HTML The Zeta Sector [v1.2.01] [Primal356]

3.30 star(s) 3 Votes

Do you think the game needs a style update?


  • Total voters
    184

Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
I would financially support it.
The genre is really small and it's rare to get something good that is likely to be finished.

But I'd say: Don't expect huge financial success quickly.
I think for a side project like this, you have to be fine with it being satisfying to do and to see the money you might get more as a compliment to your art than as a serious income.

Don't build up negativity in yourself through huge expectations.
Do it in a way that is fun to do for you.
Let your perfectionism out in some stories.
Get some feedback when you are satisfied and need a new direction. Not when you are half-done and demotivated.
And take a break if necessary.

View attachment 4228367
Thanks! Art and games where you can move around is something I would very much like to explore. It might take a couple years until I actually get to it, so my art would be sufficient, but I think there will be some great stuff that I could do with them. Until then I will just keep making these type of games and see where the road leads.
 
Mar 29, 2023
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It's gonna be cool when you have some completed stories under your belt.
One more reason to keep then concise.

It gets hard to add new tech things to an old project, so it's really good to keep them small and focused and finish them one by one. That's the fastest way to learn. And finishing a project is both rewarding and good for your reputation.
 
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Primal356

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Jul 20, 2021
252
274
It's gonna be cool when you have some completed stories under your belt.
One more reason to keep then concise.

It gets hard to add new tech things to an old project, so it's really good to keep them small and focused and finish them one by one. That's the fastest way to learn. And finishing a project is both rewarding and good for your reputation.
That's a good idea! I posted it on Patreon before but I aim to finish Nel's Misfortune in the next six months. For The Zeta Sector I plan to do one game per location. This one could be the one on Jafar (technically it already is), and it could be completed in a year or two.
 
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raijugi

New Member
Dec 12, 2021
13
19
Any advice on what to do when you constantly lose subscribers every time you make an update? It's like 1 update, 3 unsubscribe, 1 update, 2 unsubscribe, 1 update 1 subscribe, 3 unsubscribe. I'm asking because this way if I make an update I lose money, and if I don't make an update I lose money, and nobody tells me anything. However I've seen channels where the dev made updates and the channel grew and received more encouragement :LOL:
If I were you, I wouldn't make a big deal out of my project to begin with. I would start with a small kinky CYOA. But you try and try to grab everything and end up creating nothing new in terms of content.
 
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Primal356

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Jul 20, 2021
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If I were you, I wouldn't make a big deal out of my project to begin with. I would start with a small kinky CYOA. But you try and try to grab everything and end up creating nothing new in terms of content.
I respectfully disagree. The first version had 50 thousand words, the current version has 250 thousand. How is a five times increase nothing new?

EDIT: I pulled the oldest version I could find ( ) and compared it with the newest ( ), and these are the snips I made:

snip1.png

snip3.png

There is also a big difference between the number of images as the version has 99 images, while the version has 435. The 0.0.5b version also started with 0 NSFW images, while the 1.1.21 has NSFW coverage for almost every part of the project.

My response might sound harsh at the beginning, but I don't think that this is one of the projects where there is next to no new content is being developed. There was a great number of stuff that got reworked, I do admit that this part of your statement is true, but I think I should keep that up for the time being at least as the number of words and images might sound impressive, but there aren't a lot of people who think it's good. I mean... I can't even get opinions on it aside from crying on f95zone :D, so I do want to improve on what I have so one day people might actually start enjoying it.
 
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Mar 29, 2023
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You did create a lot.
Many people are interested in your work, that's why we have these discussions.

But I think he is bringing the same point across that I did.
- Finish something with a tight scope in a high quality
- Focus on perfect gameplay over content amount
- Then start a new project and adapt your technology with each new project

For example I found scripting etc. much easier once I switched from the Twine GUI to code-based Twee.
Maybe that's just my preference, but still.
 

Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
You did create a lot.
Many people are interested in your work, that's why we have these discussions.

But I think he is bringing the same point across that I did.
- Finish something with a tight scope in a high quality
- Focus on perfect gameplay over content amount
- Then start a new project and adapt your technology with each new project

For example I found scripting etc. much easier once I switched from the Twine GUI to code-based Twee.
Maybe that's just my preference, but still.
These are valid points, yes. I aim to finish Nel's Misfortune in the next six months, The Zeta Sector too will be finished in 1-2 years (at least the Jafar part which will be basically The Zeta Sector Chapter I: Insert Kickass Subtitle).

The endless remaking of existing content is also true. It's just difficult to judge where to stop because there are so many titles out there that are so much more polished and better thought out.
 

Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
You did create a lot.
Many people are interested in your work, that's why we have these discussions.
You keep bringing that up, but even today: I opened a poll about making more substantial updates. The poll got to 100%, so I announced that I would delay the next update so it could be a bigger one. And as a response: unsubscripton, unsubscripton, unsubscripton. And I'm doing exactly what my audience tells me to do. Instead of making endlessly new stuff I stick to old projects with actual deadlines to finish them and to actually make updates that are meaningful.

All I can think of is that I'm not a competent developer. If x person makes a sci-fi bdsm game, people will be genuinely interested and support him, if y person makes a sci-fi bdsm game, the same, all to way to z person. But if I do it nobody will because I'm simply not competent enough.
 
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Mar 29, 2023
111
82
Don't focus on success.
Focus on leading indicators of success.
Trust the process.

Like in work life, in Patreon, it's usually better to say nothing unless you have something to present.
So take your time and be silent until something cool is ready.

I think you need to focus less on business and more on art. Become creative and enthusiastic again.
Build something beautiful.

Analyze successful games and see what makes them enjoyable. Make something you yourself would play 5 times in a row.
See what you can replicate from others, but always prioritize your own strengths.

  • For example, compared to the maker of Lost in Laminate, you have better graphics skills, but they have more immersive storytelling. There's a reason the Torei world has a lot of fans who just do worldbuilding or write stories.
    • Maybe it makes sense to use it as a template.
    • What are the strong factors? What would be your personal take on the superb starting hotel scene in a Zeta Sector setting?
    • What would you do differently?
  • Mindware has a more polished interface, but almost no content (and your art is better).
    • Would it make sense to take some interface elements from them, like symbols for energy instead of numbers?
    • How do they align the buttons and player controls? Does that make it easier to play?
  • Silent Echo is a very focused game with good graphics and small map sections that are very complete and a combat & upgrade system that is enjoyable, but their updates are very slow (And the previous game from the same maker, Spacewatch academy, had a lot of beginner errors like lack of focus and too much branching).
    • They are a good example of how a dev can improve.
    • Can you see your games in a personal progression arc?
    • How does it feel to have very different companions that help you in combat?
    • How are the sex scenes integrated into the gameplay? How would that work in the Zeta Sector universe?
  • SpaceJourney X has very good graphics, good RPG elements and is fun to play, but it only does BDSM very lightly. It's also a bit grindy.
    • It could be good inspiration for your dominant game.
    • Could you adapt parts of their main game loop? Maybe the slave arcade?
    • How does it feel to unlock new clothes for your companion characters? Are they more emotionally interesting than pure slaves in a box?
    • How would you implement gradual slave training in an equally rewarding, but less grindy way?
  • Ero Dungeons has a huge amount of cursed bondage equipment, but it's only combat focused and has no RPG elements, so the fun equipment is never used in a sexual way. This theme could be explored much more.
    • Which of the equipment is cool?
    • What would the characters do when they are not fighting all the time?
    • Could there be analogous challenges in a scifi setting?
  • No Escape does bad endings very well, with fair warnings and elaborate scenarios. Here, the updates are also very slow and there is really only one game path where all branches are dead-end bad endings.
    • Could you keep some of your bad endings more concise and clearly marked?
    • Check out their update frequency.
  • Claire's Quest is really good at branching off paths and rejoining them, so there's different ways to experience the story. But it is grindy and not very focused, so the content is hard to find.
  • Abandoned a Tale of Forgotten Lives has great graphics, a likeable MC, cool bondage equipment, functional chastity belts, but an okay story. The theme of rummaging in an old space station is not a very emotional story setting.
    • Could you replicate the themes where your female companions spontaneously run around in bondage gear?
    • Could you adapt the story, so the stakes are higher and the player is more emotionally invested?
 
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Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
Don't focus on success.
Focus on leading indicators of success.
Trust the process.

Like in work life, in Patreon, it's usually better to say nothing unless you have something to present.
So take your time and be silent until something cool is ready.

I think you need to focus less on business and more on art. Become creative and enthusiastic again.
Build something beautiful.

Analyze successful games and see what makes them enjoyable. Make something you yourself would play 5 times in a row.
See what you can replicate from others, but always prioritize your own strengths.

  • For example, compared to the maker of Lost in Laminate, you have better graphics skills, but they have more immersive storytelling. There's a reason the Torei world has a lot of fans who just do worldbuilding or write stories.
    • Maybe it makes sense to use it as a template.
    • What are the strong factors? What would be your personal take on the superb starting hotel scene in a Zeta Sector setting?
    • What would you do differently?
  • Mindware has a more polished interface, but almost no content (and your art is better).
    • Would it make sense to take some interface elements from them, like symbols for energy instead of numbers?
    • How do they align the buttons and player controls? Does that make it easier to play?
  • Silent Echo is a very focused game with good graphics and small map sections that are very complete and a combat & upgrade system that is enjoyable, but their updates are very slow (And the previous game from the same maker, Spacewatch academy, had a lot of beginner errors like lack of focus and too much branching).
    • They are a good example of how a dev can improve.
    • Can you see your games in a personal progression arc?
    • How does it feel to have very different companions that help you in combat?
    • How are the sex scenes integrated into the gameplay? How would that work in the Zeta Sector universe?
  • SpaceJourney X has very good graphics, good RPG elements and is fun to play, but it only does BDSM very lightly. It's also a bit grindy.
    • It could be good inspiration for your dominant game.
    • Could you adapt parts of their main game loop? Maybe the slave arcade?
    • How does it feel to unlock new clothes for your companion characters? Are they more emotionally interesting than pure slaves in a box?
    • How would you implement gradual slave training in an equally rewarding, but less grindy way?
  • Ero Dungeons has a huge amount of cursed bondage equipment, but it's only combat focused and has no RPG elements, so the fun equipment is never used in a sexual way. This theme could be explored much more.
    • Which of the equipment is cool?
    • What would the characters do when they are not fighting all the time?
    • Could there be analogous challenges in a scifi setting?
  • No Escape does bad endings very well, with fair warnings and elaborate scenarios. Here, the updates are also very slow and there is really only one game path where all branches are dead-end bad endings.
    • Could you keep some of your bad endings more concise and clearly marked?
    • Check out their update frequency.
  • Claire's Quest is really good at branching off paths and rejoining them, so there's different ways to experience the story. But it is grindy and not very focused, so the content is hard to find.
  • Abandoned a Tale of Forgotten Lives has great graphics, a likeable MC, cool bondage equipment, functional chastity belts, but an okay story. The theme of rummaging in an old space station is not a very emotional story setting.
    • Could you replicate the themes where your female companions spontaneously run around in bondage gear?
    • Could you adapt the story, so the stakes are higher and the player is more emotionally invested?
I'm sorry but I'm not in the league and probably never will. I'm just an idiot who likes to do creative stuff in his spare time. That's all.
 
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Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
Don't focus on success.
Focus o3n leading indicators of success.
Trust the process.

Like in work life, in Patreon, it's usually better to say nothing unless you have something to present.
So take your time and be silent until something cool is ready.
I think I will keep making devlogs, where I'm at right now, what am I planning, plus some pics as proof and also to tease people. There is a game called 3072 ad where I was a subscriber for a while, and there was so much tease you were like GIVE IT TO ME. Meanwhile there was a Lost in Laminate update but there was no tease at all before, it sort of just came and went despite the fact that there was only one update for the whole year.
 
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philyb

Newbie
May 23, 2018
31
51
I watched this topic initially cause of the concept being neat and check in sometimes, so I downloaded it AGAIN and it still looks like the exact same game. There has been no effort to make it look good. Essentially the design is still the default Twine UI - it makes it look low effort. There has been zero progress.

If you're looking at making money, no one is going to look at your screenshots and consider them high effort or pay money. People who may have tried it out will download it and still see the basic UI. There has been zero effort to make it more accessible, look better or anything. The same here - I downloaded the latest version, loaded it up and it is still exactly the same boring default UI it was on launch. No one who saw that initially is gonna grind to get to new content.

A bit of CSS is not hard to achieve. Like we're talking very basic stuff here like fonts and changing the colour of text depending on dialogue. The UI is not clear, the navigation is a bunch of links at the bottom. The game looks like 2012 Twine game. Look at other Twine games, they go out of their way to stand out and do something with their UI. There are JS macros that are very easy to use with guides for dialogue.

These days, if I see the default Twine UI with almost no effort put in on a new game, I'll crash out because I know it's someone's first attempt. Even games made on the older Twine engine from ten years ago change the color scheme and use fonts/dialogue boxes! <<say Character (img)>>dialogue<</say>> is not hard to set up and use consistently.
 
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Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
I watched this topic initially cause of the concept being neat and check in sometimes, so I downloaded it AGAIN and it still looks like the exact same game. There has been no effort to make it look good. Essentially the design is still the default Twine UI - it makes it look low effort. There has been zero progress.

If you're looking at making money, no one is going to look at your screenshots and consider them high effort or pay money. People who may have tried it out will download it and still see the basic UI. There has been zero effort to make it more accessible, look better or anything. The same here - I downloaded the latest version, loaded it up and it is still exactly the same boring default UI it was on launch. No one who saw that initially is gonna grind to get to new content.

A bit of CSS is not hard to achieve. Like we're talking very basic stuff here like fonts and changing the colour of text depending on dialogue. The UI is not clear, the navigation is a bunch of links at the bottom. The game looks like 2012 Twine game. Look at other Twine games, they go out of their way to stand out and do something with their UI. There are JS macros that are very easy to use with guides for dialogue.

These days, if I see the default Twine UI with almost no effort put in on a new game, I'll crash out because I know it's someone's first attempt. Even games made on the older Twine engine from ten years ago change the color scheme and use fonts/dialogue boxes! <<say Character (img)>>dialogue<</say>> is not hard to set up and use consistently.
That is true. A style update is long overdue here. I went with the style I had because there were people who liked it as it is when it came out, and slowly but surely new supporters started to arrive. The real difficulty now is that I have 280 thousand words across more than a thousand passages and none of it was created in a way to support stuff like moving around (I'm thinking of A Prince's Tale) or even have dialogue boxes. But it also doesn't have to be an infinite game, it doesn't have to do everything or go on forever. For this one, as far as styling goes, I will color the text, use more fonts, add images to reflect the character's state, add more images where I can, and sort just call it a day, that way it could be finished in 1-2 years instead of being in the state of a forever mess. There will be later titles where the main characters go to other places, Helcion IV, Alescia, etc, as part of a shared plot between the entries. With them the fact that styling is a thing will be a lot more apparent, so I will make sure that I go in depth instead of just using the most basic stuff and trying to get away with it.
 
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Primal356

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Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
I opened a vote about a style update. I'm curious how many people are fine with it/want a small update/want a rehaul. Feel free to participate!
 
Mar 29, 2023
111
82
If you want to upgrade the current style:
- Align the options properly, so the location of the text does not shift with link text length. That's a small OCD topic for me.
- Make keyboard controls consistent, so they are available in every section. It's annoying to switch when they only go halfway through

Predictably, I'm always in favor of keeping and polishing the existing style in order to get a finished projects sooner.
Larger overhauls are best done at the start of new projects.
Otherwise, it's a lot of dev work for a small change in player experience.
 
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Primal356

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Jul 20, 2021
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274
- Make keyboard controls consistent, so they are available in every section. It's annoying to switch when they only go halfway through.
I thought every part of the project has keyboard controls. Or... Not? :D
Predictably, I'm always in favor of keeping and polishing the existing style in order to get a finished projects sooner.
Larger overhauls are best done at the start of new projects.
Otherwise, it's a lot of dev work for a small change in player experience.
I think it will be a minor update. If I expand Jafar, add some new missions, extend some romance paths the game is complete anyway. Then I can start the next chapter of the great venture and make sure I do justice to the style.
 

Primal356

Member
Game Developer
Jul 20, 2021
252
274
I decided to make cheat versions available for everyone at the same tier levels. Originally this was for only Vice Admirals/Grand Admirals, but from now on Venturers and Captains will also receive them. When a version becomes free for everyone, the cheat version will also become free.

The current list of cheat versions is the following:

The Zeta Sector:

Nel's Misfortune:

Stellar Justice:
 
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Primal356

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Jul 20, 2021
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274
I'm happy to announce that The Zeta Sector 1.1.21 is out!

The list of changes is the following:
  • NEW VR GAME: Added new VR game titled "The life of a cat". This was previously an enslavement event that occurred if you lose at the slave barge, or simply get taken by them, but I found that the previous placement was incorrect because the player expects to get out and continue the game, but in this case you can't do that, as the mc was taken to another planet.
  • NEW VR GAME: Added new VR game titled "Pulling carts in the desert". This was previously an enslavement event that occurred if you lose at the slave barge, or simply get taken by them, but I found that the previous placement was incorrect because the player expects to get out and continue the game, but in this case you can't do that, as the mc was taken to another planet.
  • NEW VR GAME: Added new VR game titled "The life of a pony racer". This was previously an enslavement event that occurred if you lose at the slave barge, or simply get taken by them, but I found that the previous placement was incorrect because the player expects to get out and continue the game, but in this case you can't do that, as the mc was taken to another planet.
So... Any opinions about this change? :D I know it's tedious that I keep asking about it. But I want to make the game better.
 
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3.30 star(s) 3 Votes