What I'm trying to say is that this kind of decoration isn't a good idea. Although it makes it look prettier, it ends up looking strange and doesn't blend well with the rest of the pixel art design.
Pixel art has its own distinct identity and visual direction. Adding realistic lighting and color effects clashes with that aesthetic instead of enhancing it. You might like it, but many people don't.
To be honest, I come back 2-3 times a week to check for updates or new developments, but I've never complained. Even without this game, I can play other games, and I haven't spent a single penny on it (for now). If I had spent money on it, I would definitely criticize the development team for wasting my money and time. Regarding the recent improvements to the lighting effects, I don't think it's a bad thing. The development team just wants to improve their game. I don't agree with the statement that "improving lighting effects is a waste of time." Judging from the update preview, the team will balance the number of CGs for the pure love route and the promiscuous route, which is already a significant update, as the promiscuous route has far more CGs than the pure love route. Furthermore, the team hasn't revealed any more update content. Who can guarantee there won't be more random events or more CGs? I don't understand why everyone always uses "no more content" as a premise to deny known update content. Version 1.9 hasn't been released yet, has it?
Since version 1.6, there have been many surprises that weren't mentioned in the update announcements. Aren't there enough of these surprises already? (I've been playing since version 1.6)
By the way, most of those who complain about poor lighting effects feel that it's better to focus on creating more content rather than wasting time on lighting.
In other words, they didn't think the lighting effects were unacceptably bad; they just felt the production team was wasting time and wanted more content.
Only a small number of people genuinely raised issues that needed improvement in lighting and shadow (which were excellent suggestions).
I believe that after version 1.9 is released, those who have been complaining will still flock to play the game and continue their keyboard warrior behavior, because the game is free. Will they pay for the Steam version? I doubt it.
Yeah, I'm only criticizing the art direction. It's ultimately the developer's decision. As a player, I'm simply giving my opinion on the new lighting changes. I don't like them, and some other people don't either. I just have a small hope that they might address some of the points I mentioned in my other comments.
I only started playing in v1.7. What attracted me to this game was the idea of using AI to reduce the time needed to create CGs, allowing the developers to produce more content and greater variety. So it's not surprising that some people focus their criticism on that aspect.
Of course, there are probably a lot of free players. In the end, I think it all depends on whether the direction the developers are taking appeals to the people who are interested in this game. We're just a sample of potential customers, and our feedback is simply one part of that.
