[Progress Report]: 17th of October

Hey everyone,

It's been a busy week, but production on the next Superheroes Suck update is progressing more or less as planned! I'll be setting the ground work this upcoming week for a fairly ambitious set of renders coming out the week afterwards. No spoilers, but I think you'll be quite pleased!

It's always difficult to fill out these progress reports when everything is going well, but sometimes no news is good news. There's been some non-story related minor changes, like finally updating the protagonist's casual outfit, but his body features so rarely in the game while clothed that I'd be surprised if it made it into more than a dozen renders.

As per usual, I'll also answer a question I received in my inbox. 

Solace, why is Superheroes Suck more of a sandbox game instead of a pure visual novel? Wouldn't a visual novel make more sense?

An excellent question. This was something I debated myself when I first sat down to create the initial renders of Superheroes Suck. I'm not a fan of mini-games, stat management, or cash progress blockers. As of right now, the only progression blockers in Superheroes Suck are story events that unlock more story events. But why make it a sandbox instead of a visual novel if the harem route is mandatory?

Simple really: I think the sandbox element allows you to pace the game yourself. "Events" showcase easy starting a stopping points for play and also help me chart the beginning and end of story lines. Pacing in a visual novel is very tricky, and I felt it was better to let the user decide whether or not they wanted to progress the story or enjoy one of the game's various repeatable h-scenes while still feeling "in" the game world.

There are other aspects of the sandbox style that Superheroes Suck isn't currently taking advantage of. I would love to make the Academy more interactive as the story goes on, adding functionality to the items in the protagonist's room and even allowing you to explore outside of the Academy. These features, however, are far in the future. Right now, my focus is getting out quality story content on a regular basis.  

Also the H-scenes. I know you're all thirsty for those animations and I'd like to think they've gotten better over time.

Right, that's it for me this week. I'm going to crank out a few more renders before heading off to bed.

Thank you for all of your Support,

~Solace