- Thread starter eggrik
- Start date
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
thanks for asking! i appreciate the anticipation and support.
i've been pretty busy with my day job getting slammed with end-of-the-year rush, but i managed to get a good amount of script work done for 0.2. i'm also currently upgrading my Honey Select 2 Repack to version 16, so i don't have any sneak peeks or anything render-wise to share yet.
i will be back into the motion of dev again and have proper sneak peeks starting this month once the repack is completely set up. as of right now, i'm spending a large bulk of time downloading a shit ton of mods for maps, clothes, etc. the worst part is, not many modders have a MEGA library for all their mods, so i have to download them one by one through patreon, which gets incredibly laggy.
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
Progress Report #02
⭐ Hello, everyone! Happy New Year! Finally, here is my second Progress Report after a busy Q4 2024. ⭐
As a reminder, my first few progress reports will be publicly available since I don't really have that much great traction to justify paywalling these quite yet. Speaking of traction, I want to apologize for the lack of any updates or solid progress since my 0.1.1 patch release. I've been pretty busy with my day job, personal gaming, other hobbies, and other life responsibilities after my fortunate release of STELLA in September. Again, I cannot thank everyone enough for the positive reception of my first update! It fills me with great happiness, gratitude, and confidence seeing everyone who enjoyed what I have made so far.
Anyway, the main setback for my lack of development is my day job being incredibly busy and actually making me WORK (crazy, I know). For context, I work from home, and my busyness has peaks and valleys due to being assigned different projects throughout the year. The projects I've been staffed on for the last quarter of 2024 have been an incredible pain and have not allowed much time to work on STELLA development like I was able to in the first half of 2024. For more context, most of STELLA 0.1's development was done during January through May, when my projects were mostly were pretty easy. During that time, I was able to knock out my day job responsibilities early and then work on STELLA, easily spending a few hours "on the clock" developing the game daily. Fortunately, my tough projects are getting near the end, so I should be able to have this privilege again.
I want to highlight that AVN development is only a hobby right now, but I would love to work on it fulltime in the future if given the chance. I find it quite fun, and I would love to continue telling the stories I want to tell (in future games after STELLA too). Seeing the positive reception of STELLA 0.1 has filled me with the confidence and satisfaction to say that now. But for now, development is only a hobby, and I need to find a way to balance it to not keep everyone waiting too long for the next releases!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
On the topic of balancing time and hobbies, I've been pretty caught up in my personal gaming again too. I'm sure you could tell from my 0.1 script, but I play a lot of games, and that's always been my main hobby. When I was developing STELLA, I actually paused most of my personal gaming since I really wanted to hustle and get my 0.1 update out. After releasing, I was able to finally go back to enjoying my favorite games again. This was especially needed in the latter half of 2024 since I would work long days and just wanted to unwind with games instead of using my "creative" brain and working on STELLA. For people who care, these games are mainly Teamfight Tactics, League ARAM, Final Fantasy XIV, Minecraft, and whatever else my friends are in the mood for that month (also my gacha games lmao). However, I've had my fill of the latest TFT set by hitting Masters again, so I think I'm ready to lock in and start developing again.
But please don't worry! The past few months have not been entirely wasted. I have made meaningful progress in many other aspects of the development cycle:
For the script of 0.2, I have drafted a pretty solid update, and I need to flesh it out more to make it more enjoyable. I have a huge list of things like events or situations noted down that I want to include, so I need to brainstorm a way to fit them into the update while being consistent with the timeline, continuity, and especially MC's relationships with the girls.
For the music of 0.2, I been spending many days finding new music that I could use in STELLA now or later on. I have a lot of amazing songs fit for romantic, sad, and even lewd scenes that I can't wait to use. I'm sure some of you noticed in the 0.1 update, but I don't care about the copyright issues, so I'm working with any song I like. It might bite me in the ass eventually, but I'd rather deal with it when that happens than avoid it forever. After all, my AVN about IDOLS would be pitiful if I was stuck with the same copyright-free music you hear everywhere. (Also, using any music I want allows me to do some dumb, corny stuff like making the names of the song match the current situation/vibe lol.)
For the rendering/visuals of 0.2, I have successfully upgraded my Honey Select 2 Repack, which is the eroge simulator program that I use to make the girls and scenes of my game. However, I'm sure many of you playing my small-time HS2 AVN are familiar with this aspect already. I don't want to yap about this too much since most people won't care, but it was a pretty tedious process that I have survived. Only a few of my paid sponsors have seen it, but I managed to make a beautiful render of Rin for December 2024's monthly wallpaper using this new repack and visual preset. Fortunately, the visual upgrade between 0.1 and 0.2 will not be drastic. It looks pretty similar, but there are a lot of small improvements that definitely help. Moreover, I will be rendering in 4K resolution from now on and downscaling it to 1080p for the release, so it should be a lot more crisp and help with not destroying my Depth-of-Field on my renders!
For the wardrobe and scenery of 0.2, I am actually pretty happy with how people have reacted to the girls, their outfits, their aesthetics, and the maps I've used in the 0.1 update. This has pushed me to invest even more into 0.2 by commissioning CUSTOM outfits and maps from our beloved HS2 modders. This should help me avoid ones that I'm sure some of you have seen before in other HS2 AVNs. Spoiler: the first scene of 0.2 will take place in a custom map made just for STELLA with a cute girl in her very own custom outfit! However, keep in mind that the map and outfit probably won't be JUST for STELLA forever, which would be greedy. I'm sure you'll see them in other games eventually since HS2 is a community where we happily share our commissions and mods. After all, nobody would be able to reasonably make any HS2 AVNs if people didn't share their commissioned maps, outfits, and other mods with the community and repackers.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lastly, I want to thank everyone once more for playing my game and supporting me this early. I still cannot believe the amazingly positive reception I have received from my very first AVN release. It was incredibly nerve-wracking at first, but I have been instilled with much confidence that will ultimately push me to continue developing! I know most people do not like to play a game's initial release since there isn't that much content, but I am happy to hear from those of you who were willing to be invested so early. I will try my best to make your support worthy of the long journey we have ahead of us with the STELLA girls.
Much love,
eggrik
⭐ Hello, everyone! Happy New Year! Finally, here is my second Progress Report after a busy Q4 2024. ⭐
As a reminder, my first few progress reports will be publicly available since I don't really have that much great traction to justify paywalling these quite yet. Speaking of traction, I want to apologize for the lack of any updates or solid progress since my 0.1.1 patch release. I've been pretty busy with my day job, personal gaming, other hobbies, and other life responsibilities after my fortunate release of STELLA in September. Again, I cannot thank everyone enough for the positive reception of my first update! It fills me with great happiness, gratitude, and confidence seeing everyone who enjoyed what I have made so far.
Anyway, the main setback for my lack of development is my day job being incredibly busy and actually making me WORK (crazy, I know). For context, I work from home, and my busyness has peaks and valleys due to being assigned different projects throughout the year. The projects I've been staffed on for the last quarter of 2024 have been an incredible pain and have not allowed much time to work on STELLA development like I was able to in the first half of 2024. For more context, most of STELLA 0.1's development was done during January through May, when my projects were mostly were pretty easy. During that time, I was able to knock out my day job responsibilities early and then work on STELLA, easily spending a few hours "on the clock" developing the game daily. Fortunately, my tough projects are getting near the end, so I should be able to have this privilege again.
I want to highlight that AVN development is only a hobby right now, but I would love to work on it fulltime in the future if given the chance. I find it quite fun, and I would love to continue telling the stories I want to tell (in future games after STELLA too). Seeing the positive reception of STELLA 0.1 has filled me with the confidence and satisfaction to say that now. But for now, development is only a hobby, and I need to find a way to balance it to not keep everyone waiting too long for the next releases!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
On the topic of balancing time and hobbies, I've been pretty caught up in my personal gaming again too. I'm sure you could tell from my 0.1 script, but I play a lot of games, and that's always been my main hobby. When I was developing STELLA, I actually paused most of my personal gaming since I really wanted to hustle and get my 0.1 update out. After releasing, I was able to finally go back to enjoying my favorite games again. This was especially needed in the latter half of 2024 since I would work long days and just wanted to unwind with games instead of using my "creative" brain and working on STELLA. For people who care, these games are mainly Teamfight Tactics, League ARAM, Final Fantasy XIV, Minecraft, and whatever else my friends are in the mood for that month (also my gacha games lmao). However, I've had my fill of the latest TFT set by hitting Masters again, so I think I'm ready to lock in and start developing again.
But please don't worry! The past few months have not been entirely wasted. I have made meaningful progress in many other aspects of the development cycle:
For the script of 0.2, I have drafted a pretty solid update, and I need to flesh it out more to make it more enjoyable. I have a huge list of things like events or situations noted down that I want to include, so I need to brainstorm a way to fit them into the update while being consistent with the timeline, continuity, and especially MC's relationships with the girls.
For the music of 0.2, I been spending many days finding new music that I could use in STELLA now or later on. I have a lot of amazing songs fit for romantic, sad, and even lewd scenes that I can't wait to use. I'm sure some of you noticed in the 0.1 update, but I don't care about the copyright issues, so I'm working with any song I like. It might bite me in the ass eventually, but I'd rather deal with it when that happens than avoid it forever. After all, my AVN about IDOLS would be pitiful if I was stuck with the same copyright-free music you hear everywhere. (Also, using any music I want allows me to do some dumb, corny stuff like making the names of the song match the current situation/vibe lol.)
For the rendering/visuals of 0.2, I have successfully upgraded my Honey Select 2 Repack, which is the eroge simulator program that I use to make the girls and scenes of my game. However, I'm sure many of you playing my small-time HS2 AVN are familiar with this aspect already. I don't want to yap about this too much since most people won't care, but it was a pretty tedious process that I have survived. Only a few of my paid sponsors have seen it, but I managed to make a beautiful render of Rin for December 2024's monthly wallpaper using this new repack and visual preset. Fortunately, the visual upgrade between 0.1 and 0.2 will not be drastic. It looks pretty similar, but there are a lot of small improvements that definitely help. Moreover, I will be rendering in 4K resolution from now on and downscaling it to 1080p for the release, so it should be a lot more crisp and help with not destroying my Depth-of-Field on my renders!
For the wardrobe and scenery of 0.2, I am actually pretty happy with how people have reacted to the girls, their outfits, their aesthetics, and the maps I've used in the 0.1 update. This has pushed me to invest even more into 0.2 by commissioning CUSTOM outfits and maps from our beloved HS2 modders. This should help me avoid ones that I'm sure some of you have seen before in other HS2 AVNs. Spoiler: the first scene of 0.2 will take place in a custom map made just for STELLA with a cute girl in her very own custom outfit! However, keep in mind that the map and outfit probably won't be JUST for STELLA forever, which would be greedy. I'm sure you'll see them in other games eventually since HS2 is a community where we happily share our commissions and mods. After all, nobody would be able to reasonably make any HS2 AVNs if people didn't share their commissioned maps, outfits, and other mods with the community and repackers.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lastly, I want to thank everyone once more for playing my game and supporting me this early. I still cannot believe the amazingly positive reception I have received from my very first AVN release. It was incredibly nerve-wracking at first, but I have been instilled with much confidence that will ultimately push me to continue developing! I know most people do not like to play a game's initial release since there isn't that much content, but I am happy to hear from those of you who were willing to be invested so early. I will try my best to make your support worthy of the long journey we have ahead of us with the STELLA girls.
Much love,
eggrik
wow thanks for the update we patiently wait for your game
garmander
Newbie
- Aug 15, 2020
- 79
- 263
This game looks superb.
The glowing reviews and overall setup for this game make me really wanna play it, but 0.1 is just too early.
I don't wanna fall in love with something and then it might get abandoned. I'm mostly making this post so that I can look back on this randomly in a few months and hopefully 1 or 2 more updates will have been done and I can enjoy them all in bulk.
The glowing reviews and overall setup for this game make me really wanna play it, but 0.1 is just too early.
I don't wanna fall in love with something and then it might get abandoned. I'm mostly making this post so that I can look back on this randomly in a few months and hopefully 1 or 2 more updates will have been done and I can enjoy them all in bulk.
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
Hello! I'll post Progress Report #3 sometime in March. But for now, I am making steady progress on my Script for 0.2. Unfortunately it's a bit slower than I'd like thanks to getting swamped with some day job responsibilities. I have been getting roped into more responsibilities than I usually have since I'm trying my best to get promoted soon. I will probably take a break from writing the Script and actually start making some renders in HS2 for some sneak peeks/concrete progress that I can share in March/April
Enigemm
Member
- May 30, 2024
- 146
- 119
A very well balanced start. The story is gripping and offers a lot of scope for exploration and development; will he pursue med school or stick to the entertainment industry. Of course, I can see this is a slow burn AVN and some may dislike such as they're looking for Quick Fap material. However, I'm pleased as to the writer's output seeing it's his first work. His English and spelling has been spot on, something lacking from a lot of first timers. To this, I say a huge kudos to the developer for a job well done. The LI's all have their diverse persona coming from a multitude of ethnicities: German, Vietnamese, Dutch...and the list goes on. It really opens up a panorama of personality quirks that, if explored adequately, would yield a very compelling story. I'll check back later to see how well this story develops. Congratulations once again for a job well done thus far.
fearjam
Member
- May 5, 2019
- 105
- 110
Eternamite
Member
- Nov 8, 2024
- 137
- 1,013
I just checked out this game, and I have to say it has made a great start. Even with just 850 renders, it feels lengthy and likely has the potential to engage players. I’m curious about version 0.2. Although English isn't the developer's primary language? that’s okay; we can manage. The real concern is that Eggrik hasn't posted any updates on Patreon since February 1st, and he has also been offline on F95zone since the last week of March. I hope he’s doing well, as I really want this game to continue. Having more content would likely benefit both his Patreon and his popularity significantly
EDIT : I had a chat with the dev and the game is not ABANDONED he's just having a hard time dealing with his day job and hopefully we'll get a devlog in early May ( this weekend ) version 0.2 on the horizon...
EDIT : I had a chat with the dev and the game is not ABANDONED he's just having a hard time dealing with his day job and hopefully we'll get a devlog in early May ( this weekend ) version 0.2 on the horizon...
STELLA'S MANAGER ON DUTY
Last edited:
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
Progress Report #03
⭐ Hello, everyone! I hope you are all having a great 2025 so far.⭐
First of all, I want to apologize for the lack of communication from me outside of my Discord server. I have been genuinely swamped throughout this year so far to the point that I barely have time for my other hobbies, like gaming or cooking (I have unfortunately been eating so much delivery food... my poor bank account...) I also used to have more time to yap in other AVN servers, but I haven't really had time for that lately either. My life has been diverging from the AVN community and development, which is pretty sad, but I hope to get back into the swing of things soon! That is to say, I do not intend to abandon my project. I am just simply too busy suffering with adulthood right now.
Please keep in mind that STELLA development is a hobby for me at the moment, so it's really hard to find time to work on it, especially after clocking in 8+ hour days of my real job with how busy my projects have been lately. Followed by going to the gym daily, coming home, cooking dinner, doing chores, etc. Adulting is hard, and nobody told me that the real struggle of being an adult was figuring out what the hell I was going to eat for dinner. Every. Single. Day. I am only 26 years old, so... only 60-80 more years of dinners left to worry about LOL. But besides the monotonous and stable schedule, I am happy with where I am. My life feels comfortable and safe with my job, significant other, and two adorable cats. It's just unfortunate that I don't have as much time to work on STELLA nowadays since I am actually working during my working hours instead of having free-time to develop like I did in 2024.
And if I don't have the freedom to work on development during working hours, then the other opportunity is after work. But after long work days, I just want to unwind with some gaming and whatnot rather than trying to use my creative brain and develop. I feel like it's a disservice to scrounge up motivation or creativity to work on it, which will definitely hinder the quality of my work. It doesn't help that I usually finish all of my daily routines at 8pm, so I only have a few hours before it's bed time to restart the daily cycle.
But it's not all bad news. I went dark the last few months because I had like five terribly busy projects back-to-back. I am still wrapping up three more this month, but it should be smooth sailing afterwards. Thanks to a recent promotion, I am going to be responsible for only one, big project rather than all these smaller projects. So, the scheduling/workload should HOPEFULLY not be as bad, meaning I can have more time to actually work on development again.
Again, I apologize for being completely inactive outside of my Discord server. I've been holding off on posting anything official like this since I hate posting something that ultimately boils down to "lol nothing got done. no update any time soon. been dying irl bc busy, sorry!" But that's a stupid thought, and I should definitely let you guys know I'm alive and well. I want to say thank you to everyone who has left heartwarming comments with me, even 8 months after my release of my 0.1 debut. I am glad to see the beloved project I poured a lot of time and love into being paid back generously with everyone's support! We are already almost at 500 members on Discord with a pleasantly surprising amount of downloads/followers on itch.io. It makes me incredibly happy knowing so many of you enjoyed it this much to support me and my work. Thank you for being patient, and I hope to finally get the time to work on an amazing 0.2 update you all deserve to enjoy as soon as possible!
Much love,
eggrik
⭐ Hello, everyone! I hope you are all having a great 2025 so far.⭐
First of all, I want to apologize for the lack of communication from me outside of my Discord server. I have been genuinely swamped throughout this year so far to the point that I barely have time for my other hobbies, like gaming or cooking (I have unfortunately been eating so much delivery food... my poor bank account...) I also used to have more time to yap in other AVN servers, but I haven't really had time for that lately either. My life has been diverging from the AVN community and development, which is pretty sad, but I hope to get back into the swing of things soon! That is to say, I do not intend to abandon my project. I am just simply too busy suffering with adulthood right now.
Please keep in mind that STELLA development is a hobby for me at the moment, so it's really hard to find time to work on it, especially after clocking in 8+ hour days of my real job with how busy my projects have been lately. Followed by going to the gym daily, coming home, cooking dinner, doing chores, etc. Adulting is hard, and nobody told me that the real struggle of being an adult was figuring out what the hell I was going to eat for dinner. Every. Single. Day. I am only 26 years old, so... only 60-80 more years of dinners left to worry about LOL. But besides the monotonous and stable schedule, I am happy with where I am. My life feels comfortable and safe with my job, significant other, and two adorable cats. It's just unfortunate that I don't have as much time to work on STELLA nowadays since I am actually working during my working hours instead of having free-time to develop like I did in 2024.
And if I don't have the freedom to work on development during working hours, then the other opportunity is after work. But after long work days, I just want to unwind with some gaming and whatnot rather than trying to use my creative brain and develop. I feel like it's a disservice to scrounge up motivation or creativity to work on it, which will definitely hinder the quality of my work. It doesn't help that I usually finish all of my daily routines at 8pm, so I only have a few hours before it's bed time to restart the daily cycle.
But it's not all bad news. I went dark the last few months because I had like five terribly busy projects back-to-back. I am still wrapping up three more this month, but it should be smooth sailing afterwards. Thanks to a recent promotion, I am going to be responsible for only one, big project rather than all these smaller projects. So, the scheduling/workload should HOPEFULLY not be as bad, meaning I can have more time to actually work on development again.
Again, I apologize for being completely inactive outside of my Discord server. I've been holding off on posting anything official like this since I hate posting something that ultimately boils down to "lol nothing got done. no update any time soon. been dying irl bc busy, sorry!" But that's a stupid thought, and I should definitely let you guys know I'm alive and well. I want to say thank you to everyone who has left heartwarming comments with me, even 8 months after my release of my 0.1 debut. I am glad to see the beloved project I poured a lot of time and love into being paid back generously with everyone's support! We are already almost at 500 members on Discord with a pleasantly surprising amount of downloads/followers on itch.io. It makes me incredibly happy knowing so many of you enjoyed it this much to support me and my work. Thank you for being patient, and I hope to finally get the time to work on an amazing 0.2 update you all deserve to enjoy as soon as possible!
Much love,
eggrik
Thanks for update sir eggrik were still waiting for you masterpiecew
I have to say; massive props to you Eggrik! I normally stay away from this style of game but you've crafted a great story with great characters! The models all look polished and unique!
Really looking forward to seeing where you take this project, hopefully you get a lot of financial backing!
Really looking forward to seeing where you take this project, hopefully you get a lot of financial backing!
fearjam
Member
- May 5, 2019
- 105
- 110
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
i'm not dead or abandoning the game. just been super busy with work and life lol. solo developing as a side hobby is proving to be a difficult journey
- Sep 6, 2024
- 29
- 241
thanks for checking in! i am currently working on the script for v0.2. i'm struggling a bit since i think it's the hardest part of any AVN story, as it's right after the exposition/introduction and before all the juicy parts.
i find it pretty difficult to write events/character interactions with dynamics that are just barely blooming. having to build a foundation of what i am envisioning for the "end game" has been blocking my writer's flow, but it'll come back to me eventually!