2nd Call for Input and Update on Customizing Asterion


About one and half week ago we opened a call for input through which we gathered suggestions on what forms of customization people wanted for Asterion. We got 50 responses via our form and 17 via comments. Nanoff has been tirelessly working on adding many of those suggestions during this time, and today we are going to talk about -- and showing! -- a few of them. Our focus today will be fur, horns and nipple rings but you'll get to see some of the other options we put in already. We will also briefly talk about body types -- and why we won't be adding in more body types for Asterion.

But before we dive in, here are a few general considerations and our second call for input.

Second Call for Input on Customizing Asterion

This time we are taking input on three specific types of customization:

  1. Fur colors and patterns.
  2. Nipple rings.
  3. Tattoos and brands.

Before you offer your input, however, I request that you read this blog post until the end as it will show how we are doing so far. This is even more important if you want to suggest fur colors.

You can send your suggestions by commenting in this blog post or by responding to this anonymous form.

THE CALL FOR INPUT IS: CLOSED.

How customization options will be unlocked and how will they work?

The full in-universe explanation for how customizing Asterion is written, you'll be able to read it in build 0.2. In summary the Labyrinth's magic allows the Master to set some of the minotaur's default appearance. You will unlock new options over the game, by progressing through the story and by exploring the Labyrinth. There you'll find objects and documents from Asterion's past that will give you new options.

You won't be able to customize him from the ground up right from the start. You will unlock ways to customize him one at a time. In build 0.1 we already have that to some extent, you can pick his clothes. In build 0.2 you'll be given a chance to change his fur color. More opportunities will come up organically in the story.

How will Asterion react to those customizations?

Asterion will react uniquely to each of the options. Maintaining him in-character is a priority for us, so it's good to keep in mind there are customizations he may actively appreciate or dislike.

There are customizations that hold special emotional significance and you can reliably expect Asterion to react well to them. Getting him a gift, like a necklace, is likely to fall in this category.

There will be a host of options for which he will react contextually as well. Asterion will probably dislike it if you make him wear a leather harness right from the start. But if the Player Character has reached a certain level of intimacy he might be eager to experiment new things with the player.

There are customizations which Asterion will hardly ever enjoy. If you want to impose them on him they will most likely come with making Asterion like you less.

Many customization options will be neither beneficial nor harmful. You can already see this in build 0.1 -- asking him to wear a v-neck or his dress shirt ultimately is all about flavor, it won't change how he sees you.

With that out of the way, let's dive right in.

Fur

We had originally planned three colors: white, brown and red. You can check those here. Brown is a common color in minotaur depictions and white is the color of the Poseidon's bull, which impregnated Pasiphae and fathered Asterion. Red may come as a surprise but it relates to another Greek legend, that of Geryon and his peculiar red cattle.

In retrospect it was obvious people would want more colors, so going from popular demand we added black and white (aka your typical dairy cow of the Holstein breed) and black. You can also give Asterion the fringes from the Highland breed, another popular request which we showcase a little bit further. That should be enough for now but, fortunately, adding in more colors is the easiest customization so if people throw in really good suggestions we might still be able to get those in.



Horns

First off, now Asterion has two more options for his horns: you can have them point upwards and have them removed. Beyond that you can add accessories: engravings and horn caps, which are available in both horned varieties.

Here's a hint: he probably won't like it if you saw off his horns.




Nipple Ring

Look at the previous image. So far we made one set of nipple rings, the one you can see there. The blue spheres are sapphires. We are looking for suggestions on what other kinds of nipple rings we can throw in.

Tattoos and Brands

We haven't really started working on the tattoos and brands for real. The code is ready but we are short on ideas. If you suggest any please say where you'd want the tattoo.

Body types

This is the one the thing about which we can't do much. In summary, all the work we put so far has been aimed at the two body types we have for Asterion so far -- mainly for his final, buff-er form. Making a single other body type would amount to an insane amount of reworking all those assets so that really is out of the question.

Nonetheless, we did take note of the body types people requested and we will take them into account when it comes to making the Hotel's guests. We are confident we'll have something for everyone.

Call for Input

Again, remember we are taking in suggestions about fur colors, nipple rings and tattoos/brands. You can do it by posting here or via this anonymous form. Feel free to offer romantic ideas too -- it's not only about sexy and kinky options!

  1. Besides the ones showcased on the blog post, what other fur colors/patterns would you want for Asterion?
  2. What do you want in terms of nipple rings?
  3. What are your ideas regarding tattoos and brands on Asterion?

Is this all?

No! We have many more assets ready but I figured it'd be sweeter to show them off slowly, which is more conducive to a more focused call for input as well. Of course, you can already see some of the other options in those pictures but there's much more to come!

Also, about build 0.2... Here's a brief update: so far we have about 23k words of content written. That's a lot, but we want to pack in some more. There's still more work to do, both in finishing the scenes and editing them. We had commented that we might release the next build in late October/early November and that's on the table.

Stay tuned, we'll post more updates over the next few weeks.

Get Minotaur Hotel

Comments

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(+3)

I like the idea of a rose alot! Should be quite unique and charming imo ^^

(+1)

So, I know it'd be A LOT of work and that it's improbable that you'd do something like that but I'd love to be able to see the big bull's behind as well kinda like have him turn around. Maybe to see a nice back tattoo or a butt plug or simply taking in the sight of that thicc ass... Again I know it's too much but I've never seen a VN do that and it'd be such a nice feature. 

 I'm also wondering a bit about Asterion's lower parts. Even lower than that. Yeah, his legs. His feet to be exact. In CG we see that he has a pair of big ol' hooves down there but I know that I'm not speaking only for myself when I say that I'd love to massage some big burly minotaur feet ( like Chester has in DyneWulf's VN but in old Cursedmarked's style)

Not gonna suggest any clothing or accessories cause I prefer my bull boys wearing absolutely nothing.

Absolutely great work guys, I enjoyed every moment I've spent in the mysterious hotel and I'm obsessively observing your site ready to snatch the next build as soon as it comes out.

(+2)

oh really? I thought I was the only one obsessively observing the site :P

(+1)

Every day I come here, and every time I leave hyped even more.


Are there any limits to the power of the moo?

(+1)

Please accept this never before seen moo as a token of gratitude for your continued patronage.

(+1)

The moo is accepted with great joy.

It's truly refreshing to see a developer who possesses true understanding of such passion and also shares aforementionted passion with the fans.

I feel like I'm watching a new Star Wars movie being directed by true and dedicated admirers instead of J.J. an K.K. Usually you get a feeling that VN creators kinda hate their own stories, while here you can feel the love.

Hope it's not impeding your development process too much, you know, working with one hand and all.

:P

(+2)

Oh yeah, I'm having the time of my life here. I've been writing fiction for years now and this is the project that's gripped me the most. This story about Asterion really is something I've been itching to tell for a while now and it has great personal significance to me. It means a lot to me that people are connecting to it and the whole team is quite passionate about it.

Thank you for your support.

(+2)

When it comes to tattoo, I'd say a typical Greek design, like the ones seen in vases and jars if the time would be a good fit for Asterion. I think Also, stars, the Taurus symbol or thunder would fit his mythos. On the other hand, maybe crisscrossing lines or a word in ancient Greek he feels particularly attached to. 


When it comes to nipple rings, I can thing of the stud type of nipple rings, nipple rings with chains and ones with axes or thunders on its edges. More tribal versions would be cool too. 


When it comes to fur colors I'd back gold and other colors. 


Thanks for all your hard work. 

(+4)

Maybe for some of the choices he could ask why you picked it and depending on your response he might dislike it less? Like I actually really like the cow fur. I think he is cute with it. Maybe he would ask why you picked that and could say that you always liked cows growing up? He could still be embarrassed but maybe understand then why you chose that?

(-4)

I doubt this’ll happen but what if there were tattoos that referenced other vn’s? Ex:Extra curricular activities,tennis ace,repeat,password and more, it would be cool if this did end up happening 

(+1)

I still want to see a muscle gut minotaur. #'-'#

Someday perhaps...

Although I'm really liking his new appearance so far. It's good to have some customization, even when you treat him good or bad. ^^

(+1)

We might get "a" musclegut minotaur... It just will be another character, not Asterion, and it will be way down the road.

Regardless we'll have musclegut boys, that's for sure. You can count on that.

(+1)

Nice. :3

Also just curious: is this game will have multiple rotes, like there'll be more character to interact and date with or just Asterion?

I wonder if the Naga dude tormentor will be datable kkkk x'DD

(+1)

Only Asterion is date-able, but there will be more characters and some can become guests in the hotel. Under certain conditions the hotel's guests can end up dating each other which unlocks special scenes.

(2 edits) (+6)

I kinda like the idea of a red rose, say behind his ear or in his hair, if we're going romantic.

Plus its spanish, how is that not romantic :P

(+3)

for fur you could make him golden or blonde if im correct there is some mythology of a golden bull.  not sure about nipple rings maybe a mini axe due to his toga having a mini axe. for tattoos and branding i feel like the greek alphabet could fit in nicely and you can also give Asterion the Taurus zodiac sign (i mean you can give him all zodiac signs but the taurus sign is the best fit for obvious reasons). also keep up the good work i love Asterion and the story and find it really engaging. 

(+3)(-2)

Would be cool to see nipple piercing jewelry made of bone instead of metal. 
Don't make them in the shape of little femurs, that's too on the nose and even tacky. 
Think more like this vvvvvv, one in each nip. 
 
It's even one of the possible horn shapes for moos, so it kinda fits. 


If you brand the moo, he probably won't like it. I hear that hurts. 
Tats feel complicated for some reason. Does he have to shave his fur to see them, or do they just magically appear on top of his fur? Could be cool anyway. Imagine the player character and Asterion getting corresponding tattoos after a comfy evening of hanging out, drinking, and shooting the shit with a hotel guest only to find the guest is willing and able to ink you both up. 
Give the "I Speedrun Games" playthrough some horrendous tattoo option like the pewdiepie logo or something.
Wait, no. Don't do that. 
...unless?

(+1)

Ooooh I like likey. This is great!

(1 edit) (+2)

Hi i really like how you ask everyone for input and how much love you’re putting in your game. I just need to say that.

I really like how romantic this vn is and how we can sympathize with asterion’s pain. I love how we can share that with him, and the few minor interactions here and there are what really makes your game emotional.

I love sexy scenes, but what i love more is the romance of that goes along with it. So, i think my suggestion is to put more intimate scenes with Asterion? Not necessarily hot ones but more loving and gentle. Like him licking my hand to show his affection or him nuzzling my neck or something haha sorry. Anyways, i maybe also want him to be a little dominant with me but thats just my preference hehe.

Anyways!! Thank you for hearing me out and bringing your idea of a vn to life. ☺️

If you like romantic scenes then I can safely say you will enjoy build 0.2 and what we have planned for Minotaur Hotel overall. As we progress we'll allow for more ways to treat Asterion well and he will open up.

Like him licking my hand to show his affection or him nuzzling my neck or something haha sorry.

Now that's a great idea, I'll take note of it.

(+2)

Perhaps we would have choice in determining that we the readers would like to choose being dominant or submissive...? Hehe... I like that.