Chapter 4 - Devlog 1

Hello everyone!

It's been three weeks since the public release of Chapter 3, so here comes the first devlog for Chapter 4!

What's Been Done?

• Very slight rework of Sayuri, Misaki, and Katsumi's faces (jaw area).
  I had some issues with how these three looked from the side (especially Misaki), which limited what I could do in renders.
  The changes should be mostly unnoticeable, maybe their faces will look slightly rounder from the front?
• Increased Sayuri's butt size by 10% (very important)
• Reworked Katsumi's body to make it more lore-accurate (more on that below)
• Redid 103 renders tied to Katsumi's new body
• Added a new important character who'll appear in the next chapter
• Minor plot change in Chapter 3: Pink mob now also restricts MC's rollback ability.
  (Thanks to R@ndomman for pointing it out!)
• Chapter 4's script is (mostly) complete!
  As I'm writing this, I still have two events left to finish, but I should be done by the time you read this devlog.

About Chapter 4

Another big chapter... guess that's becoming the norm?
I'm still unsure if it'll end up longer or shorter than Chapter 3, but it'll definitely be more wordy.

This time, I tried to work on pacing, adding breathing spaces between, uh... "chapter arcs"?
Not sure what to call them.
Anyway, Chapter 4 will have three of those, which should make the story flow better.

I also plan to make some small adjustments to previous chapters to improve pacing there as well.

As for renders, this chapter will be all over the place.
Some events will have the highest render-to-dialogue ratio I've ever done, while others will have just a few looping renders with tons of dialogue.

About the plot

I already warned you back in Chapter 3's first devlog, but it's worth repeating:
The plot will continue to get darker little by little as this episode goes on.

If you're sensitive to heavier themes, please proceed with caution... or take a break if it's too much!

Katsumi's Makeover

Well, it's not as dramatic as it sounds, but I still think it deserves an explanation!

Katsumi's new appearance won't really change much while she's fully clothed...

Her old model had some issues with her overall figure... especially noticeable during the shower room event in Chapter 3.

The most visible changes are in her breasts and thighs, so let's talk about that!

With her new body, Katsumi now has thicker thighs, a wider waist, and a slightly rounder ass... giving her a more balanced hourglass figure (I think).

Then there's the matter of her breasts.
I always felt her original size was too close to Maya's for comfort...

In some camera angles, the difference between the two wasn't clear enough, which bugged me.

Katsumi was conceived as the big-breasted heroine, after all!

And, well... I also felt she lacked that Boom! factor when suddenly unclothed... if you catch my drift.
I know reworking a character's appearance can be a bit risky, but I think Katsumi earned this one.

...And did I just spend half this devlog talking about Katsumi's thighs and breasts?
Yup! Only the most important info for you, dear players!

Anyway, let me know what you think of the new Katsumi!
I hope she gets a bit more love after the next chapter.

What's Next

• Working on a few new outfits
• Preparing the maps used for events and the Scene Scribbles.
• Then moving on to the usual render and animation work

ETA?!!!

Way too soon to say, but...
I'll do my best to have it out before the end of the year...
Hopefully before Christmas...
Maybe even early December...?

...or you'll just see me crying about animations in Devlog #9!

And that's all for today!

As always, I want to express my gratitude to all my amazing subscribers, old and new, who support this project, and to everyone following and playing along.
Thank you all so much!

For my subscribers: see you in a week or two for Chapter 4's Scene Scribbles!

For everyone else: see you in the next devlog!

Thank you for your time.

-Haptales

P.S. Don't forget to vote for the Best Bikini here!