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Spooktober 4th Annual Visual Novel Jam

Hosted by Stella @ MakeVisualNovels, Crystal Game Works · #SpooktoberVNJam
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A jam submission

The Graveyard ShiftView game page

Some things are better left buried...
Submitted by Melancholy Marionette (@Marionette_Mask), Eufasy, LazyCrocodile (@MrsLaziness0), bun (@sophrossynes), rcmvoice (@rcmvoice) — 1 day, 4 hours before the deadline
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The Graveyard Shift's itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Monsterous!#384.1284.128
Scariness...#443.8213.821
Fun#444.3084.308
Overall#473.8923.892
Halloweeny?#634.0004.000
Candy!!#833.2053.205

Ranked from 39 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

Log Line
Some things are better left buried...

Content Warnings
The following content warnings apply to this game:
Blood, Injury Detail, Threatening Behaviour, Bad Language.

I'm not sure how much detail is required, but the blood is only cartoon blood since the art is anime-style. The injury detail is minimal. The threatening behaviour isn't really all that terrifying. I wasn't even sure whether to include it as a warning, but I thought I probably should to be on the safe side. And the bad language is both written in the text and also spoken with voice acting, but it's only a few minor swear words, and not any of the really bad ones, haha.

!!!IMPORTANT NOTE!!!
The title screen for this game has randomised flashing lights on it to simulate lightning. I'm not sure if this would trigger an attack in someone with photosensitive epilepsy or not, so I thought I should mention it. If you need a version of the game with the flashing lights removed from the title screen, please let me know :3

Team Members
Writer/Creator/OST Composer - Melancholy Marionette
Please note that not all of the writing is my own! This game is based on a script from an episode of the TV show 'Inside No.9' the episode in question is 'The Stakeout'. By Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. I have adapted the script, keeping much of the original writing while tweaking and editing some of it to make it work better as a visual novel, and also adding my own original writing to the story to create choices, branches, and different endings for players.
melancholy-marionette.itch.io/

CG Art & Car Interior Background Art - Eufasy
eufasy.itch.io/

Additional CG Line Art - LazyCrocodile
lazycrocodile.itch.io/

Bonus Art - sophrossynes
sophrossynes.itch.io/

Officer Shearsmith (female option) Voice Actor - Amanda McKnight
amanda-mcknight.carrd.co/

Officer Shearmsith (male option) Voice Actor - Dominic Devlin
www.castingcall.club/dominicdevlin665

Trainee Officer Volkham (female option) Voice Actor - Rebecca Chiara Marano
www.rcmvoice.com/

Trainee Officer Volkham (male option) Voice Actor - Jerron Bacat
www.jerronbacat.com/

Control Voice Actor - Melancholy Marionette

So that's all of the jam team and cast, but as I said with the other project I submitted, I don't know if you need to know about additional assets that I used. Again, I used a mixture of free and purchased assets that I edited myself in GIMP and Audacity. The purchased assets came from DLsite, BOOTH, and/or various Humble Bundles. Oh, and 1 from an itch.io user too!

I'll list them just in case!

Sprite art is by Usugata Curry TV, edited by me.

Graveyard backgrounds are by Rachel Chen on itch.io, edited by me.
Additional backgrounds are by Minikle & Background materials shop, also edited by me.

UI design is by me, Melancholy Marionette, using art elements by kagotori & scratcher, edited by me.

Most SFX used came from freesfx.co.uk and were largely edited by me alongside additional SFX that I edited from Sidearm Studios, fesliyanstudios, and users RutgerMuller and mirkosukovic on freesound.org.

UI SFX is by GameDev Market Sellers Epicstockmedia and TomWindandySFX.

Voice FX are by me, Melancholy Marionette, created with a mixture of Audacity and FLstudio.

I created the original soundtrack using a mixture of loops and samples from Humble Bundle music producer asset packs that come from Producer Loops, and also free loops and samples from looperman.com

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Comments

MatSubmitted2 years ago(+2)

So, starting by the game itself, damn, it's so well done for the time gap!!! From graphics to programing and music, let alone the voice overs, so really well done! Now... plot wise...


Tottaly spoiler alert below this:

That was one hell of a missguidance at the begining, that only made the plot twist a total hit. Really, tottaly caught me off guard. It tottaly makes you reel up to save the partner, only to find out the main character is the one that's been played all along. I tried many options to see if there was any ending in which you could turn around the table, but I found none lol

All in all, amazing work you all!!

Submitted
Freakaversity
Reply
grapefruit32 years ago(+1)

Such a fun game! It was cool to see how the different VAs played the same lines in such a way that I thought both versions of each character were distinct. I didn't guess the ending, but it was fun to go back and see little hints throughout. I liked the music as well!

Reply
lazytigerSubmitted2 years ago(+2)

This was super good!

*************

SPOILERS!

*************

I did not see the twist coming at all. But as soon as it hit, all the little pointers along the way become delightfully apparent. My favourite was how Volkham didn't get the mirror riddle. That was a really nice touch. But yeah, even the title and logline give you a cheeky prompt. The setup for this was all so good.

Loved the sprites and the backgrounds. All great. Music and sound effects were all well done too.

Voice acting was superb, especially 'Dispatch' ;). It blows my mind that you're actually able to get voice acting organised and into in a game jam game. So impressive.

Also super impressed with the character choices. I went female female but am keen to try out the other combinations.

All in all, fantastic little game and highly recommended.

Submitted
Waterborne: Immersion
Reply
Expack32 years ago (1 edit) (+1)

Playing this right after Dawn of the Damned really showcased to me how much better your writing is than the material being adapted here! I mean, I will not deny the voice acting, art, and use of environmental audio cues is excellent - considering that all this was done in less than a month. But I feel even the writing exclusive to the VN outshines the rest of the adapted material. I guess that's just me watching a lot of Twilight Zone and other such anthology series.

But yeah! All things considered, you did great adapting what was given. I honestly wish that the adapted material was used as inspiration for an original story - now that would've been amazing.

Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Oh, man, every part of me says I should be shaking my head in denial x3 but as people keep telling me, I need to learn to accept compliments better and just take them, haha. That means a hell of a lot to me, so thank you ^-^

Hehe, I'm quite the anthology series addict myself! I think I'd probably have to put Inside No.9 as my favourite, but it's a tough one cos there are some pretty amazing series' out there.

If I had more time, or if I'd only been making 1 game for the jam, I probably would've done a hell of a lot more with this, haha. But this must be my least tweaked/added to adaptation of a No.9 script so far just cos I was so determined to take on the challenge of making 2 different games this time around x3 not the wisest decision, admittedly! I don't think I'll try it again, put it that way, haha.

I'm not sure if you've played it or commented before, so forgive me if you have because my memory is just awful >.< But Limbo Line that I made with a team for last year's Spooktober VN Jam is my most wild No.9 adaptation so far. I just sorta took that particular script and went crazy with it. It's still technically an adaptation and does still contain a lot of the original story, but I changed the setting from a regular support call centre on earth run by humans, to one in limbo run by all sorts of species, and added a hell of a lot more in the way of original content in that one. It's got tonnes more branches, endings, and just totally random stuff that has nothing to do with the No.9 script I started out working from, haha. It sorta just went wild and turned into its own thing xD It would've been a lot of fun to get to do something similar with The Graveyard Shift, but yeah, there just wasn't the time since I was working on Dawn of the Damned as well >.< Whereas last year, I was only working on Limbo Line for the entire month.

But anyways, thank you so much for taking the time to play through both this and DotD, and for writing such kind and wonderful comments <3 It's much appreciated :3

Reply
Expack32 years ago(+1)

Believe it or not, I had neither played nor commented on Limbo Line until you brought it up. Well, now I have, and it is everything I'd hoped it'd be! Left a lengthy comment on that game's page, too. :D

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Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Oh, cool :D I wasn't expecting you would go play it if you hadn't, haha. I always try to give it a bit of a shout out to anyone who has enjoyed my other games just cos it's probably the project I'm most proud of so far, but also one of my least downloaded x3 so if the opportunity arises for me to poke people into giving it a go, I take it, haha.

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G.C. Katz2 years ago(+1)

The characters have a really fun, playful banter and the story is very tightly plotted and resolves with a fabulous ending. You drew assets from a lot of different places for this project, and overall I thought you did a good job integrating them all together, which is a hard thing to do. One thing I would change is I didn't think the prologue needed to be repeated in its entirety at the end.

Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

That's really interesting that you say that about what occurs during that particular ending because that's actually how it goes in the original script :o Whenever I make adaptations, I always make sure that the main/true ending in my adaptation is the same as the one from the script that I'm working from, and in this, that's that ending, haha. The only thing I added to that particular ending that wasn't part of the original script was a few lines of additional dialogue prior to that ending monologue. The other endings are my original writing along with the extra choices and branching dialogue + all internal narration :3

Don't quote me on it because my memory is awful x3 but I think one of the lines in the ending version of that monologue is slightly different from the opening version, along with the delivery of the line itself, but I do know what you mean.

My brother actually hates both the twist and the ending of the original script xD Granted, it's not the best, but I still like it personally, haha. When I first told him that I was going to attempt to make 2 games for this jam, 1 entirely original work, and one another Inside No.9 adaptation, he was intrigued to know which episode script I was going to try and adapt. When I told him which one, he just looked at me with this sorta unimpressed scowl and said, “Really? But that's one of the worst ones.” xD Well, actually, he was a little ruder than that, haha. He argued that there were much better episodes I could have chosen, and I totally agree! But I just felt like doing this one and it seemed like a good Halloween-y choice, haha. I'll probably attempt many more in the future though since I'm a huge fan of the show :3

Thanks so much for taking the time to play through it and leave such a thoughtful comment ^-^

Reply
G.C. Katz2 years ago(+1)

Oh, I didn't actually realize it was an adaptation! That definitely changes how I look at it.

Be sure to check out my entry too: https://itch.io/jam/spooktober-vn-jam-2022/rate/1690696

Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago

I was hoping to get to play yours last week, but I wound up being too busy >.< And then I was away on Friday + over the weekend. But I'm back now, and I just finished a playthrough. I'll post my thoughts on the jam page for your game rather than here, but in short, I loved it :D

Reply
MoonlightColors2 years ago(+2)

(my comment can content spoilers, please read at your own risk, im sorry im sorry, i just really loved the game i wanted to expresed somehow )


I never expected the ending!! awesome game as always!! the sounds do scare me quite a bit i must say, firts i thougth that Volkham was going to die (im really sorry if this is a bit spoilery), the plotwist was so surprising, i loved the characters!! they feel so alive, the way Shearsmith can let go of their last partner and their friend is so realistic, the way the want to know what happend, the fact of reminiscing of him all the time when doing things that they used to do together, cant get any sleep, just their act of duel is so good writting that i cant help but feel really sad for them, for their lost, personally i dont think Volkham is a bad guy, but that makes me wonder, when you are that old ¿dont they feel sad or alone?, i wonder if that is what make them wanted to turn people into vampires, loneliness can kill you, its a pain that i dont wish to anyone neither my worts enemy, you dont have anyone around you, all of them are always gone, leaving you behind, leaving you alone, so no matter how much you scream, plead, beg or cry, no one will ever come (im so sorry i just let myself go), i wonder if they felt that to the point they couldnt bear it anymore, if it is the case, i just hope they can find peace somehow. (sorry if my comment is to long) To finally finish my comment i want to say, the game is great!!, characters are charming y unique, i liked the seccion of extras, really really nice addition, i love seen how games are made, great work to every artist who work on the game and anyone who participe, you guys are all awesome and talented, and Melancholic Marionette, you are so talented too, i love your stories (i apologize again for the long comment), please never give up!! and keep making this beautiful, fantastic games, the passion of how you make them is unique, i swear you make me know have higher standars when it comes to games, they are always so memorable, take care and keep at the good work!!. (im really sorry if its bad written, english is not my firts language so im sorry for my bad english, have good day or night)

Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

I'm glad the sounds were effective :D This was the first game where I tried to rely more on SFX than on music to create atmosphere :3

Your comment isn't too long at all! It's always nice to hear what people think of the projects I've released :D We all worked our butts off to get the game released in time, so it's great to read comments like this ^-^ so please don't apologise. I really appreciate your passion and the fact that you took the time to write everything that you did.

Everything you said is so sweet and it put a smile on my face :3 I was actually having one of those weird sort of bad days yesterday where I felt like crap >.< Just talking myself down and bullying myself mentally like an idiot. I went to bed early and just hoped for a better day the next day. Then when I woke up and saw this + your other comment, it really helped :3

And please don't apologise for your English either cos I think it's great! It's waaaay better than I can write in another language x3 I am trying to learn German, but it's slow going, haha.


I guess I will say the rest under spoilers! :3

I know what you mean! It must be a really lonely existence if you can never die >.< because like you say, unless the other people around you are the same, you will always lose the people you care about and keep ending up alone. That's no way to live because loneliness is pretty much always going to lead to depression :( I agree, I wouldn't wish being alone on my worst enemy either. And I agree that I don't think Volkham is a bad person. They're just trying to survive the only way they know how. And it's not like they're going around attacking people just to drink their blood, haha. Cos like they say, they only have something about once per month just so they don't starve. And yeah, they didn't intend to hurt Shearsmith by taking away their old partner. They just wanted a bit of company after being alone for so long.

Reply
DoubleFreeSubmitted2 years ago(+3)

Wow! This visual novel has such an eerie atmosphere. The sound effects and music are immersive and the lighting is spot on.

The interior of the car as the setting is so effective and I loved how the scenery shifted during the story.

Also the intro and the ending paid off big time.

Well done and I can't wait to see more!

Submitted
Truly Sublime
Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Thanks so much for playing it and for all your kind words <3 I'm glad to hear the atmosphere came off as eerie because it was my first time trying to build a bit more of an atmosphere that was more reliant on SFX than BGM. Normally, because I love game soundtracks so much, I go a bit overboard with the music, haha. But I really felt like this would benefit more from less music, more SFX.

Eufasy did such an epic job with that car interior and all the CGs :3 Definitely couldn't have made this without the entire incredible team!

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PepperSubmitted2 years ago(+3)

Wow!! I was on the edge of my seat! Fantastic art, writing, soundtrack, VA- all of it was super cool, and I'm gonna have to replay and get all of the endings. Really fun game, and what a great twist.

Submitted
Letter House (demo version)
Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago

Thanks so much for checking it out and leaving such a kind comment <3 It's much appreciated! I actually just finished playing your Letter House demo, but I will say more about that on your page :3

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Witching Metal ProductionsSubmitted2 years ago (1 edit) (+2)

Great little game with excellent voice acting, artwork, and snappy dialogue!  Well written with a good sense of characterization for the two main characters, and a great sense of comedic timing.  Excellent adaptation of Inside No. 9.  I appreciate the hard work that went into providing full VA for both genders of not only the protagonist, but also the partner!

Submitted
The King of Cats
Reply
Melancholy MarionetteDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Thanks so much for checking it out :3 And also, I'm so relieved that you don't think it's an insult to the show or anything cos that's one of my biggest fears whenever I make an Inside No.9 adaptation xD I would be bloomin mortified if Reece and Steve somehow came across any of em someday and thought they sucked >.< Not that they're ever likely to! But still, I love the show to bits, so I just wanna do it justice.  I would have liked to add even more of my own branches and additional dialogue to it like how I went crazy on Limbo Line last year, haha. But I was super conscious of trying to keep the scope smaller this time around x3

I owe so much to the team because there's no way this would have worked at all without Eufasy's awesome art and all the cast's fantastic voice acting :3

Reply
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