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Chapter 5 - Devlog 2 (+ Hiatus Announcement)
Hello everyone!
Another month, another devlog.
But before talking about Chapter 5, let’s get the bad news out of the way first!
March Hiatus
Without going into personal details, February was kind of a difficult month, and I’ll need to spend some time fixing a couple of things.
While I still plan to set some time aside for the game, I can’t say I’ll be able to do so regularly…
That’s why I felt the need to announce a hiatus for the duration of March.
Of course, billing for supporters will be paused during that time. And I’ll keep you informed when I get back to a normal schedule.
What's Been Done?
(Note: More details below)
Filled the Gallery with all current renders (minus layered assets)
Fixed a few issues with the Gallery’s code
Chapter 5 writing (mostly) finished
About the gallery
Last time, I said the Gallery was fully functional… But after starting to add more renders, I encountered a few logical issues and had to revamp the whole thing.
Now everything’s working as it should, with all current renders available to view.
I still need to think about a few things, like what criteria I should use to group certain renders together, or what to do with layered assets… Though I’ll probably wait for your feedback post-release before deciding.
But really, thank goodness I didn’t wait until the last moment to work on the Gallery. That would’ve been the kind of last-minute issue that delays the whole release.
About Chapter 5
This new chapter’s length is currently on par with Chapter 4... but that’s before adding the renders and the few adjustments that come after, and those always add a lot more lines.
At the moment, I’m not entirely satisfied with how the chapter is divided, so I might merge or add some events. Don’t be too surprised if the final event count isn’t the same.
Chapter 5 will follow a more “classic” romcom vibe, though judging by how previous chapters have gone, I’m pretty sure it’ll still manage to surprise you :p
Discord's Age-verification
Yup... not going into too much detail, as I think everyone who cares is already aware… But Discord’s new age-verification system will certainly impact us too.
And while I still trust Discord a bit more than French government websites… I’d probably trust that Nigerian prince spamming my inbox first before handing my ID card to a ""trusted"" third party.
If this becomes unavoidable, I’ll probably give up Discord for an alternative.
Though I’m no pioneer. So for now, I’ll simply make a few minor changes to the server and wait for the storm to pass, I guess.
But yeah... first the Itch situation right after my page got indexed, then the Discord thing right after the server was created… What do you think I should invest my time in next? I’ll make sure to bring a full regulation package with me.
What's next
Making new maps (quite a few, actually)
Making new outfits (around 5–6)
Improving some parts of Chapter 5 (writing, pacing)
Then starting work on the renders
The Scene Scribbles for this chapter will start after the hiatus is over.
But if I manage to make enough progress, I might come back with another devlog before they begin.
ETA?!!!
One month of hiatus, then probably two more months of work after that?
So… May? June?
Should I just go for a full year of development hell??
And that's all for today!
Thank you for following and supporting RomCom:Divergence, and to everyone playing along!
While this hiatus wasn’t planned, I’ll do my best to deliver the next chapter within a reasonable timeframe.
And I hope to see you again in April... or maybe even a bit sooner?
So yeah, before listing everything I've done, I'd like to point out that Chapter 5 development is already throwing any kind of schedule I had out the window.
It's been a month since December 24th, and I spent the first week working on supporter content...
And the second week working on my new Discord.
So please keep in mind that it's been a little less than two weeks of actual work on the game for me.
What's Been Done? (Summary)
(Note: More details below)
Image Gallery and Replay Gallery
Added a language selector in Preferences (no translation for now)
Added a Replay menu for Special Events
Customized the Music Room
Added (optional) summaries before starting new content (WIP)
Some UI changes in the Preferences and Credits menus (color, outline, etc.)
Added Discord to the support pages on the main menu
Added a few minor things to the save spot
Reorganized the Prologue's renders
Fixed some typos (thanks to Bangyongguk97)
Finally, the Chapter 5 events draft is complete, with 24 events and 11 patch scenes planned.
Seasonal decorations (only winter), interactive buttons (useless for now), and the ability to replay past Special Events.
I also added a sort of summary to help you remember the story so far before jumping into the new chapter. If it works correctly, it should automatically suggest a summary of the chapters you've played. It's optional, of course.
What's next
I was saying in my last review that I planned to rework older chapter transitions... Well, I ended up focusing mostly on UI stuff and decided not to do any rework until Chapter 5 is playable.
So the actual writing is coming next... and considering the planned length, I'm really not optimistic about the development time for this chapter. Chapter 4's writing already took me a bit over three weeks in total, so this time around, I'm pretty sure it'll take about a month.
Warning
So yeah, let me warn you in advance, especially if you're a supporter or planning to be:
The schedule will be all over the place this time around, so don't hesitate to pause your subscription.
For those waiting for the Scene Scribbles to subscribe, please wait until the actual announcement is made, because it'll surely come later than in previous chapters.
ETA?!!!
One month... at the very least...
...until the next devlog.
No point in doing another one before the writing is actually completed, right?
And that's all for today!
Thank you to all my subscribers for continuing to support this project, and to everyone following and playing along!
As I mentioned in the Chapter 4 review, we actually managed to reach the very first goal, if only temporarily! And while it's not much, it's still one step toward success! So thank you again for your trust!
The next devlog probably won't be until February 21st, but don't hesitate to drop by the Discord!
Soundtrack: 66 (+13) music tracks, 92 (+15) sound effects
Some Development Facts & Anecdotes
The first event draft for this chapter was written back in July, while my computer was out.
Development lasted from 09/29 to 12/23 (~86 days).
It was my first time working full-time on an RCD release from start to finish.
I originally hoped to release the chapter at the end of November, with a render count closer to Chapter 3.
Chapter 4 is the longest chapter to date; it also has the highest word count per sentence of all chapters.
The 20th event and the Christmas event are almost entirely made of layered assets.
Chapter 4 alone added at least 11k lines of script, and the Christmas event added around 3k.
I worked on this chapter until the very last few hours before the early release, same for the Christmas event before its public release.
The Loading Issue
Well... I managed to screw all this work over a single uninitialized variable... And I had to do an emergency update a few hours after the public release went live... Tee-hee~!
Last time it was Android saves getting reset, and now this... Yeah, the truth is that I hate returning players! I only want first-time players!!!
(Kidding, come back, please.)
Reception, Success, Failure
Chapter 4 roughly made the same numbers as Chapter 3. Well, I did lose the first few hours because of the whole emergency update situation, but it shouldn't make that much of a difference.
I'm not sure I can count it as a success or not, but I guess I'm already hitting my first ceiling. Looks like I'll finally have to pimp out my sorry excuse for an Itch page, huh...? Sigh
Also, I can't really back this up with hard facts, but I feel like this chapter's reception was colder than the last one. At least, that's my impression from my POV.
On a more positive note: After putting together my Patreon and SubscribeStar, I managed to hit my first goal of $100 (at least for now). Hurray!
What does it change? Nothing! But now, you can be proud to contribute to both my coffee and France's strategic expenses! Thank you for helping me pay for that €40k armchair~!
And next time... I'll be counting on your support to pay for those €550,000 worth of bottles of champagne too~
Writing, Pacing, and Transitions
So, Chapter 4 was really different from the others, right? Longer sentences, a bit more breathing room between major events, and... the transitions. A lot more sounds and screen shaking going on during dialogue lines. I actually think they account for around 3k lines in Chapter 4's script.
I was a bit afraid I'd done too much, but when replaying Chapter 3, I really noticed how silent my VN was until now. But what do you think?
Renders and Animations
Once again, I had to cut back on animations for Chapter 4. I tried to compensate a bit with those pseudo-animations (looping renders with sound), but I think it actually ended up being counterproductive... It may have given the impression that I was abandoning animation quality.
So, I hope I'll be able to improve things for Chapter 5. Actually, working on those pseudo-animation things gave me some ideas...
Supporter Perks
With the reduction of unused assets, Misaki's treasure box is starting to really lack content.
To fix this, I'd like to change it to be more like a Making-of... I'm still working out the details, but that's the general idea.
And so, that'll take us to...
Schedule Changes
I'd like to put more work into supporter content, so from now on, those will be released the week following the public release. This gives me a bit more time, and also reduces post spam during major releases.
When I started working on this project, I adapted my release schedule to fit my job. I decided to use Wednesdays for major posts and releases.
Despite losing some audience by releasing midweek, I still saw some benefits, as it allowed me to collect feedback to work with over the weekend.
Well... I've decided it's no longer worth it, and I'll be moving major releases to Saturdays instead.
What's Next?
I'd like to say I'll start working on Chapter 5 immediately, but... To meet deadlines for the last two chapters, I ended up sacrificing work on more and more miscellaneous stuff.
Add to that the fact that I need to rework transitions in all the previous chapters, and well... I'm past the stage of hiding behind the promise of doing everything in the last week of development. Also, I want the game to be in a good state for what comes after Chapter 5.
I'll have enough on my plate with the Class Council stuff, after all. So yeah, the next devlog will probably be disappointing:
"Fixed X lines of script from Chapter 1."
"Added Y lines of transition to Chapter 2."
Discord Server
And finally, to wrap up this (very) long review, I'll be sharing the invitation link to my Discord.
I've been working on it since the start of the year, and while I started from scratch with my meager knowledge (and nonexistent motivation), it should be in a working state!
Feel free to come and add another place to your list of shitposting locations.
And That's All!
Thank you for your time, support, and (hopefully) feedback!
If you want to take a more active part in the game's development, consider joining the Discord.
No new poll for this chapter! But don't worry, I'll be sure to drown you in them with the Class Council!
-Haptales (I hate Discord)
TL;DR:
Release/Post schedule: Wednesday → Saturday
What's next: ‘Slight' rework of previous chapters, then Chapter 5
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Creator Stats
20 subscribers
51 posts
Goals
$26 of $100
per month
I can consider that my VN isn't a flop!
Yeah!
$26 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!
$26 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.
$26 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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