Hello my friends.

Quick update:

Mrs. Howell’s face and body are done. Her outfits need a little work though. She is known for her flamboyant outfits.

I have also decided that I will pursue more of a story structure, and less of a game structure. While it wasn’t going to be significant, I did plan some open world elements to my visual novel. I am now removing those elements.

More detailed Update:

I am so glad I took a break from Mrs. Howell. I decided that I needed to start from scratch, and this time things worked out much better than before.

I merged 2 characters which resulted in a much better starting point. My previous effort really wasn’t looking right and somehow, I ended up with a small head, so at that point my choice was to shrink her body to match, then increase the size of the character. So instead, I started from scratch.

It will be a little bit of work creating her hat from the promo image. She had very flamboyant outfits throughout the show and I want to capture that. She did wear those clothes in the show, so they will be used more than just in the promo image, but I will create that hat, just another challenge, and learning experience.

Building the game:

As far as the game structure, visual novels tend to exist somewhere from a kinetic novel with straight storyline and no choices to open world, (often mistakenly called sandbox), and the freedom to go anywhere and do anything within reason.

Originally, I was leaning toward what I would define as a guided open world. I planned on the freedom to make choices and decide on where to go during the game, but there would still be a structure, and the choices would be eliminated when events came up, the story needed to move forward, or goals were achieved. 

But I started thinking about this visual novel and how it seemed to fit better with more of a storyline and less open world. Also, as I am checking into games that have those elements, I keep finding issues with them.

The purpose for an open world is to have freedom, not confusion. I want people to have fun, and not feel like they have to grind to get somewhere. I also don’t like when the player clicks on 20 locations with nobody and nothing to do before finding out where to go and what to do.

What I would prefer is that a person can go to an area, and do something, but not exactly repeat what has happened there before.

I have a few ideas to prevent those problems while giving a person the freedom to do what they want and go where they want to go, but I will plan on introducing those elements into my next project. (Haven’t mentioned project 3 in a while.)

Unfortunately, that means the map I spent over a week building is no longer going to be used. The hut icons I created are no longer important. Then again there are other icons I won’t need to make, and it should speed up how quickly I can get out the updates since the programming aspect just became that much easier. Not that any of that would have affected the first release, just all future releases.

The only problem I have with doing this is that this was not just my current project but practice for my next one, and with many of the game elements removed I will have to work on get them up and running without a real-world example to practice with.

Additional Comments:

It is interesting that I am going in this direction because I really like the game elements, and there is just something about “earning” your way. If all you wanted to do was to see tits, you can look up all you would ever want to see online. All the sex and nudity you could want is available for a few clicks, so there has to be something more to it.

There is a reason why lingerie is so popular. If nudity is so great, why does anyone buy lingerie? Ask yourself why there are strip clubs and not just naked clubs. I think understanding this is key to making a successful erotic visual novel.

Obviously, it isn’t the only important part. A decent storyline and at least acceptable art cannot be dismissed. I always try to give visual novels a chance, but there are some that I quickly grow tired of and start clicking without paying attention to the dialog to get to the "good parts. 

At that point I see that VN as a failure. It’s possible that the story just wasn’t for me, or possible that I came in too distracted. But more often than not it’s because I didn’t find it worth it to read, and most likely I wasn’t’ going to go for the updates.

My goal is to create something people like. Something that will make them want to keep going. To want to jump on each installment as they come and be a little impatient for the next one because they can’t wait to find out what happens. 

Enjoy life.

It’s been a busy week outside of development, but so far everything seems to be getting better. No news on the legal front, which I think might be good news.

My days as a butler may be numbered as my “main squeeze” slowly regains her ability to walk. Multiple doctor appointments, plus a few extra errands this week.

The main reason I slowed down wasn’t because of time, but because of stress. I tend to overdo things, and am prone to burnout, and I saw the signs, so pulled back. But that seems to be improving. (I need to meditate more. Meaning actually doing it.)

I am easing back into more work on my projects. I am again working on a character that has been very annoying to me, but this week I seem to be finally making progress. Still not perfect, and needs even more tweaking, but I am finally starting to see the real person in this character.

But I am also thinking that as long as she is close enough that I will just move ahead with the project.

So next week I will reveal what I am working on, and show the first character, finished or not. 

I probably should have chosen another character first, but after as much time as I spent working on her, I do not think the next characters will barely take as long. I spent a lot of time learning the process on this character. 

I am further along with the scripts, both for this project, and project 3. I probably spent more time on scripts than anything. Ideas for Project 3 keep coming to me, so I might have spent too long putting those ideas down on (virtual) paper.

It is said not to divide time between multiple projects. I somewhat agree. The main focus should always be on what you are working on. But at the same time, I do not want to lose these ideas when they come to me.

Every once in a while, getting away from a project can be a good thing. When the creativity isn’t flowing, and the stress is building up, take a break, do something else, then come back fresh.

I usually ask my “subconscious” mind to work on it while I take a break, and that is surprisingly helpful. There are many times I have gone to bed with a problem, and after I wake up, I come up with a solution. To be clear I don’t wake up knowing the solution, but I wake up, remember that I have a problem, and while thinking about it, a solution begins to develop in my mind.  Or at least a little closer to one.

Well not too much to report. As I said last update, I have something going on, (medical, not mine,) that is interfering with my ability to work this week, and into the next 2 to 3 weeks, but it should have less of an effect each week.

I did have some progress. A little with my first character design. Tweaks and improvements, and closer to where I want her, but just not there yet. And some progress with developing the framework of the app itself. 

The most work was on the script. This is something I don’t need to be at home to do. I can do it anywhere with just a tablet and a keyboard, so that was my main focus this week.

The only issue is that I wrote an idea for Project III, and ended up producing a lot of material for that. Not as much for my current project. 

That isn’t as bad as it might sound though, since I am already done with writing the introduction, and I expect my first release will just be the introduction to the game. 

My goal is to have that first part of the game released on October 3rd. That is not set in stone since I am still fairly new to all this, so I cannot guarantee how quickly things will proceed. My goal is there to motivate me, but I won’t be set in stone. I also won’t release a product that is half-assed to get it out in time.

Once it is released, I am hoping to have an update every one to two months, and have the game complete in 6 months to a year. Again goals, not set in stone. I expect as things progress to the point that I will eventually get into a grove and produce the game at a decent rate.