Time to Level Up: The Future of Influencing!

Hello my friends! I hope everything is fine with you!

I have a lot of important things to say in this post, and I really need you guys to read it carefully!

The last update brought a lot of new Patrons to our community. The first step of AI implementation in Influencing was a success in a certain way, and I’m very satisfied with where we are going with it. Many stones were thrown at me during the adjustment phase, but that’s normal when you want to change something. And this post is exactly about change. BIG CHANGES.

It took me much longer than I would have liked to make this post because I knew it might cause a bit of a stir. I hope not as much as I have projected in my mind. At this point, the older Patrons already know that I am not afraid to change something that I think needs changing. If it means getting to something better, the effort is worth it.

Well then. After the release of the last update, I have been working to implement systems that make some requested player actions possible in the game’s hospitals. But something keeps happening when I try to implement new things in the game, especially the ideas you ask for the most.

And what are some of those most requested things? They are usually related to the game’s graphics. Tattoos, fights, animated scenes on the map, better animations, different body shapes... And the list goes on. Even adding new interactions face these barriers, as the graphical representation leaves something to be desired. On top of that, the game has been getting heavier, even with relatively simple code and graphics.

The big problem is that Ren’Py is limited. I’ve been working with my hands and feet tied, and it’s extremely frustrating. I can’t put even half of my ideas into the game because I keep hitting barriers that belong to the system. The time has come to face it. The real vision I have for Influencing (and I believe many of you share it) does not fit into Ren’Py. 

Ren’Py has served as a great "training bike" for me, allowing me to test ideas and learn a lot about how to develop this game. But now, it’s time to level up and take a bigger step. In addition to working on the next update, I’ve been testing new systems that support all our platforms (PC, Android…) while also opening the doors we need to go further. And I found what I needed.

So now, we are officially moving towards Influencing 2!

I still want to deliver the last changes I made to the game recently, but everything leads me to believe that the next update will be the last Influencing update on Ren’Py. I plan to release this update in April. From then on, we will be starting a new phase in our project. No more frustrations and system limitations (At least the ones we have now...). Now we will reach another level.

I sincerely hope this news is well received, and that you don’t throw stones at me before you understand where we are going! Once again, I ask for your patience and trust in the process. As always, I am moving in the direction that I believe is best for the development of the game.

My goal from the beginning has always been to create a game that is fun for us. And that is exactly what I am doing!

So, once again, thank you for all the support for me and our project! And let's move forward with full force!