Open Sorcery: Sea++
Finished Fairyland
I estimate that that area in itself is about as large as the original Open Sorcery.
This puts me considerably past the halfway point of finishing the game, which is neat.
Detroit: Become Nothing
In the meantime, I made a much smaller fan game for Detroit: Become Human, one of my favorite fish-saving and housework simulators of 2018.
As a fan game obviously it's free, and it's also one of the most complicated bits of programming I've ever made.
If you've played Detroit, you may enjoy it.
Content warning: Nihilism, Potential Major Character Death, Forgetting Hank
Here's a link:
Detroit: Become Nothing
Original OS DLC
Now working on some original Open Sorcery DLC.
It's gonna be called:
Jingle BEL/S
BEL/S has been aware for a year, and is about to experience her first holiday season.
It's a game about magic, technology, and presents.
Geisthome Done
I thought it would take one month, and it took two. It's super complex, and I'm sure it needs a lot of user testing to make sure it's workable, but I'm very pleased with it.
It has three areas all with different mechanics for interacting with them, and they interact with each other in a a sort of scavenger hunt for alchemy information and supplies.
The troll is a pretty complex and responsive AI.
There's a puzzle that teaches you how to properly pay respect at Shinto shrines.
You can choose to murder everything, or cleverly manipulate everything to your advantage. (That's my version of Renegade-Paragon. Ruthless-Persuasive. And they're not muturally exclusive.)
I'm pretty pleased.
----
Now that the Deep Web is done, I'm probably going to take a break from Sea++ development to make that Open Sorcery DLC I mentioned in my last post.
It's a much smaller project, and I think it would feel good to actually finish something.
Plus I really want to have something ready for April. That will make me feel so much more secure about life.
Contract Work
I have been hired to do contract work as a narrative designer!
It's for an exciting project that I can say absolutely nothing about.
This is good for me because it means I'm getting consistently paid for doing remote, creative work. Which is the best.
This is long-term good for Open Sorcery, because it makes it increasingly unlikely that I will have to go back to a distracting 9-5.
This is short-term HIGHLY INCONVENIENT for Open Sorcery, as it means I now have three major projects competing for my attention.
(Open Sorcery: Sea++, EMERGENT, and Mystery Contract Work, for those keeping score)
----
I'm probably going to have to push back the release of Sea++ again because of the added workload.
But I feel bad about doing that, so what I'll probably do is create some DLC for the original Open Sorcery and release it when I WOULD HAVE released Sea++.
So there will be some sort of new content for the OS universe in April 2019.
And I will try to get better about the planning fallacy.
More Geisthome
It's pretty elaborate, since it's one of the main areas you have to go through, and the last area before you rise from the Deep Web to the Web, and emotionally important to the main character.
I've implemented an AI for a troll whose house you have to go through to reclaim one of your memories. You can deal with him by avoiding him, poisoning him, or convincing him to be a pescatarian.
I've just about finished that and am moving on to sea-monster fishing and a Dark Reef of coral and monsters you can collect to do alchemy.
Geisthome
It is time, my dear friends.
To visit the birthplace of the Hungry Ghost.
This month I'm working on Geisthome.
Upkeep
I did a number of interesting things:
- Implemented a puzzle for fixing a neon sign.
- Implemented a puzzle for luring a shy fairy child out from under a table.
- Bug-checked an area called Awash in Gibbering Madness.
- Implemented assembling a Prophesy of Light.
- Fixed various problems with helping the Lost Colony of Roanoke settle on the ocean floor.
- Implemented how to murder people.
- Implemented adopting an octopus.
Almost done with the Deep Web--only one location left.
Word Count
I just reached version 100.
It's about a third done, and already 80,000 words. (Writing and code)
Open Sorcery was about 61,000 words, and a lot simpler.
So big.
Updating Deadline
It is driving me slowly insane.
It is because I am also working on EMERGENT, which was unanticipated.
I'm updating the schedule to account for EMERGENT work.
And to increase wiggle room.
Now I am planning to finish up in April.
Hopefully I'll get to it earlier, but this way unmet deadlines won't gnaw at my brain.
--January
Finish The Wailing Pit
Update Lost Soul's
Make EMERGENT twine
-- February
Geisthome
-- March
Fairyland
-- April
Fiddler's Green
-- May
Hell (drag race)
-- June
Dream Weavers'
Olympus
-- July
Dreamlands
Web Cafe
-- August
Atlantix
University of Phoenix
-- September
Depression Swamp
--October
SECRET PROJECT
--November
SECRET PROJECT
--December
Release SECRET PROJECT
Anxiety Straights
--January
Real World
--February
Lots of testing
--March
Setup for Sea++
Lots of testing
--April
Release Sea++ (probably early access for more testing)