Devlog #23 Branching Paths

I'm going to try to do some more frequent and smaller logs. We'll see how long I can keep it up.

So this coming update is going to start the process of branching the story. Essentially, there are a few breaking points in the sandbox world that will dictate your story progression (this is nothing too surprising, I'm sure). I'm going to use this post to go over some of the ways this is going to happen in the near future, as well as in the more distant future.

Character Routes:
So this next one is going to start walling off various interactions (and adding new ones) based on your choices. Initially, you're going to have the option to move forward with solo routes for Lani and Marla, as well as a polyamorous route for the two of them combined. Most players will find themselves falling into the Marla solo route on the first playthrough, and then the Poly route by default, since Marla's solo route is deactivated if you party with Lani, Lani's solo route is currently locked behind the first tent upgrade, and the poly route has quite a few ways to fall into it (essentially, spending time with both girls will lead to their joint route... avoiding either will lead to the other's solo route). Since there are so many variations on how you may find yourself in the poly route, there are also many unique scenes that lead into that route, so I'm hopeful that it will stay fresh as players experiment with the timeline.

Secondary Locations:
The next update ends right before the player gets this particular choice, but the ability to apply for and attend the Great Crest Academy is the end result of going into the Marla, Lani, or Marla+Lani route. In the future, other characters and combinations of characters will allow for other secondary locations. The Academy will be its own sandbox map with a greater strictness on player requirements (grades, tests, tuition), while also having some linked functions that already exist (dungeons, exploring, etc). This is the basic idea for each of the planned secondary locations, with each of them having different goal criteria.

End Game:
Right now, the primary individual character stories are planned to 'end' at the finale of their secondary locations (so, the primary final game loop is 'home sandbox' -> 'secondary sandbox' -> 'character story' -> 'repeat'). When I say this, I mean that the choices and end result of your secondary location play-through will dictate the rest of your life (with maybe a few choices for you afterward). These final stories could be long or short (you know... if you do really badly and just die after you graduate or something...), but they're intended to provide an initial full-life playthrough, end with a permanent story buff of some sort, and then unlock additional options in future playthroughs. These could be smaller things, like new titles or something, or could be memories that allow the player to unlock new character stories for an existing or new love interest.

For example, Lani's solo story has fighting, bad guys, hardship, and gritty realism (that last one was a lie), but once it's all finished and you refresh your next life, the option to nip all that shit off before it starts is front and center. Just takes a murder or two, right?