Status Update - Episode 5.2

Hey everyone!

Another Friday, another few small steps forward.

I have to admit, this was a pretty slow week. We didn't get as much done as we wanted because we had to take a few steps back and rework some renders and other assets. On top of that, the artist I was hoping would become a permanent part of the team decided to leave, so we're back to looking for someone new.

I honestly never expected finding the right artist to be this difficult, but that's just how it is. It would probably be much easier if I didn't care so much about quality, but my perfectionist side just won't let me compromise. 🤷

Even with these setbacks, we're still moving forward. We managed to fix everything we wanted to improve. A while ago I mentioned the school scene with three different variants. We've just finished the first one, and we're now working on its animations as well as the other two variants. Hopefully, all of them will be finished within the next two weeks.

After that, we'll only have one fairly large scene left with our mysterious Mr. X. Once that's done, most of the remaining work will be gameplay-related: a new interface for some scenes, bug fixing, polishing, testing, adding music, and we'll be ready for release.

Right now, early September looks like the most likely release window. I'll do everything I can to make it happen, even though I've already been working late into the night because our little baby doesn't always let me work much during the day. 😄

I also want to thank all of you for your kind words and support. It's been a pretty difficult time for me, with a lot happening in my personal life, and extra stress around the game certainly wouldn't make things easier. I'm really grateful that you've been so understanding.

I'll continue to give this project everything I've got, but I also want to make sure everything stays within reasonable limits.

Have a great weekend!