Home Prisoner: News and conclusions after the update

Hello everyone!

It's been a little while since the last update, so let's talk about it and draw some conclusions.

Although we mentioned that the update might take longer than 3 months, we were aiming for earlier completion. Upon returning to development, we felt we could achieve more. Nothing was hindering us, and we were dedicating almost all our free time to the project. When it became clear we had exceeded our planned timeline and there was still plenty of work left, we realized it was time to look for solutions to speed up the process. The good news is that we have not yet used any measures that could expedite the release of updates. Our initial goal was to hire a JavaScript programmer. The game needs enhancements like acceleration, a user interface, a quest journal, etc. This would improve the gameplay, but not necessarily speed up the release of updates. Hence, we need to set new objectives.

Given our limited resources, we've identified two steps that could significantly accelerate the project's development:

1. Acquiring a powerful workstation. We are about to make progress in this regard! (More details on this below).

2. The second point was initially to hire a writer, which would free up a considerable amount of time for the developer to focus on graphic content. However, just before this post, we calculated approximately how much this would cost us. We took the scene between the wife and Jerome from the last update as a reference and counted the total number of characters in the text. It amounted to 56,599 characters. Then we checked how much this would cost us, and to our unpleasant surprise, the estimated cost for 50,000 characters is $300! In total, our monthly support would be spent on just 1-2 events. No, we were even a bit shocked; we hadn't realized our game was so text-rich. So, instead of a writer, the second step will be to hire a translator/assistant to help with compiling graphic resources in the editor.

Additionally:

• Optimizing the workflow. We already feel that with each update, compiling animations and events is getting easier.

• Pausing the introduction of new features. We always want to bring something new to the game! Adding interesting features and functionalities, making the game more engaging and convenient for you. However, all this increases the time it takes to release updates. Therefore, the "Action Indicator" feature will be the last one for now.

The final festive dinner scene. 

We previously reported that we planned to add one more scene to the second episode. This last scene involved the wife and Jerome at the festive dinner. The update was scheduled to be released within 3-4 weeks along with the final touches of the second episode. However, we realized that players are waiting for something new, a change of scenery. And we fully share this sentiment: the festive dinner really does start to feel endless. Therefore, we decided to postpone or cancel this event and focus our efforts on jumping straight into the development of Episode 3!

Early Access.

After several updates, we can conclude that the project receives the main support during the release of an update. However, our last release was distributed with unexpected rapidity. If for advanced developers with a multitude of patrons this is not a big problem, for beginners like us, it is a serious blow and a lost opportunity to accelerate a slowly developing project. I want to say a special thank you to those who did purchase early access. You're speeding us up! Also, I want to apologize to the high-tier patrons. You titans! Whether it's a render or a custom scene, we will definitely find a way to thank you in the future!

Although we initially aimed for the most powerful system possible, we can still make a significant upgrade. Thanks to you, in 5 months we've collected enough funds for a 4070 ti and the power supply unit for it. This is our first reinforcement, and because of this, in the next update, we might be looking at our first full-scale animation!

We are facing what might be the most significant update. It will set the tone for the entire core game as we will lay down the foundation of our gameplay. This may take a considerable amount of time but after that, we will just need to fill the house with events.

We are deeply touched by the wave of criticism that has recently hit our project, and we genuinely fear it may intensify. But we are listening to every word and will strive to be better!