Ren'Py When to release?

[PrinceOfShades]

Successful or even good sandboxes are very dependent on who's making it.

The problem is, or rather the reason why sandboxes (as a whole, regardless of engine) are so disliked is because devs often use it not as a game mechanic, but as a clickfest to make the game seem longer. Pile that onto generally bad user interfaces, bad/unclear/no directions, typically minimal content for a fair stretch, and the reason for it's (mostly) consensus dislike of sandbox games becomes fairly clear. Games like Summertime Saga and Harem Hotel are really the few exceptions, and in the former's case, its popularity more so roots in it's ability to actually feel like a game while also appealing to a multitude of both popular and somewhat niche fetishes.

Of course it depends a lot on the dev. I was merely stating that Ren'py+Sandbox isn't a bad combination inherently.

 

[おい！]

I'm not sure you need to go into that much detail at this point, but at the very least a screenshot of some kind, a brief description of your game beyond 'sandbox' and a list of tags would help a lot as far as generating interest for your game. There's been enough garbage on this site that people are more than a little wary of trying a random tech demo without even knowing what it's going to be like.

Well they appear to be recycling real porn so...........

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[SiddyJJ]

Let devs make sandboxes if they want to. Nothing wrong with a bit of free roaming in a game. Just change that font and you're golden. Sans-serif for text or GTFO

I am planning on changing the fonts, I do want a nice hand-writting font for the female chars. Maybe something else for the male ones too. Comic Sans FTW I think

 

[gunderson]

Yeah, I think I'd pass on this one if I saw it on 'latest updates.'

Dead parents and terms like 'landlord' and 'tenant' are already a big red flag for me (especially if the dev doesn't seem to be implying that there will be patched incest content, as that just sounds like a bait-and-switch for incest fans), but adding a dipshit former-millionaire landlord sexually exploiting vulnerable tenants who can't pay rent during the pandemic just feels too real for me.

Edit: just thought I should add, I think something like this can work, but either the protagonist needs to be less rapey (so the realistic themes feel less gross and exploitative) or the premise needs to be more silly (so that we can better take this as a sexual fantasy rather than fetishizing the real-world exploitation of vulnerable people). It might be worth taking a look at Bimbo Life Coach for an example that does better on both fronts but is ultimately still a silly running-a-business-and-making-ordinary-ladies-into-porn-stars game.

 

[PurpleShroomDev]

If it's any help, you might want to check I the thread I created a few months before releasing my game. It has some concepts, screen shots, allowed people to ask questions and show interest. When I launched, some people were already waiting for it. As for "when to release": I wouldn't bother releasing anything with less than 30 minutes of content.

This helped me a lot. Thank you very much!