Infinite Stars: The Visual Novel
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We're still sort of mending after being sick. I'm much better and almost back to my regular routine, but my wife is battling a bit more than I did. She is "better" though.
Had to spend the majority of my time catching up with day job work this week, and I suspect next week will be the same when I return from our family trip.
I did manage to do a bit of editing and writing for Infinite Starts, but the majority of my time went towards dealing with artists and design feedback. We are adding four more portraits + variations to the game today based on selfies or OCs by our Patrons on the Captain tier. It's our version of "Name in the Game" rewards. (If you want yours to be in the game, hit that Patreon Captain subscribe button!)
(Not the final artwork)
I really wanted to release a new Patreon build today since we've made quite a few changes, but I'd have to cut some unfinished content from the build to do so, which seems counterproductive. Hang in there, we will have a new build out closer towards the end of the month!
Zaph is replacing his drawing tablet and should start working on the next two Cephilusk designs this weekend. Elyda, who has been drawing the portraits (and Lindi), has been rushing to have the current batch done before I leave for my family trip a little later today.
Stay safe, and be kind this weekend!
Devlog 2022-11-04
Not one of my most productive weeks. My wife and I have both been in bed with the flu. It's the first time in years that we've had flu, and I suspect we got it from one of the many people I interacted with over the weekend while raising funds for charity. (We raised over 45K for kids with Cancer! Can you believe it!?)
Despite being bedridden from Wednesday, we still managed to make some Infinite Stars progress!
The mobile UI has been fixed, and the next Patron release (probably next week if all goes well?) will once again include the android build! Thank you for being so patient while we fixed this.
The next Patron release will also include Kiaria's intimate scene, as well as the improved Mah'Abeu screen that will allow you to pick a custom image for your MC and some other minor QoL changes.
Lastly, I also received the final artwork for our newest cast member, Lindi.
All in all, great progress for a "sick" week. <3
Stay safe, and enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Devlog 2022-10-28
It's been a busy week with Brickfair 2022 happening this weekend. I've been running around trying to get everything ready. I'm taking the lead for the fundraiser for Rainbows and Smiles this weekend. They do amazing work for children with Cancer, and it's an honour to be supporting them. If you are in the Pretoria (South Africa) area this weekend, pop in and see some amazing Lego builds. I promise to take your money and enter you into the raffle. (It's for a good cause! Anyone can enter, but you'll probably have to pay for shipping if you win and live overseas.)
But let's get to the real reason why you are here. Infinite Stars.
We recently had the super important poll about the future of Infinite Stars' art style. It was close, but we decided to stick with Zaph's art style. We've already started collecting reference images for the Captain Tier Patrons and their custom Mah'Abeu Portrait.
We've also started the drawing process for two more Cephilusk pirate characters and a new crew member, which will be revealed soonish. :vibrating excitedly:
Miku has delivered the first batch of casual wear for the crew, and you can see Mayvheen's lovely outfit here. (Patron's only - I'm sorry :( I try not to link anything paywalled in the devlogs)
Soki has started coding the additional UI stuff that will allow you to pick your portrait image for your character, as well as some more info screens that we can use for all the newly added customization options. She is also working on fixing the UI for the android build
Stoffies has been drawing some of the smaller items, like Lebeny's flower and the mural options.
The live dev streams have continued to be very successful. We started coding Kiaria's intimate scene, we're nearly done editing Lochem's intimate scene, and we've made some progress with wrapping up the final few scenes for Episode 3.
And we also received our first TWO negative Steam reviews. :( Am I real dev now? Am I?
Thanks for all your support and kindness. I wake up each morning to 1-2 new Patrons, and I celebrate each and every one of you. (We're almost on $800 a month. Can you believe it? I can't!) I don't deserve it, but your support fills my heart with warmth and excitement. I honestly enjoy spending my days working on this project with all of you!
That's it for now! I'll probably start another live stream in an hour or two, since I won't be able to work on Infinite Stars over the weekend. So let's make today count!
Devlog 2022-10-21
To all the new Patrons (again <3), Welcome!!
We were on $699 per month yesterday, and I was planning on using that to see if we couldn't tick over to $700 with just ONE MORE pledge, but alas, all of you are too awesome, and I never got the chance!
I've been hinting at a game changing poll, and it's here. If you haven't voted yet, you're running out of time. The very look and feel of the game depends on your input.
On the personal side, my brother returned to Germany yesterday :( But an old friend is visiting from China :) - life is all about balance, I guess.
Discord has been busy (They're watching me as I type this... Hi Dae.) and productive. So many changes thanks to all of your input during the live dev sessions.
[Screenshots overhere]
This week we've implemented the new hair colour options, we've added additional flirting options with Khalil during the scene where the lights explode, and we've added some other minor flavour texts as demanded by all of you. We've also increased the transparency on the status indicators during the final scene.
Oh! If you love that warm "found-family" feeling, we've been playing Jackbox Party games at the end of the work day to wind down. Come join Discord. Come find your family.
Oh. I almost forgot. New Patreon build is up! <3
Devlog 2022-10-14
I know I'm beating this horse, but it's not dead yet. We've been having so much fun working together on Discord that I almost forgot to post this devlog. If that's not proof of how much FOMO you should be suffering from, I don't know what else to do.
On the dev side, today and yesterday have been slower due to a sudden influx of day job work, but we still managed to put in around 6 hours a day working on Kiaria's intimate scene and some fluff and cutesy scenes.
We're also ready to share the fruits of our labour; a new Patreon build filled with sweet, sweet customization options. You can be whoever you want to be in Infinite Stars. A shy prodigy born into wealth who likes to roll his eyes when people annoy them, sure. An innocent and brave leader who never says anything harsh but swears like a sailor when he stubs his toe, we've got that too. But now you can take it even further by establishing your looks...
Perhaps your ladykiller mc has long dark hair that flows in the wind while they lithely run from one love interest to another? Or maybe your mc's healthy appetite is showing through a bit of plumpness– they might think you're a softie, but one glance from your deep brown disapproving eyes makes them think twice!
It's still early days with the new customization additions, but it is showing a lot of potential to make your story more unique!
Oh, patrons can play with these new options right now by following this link!
I'm off to get some sleep, but have fun and be kind to one another.
Devlog 2022-10-12
First, to all the NEW-new-new Patrons, welcome! We're on 99 monthly supporters. WOOHOO! One more to go! With this release, we have reached my personal goal of nearly doubling our monthly income. Once we hit $600 pm, I'll go celebrate with all of you in spirit. (It's not a huge amount, but got to have goals, right?) Oh, and M. Jeremiah, I saw your message, but I couldn't respond before Patreon suspended you. I don't know why they did what they did, but I'm sorry. Not sure if you will ever read this, but I saw you. <3
Now on to the fun stuff! If you aren't on the Discord server, you should be suffering from serious FOMO. Ask anyone that has been joining our work-along-chat channel. I'm not kidding or over-hyping. Let me show you some of the options we've added with all your help!
[images]
I've hinted in the past at some pretty big changes we'll be revealing on Patreon, so keep an eye out for a particular poll to appear. You'll know it when you see it! (Did you know you can follow a creator on Patreon without subscribing? Neat, huh?)
So, enough call to actions. Some changes that we've completed in the last week:
- Added MC eye customization options. (Options created by Discordians)
- Added MC hair customization options. (Options created by Discordians)
- Added MC body customization options. (Options created by Discordians)
- Halved the speed at which the cinematic intro text was displaying.
- Added several more reaction/personality options.
- Removed the flirting bug where Khalil and all the others just wouldn't take a hint.
- Added some more minor animations like bobbing while walking. (more to follow)
- Added two more MC backstories. (Options created by Discordians)
I'm off to continue working on Infinite Stars. I'll see you on Discord! <3
Devlog 2022-10-07
First off, welcome to all the NEW new Patrons. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Each and every one of you is celebrated! Dobby doesn't even look up at me anymore when I do my silly celebration dance– But I still do the dance... Every single time.
Some personal updates, I won't be doing much work on Infinite Stars from today until next week Tuesday as I will be deep in the bushveld with family taking a well-deserved break. I'll be spending some quality time with loved ones I haven't seen in over a year. Fear not, knowing myself, I will very likely sneak away in the darkest hours of the night to write a scene or two in the dim light of my laptop while talking to all of you on Discord until my partner drags me back to bed. At the very least, I expect to return with several napkins filled with scribbled ideas for when I'm back home.
The Steam launch has been going well. The itch launch is still in early days, with a significant spike in daily downloads. The Patreon page has been growing rapidly over the last few days, and while the early feedback for the adult scenes varies, everyone does agree that they enjoyed it very much. ::insert relief tears::
We (everyone in the Discord work-along channel and I) have been compiling some cute fluff and date night ideas to implement. We've also been working on some exciting customization options, and I have a quick screenshot to share that you might see in the next update...
(Images available in this post)
How cool is that?!
That's it from me. I have to finish packing, and it's almost a three-hour drive to my weekend destination. Stay safe, have fun, and be your kindest, best self to those around you! <3
Devlog 2022-10-03
So much has happened in such a short amount of time that I needed to break the tradition of posting updates on Fridays only.
To all our new Patrons, welcome! Just know that each and every one of you are celebrated! I've been working on Infinite Stars for over two years now, and I still do a silly little excited dance whenever anyone new signs up! (My wife claims she is unamused by the enthusiastic dancing, but I know she secretly adores it!)
The Steam launch has been going well. It's only been three days, and we've reached about 1/4 of the total downloads compared to itch over two years.
We've been squashing a lot of bugs and fixing a ton of typos. We'll also be updating the build on itchio and other distribution channels during this week. (Yay, mac users! <3)
Thanks to the dev streams on Discord, we're getting ready to drop another large batch of content soon. (If you haven't dropped in yet, you should! It's great fun writing the content and getting input from the audience about how your Mah'Abeu's would react in the given situations.)
The next batch of content will have some Patreon Exclusive scenes. If you're not a Patron, don't stress. These scenes are meant to add to the game without compromising the story if they are skipped. You can still enjoy a perfectly complete game without being a Patron. That said, if you are a Patron, your tier benefits are being upgraded, and you can read more about them here.
I'm off to work on some more Infinite Stars content! <3 Have a fantastic week!