- Oct 25, 2020
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Stoper is alive and working.
He discuss a bit on his discord channel.
- Thread starter stoper
- Start date
He discuss a bit on his discord channel.
- Oct 23, 2017
- 20
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Last month he said it will be November. But knowing him he would have 3-4 apologies for delays and 3-4 weeks of irresponsive before the actual release. So don't get your hopes up.
he is a perfectionist, you don't understand
- Jun 27, 2020
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I'm hoping that's going to be something really big at this club! I'm even imagining the scene of Jessica teasing several men and maybe what we're all waiting for will happen.
- Feb 7, 2018
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Update before x-mas, I'm sure here
- May 27, 2017
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forget it, we know nothing of the real state of the work. as far as I'm concerned he might as well have done only one scene.Update before x-mas, I'm sure here
- Jun 11, 2020
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- Feb 17, 2020
- 2,536
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Hi, all.
Looks like the update will come out in December after all. The has been the hardest one so far. And not because of the content itself, but just because of how unproductive I've been. Even simple posing and environments were dragging like hell. Things are happening, but way too slower and with way too much efforts. I tried distracting myself with that small bonus set, as a way to recharge the batteries. And it somehow worked, but it also ate up time. In any case I'm confident things will get better. I just need to read some exciting scene to get my muse back
A friend on Discord suggested an interesting idea about these small bonus sets I'm making every now and then. I think you'll like it, but we'll talk about it when the update is ready.
Stay safe, and thanks for the support.
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- Mar 25, 2018
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What does he mean by that?I just need to read some exciting scene to get my muse back
- Jul 3, 2021
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I do respect this statement. Atleast he's letting his supporters know that he's unproductive because of burnout. That's much better than leaving people in the dark or coming up with excuses. Even though it would've been nice to let his supporters know about this earlier, it atleast gives people some insight and everyone can decide for themselves if they want to cancel their subscription for now, or keep supporting a project with a developer who has creative issues.View attachment 1508198
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Hi, all.
Looks like the update will come out in December after all. The has been the hardest one so far. And not because of the content itself, but just because of how unproductive I've been. Even simple posing and environments were dragging like hell. Things are happening, but way too slower and with way too much efforts. I tried distracting myself with that small bonus set, as a way to recharge the batteries. And it somehow worked, but it also ate up time. In any case I'm confident things will get better. I just need to read some exciting scene to get my muse back
A friend on Discord suggested an interesting idea about these small bonus sets I'm making every now and then. I think you'll like it, but we'll talk about it when the update is ready.
Stay safe, and thanks for the support.
------
Anyway, bad news for everyone I guess.
- Aug 23, 2020
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A couple of thoughts:View attachment 1508198
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Hi, all.
Looks like the update will come out in December after all. The has been the hardest one so far. And not because of the content itself, but just because of how unproductive I've been. Even simple posing and environments were dragging like hell. Things are happening, but way too slower and with way too much efforts. I tried distracting myself with that small bonus set, as a way to recharge the batteries. And it somehow worked, but it also ate up time. In any case I'm confident things will get better. I just need to read some exciting scene to get my muse back
A friend on Discord suggested an interesting idea about these small bonus sets I'm making every now and then. I think you'll like it, but we'll talk about it when the update is ready.
Stay safe, and thanks for the support.
------
- This is a great example of how games set unrealistic expectations. I know it isn't possible to A) Find those boots/dress anywhere, B) Have a reason to wear them, and C) Have them fit like that. And yet I'd kill to have those in my closet just so I could look at it and say "One day I'll have an excuse to wear that." Totally unfair expectations, thanks Stoper.
- On a more serious note, this update worries me. I think it's totally fair that he needs time to recharge his batteries so he can focus on his work. But I worry that once you reach that point you're nearing the end. Maybe you can dig deep and recharge the batteries a couple of times, or maybe you can just put your head down and force your way through, but eventually you're just done. I think everyone has been there, at some point you're just DONE. You have nothing left to give, and you don't want to look at the project for another minute. I'm really worried that Stoper is getting to that point. Maybe he can buy himself some more time by taking time off, but at minimum that's going to extend the duration of the project; and we're nowhere close to the end. So even if he buys a little time, I doubt he can buy the years he needs to finish this project.
If I were him, I think it's time to start planning some sort of emergency exit strategy. The absolute worse thing he could do would be to abandon this project, but that sounds like the road we're on. I don't think he has years of energy left in him to finish the game at its current pace, and if anything it sounds like the pace of releases is going to slow down. I think it's time for him to consider some major triage. Cut/wrap up everything that isn't essential as soon as possible with an eye to an abbreviated, but satisfactory, end to the game in 18 months. I know, that's crazy, but I think it's either that or the game is never finished. If he's losing motivation then something radical has to be done to transform the plan for the game.
- Apr 25, 2020
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Like many projects, this one won't see a proper end. But isn't the journey more important than the destination?
And there is so much left to tell yet, he can't end it sooner or it'll be worse than abandoning it imo
And there is so much left to tell yet, he can't end it sooner or it'll be worse than abandoning it imo
- Jan 20, 2018
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As expected, December release, if we are lucky. He is talking how slow everything is going, but the same thing he said in the past in every development blog when the updates were close to being released. It was always ,˝ i am working on it but everything is going slower that i expected, it is crawling etc¨. Nothing new there.
Anyway i hope he does release it in December and that he gets his mojo back. Most of us here love him and his work, even though sometimes our comments can seem overly critical.
Anyway i hope he does release it in December and that he gets his mojo back. Most of us here love him and his work, even though sometimes our comments can seem overly critical.
- Jan 20, 2018
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I hope it does not get to that. Man that would be awful. Jessica has too much yet to offer to be thrown in the dumpster.
Everything is going very slow as it is, but at least we have something too look for even if it is once in 5-6 months.
- Aug 23, 2020
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An abbreviated ending does not mean the ending has to be bad. This is a lewd AVG, not Shakespeare, a competent writer could find creative ways to triage the story and still keep it compelling.
Bolero I think a series of short side projects with Jessica could be a fun way to continue the character without getting bogged down in an intricate game. Sometimes short and sweet is the best way to go, all the fun without over committing to a project that will take years of your life as a developer. Even if this isn't ideal, the question is what's a better alternative for Stoper? How do we get a satisfying ending without Stoper burning out before it's complete?
- Jun 11, 2020
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Please don’t say the “A” word, he can take extended time off to recharge his batteries. I hope on Patreon there throwing ideas and scene suggestions to him.
it’s not like we pirate’s have a reason to complain about A free update anyway
it’s not like we pirate’s have a reason to complain about A free update anyway
- Apr 25, 2020
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I don't think he lacks ideas but the motivation to realize them. It's understandable but sad at the same time.
And we're not all complete pirates, lots of us support those games. But unless you're rich, you can't support them all and not every months even if deserved
- Aug 23, 2020
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Being a pirate is kinda irrelevant here; I think we all sympathize with Stoper and want what's best for him and the game. And what's best for him is to do something that he's motivated by, and if that ISN'T JOHN then he needs to do something else. But, in the meantime, he should find a way to scale down on JOHN and finish the game before he completely burns out. It isn't that taking time off is a bad idea, but it does suggest that he's reaching a breaking point. If he pushes the next update out in December, does that mean we only get one, maybe two, updates next year? The handwriting is on the wall, without major structural changes to the story, JOHN will never be finished. He needs to make those changes ASAP.
- Jul 3, 2021
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To be honest, part of me hopes that Stoper's latest development blog is just a different approach to come up with an excuse for the delay of this update. Like Bolero said, there's always something that leads to a delay on his releases, which I usually call poor project management considering Stoper's plans and the statements he's making.
I know that does sound kind of stupid, but I'd prefer another excuse over a possible abandonment of this project any day of the week as it's still one of my favourite VN's out there. And seeing all the development blogs, I find this statement to be kind of conflicting with the previous ones as there has not been a single word about burnout or the lack of motivation etc. I remember him talking about the possibility of a delayed release due to him adding even more content at the end of the already planned out events if he feels like it, which to me really doesn't sound like someone who's lacking creativity or the motivation/passion to create and deliver new content.
Two updates per year wouldn't be surprising either, as that's basically what we're already getting from JOHN anyway, and it would only fall in line with other projects out there which will most likely never see the finish line.
Anyway, that's just me speculating (or hoping), but only time will tell.
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- Aug 23, 2020
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To me, the term "burn out" can have many different faces. I see what you're saying about Stoper talking about adding scenes as proof that he's motivated and feeling creative, but to me it reads a little differently. Sometimes, when I'm feeling burnt out, it isn't because I don't have any ideas. Instead, I can be feeling burnt out and unmotivated because I have too many ideas. Maybe Stoper doesn't struggle with ideas, but he struggles with the complexity of putting all of those ideas into motion. Maybe he's looking at each update and thinks "Ok, in order to get from point A to point Z, I need the characters to go to points B,C,D, etc. Oh my god, that's so much work. I can do so many cool things, but it's all so overwhelming."
Even though there has been a ton of sexy content, JOHN is a slow moving game. Clearly Stoper wants to build up the payoff with incremental steps, and he wants those incremental steps to be well thought out and progressive. No major jumps, no inconsistencies. But that's daunting. So while he's sitting at his desk mapping out all of his ideas, he could be demotivating himself because the scope of the project is just too much to manage.