Status update Episode 8 (Patreon)

First off, having a second PC is a dream for me as a dev. You have no idea how much it is helping me. It makes me feel less stressed and boy does it pump out renders. I started rendering Episode 8 a couple of days ago. So far the result is:

119 renders completed
1 animation completed (in 4 hours from now)

Some info regarding Episode 8:

This is it. It is time to create the grand finale. The episode will be a big one, in terms of script and renders. I haven't got the feeling of how a single playthrough will feel yet, but that is the curse of branching; which I'm sure you experienced with Episode 7. Slicing a story into 3 parallel parts makes it feel shorter, but the workload behind it is the same as for a non-branching episode. I knew this going in and that's why I chose to stay close to the main branch for Episodes 1-6.

Thus far, I have written almost 3000 lines of code, which is mostly dialogue and I have a so much left to write that I struggle to even estimate the total length of the script. As you know, there will be 22 endings, but depending on your choices from Ep1-Ep7 the entire Episode can be seen as a giant ending, from start to finish you will see the consequences of your choices. 

Some info regarding the new game:

When the script for Episode 8 has been written and while I wait for renders to complete, I will have development time to spend on other things than Acting Lessons.

As I plan to continue to create adult games, I will spend some time planning changes for the different Patreon tiers and for the Discord server. Before any major changes are made to the tiers or to the Discord, I will notify you all well in advance. Changes to the Patron tiers will not happen before Episode 8 release.

The majority of time, however, will be spent on writing the script for the first release of my upcoming game. The title reveal will come sometime before Episode 8 is released.

I want to release a BIG first episode of the next game, not just a short demo.

As I did with AL, I have started planning the main story from start to finish, but this time I am allowing myself a little more leeway, as I noticed how a story can evolve throughout development.

The details that I am willing to share with you for the moment being are the following:

- The MC (main character) will be a straight, Caucasian male, late teen/early 20s.

- The theme of the game is...*drumroll*... College. The source of inspiration comes from every single college movie I've watched for ages, slightly fused with a game that I would love to see a sequel of (Bully by Rockstar). I could talk about this for a long time, but I will settle with saying that this is the game of my dreams and I'm glad I got some experience in game development and writing before attempting to create it.

- The camera perspective will mainly be POV (point of view) but I will show the MCs head more this time around as it allows for way better camera angles in animations and overall.

- I aim for immersion, again. The biggest focus, as in any college movie, will be humor, but the main story will stray slightly from that at times. It won't turn into a thriller this time, if you are worried about that, but I still wouldn't recommend the game to anyone going through a tough period of their life. Some topics might hit close to home.

- The game will have a permeating story. It is NOT a sandbox game. That said, there will be choices and branches.

- Some events will be forced for the sake of the story.

Let's look forward to the ending of one adventure and to the beginning of another.

Cheers and have a nice weekend!

Dr PinkCake

P.S. Don't forget to post questions for the Q&A session here.