Status update Episode 9
This week I completed the checklist from last week.
I've added songs and sound effects, fixed GUIs and code, and playtested several branches. I've also processed my dialogue for grammar/typos, parsing 350 pages.
I only have polishing and playtesting left while the remaining animation queue renders. When I polish, I add renders here and there and modify scenes/content/writing/coding to improve everything. As a result, there are currently over 4900 renders for Episode 9.
Comparing the size of the development folders for Episode Interlude (2.51 GB) and Episode 9 (6.78 GB), there is an increase of roughly 4.27 GB for Episode 9 alone. I estimate an additional 100-200 MB size increase for the remaining animations.
The content of the interlude and episode 9 surpass the entire Season 1 of Being a DIK (~6.2 GB), which is reflected in the increased development times that I know everyone is feeling. I have also significantly increased the render quality of both static renders and animations for episode 9, as you can see from the previews I posted; this impacted render times.
267 animations are completed. The render queue has 36 animations of varied lengths left to render.
I've estimated the remaining render time to be between 4-5 weeks. It will hopefully be faster since one of the remaining lewd scenes is slightly more demanding than the rest of the animations.
I'll keep you updated on this progress weekly until it's done.
I have alerted my testers and proofreader, and they will start work as soon as the animations are completed.
I aim for a December release, but please stay tuned for the actual release date. I will announce it on Patreon/Discord/Twitter after beta testing has started.
Have a nice weekend
Dr PinkCake
Comments (44)
Veni, Vidi, Vici. Well worth the wait! Only 2 Scenes left to uncover. Going to be a depressing wait for the next episode.
This guy is comparable to George RR Martin.
George just has to write... lol and he takes 20 years for 1 book.
Weeks fly by just by waiting for the updates... I don't have many games I've spent this much time with and I still get the feels every time I play it.
We know that it will be well worth the wait.....
Respectfully, DPC, please do believe us: you'll always have fans who'll.. Oh, what was the proper term... oh yes, give a pretty big fu..ing diarrhea shit about your vision, your passion and dedication to your story. Everything worthwhile in life is exactly that. Also, just thank you for all your hard work!
Thanks! I know there are different opinions on how to make this game, and that impatience stems from the excitement of wanting to play more. It is stressful since I want everyone to like what I'm creating and not have you guys frustrated with how long things take. Ultimately, I know the majority will love it once it's released, and the time spent waiting was worth it.
keep up the good work DPC, fuck the haters
Quentin Tarantino of VN's
I hope it comes out on my birthday hahah
Thanks a lot for this update ! Fingers crossed for December :)
wow did not know rendering took so long
We've all cum (hehe) this far, a bit more waiting isn't going to hurt us. With GoW Ragnarok a few days away then The Callisto Protocol right after that, followed by the holidays. I wouldn't mind getting cozy with DIK during the New Years weekend.
Put me down in the 'don't cut/sacrifice shit' camp. This is one of the best games of its kind for a reason. Jeez-a-loo.
Your level of quality is worth waiting for good Doc 👏🏻
Can't think of a better Christmas present than Episode 9!
Nice one. Thanks.. keep up the good work... what kind of systems do you use? (out of interest..) I got a RTX4090 recently and it's blown my socks off. Total overkill, but I got a good deal selling my old card to my boss. CPU's aren't really up to the task of feeding this thing with data for gaming, so I reckon it will be in my system for a good few years, unlike the 3090. Obviously your workflow is going to be a much different use case to gaming. In terms of rendering i'm guessing you need large frame buffers and a high shader count.....
Take the time you need! I was just disappointed by an October release for a different designer who hyped up a big release and did not deliver (short and felt rushed), so please, do whatever you think you need to.
Have a nice weekend, Doctor
Early Christmas present :D
Yay! Last month before Episode 9. Already excited to play. Thanks for the update Doc and have a great weekend
Oh, so close. Great. Time for some new playthroughs to refresh some memories and get in the mood... (hopefully the import slots are enough then). Have a nice weekend everybody!
Thanks for the update. I am really looking forward to Episode 9.
Unfortunately, I am going to have to be that guy. Should we now expect that the new standard is one episode per year, or do you have any sort of plan for reducing the time between episodes? I think 10-11 months for one update far exceeds what could ever be justified, unless, of course, it brings us proportionally closer to the actual end of the game (i.e., we progress further). Note: I am by no means questioning productivity here, rather the scoping
I've found myself thinking something along those lines in the past as well. But, thinking about it, with this being a branching game and DPCs skills constantly improving even further, thus increasing the quality of renders/animations etc., there's no real way around it, is there? Other than maybe bringing people in to help, which DPC doesn't want (which is fair enough) or reducing the quality (which presumably no one wants. I certainly don't.) There's always the option to reduce or even completely rescind your pledge between episodes or just to wait until the game is completely done. I, for one, have decided to stick with my pledge, because to me this is by far the best game out there and I believe that quality work takes time and should be rewarded. So, yes, it's unfortunate and sometimes maybe a little frustrating waiting so long, but at least to me personally, it's still worth waiting for.
Looking forward to this whenever it happens to drop my dude!
This pretty much lines up with what I was saying a while ago. EVERY branch from the past 8 episodes has to be accounted for and continued in some way. Each episode is only going to get bigger and bigger. Doc, you rewrite the word dedicated with it comes to the AVN genre! Proud to have a big DIK! I mean, proud to be a "Big DIK"!
Wow, Interlude and Ep 9 bigger than the whole S1!
So happy I found this game, and your patreon. Helping support this wonderful game! Love how much the quality increase has been since ep1 all the way up to your teasing render drops
This was an awesome update. The quality upgrade in your renders has shown for sure. Especially with Sage, she looks amazing. I can't wait to see it completed. Thanks for your dedication and work DPC. Have a great weekend.
Don't overwork yourself take A-day off if you need to
Fantastic news, that would be the best christmas present this year for sure! I'm absolutely stoked to hear that. And your announcement how large this episode is in comparison absolutely blows my mind! I'm curious, though, with the much larger file size, will you be splitting up the game further? If I remember correctly, the size was the reason for splitting up after episode 8. Will you do that again after, say, episode 10, 12 or something because presumably future episodes won't be significantly smaller?
Yes, I intend to split it again after Season 3. Season 4 will be another standalone. It's easier to work with and download "smaller" binaries.
Thanks for the Update DOC its amazing news , have a nice weekend 💪
Looking forward to it Doc
You are an absolute legend. Thanks for your hard work.
🥳
Awesome sauce! Going outta my mind with anticipation!!
Thanks for the update! Can't wait to play :)
Stoked!
Hype!!!
So freaking excited! That size comparison is mental though. Great work!
Can't wait!!
Awesome news doc!!! Have a great weekend