Another Tuesday!

We’ve plugged this a few times already, I know, but the Kickstarter is launching this Saturday on July 1^st. It's hard to put into words what a huge event this is for us. This has been more than two years in the making and it's that big moment of truth where we find out if we've managed to tell our story well enough to inspire others to get behind it. I'm happy to report that everything is all set up and ready to go, which means this week we’ve been able to work on fun things for the game again.

So today’s post is about the improvements players can expect for the full game.

Responsive UI

Currently I’m giving the UI graphics a little refresh. For the full game, the graphics are completely integrated into the game engine and are responsive to user controls. So that means when you want to hide the text, text box, and the decorative frames to look at a tasty CG, you can! Lux has been hard at work finetuning the UI programming to make little details like this possible.

Side Character Sprites

All the named side characters are getting their own stylized sprites adapted from 1920s photographs. They’re looking pretty nice on-screen with our other character sprites. And it just so happens that one of the Kickstarter rewards is picking a name for these side characters (10 available!).  

Custom Main Character Name

Another feature that’s up and running: changing the main character’s name. That moment in the story when Evelyn West is forced to come up with a fake name, players will get a prompt to either use the default name (Cora) or input their own choice.

Backgrounds & Resolutions

The backgrounds are also getting a makeover, mostly in order to accommodate higher screen resolutions. Players will be able to select up to a 3840x2160 resolution in the full game, whereas the demo was limited to 1920x1080.

Character Art

We split up our character art into three phases: phase one included the base pose, outfit, and a selection of expressions for the game demo. Phase two is currently underway where the sprites are receiving their additional poses, outfits, and facial expressions. This phase is nearing completion and then Ocyriss will begin the final art phase…

CGs!

We have a few stretch goals in the Kickstarter to add more CGs, but at the minimum each route will be receiving three full scene illustrations, in addition to some moments created by adapting their normal character sprites.  

Choices

Another feature you’ll see in the full game is the route choices. These have always been built into the Speakeasy script but were not included in the demo because we wanted to be able to give snapshots of each route and story, rather than focusing on showcasing the more technical aspects of the game. With three endings per route and potentially more being added after the Kickstarter (guess what else is a reward? Picking a route to receive another ending!), there will be lots of choices to make for our dear little heiress.

That’s it for us this week! Don’t forget to come support the Kickstarter. We’re running a special bonus for backers who make their pledge on the first day. They’ll receive priority placement in the game credits, a personalized thank you email from the character of their choice, Milo’s famous pancake recipe, and a Speakeasy coloring book. See you then!

-Aura

P.S. The demo is currently in the review phase by Steam and should be available to download there very soon…