Dev Update (4/7)

Hello all you wonderful supporters!

I need to be better about making update posts. I was doing pretty good for a while, but as they say, old habits die hard. I wanted to have an update to the DevBuild to go along with this update post, but unfortunately I don't, and if I keep waiting to make this post until I have something to push, this post will keep getting delayed. Since I don't want you to deal with even more radio silence than you already have (which I do feel awful about), here's a brief update on how things are going.

The last thing I worked on was sprite placement and movement (as mentioned in a previous dev update post). Unfortunately I did not get around to implementing this into the track scene yet, partly due to a bunch of game updates and releases battling for my attention, but honestly that's more of an excuse for my own procrastination. Still, this is my current priority task to have for the next update to the DevBuild (in addition to fleshing out more of the track scene in the process).

Regarding image generation stuff, after experimenting with NovelAI's new v4 model, I really can't say if I want to use it for a future sprite rework. Originally I had waited on updating any images until v4 released, but now that it's here I'm not particularly impressed. While the model can create some great images, I find the style and consistency of images inadequate for something like game sprites. I need to be able to create consistently styled characters at different sizes, which I can currently do using NAIv3, but I cannot duplicate that consistency at all with v4. Maybe when v4 gets some more tools (most importantly Vibe Transfer), I'll be able to force more consistency, but for now v3 seems to be superior for character sprite work.

Last thing I want to do is list out the completion status of the different parts of the next day of content (based on what is currently available in the DevBuild). I should probably do this for all dev update posts to keep you all informed of how much is left and to keep myself honest.

• morning scene : dialogue leading up to Jessica/Sophia chat is done, still need to finish the conversation and transition to next scene

• pre-gym scene : conversation structure is done, needs actual dialogue for Jessica/Mia chat and transition to gym

• gym scene : conversation structure is done, needs dialogue

• track scene : conversation structure mostly done, some dialogue done, races need a lot of work, missing a lot of dialogue

  • 400m race : mostly done, needs new sprite animations

  • hurdles : player choice implemented, incomplete

  • mile run : player choice implemented, incomplete

  • 100m dash : race structure done, needs descriptions and new sprite animations

• lunch scene (group lunch) : intro to actual lunch scene is done, scene flow done, lunch scene and post lunch transition needs dialogue

• lunch scenes (reused solo) : scene flow done, needs some dialogue tweaks for continuity fixes

• growth scenes (reused) : scene flow done, needs dialogue tweaks for consistency

• end of day wrap up : incomplete

So, where does that leave things? Right now in the DevBuild, the events of the day can be played through and should flow logically, but there's a lot of missing dialogue and descriptions. For now I'm going to stay focused on the races in the track scene, and then try to tackle the simpler scenes first. There's still a lot of conditional checks I have to make regarding who grew when during the experiments, but once this day is done future content should be much simpler to write (since all the characters will be on the same page regarding the experiment and everything).

That's all from me for now. I'm sorry for the radio silence and lack of progress. Old habits are hard to kick, and I will be better about that. I started March strong working periodically on the game, but ended up losing momentum because I am easily distracted (stupid game releases). I'm going to fix that and be more disciplined, because all you wonderful supporters deserve better.

Thank you for your amazing patience and enduring support.

K. Bro