VN Ren'Py KLK Ryûko's Rumble dev thread

[Gwedelino]

Hello everyone.

It looks like it's time for another progress report.

I made a lot of progress this week regarding every single aspects of my game.

1) Writing

The script of the very first fight is sadly not completed yet. I'm currently having a mental block for the first game over scene which is the last remaining scene I need to write for this fight.

My very first text for this game over was way too realistic, giving it a depressing vibe. I erased nearly half of it and I will need to rewrite it again but this time with a more erotica and less dark tone. I will delay that until next month.

Hopefully, I'm pretty quick at finding out when my efforts would be useless, so I decided to put this fight onhold swiftly and to go write some lighter scenes focused on Mako Mankanshoku.

At the end, I made a lot of progress regarding those scenes. I'm trying to set a tone similar to the anime, and I think I got it pretty well until now, even if that will need an outside confirmation during play testing.

2) Gameplay

I'm having quite a dilemma regarding how much importance I must give to choices during my game.

Currently, players don't have a lot of choices but they are meaningful. As an example, each single choice made can :

- Lock or unlock another girl.
- Engage you or make you miss the route of one of your love interest.
- Change which character you will have to fight during the tournament.

And some others things I keep secret for now.

However this has a huge drawback : the player don't make a lot of choice, and overall my game has low interactivity.

I could add something like a "navigation choice" with player freely roaming inside the academy but I find it very artificial considering those choices wouldn't make you earn everything.

I don't know what do you think about that.

3) Art

- The very first CG is completed. I'm of course biased but I find it awesome. Sorry if I keep it secret but it spoils way too much.
The second CG is now being worked on. We will be able to go full speed on art during the next months.

- Another sprite completed ! Nonon Jakuzure is now part of the cast.


I think I will be able soon to show you the design of some original Characters.

 

[262177]

Hey Gwedelino!

That's pretty impressive for a first game so far. The gameplay reminds me a lot of LSB (Ladies Sex Bout) by TurtleCrane, which used Nscripter but was abandoned, apparently.

I've literally got zero knowledge when it comes to Kill La Kill, but the art looks awesome and you've got spirit and passion - and even more importantly, planning.

It's always better to start low than to have excessive ambitions.

Amen to this, seriously. The burnout is real for many and Ren'py has the advantage of not encouraging placeholder content all over the place and unfinished code.

As for the engine itself, don't worry about it. I recommend focusing on the dialogue and CG as you've been doing nicely so far. You'll have plenty of time to explore what you can do with it (technically anything, even though it's mostly meant for visual novels) to polish your game as it expands.

Regarding backgrounds, I'd also follow Amborella's advice. They look fine, really.

If you're worried about the gameplay not being interactive enough, there are plenty of ways around this that aren't too time-consuming. To take an example from LSB, the fights themselves were move-based and had no RNG; the sex position itself (for each combatant, and based on their respective sizes and personalities) determined what you could or couldn't do as an interaction during the fight, and frankly, memorizing all possible combinations was next to impossible while they all led to interesting outcomes. However, the story clearly wasn't deep enough.

This may require some extra dialogue but could help you with the interactivity block. The initial idea of navigating around the university may actually be interesting to players if you put a few characters giving subtle hints or trivia (completely optional, but just like in RPGs, it's always nice to have a NPC tell you about something that apparently comes straight out of a game manual - surprised this isn't a trope, lol) which aren't always obvious for VN-type games.

As long as the choices don't feel redundant, I'm pretty sure you'll be doing fine. The advantage of early stage development is you can quickly learn from your mistakes if you screw something up so you won't be doing the same thing ever again, and do it more efficiently next time around. Playtest a lot and have others help you with it.

What else can I say... People have given plenty of advice regarding the content, and in the end, make sure people don't decide for you and make you do things you don't want to do, or never planned to and end up ruining your motivation. Losing control over your game can mean losing control of the entire workflow. You are the game master; suggestions will help but only if they are constructive and follow the spirit you originally intended for your game. If it takes too many tangents, you run the risk of no longer knowing what to prioritize, nor even where the game is headed at all.

Best of luck, will be following your progress every now and then! Don't let anyone stress you with deadlines.

Sorry for the wall of text!

 

[Beggarman]

Just popped over from the Lesbian Protag thread and I gotta say that I do like the look of what you're doing and am looking forward to a first release, but no hurry. I don't really know KLK myself (it's on my to-watch list... along with like 100 other things) but actual sex-fighting games are painfully rare, lesbian ones even more so, and what you've got so far does look good. From what I've seen of working in Ren'Py, taking options in the fight that lead to victory/defeat is probably the best implementation in this engine - it seems to be a nightmare doing any sort of minigames, and my attempts to put even a basic turn-based fight engine in there were... bad (which could just be me, but eh).

I don't really have a ton of advice to offer so far, but regarding gameplay: My personal opinion would be to keep the chaff down as much as possible and probably stick to basic options. I like some of the potential of free-roam-y segments in some engines and game setups, but I feel like here it may just lead to a bit too much dead time for the player, and it might just be better to offer the player the option to "Speak to [Person X]" or "Speak to [Person Y]" straight up, instead of having those options be hidden in a location where they usually reside, if I understand what you're saying there. If there's not really a greater purpose behind going to some of these locations (e.g. the chance of a positive/negative event which may affect the upcoming fight) then it can just feel like busywork. Some extra inconsequential chat does sound good though, just maybe not squirreled away, if there's not much reason to use a location system.

My only slight worry is that... well, I don't know the company behind the anime too well, but I would be slightly wary of doing something too attached to a big IP, especially if you plan to run a patreon at the same time.

 

[Grandy_UiD]

I'll keep an eye on this one. Not the biggest fan of the whole sexfight thing, but I won't turn down a chance at a lezdom game.

 

[Gwedelino]

My only slight worry is that... well, I don't know the company behind the anime too well, but I would be slightly wary of doing something too attached to a big IP, especially if you plan to run a patreon at the same time.

That's indeed something I'm thinking about even if :

- I won't set a Patreon at launch
- The game will always be free and without any paywall.

The good news is that this IP is not owned by Disney

There is already a KLK game on F95 which doesn't 't get any problem. I still have to be careful regarding KLK soundtrack which is so good that I would really like to use it. I'm currently having a discussion with a music composer to see if we could create remix or anything else which can fall under a common creative license.

Regarding money, my situation is really specific :

- I already have a full-time job.
- I don't want to leave it
- This game project must stay a hobby

The only reason I would like to monetize this game would be to reduce the amount of money I'm pouring into it. Every single penny would go into my artists pockets. That's something very tempting, but it's hard to make it since :

- My current job requires me to get a special authorization if I want to have another job.

- It would make art even more expensive.

- I have no idea how many people would support my project.

 

[262177]

Seeing as some devs are making 5 or 6 digit figures from newbie-tier League-based spinoffs, unless KLK is licensed by an aggressive American company, I really wouldn't worry about IP issues. Also, I highly discourage Patreon if you need income but I'm biased. (I recommend things like itch.io instead; you won't have to worry about shady stuff going on and having to answer completely unrelated blogposts, it's a platform made for devs and you can set fees to 0% if you want to, as well as monitor the "hidden fees" itch is earning.)

The soundtrack is a good point, since I'm deaf I almost always forget about that crap but audio can get you in trouble. Make sure you have the rights on it or just use free-to-use assets you credit in your project.

Also, your job situation reminds me of Moghunter's issues (iirc, he had to stop working on RPG Maker related stuff to help fellow devs because he had a job at Enterbrain, or whatever company had the rights on it at the time - story can be found posted by Moghunter themselves on RPG Maker Forums before someone hits the report button). You could always ask a few trusted and active devs around about this (MKRU, aura-dev) who have both an itch and a "support site", iirc. aura-dev doesn't do yuri afaik, but both of them are pretty skilled developers who know what they are doing instead of just putting random shit there for magic money by using the hype card.

The spirit's good either way, don't let your project put you in the negatives. Either use free assets and credit them (even if you do use paid assets, credit them anyway, lol) or only spend on paid assets if you can afford to. It adds up very quickly and paid content doesn't mean high quality.

Itch (or similar dev platforms) also guarantees you'll be focusing on making dev posts and updates instead of random blogposts (and that you'll be getting questions about the game or bug reports rather than whatever the fuck they're discussing on those sites). That's your call, and I still recommend getting in touch with an active dev for help on how to get started should you need to go with hobby support to cover your expenses.

 

[Gwedelino]

Seeing as some devs are making 5 or 6 digit figures from newbie-tier League-based spinoffs, unless KLK is licensed by an aggressive American company, I really wouldn't worry about IP issues. Also, I highly discourage Patreon if you need income but I'm biased. (I recommend things like itch.io instead; you won't have to worry about shady stuff going on and having to answer completely unrelated blogposts, it's a platform made for devs and you can set fees to 0% if you want to, as well as monitor the "hidden fees" itch is earning.)

The soundtrack is a good point, since I'm deaf I almost always forget about that crap but audio can get you in trouble. Make sure you have the rights on it or just use free-to-use assets you credit in your project.

Also, your job situation reminds me of Moghunter's issues (iirc, he had to stop working on RPG Maker related stuff to help fellow devs because he had a job at Enterbrain, or whatever company had the rights on it at the time - story can be found posted by Moghunter themselves on RPG Maker Forums before someone hits the report button). You could always ask a few trusted and active devs around about this (MKRU, aura-dev) who have both an itch and a "support site", iirc. aura-dev doesn't do yuri afaik, but both of them are pretty skilled developers who know what they are doing instead of just putting random shit there for magic money by using the hype card.

The spirit's good either way, don't let your project put you in the negatives. Either use free assets and credit them (even if you do use paid assets, credit them anyway, lol) or only spend on paid assets if you can afford to. It adds up very quickly and paid content doesn't mean high quality.

Itch (or similar dev platforms) also guarantees you'll be focusing on making dev posts and updates instead of random blogposts (and that you'll be getting questions about the game or bug reports rather than whatever the fuck they're discussing on those sites). That's your call, and I still recommend getting in touch with an active dev for help on how to get started should you need to go with hobby support to cover your expenses.

It's important not to rush anything. I'm convinced that I can produce a good game, but I might be wrong and I'm still too early to have a relevant opinion on this. There is a lot of unknown factors. My game project is still pretty niche and there is a lot of popular content that's won't be featured. I dont know if many people would support it.

Moreover, as I said everything (relation to monetization, not the game itself) could be stopped very quickly :

- If my employer does not want me to have a second professional activity, this is over.

- If one of my artist does not want their work to be used for a commercial purpose, this is over too.

So for now, I'm not going to do anything. I will just work on my game and try my best to produce something good.

Thanks for your advice. I though about Patreon first because it's the most common solution. I don't really know well how itch.io works.

 

[Deleted member 5189987]

I wouldn't worry too much about parodying a game, even more so if it stays free to play. Unless you're making something based on Nintendo's IP, I don't see how you will get in trouble for this. There are tons of parody games out there, and I only know about one being shutdown (it was a Pokemon game).

 

[Crimson Delight Games]

If my employer does not want me to have a second professional activity, this is over.

What business of your employer is it what you do in your spare time? Why are you even telling them/him/her?

By the way, game looks good! It's got an interesting premise... and your art looks nice too.

 

[Gwedelino]

What business of your employer is it what you do in your spare time? Why are you even telling them/him/her?

By the way, game looks good! It's got an interesting premise... and your art looks nice too.

I'm working in the public sector.

There is a law in my country that forbids people working in the public sector to have a 2nd job.

It says that people working in the public sector must fully commit their "professional time" to this activity, as a 2nd job could be seen as an annoyance.

The only way to bypass it is to :

- Receive an authorization from my direct supervisor.

- Receive a validation from my employer.

It is essential because I need to be able to tell to tax authorities every penny I could earn through my game.

 

[Crimson Delight Games]

There is a law in my country that forbids people working in the public sector to have a 2nd job.

Wow, that's very restricting! I had no idea there were laws like that in effect.

 

[vincanity]

This looks really cool. I am usually not into female protagonist games, but I would definitely give this one a go.

Any chance of some foot fetish being in the game? Tags like Female Domination, Humiliation and BDSM generally go very well with things like forced foot worship, foot smother, trampling and that kind of stuff. Would love to see a bit of that in the game!

 

[Gwedelino]

This looks really cool. I am usually not into female protagonist games, but I would definitely give this one a go.

Any chance of some foot fetish being in the game? Tags like Female Domination, Humiliation and BDSM generally go very well with things like forced foot worship, foot smother, trampling and that kind of stuff. Would love to see a bit of that in the game!

Sadly no, I don't think I will add this kind of content in my game.

This is not my cup of tea, and I don't thing I would be able to create and write good scenes featuring that fetish.

 

[Gwedelino]

Hello.

I'm on vacation currently without any access to my computer so the progress report of this week will be quite short.

It will be the same for most of the next week, so I can't expect to deal with a lot of work.

I will actually use the end of the upcoming week to work on everything related to the UI of my game.

But don't worry, I should be able to be more productive on September.

Meanwhile you got a sneak peak at Ryûko.

 

[Gwedelino]

Hello everybody.

I'm a bit late for this progress report, but I wanted to have enough materials before making this post.

I'm still struggling to complete the last scene of the first fight. I'm making very little to no progress on it everyday. Reason being that I try at best to avoid some clichés in this scene which has a very heavy lezdom vibe.

Still not a problem since I always end up working on something else instead. The following scenes are now completed and being proofred.

Art is probably my weakest skill but I tried to work on the UI of my game. I spent more time doing and undoing it, but here is a look at how it's for now (The background picture is still a placeholder image).




I will also need to create an in-game journal in which the player will be able to see each LI and check if they are taking the right path. I think I will probably need something more "professional" for this.

I also spent time working on visual and sound effects. A visual novel being very static by nature, while at the opposite KLK is a very dynamic animé, I will need to put a lot of efforts into this.



To end this report, here is a sneak peak at a CG which is being worked on :



The completed version will remain secret.

 

[262177]

With red and black being my favorite colors, I'm a bit biased but that UI looks splendid. Keep it up and thanks for sharing your progress with us as usual.

Also, I love scissors and scissoring. More of a knife person but knives tend to be impractical during (normal) sex.

 

[Beggarman]

I will also need to create an in-game journal in which the player will be able to see each LI and check if they are taking the right path. I think I will probably need something more "professional" for this.

If you want some help or suggestions for this, I'd suggest checking out "The Fixer" - I can't remember what the public version is at but I think the current public version does have a fairly robust journal system which could be adapted.

 

[Gwedelino]

If you want some help or suggestions for this, I'd suggest checking out "The Fixer" - I can't remember what the public version is at but I think the current public version does have a fairly robust journal system which could be adapted.

I already have an accurate idea of how I want my journal to looks like. I will basically need :

- A simple presentation page of each Love Interest
- A visual representation of the player relationship level with each LI

Something close to what Monstergirl Sexpedition has :

That's basically just to keep track of the player's progress. I will probably put in-game some text to tell the player when one of their choice increased or decreased their relationship level with a girl.

I could add more function if people has any suggestion.

 

[262177]

That reminds me of the journal plugin Crazy (aka Crazya) used for Death's Punishment (which was made with RPG Maker MZ). Looks very similar. It's the same font, too.

My (very limited amount of) braincells didn't quite connect when I saw LI. Love Interests of course.

As far as suggestions go, maybe a hint as to why said increase/decrease happened, or a certain choice isn't possible. Long Live The Queen had something like that to help players not repeat mistakes while also not ending up stuck scratching their heads trying to figure out how much of a certain (insert variable here) they needed for a certain thing to happen with a potential love interest or relationship.

Same for things that "might" influence love interests. Best to keep it vague though. The average player won't be looking at the code (even if you "hide" it inside of a RPA) so you don't have to worry too much about that.

 

[Grandy_UiD]

Getting lowkey hyped about this. Really keeping my fingers crossed it's gonna be good.