- Nov 4, 2019
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Iirc, it was just before the warchief went missing.
- Thread starter Bloo
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- Jul 12, 2017
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My mistake. Misunderstood the whole question.
But, yeah, since the Warchief goes missing and that was the mildest of the bunch, I'd say. The art is still decent but the writing has some noticeable downfalls and people getting skeptical about it if I remember correctly.
Or if you want a version build to make things easier, right after 0.8.3 or 0.9.3. Maybe from 0.9.3 onwards, since Sabia looked like half-anime half-Nomo-style when she got manhandled by Avion's ritual and cum drinking challenge at the Silvertusk
Art comparison:
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So, TL;DR
Sabia used to have smaller breasts and a rather toned body and after a few years of updates (and she's quite the killer as well, both looks and personality). Now, she got... shall we say, bimbofication, for lack of a better word to describe it. Shown by the bigger volume breasts and ass but rather... unenticing facial feature(s). The transition between 0.8.3 and 0.9.3 is still decent, albeit not in the same quality control as Sabia from before 0.9.3 or 0.10.5.
Dunno if Nomo remembers that Sabia got a tattoo on her arm depicting a skull of an Ox or something bovine, maybe a cow or bull.
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Oof bud I'm pretty sure it's before that. Some current patrons ought to be able to see but I'm pretty certain it was pre warchief missing.
- Nov 4, 2019
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No, it was around the time of the catgirl raid or right after.
- Jul 12, 2017
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All I can say is, to put it... uh... simply, Sierra left due to creative differences with the ones that run Hreinn now.
- Aug 24, 2022
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CourierNPC - really good explanation and before / after comparison. Thanks for taking the effort & time.
Enigmanic - Got it.. so I should compare pre-cat girl raid to the latest quests to get a really good contrast in writing styles. Thanks!
Enigmanic - Got it.. so I should compare pre-cat girl raid to the latest quests to get a really good contrast in writing styles. Thanks!
- Jul 12, 2017
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I agree with this, i told them about this in their server while trying to give some constructive criticism. The potions crafting mechanic, the combat, the raiding, all were abandoned, they should have tried to keep them, use the assets for the game, or never try them in the first place, just a waste of work this way
- Aug 24, 2022
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Oh, right, the crafting system.
All of these things feel like "need-to-haves" on a checklist vs being well integrated into the gameplay.
When I can buy 99% of everything I need next door from a cat waitress, what was the point?
The problem with endlessly tacking new one-offs like this is that it takes a lot of time. If these systems were modular and easily extendable, you could make them engaging and interesting with a lot less work from the developer.
EDIT
A developer should always try to maximize their ROI of [dev work] to [gameplay / content].
Probably this is something said 100 times in this thread already though.
Just throwing my hat into the ring for a second to agree with the past couple pages.
The story abandoning itself is a downturn along with ignoring the just mentioned mechanics, but I have played a couple other games that have that issue as well, so it doesn't bother me as my biggest gripe. But, the artwork comparison does, sadly, esp. with the orcs. The noticeable change in Sabia's physique is clear, but I'm disappointed in how the art has moved in sharp, crisp lines that make the characters look unappealing. I think it's most viewable in Sabia's hair or the orcs upper body where they look blocky instead of muscular. It certainly doesn't help that since this change in art, the scenes they've created with it are reused. This combination makes the newest updates feel lazy overall (the new Ylva scenes were actually alright, imo but that was it), but that's been a valid complaint for a long time now.
Pretty disappointing because I wasn't very keen on this game at first, but I've gone back and played through it a few times now. The JMod & additional scenes created for it through the community were great though they've unfortunately stopped as well but I guess that's to be expected when the developer barely updates the game for the community to even expand upon.
The story abandoning itself is a downturn along with ignoring the just mentioned mechanics, but I have played a couple other games that have that issue as well, so it doesn't bother me as my biggest gripe. But, the artwork comparison does, sadly, esp. with the orcs. The noticeable change in Sabia's physique is clear, but I'm disappointed in how the art has moved in sharp, crisp lines that make the characters look unappealing. I think it's most viewable in Sabia's hair or the orcs upper body where they look blocky instead of muscular. It certainly doesn't help that since this change in art, the scenes they've created with it are reused. This combination makes the newest updates feel lazy overall (the new Ylva scenes were actually alright, imo but that was it), but that's been a valid complaint for a long time now.
Pretty disappointing because I wasn't very keen on this game at first, but I've gone back and played through it a few times now. The JMod & additional scenes created for it through the community were great though they've unfortunately stopped as well but I guess that's to be expected when the developer barely updates the game for the community to even expand upon.
It's a minotaur skull. IIRC she lead the campaign against the minotaurs during the war, so it's a war tattoo about having defeated the minotaurs.
Wasn't there a point in the story where it's mentioned being noticed by another character, maybe by the minotaur in Kira's camp?
- Jan 31, 2022
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It was noticed by a guy whose vehicle you hijack during one of Kira's missions.
- Jul 12, 2017
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Well, you see...
As much as I hate to admit it, Sabia is probably one of the Western hentai protagonists that had potential. A dommy mommy with or without sub issues but still wanted to pay the dues to those who betrayed her, especially her sister and her mother
As many have said, this game could be raining gold and turned out to be like Noxian Nights. But, instead of that, the game now is a meme and just a husk of its former self, ridden with bugs and repeatable scenes that are in lower quality control than ever before.
They could redeem themselves if they decided that it would be best to start their redemption arc by having someone telling them that the game used to be that good and that they used to produce high quality content without relying on cutting corners and lack of communications.
But! This is Hreinn Games we're talking about. Us plebs here are mere nuisance to the stout defenders and Hreinn Banhammer Brigade and to even mention Hreinn does something bad would be grave sin to bear and our pleas are brushed off without any objections or hearing as it is as unimportant.
As you said (many have), abandoning the project is the thing that... would just be the mercy killing KoD desperately needed, now that the update is between 1 and 1.5 years tops... though... that doesn't stop Hreinn to make another new game, which probably repeats the cycle all over again.
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Yeah she recently posted on her Patreon about her thoughts on the adult games industry in general and talks a bit on so many being lazy in their efforts. She doesn't mention this game at all and it's been years, but you can look at what she's trying to do and what this has turned into and see why there was a separation.
This is the announcement they made back in the day. This should match the part right after the raiding system, because that is where the game writing lost the linear progress it had until that point. We did get new arts and events but i think i am not the only one that feels like the raiding system was meant to be developed and let us explore all around the map. Do consider this was more than 4 years ago.
Regarding Sierra, she does not want to comment on the game, her community gave me some insight but she never spoke about it herself, but we do have an interview she did back in the day
Also for all the people complaining about arts, have a lethal dose of nostalgia.
- Aug 24, 2022
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Once Ever After has been getting some fan criticism as well..
I don't want to derail things to much.. but is everyone who is a fan of Sierra's writing also playing that game and loving it?
Personally I enjoyed it.. but it's extremely grindy, has a sort of jaded commentary on adult gaming & writing, and some dislike it for it's lack of lewd content despite heavily marketing itself as such.
I think the art was great though.
- Jul 12, 2017
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Gonna put it simply here with a question:
Some, if not many, of the complaints addressed here fall on deaf ears. How are we supposed to tell them that they screw up big time even when doing so politely still grant you a ban?
Well, calling the porn industry lazy, especially from a writer's point of view is well... i wanted to say "lazy" for the pattern, but it's more accurate to say "easy target". "I play/watch it for the plot" is an old meme for a reason. Yet the industry provides what the audience demands.
Some of my favorite parts of this game came after the quality got worse. In writing, scenes like the first Dom scene with the minotaur or the collection of scenes in Sabia's tent after she breaks out Ranak and the other 2 idiots are great in my opinion and Nomo can still deliver great art when he focuses on that.
My main issue is that Hreinn rarely works smart.
The best example is how they handle the simplified art.
In theory, the idea is good: draw a few generic positions that are easy to mod later on to illustrate scenes that would otherwise be too small to warrant their own full blown art and use them when they are needed. Just like the groping art which has worked well.
In practice? Nomo spent the last 2 years only drawing these simplified assets with only one exception for Ylva in the hot springs. Instead of both devs and players benefiting from the potential for extra content as a side dish next to the main scenes, for two years they have taken over the main development even tho their technical implementation proved to be difficult too.
And since the scenes are modular and intentionally repetitive a bit, they take up a lot of capacity from the writer too and bloat the project with dialogue that doesn't move forward too much.
All 3 devs have spent 24+ months focused on creating what was essentially meant to do the same task as Riven having 4 different dress option and 10 lines of dialogue for repeatable BJs in NN, which i believe could be made in less than an hour once the artwork is drawn.
I honestly think that Hreinn wouldn't even have to put in effort to get this game back on track, they would just have to stop putting effort into the wrong things.
Even for the next update we already know that it will feature a new mechanic and new reusable assets and a story is a "preparation for the next step" just like the last 3 patches since 2019.
Get Nomo to focus on full quality art, since it is still one of the best on this site when he does it. Get Monsinne to write the main story at least as much as he writes the side scenes and stop creating new game mechanics because NDS evidently can't keep up with all of them.
None of them would have to work more and the result would be more content and faster development.
I believe i was a good part of that 100.A developer should always try to maximize their ROI of [dev work] to [gameplay / content].
Probably this is something said 100 times in this thread already though.
Some of my favorite parts of this game came after the quality got worse. In writing, scenes like the first Dom scene with the minotaur or the collection of scenes in Sabia's tent after she breaks out Ranak and the other 2 idiots are great in my opinion and Nomo can still deliver great art when he focuses on that.
My main issue is that Hreinn rarely works smart.
The best example is how they handle the simplified art.
In theory, the idea is good: draw a few generic positions that are easy to mod later on to illustrate scenes that would otherwise be too small to warrant their own full blown art and use them when they are needed. Just like the groping art which has worked well.
In practice? Nomo spent the last 2 years only drawing these simplified assets with only one exception for Ylva in the hot springs. Instead of both devs and players benefiting from the potential for extra content as a side dish next to the main scenes, for two years they have taken over the main development even tho their technical implementation proved to be difficult too.
And since the scenes are modular and intentionally repetitive a bit, they take up a lot of capacity from the writer too and bloat the project with dialogue that doesn't move forward too much.
All 3 devs have spent 24+ months focused on creating what was essentially meant to do the same task as Riven having 4 different dress option and 10 lines of dialogue for repeatable BJs in NN, which i believe could be made in less than an hour once the artwork is drawn.
I honestly think that Hreinn wouldn't even have to put in effort to get this game back on track, they would just have to stop putting effort into the wrong things.
Even for the next update we already know that it will feature a new mechanic and new reusable assets and a story is a "preparation for the next step" just like the last 3 patches since 2019.
Get Nomo to focus on full quality art, since it is still one of the best on this site when he does it. Get Monsinne to write the main story at least as much as he writes the side scenes and stop creating new game mechanics because NDS evidently can't keep up with all of them.
None of them would have to work more and the result would be more content and faster development.