Hate and Shame (Patreon)

In January of this year, I realized that this video would eventually become necessary. I should have begun preparing it sooner, so I could have released it when I needed it the most. I wish this video had been ready back in June, but unfortunately, I wasn't able to complete it until today.

Across multiple videos, I've named several reasons why the game's development isn't proceeding as quickly as it did back in 2015 and 2016. "There is no more low-hanging fruit that can be implemented quickly." "I developed the game using a V-Slice mentality, which has had the long-term effect of making it difficult to edit or add things at this stage in development." Those statements are still true, but neither of them come anywhere close to being the primary factor that has been slowing down development; that's what this video is about.

Several years ago, I was targeted by a truly bizarre group of people on the Internet who have dedicated themselves to mischaracterizing me and smearing my reputation. The smear campaign entered the mainstream earlier this year, and has resulted in an overwhelming amount of harassment, as well as lost support. The situation has caused me to fear that I may never be able to repair my professional reputation, and caused me to doubt that I'll be able to have a career in video games.

I suppose it all depends on how many people in this world take drama and gossip seriously. If those people are a minority, I'll be fine. If those people are the majority, then...well, I'm pretty screwed.

It's simply impossible to be productive when you feel like you don't have a future. If the smear campaign and harassment get much worse, then I can't guarantee if I'll be able to continue developing the game. I feel that it's incredibly important to let my Patrons know about this, since it will probably directly impact your decision to continue supporting me or not.

The results of this poll will determine what I'll be spending my time doing in the near future: http://poal.me/71e1as

(If that site is down, this one might work: https://www.strawpoll.me/16826631 )

This poll not only serves as an indication of what the fans want, but also an indication of what type of people are in my audience. What % care about drama, and what % completely dismiss drama? This is probably the biggest deciding factor in me deciding whether or not I'm in a hopeless situation.

Thanks for your time, and I'm very sorry for this disappointing news.