[PROJECT FEATURE] - June: Tales from Cyberspace
5 months ago – Fri, Aug 20, 2021 at 05:03:16 AM

Hey everyone! We have hit 11k and now have only a bit over 5k to go! We still have over 2 weeks left and I am really hopeful we will get to base goal 🙌

A project I've come across is ending soon and really needs help to meet goal,  if anyone is interested.

Project feature
 

The idea is really fascinating - this group of developers came together and created a 3D space to (literally) explore and dive right into various works of fine art and the conceptualization behind them. I'm not sure I've ever seen anything quite like this before. It appears to be a wholesome yet challenging puzzle game at heart. The protagonist you play as is a literal child of cyberspace, a nonbinary entity born in the nebulas of the metaverse as they put it.

The plot summary from their website: 

The story of June is that of all of us. It talks about how the desire to belong, pushes us to search for acceptance in a world that is strange to us. As the first child of cyberspace, June is born into a metaverse that was long ago created by humans but is now inhabited by semi-autonomous creatures. As she travels through each biome, she looks for signs that can help her slowly unravel the mystery of her origins.

During her adventures, she will encounter different micro-civilizations, each with their own unique ideology and social structures. Some will teach June while others will hunt her down.

It is a caricature of our modern times, inspired by that dreaded existential question that we all aspire to respond to: “What is my place?”

If you are interested in reading more about June, click the banner above!

Thanks for being here!

Elena

About 65% funded! Over 2 weeks left - let's keep momentum going!
5 months ago – Thu, Aug 19, 2021 at 08:14:22 AM

Hi all! Things are going well! 🎉

Campaign progress update  

We've got over 450 campaign followers, and almost 200 backers! That's amazing, thank you so much. 

It's extremely important that we hit base goal so that stretch goals can be hosted on backerkit. If we don't hit base goal, no one is charged and no funds are collected, so backerkit will not be utilized either. As long as the base campaign goal of $16.1k is met, we will be able to chug along towards the stretch goals through the development period. It's really important that we keep momentum going so that it gets there! 

If you know of anywhere or anyone you think might be interested in seeing the campaign,  please do share! Plateau days are a campaign's biggest nightmare, which are entire days with 0% or negative growth through the largest stretch of the campaign, and it's so important that they get powered through. And as a reminder, Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing platform, so in addition to no one being charged if this is unsuccessful, no one is charged even upon success until after the campaign ends (in this case, the evening of September 5th). So, if you are a campaign follower and want the game to exist within the next 5 years (this is my last attempt at crowdfunding the majority of dev costs!), please consider backing! 

Game progress update 

So as we are all focusing our energy on keeping the campaign going right now, not much is moving on this front at the moment. As the writer, concept designer, coder, etc. etc. etc. all by myself (I only emphasize this because I received a rather rude and passive-aggressive Kickstarter DM asking whether "the writer" could prove that they are capable of writing 300k words...), I am both doing a lot and doing very little right now, due to still recovering from surgery and managing things online with my merch shop. 

Until this campaign is over, I won't be diving back into making any significant game progress. I have, however, been going back over some of the rough 1st draft writing and correcting and expanding upon things. The current completed word count has increased a little as a result (a few thou) but not by much. I'll keep chipping away at things though, to make sure I don't completely lose momentum. 

Thanks everyone! We can do it - so close this time!

Elena

Septums KS by Good Fortune (with myself as collaborator!) + Twitter Takeover!
5 months ago – Sat, Aug 14, 2021 at 05:58:13 AM

Hey everyone, happy Friday!

Add-Ons 

Firstly, for some reason, the hedge witch add-on disappeared. I found evidence that it had existed through some of the stuff still present in the back end but it must have been accidentally deleted somehow, or something... if anyone wanted to back for the hedge witch tee add-on, the issue is now fixed and it should be visible. 

I added the new outfit design add-ons! Each is priced at $180! There was a character limit, but please rest assured if you do want to have an interesting start to a fashion production journey and purchase one of the two add-ons, I will definitely offer consultation on who to approach and what questions to ask for that. 

Also! I had forgotten to mention in the design-related add-ons that your special credit as "guest designer" will also be a unique discord role for you if you join the server. Since they can't be edited after a backer has pledged, I decided I should let you know in here! Sorry about being a bit disorganized, I'm still getting used to the add-on feature built into KS (though I'm so glad it exists)!

New campaign

The campaign to fund the septums is live! 

Let me elaborate more because I'm sure anyone who backed for the Celestia ring here may be confused. Even if the KS above is not fully funded, we will pay for the septums out of pocket - we are just super in love with the samples and excited about them. If you pledged for the Celestia through my campaign, and this is successful, you will get it even if that one is not. We are doing this as a campaign so that we can afford to have multiple colorways made and hopefully we don't have to dip into our other funds to make them, but I promise I won't leave any backers for it here in the lurch! 

I encourage anyone who wants to back the other campaign for the black metal version of Celestia to do so, or to get any of the Twin Snakes ones by Good Fortune! We are also privately working on new designs for stretch goals if everything is funded! I would make sure that 1) you would not get double-charged shipping, and 2) they would ship to you together with what you pledged for from here. Canceling your pledges for it here would not help us reach goal so I know it's confusing that I am offering it in both locations, and for that I apologize. 🤧

Please do not hesitate to message me or drop a comment about combining the pledges if you decide to back the other one as well - but please do so only to me as Good Fortune are not involved in this campaign/the game dev at all and wouldn't be able to answer that. 

Twitter Takeover

Lastly, something fun! 

Over on my Twitter, I will have the LIs taking over the acct throughout the month, ending with the twins. Here is the schedule: 

August 15: Arisa and Kiriko  
August 17: Takuto  
August 19: Ryuu  
August 21: Sayaka
August 23: Sayuri
August 25: Noah
August 27: Atsushi  
August 29: Hanako

August 31st: Mikuru and Toshiro

On each date, I will post a tweet for the Q&A thread! If you have any questions or comments about the characters, be sure to stop by! 

Thanks everyone!! 

Elena

Amazing progress!! + possible new add-on?
5 months ago – Thu, Aug 12, 2021 at 10:46:51 PM

Progress

We are past 50% in under a week and at this point over 1/5 funded of what would be all the way through the Fever Dream Edition goal! That is AMAZING! Thank you! 

Clarification on graffiti 

First before diving into this, because I was asked, I realized I need to clarify that the graffiti add-on can include posters!! If you purchase that add-on intending to use the game as advertising in some fashion (of course, subject to approval), a poster might be appealing. Stickers are also a possibility, it does not just have to be writing/carving/paint on a surface.

New add-on(s)?

I know what you're thinking - there's already way too many lol 

It occured to me that even if people don't want to do a full zombie custom, they might want to design an outfit! I have realized how passionate I am for apparel design through these characters, and I figure some of you may feel the same. This would give you a chance to try your hand at clothing design and potentially pursue it further!

Maybe some would be interested in this as an option? If so,  there would be a non-sprite illustration of the clothing items included, so that you can have the design professionally rendered without blood (lol). 

If this were added, I would also add a reward tier to design outfits for side characters, of which there are *a few* already worked into the script without anything set in stone for their clothing. They would be the same price!

I would connect the designers (backers) with possible manufacturing connections if they would like to pursue that route (maybe even via Kickstarter yourselves!) - I will be doing extensive checks to insure to the best of my ability that the outfits are not plagiarized. (Inspired designs by generic, non-indie items/inspo collages are okay.) You would also get a guest designer credit! 

For zoms, the outfits would be limited to unlocked age ranges, cannot be sexually suggestive for underage sprites, and I would prefer they not be really goofy unless the Fever Dream Edition is unlocked.  For each age range I was planning 3-4 repeat outfits per sex (outfits that reoccur), and if purchased, yours would be a part of that selection. 

For side characters, I would include in the description the gender and age group of the characters available but not name or context as to not spoil anything. 

So to recap, what would be included: 

For zoms -

• Recurring outfit design for unlocked age group of zombie sprites (2 poses)
• Non-specific subject beyond the sex and age (you can choose which matching hairstyle you would prefer out of premade recurring options available)

For side characters - 

• Exclusive outfit design for one-time-occuring minor character (1 pose)
• Very specific pre-named character, first come first serve 
• Hairstyles, skintone, and eye colors predetermined 

For both - 

• Credit as [backer] as well as guest designer 
• Additional front-view illustration of the clothing separate from any character bases
• Manufacturer recommendations (I will not organize manufacturing for you)
• Very limited quantity
• Cannot be fanart/cosplay

If Fever Dream Edition gets unlocked, that opens the door to a lot more creative, out-of-the-box outfit potentials! For the base game I am really keen on keeping a more somber aesthetic, but if FDE is reached, that absolutely makes way for more dramatic, parody-like designs. (If you'd like clarification on what I'd consider to be too dramatic, feel free to ask - I dress almost solely in alt fashion myself so I'm not very conservative on the matter! Some things would, however, likely take players out of the atmosphere of base game if they saw a zombie default wearing it.)

What do y'all think? Worthwhile or nah? Please leave a comment if you may be interested or think it's a good idea! Conversely, let me know if you think it's a terrible idea lol

Elena

AMAZING first 24 hours + Salty Hounds shout-out!
5 months ago – Wed, Aug 11, 2021 at 07:01:20 PM

Hi everyone! I'm so happy to see so many of you from the prior campaign! 

The first 24hrs have exceeded my expectations! We are genuinely at a point where I do believe we can make base goal soon! As a first-time game dev I know to temper my expectations as people rightfully will have some skepticism about the capacity of the project, so this level of support makes me so happy. I am very invested in making ApoYume a success not only for myself but for everyone involved. I really want this to be a highlight in their careers for all of the VAs and artists, as I have really enjoyed working with them.

If you do want ApoYume to be released within the timeframe outlined in the campaign info, please make sure to share with anyone you think may be interested! Unfortunately it has been receiving some homophobic backlash as of late last night, which has been stressful 🤧 

On an unrelated note, look at this cute VN!! I backed it a week ago and they are steadily gaining momentum, but I'd love if I could help them gain even more traction! 

The game summary: 

SALTY HOUNDS   is an innovative bodyguards dating sim which combines adventure gameplay and otome VN in one package.

The player is put in charge of the private security company SALTY HOUNDS.  Explore the city in with charming bodyguards, manage your company, find new clients, call up your love interests and get close to them.

Reach one of many different endings through actions and choices!

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

They have an impressive preview available in the campaign bio of the voice acting, and gameplay looks great so far! I love the game mechanics, it's a lot to combine all of the aspects they put together and I am really excited to watch dev progress.

The kickstarter can be found here and their twitter is very active!
 

Thank you for being here!

Elena