Status Update & Sneak Peek

Next release on the 31st. Alex's route complete plus a little side content.

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Personal Status Update (Personal / Ranting, feel free to skip)

Sorry for the quiet period this month, that's quite unusual for me. So a brief explanation:

Last week I had a major scary health issue develop suddenly, which I posted a little about on Discord.

TLDR: scary event, emergency doctor visit, had to stop some long term medication I was on that was probably causing the issue, but that has left me in a bad mental state. I'm waiting for a follow-up visit in 2 weeks (soonest available) for more tests.

On top of that, I've got another (less scary but frustrating) injury I'm dealing with (a different doc appt in 3 weeks for tests for this) and long-term unemployment still ongoing.

(Rant: My day job is in software QA automated test engineering, and the tech industry has shit itself this year as everyone knows by now. I have 15 years experience and can barely get an interview today, things are insane. I've never had this much trouble even getting an interview, much less a job offer, which includes the 2008 recession AND covid. Seriously, I had better luck in both those periods with less job experience. Wtf is going on???)

Overall, life has been kicking me while I'm down ruthlessly this year. I had additional life drama last year, so the timing for all of this health & unemployment stuff was brutal, too. So, that means my motivation & creativity are struggling to say the least. I'm quite exhausted, frustrated, and demoralized.

(All of that said, I'm okay! I appreciate the well-wishes, but I'm better off than most people would be in my position. My expenses are low, I have savings and no debt, no kids, splitting the bills with a roommate, and the income from Obsession & Patreon are keeping my head above water. I've been handling it all well until I lost my meds. 😭 Having Particles to work on was a really beneficial and productive distraction that I would have been lost without.)

I need to wait until I get my test done in 2 weeks and then I can go back to my doctor to try some new meds if the tests return okay. Finding new meds will be an adventure, too, I'm sure. I have not historically had great luck with that either. The ones I was on I'd been on for at least 10 years after trying a handful of others with terrible side effects. So looking forward to that. 😔

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Game Status Update / Sept Plans

(If you skipped the previous section, tldr: Life's a bit rough right now and it's impacting my creativity & production.)

Current plan is to try and push through*. The output for September will probably be lower than normal due to the personal stuff. I'm anticipating 1 or 2 ends for Brandon's route for September's end of month build, which is realistic because his route is already in progress and most of the intro is already drafted.

*However, that said... I'm only committing to trying to push through right now. I've taken off last week to recover and I'm going to take off the first week of September, too (after Aug's release, just need to do some testing & build the app now) to recharge.

I'll jump in and out of writing as I'm able and I'll evaluate the quality of the output as I go.

Mid-September, I'll make a judgement call. If things aren't improving or if I'm not satisfied with the output, I'll put out a beta build with Brandon's intro (the stuff I already have written I think is great and it's enough for a beta build, I just need to edit & program it) and then put the Patreon on pause for a month while I get myself sorted.

So that's the tentative plan for the next 2-3 weeks. I'll post news as it develops. Or keep an eye on Discord for the small & immediate updates.

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Sneak Peek (spoilers)

And here's a small peek at some of Brandon's upcoming route (unedited, subject to change, etc)!

mce = Monika (main character external)

#Scene: MC & Brandon (in dream world) on a battlefield surrounded by dead bodies & a wall of fire in Nether

“Brandon spun me as if we were dancing to the music of the fire and bestial roars. The ground sank beneath my feet with every step. He held me close and I felt the warmth radiating from the glowing scar on his chest. Despite the horror around us, his eyes sparkled with excitement.”

cBrandon “It is a joy to hold you in my arms here, at this precious moment in my life, even if it’s only in my dreams.”

mce “Do you think I’m impressed by all this death and destruction? This is horrific, Brandon.”

“To my surprise, his smile did not fade.”

cBrandon “Did you expect war to be roses and sunshine?”

mce “Was this a war or a slaughter?”

“My question earned a laugh.”

cBrandon “A bit of both, perhaps. No King of Nether was ever a weakling. Those who lay at our feet stood between me and my crown. They knew the risk.”

mce “A crown you no longer care about.”

cBrandon “I care if I have a reason to, my queen.”

mce “I don’t care about being a queen.”

cBrandon “You don’t live here or understand our ways. We are similar to humans, but we are different as well. Being the king will give me the power to protect and care for you as you deserve.”

mce “I can take care of myself.”

cBrandon “I’m sure that is true in the human world. Things would not be so easy for you here. However, if you insist on pursuing this stubborn independence, I’ll give you the freedom to see for yourself.”

mce “So you can scare me into voluntarily being your prisoner?”

cBrandon “I'd much rather have you by my side, but if indulging this prisoner fantasy is what you so desperately crave, then I'll play along with your desires.”

“Strangely, that made me laugh. He smiled as he twirled me, easily holding me steady as I stumbled on the rough terrain.”

cBrandon “This place… I know it looks like hell, but I can make it heaven for us. Join me here and that will be my life’s purpose. There’s so much more for you here than you can imagine.”

mce “Like what?”

cBrandon “Would you like to learn magic?”

mce “… Is that possible?”

cBrandon “Yes.”

“My heart raced with the idea. Brandon grinned.”

cBrandon “I see that got your attention.”

#END