December 5 Update
Added 2021-12-05 17:49:59 +0000 UTCOkay, TLS 0.59.0. I've been working on it for a while, just not making as much progress as I'd wanted. It's easier to make update posts about things that are going well, or discrete accomplishments, than to ramble about vague frustrations.
At this stage, there's a bit of an inertia Catch-22. The longer I push hard on TLS, the easier it is for me to keep all the variables in my head and maintain momentum, but the more I risk burnout. When I work on other things, I come back refreshed, but I also need to review so many details to avoid losing certain elements I'd planned.
The good news is that I'm in a great mood and really enjoying my work on TLS. When I'm near burnout, I sometimes contemplate simplifying or shortening segments, and I don't want to sell the game short after so long. The conclusion of the Incubus War isn't going to be enormous, but I promise that it also won't be a minute shorter than it needs to be.
More updates weekly, of course. Can I make a release before the holiday season begins? Probably not, but I will give it my best shot.
Meanwhile, I can finally show you all the Vhala comic! Vhala tries not to bother the harem, but if an orgy is sprawled across a hallway, she's going to walk through. ^-^ Also, I've collected the TLS comics in another place: the Steam community page. So if you think you might have missed some, or want to see a little other fanart, please check it out!
Comments
See, I'm the detail and lore obssessed kind of RPG addict that TLS was made for, so I often remember the little shit like that. Like the amount and quality of the dialogue and flavor text for just exploring.... it just makes me want to max all the girls' affection even more, which 8s kinda... almost needlessly hard sometimes. I kinda wish there were more random items in pots tho, given how many there are. But yes. Being gipped by that lack of XP bonus irked me!
Long Tran
2021-12-15 23:53:59 +0000 UTCNo NG+? sucks, but understandable. Well, if nothing else, the game's high level of depth does mean replayability tho, so I guess it's not that huge a miss. I'd just kinda wanted the chance to start the game off stronger than a Chosen off the bat. Getting screwed over by Ivala's XP bonuses ticked me off. ...Yeah. something from that far back irked me! Damn unfair blessing!
Long Tran
2021-12-15 22:01:22 +0000 UTCAnd no, I love the game's style and approach. I'd just like a little more breathing room here n there.
Long Tran
2021-12-15 20:50:07 +0000 UTCNG+ gonna be a thing?
Long Tran
2021-12-15 20:47:23 +0000 UTCReligious zealots like her are dumb, but she's the minority example of dumb in this game.
Long Tran
2021-12-15 20:46:51 +0000 UTC1. The economy is important so of course I'd care!!!! I need that cash money for investments and affection!!!! PRON!!!!! 2. Tbh, I've barely played any game outside of Rance level SRPGs that require this level of apmost migraine inducing micromanagement since damn near EVERY action is relevant... almost to the point of overwhelming. On one hand, TLS is smartly making the most of creating a reactive, immersive, and complex games out there. You can't grind, your resources are barely adequate, and you're pretty much forced to make choices on what you can do and what you can't... to a scarily high degree while using RPGM VX:A... And I'm talking about the mind numbing level of system/eventing detail I'd expect from a AAA title... that we almost never see nowadays. Even the level design reflects that design philosophy. Every area is small sure, but serves to really hammer home how 'big the world really is'. It's hard to explain. On the other hand... All that shit ro consider can sometimes make you feel like you 'have' to play a certain way to get a certain outcome by a certain timeframe. It can feel less like playing a game/enjoying a story and more like optimizing the best run/build and you kinda forget that you're supposed to enjoy the ride. It can just feels restrictive more than freeflowing at times. Thankfully, so far the game does a good job balancing itself out that it never feels overwhelming or not fun, but it does feel like you don't get as much breathing room as one might like. Honestly, TLS, on a gameplay level, makes us really feel how cornered, broke, and despate Simon really is. It straddles the line between genius indie dev power and get gud trolling. All that being said.... I LOVE THIS GAME! ...But I think a little extra breathing room to max out everybody's affection or handle investments/research while not feeling like a life/death choice at damn near every choice would be nice too. I get that it's a balancing act and resources are limited, so milking a good system is normal... but holy shit was I blindsided by the level of 'talking to random NPC A can maybe kinda fuck you over 3 hours/events/arcs later'' moments. Upsides? Everything, even the minor random bits, feel weighty. The girls are amazing! ...I LOVE Cumdump(and the Succubi haremettes in general) and Trin. Sim9n really does feel like an older me, but less cautious and a tad greedier, but not by much. Also, does being a Chosen automatically make you stupid? Because it seems unnatural af that damn near every Chosen would conveniently be THAT useless, even as a parody. Yeah, you got Kalant, but he gives ip his power and doesn't really count. I mean, even among the Incubus Kings... you can name a few who AREN'T totally useless and are legitimately dangerous, flawed or not. It's just weird that EVERY Chosen just cones off as a idiot or useless... and yeah, even Kalant falls under kinda useless by not really using his power. ...I guess there's Ginasta, but she's more Counterguardian than Chosen... and only guys seem to be total idiots in this game....
Long Tran
2021-12-15 05:30:33 +0000 UTCI discovered that you could possibly take out 2 incubus kings during the fight with ship battles plus 1 more. :-)
Andrei Bucur
2021-12-15 00:42:21 +0000 UTCI really liked the change you made to Simon during the last update. Effectively going from having Everything to having Nothing. A good change of pace I would say. Meanwhile I patiently await what you can come up with on next updates. keep it up when you can.
Andrei Bucur
2021-12-15 00:39:58 +0000 UTCAfter another playtrough, after the last update, I can say that I am Sorry about any negative comments I may have had about it. The more I play after each update, The more I understand what you have in mind for it and the more I'm thankful for it.
Andrei Bucur
2021-12-15 00:36:34 +0000 UTCMaybe try making notes on things you might want to change/ add to TLS. Like a Things you want to do/ add to Notebook / Goals Notebook.
Andrei Bucur
2021-12-15 00:32:50 +0000 UTC...Why is ProN so scarce!? I need moar ProN!!!!! ...Dammit! I NEED MOAR PRON!!!!
Long Tran
2021-12-14 08:25:01 +0000 UTCBalancing workflow vs burnout almost sounds like a game mechanic. That said, it's better to take the long road vs burning yourself out. ESPECIALLY if it's just you/small team.
Long Tran
2021-12-12 01:42:10 +0000 UTCGreat to see Vhala in 1 of these. 1 can only imagine the things she sees in that base haha. But I think she has a really good sense of humor especially toward the woman who are into other woman lol. As far as the update all I can say is dont burn yourself out we all love your creative genius and want it to stay at its peak for this and every other update.
Reddy Bread
2021-12-06 23:45:35 +0000 UTCI wonder what Vhala was like before her unperson transformation. Was she a mother?, did she make lots of sexual jokes? (much like the unsexual jokes she does now).
Q-Riff
2021-12-06 04:14:39 +0000 UTCI'm actually really curious to see more about what Vhalla actually does for fun and how she spends time with friends and stuff. We've seen lots of bonding scenes between harem members, but not a whole lot about Vhalla's relationships IIRC. The fact that she's one of the oldest characters in Simon's social circles (older than Simon himself,) might be a bit of a barrier to getting close to some of them, but then, does she stay in touch with her old unperson comrades much? Who are her closest friends?
Desertopa
2021-12-05 21:38:49 +0000 UTCGIVE ME VHALA AFFECTION SCENES! Scenes of her just going about her day and having conversations with ridiculous sex in the background sounds hilarious.
Taium
2021-12-05 20:36:43 +0000 UTCYarra isn't (and can't be) aroused by Vhala, she's just discovered that she has a fetish for being ignored like that.
Sierra Lee
2021-12-05 19:15:32 +0000 UTCHaha, I thought this one would be pretty opaque to others, but I'm glad it got a chuckle.
Sierra Lee
2021-12-05 19:14:44 +0000 UTCI will continue to update everyone on my progress on a weekly basis. Every group will get a dedicated section, just don't expect those sections to be 30 minutes apiece.
Sierra Lee
2021-12-05 19:14:02 +0000 UTCSo remind me Vhala being an unperson means she doesn't have any capacity for sexual arousal? If so why would her talking to Simon cause arousal in the succubi?
JJS
2021-12-05 18:31:21 +0000 UTCI really love all of these comics! I can definitely see this happening.
Grim8P
2021-12-05 18:12:08 +0000 UTCI have to admit, I laughed so hard on that, my wife came to look in, and I had to explain the deeper meaning of the comic, but she chuckled too, even though she's not into computer games.
Darthjake
2021-12-05 17:57:21 +0000 UTCWell not making the release before the holiday season a.k.a Christmas season is fine. The question is will it be out before the new year? You have an extra Friday. Friday December 31st. Aside from that you mentioned this incubus war update won't be big. But how can it not? We have all the other girls branching off into different parts of arclent to deal with the crisis. No doubt a reunion with Simon, finding out who the anak's rival is. (As if we didn't already know). So what can we expect to see?
JJS
2021-12-05 17:55:49 +0000 UTC
