itch.io

Yes, every background is the work of fine photoshop on (mostly) my own photos from my own adventures across Canada.

I've been told this a lot about the story, and I'm doing my best to improve the later parts and give the story a bit more of a hook.

And yes, the cat ears serve no purpose other than the make the characters cuter. Though some of their personality traits are based off of their real life counterparts, such as the arctic fox loving journeys, etc  https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/arctic-fox-norway-canada-1.5197697

wow oh wow, it took me a few days to parse your notes. Let me try responding to them in order...

 Though I have to remind you that this game is not a 1-1 copy of real life, and many aspects are different for the sake of escaping from the hustle and bustle of everyday life... use your imagination!

are the songs you use original? The ones with singing. I mean, I'm pretty sure they are because I think it's the same voice actress you use for Zinnia, but I've always wondered. 

None of the songs in the game are original (otherwise I'd have a big hole in my wallet). I source them from https://dova-s.jp/ . I hired 2 voice actresses with very similar voices to the singers for  the vocal songs, https://x.com/Mochitukisiro & https://x.com/sato_sioo

My first question is in regards to what you refer to as Zinnia's hometown. She says it's Montreal, but then this is immediately contradicted by the fact that Zinnia is original from a rural town in Northern Ontario.

There's the fact that one can feel that they have multiple hometowns, especially if they feel connected to it. Since Montreal was the place where Zinnia first began her adventure, she feels Montreal is her new hometown.

Next, I just want to point out that Zinnia calling all of this an "opportunity" she was "given" is just the most incorrect thing ever.

Yup, she is an naive and unempathetic brat that only has her own interests in mind. I was like that too once! But she does change for the better over the course of her adventure.

how old is Zinnia supposed to be exactly?

The characters don't have defined ages for the sake of mankind. If you are serious about it, try taking a good look at Zinnia, and use her height, behavior,  and appearance (maybe not a good idea given the artstyle) to get a good sense of how old she is. Remember that this is not a 1-for-1 copy of real life, and the characters could age differently!

Onto the adventure portion.

The next note is actually in regards to time, specifically the time of the train ride from Montreal to Ottawa. In game, Zinnia says it's been 3 and a half hours since she left Montreal. However, I've done this train ride a few times and it doesn't take that long to go from Gare Centrale to Ottawa Station unless there are delays

You are right that the train ride only takes around 2 hours-ish, and I made Zinnia incorporate her time at the station and getting there into to 3-and a half hours. Perhaps I should make it more obvious.

What museum in Gatineau did she want to go to?

The museum I am referring to (which is no longer free of charge unfortunately) is the Bytown Museum, which is back in Ottawa. Zinnia goes to Gatineau after her futile attempt at admission. https://ottawatourism.ca/en/see-and-do/bytown-museum

So you say that the cafe is located on "university grounds" and later say it's right beside dorms. This would likely be the University of Toronto. However, Zinnia goes to Dupont Station. 

In Ikimashou, Casa Loma and the surrounding George Brown College are the sites of an imaginary school. Dupont station is nearby, no?

ZINNIA, WHY ARE YOU GOING SO FAR AHEAD THAT YOU CAN'T HEAR WHAT THE PERSON GUIDING YOU IS SAYING?! 

She is too overconfident

Also, really? Jamaican patties? 

Beavertails are overrated and expensive, Jamaican Patties are everywhere and cheap and filling, come figte me

My next note is in regards to what is likely a typing error. Zinnia plans to go to Toronto Island using the ferry...

She does go to the airport, that kinda counts as Toronto Islands??

Alrighty, now time for my last note: when Zinnia mentions that her adopted mother had to pay tuition for her. 

I'm not sure how to respond to this other than, "use your imagination",  maybe in Ikimashou all schooling requires tuition or something else. It's one of those things not to get too ingrained about.

I have corrected the writing errors from many of your notes, thanks again for the feedback, and please look forward to the main release of v7.05 in probably around a year or so!! Also, have you read further on into the game? There are 2 specific scenes with Claire that I think you should really see, now that you've mentioned stuff about the songs in the game.

no i must, the story is incomplete and still missing that voice acting

i want players to have the best first experience

not for long, when feedback quest is over itll be tossed back to the drawing board for another year 

many thanks for your kind words. The gap in the chapters is a result of me cutting the redundant chapters early on in development and then never getting to renumber them, lmao.

Also, the protagonist departs on the adventure in chapter 5, she is still in Montréal during the prologue.

if you want a guide on how to make the backgrounds, consider following this, it’s similar to my technique https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udlOU2GiIJk

Just tell others about it and be a superfan

spread the word when it comes out

😳 

tell one of your rich friends who would like their pet cat turned into a catgirl to consider me

probably after the summer, maybe early fall if weather is nice

Spread the word once it comes out, become one of ikimashou’s superfans

on vacation like I am, will be back soonish

great, donate me 100$ and a picture of your pet dog/cat and I will turn them into a beautiful girl

game will be free of charge

hello my old friend yes it's still being worked on just not very frequently, development should ramp up after the summer 

I don't have any public email address for game-related inquiries... you may send the message here if you wish 

The game does contain suggestive content and dialogue which would not make it suitable for you. I am polishing up the new version and I want players to have the best first time experience so it is unavailable for download rn. Also, I deleted your comment as you shared personal info, dont do that 

I felt that way once when I was little, I wanted to run away too :o...  But admittedly so, I agree that every character looks younger than they really are, and the anime artstyle doesn't do any justice >_>. Unfortunately, I have little control over the designs as they've been finalized by the artists.

But it is on the to-do-list to remove obvious references to their ages as I do admit it's a bit jarring seeing poor Zinnia down on her luck. The school scenes have already undergone some changes to appear later into the story, to make it more of a flashback than an event in the current time period.

And I'd certainly appreciate the details of your trip from Montreal to Ottawa! Many thanks.


PS, I also noticed you encountered the "spinning zinnias in amogus rain" screen after pressing continue in the VOD... That happens when the save file is corrupted, but I will make it more obvious! Never thought I'd see someone get it xD

Yeah, you make some good points, it's the small stuff that counts. I've never actually taken a train from Montreal to Ottawa before, so I made an uneducated guess on how long that trip would take. lmao.  I do hope to visit Montreal and Ottawa in the future so that I can fill in the rest of the story with realistic scenes based off of my adventures. As of now, I had actually rectified that scene in the school and moved it further back into the story, and made the dialogue flow more smoothly.

Also, I like to tell others this when they question Zinnia: Whenever you think of Zinnia's poor decision making, picture her as this little arctic fox. Stubborn, but very determined and goal-driven. But an adventure instead of a fish 🦊

Hopefully, when the next feedback fest rolls around, I will have released v7.05, that touches up the aforementioned issues and brings full voice acting  :D

Yoooo thanks so much! glad you are vibing with it, it's always been my goal to make a game with a cute and chill aesthetic! and atmosphere.

i'll try to respond some key takeaways here


The soundtrack is actually royalty-free, and most can be found on DOVA-syndrome! I'm still compiling a list of the songs, but a large majority are from yuhei komatsu and crep. All the vocal songs are from Losstime Life



And yes, I agree the story is a bit bland and uninteresting at parts. Sorta wanted to make a game that's not too tolling on the heart and is perfect to unwind after a long day at work. As of now, VN basically  falls into the "moege" genre.  

Moege (萌えゲ) is a visual novel that focuses on cute characters, usually cute girls, and the art style tends to be cute.
The term Moe (萌え) literally means sprouting or budding in Japanese. And refers to the characters that evokes feelings of affection or excitement due to their innocence or cuteness. The term is very often used to refer to cute characters. As I said, Moege visual novels primarily features that. The story of a Moege visual novels tends to be very light-hearted, even the conflicts in them, if any, tend to be light. They are the Gochuumon Wa Usagi Desu Ka? of visual novels world.

I'm not too experienced in writing conflict in stories, but I learn over time! The aforementioned small conflicts do give way into more substantial buildup past chapter 9, but I am still working on that part. In the meantime, might I suggest reading chapter 8...  🎵

I will work on threading more hints on the conflicts in the earlier chapters and enhance it with voice acting.

Again, thanks a bunch for your notes and feedback! 😸

hey thanks for being here over past months

development is slowing down at the moment because it's summertime, but i am still working on it, rest assured 

Hello, I am already using those in the game, thanks anyways 

Unfortunately, it's far from finished. However the demo has been greatly polished over the previous iteration, thanks to the feedback I received then and now. 

I joined the previous edition of Feedback Quest around a half year ago, and I believe you did submit immensely helpful feedback then, big thanks for your help👌

he done it 

be patient my friend... I cannot give an exact date but it will be out very soon...

I am getting more voice acting and improving the story in that time...

Thanks for checking us out again! It was pretty fun watching your playthrough on Twitch

We'd definitely get a new cafe background and food CGs, but our budget is pretty tight, so expect for them come once I can gather enough funds to commission an artist. 

Also, this is what's different about the Montreal-style bagel:

 In contrast to the regular bagel, the Montreal-style bagel is smaller, thinner, sweeter and denser, with a larger hole, and is always baked in a wood-fired oven. It contains malt, egg, and no salt, and is boiled in honey-sweetened water before being baked🥯

Thank you for your kind words, I'll look into the issues you mentioned, esp the "continue" button one 

i remember seeing you in previous jams, good luck on your submission too :D

I am still working on a list of individual tracks used and download locations, that will come out with v7.05

In the meantime, most tracks in the game are sourced from https://dova-s.jp/ 

as mentioned before, the base game will be free ;)

the map movement system is still in brainstorm state, and may or may not be implemented. If it is, I will definitely keep accessibility in mind

gotcha, I’m working on smoothing out auto mode with self-voicing, it is indeed a bit wonky. Can I ask if you are able to advance past that scene using other means?

soon, very soon. Just polishing up the demo and getting some new art.

Thank you for livestreaming the game 🙌

ライブストリーミングありがとうございました 🙌

The base game will be free forever! 

There may be paid extra downloadable content in the near future, but those won't cost more than your typical day's worth of bus fare, so fret not.

Hello, the game is using the Ren'py engine, which comes with built-in self voicing. https://www.renpy.org/doc/html/self_voicing.html

When in game, press the v key to activate it, or shift + a to open to open the accessibility menu, which also has a self-voicing shortcut. If you've already downloaded the game, can I ask if it functioning as intended?

Regarding image descriptions, they are planned, and will likely be implemented in the next demo version, v.7.05, which is coming out in early 2024.

Thank you for your interest in the game! Gotta support everyone from our fanbase :D

Thank you, everyone! It's been fun playing other games, watching the streams, and seeing the feedback!

I've gotten some truly valuable feedback thanks to everyone and the Feedback Quest jam 🤗. I  will incorporate your suggestions into the next version of Ikimashou!

Thanks for your word! Improving the writing, getting more Japanese VAs, and more art is just some of the things on the agenda. 

I post on Twitter every now and then, and I sometimes post updates on my own itch.io page. Feel free to follow :D 

https://twitter.com/bagelpoutine

https://umineko-chan.itch.io/lets-go

ps, have you reached the scene with the holiday singing in chapter 8? 

Yeah, I admit the prologue is a bit of a mess at the moment, since it was made very early into the development of the game (q1-ish 2022), and not reflective of my newer writing nor the plot of the story 😅 Unfortunately, I guess first impressions matter! Right now, I am working my head off rewriting and polishing the prologue thanks to yours and everybody else's feedback.

I'd take up your offer of assistance regarding the story, but I encourage you to play beyond the prologue of the game when you have time, so you have an idea of my vision for the game. 

Again, thanks so much for the candid feedback and remarks 👍