Law School Episode 5 - Devlog #31
Hello everyone,
This one's a big one, so buckle up.
I'm now working on the last and final scene of this episode. It's been a heck of a week. After finishing the LEWD scene, I moved on to that big flashback scene I mentioned before. Turns out I ended up modifying it to keep the core of it for episode 6 instead. It felt a bit off having it in this episode, for reasons I can't disclose yet. That let me finish this scene and move on to ending #2, which is also done.
I'm now onto ending #3, the last scene, since ending #4 is most likely 5 to 10 renders max.
I wanted to finish on this scene because it's with Rose, and her route has been the slowest along with Danielle's. Part of that is the best friend trope, which I really didn't want to fall into in a cliché way. So I want to give it extra care, since you can really tell it's the start of the route. It took a lot of "character development" for MC to start seeing Rose differently, and that's why the route kicked off so late.
On a less positive note, Daz Alpha keeps getting buggier. I'm getting weird renders where character skin explodes like cheese, random glitches on some renders (especially animations), and it flat out refuses to render certain scenes sometimes. When that happens I have to switch to the regular version of Daz on my main rig with the 4090, which is a pain since that card is slower. And with three computers running overnight, I wake up to a sauna in the office, so good luck getting anything done in that heat in the morning. On top of that, one of the render rigs keeps crashing. I've tried everything: updating drivers, changing them, messing with power plans, undervolting the GPU, you name it. Crashes show up at random, middle of changing scene, mid-render, even when idle. It's a shitshow. I think I'll need a full clean install of my C drive once this episode is done.
Anyway, let's talk numbers:
Static renders: 4,533
Animations: 191
Story content: 58 scenes written (61,324 words)
That's 3 animations and 203 renders added since last week. Productivity-wise, it's been a great week.
Now I need to talk about something that's been weighing on me. Season 2 started with two clear paths: the fuckboy path and the single LI path, that's just how I've referred to them. My intention has always been for this to be a single-path LI game, I've said that since the start of development. The LI point system and the decisions you made alonfg the episodes were supposed to bring you to a single path at the end of season 2. Right now, the fuckboy path is taking way more time to work on than the single path, because of the sheer number of variables and possibilities involved. Worse, the writing isn't good. To make everything logically consistent, I sometimes have to twist my way into a conversation, and the dialogue ends up feeling off. And going into episodes 6 and 7, it would only get worse.
I'll own it: I bit off more than I could chew with this approach. Maybe if there were only 4 LIs, or if there were 3 of me, or if I released every 18 months, I could've made it work. But that's not the case. So I've decided the fuckboy path ends this episode. Juggling decisions, point systems, and all that isn't sustainable anymore if I want to keep raising Law School's standards. The writing is what makes this game worth playing, and it took a real hit this episode. I don't want to alarm anyone, this is mostly what I noticed replaying it myself, but the amount of text I had to modify, adapt, or straight up rewrite because it made me cringe is more than I'm comfortable with.
I love writing dates with the LIs, having them plan an activity, work through a problem, grow together, or even fight. That's all great for character development. Doing that 9 times is already a ton of work. Weaving all of it together on top of that? Nightmare. This has been the hardest dev cycle I've been through, and the fact it's taken 8 months instead of the usual 6 says it all. I could point to moving countries, the new cutscenes eating up time, the heat, or health issues, and sure, those didn't help, but they're a minor part of it compared to dealing with the consequences of my own choices and trying to force something I don't think can actually work. I'd rather bite the bullet now than go into episode 6 with the same mindset, limitations, and fears.
Good news: this won't change anything for your existing playthroughs. Like I've said before, if you're on the fuckboy path, you've most likely already gotten involved with a few LIs and you've most likely already fucked yourself with some of them. But going forward, from after the party through episode 6, MC will commit to one girl, and one girl only. Side girls will still be available under strict conditions (an LI giving the green light for a specific reason, threesomes, etc).
This wasn't an easy call, it honestly feels like the easy way out of a problem I created myself. But I'm doing it because I believe it's what's best for Law School. I'm probably shooting myself in the foot by bringing this up now, but really, I'm just moving up what I'd planned for the end of Season 2 into this episode and the next, and dropping the point system. I've always believed in transparency and being upfront with you all, so that's what I'm doing here.
Anyway, that's the big rant for this week. The last scene and the short ending #4 should be done by Wednesday, which keeps me on schedule for postwork.
Got a lot to do, so I'll get back to it. Have a great week, everyone.
MisterConsequencesOfMyOwnFknActions
Comments (48)
It's been pretty clear since the second episode (and since the somewhat divisive approach you took to grouping LIs at all) that you didn't want a fuckboy path, so I'm not surprised you're killing it off now. It's a shame, but it's your game to develop as you see fit. Modders will fix it anyway.
After playing a somewhat disappointing update for BaD that took waaay to long I agree with this decision more than ever. Making things overcomplicated causing ridiculous dev times due to branching will severely hinder peoples enjoyment especially if they feel like the girls they like don't get enough screentime or things don't make sense because of having to make everything fit together. Having a good story is by far the most important aspect for me when I play these games. I look forward to seeing how things turn out.
Ah, je viens de relire mon message et je viens de me rendre compte de mon erreur 😅 Je voulais bien parler des 7 épisodes de la saison 2 , et pas de 7 saisons ! Je n'avais même pas remarqué que j'avais écrit « saisons » au lieu de « épisodes » en préparant mon message. Désolé pour cette petite confusion 😅 En tout cas, merci beaucoup pour ta réponse ! C'est vraiment intéressant de savoir que cette saison ira donc jusqu'à l'épisode 7. Je suis aussi très content d'apprendre qu'il y aura davantage de scènes solos et que les romances auront davantage de place. C'est justement quelque chose que j'apprécie beaucoup dans Law School, notamment avec Sana et Miranda, et j'ai vraiment hâte de voir comment leurs relations vont évoluer dans les prochains épisodes. Je comprends aussi que la quantité de travail augmente au fur et à mesure que l'histoire avance. Et concernant les délais, même si j'ai évidemment hâte de découvrir chaque nouvel épisode, j'espère surtout que tu pourras prendre le temps nécessaire pour développer le jeu dans de bonnes conditions. La qualité du jeu est vraiment impressionnante, donc ça vaut largement la peine d'attendre un peu plus si c'est nécessaire. Et merci également pour la précision concernant les traductions ! J'ai cru comprendre que tu faisais appel à des personnes extérieures pour les traductions, si je ne me trompe pas ? Même pour le français, puisque tu développes le jeu en anglais. Ça doit quand même représenter un sacré travail de gérer toutes ces traductions. Merci encore d'avoir pris le temps de répondre à toutes mes questions ! C'est vraiment sympa de pouvoir avoir quelques nouvelles de l'avancement du jeu directement de ta part. Je continuerai à suivre le développement avec beaucoup d'intérêt 😊 Bon courage pour la suite du développement !
From all the girls i like Olive and Aurora the most , OLive sweet and cute and Aurora cute and sexy and both very pretty. But my dreamwoman is Elsa without a doubt. Sometimes i make a save and screenshot from her pretty face and i look at her and i feel warm inside and have to blush . Ok i,m a emotional guy but i,m playing a game , she is created by Maya and she is not real and i still have all those feelings. So MAYA is doing something very good by creating this game with all these persons , Congrats to you Sir . l
I actually respect this decision a lot. Having nine LIs, a point system, multiple relationships and every possible combination sounds amazing on paper, but if keeping all of that alive starts forcing the dialogue into places even you don't believe in, I'd rather lose some freedom and keep the writing strong. And honestly, admitting "I bit off more than I could chew" after putting this much work into it takes more guts than quietly dragging the problem into Episodes 6 and 7. Transparency like this is much better than pretending everything is fine until the cracks become obvious to the players. One strong relationship path will always beat nine half-broken ones for me. Also, 4,533 renders while your PCs are apparently trying to turn your office into a Turkish bath is insanity. 😄 Good luck with the final scenes!
Bonjour Mister Maya, J'espère que tu vas bien ! J'avais quelques petites questions à te poser, si ça ne te dérange pas. J'avais entendu dire que tu avais prévu environ sept saisons pour *Law School*. Je me demandais si c'était toujours ce que tu avais en tête ou si tes projets avaient un peu évolué depuis. Et au passage, sais-tu déjà combien d'épisodes comptera cette saison ? J'ai vraiment hâte de découvrir la suite ! Je me demandais aussi si les épisodes deviennent plus longs à développer au fil de l'histoire. Par exemple, est-ce que les épisodes 6 et 7 demanderont davantage de temps de travail que l'épisode 5, ou est-ce que le rythme de développement reste à peu près le même ? J'avais également une question concernant Sana, car c'est un personnage que j'apprécie beaucoup. Est-ce que son histoire va continuer à évoluer dans les prochains épisodes ? Et est-ce que la relation avec elle pourra prendre une direction plus romantique au fil de l'aventure ? Je me demandais également comment tu gères les traductions. Comme le jeu est disponible dans plusieurs langues, j'imagine que cela représente un énorme travail. Est-ce que tu t'occupes de tout toi-même, ou est-ce que quelqu'un t'aide sur cette partie ? Je suis toujours impressionné par tout ce que cela doit représenter. Merci encore pour tout le temps et l'énergie que tu consacres à ce projet. C'est toujours un plaisir de suivre son évolution, et j'ai vraiment hâte de découvrir les prochains épisodes. Je te souhaite une excellente journée et bon courage pour la suite du développement !
Bonjour Antonin, je t'envoie un DM!
was this Wednesday 5th no?? or this next Wednesday??????
My thoughts
I think this is a very good, reasonable, and understandable decision. To be honest, playing Law School as a harem route always felt a little off to me, and at times it even made me feel a bit guilty. Of course, it’s natural to explore all the available options, but in the long run it doesn’t really fit the MC’s character, and it doesn’t do the LIs justice either. They are all such well-written characters that they deserve more than being part of a harem ending. At some point, having to make a choice feels fair and meaningful. For me, that makes the relationships feel more authentic and gives the story greater emotional impact.
I mean the fun had to end eventually. 🤣 Too much branching does make things complicated. I figured you had simplified it somewhat with path specific girls but I guess the 3 available across paths make it messy no matter what. I've seen some other games where two girls ask you for a date on the same day and forces the player to choose one and break things off with the other. Hopefully something like that is smooth enough of a transition. Obviously BaD has the big ep8 montage of girls Tremelo has dated and must choose one to commit to. And of course Intertwined has moments where MC gets caught cheating and one (or both) girls dump him for that run. Hopefully you'll find the right mix of methods for you. Looking forward to it.
Maya , there are very many pretty sexy girls in your game but please let me marry Elsa in the end and be the happiest man alive :-)
I mean, I thought it was obvious this was always gonna happen, just a question of *when*. Isn't that pretty much the standard case with most non-harem AVNs? So, if you feel like you can find a nice spot to write this in without it feeling too much as if arbitrarily forcing the issue, it should be fine. What you typically see in AVNs is the "choice moment" in MC's mind palace, where if he's pursuing multiple LIs, he decides to take a more serious approach with one of them. And what typically follows is (depending on how much he fked around) the varying amounts of regret, biting words and broken hearts. :] It would be nice to have some flexibility in regards to "side girls", future temptations and things like that. Maybe options for people who don't outright commit to a single main LI. But then again, there are plenty to choose from already and as long as you communicate your intentions well enough to the player, there should be no issues. TL;DR - This doesn't really sound all that controversial to me. Of course we'll have to make a choice and face the consequences. As long as it's written and presented well, I see no issues here.
Controversially, I'm actually looking forward to single LI playthroughs. Until now, I feel like I've been mostly running around sampling without playing too seriously but now being able to commit to Miri... Or maybe Aurora.... Or maybe Elsa.... Anyway, being able to commit to someone gives me a goal in playthroughs.
Appreciate the transparency and honesty. I support the decision, it's for the best. Congrats for such a productive week, hope you'll have an amazing week.
GOOD MONDAY MORNING 🌄🌞, MF-MAYA AND EVERYONE!!! 😖... 31... we're in new territory 😭. Els 🥰💕!!! You cutie patootie 😋! 💺👍🏻 Awesome!!! Last and final scene 😁🙌🏻!!! Awwww, keeping most of the flashback to EP6... not as awesome 😅. Get those endings, MayaMan 😋! You mean "YOU!" I HAVE BEEN SEEING ROSE IN THAT WAY FROM THE BEGINNING 😂! It just took you FOREVER to get it and catch up with me 🤣. I would love to see these exploding skin/render glitches. A BTS 🤞🏻😅? GL with the heat 😅. And that sounds horrible... I would be going insane at this one rig. Just praying to the AVN Gods 🙏🏻 constantly for miracles 😭. Amazing numbers as always 😛👍🏻! Productive damn week 🥳! My F-Boy Route! I didn't even start it yet 😭. Take your 18 months, then. Nooooo 😱... What you say makes sense. You wouldn't get away with dating 10 girls in real life 😅. I mean, you did list a lot of problems/situations for you in these 8 months 😅... but I completely understand the reasons. I'm still going to do it until it ends this EP. I want to see the consequences. I want to see how it'll blow up in MC's face 🤣. #ThereAreNoSideGirls NEVER 🤪 Oh... so we're just ending it with them... kind of like with BAD when you play the F-Boy Route (because I was a sick motherF-er)... but then you just choose which girl at the end of EP 8/S2. Got it 👌🏻. Should be easier to split and branch off my paths. Like with my original plans. (Play three playthroughs for the Personalities). Still going to do those solo LI runs. For those exclusive solo LIs' path dialogues. As always, thanks for the DevLog, MF-Maya (aka MayaMan/MorningMaya)!!! Keep on keeping on 😉!!! ALWAYS EXCITED AND EAGERLY WAITING FOR YOUR GAME AND READING YOUR POSTS 🙌🏻🔥!!! Love and appreciate everything! You ❤️, your ladies 😍, your posts 🥰, and your games ❤️! Always make my days better 🌈! Thank you, MF-Maya and our fella Lawyers for being in my life and being a part of my routine 😉! Stay safe, stay blessed, and stay in PERFECT health, beautiful people! And don't forget to stay hydrated! And you're never alone ❤️🫶🏻🫰🏻!!! OUR AVNS AND OUR DEVS CONNECTS US ALL 🤗!!! Have an amazing and beautiful week! I'll catch you all—ON THE NEXT ONE ✌🏻😁!!!
Hey Jonathan🙋🏻♂️🫶
I think it’s good Idea to Ended The Male slut Route …. Pick one LI So Chooses Wisely who going to your LI 🤔
You are amazing!!!
Nice work. Sad to see the fuckboy path is going away but I can understand the reasons behind it. My only hope is that if we are on that path that we will be able to transition from it into a single LI path of our choice without having to restart the whole game. Looking forward to the next episode
Yes, there won't be a need for a restart
🥖
I respect your vision and decision to make this game have a single LI ending. It's personally not my kink, so I will have to pass.
Sounds like make a very mature choice! While a lot of kids seem to like the catch-em-all harem stories, your games stand out by having good storytelling. And it's basically impossible to combine a large harem with a reasonable story. Perhaps Law School will do like The Missing Part, where we are allowed to fuck around in the beginning, but as feelings evolve, the punishment for fucking around get harsher. I think this is a sitation that many can relate to. I also think jPk wrote the scenes where the MC is questioned for his infidelity quite well. Different girls handle that in different ways, but he has to choose.
First I was like WHAT????? But ooh, replayability will be great to uncover more paths. And single LI with extras sounds great. As long as my Danielle gives me permission to have a go at Caroline from time to time I'm golden.
Thank you for all your work, for being definitive and clear in your decisions, open, and honest, and taking a stand on this! I always believed your LIs were good enough to deserve separate saves for themselves and even the sides. I had thought it was too odd to have a manwhore path in the first place, given the quality of your LIs' personalities and where I believe their stories could go. And you trying not to be DPC, and making a Being A DIK clone, is a relief. Even though I do love that game, it's just not sustainable for most devs to go beyond 5 -7 LIs and too much branching in general, and especially in your game.
Maya, first of all congrats on a helluva productive week! 200+ you fucking mad man! Hope for the best for wrapping up this episode over the coming days. Secondly, you're creating a highly ambitious game, we all love your continued effort and top quality you deliver, if dropping the manwhoring ensures more of this continues, who can be opposed? The transparency is always appreciated and you've been great with it. Take care of yourself man and have a great week! Looking forward to playing real soon
Ending the fuckboy saga here is absolutely the right decision. As a developer I would go mad trying to balance out every single LI path alongside with the 2, 3, 4, 5 etc LIs harem paths. All we want is a great story with the chosen LI (or maybe even pure monk). Thank you for the game, it's a gem!
I’m usually a playboy route guy, so this one hurts a bit. Still, respect for making the hard call and putting quality first. Looking forward to seeing how the story and the individual routes develop from here. Keep cooking 🔥💪
I definitely approve of heading toward the single LI thing now. I feel like it's what best for you and Law School. The only real concern is having MC go from absolutely zero interest in Rose to single focus on only her and neither of them taking the necessary time to sort through everything. But honestly, I'll imagine it'll be fine. You're writing has been great with every other LI so far.
I see your decisions as a positive development, it's what we call “growing beyond yourself.” With all the experience you've gained so far, I think your next game is going to be amazing.
For what it's worth, I think it's the right call.
F fuckboy path. 💀 we will miss you. but well... this is good news atleast for me. this mean i can replay every episode on a diferent path which is awesome tbh.
I like it MisterMaya. This is exactly the type of confidence and assertiveness I like seeing from developers. Your vision is a single LI game, you own it, and trust your ability to make those LIs good enough on their own that we don't need multiple at the same time. That's much better than trying to force fit a fuck boy path just to appease the crowd, especially if it comes at the expense of writing quality and update times. It's also perfectly fair to do it now. I'm just thinking about my main play through with Aurora and Taylor. There's no way that wouldn't blow up in MC's face quite soon. A party where they're all present feels like the exact type of situation where it would be natural to happen, and I'm honestly quite excited to see it come crashing down lol. So yeah, it all sounds good to me! And it's nice to see a developer make these tough decisions, both for the sake of quality and update times. Looking forward to the next episode!
Ah....Elsa. As I have said before, I am a lit bit anxious for Elsa, I am worrying about what would happen to the relationship between Elsa and Connor
Gotta do what you gotta do dude. Appreciate the info. So uh... just to be be 100% clear. There won't be a Samara/Taylor throuple route on the selfish path right? That was the paths main selling point for me. I'll prob just restart and stick with Rose like I originally planned if that's the case.
Throuple no, I can't make it make sense. Now, threesomes I enjoy animating, it's fun and challenging, and if there's one that's the most likely to happen it could be Taylor and Samara, because of their proximity. But the situation is tricky, so if it does happen, it'll be a long way from now.
Thanks for the DevLog. I also support your decision. Just do what is the best for you, and for Law School.👌👍😊
I respect your decision MisterMaya. Thanks for being honest with us. I know it wasn't an easy choice, but I believe it'll be worth it!
You have to make the game that you're happy with, brother, and that's the game we all want to play. One you have made with passion. I trust your vision, Maya. Now tell me more about this Rose path :)
Not mad at the decision at all that would be a crazy ton of work. Keep it up Maya looking forward to the update and excited to see where the serious LI relationships go!
I support the descion Maya. If you think it makes the game better in the long run i think you re better off doing it earlier than late
How could I be mad about my 7 manwhore pts ending when you put Elsa as preview Mister Maya. I forgive you and I hope you have a great day! Elsa my beloved. blushphoneemoji
Elsa is my beloved too
I completely understand. I'll own up to my fuckboy path and face the music. Thank you for the transparency. Either way, you have amazing writing in your light novel that I consider it one of the best.
The single LI with extras at certain points is the best decision for workflow, your own health and the game health. ❤️
Thanks, MisterMaya! Appreciate the transparency, always looking forward to the updates. Hope you have a great week ahead too!
Maya, Your words move me beyond measure… This DevLog is where its at! Thank you for your continuous hard work <3