Got 7 more events into a "playable" state (24 total)
Lots of new things were learned this time! Though working faster wasn't one of them...
Made my first timeline animation. Nothing big, but it's a start. I just wish I'd tried this sooner.
Pics
A few more things to show today... Alas, the best renders will have to stay hidden until release! Here you go! Enjoy your background! (The rain is actually animated in-game.)
I experimented a bit with backgrounds for this event and discovered that blurry, darkened backgrounds look great!
I also found out that adding a white, blurry, semi-transparent frame was some kind of cheat code that made everything look even better... (At least I think so) First time putting a GIF in my devlogs!
Nothing much to comment on here. MC is just getting properly roasted. Obligatory cute girl pic to keep your attention on the devlog.
...Ah...
I'm so dumb.
That one should have been the GIF! ... No comment.
Chapter 5 assessement
Time to assess where I'm currently at with Chapter 5 development!
Based on previous devlogs, we should have:
04/18: +180 layered assets (~140 renders and 1 animation)
05/09: +200 layered assets (~150 renders (?) and 13 animations)
05/30: +200 layered assets (~88 renders (?) and 8 animations)
06/20: +300 layered assets (~150 renders (?) and 12 animations)
07/11: +1300 layered assets (~650 renders (?) and 26 animations)
07/31: +160 layered assets (~115 renders (?) and 1 animation)
08/22: +170 layered assets (~108 renders (?) and 3 animations)
09/12: +810 layered assets (~600 renders (?) and 4 animations)
10/03: +850 layered assets (~550 renders (?) and 15 animations)
10/24: +930 layered assets (~670 renders (?) and 14 animations)
Things didn't go the way I originally planned this time around.
I was unable to make that one animation I wanted, but I ended up making more animations for things that should have stayed static...
But hey, as long as it works~
Pics
Like last time, I can't really show much of what I'm doing...
So here you go! TFW the Boosty SMS never comes. ... Nah, I won't give any context here.
Just that I removed an important element from this render to preserve the surprise.
Also, it's part of a series of renders that I had a lot of fun making...
And it didn't take much time, surprisingly. And... That's where I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Of course, the background is censored here, and I won't provide any context~
Well, don't be upset, because at first I was going to dedicate today's pics to backgrounds... You don't want me to write an essay on how I make my backgrounds, right?
Yeah... A cute (21yo and consenting) girl is better after all.
What's next
Still feeding renders and animations to the next release.
But it's always hungry for more...
ETA?!!!
I'll try to complete all renders and animations this month... Let me say it again. I'll TRY to complete all renders and animations this month.
After that, proofreading, playtesting, etc.
Gallery and replay gallery for Chapter 5 content will probably have to wait for the public release, though. I found a possible solution to my issue with the gallery, but it needs testing, and will take a lot of time to implement.
So ETA is probably around mid-November right now.
And That's All for Today!
Final word will sound a bit off-topic, but my current worry is on the music side of things.
I'm trying things out with AI-generated stuff, and while I got some really good results, I'm quite limited when it comes to making parodies/covers...
Well, no point in crying over spilled milk, so I'll lick it clean off the ground. (Milk <3)
Thank you...
...for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
For Tier 3 supporters: No promises, but try to check my page next week :p For everyone else: I'll see you again in three weeks, on October 24, for the next devlog.
Ended up dividing two events into four, bringing the final eventcount from 28 to 30.
The focus this time was on finishing the rewrite, and while it took a bit more than a single weekend, I still managed to get a few renders done.
Pics
First pic is MC's harem going to school.
Every new conquest brings new dynamics into the mix! The new developments might not be what you expected, but I hope you'll still enjoy them!
The scene itself reuses parts from similar scenes in the last two chapters... Or at least, that was the plan, but I ended up moving the characters around... The camera angle and background are the same, plus Sora's pose is the same as Maya's from the previous chapter. Everything else should be new.
Second pic is another Maya pic... Damn, I didn't keep count, but I feel like I post Maya pics each time. I'm not playing favorites, I swear!
Doing the background for this scene was a headache, as I couldn't find what I wanted in Koikatsu itself... The decor on the sides and the pink background were both generated using ChatGPT, the tree is from Koikatsu, and the pink smoke effect was done by yours truly.
I think I managed to make everything blend smoothly together.
What's next
Rendering, rendering, rendering!
ETA?!!!
I'm still aiming for October.
Everything should be in a playable state by then, although I worry a bit about the playtest phase. It took quite a while for the last chapter, after all.
And That's All for Today!
A shorter devlog than last time because I came back late from work and I'm starting to fall asleep on my keyboard... Gotta write this devlog for tomorrow...
I hope Future Haptales won't mind me borrowing a bit of the night :)
(Edit: Screw you, my eyes hurt)
Thank you...
...for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
For Tier 3 supporters: Takeshi's Cultured Preview will come next week and should be the last one. For everyone else: I'll see you again in three weeks, on September 12, for the next devlog.
A bit less work on renders and animations this time around, as I mainly focused on integrating what I've made so far into the game's code.
Coding?! WHO CARES!
I know working on code is always hard to sell, renders and animations are flashier, but well...
RCD is still a visual novel, not a CG set ^^
Since I'm dividing my renders into different assets, it allows me to customize them more without bloating the game's size.
Adding a few variations of Misaki blushing? Now I'm only displaying her face on top of the rest of the scene.
But that means the workload gets redistributed to retouching the images I'm generating in Koikatsu, and to the code side.
For example, displaying a simple render in Ren'Py is just this:
> scene amazing_render_1
Now it becomes something like this:
> scene amazing_render_1_background > show amazing_render_1_maya > show amazing_render_1_misaki > show amazing_render_1_misaki_blush > etc.
(Note: both examples are oversimplified and not representative of the final product. I don't claim to be great at coding, please don't send me death threats in Python.)
So yeah, a lot more lines for the "same" thing. But now I can just show/hide misaki_blush instead of generating two nearly identical renders. It also allows me to apply transformations via code (black & white, blur, etc.) instead of making new renders.
I could also theoretically reuse assets if I reuse camera angles... But sadly, I'm still not organized enough to fully take advantage of that.
All in all, it feels like a real step up from what I was doing before.
Still not flashy enough to justify three weeks of work though, huh?
Pics
Today it's MC daydreaming instead of paying attention in class.
Had to make another full render with the cowgirls... just to crop it into that bubble.
Damn, I want to cry.
Legend says a 4K version of that dream might come out for the anniversary... who knows~ Maya's preparing everyone's bento... specifically kneading dough.
Scenes like this, with lots of interactive elements, are where layered assets really shine.
Though I wish I had the drawing skills to enhance things a bit, like adding details to that dough...
Well, maybe in another life.
What's next
...Lots of work.
So, about this devlog coming out on Friday instead of Saturday: I still have some events to rewrite, and even if I have plenty left to render before reaching them, I'd like to finally check that box.
That's why I'm planning to go fully offline this weekend and focus on writing.
Also, something I'll explain better after Chapter 5 releases: Over weeks/months of development, some outside influences can muddy the writing. And with recent events... yeah, I really want to lock Chapter 5's story in now.
So this weekend = rewriting those final events. After that: full-speed rendering.
August will be a bit weird for me schedule-wise, but hopefully that means good progress.
ETA?!!!
No exact ETA, but I'm confident I'll be done by October at the latest.
Not gonna lie, everything planned after Chapter 5 has been pushed back to the drawing board.
But, the one thing I won't compromise on is the 2nd year anniversary and it's Christmas event.
And That's All for Today!
RCD is something I make for myself first, as a hobby after work, but it always warm my heart to see people waiting for the next release.
That said... I'm still stuck in a heatwave, so I'd really like to release the update ASAP, I definitely don't need more warmth right now :(
Thank you...
...for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
For Tier 3 supporters: Takeshi's Cultured Preview will come the week after next devlog (should be the last one). For everyone else: I'll see you again in three weeks (+1 day), on August 22, for the next devlog.
Today, a bit of focus on our kind and considerate MC!
Just look at him, thinking about how to grind those affection points!
Contrary to the LOSER protagonists you usually see in other games... Our MC is a WINNER who will actually do anything to progress the heroines' routes!
And by anything, I really mean ANYTHING. Oh, and would you look at that! Sora-chan enjoying some food!
Quite the little glutton, that one... But don't worry, tomboys never get fat!
Everything she eats gets sweated away~ ...
Um... What she's eating? ...
D-Don't ask problematic stuff, okay?!!
What's next
More renders, more animations (actually not that many more?!!), and rewriting the last 5 events...
ETA?!!!
Sorry, still no ETA!
I'll be working in July, but I should have more time to focus on the game in August.
And That's All for Today!
This one was a bit short...
Heatwave, no air conditioning, and having to live in the dark to avoid literally cooking in my own sweat (and mosquitoes)~
So I've got to make good use of the limited "cool" time!
Thank you...
...for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
For Tier 3 supporters: Takeshi's Cultured Preview will come next week on July 18. It will probably be the second-to-last, since I'd like to keep what's left as a surprise ^^ For everyone else: I'll see you again in three weeks, on July 31, for the next devlog.
Re-exported animations with improved compression settings, and fused the face and body back together on some of them
Animation rework?! Again?!
Looks like I celebrated a bit too soon last time, because I found out Ren'Py really doesn't like keeping multiple animations synchronized.
My original plan was to have separate animations for the face and body, but I couldn't find a way to stop Ren'Py from messing things up with random delays or during rollbacks...
So since Ren'Py clearly couldn't handle my incredible creativity, I decided to port the whole game to Unity! See you in 3–5 years for the reworked prologue!
...
...Yeah, no.
So I cut my losses, fused those animations back together, and used the opportunity to apply better compression to all Chapter 5 animations so far (saving up to 70% disk space... yes, I somehow didn't notice until now).
Don't worry though! It sounds like a lot of work, but it actually only took an evening.
I didn't redo the animations themselves, just changed the settings and adapted the code accordingly. Also, this only concerns animations where two were playing side by side at the same time.
Renders using animated parts combined with still images work just fine. (Phew)
Chapter 5 assessement
I didn't run into any major issues this time around, just the usual grind, so I figured it was a good moment to check where development stands.
Based on previous devlogs, we should have:
03/28: +180 layered assets (~140 renders and 1 animation)
04/18: +200 layered assets (~150 renders(?) and 13 animations)
05/30: +200 layered assets (~88 renders(?) and 8 animations)
06/20: +300 layered assets (~150 renders(?) and 12 animations)
Please note the "~": everything is approximate. I honestly have no idea of the exact numbers and don't want to spend time counting every variation.
I did manage to pick up the pace a bit these past weeks, but I'm afraid this is probably my current limit with the little time I have after work, and assuming no major roadblocks.
This render also marks the end of an event that felt like it took an eternity to render and animate! For this second pic, I hesitated about showing a preview of the "dollhouse POV" thing I mentioned last time... But I think it's better not to spoil the surprise and let you experience it in-game!
So instead, here's another poster that will be used as an asset in some renders.
I didn't double-check, but I think there's only one left I haven't shown?
What's next
I estimate I'll need another 1500–2000 renders to complete Chapter 5. ...Don't quote me on that, though! I'm really bad at estimating things!
I'll have the next two weeks off before starting my new job, so I'll do my best to make a dent in that number.
Other than renders, here's what still needs to be done before release:
Finish rewriting the last 6 events
Find a quick solution for the gallery, or hide it again before release
Change how old chapters interact with the patch
Proofread Chapters 2 and 5
Add Chapter 4 summary (reportable)
Test a better UI for the language selector (reportable)
Playtesting and final adjustments
ETA?!!!
June flew by, and July probably will too...
So maybe Aug-
Yeah... better not.
Sorry, no ETA! See you again in a colder month/year/decade!
And That's All for Today!
This devlog was a bit hard to write because, well... Not much to say, I guess?
It kind of feels like driving at full speed on an empty highway, while knowing you'll still arrive late no matter what...
Anyway, it's starting to get really hot here, and I can feel the temperature rising whenever I launch Koikatsu... So I hope it's cooler where you are!
Thank you...
...for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
For Tier 3 supporters: Takeshi's Cultured Preview will be postponed until after the next devlog, as what I currently have is still too similar to what I've already shown. For everyone else: I'll see you again in three weeks, on July 11, for the next devlog.
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Creator Stats
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69 posts
Goals
$19 of $100
per month
I can consider that my VN isn't a flop!
Yeah!
$19 of $400
per month
This will be a huge help to my finances, for sure.
It won't be enough for me to go full time, but it will be a great motivation to go further!
$19 of $900
per month
Beyond this goal, I'll consider changing my full-time job to a part-time one, thus increasing the time I'll have to work on my game.
$19 of $1,500
per month
Making this VN become my main job!
I'll still have to work on the side to make ends meet, but I'll be able to dedicate most of my time to developing this game.
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