Hiya everyone!~ Sorry it's been a bit quiet here lately, we've been extremely busy trying to get everything ready to presented for our newsletter soon. 

The newsletter will cover a range of screenshot previews for the upcoming content, new features and systems added to the game in action, highlighting exactly how much work has been going into Episode 1's content to give a better idea of what to expect for the rest of the game.

Once again, we'd like to remind everyone that the improvements and additions to earlier content doesn't mean we're scrapping existing content or starting over, limiting fans/supporters in any way. This isn't a reboot or starting fresh, etc.

We are doing improvements to existing content to better the pacing and of course the addition of new gameplay systems and features included, adjusting those to fit with existing moments and in-between them.

It has taken us far more time than we would've liked personally to have Episode 1 ready, but there was a lot of foundation building needed for these new systems and gameplay, not so much the time it takes to get it into the engine and functioning.. But rather, we have to lay out exactly how the timeline of events take place. 

That's typical for the story content & writing, ensuring there's no major plot holes or the pacing ruins the experience. There's a story/lore document we've been refining and improving for over 5 years, that alone has taken time to dig through everything, cross-reference and make sure nothing clashes or doesn't work, etc. Once players get their hands on Episode 1, it'll begin to open up the story majorly as we have the outline of how the pacing improvements and additions there pan out.

It'll make a lot more sense, trust the process! 

Basically, there's a lot of moving gears in setting up these new systems, not all of them obviously.. Like new player choices isn't suddenly a new concept or anything crazy at it's core.. ^^" 

But we are leaning more into meaningful choices that are paced out, and trying to ensure these choices either impact CG content, possibly unlocking new future written scene/moments, or changing the direction of how events play out during a given scene itself.

There's a early choice shortly after the protag and their buddies come across a teacher (Tara), where there's a lot of processing taking place with the sudden news of diapers being a thing, let alone the other rules, and their shock leads into a player moment that splits into 3 paths that differ from each other.

One choice leans a bit more into erotic focus early on, totally changing up how the scene proceeds and plays out, while the other two feel similar in how those play out vs that choice, but one choice leans a bit more into the oddity of it all, a bit more mystery vibe. While the other choice leans more into comedy, etc.

On paper it sounds easy "Well, I'm going with the erotic path choice!" XD but we're keeping that in mind, trying to ensure whenever player choices appear, it isn't going to default to one really fun or rewarding choice, while the other two feel lack luster. That'll really shine as Episode 1 gets into the 2nd half and how the game tracks things into Episode 2 forward, really starting to open the doors a bit more and play more into the protagonist (player) making choices based on what seems best, or possibly how you'd react in that moment, etc.

The phone interface system is another thing, where in theory it isn't like it takes us months to get that one system into Ren'py and working. It's more so, figuring out how the system will hold up throughout the entirety of the game, basically everything being worked on can be seen as the foundation of these new systems and gameplay added, where once we have these sorted. (Which we do now!)

Episodes 2 and beyond shouldn't take us more than 30-35 days ideally to deliver new game content. Can things still popup out of the blue from one day to the next? Sure! But, in the event we find that we're not going to make a given release date window for new content.. We're looking at ensuring we get any level of content in your hands regardless.

We're trying to find that balance between quality content vs rushing to get everything ready and out all at once, having to slow down and return to already released content to fix it fully, delaying new content development because we pushed content out when it wasn't in a 95% finalized state. :S

So, our solution moving forward is that if Episode 2 in full isn't ready and we know it won't happen realistically within that 30-35 day window.. We'll do smaller release chucks of content to keep things steady. What we mean by that is, say September comes along and halfway through the month, we realize only the first 2-3 scenes are fully ready by then and the rest of the episode is easily going to need 20+ more days to get it all sorted out entirely..

We'll make a game build that contains those first 2-3 scenes to provide a steady flow of content for players. 

(The only issue there that we see, is if it happens regularly, some people might not want to download new builds bi-weekly or so. Ideally this is more of a last effort if we really can't hit that 30-35 day window.)

We don't want this news post to be too long, but we needed to break the silence and let everyone know that new content is underway still! Our newsletter will be shared around on Twitter and openly when it's ready, all the previews and highlights, etc. 

I don't want to toss a exact or estimated time window for when to expect the newsletter, much like we're feeling awkward about listing dates for releases of new content.. <.< But, the chances of seeing the newsletter by next week with some other goodies that same day is fairly high. 
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We'll probably mention this last tidbit in our newsletter as a highlight as well, but simply put. Our game development that's on-going/active has reached a point, where there just isn't nearly as much stuff to share with new posts. We still have art previews, mainly for CG art needed all the way until the game is fully finished. 

But I think we've come to realize that we're just simply at a far enough point with game development that the only kind of posts we can make will be news/game related talks for the project itself (like this post and newsletters) along with some similar stuff like a voting poll for the month, a few things like that..

But when it comes to more exciting visual related posts, honestly... We have all the game's BG art completed, the sprite art needs are wrapping up in the next few months (most of those are heavily story spoilers, so it's hard to share those yet without huge questions for us). Which kinda leaves us in a spot where for visual previews of stuff to expect from month to month for posts, it'll most likely be CG art previews & game screenshot/video previews. 

Sometimes we'll have an odd post for chibi related art asset previews or similar smaller tasks, but overall what we're getting at with these mentions is firstly addressing the lack of posts lately. <.<

The other thing is that quite simply, we're probably looking at a more relaxed posting schedule. I'd like to get back into tossing out at least two posts on Subscribestar each week, expecting 7-8 posts in a month, quality posts.. But, we just wanted to address what the expectations for regular posts and exclusive content for supporters will be like moving forward.

(I think this point of development naturally hits anyone, where at first, a brand new project will have tons of stuff to share and show off as it's getting a lot of visual stuff done. But as those assets are taken care of one by one, it shifts into a more auto-pilot mode. For example: Our main team after Lisa finishes sprite work will consist of myself (writing/editing/lead director/etc) Our programmer, CG artists (two of them), and our composer/sfx person mainly. Once in a rare while our chibi artist, but even those needs are dwindling as we have the assets needed mostly.)

In short, it's nothing to fear about the project as a whole.. ^^" We're actively developing new content and we'll showcase that here shortly, moving forward again with regular releases. But.. We just wanted to address our post schedule and expectations, explaining why that's slowing down a bit.

With that, I think this post has gone on long enough for a "mini news" post. :S But hopefully everyone's been doing okay lately!~ It's been extremely busy this summer, both the project and personal stuff going on, but it seems to be settling down too. <3

[Next post will come for supporters by Wednesday/Thursday, featuring CG art previews for some upcoming additions for Episode 1 and Episode 2! Double feature!~ Post after that should be next week early on for the newsletter, then trying to keep with a Sun/Mon post + Wed/Thurs post weekly.]

Hiya everyone!~ This is going to be more of a personal mini blog/news update post, but we'll begin first with MA project mentions, since we're not quite ready for the next newsletter yet.

Okay! So, first thing on the list~ We're still chipping away on the next updates for both public and supporters. There's good reason for why it's taken a bit longer into this month, but I've been trying my best to keep up with the team and ensure we're getting the content ready asap!

I'd really like to kick it into overdrive mode this weekend into next week, so that we can get even a decent sized demo for what's ready and get the ball rolling again.

As of right now, we're thinking the demos will be out by the 27-28th at the latest. We'll most likely have our newsletter for June out early/mid next week to showcase sneak peeks and previews of what we've been working on as well!

We're sorry it's taking a while longer.. But we're hopeful the new gameplay features added, plus the female protagonist differences will easily make up for it as we move into the other episodes of the game, including her into them, and expanding upon the new features naturally as the game progresses.

I'd like to personally avoid any delays or issues like this again, and so we're considering the option of releasing smaller pieces of content every 2-3 weeks. Even if that means, there's 1-2 new written scenes added to the public and supporter updates to the game for a little while. It'll let us build up a buffer of content to release a little here and there if there is situations that delay things.

(Some delays are out of my hands technically, if say the programmer runs into a issue with their hardware. I can't physically fix that when they're half way across the globe. ^^" At least with a solid chuck of buffer content ready, we should be able to use those as safety nets for these periods when it's a bit rough. That way, we're still delivering content regularly, just maybe a little light on the content for a little while before we can get into the groove.)

With MA stuff out of the way first, since many are here for that naturally. The next stuff is more blog and personal stuff, so you're free to check out from here if that isn't your thing. <3


Still with me? Okay~ So, I've been extremely busy here the past 2 weeks. Even more so in the past week.. For some context: My parents and I live in a park community, and a few months back my Dad got me my own place within the park so we're not too far away. (The place was around $5,000) It is technically a mobile home park model with a enclosed lanai attached.)

There's been a number of home improvement projects I've been taking on with the place, mostly on my own.. Although my Mom and Dad has helped when possible. I'm in the process of prepping the place for my best friend who's coming down for a month in July to test if she wants to be my roommate long-term or what not. So, I've been getting the place updated and fixed since her last visit a few months ago, back in Spring.

The biggest battle recently with Florida's summer that decided to begin super early this year.. Is trying to keep the place cool and comfortable during the peak hours of the day, typically by 10-11am you can notice the humidity and warmth inside the place building and increasing as it hits noon, lasting sometimes until 7-8pm before it begins to feel good again.

So, recently I've installed a AC unit in the wall of the lanai where my bedroom is and it helps, but even with 2 AC unit's in a 28x10 feet lanai. There's barely any insulation or sound proofing. The walls go.. PVC siding -> foam board -> PVC exterior skirt siding. That's it! *melts in humidity*

I've been slowly working on getting the materials to build a finished wall to replace the existing ones in the lanai, starting with 2x6's to create the wall's frame/studs and get the electrical boxes attached. Then, I'm going with rock wool sound proof insulation, even though it's a bit more costly..

It's technically waterproof vs other options, and for a flood prone zone during hurricanes. Anything that won't become moldy or destroyed instantly.. the better! But, the big reason I'm going with that insulation is to cut outside noise down by 50% or greater. As of right now, my neighbor could easily hear me speaking at normal volume in my lanai, or just in general hear movements and any noise I or my dog's make. (They're about 10 feet or less away from my lanai.)

So, I really want to cut the noise as best as possible to have more privacy and ease of mind.

It's all a on-going process as I slowly get the money set aside to tackle these material costs, but I was able to recently get the money together to get the 2x6's needed to do my bedroom in the lanai, so.. I'm hoping to do my bedroom first entirely for around.. $400-500 to cover the 10x8ft space's walls.

That won't entirely fix everything, because the rest of the lanai will allow cool air to escape and noise will bleed out that way, since I don't have a door between my bedroom and the entertainment room (rest of the lanai). ^^" But the rest of the lanai will easily be about $700-800.

So, I'm tackling it little by little, but Florida summer makes it feel pretty rough right now. :S

The rest of the place has 1 window AC unit in the main bedroom (now guest bedroom for my friend) and I've been using a box fan to suck and blow that cool air down the small hallway into the kitchen/living room space. Although, it really doesn't do a lot.. ^^"

I really need to see about getting this split unit installed in the living room, but I also have to be careful about power usage. The place can go up to 50amp's of service for the entire place and while I was at my parent's place last year, we tried running 3 AC units in their lanai around this time last year, which worked for a little while..

Then.. My Mom went to plug the golf cart into the outlet outside and it knocked power out for the lanai, and that's a whole other story.. <.< But, the short of it is.. You have to be really careful here with off loading everything, turn stuff off if it's not being used, etc.

(We've already looked into upgrading the 50 amp service. A electrician at the time said he could upgrade the service panel for my parent's place, but it'd be nearly $2,000 to do. ;_; Not only that, but the park won't let them do that, because it's their service panel and rules, etc.)

Which leads me into some more recent issues actually that's kept me extremely busy in the past 2 weeks...

Earlier this month, my parent's needed help moving the last things they had in storage to cut down on monthly costs. So, that was a solid two days of getting stuff from point A to B, unloading and finding spots to put everything, mostly it all went into their lanai space for now.

Then, I noticed a letter on my parent's front door.. A notice from the park's front office, that said my parent's have 7 days to remove one of their two sheds, stacks of pavers, and a number of things from the back porch area or they'd be evicted if these things weren't tackled in this cure period.

Naturally this happened right before the weekend, so the main lady at the front who runs things wasn't in until the following Tuesday.. So, we couldn't really get any confirmation on what they meant, because.. everyone in the park has 2+ sheds for one thing, other people have pavers stacked neatly up against their house and it isn't a problem? So, there's that too..

With no other choice and my Dad working 6 days out of the week.. It comes down to me to help my Mom with these tasks. So, to save some time.. In the past week or so, my day's have roughly been more or less like the following...

Wake up -> take the dogs out to potty -> take a shower/general hygiene, dressed etc -> make something small to eat -> head over to my parent's to do 6-8 hours of tasks. (with breaks, since you can stand outside in the shade for 5 minutes and already foam sweat all over your arms, forehead, etc without physically doing anything.) *melts just thinking about it*

For example, I think it took me all day to move about 200+ pavers that I kinda understand what the park meant, since they weren't up against the house or hidden out of sight. But, just moving these neat stacks about 8-10 feet by hand, 2 pavers at a time plus the heat.. I probably ended up taking about 6-8 mini breaks in-between to go inside and drink like crazy, sit in front of the AC and cool down for about 5 minutes before going right back out there and moving stuff again. 

(I wasn't going to have my Mom go out there and help, because she recently got sick from the heat and physically, she can't do all that bending, lifting, etc.)

So, after moving the pavers neatly against the side of their place, hidden out of sight better. I tackled their back porch with her help, and here's the awkward part.. Anytime we have stuff that's a bit bigger or awkward to toss in the dumpster up front for regular trash.. The park won't let you dump big stuff in that dumpster, instead.. They suggest having a worker from the park pick it up for a fee to get rid of it. >.< (Talking $30-60 to get rid of something, and beyond if there's more items.)

The other option is load up the back of the car with what we can, take it to the dump and still be charged a good amount to dump stuff there. <.< So, it really makes getting rid of some stuff harder, and I can understand now why some elderly folks in the park just stash stuff in their shed, lanai, or hide it elsewhere if they can't get rid of it. (That or if it's decent enough, they can put it out by the road and someone in the community might take it off your hands for free = the best outcome.)

After back to back day's like this for about a week, my back is starting to really feel it and I've only now starting to take it a little more easier.. >.< Even then, I still have some tasks with helping my parents out with their eviction notice/warning.

When we called the front office the day that the main lady was in. My Mom went over the letter with her, trying to figure out and reason with them.. because getting rid of a heavy aluminum shed that's empty without a fork lift or truck in 7 days or less after receiving the letter is a pretty big request..

Not to mention, their park rules make zero sense.. Everyone has 2+ sheds, despite their rule/s that claim, only 1 shed allowed. Which after asking the office before the main lady was in.. they were trying to say no sheds are allowed? Okay.. well, tell that to every single person who has 2+ sheds actively right now? Did they get notices recently too? All of them? That's where things don't make sense, and it feels like they're singling certain people out for some reason..

I asked around, since it's the off-season, the park is maybe 50 places out of 300 or more that's still here year-round? But everyone I knew to ask who lives here, only one said they knew their neighbor was given a notice to paint their shed.. But not remove it, adding more confusion to their "rules" they enforce or rather.. lack of enforcement until they feel like doing it, and only selective enforcement. (I'm aware there's laws here to protect against being singled out like that, etc.)

Okay.. So, the shed needs removed still and the only "upside" to this mess, is that the lady said someone who works for the park can come by and get the empty shed out of there for no fee. (Which is the most shocking, because they charge for anything when given the chance!)

It still makes no sense they have to get rid of their one shed, when it sounds like it isn't being enforced to others and so we're keeping an eye on that as the active season kicks up in Oct/Nov into next year before people begin leaving again to see if other people's sheds begin to disappear.. or if it's not being enforced, and maybe build a case against the park if my parents are being singled out.

Secondly, the pavers are a bit up in the air.. because she didn't say if they can stay where they're at or not. She just told my Mom pavers can't be put into the ground without the park's permission, despite many other people in the park already having grand driveways with fancy pavers and one case, where someone's lot/yard is 80% pavers.. They have a full blown mini community setup with multiple tables and chairs out front of their place for get togethers.. ^^" 

So, that's another oddity, and I know a few places where they have pavers stacked next to their place, a little out of sight and nothing is done about them? So, we're keeping an eye on that too in the coming months.

For now, the pavers need to be stashed away under my parent's place. (remove the pvc skirting and slide them under the home) and I told her, I could take some and replace the old ones already in the ground at my place's back garden since the old pavers are cracked and needs updated in general. 

The back porch is technically fine now? But.. they did say the washing machine that my Grandparent's left behind, even though it's hooked up and could be used right now if wanted.. That needs to be moved into the lanai, or rid of it.. or add a enclosure closet kind of deal on the back porch to hide the washer. 

(Another thing other people have outside their places too. Not to mention, the shed and washer have been there for 5+ years? The shed's been there since 20+ years while my Grandparent's owned the place and it wasn't an issue until now? Just seems a bit fishy..)

It'd be one thing if the enforcement is happening across the board, no special treatment or making up new rules as they go along, that weren't in the original contracts signed.. There's cracks in the management in this park, not so much a problem with the people living here and I don't want to screw anyone else over by pointing the finger at them.. But if you're going to claim to apply these rules and then earlier this year, when I talked to one of the security guys in passing..

He told me during the active season, he's told by upper management to let certain rules slide to not upset the tourists/snow birds who stay here for 4-6 months. Including.. When there's a burn ban, they're told to let it slide here or there when all it takes it one mistake and a bigger issue is on their hands for letting things slide.. 

So, when I hear things like that are allowed to slide by and unfair treatment, rules applied selectively, made up rules that counter-dict themselves from what they say 2 months ago vs now, etc. It just really feels like there's a lot of cracks forming and now I can see why many people who have been here for many years are getting out of here.. It's making a lot of sense now.

The only saving grace in any of this.. is that the notice my parent's received was given a extended week to get the shed cleared out and figure out where things in there are now going to be stored without more issues.. (It's almost as if you're not allowed to have anything outside, because even our gazebo that was there prior to moving in.. soon as the active season ended in 2025 shortly after we moved in, the park told us the gazebo needed taken down and removed, plus chairs, etc.)

Meanwhile.. other places have gazebo's or similar up all year round, even during hurricane season when it can become a hazard with the high winds. It just doesn't make a lick of any logical sense to me..

So, lately I've been extremely busy with this mess that the park is doing and sadly my Mom can only do so much physically, so it lands on my lap to help or watch as they're evicted.. Or if we have a legit legal case of being singled out, then of course bringing up proof and written documents of everything presented, dates, etc. We could use that to avoid any eviction issues, since they'd prefer to stay out of court and settle the issue before it becomes a larger one.

Thankfully after today's help with clearing out the shed, I should be able to fully get back into my regular schedule, where I do my daily tasks, taking my dogs out, etc. Sinking 6+ hours of writing and project work in during the weekdays, and get back to some level of normalcy again. <3

It's just been a lot on my plate here recently, and being so physically and mentally tired, that by the time I settle down at my computer in the past 2 weeks. I've more or less briefly checked a few sites for half a hour before I'm too exhausted and end up passing out, only to repeat things the next day, and the next day, etc. ;_;

Sorry my blog portion here is really long.. But I know some of you really enjoy these more personal blog mentions, and I hope many will understand. 

More posts are coming regularly once more for Subscribestar and Twitter~ I'd like to do 2 posts per week on Subscribe star on average, more if we have more to show or do. Twitter will be shooting for 2 posts per week as well, but geared a bit more towards what we can share publicly. (Keeping the latest previews and stuff exclusive for supporters for 2 months for art before we slowly tease a little bit of that publicly, linking to the full preview posts, etc.)

Next post will get caught up on some CG art previews this weekend, followed by a newsletter/demo stuff next week/weekend ideally!

Hiya!~ It's time for another Pembroke Academy Newsletter! We're going to start things off right away with the main news.

The next game's updates are still coming! We've got a lot of episode 1's content updated since the data loss issue we had, and we're now getting the UI systems sorted out for the phone interface. Next after that, we're focusing on the new gameplay for choices to improve those in more meaningful ways, better paced throughout from scene to scene.

We're honestly looking at this content being ready in June, given we're a few days away already. But, we're getting some testing done on the early portions of the episode and we'd like to provide both public and supporters with a taste of how episode 1 feels for the early scenes for both Brandon and Blythe.

So, we'll be providing the public fans with the rest of episode 5's content (same as what supporters currently have access to) and the first two scenes of episode 1 on the same day! We really want to get a broader idea with feedback on how Brandon vs Blythe feels, and we think this should be fair to supporters as well.

Supporters will be receiving the entirety of episode 1's content, for both Brandon and Blythe options. Giving a much more broader scope of how the two protagonist's come across, getting a solid impression of them!

[Additional content bonus - Supporters regardless of tier will get to try out godmode for episode 1. The protagonist receives a strange vision at key moments that briefly allows them to foresee the outcome of their actions, allowing them to witness what would happen in full and deciding that action, or winding back to player choices to witness the other visions. This allows players to witness all content regardless of locked content, ideal for those who prefer to experience all of the game's content in one playthrough. (Routes still have to be played through individually, but all branching paths in said route have the strange visions applied.)]

[Supporters who were active during March - April - May, upon the release of new content, reach out to us directly. We'll put another reminder of this out on the day of releases too. We're offering the next game's content for "free" along with the other mentions above, as our way to make up our delays, but we really hope the content will speak for itself.]

[Writing - Editing - Programming]

I've personally been more busy than I'd like to admit with my new place, making improvements, even chipping two hours into those tasks to get a little done each day. I plan on doing a blog post here sometime in June or July once it's looking really solid. When I'm not focused on those fixes, I've been getting episode 2's content updated for the protag's and other features we're introducing through episode 1.

I think once we share how episode 1 plays, it'll be really exciting! There's some light changes here and there when it comes to the protagonist's personality. Mainly to help bridge the two closer in how they come across generally, but we're trying to twist both protagonist's to have their clear differences through the game too.

Writing scripts are coming along for future content, trying to stay ahead. Editing wise, I feel really terrible because there's been 3 people who reached out to us, and we haven't had the chance to review anything yet.. >.<

I'd like to personally get through those reviews on possible editors, but for the upcoming game content for supporters (episode 1 in whole). That'll be edited to my best knowledge for now, but just keep that in mind as we're in a transition phase to get solid editing going again.

Our programmer's been working heavily on episode 1's content, last update on that was that we're about 75-80% done for the general content. I think the last two scenes are left to add, then it's going through to add the phone interface, gameplay choices, etc!

[CG Art - Sprite Art]

Our CG artists, Ajose and Marxe have been pumping through new art for the game! We recently shared previews focused on Juni and Mika's characters, planned for branching paths in Miki's route. 

Marxe has been working on finishing up Juni's 2nd CG, so we'll get previews of that early into June once he wraps those up. Ajose has been working on Mika's 2nd CG, but it's still very early into that one right now. 

I think once we wrap those ones up, we'll mix it up very lightly with making sure earlier episodes CG art isn't missing anything. I know off the top of my head, there's 2-3 CG scenes maybe that need updated for one reason or another, but we're trying to lightly mix those into the work flow with our priority on brand new CG art.

Lisa's been staying ahead on sprite stuff this month! Sadly the recent work isn't anything we can fully share previews of yet, but as the story unfolds. We'll share the full sprite works of these, it's been a long time coming, but it'll probably be best we handle it carefully so we don't overload how to even process it. :P

She's gotten 3 sprite related things done for May, and we'll be wrapping up work on those things related to story sometime in July. We'll probably get another more public thing we can share for previews out for June though! (Probably spring festival idol outfits for the main cast.)

Below is our estimated dates for the next two releases, v0.24 in June, and v0.25 in July.

[Game Update/Release Date]
V0.23 - June 15th (Public Version)
V0.24 Demo - June 15th (Public Version)
V0.24 - June 15th (Support Version)

 [Game Update/Release Date]
V0.24 - July 25th (Public Version)
V0.25 - July 25th (Support Version)

(v0.24 will consist of episode 1 QoL additions/fixes, providing many scenes. Around 18,000 word count in total or better + new CG art added, some old CG art being updated with new art and variants. Female protagonist playable, new gameplay systems added, new player choices that impact events, and more!)

(v0.25 should consist of either the last two scenes for episode 5's content to finish that up, or continuing with episode 2's QoL content. We'll be asking fans and supporters directly upon the release of v0.24, if there's a majority that wants us to continue with QoL stuff at that time, or if taking a break to finish episode 5 feels better to people. We're trying to engage with everyone on this and do the best approach! <3 )
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---{Closing Statements}---

I'd like to personally thank everyone with our recent voting poll a while back! The results were very interesting!

The majority of fans seem to prefer a middle-ground approach with how the written content is handled. We originally asked, because in recent times, looking at later parts of episode 5. We can see a preference for more descriptive prose, which I even struggled with, because it was slipping through too often between dialogue heavy moments.

Compare that to how episode 1 is written in pacing currently, and it's like night and day. A lot more dialogue heavy, with very little prose, etc. So, both approaches have their pros and cons, but I think we have a good idea on how to handle writing moving forward. I've been trying to study more VN's and breakdown the pacing of their scenes, how they function, and overall help improve the flow of the writing so that it doesn't get too wordy.

The points where it'd make sense, is during certain CG scenes that are stretched out. But, I've went through and tried to fix episode 1 up a little bit better for the script, so we should get a good overall impression of how the game will feel moving forward through the episode. <3

First time with us? Consider joining our Discord community and hang out, or follow us on Twitter!~ Of course Subscribestar is our main place for posts, so if you aren't there already. Consider following for free, or possibly support the project and team if you're able to!~

Discord Server Invite
https://discord.gg/UgkUnd5cEV

Twitter Page
https://x.com/MessyStudios1

Subscribestar Page
https://subscribestar.adult/messyacademy
https://subscribestar.art/messyacademy

Thanks everyone, until our next newsletter, stay awesome!~
-Messy Studios    

NEW: Starting from this point forward, we're trying to condense down on posts, while ensuring the quality of our posts are there. We've decided to condense both public and support newsletters into one post moving forward.
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---{Section 1 - When's the next Update?}---

Hiya everyone! Welcome back to yet another Pembroke Academy Newsletter! Let's get right into recent events, and where the next game updates are sitting for everyone.

If you've read our last newsletters in March, I've been juggling a number of things since the year began. The major thing is being a new home owner, and I say "home" lightly.. Because the place is more like a mobile home with a lanai addition. The place still needs some work done and the state of the place is a mess of storage bins and items just laying around until I get some shelving and cheap stuff to organize everything. ^^"

I plan on doing a personal blog post sometime in May or June, once there's been more progress made on the place, to showcase how it looked originally and after. A little home tour of sorts! :P

Anyways! The days have been a complete blur, blending into one another while juggling home improvements, project work, and other personal chores, etc. (Which is why I've fallen behind a good bit on posts made, plus last month's uncertainty with censorship fears.) :S

I wanted to get this newsletter out yesterday, but I was waiting to hear back from our programmer for a while and with our time differences, and how busy things have been lately, It's been hard to catch them and figure out what's the status on the new update for supporters. (v0.24)

Even more so, as I threw out the idea that we'd have this update ready sometime between April 18-19th.. <.< And that was already delaying things a bit, since v0.24 for supporters and v0.23 for public was due for late March originally.

Well, I've heard back from the programmer, but it's not exactly the news break I want to share.. Heck, just reading about it originally made me unsure what to do next...

The programmer's computer was hit by a power surge, and since then.. His computer won't boot up, so he's been working on getting replacement parts to troubleshoot what all can be saved from his computer. He was able to take his storage devices out of his computer and hook them up to his laptop to at least continue work there, but the drive with the project files isn't reading anything?

Which sounds like we're back at step one for programming v0.24's content.. Unless they manage to recover the files, or find a backup of the project files they were working on hosted on the cloud or somewhere else.

What's this mean for the next game updates?

Well.. As of right now, I've provided them with the latest project files from v0.23, before they began working on v0.24's programming tasks. So, at the very least.. We just need to get v0.24's content programming done from scratch before it's ready.

The bad news with that being, it took them easily 3-4 weeks to get the programming work on v0.24 done in the first place.. So, unless they pull through with finding saved copies of the project files during v0.24, even partially completed for the update.. We're looking at having the update ready sometime between May 9-16th (3-4 weeks).

I'd like to apologize for this, even though it was really unexpected and it doesn't make things look good on our part.. I've talked with the programmer about providing me with the project files at least in 3 parts moving forward, so we can prevent losing work like that again. >.<

(When the programmer gets about 1/3rd of the new content done, I'll receive a copy of that state of the game. Then again at 2/3rd of the way done, then of course when it's fully completed.)

Another thing I'd like to do isn't much, but we hope it'll be appreciated. Anyone who's an active supporter at $5+ tier or above from March/April will receive v0.24 for "free" given you've expected the update during these months and it's the least we can do, but on top of that... We want to also provide everyone with the return of "godmode" for free this one time.

Godmode automatically unlocks certain requirements to witness unlocked content. This covers CG art variants that take place only if you've made certain choices prior to the moment, or written scenes and dialogue that appears based on similar requirements. This includes the option to jump back, right before choices were made or during CG scenes, in order to witness everything.

(Example: Upon reaching a CG scene that has default variants play out in sequence, before the CG begins. Godmode will kick in and display additional player choices, letting you witness the default CG, or you'll be able to choose from other options to see those unlocked CG variants play out without having to worry about having the requirement conditions normally.)

In short, Godmode is ideal for those who might not want to deal with typical visual novel requirements to see everything, not wishing to replay through content you've seen once before or more, just to enjoy some of the unlocked or other content within the heat of the moment! :P

As for the public version of the game, v0.23 and those waiting publicly for new content. We're going to provide the game update on May 2nd, in 2 weeks. That way the public doesn't have to wait until May 9-16th. It isn't much, given everyone's been waiting.. But that's why we're sweetening the deal!

Public fans will not only gain access to v0.23 content on May 2nd. They'll also receive a demo for v0.24 on May 9-16th when the support version out as well!

The demo will cover the beginning of episode 1's first three scenes, the introduction to Pembroke Academy, Acceptance of the rules & meeting Tara, and the first class period with Erika! This content will feature both male and female protag options, and we know how extremely patient the feMC fans have been...

So! We hope these offerings outlined below for public and supporters will make up for the delay and unexpected events. <3

[Public Version Content]
-V0.23 = May 2nd release.
-v0.24 demo = May 9-16th release.

[Support Version Content]
-V0.24 = May 9-16th release. (Free for $5+ supporters from March/April)
-Godmode activated! (Included for all $5+ supporters this one time)

---{Section 2 - Dev Team Mentions}---

Writing - Editing - Programming

Despite our unfortunate news today with the delay, it also has some upsides.. ^^" One being that, I've been chipping away on a mix of episode 2's content for both protag gender differences and additions, etc. Along with lightly continuing on the last two scenes for episode 5, so we might be able to have it so v0.25 set for June will provide a mix of content for supporters.

Of course public would gain access to episode 1 fully with the FeMC and everything else by that point in June.

In short, I'm staying ahead and creating a buffer between myself, our future editor and the programmer to keep our important cycle flowing.

Speaking of editor! I have two people who reached out a while ago about the editing position and if you're reading this, I haven't forgotten! ^^" I'll be looking over that stuff tomorrow (Sunday) and getting back to you both.

We'd still love to hear anyone's thoughts on the game content lately, mainly with later content introduced in episode 5. We're trying to strike a balance between prose and dialogue without overdoing it on the prose, descriptive details, etc. :S We're just curious how fans think about that sort of stuff in visual novels.

Do you prefer VN's with lots of prose? Middle-ground approach? Very little to none? Let us know! <3

CG Art - Sprite Art - Live2D

Things have been amazing with the art team lately! Our CG artists, Ajose and Marxe are working on some optional branching path CG art as we move into Summer. We'd love to know if there's any fan favorite side characters we should possibly tackle their content next! :P

You might've seen the latest CG previews a few days ago already, which feature Miki's cousin, named Juni. That's one of two CG's for Juni as a character expected, with Ajose wrapping up his work on Juni's second CG art, and I have a feeling it'll be a big hit for many!

We've been trying to squeeze in extra fun unlocked versions of CG scenes with these, in our next CG we'll be sharing previews of for Miki's Mom, named Mika.. It takes place in the bathhouse at Pembroke, and let's just say clothing isn't permitted in the bathhouse.. 0///0

Despite that, there's still two unlocked versions that'll display Mika wearing a diaper, and one version with her undies on, even though logically it wouldn't make sense in the context.. But, we're fully aware that options are fun! So.. We hope you'll all love those! ^^

Marxe is currently working on this CG for Mika as we speak, and it's almost done! So, we'll be putting out the concept previews in the coming days, followed by the finished previews later next week!

We've already got ideas for the next CG to feature Mika, that way we can wrap up the 2 CG's for Juni and Mika expected for the base game. Of course in the future, once the base game's needs are complete and there's demands for DLC. We'll take those CG's and expand on them, adding additional new CG moments and story, etc.

Moving into sprite stuff, Lisa's been doing awesome work in April! We recently shared her work on Primrose, Tara, Karissa, and Nurse Bell's uniforms. Since then, she finished up some work needed on Karissa, Nurse Bell, and a character named Marigold who we'll meet during the game.

Sadly we can't share much right now for what that work is on those characters, since it's linked to the main story. But, v0.24 will give us our first glimpse into what to expect with the mysterious setup at this school, and we're really excited for it!

Technically Lisa finished her sprite work for April early, but she has some other characters to work on for some additions for May. We'll also be seeing work done on the idol outfit for characters, that'll be featured during the festival that's been hinted at during episode 5 here and there. :P

Lastly, Live2D stuff. We're paying off the work done for Miki and getting everything tested in-game to show off her functions in a showcase, but I'd be lying if I didn't say this might just be a little too over our heads.. ^^"

Not really the task of getting the Live2D stuff working in Ren'py, but more so the costs involved and applying that to the large cast for the game? Yeah.. We're not pouring anymore money into Live2D at this moment, more or less we're going to see how Miki's test area with her Live2D stuff turns out, if there's enough hype and support to realistically continue down the path of Live2D or simply scrap the idea and save it for a future project.

(Just for reference, Miki's Live2D costs is easily a little over $1,000usd. So, imagine doing that for just the 9 main girls alone on our monthly budget and it begins to make sense that, we'd need a huuuge increase of support to make that a reality.. ^^" )

---{Section 3 - Release Roadmap}---

Below is our expected dates for the next two releases, v0.24 in May, and v0.25 in June.

[Game Update/Release Date]
V0.23 - May 2nd (Public Version)
V0.24 Demo - May 9-16th (Public Version)
V0.24 - May 9-16th (Support Version)

[Game Update/Release Date]
V0.24 - June ?? (Public Version)
V0.25 - June ?? (Support Version)

(v0.24 will consist of episode 1 QoL additions/fixes, providing many scenes. Around 18,000 word count in total or better + new CG art added, some old CG art being updated with new art and variants. Female protagonist playable, new gameplay systems added, new player choices that impact events, and more!)

(v0.25 should consist of either the last two scenes for episode 5's content to finish that up, or continuing with episode 2's QoL content. We'll be asking fans and supporters directly upon the release of v0.24, if there's a majority that wants us to continue with QoL stuff at that time, or if taking a break to finish episode 5 feels better to people. We're trying to engage with everyone on this and do the best approach! <3 )
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---{Closing Statements}---

It's been a bit crazy lately and the unexpected event with the programmer really didn't help. >.< But, I really hope everyone understands and our offerings for May will be enough. We'll continue beyond that regardless and keep things moving along steadily, but we'll try to be more vocal about any slight delays or issues that could push things back a bit too. <3

Last minute mention! Subscribestar has recently added a new wallet feature, where you can purchase points through a number of payment options and sources, much more than they did in the past! On top of new payment options and better support for international support! 

If you've had issues with using Subscribestar in the past due to payment options, region, etc. You may want to check out their new options and see if the experience is better now. ^^ 

First time with us? Consider joining our Discord community and hang out, or follow us on Twitter!~ Of course Subscribestar is our main place for posts, so if you aren't there already. Consider following for free, or possibly support the project and team if you're able to!~

Discord Server Invite
https://discord.gg/UgkUnd5cEV

Twitter Page
https://x.com/MessyStudios1

Subscribestar Page
https://subscribestar.adult/messyacademy
https://subscribestar.art/messyacademy

Thanks everyone, until our next newsletter, stay awesome!~
-Messy Studios   

Brief reminder: There's two versions of our newsletters! (Support) is the latest news for active supporters. (Public) is intended for fans of the game who aren't actively supporting our Subscribestar page. <3
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---{Section 1 - Recent Events & Release Plans}---

This was a bit delayed due to recent Subscribestar TOS updates and other happenings going on IRL lately. So, firstly I apologize for not only the lack of a newsletter since last month, but also the lack of posts in general on here.

If you are just now learning about it, earlier this month.. Subscribestar had a few things going on and the short of it is.. Heading into March, they first started doing manual reviews of posts being made on their platform, which brought concerns that were rightfully justified as we'll get to in a second.

Anyone on the platform making a new post would see a message above their post, saying something along the lines of "Your post is under review, this may take between 15 minutes to 3-4 hours before being approved." and supposed this review process has quietly faded away in the past week based on other claims from creators on the platform.

Not long after that started, Subscribestar was doing updates to their site and this caused issues with supposedly wiping billing info from user's accounts, and a overall lack of general updates and news from them to let creators know what exactly was going on, so we could better inform supporters.

Then, shortly after that mess.. They announced a little over a week ago, that there's new TOS updates and new definitions for what content is allowed on their platform. While our game project doesn't seem to be in the middle of the spotlight, as we don't focus on many of the things they updated..

Our concern is with the definitions added for aged up characters, or childish clothing, and similar mentions could possibly be applied to abdl related content? And we've been through the Patreon purge of late 2023, when many other abdl creators on that platform suddenly woke up one day with zero warning or heads up. They simply said one day "Eyup, we were fine with this stuff up until we decided to change it."

Sooo, I think I speak for many.. That we're trying to walk a fine line on how we approach new posts on Subscribestar for the time being, hence our lack of posts this month to be safe and see how things are proceeding within creator circles.

We're going to slowly roll out posts and get caught up for this month, but we're going to play it safe when it comes to art related preview posts. We'll begin putting together a method for supporters who have their Discord linked to their Subscribestar account, to access special channels in our Discord server to see these art related posts or screenshots, etc.

But, it's still too early for us to take more risk than that right now until we confirm what direction Subscribestar is leaning into.

There's some hopes that in the past week shortly after they had mentioned these new TOS and lightly backpedaled, they added a wallet feature. So, you can now purchase points through a number of options to load your wallet up on Subscribestar, then use that for subscriptions.

Which might be a way to circle around card companies demands, as it's very clear they're the prime reason for Patreon, Itch, Subscribestar, you name it.. They're the ones causing platforms to fall in line with not allowing X, Y or Z content.

I know some people might say X, Y and Z content isn't their thing or good riddance. I don't entirely agree with certain content either, but the problem in the grander scope with that logic is that, right now it's just X, Y and Z. A year from now, card companies can decide on the flip of a hat, "Actually, we don't want A, B and C content either. Follow our demands or we withdraw our services from your platform."

Aaand just like that, in time.. Less and less expressive freedom in creative fields dies and people will wonder "How'd it get to this point?"

Granted, is there much that we the people can do against this? I mean.. Not really, in the past there was a UK petition for this very thing and I think it ended up becoming the 2nd highest petition brought to their parliament, and they pretty much just made a tiny address of it and threw it out. (Which is common from the sounds of it for anything over there being petitioned and brought to their system for review.)

Crypto is always brought up as well, but talking with other creators in the dev circles. There's a case where someone makes $10,000 a month from their game, and they said even with a 30% discount offered when using crypto for your subscription.. Crypto payments account for 3% of their overall income.

If everyone woke up tomorrow and didn't have any option besides crypto payments, would they adapt and lean into the steps involved? Sure, maybe! But it doesn't seem very promising, and from past experience in the field myself over the past 6 years of game development. I can easily see that many people who do choose to support creators, the more steps involved in the process to pay a creator.. The less likely those people are willing to go out of their way and do it.

Sorry for starting this with a wall of text already.. ^^" Overall, there's a lot going on just with Subscribestar recently in the past 2-3 weeks and it's still on-going, so we highly suggest if you aren't part of our Discord server or following us on Twitter. Now might be the time, just in case we find ourselves in a Patreon situation waking up to our page being gone, etc.

Moving along, recently I've also been dealing with my new place that was purchased early this year, and no it isn't anything super fancy or a regular house, etc. It's technically a mobile home with a lanai that adds some extra room to work with, just perfect sizing for one or two people to live in. (Considering my best friend to come move here and be my roommate to help split costs.)

The place has a monthly lot fee to upkeep, otherwise the only bill outside of that is for internet and that's around $50-60usd per month. The place itself was $5,000usd and even that was covered by my Dad, as he's been trying to find me a place not far from them, etc.

(Just explaining it a little, not to give off the impression I have a ton of income coming in or making massive purchases, etc. ^^" I still take about maybe 10-15% of the project's monthly funds as my own income for writing and other work involved.)

The new place needed some updates and fixes made, which started last month, but we quickly ran into a flea infestation issue.. A pest control guy came out last month to spray inside and out, followed by vacuuming daily on my part as instructed and finally the fleas are nearly 100% gone!

I haven't even stayed over there once overnight yet since owning the place, but in the coming days into this weekend. I'll begin moving my stuff over, and getting settled over there.

It's been a very busy March, and with all of this mentioned.. I really hate to admit this openly, because we were doing so well since November for back to back, monthly game releases.. >.< The next game releases that were planned for this month, will be pushed into April.

This will be v0.24 for supporters and v0.23 for the public.

This extra time until April won't be wasted though! While it is true, I've been juggling a lot here recently this month.. We're still getting a lot done on episode 1's QoL additions and female protagonist being playable, it's just that we clearly need a few more weeks into April to properly give ourselves the needed time to ensure this content isn't rushed.

At this time we don't have a exact date set for these releases in April, but we're estimating somewhere around April 18-19th as our rough goal with where we're sitting right now.

We'll also be trying to make up for this delay, offering all supporters from this month with early access to v0.24 beta content. <3

---{Section 2 - Dev Team Mentions}---

Writing - Editing - Programming

We've been chugging along, but as mentioned above. I have to fully admit that other events here lately into this month has been affecting work on my behalf, and I'm trying to make the most of my free time in-between everything else to keep the flow between me and the programmer looking ideal.

We also have no editor right now, and we've been working on finding a replacement with at least two people interested. I plan on getting around to looking over what they've sent me this weekend and hopefully have a new editor on board!

Progress on episode 1 has been really nice despite the setbacks! We haven't had a ton of feedback on recent content lately, but we get the impression that a lot of recent content in the later half of episode 5 feels too text heavy? Dialogue is a given, but descriptive prose on the other hand has gotten out of hand?

We're trying to strike a better balance so that dialogue is the main driving factor naturally, but dialogue shouldn't be broken up with more than 3 text boxes of prose, outside of some exceptions with CG moments or if it really fits, like setting up a scene and even then, we're trying to handle those better.

If you have personal thoughts on the writing in recent game releases, please let us know! <3

CG Art - Sprite Art - Live2D

Thankfully for our art team, things have been proceeding without fail! Ajose has finished work on the recent Juni CG and so Marxe is now in the coloring phase for that! We'll see concept previews for this soon, probably off platform? But we're trying to play things safe as things unfold.

While Marxe is finishing work on Juni's first CG scene for her branching path. Ajose is now starting work on Mika's first CG scene for her branching path!

I think fans will be pretty amazed with how these turn out, because these are leaning more into sexual acts taking place and despite how rushed they might seem without context. We're keeping track of notes for these future moments in-game, and already have the context laid out for why these characters are doing what they do.

Mika more so, as she's happily married and loyal to her husband, so I really had to consider every angle for the CG scene she's involved in and make sense of why someone like that would be involved with the protagonist, how she justifies it and hopefully it'll land the mark! :P

Moving along into sprite art, Lisa has given me the final .psd file for Charlotte's redesign. We already shared a near complete preview for all of her outfits and everything, but we'll probably do one more that includes her student report (bios summary) and expression sheet, etc!

Lisa has begun work on official uniforms for the characters Primrose, Tara, Karissa, and Nurse Bell! These uniforms are similar to how students have their uniforms during classes and activities during the weekdays. We only have early previews for how Primrose's uniform looks so far, but as we get more previews here by the end of this month, we'll be sure to share all of those with you guys too! ^^

Live2D stuff is at a stand still, mainly we're working on paying off the work done for Miki recently and this will be a on-going process into Summer. We're still allowed to test her out in Ren'py and have access to some of her files so far, but it'll take some time before we have her fully in-game and functioning to showcase exactly what to expect from Live2D in the game.

(Assuming we can realistically fund Live2D for the entire game.)

---{Section 3 - Release Roadmap}---

Below is our expected dates for the next two releases, v0.24 in April, and v0.25 in May.

[Game Update/Release Date]
v0.24 - April 18-19th (Estimated date - Proper date announced at start of April.)

[Game Update/Release Date]
v0.25 - May ?? (No estimated date yet.)

(v0.24 will consist of episode 1 QoL additions/fixes, providing many scenes. Around 18,000 word count in total or better + new CG art added, some old CG art being updated with new art and variants. Female protagonist playable, new gameplay systems added, new player choices that impact events, and more!)

(v0.25 should consist of either the last two scenes for episode 5's content to finish that up, or continuing with episode 2's QoL content. We'll be asking fans and supporters directly upon the release of v0.24, if there's a majority that wants us to continue with QoL stuff at that time, or if taking a break to finish episode 5 feels better to people. We're trying to engage with everyone on this and do the best approach! <3 )
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---{Closing Statements}---

Despite the setbacks this month and happenings going on, we're still doing our best to keep things promising every month forward through 2026! We're not too happy with the delay for v0.24's content, but I know we'd just be adding a ton more work later down the road if we don't give ourselves the proper time now to make sure episode 1 is handled correctly the first time on these QoL additions.

We'll keep everyone updated on the Subscribestar situation too as the days, or weeks proceed forward. Consider joining our Discord or following our Twitter pages below as backup areas to stay updated in case we suddenly lose access to Subscribestar. <3

Discord Server Invite
https://discord.gg/UgkUnd5cEV

Twitter Page
https://x.com/MessyStudios1

Thanks everyone, until our next newsletter, stay awesome!~
-Messy Studios