Ren'Py New game developer needs help.

[One Dev Man]

Hello all,
I need some assistance in progressing with my VN that I'm creating from scratch. I've never made any VN before, but I'm an excellent writer and have a lot of free time to put effort into it.
I've done some basic research and will use HS2 and obviously Renpy. Where I'm stuck is in a few places:
1. Where do I find help? I'm needing assistance with somebody whos actually developed a game before, preferably a renpy +hs2. I don't know how to code and teaching myself how to use Renpy seems like a huge time burden, given that I'm already rendering myself and handling the entire story as well. I know there's some places you can ask for help on this site, but I'm not entirely sure how I'd go about doing that in these early phases.
2. Are HS2 renders (including sex animations) all done in studio?
I wanted to make this game because I see games like Waifu Academy that have good renders + animations that is just updated super slow, and I know the community wants something better. I wanted to know, do those studios do everything in StudioNeo? I haven't really checked yet since I've only made the characters and written the story/ timeline, but it seems to me like importing my 3d character into studio and then having a 2d background makes for weird renders. The animated sex scenes are even more of a question for me. In the HS2 game, the environment is 3d, you can sit in chairs, lean against walls, etc., but inthe Studio mode, I've only figured out how to add a background that's basically just a png behind my character(s).
If I could get some clarification to how the HS2 studio mode actually works that would be much appreciated.
3. Where do I get all the good mods and backgrounds from?
I own HS2 on steam, and I've got the HF patch and a few other installed mods, but I wanted to know if there's more I need (especially for studio), and where I would find them?
It was my impression that betterrepack includes the game HS2 itself in it as well and is mostly for piraters with some other addons. I don't know what they contain, if I'm wrong please let me know.

This all being said I appreciate any feedback, I look forward to your input.

 

[ExhibitGames]

As far as Ren'py is concerned, Discord is helpful, the documentation is very helpful, and in my experience the Youtube channel Game Developer Training helped me a great deal, there are also several more channels that were helpful.

For HS2 the betterrepack is the way to go. Tons of mods and addons are already installed. If you need anything more then go to the Illusion Soft Discord channel.

As far as making renders and animations you will be working almost exclusively in StudioNeo (studio mode).
Basically create a character in the main game, save it, then it will show in studio. There you can add outfits, accessories, etc.. find a map that coincides with the location you want for the character, pose them, add any objects to the scene such as a laptop or food etc.. then take pictures from various positions. Those pictures are your renders. Then run them through Photoshop or Gimp or any other photo manipulation software to fix any colors, lighting etc...
This is obviously an extremely short version of how it is done, one of the biggest pains is getting the lighting set properly, but that just takes time and practice.

 

[Winterfire]

1. You don't need any help, I am retarded and still managed to make a full game on my first try. I once was on your same position, and when I asked, someone (a penguin can't remember the full name) told me it'd take around 6 months to get used to it. He was right.

If you keep going at it every day, it'll eventually become familiar enough for you to be comfortable using it.
Granted I didn't make a pure visual novel, but if you'll do a pure VN, you'll struggle even less.
The only help you need is your own motivation to keep going - Questions are okay, but you'll do better for yourself if you search and try things on your own first. Asking a question as soon as you encounter a problem is something I wouldn't suggest.
A good approach is to post a question after saying everything you have tried, to show your goodwill but also to get a more indepth answer (and perhaps suggestions/tips on previous attempts).


2. Everything is done with Studio Neo, yes. You'll touch the main game only to make the characters, and only then. Literally all the rest will be done on Studio Neo.


3. I'd suggest uninstalling the steam version, and just download and use the repack. I wouldn't trust you with installing only the repack on the steam version, or the updater which you need to run once you have everything all ready to go (which installs more mods). With the latest repack + Updater, you'll have nearly all the stuff, the rest is done by other people on commission or on patreon, maybe if you google for "hs2 maps" you can find a few obscure ones, and of course you can make them yourself by using Unity 5.6 and do some good ol' modding, or just assemble them yourself in a scene.

-
You can also check my signature for a tutorial regarding how to make a game (Both the one in my signature and the april fool one linked there, both contain valid information), I believe they also include various links to youtube as well containing tutorials.
Speaking of which, using youtube and google to look up tutorials, issues, etc. should become a habit for you. It's the best way to solo it.
I just typed "honey select 2 studio beginner tutorial" on youtube, this was the first result:

You must be registered to see the links

48 minutes and it begins with a face, i'd probably fall asleep 2 mins in, but maybe you'll find some value on it. If not, keep scrolling and you'll eventually find all you need for both Ren'Py and HS2. They're both fairly popular.

 

[One Dev Man]

1. You don't need any help, I am retarded and still managed to make a full game on my first try. I once was on your same position, and when I asked, someone (a penguin can't remember the full name) told me it'd take around 6 months to get used to it. He was right.

If you keep going at it every day, it'll eventually become familiar enough for you to be comfortable using it.
Granted I didn't make a pure visual novel, but if you'll do a pure VN, you'll struggle even less.
The only help you need is your own motivation to keep going - Questions are okay, but you'll do better for yourself if you search and try things on your own first. Asking a question as soon as you encounter a problem is something I wouldn't suggest.
A good approach is to post a question after saying everything you have tried, to show your goodwill but also to get a more indepth answer (and perhaps suggestions/tips on previous attempts).


2. Everything is done with Studio Neo, yes. You'll touch the main game only to make the characters, and only then. Literally all the rest will be done on Studio Neo.


3. I'd suggest uninstalling the steam version, and just download and use the repack. I wouldn't trust you with installing only the repack on the steam version, or the updater which you need to run once you have everything all ready to go (which installs more mods). With the latest repack + Updater, you'll have nearly all the stuff, the rest is done by other people on commission or on patreon, maybe if you google for "hs2 maps" you can find a few obscure ones, and of course you can make them yourself by using Unity 5.6 and do some good ol' modding, or just assemble them yourself in a scene.

-
You can also check my signature for a tutorial regarding how to make a game (Both the one in my signature and the april fool one linked there, both contain valid information), I believe they also include various links to youtube as well containing tutorials.
Speaking of which, using youtube and google to look up tutorials, issues, etc. should become a habit for you. It's the best way to solo it.
I just typed "honey select 2 studio beginner tutorial" on youtube, this was the first result:

You must be registered to see the links

48 minutes and it begins with a face, i'd probably fall asleep 2 mins in, but maybe you'll find some value on it. If not, keep scrolling and you'll eventually find all you need for both Ren'Py and HS2. They're both fairly popular.

I actually am super happy you commented, your guide was the first thing I started on, I completed the GDD among other things. Since posting this I’ve already figured out a bunch of stuff, so I thank you and believe you’re right with sorta figuring it out on my own.
thanks for all you to do help the community, it is much appreciated to the fellow retards like myself.

 

[osanaiko]

One small advice:

The things that you make while in the early stages of learning will look terrible to your own eyes when you look back at them 6 months later.

This is because your skills will grow and you will know how to do better. But you cannot get to that point without making the "terrible" thing first, because that's how you learn.

So consider making a really small target mini-idea project first. Expect for it to not be very good. Don't spend your initial learning time working on your "magnum opus great idea", because it will hurt to throw away.

Many devs, myself included, will have several or dozens of aborted attempts to make something. there's nothing wrong with that.

 

[Winterfire]

One small advice:

The things that you make while in the early stages of learning will look terrible to your own eyes when you look back at them 6 months later.

This is because your skills will grow and you will know how to do better. But you cannot get to that point without making the "terrible" thing first, because that's how you learn.

So consider making a really small target mini-idea project first. Expect for it to not be very good. Don't spend your initial learning time working on your "magnum opus great idea", because it will hurt to throw away.

Many devs, myself included, will have several or dozens of aborted attempts to make something. there's nothing wrong with that.

As long as you continue to improve (including experimenting and changing), even years from now, your old stuff will look inferior. That'll always be true, and it's something you need to accept. Unfortunately, many devs (including big ones) don't, so they fall in the trap of redoing their old stuff over and over. I am sure big devs don't mind since they have a big patreon as well, but that would easily kill small devs.

So, a good tip is to continue forward until you complete your project, never redoing anything old (except in rare cases).

 

[Turning Tricks]

One small advice:

The things that you make while in the early stages of learning will look terrible to your own eyes when you look back at them 6 months later.

This is because your skills will grow and you will know how to do better. But you cannot get to that point without making the "terrible" thing first, because that's how you learn.

So consider making a really small target mini-idea project first. Expect for it to not be very good. Don't spend your initial learning time working on your "magnum opus great idea", because it will hurt to throw away.

Many devs, myself included, will have several or dozens of aborted attempts to make something. there's nothing wrong with that.

I used to teach Human Factors to aviation technicians. There's something called the dirty dozen that is basically a way some very smart person used to codify the 12 most common errors conditions that lead to errors and accidents in aviation. One of those dirty dozen is Stress.

The funny thing about Stress, though, is that not only can it cause errors and accidents if it gets out of control or you react badly to it, but it also is a critical component of learning and getting better at a task. Without Stress in your work, you become Complacent (another dirty dozen) and you never improve. Only a constant amount of stress will allow a human to improve their knowledge and skills.

And if you find yourself in that happy complacent space, then you need to induce the stress on yourself... push yourself, try and do more complicated things, try to make more money at it... etc, etc.

At least if you want to improve.