[Progress Report]: 25th of October - with Kelly Clark!

Hey everyone,

The early build of Version 0.60 is out today and I've got to say - this has been a fairly stressful release day! It took right up until this morning to get the Android version working properly. It's still uploading because of some shenanigans with my internet and MEGA, but it will be playable.

I've always had trouble filling the progress report on the week of an early build release, because the only I can really say is that "it's done!" but I can't spoil anything about the story. What I can say is that we didn't reach our goal of 12 animations this update...

We got to 13 animations instead!

I am quite proud on how a lot of them turned out, especially since my software's entire lighting engine changed on me halfway through development. The old environments are all updated now, so it shouldn't slow anything down going forward. 

Anyway, since Late Night with Missus Powell was so well received, I wanted to show you another character that's gotten a visual update recently. That would be Nierhaven's beloved reporter and superhero liaison: Kelly Clark! Now, Kelly Clark is what I would classify as a background character. She's not one of the main girls like Harper, Riley, Chrys, or Valentina, she isn't in the Academy like Missus Powell, and she's not a major villain (or is she?!) like Lovestruck. This puts her very low on the priority list for visual overhauls. It's understandable why I would want to spend around a hundred hours each fixing and fine-tuning the main cast, but background characters typically only get four or so hours. This is because they're meant for only really one or two scenes.

With the protagonist making a name for himself, however, we're getting close to that time when he'll require Kelly's services. So, I popped her open in my character editor set up and OH MY GOD.

I'd forgotten that I left her as some horrible clown monster. Okay, maybe it doesn't look that bad against a neutral gray background, but when you're looking at this blown up full screen on your monitor, it's pretty bad. I was actually kind of astonished at how poorly her design had went. When I first envisioned Kelly, I wanted woman of confidence and worldly experience who wasn't afraid to get a little dirty in pursuit of a hot story. Instead, I think I slapped a giant pair of blue bug eyes on her in my desperation to get out enough content in time. It's very noticeable (to me) when compared against a rendered background.

So, I went back to the drawing board on her design. There were still some features I wanted to keep, but wanted a look that was a little bit more "serious." Which had led me to...

I would have kept the red lipstick if it didn't look like plastic, but since it does, I think she looks a lot better without it. The face is almost entirely different, I think the only thing I didn't edit was the brow shape. Everything else was touched up in a way. She also looks far better in the environment. Here's a sneak peak:

Kelly Clark was never meant to be an ultimate bombshell. She was never as stacked as Missus Powell or as fit as Riley, but I wanted Kelly to embody a classic charm. And yes, we're finally at the boobs.

Thank you for all of your support!

~Solace