through the script (term-searching for "menu:") and streamlining/unifying/adding a lot of variables. So, there wasn't much point in futzing with it, now.

 

[HiP1]

It's really just Chapter One, and if I have enough time, I want to see if I can make some little alterations to Ashe and Gabby's stories. I mentioned this on Discord, but basically I think I can elongate Gabby, Madison, and Ashe's time with Guy, with minimal fuss. After Guy meets Ashe and takes her home or doesn't, I'd like to bounce ahead 1-2 weeks. If they're on a relationship path, this gives them a little time off-screen to get to know each other, and make their relationship feel a little more natural. With Gabby, I'd like to do something similar and have Guy show up to the bookstore and tell Madison he'd like to work there for a couple weeks, before making a decision on whether or not to invest in their remodel. This gives them a little time to get to know each other. I could also introduce Jamie a little earlier, and hint at some of his bad habits. It'd also give Jamie a better reason to immediately be suspicious and antagonistic at Britt's photoshoot. Then, Gabby's blow-up plays out similarly, but there's an added facet to the interaction, since they've been working alongside each other.

those would all be very welcome changes for a much better flow and prevent and immersion breaking.
though you always end up adding "just a little more" every time, and a small thing becomes significant it's good for the overall game, but it hurts your roadmap

 

[NeonGhosts]

those would all be very welcome changes for a much better flow and prevent and immersion breaking.
though you always end up adding "just a little more" every time, and a small thing becomes significant it's good for the overall game, but it hurts your roadmap

Yeahhh, my mentality is basically: do what I can right now, and then clean up the rest once the first season is complete. The Ashe change would be super easy. The Gabby one slightly more difficult.

Long-long term, I'd love to re-render huge chunks of Chapter 2, and a few sections of Chapter 3. I think everything from Chapter 4 on looks about as good as anything I do now. I learned the value of picking a few camera angles per scene and sticking with them, instead of jumping around like crazy. The lighting got better. My pose library got larger, allowing me to do more natural scenes.

Buuuuut, it's tough to look at this image from Chapter 2, and an image depicting the same scene in Chapter 4, and not see the glaring difference in quality.

 

[PHIL101-YYouPPHard]

I honestly didn't really think. I just thought Nicki would be okay with it. Neon said we can bang everybody without consequences, didn't he?

Sorry, I'm mostly teasing you, I honestly don't know. But, if I had to guess, I think romance routes where a LI is your actual girlfriend, they won't be ok with cheating. Nicki might be into sharing, but sharing is of course something you'd probably discuss with her beforehand, not post-cheating negotiation lol Maybe if you play it cool with your MC, you'll be able to get away with it if you're into that, you ol' dog you

 

[MagicMan753]

Yeahhh, my mentality is basically: do what I can right now, and then clean up the rest once the first season is complete. The Ashe change would be super easy. The Gabby one slightly more difficult.

If your goal is to wait till the first season is complete to do more rework for later chapters and clean up, how many episodes are planned for season 1? Cause we are already at ch.10 with 11 coming up, so just curious which episode will be the end of season one.

 

[Ottoeight]

So, just another Dev who fell ill with the I'm-gonna-rework-my-early-chapters Syndrome, the deadliest AVNs disease, I guess.

Well, we had a good run and it was fun while it lasted. I guess I'm gonna buy some beautiful gardenias and I will lay them on Friends In Need's headstone in the Cemetery of the Unfinished AVNs.

See ya.

p.s.: why don't you Devs never learn from other Devs' mistakes?

 

[Dessolos]

I mean not like reworks has been a secret but a known fact for like a year at least now I want to say.

 

[HiP1]

Yeahhh, my mentality is basically: do what I can right now, and then clean up the rest once the first season is complete. The Ashe change would be super easy. The Gabby one slightly more difficult.

Long-long term, I'd love to re-render huge chunks of Chapter 2, and a few sections of Chapter 3. I think everything from Chapter 4 on looks about as good as anything I do now. I learned the value of picking a few camera angles per scene and sticking with them, instead of jumping around like crazy. The lighting got better. My pose library got larger, allowing me to do more natural scenes.

Buuuuut, it's tough to look at this image from Chapter 2, and an image depicting the same scene in Chapter 4, and not see the glaring difference in quality.

View attachment 4333328

View attachment 4333333

Ashe's start does deserve some love. it feels like a lot of players here don't understand her character and her relationship to MC from the comments I read in this thread.

So, just another Dev who fell ill with the I'm-gonna-rework-my-early-chapters Syndrome, the deadliest AVNs disease, I guess.

Well, we had a good run and it was fun while it lasted. I guess I'm gonna buy some beautiful gardenias and I will lay them on Friends In Need's headstone in the Cemetery of the Unfinished AVNs.

See ya.

p.s.: why don't you Devs never learn from other Devs' mistakes?

you don't know what you're talking about. Neon has talked about doing a complete rework for chapter 1 since last year at least. and it does need it, as it is very obvious it was done by someone else. and there was a very important option that was missing in the choices.

moreover, there are tons of devs that do reworks and do it just fine.
also, there are just as many that will go back to polish the code and flow of the story at the end of a season or the end of the game, especially when a steam release is scheduled.
why is that an issue for you ? just can't wait for the next update ?

 

[Shitty]

So, just another Dev who fell ill with the I'm-gonna-rework-my-early-chapters Syndrome, the deadliest AVNs disease, I guess.

Well, we had a good run and it was fun while it lasted. I guess I'm gonna buy some beautiful gardenias and I will lay them on Friends In Need's headstone in the Cemetery of the Unfinished AVNs.

See ya.

p.s.: why don't you Devs never learn from other Devs' mistakes?

Why do you complain about a game that you're getting to play for free? Piracy entitlement will never not be weird to me.