Big things coming!

Hey everyone! Happy holidays to everyone who celebrates, and I hope everyone is staying safe and warm this winter.

I wanted to start off strong by sharing a hacked-together 'preview' image that I put together from some of the commissioned art that I've been requesting for the game! (That my lovely patrons have been funding!) I know I've shared some teasers before, but here's an even tease-ier teaser. I recently asked McDead to sketch out a 'lineup' of Amber as she progresses through the game. I got the sketches a little while ago, and let me tell you: it just makes me more excited to get this thing working again. We're going to have progressions like this for all the girls, and these are just their 'default' images! I hope to have much more art made for Channeler as things continue.

Speaking of getting this thing working again: this year has been an exercise in dealing with my perfectionism, and the problems it causes. When I first launched this Patreon page, it was because I wanted to just get something out there, see what the response would be like, and then just keep building. But since then, progress has been slow. In no small part because of me dealing with real-life nonsense (it's been a rough couple of years for everyone), but also because I lost sight of that original goal: to just get something out there and then keep building. I spent a lot of time this year trying to find the 'perfect' game engine, switching to Ren'py, and then to Bakin RPG Developer, and they all came along with their own benefits, as well as frustrations and time-sinks. But at the end of the day, I just want to tell this story and get it out there so you folks can play along and enjoy it.

All this experimenting means that I didn't have a lot to show this year, which is something I am pretty ashamed of, if I'm honest. You folks have been incredibly generous and incredibly patient with me, and for that I am truly grateful. But while there hasn't been much to *show*, the process has been incredibly helpful for me in the realm of planning. I have all of Chapter 1 fully mapped out and scripted, and much of Chapter 2 as well. In case I haven't mentioned it before: the full plan is to eventually have 5 (!) Chapters, and Chapter 1 will end with the party arriving at the kingdom's castle town. I've also (finally) landed on a storytelling structure that should allow for way easier play and testing, as well as being able to re-play scenes from within the game without having to start a completely new file.

So rather than indulging my perfectionism any more and just spinning my wheels trying to get things 'just right', the new mantra for this year is this: "Done is better than Perfect". I'm going to focus on getting things done, letting you folks play the game and experience the story, and then afterwards I can go back and do bugfixing and adjustments as necessary.

Thank you all again for coming along with me on this journey. There's still a lot to do, but I'm going to try and make real, tangible process for you folks so we can all enjoy things together. Keep yourselves happy, healthy, and warm this winter, and I will talk with you again soon!

Cheers,
- T