The Festive Check-in

 

Hello all and welcome to the public update.  Getting close now, isn't it?  What is it, 10 days until Christmas?  Cripes.  I have a few small points to touch base on this week, and fair warning, there are some spoilers for Chapter 4, so if you haven't played that yet, probably stop reading once you get to the section headed Chapter 4 Retrospective and come back when you've played it.

I've almost finished this year's festive offering A Christmas Karen, and it'll be dropping for supporters at the end of this week and the public next week.  Up top, we have a teaser image from it, in which Missy is some kind of fairy.  She does love playing dress-up, our girl, and she always looks so good.  A host of other characters will also be popping in to say hi.  It will be about the same size and length as Christmas Eva.

After next week, I'll be on holiday time for about a week, so there won't be a public update on 28th December.

In a shock plot twist, the School Council (narrowly) voted not to continue the main storyline in 0.6 and to instead return to Poppy's story.  This deserves its own full post, so we'll be hearing more about it in the new year.  We'll be meeting new girl Angelica (Angel to her friends,) the popular girl's "fixer" who has Poppy and the bad girls squarely in her sights.  Who's side will you take this time around?

This is where the spoilers start.  Here's a large picture of Jess to act as separator.

Most of the feedback I've received on Chapter 4 has been very positive.  I'm pleased about this, as the promised escalation of events turned out to be quite steep.  I did say it was coming!

The purpose of the day from hell was to establish Jessica's control of both Missy and Miss Paris, and set the scene for parts two and three in which you will work to free yourself and your teacher from her control.  After this, her relationship quest will become an option (that I previously expected should win the first council poll it's offered in, but I have to admit, I can't predict anything any more!)

A few people have expressed concerns that I either went too far in this chapter, or took it in a darker direction that they expect in a lighthearted game, even one set in a world of slavery and public humiliation where human rights are extinct.

For this to be a good story, I needed to make you hate the villain and want to stop her (though I expect this was not the effect it had on many of you...) and so if you felt something, then I did my job.  Remember what I said about revenge and catharsis?

I also have a future post half-written in which I'll talk about how Miss Paris's humiliation fits in with her character development, and how she may yet recover her authority over Jessica.  I don't want to post it before it's ready, and may even save it until work on Chapter 5 begins, but what I would be interested in is canvassing public opinion on the reception of Chapter 4.  I should say that this is purely for research purposes, but I would be remiss in not taking note of how my work is being received, so please vote for as many options as apply to you.  I'll leave the poll running for the next 3 weeks.  Comments are also always welcome.

Have a great week!

Trinian