16/10/2025 Yap session
Welcome back, people! Sorry about the delay between the last dev log and this one. Got an interesting topic I want to talk about today, and of course, the current development progress. Let's get straight into it.
Development Progress
Been a busy few weeks, but I've managed to duke it out. The script is done with an estimation of roughly 10k words. Is this this the final version of the script? No, of course not. But does this mean I can start rendering? Hell yeah.
Like I said in on of my previous dev logs, it's quite difficult for me to follow through with the first version of the script. There will be unavoidable changes to the script if I happen to find ways to improve the overall fluidity or other important factors. At least now, I can get started on the most time consuming part of the development.
Also, I noticed that the development status in the Discord is not being used. Maybe I should begin posting weekly development status there to show render counts and all that.
Screen time
A story with a huge cast of characters come with one big problem – screen time. How to appropriately allocate screen time for each character? How to use these screen time efficiently? How to determine on/off screen actions? These are but a few questions that come to mind when writing the script for each chapter. Let's talk about some of the many benefits from the appropriate use of screen time.
The allocation of screen time is an essential tool in establishing hierarchy among the characters. One simple concept of a story is that, the character with the most screen time is almost always the protagonist. However, that doesn't mean the protagonist should occupy as much as screen time as possible. In my opinion, a story should revolve around the protagonist, but not focusing entirely on them. If I tell the entire story from the protagonist's perspective, there would be a lot of missed opportunity to explain relationships, build characters, relay backstories, progress the story line, and such. This means, the player has to learn everything about a side character through their interactions with the main character. The problem here is that, the player will only be able to see the relationship between characters from one side. The players will always have to trust the main character for their feelings and opinions about the other character. If the main character express that the antagonist is a vile person with no remorse or guilt based on the events that have taken place in the story, we'll have to trust him for it, because that's what we and the main character can only see throughout the story. But is that true at all? Is there a different side of the story that explains this antagonist's motive or reasons behind each of their actions? Another problem that arise from the use of this type of story-telling, is that the story may feel linear and limited. If the story is always told in the perspective of the main character, creating expectation and tension for the players becomes way more difficult. For example, by cutting away from the perspective of the main character, I can show the player how the antagonist is currently plotting against the main character. If the players have this information while the main character doesn't, it creates a certain tension or anticipation for when the main character will discover the truth.
Now, we can almost associate screen time with the importance of a character. If a character receives little to no screen time at all, he may not be important to the story at all. This is because the easiest way to set up a character is to give them screen time. In a writer's perspective, if you don't want to give a character screen time, then maybe you don't think they're important enough to allocate them much appearance or mentioning in the story. This is especially important when setting the pacing for the story. The flow between characters can either increase or decrease the pace. If the pace is too slow, the players may develop fatigue to the story; if the pace is too fast, you can't sufficiently build characters and the world around them, and potentially confuse the players. For example, you want to drive the story quickly and introduce the characters in quick succession. There is simply not enough time to fully capture why a character is the way they are. A side character shows up, tells their story, explain motive, then immediately spring to action, is not a sufficient way to develop a character. The audience has no time to form a connection with the character and therefore, will not understand their nuances. Do I create a character because of the plot or do I build the plot because of the character?
Though... you don't exactly have to give a character an appearance to explain their story. This is the difference between "On-Screen Actions" and "Off-Screen Actions". Allow me to set an example. I want to introduce an antagonist, but I don't want them to appear right away. I basically have to create the idea of the antagonist. I would show the the antagonist's action and its effect without revealing the antagonist themselves. I would allow the side characters to build the antagonist through dialogues, further developing the idea that the antagonist is not to be messed around with. Essentially, I'm transforming the character into an idea, a thought. We, as humans, are naturally curious about the unknown. This approach, in turns, allows the players to construct their own image of the threat, letting their imagination run wild. I then dedicate the early acts of the story to building this intangible idea through various off-screen actions, which contributes to the final reveal of the antagonist. Off-screen actions are not a narrative shortcut if you know how to allocate each of them appropriately. It is a an important factor to a character's characterisation. While the on-screen actions can show us what a character does, the off-screen actions can tell us who they are.
Ok, that's 1,000 words, I need to stop. I want to yap more because there is just so much about this topic I want to discuss, yet I don't want to waste any more time. Maybe I'll come back to this topic in the future?
Acknowledgement
Love for my supporters, love for my Patrons! Also, I found 2 translators who will be responsible for the Russian and Portuguese version of the game. Thank you for your offer to translate my game for free because I'm a broke bitch (If you can translate, hit me up
). Anyway, thanks for stopping by, I'll see you in the next yap session. Catch!
