Ren'Py Years Between Us [Ch3] [ScarabsGourmetHole]

[DressedToThrill]

ScarabsGourmetHole

When Julia asked what I was going do about it, I wanted to type to her that I was going to get our life back on track. At least, that was what I was thinking. Apparently I was using long distance telepathy to communicate this to her, which our telepath wife picked up on, replying to us that she'd been dying to hear these words.

But I would find it more immersive as a phone game if we could just communicate normally through text messages, and for my choices to appear as such message in the messaging "app".

Besides this, I think this is a well put together phone simulation despite it using Ren'py. If I could suggest one more thing (and this is not really important), then by default the gallery shouldn't show empty slots for missing images. When I open the gallery app on my real life phone, it's not predicting future images I will take. Seems a bit odd.

Obviously, the slots are nice for hard core gamers who are picture hunting, so I'm just saying there could be a toggle for those people, in the same vein some people ask for toggles to reveal all images regardless of progression. I'm just opposite man.

 

[DressedToThrill]

This is too vague. My feedback for when three choices like these are given the player, is that they should somehow convey what emotion the MC and player want to convey. One of these will express anger, another will express shock, and one will express enthusiasm. I won't spoil which, but I wouldn't be able to, and wasn't able to guess which until I tested all three.

If the question is asked is "What's your take on this?", then I suggest replies like:
"It pissed me off... (that's my take on it!)" , or
"I don't know... (I'm kind of in shock.)", or
"Dude, I think I liked it... (am I weird for that?).

 

[Lizzardcheese]

The narrative becomes meaningless if the wife is unfaithful, regardless of the player's chosen path. If you are fully committed to a "love" path but cannot prevent this outcome or at least have the option to try, it undermines the entire point of that route. In this case, the only possible outcomes are to either forgive and move on (if the love foundation is strong) or descend into a cuckolding narrative (NTR/NTS)

Games like this have saturated the market recently if this one just follows the trend without any substance of its own, it's not worth the time, if the developer is committed to this direction, so be it. Otherwise, I'd propose a change since it's still early and somewhat feasible

Almost every one of these games has "Love path" in the description, but it's only to help their donations. Soon enough they almost always force NTR or "nts" which is usually just being cucked. Looking like this one is following that route.

 

[hans851]

The narrative becomes meaningless if the wife is unfaithful, regardless of the player's chosen path. If you are fully committed to a "love" path but cannot prevent this outcome or at least have the option to try, it undermines the entire point of that route. In this case, the only possible outcomes are to either forgive and move on (if the love foundation is strong) or descend into a cuckolding narrative (NTR/NTS)

Games like this have saturated the market recently if this one just follows the trend without any substance of its own, it's not worth the time, if the developer is committed to this direction, so be it. Otherwise, I'd propose a change since it's still early and somewhat feasible

how about you guys just play one of the 1 million vanilla games and stop looking for vanilla in ntr/s games?

 

[DarkFlame44]

how about you guys just play one of the 1 million vanilla games and stop looking for vanilla in ntr/s games?

A lot of people, myself included, like the idea of a game where NTR is present but avoidable, because getting the girl in a vanilla game can kinda feel like playing an FPS on god mode, however when you know that it could veer into NTR based on your choices it adds much more of a sense of stakes and if you do get the girl and keep her to yourself it can feel more gratifying.
I will be the first to admit its a weird preference but then again we are talking about NTR here so glass houses and all that.

But all of that is not the point:
Its not a question of how valid the preference is but whether the Dev is providing what they promised.

There are people who invested time and sometimes money into this because of they thought that there would be a route where the LI is fully loyal. You dont need to agree with the preference for a loyalty route, but the Dev should have made it clearer from the start what degree of unavoidable NTR there is.

I get its a messy topic because no 2 people can every exactly draw the line on what counts as NTR but the dev should have been clearer on what he meant by a "love" route.

 

[turbokinetics]

A lot of people, myself included, like the idea of a game where NTR is present but avoidable, because getting the girl in a vanilla game can kinda feel like playing an FPS on god mode, however when you know that it could veer into NTR based on your choices it adds much more of a sense of stakes and if you do get the girl and keep her to yourself it can feel more gratifying.
I will be the first to admit its a weird preference but then again we are talking about NTR here so glass houses and all that.

But all of that is not the point:
Its not a question of how valid the preference is but whether the Dev is providing what they promised.

There are people who invested time and sometimes money into this because of they thought that there would be a route where the LI is fully loyal. You dont need to agree with the preference for a loyalty route, but the Dev should have made it clearer from the start what degree of unavoidable NTR there is.

I get its a messy topic because no 2 people can every exactly draw the line on what counts as NTR but the dev should have been clearer on what he meant by a "love" route.

You nailed it. I go for nts routes in these games but 100% accurate on love route needing transparency is there is still unavoidable ntr. I assume the newest release has her being unfaithful no matter the route you are on? This will upset me on nts route given thats built on consenual.

 

[hans851]

A lot of people, myself included, like the idea of a game where NTR is present but avoidable, because getting the girl in a vanilla game can kinda feel like playing an FPS on god mode, however when you know that it could veer into NTR based on your choices it adds much more of a sense of stakes and if you do get the girl and keep her to yourself it can feel more gratifying.
I will be the first to admit its a weird preference but then again we are talking about NTR here so glass houses and all that.

But all of that is not the point:
Its not a question of how valid the preference is but whether the Dev is providing what they promised.

There are people who invested time and sometimes money into this because of they thought that there would be a route where the LI is fully loyal. You dont need to agree with the preference for a loyalty route, but the Dev should have made it clearer from the start what degree of unavoidable NTR there is.

I get its a messy topic because no 2 people can every exactly draw the line on what counts as NTR but the dev should have been clearer on what he meant by a "love" route.

I understand.

 

[Artist271]

Is Chad my boyfriend or something? I talk to him more than my wife, is this actually a gay romance porn game? Jesus Christ.

 

[pussslayer]

now i understand the name of this game it take years of yaping

 

[FatYoda]

This game seemed like it might be alright but this dude is a moron. Duke is Chad. FFS man he's getting you to turn your wife out so he can fuckin steal her.

 

[turbokinetics]

This game seemed like it might be alright but this dude is a moron. Duke is Chad. FFS man he's getting you to turn your wife out so he can fuckin steal her.

We should have known shit would be weird when the guy that supposedly wanted to save his marriage, caught her lying about going to a strip club and 8nstead of just going home and asking where she is or at least actually having a dinner with her elected to go drink with chad and had to sleep on the couch. Bad choices and i doubt this one will end up a good story. Time will tell i guess.

 

[FatYoda]

We should have known shit would be weird when the guy that supposedly wanted to save his marriage, caught her lying about going to a strip club and 8nstead of just going home and asking where she is or at least actually having a dinner with her elected to go drink with chad and had to sleep on the couch. Bad choices and i doubt this one will end up a good story. Time will tell i guess.

I dont really care tbh, i'm here to watch her turn into a whore, but i hate it when mc is just completely oblivious

 

[MiltonPowers]

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Hello everyone!

I need to offer you all a sincere apology. I believe the latest chapter release was a complete failure. You've given me feedback about the huge number of errors, the unpassable choice menu that blocked progression, and various other technical issues that players encountered. I want to deeply apologize to everyone, and I guarantee that I will fix all of these problems in the near future—and definitely before the next chapter release.

I'm still learning the programming side of development, and I haven't fully mastered this engine yet. Sometimes I have to insert certain values through trial and error, but I'm learning, and soon I believe I'll be able to resolve all these technical issues.

As for the story itself, there hasn't been much constructive feedback on that front, so I'd really like to know what you thought of the latest chapter from a narrative perspective. I'd appreciate more specific feedback from you so I can take it into account when writing the next chapter.

What did you think of the character development? Were the emotional moments impactful? Did the pacing feel right? Your detailed thoughts would help me tremendously.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. Your support means everything, and I'm committed to delivering a better experience moving forward.

 

[MiltonPowers]

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Hello everyone!

I want to sincerely apologize to you all. The latest chapter really exposed a huge number of problems in the game and revealed many technical issues that I'm making while creating this visual novel. Right now, I think I'm still learning how to make games and understanding what the audience ultimately enjoys. And most importantly, whether I can use my enthusiasm and passion to tell the story the audience wants to hear in the most engaging way—for them and for myself.

As the last chapter showed, many people didn't understand what I was trying to convey. I attribute this to the fact that the entire narrative is delivered through a mobile phone interface. The scale of my ideas is colossal, enormous. I have some experience in script writing for TV series, and in my head, I immediately envision grand cinematic scenes that should unfold. But when you frame it all through a phone screen, the magic of the scene breaks down through text messages. Basically, I've cornered myself with this phone messenger engine.

Initially, I chose this format because it seemed like the simplest approach—I could essentially just write the script and occasionally insert images that fit the moment. This format requires more screenwriting skills than directorial shot composition skills. But now I realize it's the opposite—I actually want more directorial control over shots. I want to tell the story more like a traditional visual novel rather than a phone-based one.

So I'm actively thinking about finishing this first visual novel and then, with all the experience I've gained, stepping up to the next level and releasing an even better, newer visual novel in the same spirit as this one, but with full directorial vision, proper shot composition, engaging scenes, and an intricate plot.

What are your thoughts on this? Would you be interested in seeing a traditional visual novel format in the future?

Thank you for staying with me through this learning journey. Your support means everything.