Update - Shizu and Mika surprise! (Patreon)

tl;dr - I'm working on getting the Emi sex scene done so I can release the next PAT version; I'm also trying to make sure the game is as interactive as possible.

This week's image

This pic isn't really based on any specific scene yet. It was just an idea I had that I decided to make because I thought it might lead me to something down the road. In general, a lot of the time I use this process to work out character relationships, by just coming up with little snippets and moments of them together and seeing if they work.

I had to go through several versions of this image before I got it right, too, because for one reason or another it just didn't quite work at first.

PAT progress

What have I been working on? The main thing is I'm trying to finish up writing the Emi sex scene that's coming in the next update for PAT. I'm hoping to get that done quite soon, because I also want to get out a public demo version of PAT soon, without that sex scene included (that's for patrons). The scene is an interactive threesome with Kumi as well, and it includes a set up plot scene beforehand, to give it more context.

When the game is more well assembled, this scene will come quite early in Emi's plot, shortly after you've started pursuing her. The dating mechanics aren't in the game yet, so instead I've just made the scenes accessible from the start menu. It won't really be a spoiler, though, because there's not much that you need to see between the end of the last version of the game so far and the start of this scene. There's some stuff about why everyone's agreeing to dates, but you already knew they were going to, right? Anyway, I don't think it spoils anything important, so you can go ahead and play this scene.

Working in VNM

I've felt this week that working in this engine sometimes feels about as challenging and complex as making a powerpoint presentation. I get a bit anxious about that, wanting it to feel more like a game, so I'm including moments of interactivity wherever I can, but ultimately I still need a more complex gameplay spine (the dating system that's not in there yet) before I'm really confident that this doesn't just feel like a slide show.

I would also like to be working a little more with the visual effects included in the engine, but they're more designed for 2D developers. For my part, I actually came up with my own method of how to do a focus-pull effect by rendering an image twice with two different levels of depth of field, then dissolving from one to the other, which looks quite a lot like a focus-pull in film. It's a very subtle effect, though, so I'm not even sure if anyone will notice it's happening.

Like the pic? Worried about spoilers? Think the game is a slide show? Give me your opinions in the comments!