VN Ren'Py Abandoned Last Call [v0.4] [Thunderline Studios]

[erkper]

Well, at least Annie looks passibly like Annie this time. First time I've recognized her without a lineup card since... March?

 

[MrFriendly]

What even the fuck is going on at this point?

New artist is learning how to render and is trying to render everything for update 4, at this point it has been a year since last update and there's really no expectation that a new update will be out until August or September (if we are lucky). It's sad because this game had a lot of buzz but I am fairly sure that it has all died. Perhaps if they can get back to an update every 3-4 months and do it reliably we will see some excitement for the game.

Though they also have to solve the whole ex-gf issue. In that I mean they made it look like she had moved on and cheated (classic cheating setup) but we've been told there will be no NTR or cheating in the game... SO that means if she didn't cheat and didn't break up with the MC then he is the douchebag who cheated on his girlfriend (he also didn't break up with her in anyway).

 

[Aristos]

New artist is learning how to render and is trying to render everything for update 4, at this point it has been a year since last update and there's really no expectation that a new update will be out until August or September (if we are lucky). It's sad because this game had a lot of buzz but I am fairly sure that it has all died. Perhaps if they can get back to an update every 3-4 months and do it reliably we will see some excitement for the game.

Though they also have to solve the whole ex-gf issue. In that I mean they made it look like she had moved on and cheated (classic cheating setup) but we've been told there will be no NTR or cheating in the game... SO that means if she didn't cheat and didn't break up with the MC then he is the douchebag who cheated on his girlfriend (he also didn't break up with her in anyway).

When we had the same discussion a while ago, the devs did assert that the gf hadn't cheated on him, so that seems to be a fact.

I wouldn't call the MC a douchebag. His fears and subsequent reaction are entirely reasonable all things considered. Let's just see it as an unfortunate misunderstanding that will lead to some drama (if we ever get an update, that is).

 

[MrFriendly]

When we had the same discussion a while ago, the devs did assert that the gf hadn't cheated on him, so that seems to be a fact.

I wouldn't call the MC a douchebag. His fears and subsequent reaction are entirely reasonable all things considered. Let's just see it as an unfortunate misunderstanding that will lead to some drama (if we ever get an update, that is).

Yeah, I just don't like the set up. I am fine with the gf cheating and then being out of the picture as a way to get a game or story going. Instead what we have is the MC trying to communicate, her ghosting him, the MC believing it to be over and trying to move on (he didn't fuck anyone until he thought the relationship was over). So now we are going to have the MC being confronted with gf, her saying it's all a misunderstanding, and then either she has to forgive him his indiscretions, something along the lines of "I understand, it was all my fault, I hope you can forgive" or she has to scream and yell at him and then he has to try to "fix" things. Not sure why he would want to fix things but <shrug> she is a love interest. I also expect the MC to feel guilty about his fucking other women because he's a good guy who was trying his best to keep his relationship going.

Anyway, as you said we have to see if there is ever a new update before we can really know exactly how the story will go.

 

[Motoko Kusanagi]

Though they also have to solve the whole ex-gf issue. In that I mean they made it look like she had moved on and cheated (classic cheating setup) but we've been told there will be no NTR or cheating in the game... SO that means if she didn't cheat and didn't break up with the MC then he is the douchebag who cheated on his girlfriend (he also didn't break up with her in anyway).

Ah now I remember that part in the story, this whole thread went nuts trying to figure out if she was cheating or not.

 

[MrFriendly]

Ah now I remember that part in the story, this whole thread went nuts trying to figure out if she was cheating or not.

Yep! It really did. It was frustrating since the MC only takes the word of one unnamed friend/acquaintance and a picture or two. Then the MC decides to embrace bachelorhood and fuck some strange. LOL

To me, if the gf still wanted him she shouldn't have ghosted him for 2 months (or however long it was). Doesn't matter if she is fucking someone or not, unless she is in a coma in the hospital or she broke both her hands there's no excuse for not calling/emailing/writing/whatever.

 

[Harry6hp]

Yep! It really did. It was frustrating since the MC only takes the word of one unnamed friend/acquaintance and a picture or two. Then the MC decides to embrace bachelorhood and fuck some strange. LOL

To me, if the gf still wanted him she shouldn't have ghosted him for 2 months (or however long it was). Doesn't matter if she is fucking someone or not, unless she is in a coma in the hospital or she broke both her hands there's no excuse for not calling/emailing/writing/whatever.

Yeah man she would have responded to MC's mails (Which he writes to her everyday). At least just a small response whats happening with her cause he is telling things happening with him in his mails. (or) Maybe MC should have sent a closure mail to her before he got drunk like a Troll after seeing her Pic or called her. We can only speculate in the end its all up to Dev. Hope we will know soon ( In the coming updates(I hope they will release them soon )).

 

[watchitfortheplot]

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Probably not a long update, but we will see. I generally do these off the cuff and talk about what has happened over the last week. I actually have to go back and look back at my previous post as I thought I had mentioned something last week then remembered I can't yet as Inkwell would hurt me. However I can mention this. The ever wonderful Mr. Puggy was kind enough to make me an asset for taptunes, or to really avoid copyright, should probably call them taptones, but then that sounds like an app to get ringtones from so... hell I don't know. All I know it he made us an asset that I wanted to help fill out the bar. Pretty sure he will be sick of me soon as I get these random ideas and I go to him and say "Hey, can you do this?" to which he replies "Who are you and how did you get in my house?".... Wait, I'm not suppose to talk about that until the case is settled so.... mums the word.

Regardless, Puggy:

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Overall, progress continues. I'm very happy I am out of that large scene as that was a bear and then some. The current scene is a lot of fun as it still involves many path variables so you go from creating art for one segment to creating for the other. While there may be some similarities, it also has it's own minor variances. Most of this is due to me being a bit anal as I don't want to reuse, generally speaking, but with subtle changes in path would to me require subtle changes in tone and expression.
It's things like this that really suck you in and force you to think like a photographer or even a cinematographer. Framing just right, capturing just the right expression and pose. All of these things help sell a scene, and without them you fall on your face. Now and again I have played games where expressions are rarely changed yet the story is very entertaining. You find yourself wondering why put so much effort in to one aspect, but not into another. But alas. There have been times where I fight with the eyes of a character as they look like the Care Bear stare vs actually looking at the camera or another character. Just this dead look that sucks me out of the image and it's a struggle to get it to sit right so it doesn't look dead or fake. One of my least favorite things to have to fix. I have started to notice that eye lids can help with this. Weird I know, but the only way I can think to express it.
So, at this point many are probably wondering about the title and going... what about the puppy. Xena and I will have a puppy by first week in August, we actually got to see the little guys yesterday at the breeders location. Was absolutely wonderful. The parents and one grandparents were on site which was so cool to see. The mentalities of all the dogs was just all love. Red Golden Retrievers, for the record.. Hope you guys enjoy the attached picture.
One last thing, HopesGaming gave me a shout out and it only feels right to return the favor. Mr Hopes is doing a deep, in depth, Mafia story that is well thought out and wonderful, definitely give him a look, nothing out there really like this, and his art style is very fun. So without further ado,

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As I say all the time, thank you so very much to each and every one of you guys. Your support means the world to us. Take care and as always,

Bottoms up,

Xor

+1 for the puppy, congratulations! Have to admit I was pretty surprised scrolling through here and seeing a puppy picture lol. Looking forward to whenever the next update is, I need more Morgan in my life again!

 

[v1900]

Yeah man she would have responded to MC's mails (Which he writes to her everyday). At least just a small response whats happening with her cause he is telling things happening with him in his mails. (or) Maybe MC should have sent a closure mail to her before he got drunk like a Troll after seeing her Pic or called her. We can only speculate in the end its all up to Dev. Hope we will know soon ( In the coming updates(I hope they will release them soon )).

So true mate. That has being eating at the back of my skull for a year now. If it quacks like a duck, walks like a duck and stinks like a duck and it is an elephant (according to the dev). It's going to take some top notch creative writing to come up with a palatable explanation as to why she ghosted him while going out on a date (possibly more) with another dude.

Assuming that the information is in fact correct, she may have not cheated by having sex but she effectively abandoned the MC and started a new relation without informing him. I will go ahead and say that I believe that there is no such thing as having "friendly" dinner dates with people of the opposite sex while you are in a serious relationship with someone. That shit is spitting on your significant other and asking for a laugh.

 

[Aristos]

So true mate. That has being eating at the back of my skull for a year now. If it quacks like a duck, walks like a duck and stinks like a duck and it is an elephant (according to the dev). It's going to take some top notch creative writing to come up with a palatable explanation as to why she ghosted him while going out on a date (possibly more) with another dude.

Assuming that the information is in fact correct, she may have not cheated by having sex but she effectively abandoned the MC and started a new relation without informing him. I will go ahead and say that I believe that there is no such thing as having "friendly" dinner dates with people of the opposite sex while you are in a serious relationship with someone. That shit is spitting on your significant other and asking for a laugh.

When I was with my ex-gf (whom I dated and who I lived with for years), some acquaintances and neighbours would occasionally walk up to my mom to tattletale on me saying they'd seen me in certain places with a different girl. Sometimes they would even tell her they saw us holding hands.
The first part was true, as I would met up with that girl every now and then.
Needless to say, the second part was just an invention that made the story juicier: it would be weird to hold hands with my own cousin.

So yeah, there might be a plausible explanation to Fiona's unknown companion. The ghosting part will be tougher to swallow though.

 

[v1900]

When I was with my ex-gf (whom I dated and who I lived with for years), some acquaintances and neighbours would occasionally walk up to my mom to tattletale on me saying they'd seen me in certain places with a different girl. Sometimes they would even tell her they saw us holding hands.
The first part was true, as I would met up with that girl every now and then.
Needless to say, the second part was just an invention that made the story juicier: it would be weird to hold hands with my own cousin.

So yeah, there might be a plausible explanation to Fiona's unknown companion. The ghosting part will be tougher to swallow though.

Yeah the moment you try to explain what is happening in the big picture without the girlfriend looking like a piece of shit. You end up solving a Fourier series for signal processing with only the fingers on your left hand and no calculator.

As you said. The scenarios I have played in my mind fall apart when I add up the parts we know (she ghosted the MC and she went out clubbing with a man).

1. I have being too occupied - False - It takes 5 minutes to write or call and going out clubbing takes hours.
2. I am having doubts about my future - False - Those are plans BOTH of them had, she should talk about it with all parts involved.
3. I am feeling lonely - False - Take a weekend to visit.
4. I am considering other options and not telling you - Bitch - She is playing the field keeping the MC as backup if all else fails.
5. He is a cousin (why not) - Really bitch - I would assume he knows her family, if not, see points 1 & 3.
6. He is a potential employer - Again bitch - See points 1 & 2.
7. This situation is difficult for me - Self-serving ass - The MC is taking care of his dying last relative and working, see points 2 & 3.

Shit man I could keep going and keep working up myself, I blame you for this mate.

 

[Harry6hp]

Yeah the moment you try to explain what is happening in the big picture without the girlfriend looking like a piece of shit. You end up solving a Fourier series for signal processing with only the fingers on your left hand and no calculator.

As you said. The scenarios I have played in my mind fall apart when I add up the parts we know (she ghosted the MC and she went out clubbing with a man).

1. I have being too occupied - False - It takes 5 minutes to write or call and going out clubbing takes hours.
2. I am having doubts about my future - False - Those are plans BOTH of them had, she should talk about it with all parts involved.
3. I am feeling lonely - False - Take a weekend to visit.
4. I am considering other options and not telling you - Bitch - She is playing the field keeping the MC as backup if all else fails.
5. He is a cousin (why not) - Really bitch - I would assume he knows her family, if not, see points 1 & 3.
6. He is a potential employer - Again bitch - See points 1 & 2.
7. This situation is difficult for me - Self-serving ass - The MC is taking care of his dying last relative and working, see points 2 & 3.

Shit man I could keep going and keep working up myself, I blame you for this mate.

I feel you bro

 

[assman1337]

*Patiently Waiting*

 

[johnelros]

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Short update sadly, want to get back into trying to fix a glaring error I made. Short version wanted to try different lighting, and while it did look nice, it wasn't nice enough to justify the 3 fold increase in render times so now I am trying to augment what I have done to rectify and reduce the time needed. I am having fun I will admit.
Decent week last week, got through a decent amount of renders, learned a couple things, my friends are doing better so there is some stress relieved as well. Overall I am happy with progress, my progress that is. I know people are excitedly waiting for .4 and I am doing what I can to get it out as fast as I can while also still learning how to get better and better. I have a lighting test running while I write this and it is coming along decently enough so may have the issue figured out.
Little under two weeks until we bring a new puppy into our home! The wife and I are very excited. I am pretty sure if Jarvis knew what was coming he'd be less than enthused. The four legged tail waggers have always beguiled him. Should be fun.
I am sorry this isn't longer, but I unfortunately don't have too much to say today.
To all you wonderful people, pleas take the best of care and remember,
Bottoms up,

Xor

 

[johnelros]

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Dev Update 19: Taken to School
Spent a couple days within the last week visiting and getting constructive criticism from some very good 3D artists out there. I had a small issue with the Kelly Jo Instagram on the 1920's car that I addressed in PS, but overall was not happy with it. Enter OZ. For those of you who know him, well, you know him, for those that don't he's a damn good artist. He pointed out that Kelly Jo's skin was the problem. I had been meaning to update her skin with PBR (Something I have in my arsenal thanks to ITRoy) but was putting it off because... well I'm lazy. And it hadn't really been a problem until now. Sad thing is, it takes maybe 5 minutes to get it usable, a bit more to dial it in to exactly where you want. Either way, it eliminated the weird sharp shadow issue I was having. In short, I am still learning as I go, but I am enjoying it and it was really nice to hear from OZ that he saw marked improvement over the last several months. Trust me when I say if OZ compliments you, it's a big deal.

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(Dom) another Dev/Artist I ended up talking with on similar issues and lighting overall (I bitched to him about my stupidity with the bar from the last dev update) he offered up some suggestions in which I finally started to really look at bars as I visit a few. I have my watering hole here where I live, but a very dear friend bartends at a bar one town over so I like to get up to see her when I can. Point being, lighting in bars isn't as bright as I had it set up and it just felt off. I'm sure I will still tweak here and there, but I feel like I am getting close to what I really want with the bar itself, which is lighting that makes you feel like you're really in a bar. I'm probably just being anal.
Some may wonder why this post is on Wednesday. Well, I will be on vacation next Monday, so I figured I'd do this and next week's update on Wednesday to space it out a little more nicely.
At this point I am over halfway through the needed renders and as I learn and grow with each render, I look backwards and cringe at what I first started making. We here at Thunderline really do look forward to getting this game back up and out to you guys, but until then, as always, thank you all so very much for your continued support.
And remember,

Bottoms up

Xor

 

[kartolas]

Really happy this is one is being developed. Games like like this are what make ME play VNs. Likable characters with personality and where lewd scenes aren't the center of the story instead of the usual manwhoring, cest and harem sillyness but that's just me.
About she cheating or not, that's not even an issue. Second day he messages and mails her and get no reply I would have stopped, made a call like on 3rd day to a friend or whatever to ASK ONLY if she was alright health related, she could have had an accident or something, and close the subject. And no, I wouldn't have even sent a message or email ending it officially as she could have replied and could have been drama. Also, it was her that started it with the silence treatment, not the MC.
To tell you the truth I was getting a bit annoyed with all the emailing at start as I wouldn't had stood by the game with such a beta MC. Good thing it ended quick.

To the dev: if you think you can't handle finishing the game, just give us some ending. Even a bad/rushed ending is better than no ending at all.

Thank you and good luck.

 

[Aristos]

johnelros could you please share the latest dev updates if you still have access to them?

 

[johnelros]

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Sorry this is late, yesterday was just a mess and I ran out of time to get it up at a decent hour. Now on with the show!
I am back from vacation and I now have a 9 week old Red Golden puppy. Holy shit am I tired. In fairness, the vacation that I took really was a working one as it is a fishing trip. So, you're up early, home late, and it's hot. Still recovering from that and the puppy is not conducive to sleep recovery.
But enough about that. Been looking a lot lately at framing. I know I have talked about this before, but wanted to touch on what I have picked up since then. One thing I have discovered about DAZ3D, and I am going to make a bit of an assumption and say that pretty much any 3D modeling software has one drawback: Flat angles are hard to pull off. Therefore, I don't even try really. I remember Marg sending me a boudoir Instagram shot to take inspiration from. What I found was, I just could not get the flat angle to work that the original real life piece had. Now this very well could be in my head, but it just feels like I at least can't pull off dead on even shots. It's just too boring. Adding a little tilt up and a slant to the right or left adds a bit more character and life I feel.
Something else I have come to realize is that the image really needs to be able to say something. I know I have said this one way or another before, but it has recently really started to hit home for me. I saw an image the other day from another artist and it really threw me off. I knew what they were trying to go for, but the problem was many wouldn't be able to figure it out. This really made me go back and look at what I do with in game renders. Am I actually able to generate an image that speaks for itself? I guess in truth that will be for you guys to decide.
On that note, game renders did slow down for a couple days as I was away, but are right back on track now. Hoping to have my current scene finished up by tomorrow. I also think I am finally happy with the lighting in the bar, so that is a nice load off.
Thank you again to each and every one of you. You guys make this possible. Please, please, please take the very best of care and I will see you soon with an update next Monday...Or maybe we make Inkwell do one....
Bottoms up,

Xor

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Update from Inkwell
So, in the name of fairness, I figured it was about time I did a Dev update. As Xor has been steadily cranking through the art, I have taken a bit of a reprieve this summer, which has been much needed. I have already started .5, but I took a bit of a vacation to spend time with the fam and recharge, which has been phenomenal (thank you, Xor). Although, after chatting with Xor last night, he said I ought to get moving on .5…
I’m looking forward to delving back into it, although I realize for me to feel like I’m really keeping to the story, I usually need to go back and reread the last episode or two in order to feel like I’m continuously advancing the story in-line with what has already happened. I personally hate it when stories have overlooked details, forgotten plot points, or shift in tone. I believe it to be the easiest way to break immersion, so I do my damndest to keep in line with what is already there. This means often refreshing my spotty memory (like, I'm not really sure what pic above is about of the top of my head...).
Along with reviewing the story so far, to help focus with writing, lots of writers will often listen to music to help inspire or with focus. Honestly, I’ve never been one of those who listens to music while writing. I find it distracting. Last Call, however, is different.
I’m used to writing prose, but Last Call is a different art form. There is the visual art that represents the story being told, the dialogue that progresses the story, and background music. Immediately when beginning this project I realized what a key factor music could play in the telling of the story. Much like a movie or other visual media, music has the power to set the tone for the scene. I took over the music choices early on.
While writing Last Call, I often find myself thinking what I want to achieve in a scene, and I pick the music first. Then, often, I’ll listen to the music on repeat while writing the scene. I have found it helps align the tone of the scene with the music and kind of keeps everything working together. I even have a document going of music that I think could be useful for the game (even if I haven’t picked the exact scene yet).
I’ve seen a few compliments about the music choices for LC, so this tells me it must be working. I hope you too feel like the music choices help the immersion of the game.
A bit different of an update, but I thought a little look into the writing process for LC might be interesting. Feel free to comment if you have any other questions about writing and maybe I’ll actually help Xor with updates more than once every few months…
Cheers,
Inkwell
P.S. Xor also mentioned a cool idea for something to celebrate when .4 drops… We’ll keep you posted.
Update from Inkwell
So, in the name of fairness, I figured it was about time I did a Dev update. As Xor has been steadily cranking through the art, I have taken a bit of a reprieve this summer, which has been much needed. I have already started .5, but I took a bit of a vacation to spend time with the fam and recharge, which has been phenomenal (thank you, Xor). Although, after chatting with Xor last night, he said I ought to get moving on .5…
I’m looking forward to delving back into it, although I realize for me to feel like I’m really keeping to the story, I usually need to go back and reread the last episode or two in order to feel like I’m continuously advancing the story in-line with what has already happened. I personally hate it when stories have overlooked details, forgotten plot points, or shift in tone. I believe it to be the easiest way to break immersion, so I do my damndest to keep in line with what is already there. This means often refreshing my spotty memory (like, I'm not really sure what pic above is about of the top of my head...).
Along with reviewing the story so far, to help focus with writing, lots of writers will often listen to music to help inspire or with focus. Honestly, I’ve never been one of those who listens to music while writing. I find it distracting. Last Call, however, is different.
I’m used to writing prose, but Last Call is a different art form. There is the visual art that represents the story being told, the dialogue that progresses the story, and background music. Immediately when beginning this project I realized what a key factor music could play in the telling of the story. Much like a movie or other visual media, music has the power to set the tone for the scene. I took over the music choices early on.
While writing Last Call, I often find myself thinking what I want to achieve in a scene, and I pick the music first. Then, often, I’ll listen to the music on repeat while writing the scene. I have found it helps align the tone of the scene with the music and kind of keeps everything working together. I even have a document going of music that I think could be useful for the game (even if I haven’t picked the exact scene yet).
I’ve seen a few compliments about the music choices for LC, so this tells me it must be working. I hope you too feel like the music choices help the immersion of the game.
A bit different of an update, but I thought a little look into the writing process for LC might be interesting. Feel free to comment if you have any other questions about writing and maybe I’ll actually help Xor with updates more than once every few months…
Cheers,
Inkwell
P.S. Xor also mentioned a cool idea for something to celebrate when .4 drops… We’ll keep you posted.

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So the image I posted a couple back was using the wrong woman friend for Max. Yes, again, I am a dumb. Regardless, THIS is the correct woman for that scene. Thankfully only had a couple images to redo.
Not too terribly much to talk about outside of keep an eye out in the coming days as we are going to try and make regular some monthly render polls. I am working with my team as well as some people close to me to come up with some fun things to get it started, then push it to a more continual idea.
The image above, if anyone happens to have their eye drawn to the very neon square in the upper left corner of the image, that is a music system that Puggy built for me. We did talk about this earlier, but there it is in all its rendered glory and damn I couldn't be happier. Now I just need to get something that looks like speakers around the bar.... I really need to stop going to bars. I keep getting more and more ideas.
However, at the same time, it is always fun to learn new things that I can add to a contemporary bar. Projects after Last Call that we have discussed could ultimately have me in a scenario with in which being able to draw from contemporary life would not be as easy, nudge nudge, grin grin, wink wink, say no more.
If anyone gets that reference, please comment.
In regards to progress, it is still going. Some days are better than others. New puppy still isn't helping that, but still, some days are better than others. Little porker has put on near 7 pounds since we picked him up. But he's fat, dumb, and happy so I really can't complain.
If you haven't seen yet, our Instagram is doing the Beer Poster Trend. The final one will be Wednesday this week, then I have a couple fun renders I found to round out the week.
As state above, stay tuned as we will be trying to implement some new things so you're not just hearing from me once a week. I understand that can get a bit clinical and distant which defeats the purpose of trying to be connected with supporters SO, I hope that people like what we want to bring to the table. No, it won't by any means drastically reduce time that is spent on the game so please do not fret there.
Well I think I have rambled on enough. I wish each and every one of you the very best and thank you so very much for your support.

As always,
Bottoms up,

Xor

 

[cxx]

tl:dr when's next update?

 

[WICKEDp4th]

tl:dr when's next update?

When it's done.