Ren'Py Looking for Advice on Initial Release on F95 (Serenia)

[OffWhite Studios]

Hey everyone,

I’m a first-time game developer here! I am working on Serenia, a 2D animated dungeon crawler. While I’ve been aware of F95 for a while, I haven’t been active here and would greatly appreciate advice from experienced members as I approach my first release.

Game Overview
Chapter 1 of Serenia is set for completion around January-February 2025, featuring a few hours of content, dozens of scenes, basic animations, combat, inventory, and leveling systems. I’m planning releases on Patreon, SubscribeStar, and Itch.io (perhaps others if recommended). Monetization is not my first priority, as this is more of a passion project, but any funding I make I can put back into the game for thi like better animations or voice acting.

Seeking Your Advice

1. Building Awareness Before Launch
   With Chapter 1 still a few months away, is it beneficial to start a dev blog or similar efforts to build interest early?
2. Release Strategy
   Would you recommend releasing all of Chapter 1 at once or using smaller updates every 2-3 weeks to maintain engagement?
3. Importance of Community Platforms
   How essential is a Discord server for engaging supporters and growing a community through Patreon/SubscribeStar?
4. Rewarding Supporters
   For a free-to-play game, what rewards or benefits have proven most effective for Patreon/SubscribeStar supporters?
5. Creating a Game Page
   Can I make a game page on f95 before having a playable version, using it to share progress and updates? Or is that what the Dev Blog is for?

Thanks in advance for any guidance and experiences you can share!

Attached are some screenshots from the game:

 

[MissFortune]

With Chapter 1 still a few months away, is it beneficial to start a dev blog or similar efforts to build interest early?

Since there's no official product at the moment, I'd start up a Patreon account and make the progress reports free. Transparency is always going to be your friend. Make one here on F95, too. Post some teaser lewd images that don't show everything on Twitter/other social media. Post your game in your signature so people can see it whenever you post.

Would you recommend releasing all of Chapter 1 at once or using smaller updates every 2-3 weeks to maintain engagement?

Players generally prefer longer, bigger updates vs short, rapid updates. They want something to sink their teeth into. There's cases where this might work, but rapid releases usually never work for most devs. Especially new ones.

How essential is a Discord server for engaging supporters and growing a community through Patreon/SubscribeStar?

I'm doing decently without a Discord (I'm working on it, so do as I say not as I do), but it'd be hard to make it anything less than a net positive. You're giving your players/fans a place to talk about your game.

For a free-to-play game, what rewards or benefits have proven most effective for Patreon/SubscribeStar supporters?

I have prety basic reward/benefits (early release, custom renders at certain tiers, etc.), and still get decent support. People are there to support you as a creator/artist while also getting the game/VN/etc. they enjoy from you. If they just wanted to buy the game, Steam is automatically a cheaper option in 99.9% of situations.

Can I make a game page on f95 before having a playable version, using it to share progress and updates? Or is that what the Dev Blog is for?

That's that the dev threads/devlogs are for. Tracking development progress on the forum.

 

[OffWhite Studios]

Since there's no official product at the moment, I'd start up a Patreon account and make the progress reports free. Transparency is always going to be your friend. Make one here on F95, too. Post some teaser lewd images that don't show everything on Twitter/other social media. Post your game in your signature so people can see it whenever you post.



Players generally prefer longer, bigger updates vs short, rapid updates. They want something to sink their teeth into. There's cases where this might work, but rapid releases usually never work for most devs. Especially new ones.



I'm doing decently without a Discord (I'm working on it, so do as I say not as I do), but it'd be hard to make it anything less than a net positive. You're giving your players/fans a place to talk about your game.



I have prety basic reward/benefits (early release, custom renders at certain tiers, etc.), and still get decent support. People are there to support you as a creator/artist while also getting the game/VN/etc. they enjoy from you. If they just wanted to buy the game, Steam is automatically a cheaper option in 99.9% of situations.



That's that the dev threads/devlogs are for. Tracking development progress on the forum.

Thank you! Your reply was extremely helpful. I personally prefer bigger, more polished updates, so it’s reassuring to hear that aligns with the general preference of players.

I also plan on offering my content for free, so it’s good to know that many supporters are fine without a lot of paywalled content—they simply want to support the developer.

I have another question regarding Patreon, which might also apply to Steam one day. I recently got my Patreon approved, but I’m concerned after reading that they can be quick to ban certain content. From my research, I’ve noticed that many creators with potentially TOS-violating themes are still active on the platform, but cases like UberPie and TaffyTales raise some red flags for me.

My game does contain themes of non-consent, such as scenarios where an orc or goblin captures a characters for sex, or someone being put under a spell that makes them horny, etc. I am also trying to get approved on SubscribeStar for this reason, though the process is taking some time…

My question is: Have you seen how creators with similar content manage to stay on Patreon? I understand there is always a risk, but does avoiding posting the game there and only providing updates mitigate it? Are there similar best practice you have observed for games with these more taboo themes, or is it all rather uncertain?

 

[osanaiko]

1. Building Awareness Before Launch
   With Chapter 1 still a few months away, is it beneficial to start a dev blog or similar efforts to build interest early?

Yes, absolutely. start early, be transparent, give teasers / sneak previews, ask questions.

1. Release Strategy
   Would you recommend releasing all of Chapter 1 at once or using smaller updates every 2-3 weeks to maintain engagement?

First release 30mins game time, after that smaller bites is acceptable...
One thing to keep in mind - when you are starting out and trying to build mindshare on F95, getting your game regularly into the "new releases" section is a primo way to allow new potential players to see it. So if you have some content already "queued up", consider breaking it into smaller releases so you can post an update every month for the first few months. It will also help to give potential supporters the feeling that you will be a regular releaser.

1. Importance of Community Platforms
   How essential is a Discord server for engaging supporters and growing a community through Patreon/SubscribeStar?

Personally I don't like them.

1. Rewarding Supporters
   For a free-to-play game, what rewards or benefits have proven most effective for Patreon/SubscribeStar supporters?

Early access is a great idea initially, but as game becomes more popular, the average time before it is leaked here will reduce from weeks to days to hours.
So to grab the loyalty, do things that will be making them feel like they are part of project, and that it would not exist without them (inside jokes, a small proportion of exclusive posts with info that others will not see). However, try not to be over the top or come across as insincere - it's easy to overplay the gratitude.

1. Creating a Game Page
   Can I make a game page on f95 before having a playable version, using it to share progress and updates? Or is that what the Dev Blog is for?

Yes, check out here, there are dozens of active dev-threads: https://f95zone.to/forums/programming-development-art.73/

 

[OffWhite Studios]

Yes, absolutely. start early, be transparent, give teasers / sneak previews, ask questions.



First release 30mins game time, after that smaller bites is acceptable...
One thing to keep in mind - when you are starting out and trying to build mindshare on F95, getting your game regularly into the "new releases" section is a primo way to allow new potential players to see it. So if you have some content already "queued up", consider breaking it into smaller releases so you can post an update every month for the first few months. It will also help to give potential supporters the feeling that you will be a regular releaser.



Personally I don't like them.



Early access is a great idea initially, but as game becomes more popular, the average time before it is leaked here will reduce from weeks to days to hours.
So to grab the loyalty, do things that will be making them feel like they are part of project, and that it would not exist without them (inside jokes, a small proportion of exclusive posts with info that others will not see). However, try not to be over the top or come across as insincere - it's easy to overplay the gratitude.



Yes, check out here, there are dozens of active dev-threads: https://f95zone.to/forums/programming-development-art.73/

Thanks! this is helpful advice. I agree the updates page seems to be the best way to advertise your game. I prefer bigger updates but I think it may be a good idea at launch to pre-plan a schedule of content, unless until awareness builds. Dev-blog is something I can certainly do as well!