He did say he doesn't really like how Manston turned out to be, even after the rework/revamp (part of the reasons on why he developed DLC). Not sure if he's willing to put extra hours to remake a game he already doesn't enjoy.
The revamp happened after he already was a bit into development of DLC. One of the big things he realized was he set this VN up for way too many branches and variations. It became unmanageable, and the rework was an attempt to trim that down a bit. Maybe any dissatisfaction might have come from some of that adjustment (having cut too much or not having cut enough). It's hard to say, unless he's said exactly what he's unhappy about with this VN. He has specifically said over and over that he's going to return to this after finishing the other, so saying it's "a game he already doesn't enjoy" might be overstating things a bit. Not sure about a remake of the remake or whatever, but he has maintained his commitment to returning to this.
Ironic, since I abandoned playing his other game because the story and character development just became mediocre and nonsensical in my opinion, and I always preferred the story in this one since the start.
I played the early versions of DLC and i thought it really sucked even back then, while i liked tM:SoM. You are telling me it gets even worst?
lol. How's that rock you been under? Been abandoned for years as the dev concentrated on DLC.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but unlike other devs WhitePhantom has been very straightforward with where things stand. Multiple times on this thread he's said he will return to this after DLC is completed. The shift to the other game was voted on by his patrons and so became the course he's followed. He's also semi-active on F95Zone, so it's not like he's disappeared without saying anything.
The only question is, when will WhitePhantom actually finish DLC? I have it on Steam, it was launched in early access in December 2022. Then dev said 14 days are already completed and in game of the 16 planned and the game will be done in 6 months. That statement is still there on the Steam page. Soon we reach the three years' mark of the Steam launch. What happened? It's not just a little delay.
He had a major injury to both of his hands and also moved office. There was a singificant delay. The dev has been quite open about the delays. Currently back on track again. How long it will be...who knows.
I know about said issues but still, 3 years instead of 6 months? I've moved quite a lot in my life, twice in just the last two years, it takes a few days or a couple of weeks at most. The delay is insane and people questioning dev's word is understandable.
Not sure what else to say, maybe read your own sig *shrugs*.
I'm just saying it's not surprising people don't believe dev's word. Dev is not very reliable and that's a fact too, it doesn't matter how much sympathy some people have for them.
Actually, v0.17.0.1 was released on July 26, so you're a little behind where things are currently. (Not sure about on Steam; that's on Patreon.) Obviously the dev wouldn't have released a new major version if he hadn't been working on it. As for 3 years vs. 6 months, you're exaggerating a little — December 2022 to July 2025 is only a little over 2½ years. Obviously some of that time would've been actual work forward. IIRC, the previous typical release cycle was something like every 4 months; if that's right, having hands still recovering might push that out to maybe 6 to 8 months, as a guess. So, I'd say at most he had 2 years without any work done, and that's only if his hands immediately recovered and he was able to get v0.17.0.1 out in the typical 4-month timeframe (and also only if I'm remembering times between releases correctly).I'm just saying it's not surprising people don't believe dev's word. Dev is not very reliable and that's a fact too, it doesn't matter how much sympathy some people have for them.
True. And after all this time now, the models from the original game are really outdated anyway — 7 years old and counting. I wonder what will happen with them. I really liked them at the time, so I probably would prefer if he could find updated skins, etc., and/or work a ton on customizing modern models to get them to look as close as possible to the originals.
I absolutely did not say that dev isn't working on that game, I know about the last update, it's on Steam too. I've said that dev's word isn't reliable and that's still true. 3 years are not 6 months. And it's still not sure it'll be "only" 3 years. Did dev talk about the ending recently?
You did not. However, your statement did come across as if the dev hadn't been working on it in forever:
Agree to disagree. I think it depends on what you mean by "unreliable". To me, that's a habitual pattern someone has of failing to keep their word or desired timetable. A single occurrence, however lengthy, does not equate to a pattern. And given the recent release, that is some degree of demonstration that things might be back on track.
No; he's identified older code that he feels needs to be corrected (like entirely replacing the old computer with something far less buggy) that he's going to release in v0.17.1 of DLC. It's unfortunately something I personally am not looking forward to, because it might mean yet another complete restart. I hope not, but the amount of code he seemed to imply would get changed could break all old saves. I guess we'll see. Anyway, once that's finished, hopefully he'll work on v0.18. Since he's focused on the old-code-update release, though, he hasn't really gotten into plans beyond that.
I am confident he will return to this like he's been adamant about in the past. I can't share your understanding of folks who doubt it. Again, White Phantom is not any other developer and so should be taken on his own merits. There are only two instances where he's not kept up with regular releases and done what he previously said. The second was with Defending Lydia Collier and this recent delay because of his hand issues and moving office locations.
