- May 4, 2017
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Since reinstatement I've been mulling over lots of different plans for how to proceed with the game from here. At first I thought an external server which linked to Patreon (but not vice versa) could be a solution. I even set one up that uses the Patreon API (it's pretty neat actually and I might end up migrating to it eventually). But, after carefully rereading the community guidelines and the correspondence from the agent who handled my case, I am now convinced that this would not be acceptable.
I realize many developers are getting by ignoring the community guidelines to some degree but, for whatever reason, I don't appear to have that luxury. Patreon is my livelihood and I can't take the risk of serious disciplinary action. Therefore, starting with 1.7, Teacher's Pets will diligently adhere to the community guidelines.
What does that entail? Surprisingly, not as much as you would think. Once I sat down and actually looked at the changes I would need to make I felt relief. I actually think they are, on balance, for the good of the game.
First, MC is out. Let's face it, my heart was never in it to begin with and it was implemented in a half-assed fashion anyway. Most people's favorite scenes, the Meg college trip and "movie night" either required no MC or needn't have. All the events that MC unlocked will now be unlocked by romance or a combination of romance and corruption. Only now the dialogue will be more interesting.
S-D(I'm not sure on the rules there yet, but you can probably guess what the S stands for) will have an early romance trigger possibility so all of her scenes can play out in the manner that you're used to. Oh, and in case you're wondering: I like the drug dealer's dialogue too much to remove it—I'll just make some minor additions to account for this new change.
I actually think this is a very good change for the game, and have often said that if I had it to do over again I never would have done MC in the first place. In fact, the only reason I did is because I already had the drug dealer character from an earlier, short-lived attempt at a game, and I liked writing for him so much that I stuck him in TP.
Blackmail is still in but can no longer be used for you-know-what. This is replaced by romantic possibilities with Kaitlyn instead. All of her scenes will remain in, the classroom scene will be governed by her rom/corruption and feature a new render if those scores are high enough. I'll consider this change neutral, some will like it and other will dislike it. Personally, I look forward to writing romantic progression for her.
Those are the two big ones. There will be a handful of other smaller changes that will barely register: for example, instead of a high school our characters are now attending a post-graduate academy (edit: to clear up a common misconception I've been hearing, this is not a college. This is for a school for high school graduates, so 18, 19 year olds). Kaityln will receive a new outfit voted on by you guys, but will still wear her cheerleading outfit when appropriate. I'll probably remove the "better view" option from the bedroom (though don't worry, you'll be seeing a lot more of S-D in 1.7).
For those of you who dislike these changes, I'm very sorry, but I feel like my hands are tied here. You still have several days to delete or change your pledge, and I understand completely if that is your choice. Also of note is the fact that animation previews will probably no longer be a thing given the current climate, nor will lewd previews. To compensate, I will be interacting with you guys in other ways, including many more polls, which I have been neglecting for some time.
I realize making this announcement now may cost me a large portion of my income, but I feel like it's something I have to do. I heard someone in Discord, someone in a similar situation to mine, say that it's hard to work with the sword of Damocles hanging over your head—that's very true. I feel like the sword has been lifted. For those of you who choose to stick around you have my sincerest gratitude, and I will work tirelessly to blow your minds with v1.7.
