Episode 15 Recap

Episode 15 Recap

In the lead-up to Episode 15, I talked over and over about how important this episode was but couldn't go into details about it. Now that it's out, I can finally speak about the specifics.

It's important for a couple of reasons. The first is that there are a few big story elements in it. With the opportunity to pursue Riley, you've now had a chance to be intimate with every romance option in the game. It took a long time to get here but to at least say there's one scene with every girl means everybody who has a favorite girl gets their moment. There will be more moments to follow but now everybody is on the board.

After the credits, there's also the introduction of a new major character. Jay Sharp isn't a new character in terms of being mentioned, since he's introduced in Episode 1. But this is the first time you've ever seen him in the game.

And the other reason why this was a big episode is for personal reasons. I've been developing this game for a long time. With every big episode, there are big ideas that have been in my head all this time. I think this is the biggest story episode so far in regards to revealing a major character and having sex with the last holdout. To finally make it a realization is big for me. It's nice to start with something that's just an idea and make it playable.

Riley's Moment

Your relationship with Riley is unique because it's always been about your friendship. She's been around since the beginning. She's the first LI that you interact with. You've talked to her in nearly every episode. Episode 15 was meant to be Riley's episode. It's a culmination of the cementing of the bond that the two of you have. And the cementing of that bond comes with both you and Riley revealing things to each other that are beneath the surface.

The revelation that you, the MC, lost your mother is supposed to be a moment of trust that you share with all of the girls. I wanted to go beyond that though. Even though it's obviously a huge loss that defines your character, I didn't want it to be like that with every girl. And you did more than that. You revealed the truth about the fights and you made a commitment to give up fighting. This was meant to go above and beyond revealing information. This is you taking action to prove your friendship to her.

On Riley's end, she reveals the truth about herself. On the surface, Riley was meant to be the perfect girl. She's smart. She's hard-working. She's good-looking. She's popular. There's supposed to be reason you had a crush on her. I always emphasize with all of the characters that they're more than what you see. For Riley, I wanted to make her something that's deeper than just a pretty face. I took Riley's characterization and considered it whenever I wrote for her in the previous episodes, whether or not it was apparent. There was always going to be something more to her. I rewrote and I played through that scene more times than I can count. I wanted every line of dialogue to be appropriate and meaningful.

Because of that secret she held within her, it was going to be the reason why she grew close to the MC. Riley never had any real friends. It might be the case that you don't care about Riley personally or you like her a lot because she's hot, but the MC was always meant to see her as a friend in addition to and more than everything else. That's why Riley cares about you. And that's why she's willing to go further with you. It's a friendship that goes both ways.

With an established friendship, you can build something more if you want to. It's a natural progression to pursue her. She likes you and is willing to go further because you're been here this whole time and didn't leave. And if you've been willing to wait to pursue her this whole time, you're exactly the man she's come to know and build that friendship with. That's part of the reason why sleeping with Riley is optional. I thought it was appropriate to give you that choice of deciding whether or not now would be the right time to be with her. All relationships and pursuits in this game are built on something more than just a physical attraction and Riley wasn't meant to be an exception.

It's been a long time coming for this moment. It feels like a milestone. But there's still more to go with Riley in terms of story and the pursuit of romance. This is only the beginning for both of you. Despite expressing feelings for one another, there are more and deeper feelings that are going to develop for Riley's romance. And if you're not pursuing her, your bond is only going to get stronger.

Introducing Jay Sharp

Sharp has always been there. I've been deliberate about mentioning him throughout the story and in the dialogue whenever it seemed appropriate. I wanted to do it as often as I could without making it sound forced. It's a tough thing to balance. The main thing I wanted was for you to recognize the name when his face was finally revealed.

Sharp will play a big part of the story going forward. As mentioned before, I've had plans for Sharp since the beginning. To finally have him introduced so that I can talk about him with the rest of you means you should have a better idea of who I'm talking about when I mention future plans. There won't have to be vague mentions or secrets about things I can't talk about yet.

This was only Sharp's introduction, so this is only just the beginning.

On the horizon

Episodes 12-15 were shorter episodes meant to highlight different LIs. Like I said before, I wanted to give every girl her chance to shine. I haven't forgotten about the other girls outside of the main ones. And I haven't forgotten about Kate. But Episode 15 was a hyper-focused episode where I could dedicate everything to Riley since it was finally her moment. I would've liked to included others but I think it would've been forced and distracted from the main point of the episode.

I'll talk about more about Episode 16 and what's coming next in a future post. I just wanted to put this out there to give you a general idea on the development of Episode 15 and how I put it all together.

That's it for this week. If you have any questions or comments, let me know what you all think. Enjoy the weekend and I'll see you soon.