Posted August 20, 2023 by Frostclaw
Hey everyone,
It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Hope things have been going well for all of you! We didn’t expect the next build to take so long, but life got in the way like it tends to do. Add to that Santa Lucia, and it’s a miracle we manage to get anything out to meet any kind of pre-planned schedule.
However, I’d like to think this was worth the wait. With this new build comes a brand new route: our favorite tanuki, Kounosuke! At least, he’s my favorite, I can’t speak for the entire team, hehe.
Ever since I played the original Morenatsu, close to a decade ago now, something has drawn me to Kounosuke. Maybe it was his cute design, or his dorky personality, he always stood out to me from the rest of the cast. But even back then, when I played his route for the first time, something felt a bit off, though I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Kounosuke’s route never quite came together the way the others did. There were some cute and heartwarming moments, but by and large Kounosuke seemed to play second-fiddle even in his own route. I recall Hiroyuki spending more time criticizing the tanuki for his lateness and various flaws than really celebrating anything worth liking about him.
So when it came time for us to work on Morenatsu Revisited, we all felt Kounosuke could use a complete redo. A clean slate that could really let him shine like I always thought he would back then. It’s a risky gamble, however I think it’s one that paid off in the end. It’s still the same character you (might) know and love, and facing similar situations, but this time, we chose to delve past him being “just” the annoying prankster of the group to see what’s behind that veil. He’s a big dreamer with big dreams, and he’ll need some help trying to figure them out.
With Kounosuke’s route now in the game in its entirety, we’ve reached a big milestone for Homecoming, as we’ve officially gone beyond where Revisited left off. The road here wasn’t always smooth or easy, but I’m proud of the team for getting this far.
Another big milestone we’ve hit for Kounosuke is that we finally have every main cast sprite redone in the new style. This has been a lot of work, especially now that I’m back on my own on the art, but I’m very happy with how everyone came out. There’s a lot I want to say about what’s coming next, art-wise, and in fact, I’ve prepared a small set of questions I’ve seen asked around, and others I just really wanted someone to ask me, so I asked them myself. Hopefully they’ll cover some of the possible things you guys might have in mind!
Q: Will the main characters have different poses?
A: As of now, all the sprites have different expressions but only one pose for each character. With the way the sprites work (think of them like paper dolls we dress up with different clothes depending on our needs), an additional pose requires a hell of a lot of work: every article of clothing need to be redrawn to match the new pose, and some characters have quite a few alternate outfits.
Ideally, I’d like the main cast to have two to three different poses each, but as of right now, I’ll keep it manageable for myself and instead add more expressions to fit one pose. We’ll see how things pan out in the future, but it’s a possibility for sure! Morenatsu had extremely expressive characters, and I’d like to retain some of that in Homecoming.
Q: What about the side characters? Will they have new sprites?
A: All the side characters that had sprites in Morenatsu will have a new sprite to replace the originals, and brand new characters will eventually have sprites of their own as well. Seeing as Homecoming has an enormous cast of side characters, this is something I’ll be working on basically all the way til the final build.
Q: Where are the CGS???
A: They’re coming!… Eventually. Another thing Morenatsu had a plethora of was CGs, around two to three per route. My objective on that front is to match that, if not surpass it in some cases. NSFW CGs are an obvious inclusion, but I’d like to create some new CGs to emphasize a variety of moments in each route. In fact, this leads directly to the next question…
Q: What are you going to work on next?
A: Now that the main cast is in an acceptable state, I’ll most likely start work on a few select side characters that I’d consider major in their respective routes, like Tappei or Tora’s uncles. At the same time, I’ll go back and start adding more CGs to existing routes. It’ll be a massive undertaking, so bear with me on that front. Like I said earlier, I’m on my own working on the art, and it’s definitely a challenge. But I’ve come this far, and I’m not about to give up now!
Q: When’s the next build coming out?!
A: When it’s done. We’re all working on this on our own free time, and we’re not making any money off of it, so please be patient and understand it’ll come when it’s ready.
Alright, I think that about wraps it up. I hope you guys enjoy the new route!
Stay tuned for our next build. The next route will be quite a surprise for a lot of you as we’re entering completely uncharted territory. However, “All you need is to take that first step”, right?
Take care guys,
Devilizer
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Hey, everyone!
Just a quick message from me. I hope things have been well, and I apologize for how long it’s taken to get to this point. A lot has happened in the past 8 months. Between leaving my old job, finding a new one, moving house, and even spending time in hospital due to pneumonia (the latter of which only happened within the last week), it’s been a bit difficult.
Since build 11.0.1, I have been adding a lot of features and performing UI updates when I’ve had time. A lot of trial and error was involved in getting things looking and working the way I conceptualized them, but I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished so far. I have also finally added the long-overdue camping event for Kyouji and Soutarou, so I hope you enjoy. Compared to previous builds, this version is a veritable goliath.
On the topic of guides, you may have noticed that I have removed the online guides from the official Stormsinger Studios website. This is partly because they were outdated, but also because I intended for them to be in-game unlockables. I am happy to announce that characters who have a completed route can have their guides unlocked, with the other characters’ guides receiving their unlocks later in development. At the moment, only Juuichi, Kounosuke, Shin and Tatsuki have unlockable guides.
Finally, I would just like to say that I have been receiving a lot of translation requests (primarily on the App Store, but I’ll address it overall). I just wish to state that we will indeed be seeking dedicated translations in the future. I am actually currently working with someone behind the scenes for a German translation. It’s still in the early stages, as there are a lot of lines to translate, as well as him being quite busy. Additionally, this was a way for me to see how everything will look, and perform Quality Assurance when required. When the time comes for us to officially begin opening the door for translations, we will publicly announce our intentions, and seek those we feel will provide quality work.
In closing, I would like to thank everyone who has supported this project, as well as those who have provided assistance in any way towards helping us to continue to bring you an amazing experience.
All my best wishes,
~ Frostclaw
Build 12 Notes:
(We have now surpassed Morenatsu ~Revisited~!)
+ Completion of Kounosuke's Route
- August 20th - August 31st
- There are two possible endings. Which one will you get?
+ Expansion of Kyouji and Soutarou's Route
- August 15th
+ New sprite elements and expressions for Kounosuke, Kyouji and Tatsuki
+ New sprites for Tatsuki
+ New sprites for Kyouji
+ New feature: Affection tracking
- This system allows you to view your affection criteria with each character
- It must be unlocked first before it can be used. How? You'll have to figure that out yourself
+ New feature: Guides
- Guides can now be unlocked in-game and can be accessed via the Gallery
+ New feature: Event Replay
- Replay scenes from character routes
- These can be accessed via the gallery after being viewed once
+ New feature: Profiles
- Character profiles can be accessed via the Gallery
- Please note: At this current point in time, profiles for side characters are not accessible
+ New feature: Password system
- Password entry can be input via a button on the Options menu
- Passwords can be used to unlock content, but as for what they are and what they do, you will have to find out yourself
- Unlocked passwords can be tracked via the Bonus Gallery
+ New feature: Data Erasure
- This allows you to delete all your data, effectively making it as if you have freshly installed Homecoming
- Feature is found in the Options menu
+ The background on the title splash screen has been updated
+ Act transition video files have been replaced with in-engine alternatives
+ Miscellaneous UI adjustments have been made