VN Ren'Py Abandoned This Time [v2306] [ApocalypseToday]

[-CookieMonster666-]

I dont play this game
contain incest?

No, none. The closest is the MC and the girl who's his best friend. But no blood relations.

 

[bapcules]

Any of the women have a full bush?

I don't want to believe it.
I'm combing through this thread, hoping that this game will be continued in some form... And just when it's getting interesting, the stupidest comment I've ever read in a forum appears...
This story is exciting, has depth and is brilliantly told...
And this guy comes up with ‘a Bush’?

Edit:
Oh, now I understand, this seems to be a running gag from this Yapi Guy.
Sorry, everything's fine...
In our department, the hampered also have internet access.

Edit 2:
I don't want to be misunderstood here.
Every ‘Japi’ here is absolutely lovable.
Unlike us ‘normal people’, these people don't put on a mask.
They are simply genuine...
They say exactly what's on their mind...
We should all take a leaf out of their book.
Thank you, japdre.

 

[apocalypsetoday]

 

[Vasy]

It would be rad if this came back from the dead. A Thanksgiving miracle.

 

[consumptionist]

forgot this existed. thanks for reminding me to remove this from my watch list
forgetting again starts now

 

[Chillout1984]

View attachment 5454583

Best of luck to you! I really enjoyed what the original dev created and I hope you will do his game justice.

 

[apocalypsetoday]

Hi,

I know many of you have been eager for more details since my teaser post, so here’s something to quench your curiosity. I’ll continue sharing fresh info throughout the journey.

Over the years, I’ve gone by many pseudonyms — most recently PleasureOnly. I’ve worked on numerous visual novels in just about every role you can think of: writing, rendering, programming—you name it. One of those projects was a game called This Time. I assisted ApocalypseToday with several Chapter 2 renders many moons ago and fully intended to continue, but scheduling conflicts with other contracted projects prevented me from doing so.

I had already fallen in love with the game, so I continued supporting it as both a player and a Patron. That is, of course, until ApocalypseToday vanished without a trace.
Like many of you, I was confused and deeply saddened—both by the uncertainty of what might have happened and by the thought that the story might never be completed.

As some of my contracted work wrapped up, I found myself thinking about this story more and more. I reached out through every avenue I could and contacted several mutual connections until, one day, I finally got the green light. I was given the two things I needed: first, the rights to the game and its branding, and second, access to all accounts and assets.

I know many of you are asking, ‘So what happened to ApocalypseToday?’ The honest answer is that I don’t know. The person I spoke with during this process was not ApocalypseToday, but everything was handled professionally and respectfully. Since my goal was to complete the transition of the project properly, I chose to focus on ensuring the handover was done safely and securely.

So what does this mean moving forwards?

Since none of my previous pseudonyms were player-facing, I’ve decided to continue under the name ApocalypseToday to keep things simple and consistent. From this point on, I’ll refer to the previous developer as ‘the original ApocalypseToday.’

Get to the point, what's happening with the game!

I already had plenty of ideas for the story, but among the treasure trove of assets I now have are the complete notes and conversations between the original ApocalypseToday and the most recent writer. I won’t spoil anything by going into details, but there’s more than enough material for me to faithfully honor the direction the story and its characters were headed.

As you know, the game was in the middle of a rewrite before the story could continue. Because of that, things are a bit messy—some scenes are missing entirely, and there’s a lot of work needed to get everything back on track. I’ve already begun tackling this. Some fixes only require small dialogue tweaks for better flow, while others need full scene re-renders. This means it’s going to take some time. I’m not setting any dates or timelines just yet, as I want to stay focused on the work itself. There may be stretches where you don’t hear much from me, but rest assured—progress is steadily being made.

The last thing I want to share is important. My plan—assuming Steam allows it and everything aligns—is to finish the rewrite and bring the story back up to the end of Chapter 3. This will then be packaged and released as This Time – Part One.

As a thank-you to all of you who have stood by the game, my intention is to make This Time – Part One completely free of charge. This includes all 'image packs'. Though remember, this is if Steam allow me to do so.

After that, I’ll be able to focus on Chapter 4 and beyond, which will be released as a standalone, paid product on Steam. The story will naturally continue from where Part One ends, and you’ll be able to carry your save data forward.

This approach lets players (hopefully) fall in love with the story at no cost before deciding whether it’s worth investing their hard-earned money. We’re still a good distance away from Part Two, but once we reach that stage, it will be released in small updates as an early-access title until Part Two is complete.

I’m aware that I’ve already put a lot of my own money into this project, and I’ll likely need to keep doing so for a while. I’m okay with that—it’s a commitment I chose to make. But if anyone feels inclined to lend a bit of support and maybe help move things along, I would be genuinely grateful. Donations are welcome on my Patreon page:

You must be registered to see the links

For now, I’m going to disappear back into the depths of Ren’Py.
Speak soon.

 

[bapcules]

Unbelievable! I've been following this game for years, even though I read in some forums that the developer had passed away and there was no chance of the game being continued. I'm very happy and delighted that I was wrong.
This Time was an absolutely exceptional game for me, and I'm sure that with the necessary patience, it will be a huge success again.

 

[mbb480]

YES ! Thanks !

 

[Sharingan33]

I casually found the saves to this game in my Renpy folder, but i didn't remember anything about it so i decided to read the overview and see the preview images from the first post... I still don't remember anything about it.

 

[-CookieMonster666-]

I casually found the saves to this game in my Renpy folder, but i didn't remember anything about it so i decided to read the overview and see the preview images from the first post... I still don't remember anything about it.

If the MC being a former firefighter who finds an item that gives him the ability to stop time, do stuff (like save someone's life or decide to have naughty-albeit-super-creepy "fun"), and then have time continue normally again doesn't sound familiar, than I'm not sure what to tell you. Personally, I think what content has been made (before development stopping entirely) is definitely worth it, even though you're left hanging at the end.

 

[Sharingan33]

If the MC being a former firefighter who finds an item that gives him the ability to stop time, do stuff (like save someone's life or decide to have naughty-albeit-super-creepy "fun"), and then have time continue normally again doesn't sound familiar, than I'm not sure what to tell you. Personally, I think what content has been made (before development stopping entirely) is definitely worth it, even though you're left hanging at the end.

I don't know why i can't remember anything about this game, my saves are from the end of June 2023 so they're not that old. Also that means i already played this game to the end since there haven't been any new content; in my opinion it's meaningless to play the same exact content again, even if i don't remember anything about it.

 

[apocalypsetoday]

Hi again,

Work on the game has been progressing well, with Chapter 1 now officially signed and sealed.

Two scenes in Chapter 1 have been completely re-rendered to bring them up to the same quality as the rest of the game. I’ve shared a sneak peek of these updated scenes on

You must be registered to see the links

for anyone interested.

I'm currently working on an additional scene being added to Chapter 2 in the form of a flashback to the moment Jess disappears. Oh also...

Minigames and free roam are now officially removed.
I know this was always a “take it or leave it” feature for most players, and in the most recent update the original ApocalypseToday even added the option to choose between a visual novel or minigame style at the start. After a lot of consideration, I’ve decided to scrap the minigames and free-roam elements entirely.

Why? Simply put, I’ve done it before—and it takes ages to create systems that end up being a very small part of the overall experience. I would much rather spend a month crafting a handful of immersive, high-quality scenes than weeks on a few minutes of gameplay that only a small percentage of players actually want.
On top of that, I don’t enjoy that side of development, and forcing yourself through a part of the process you dislike is one of the fastest ways to burn out as a developer.

I’ve also been in ongoing dialogue with Steam regarding how we bring the game back to life — and ultimately transition it to a free release.

They’ve now officially confirmed that the game can be brought out of retirement, which isn’t standard practice on their platform and was a major hurdle I wasn’t sure we’d be able to overcome. The good news is that this also means anyone who previously purchased the game will continue to own it once it relaunches — no one loses access.

Releasing the game as a free product, however, is a bit more complicated. Steam has a very strict and detailed set of rules around pricing, and when and how changes can be made. For a large studio with a multi-million-dollar budget, navigating this is relatively straightforward. For an indie developer operating on a “hole-in-my-pocket” budget, it’s a bit of a minefield.

That said, I’ve now received clarification that making the game free is possible — just not immediately. At the moment, it looks like there may need to be a 3–6 month window after release before the product can transition from a paid release to a free one. This isn’t set in stone yet, so please don’t hold me to exact timelines — but I promise that the moment I can make a risk-free decision to switch the game to free, I will.

As a workaround for anyone who’s willing, I can offer the following:

Anyone who becomes (or remains) a Patron on

You must be registered to see the links

between now and the official release date announcement will be eligible for a free Steam key.
This applies to any PAID tier, for any length of time. Once you’ve become a Patron, simply send me a direct message on

You must be registered to see the links

and I’ll add you to a waiting list for product keys.

Additional support or higher tiers are, of course, hugely appreciated — but absolutely not required. Every Patron during this window will qualify for a free key.

Once the game launches, I’ll distribute the Steam keys directly to everyone on the list.

Important: To stay fully compliant with Steam’s pricing policies, this offer will end immediately upon EITHER announcement of the official release date OR the release date, whichever happens first.

I'm hopeful that this approach feels fair for everybody.

Thanks again and see you all soon.

 

[apocalypsetoday]

I awoke this morning to an email from the Steam support team to say they have now unretired the game...WHAT!

I specifically asked for this to NOT be done yet...it's not ready!



This undoes weeks of careful planning about how and when this will all happen and negates everything I have already said previously.

What's worse, It can't be easily undone.



Frustrated doesn't begin to describe how I'm feeling right now.



All I can recommend is that everybody just holds on tight and waits for the updated game release. Urgh.

 

[Bloodguard]

I awoke this morning to an email from the Steam support team to say they have now unretired the game...WHAT!

I specifically asked for this to NOT be done yet...it's not ready!



This undoes weeks of careful planning about how and when this will all happen and negates everything I have already said previously.

What's worse, It can't be easily undone.



Frustrated doesn't begin to describe how I'm feeling right now.



All I can recommend is that everybody just holds on tight and waits for the updated game release. Urgh.

I wouldn't stress too much over it. Most folks like me, who bought the game on Steam, never expected it to update again.
If it does at some point, that will be nice, but I don't expect anyone is holding their breath, either way.

 

[apocalypsetoday]

Hi again,

It’s been a busy and productive stretch. When Steam abruptly un-retired the game before I was ready, I threw myself into development to refocus and keep moving forward. The support from everyone during that time has been genuinely appreciated—thank you.

Since then, I’ve been working on four big things…

1 - Writing, Reading and Tweaking to Chapter 2

As expected, Chapter 2 is in a much better overall state. A lot of groundwork was clearly done during the rewrite, which is great to see. That said, Chapter 2 is significantly longer than Chapter 1, so it’s naturally going to take more time to work through.

Progress is being made, but it’s been temporarily paused while I focus on…

2 - New Lewd scene

After playing through the “Walk Sophia home from the nightclub” section of Chapter 2, I realized it was the perfect place to introduce the first interest point check. This is where the game evaluates whether the player has Sophia in the “sweet spot” for her interest level.

If the player succeeds, Sophia invites them inside instead of the two parting ways. Narratively, this moment is driven by Sophia reflecting on Ashley’s conversation at the nightclub—where she talks about always waiting for the perfect moment that never comes. That reflection pushes Sophia to act impulsively, leading to her inviting you in for sex.

Alongside this, I’ve added a visible indicator when an interest point check occurs, so players are clearly aware when they’ve either met—or missed—one of these opportunities.

I’ll be sharing screenshots and videos from the new lewd Sophia scene on

You must be registered to see the links

for paid subscribers in the coming days, so keep an eye out for that

This also marks the my first real opportunity to introduce new animations. While animations themselves aren’t new to me, every project presents its own challenges. I’ve spent the past few days refining and optimizing my workflow so I can add richer, more detailed animations without turning them into a massive time sink. Investing that time now should save me a lot of time down the line.

For me, animations are a key element of adult visual novels—nothing kills immersion faster than a janky or awkward animation.

These new animations will include:

• Clothing physics
• Breast, thigh, and buttock “meat” physics (natural bouncing and movement)
• Hair physics (realistic secondary motion)

As you can imagine, layering simulated cloth physics on top of body physics while also accounting for hair movement is a complex process. That said, I’m confident the extra effort will pay off in noticeably higher-quality results.

3 - Codex

As the game currently stands, it already contains some fairly complex lore. There’s a rare element we’re constantly uncovering new information about, a magic stopwatch that can pause time and interact with that element, mind-control powers, and more. On top of that, each character has their own background, history, and secrets layered into the world.

With all of this in play, it can be difficult to keep track of what’s going on—especially when months pass between updates.

With that in mind, I’ve decided to introduce a Codex: a dedicated place where you can reference information about objects, locations, characters, and other important details.

Many games include a similar feature, but I couldn’t find a template or base system that really fit my vision. So, naturally, I decided to build one from scratch.

About 250 lines of code later, I now have a solid foundation in place. There’s still a lot to do—testing, bug fixing, potential feature expansion, and most importantly, actually adding the lore itself (which is the most time-consuming part). After that, I’ll be implementing the gradual unlocking of codex entries as you play.

The end result will look something like this: you have a conversation with Sarah, and she mentions that she got the stopwatch from her grandfather. A small pop-up appears in the top-left corner saying “New Codex Entry Added.” You can then open the Codex, see an unread entry under Stopwatch, and view that new piece of information alongside everything else you’ve already discovered about it.

4 - Other bits and pieces

I’ve also replaced a few of the more janky animations from the Lisa time-stop dream sequence. I didn’t spend an excessive amount of time on this pass, but the new animations are a clear improvement over the old ones.

In addition, I’ve added visible indicators whenever interest points are gained or lost, as well as when the Depravity / Virtue / Justice / Vengeance scales are adjusted. This should make it much clearer how your choices are affecting the underlying systems.

Finally, I’ve implemented consequences for leaning too heavily into Depravity or Virtue. As one side begins to dominate, your character’s personality and instincts shift accordingly. Their growing compulsions start to guide their actions, meaning some decisions are overridden by who they’re becoming rather than what the player might consciously choose.

As you can see, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes, along with a few “two steps forward, one step back” moments as new systems get layered onto existing content.

I’m still a ways off from knowing exactly when this update will be ready, but one thing I’m confident about is that it’ll be worth the wait.