Dev Log #7

Hello,

This is going to be the last Dev Log before the actual release.

I am going to show off some new previews, the new main menu, and say a few words about the current GPU situation.


1. GPU situation
2. New main menu + other stuff
3. Previews + new Nojiko/Mila

1. GPU situation

As you all know a few days after I announced that I would release in October, one of my GPUs broke down and I lost 60% of my production assets.

It was the worst time to actually break down because I announced a release date, which I normally don't do.

And in the future, I certainly won't do it again because things that are out of my control can happen and it will leave everyone with a sour taste.

I will try to acquire a 3090 by the 15th of November, otherwise, I am going to buy a used 2080Ti and waste 500€. But I really need to double-render again.

Nvidia has pretty much given up here in Europe and even 3rd Party shops started unlisting the 3000 series due to the low supply.

SG won't need the 2nd GPU to be done in November, but I am still missing out on a lot of productivity. (Setting up animations while the other PC renders it)

I think a few dev logs ago I mentioned that the update will have around 1000 still renders.
Yeah, scrap that. I am currently at 1350 still renders and I am almost done with the still boys.
(I also added another route. For one event there are now 4 different routes.)
Then only the last cinematic which shouldn't take that long and is relatively easy to setup.

So the update will probably end with about 1500 stills and 5000-6500 animation frames.

2. New main menu + other stuff 

So, the old main menu always looked a little.. nooby. Like a generic renpy game.
I created a very simple new main menu with a dark look.

The main menu will slightly change again in Chapter 4. It will have an animated cinematic with the perfect music for it. (The cinematic is an in-game scene and that's why I cannot use it now.)

All the buttons light up if you hover over them and the new gallery is also included. (The gallery isn't fully done yet.)

3. Previews + new Nojiko/Mila

Let's get to the probably most interesting part of the log.

As you may have seen in the headline- I made some changes to Mila and Nojiko.
I already mentioned the Nojiko change in the last post. It was about her skin and that I just had to change.

Sadly, I am very very limited this time with the previews, I don't want to show off the new MC hair and also keep some scenes a secret. 

Drag into a new Tab for a better view of the images.

Here is the old Nojiko from Chapter 2.

This is still the old Nojiko from Chapter 3 and as you can see- she just looks ill. Her skin has got a really weirdo color to it. (And is super flat but I cannot show you the scenes.)

And here is the new Nojiko skin. A high-quality skin with a lot of details.

It's a weird image to show off her new skin but I cannot show the other images of that scene without spoiling. 

So let's get to Mila. A girl that is still pretty much covered in mystery. (And no, you know nothing yet. Keep in mind that Chapter 3 is the end of the Introduction. Don't get fooled into thinking you know a character and their deep down desires.)

I changed Mila's hair and I gave her a custom sculpted body. Just very slight improvements.

The big change is the hair and Mila was one of the last characters with really low-quality hair. 

This is a render from Chapter 2 and just look at her hair and it's texture. This ain't getting in my house.

And here are two previews of Chapter 3 with Mila and her new hair. 

So, you all know the new Summer model and you probably saw a few glimpses of the new intro. 

I, of course, had to adjust Summer in the later scenes of Chapter 1. The scene where the little smile eraser gets introduced. 

Here are the old Chapter 1 scenes. 

It also still features the old Summer model. 

Here are the new ones.

Here we go again with some Bella previews, the MVP of Chapter 3. (For the people that don't like her. It's a story game and you have to stay through it. Also, give her a chance.) 

And for the last preview, I am going to show something that I normally didn't want to spoil.
I will preview two more new classmates. (Oh no, you can see the MC hair from behind!)

And yes, that's a scar on her face. 

I reached a point where I actually set up too many renders a day. The GPU can't render them all overnight and it often takes 22-34h.
(I am actually afraid to see the electricity bill this year.)

So yeah, upgrading the GPU's will certainly enhance the development speed a lot. 

I am glad that I managed to improve my personal time management and re-arrange things the way I can produce the most without getting overwhelmed or feel stressed.

In the last month, I rendered around 350 still images with my new system that is built upon discipline.

After this update, we are looking at 2-3 month release cycles. The updates are only half as big and my time management is also improving by a lot. (I actually thought it was good back then.)
I can probably develop updates even faster, but I don't want to talk too much without showing some proof first.

This is the last dev log before the release. I will probably make a small post as soon as the update does go into Testing/Polishing.


- Ocean

(: