Ren'Py Abandoned Secrets of the Valley [v0.0.3 Early Access] [LUSTFER]

[Hyperserver]

grazkaz - aren't you ashamed?
You dropped a review like that based on the first release? For most of the things you mention the dev hadn't even a chance to put in there that time (like multiple sex scenes).
Also the dev already mentioned to take most of the feedback in cosideration for next release(s).
It's not fair to trash a game on it's first appearance.
You may now tell us that you gonna re-review once some updates are done, but we all know that will never happen.

Just my few cents: you should have waited for 1-2 more updates before trashing a game by leaving a fucking unfair 2 points based on a 0.1 (now 0.2).

Oh - and by the way - now there actually IS a sex scene

 

[LUSTFER]

looks quite amazing. keep the good work and hope to see more contents soon.

Very happy that you have enjoyed it!

Now that the structure is basically ok, the main priority will be to bring more content.

 

[LUSTFER]

Well, I played up to the date with Norma and the English seems to be fine for the most part. There are still some inconsistencies like the MC saying "Serious?" when it should be "Seriously?". In that same scene the nametag is also incorrect. The dad says goodbye to himself.

When it comes to the dialogues themselves it's like everyone has to think about what they are saying or needs to emphasize key words. It happens in every conversation, you see italics, bolds and ... no matter what they are talking about. I think that could be dialed down some so the people speak in complete sentences more.

For the UI the little messages you constantly see while walking around get old fast. The "No one is home" and "where do I go now?" is seen repeatedly and for no reason. The market is particularly bad in that regard. It may be a good idea to only show them once when they are relevant. The player doesn't need to be reminded that Claire said there is food at the market. I mean, of course there is.

I personally think the transitions take too long. They are set to a 1 second transition time. It may not seem like a lot but when you have to wait 1 second every time the picture changes in the conversation it makes the whole thig seem sluggish. I would lower the times or better yet just use "with Dissolve" without the extra times to call in the images. Also you may want to change the color of the text in the choice box. There aren't many yet but the box and text are almost the same color.

From what little you see of the characters they seem fine. There is not a whole lot to see of them yet but they at least look like humans. Their proportions are correct and everything. I see people complaining about piercings and whatnot, it your call, but constantly changing character designs just to please people is never a good idea. On that same point, if you insist on doing this by Patreon votes you need to be carful. Pandering to whoever barks the loudest at the time usually just leads to a clusterfuck of a game. It's your game, not theirs.

Thank you very much for your contributions. I see that you have played carefully.

I have taken note of the details you mentioned and will work on them asap.

I have already corrected the small dialog errors mentioned. There are so many details that something always ends up getting through. The important thing is to correct them, right?

I thought about the sentences every time you get to the room. And really, I believe it can be annoying for most people to see them over and over again. I will fix that as well.

I will test the default transitions. I really didn't know whether or not the players would like a longer transition time.

Rest assured that I will not change the appearance of the characters! I understand that if I try to please everyone I won't please anyone and I won't be able to move forward with the game.

For example, Alison, the girl with the piercing. She has that piercing for a reason. It is part of her personality
As my friend The Raven King wrote in her story arc:
"She has a very particular sense of style and it's important to her."
"Her septum piercing is brand-new. This implies that her fashion sense is new and developing. "


Things are not being thrown around randomly, we are trying to create something really interesting.
I will take your advice and just ignore the opinion of those who are not used to playing something with calm and care.

And thanks again to you and also to the Hyperserver, for having some care and affection when trying the game. We have some really nice people here in the community.

 

[LUSTFER]

grazkaz - aren't you ashamed?
You dropped a review like that based on the first release? For most of the things you mention the dev hadn't even a chance to put in there that time (like multiple sex scenes).
Also the dev already mentioned to take most of the feedback in cosideration for next release(s).
It's not fair to trash a game on it's first appearance.
You may now tell us that you gonna re-review once some updates are done, but we all know that will never happen.

Just my few cents: you should have waited for 1-2 more updates before trashing a game by leaving a fucking unfair 2 points based on a 0.1 (now 0.2).

Oh - and by the way - now there actually IS a sex scene

I didn't understand the purpose of this guy. His profile was created the same day I released the first version of the game. A short time later he was already doing this review and he did it in another game as well.

Obviously he didn't try to find out and play it right. Probably he was just trying to post something quickly to unblock forum posts, or something like that.

But okay. I'm not gonna care about that.

 

[Orock]

android please

 

[LUSTFER]

Android

android please

Hello!

You can find the download link for the Android version in my Patreon or Itch.io posts, follow my signature links.

If you have any problems, please let me know so I can fix it asap.

Thank you!

 

[Havenless_]

Silly question.

Will we have the possibility of relationships with girls being purely romantic rather than corruption-based?

I ask for two reasons. The first is that in the planned fetishes you mention corruption and not romance.

But you also mention that the decisions we make will affect the relationships with the girls. So I get the impression that, roughly speaking, we can either be "the bad guy" and corrupt them or be "the good guy" and form genuine or romantic relationships.

Sorry for the question. I'm not trying to impose anything on you, I'd just like to know if it will be possible. Thanks in advance.

 

[Weasel_Face]

So there is no new content after the Norma scene from 0.1 other than a text cleanup?

 

[The Raven King]

Hey, Skeltom!

I'm The Raven King , who's currently helping LUSTFER with script assistance. My role in the project is to clean up the English used in the game as well as offering dialogue ideas and input. Your comments and suggestions are well-taken. I did want to take a moment to explain some of the issues you highlighted before, perhaps providing some context as to why they might have happened -- and what you can expect moving forward from Secrets of the Valley.

Like most people on this thread, I took a chance on downloading the game on the strength of its subject tags and high-quality renders. After playing through it, I then read the comments on this thread. Many of them echoed what was glaringly obvious to me during my playthrough: The English was going to be a major impediment to the success of the game. That said, I saw a lot of potential in the project and reached out to Lustfer to offer my assistance. What I've learned is that he is an amazing partner: Warm, kind, and very receptive to new ideas and concepts.

When I first started offering support for the game, I realized that I could go in one of two directions: 1) I could simply clean up the English in the game and leave it at that, or 2) I could not only clean up the language translation issues, but also make improvements to the overall dialogue. I started with the first of the two directions in mind, but I swiftly realized that if I truly wanted to help Lustfer, I would choose the second. As I said, he's proven to me that he's a good guy...so that's exactly what I did. This change of direction left some of the first dialogue I translated a little stilted. The example you point out is one of these cases. Another instance is the inner monologue being used by the MC, which I agree could be turned down a bit.

In any case, Lustfer and I have already had some very fruitful discussion regarding what's to come. Having a bit of a "peek behind the curtain", I can tell you that you can look forward to some exciting stuff in future releases of Secrets of the Valley! Thanks so much for taking a chance on the game -- and please, keep your comments and (constructive) criticism coming! I assure you that your voices are being heard and given respectful consideration.


TRK

 

[Madridfan]

really need a wt or hint/quest system... unplayeble...

 

[HogRocket]

Hey, Skeltom!

I'm The Raven King , who's currently helping LUSTFER with script assistance. My role in the project is to clean up the English used in the game as well as offering dialogue ideas and input. Your comments and suggestions are well-taken. I did want to take a moment to explain some of the issues you highlighted before, perhaps providing some context as to why they might have happened -- and what you can expect moving forward from Secrets of the Valley.

Like most people on this thread, I took a chance on downloading the game on the strength of its subject tags and high-quality renders. After playing through it, I then read the comments on this thread. Many of them echoed what was glaringly obvious to me during my playthrough: The English was going to be a major impediment to the success of the game. That said, I saw a lot of potential in the project and reached out to Lustfer to offer my assistance. What I've learned is that he is an amazing partner: Warm, kind, and very receptive to new ideas and concepts.

When I first started offering support for the game, I realized that I could go in one of two directions: 1) I could simply clean up the English in the game and leave it at that, or 2) I could not only clean up the language translation issues, but also make improvements to the overall dialogue. I started with the first of the two directions in mind, but I swiftly realized that if I truly wanted to help Lustfer, I would choose the second. As I said, he's proven to me that he's a good guy...so that's exactly what I did. This change of direction left some of the first dialogue I translated a little stilted. The example you point out is one of these cases. Another instance is the inner monologue being used by the MC, which I agree could be turned down a bit.

In any case, Lustfer and I have already had some very fruitful discussion regarding what's to come. Having a bit of a "peek behind the curtain", I can tell you that you can look forward to some exciting stuff in future releases of Secrets of the Valley! Thanks so much for taking a chance on the game -- and please, keep your comments and (constructive) criticism coming! I assure you that your voices are being heard and given respectful consideration.


TRK

good info.
One of my criticisms, before even downloading, was the English on the OP. It kind of red-flagged the game for me even though it sounded interesting. Decided to wait for update to DL. When I did I thought "this English is WAY better than the description and OP, what happened?"

I agree with your decision to do more than just minimally edit the text. I have done some fan-made "English Upgrades" for some games just for my own amusement and I'm always torn between just fixing the worst problems and making the content say what (I believe) the Dev is trying to say in a more fluid style. I've never done it at the level you are, and applaud you for doing so. I have worked with many, many non-native English speakers in my life so can usually figure out what is being said on a poor English game, but eventually my head starts hurting trying to parse all the thoughts.

Your translation/editing/upgrade have already made a positive impact for my enjoyment of the game.

 

[LUSTFER]

really need a wt or hint/quest system... unplayeble...

Here are some hints and walkthrough. As you know, the game is at an early stage, it is short, yes, consider this to be only a first episode.

Soon more content will be added.

 

[LUSTFER]

So there is no new content after the Norma scene from 0.1 other than a text cleanup?

Hello!
We have some new images within the meeting with Norma. The text has been completely rewritten, it's worth checking out. Now the story is better pictured.

 

[Skeltom]

Another couple of suggestions for the UI. Whoever is doing the coding for it may want to tweak it some to either be on the top of the screen or put a semi transparent box behind the HUD. A lot of the scenes in this game are white or brightly lit so the stats tend to blend into the background and can be hard to see. Another thing is the world map, I was stuck in the house for a little while because I didn't know you had to click on your phone to find the map. I don't recall ever being told that and it seem kind of counter intuitive to have to do it. Maybe adding the map icon to the top right or something? Right now the phone is just a container for the fast travel which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I don't know what your plans are for the phone but it can't hurt to have the option in more than one place.

 

[LUSTFER]

Another couple of suggestions for the UI. Whoever is doing the coding for it may want to tweak it some to either be on the top of the screen or put a semi transparent box behind the HUD. A lot of the scenes in this game are white or brightly lit so the stats tend to blend into the background and can be hard to see. Another thing is the world map, I was stuck in the house for a little while because I didn't know you had to click on your phone to find the map. I don't recall ever being told that and it seem kind of counter intuitive to have to do it. Maybe adding the map icon to the top right or something? Right now the phone is just a container for the fast travel which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I don't know what your plans are for the phone but it can't hurt to have the option in more than one place.

Thank you! I am taking note of the suggestions to think about and deploy.

 

[LUSTFER]

Silly question.

Will we have the possibility of relationships with girls being purely romantic rather than corruption-based?

I ask for two reasons. The first is that in the planned fetishes you mention corruption and not romance.

But you also mention that the decisions we make will affect the relationships with the girls. So I get the impression that, roughly speaking, we can either be "the bad guy" and corrupt them or be "the good guy" and form genuine or romantic relationships.

Sorry for the question. I'm not trying to impose anything on you, I'd just like to know if it will be possible. Thanks in advance.

Hey, sorry I've been busy and missed your question.

This is something that is left open, we will have several characters. But specifically about the girls in the house, I intend to have romantic relationships with some of them, yes.

 

[Before I Forget]

really need a wt or hint/quest system... unplayeble...

I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing.

 

[mentore]

Seems a very nice game... I'll take an eye on it...

 

[Tkoyama]

Thank you

 

[LUSTFER]

Hi folks,

Dropping by to inform you all that the development of the game is going on as mentioned in the 'Dev Updapte 01' post. It's been a lot of work and it will be worth the wait!

Right now I am finishing the image renders and animations of Alison's path. I am coding the game as the scenes get ready, this way the work is accelerated and soon I will send everything ready for The Raven King to do his job (translation, adjustments and QA).

A few quick adjustments should be made and that's it! You can expect a Episode 02 (v0.0.3) soon.



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