A New Challenger Approaches! (Patreon)

So this is your spoiler warning! The advance release is scheduled to come out tomorrow for v0.40: The Hidden Update. This art preview is for some pretty surprising content that's the center of that update, so you may wanna wait until after you've played the new version and found it for yourself, or it'll spoil the big surprise! I'm gonna talk about the art from here, so turn back now if you want to enjoy the pristine experience of going "what the hell is Lithier doing now?!"

Alright! If you still wanna see it, I've attached the preview as a file.

This one has actually been in the works for a long time, since both the artist and I had some personal issues come up in the middle of the process that delayed things a lot, so I call it a pretty nice stroke of luck that it was finally done just in time for this update. I actually got the finished pic earlier this month, but I felt like, in the spirit of minimizing spoilers, I should hold on to it for a while. I actually wasn't even sure if I'd use it in this release, I've already got some great art waiting to go in, but now I've thought about it, I believe it'll add a nice touch to the experience. I just hope that for enough people in the crowd, it'll be a pleasant surprise one way or another. Still pretty nervous about this one, I have to admit.

So! Getting this piece done was a bit of a process. Manlychan was really cool about working with me every step of the way from a vague concept to the final details, which I super appreciated. I still feel like it's not completely perfect, I wanna explore his design a little more going forward if I get more art done with him, but it's a lot better than the first pic I commissioned of Lith, that's for sure. Both in terms of portraying/establishing the character well, and actually having a good experience with the artist.

Actually, checking his page now, Manlychan seems to be in a bit of a state and needs all the commissions he can get, so if any of you are looking to get some art done, I definitely recommend him! He's great for kinda playing around that weird space of dangerous/sexy/cute/manly.

Anyway, yeah, this update has been an absolute ton of work, but I'm still left with the feeling that I should have done more, and the worry things won't go how I'm hoping. Thanks for sticking with me, guys! I know it's not fun to wait around on a cliffhanger, but this extra time has helped me kinda digest all my thoughts for the ending now that it's almost here, and I think that's done a lot to help improve it, both in terms of feeling more right to me and feeling more satisfying for the players. It may be madness, but a method lies somewhere in there!