Devblog #28 - Absolute Insanity

Hello lads and lasses,

In today's devblog, we're going to dive into the absolute madness of game dev. You know, the kind of chaos that makes you question your life choices and sanity. But hey, that's all part of the fun, right?

First off, let's talk a little about our usual workday. It's not your typical 9-to-5 gig. No, no, no. We're talking late nights, early mornings, and plenty of caffeine-fuelled coding, art, and writing marathons. It's a wonder we can still function like normal humans, to be honest.

But it's not all doom and gloom, mates. We love what we do, and we're passionate about creating the best bloody 18+ visual novel(esque?) game out there. So, we put in the long hours and grit our teeth through the madness because, in the end, it's all worth it.

Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. Let's get into the details of what our process is like. We start with brainstorming sessions that can last for hours, sometimes days. Ideas are thrown around like confetti at a wedding, and we try to catch as many as we can. It's a beautiful mess, really. Once we have a solid foundation, Johnny dives into the writing, and I dive into working out the progression. This is where things can get a bit... complex. We're talking branching storylines, multiple endings, and enough dialogue to make your head spin. It's like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle blindfolded, especially because our previous approach to branching storylines was a bit of a disaster.

Of course, we've tried taming the beast before by mapping out the story in a spreadsheet, but that only lasted for so long before it became unmaintainable. So, we're back to the drawing board, trying to find a new way to keep track of it all. In the below image, you can see how we used to do it.

And this is how we're trying to do it now:

Absolute madness, isn't it?! Believe it or not, this is actually an improvement. We're still working out the kinks, but we're getting there. Slowly but surely. The above graph covers only 1/3 of the story, so you can imagine how much more there is to do. But what is different now is that we're more organised, and we're able to see the bigger picture more clearly. I've already caught a handful of bugs and inconsistencies that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. So, while it may look like a hot mess, it's actually a necessary step in the process. The new approach means the events map will always stay up-to-date because Johnny will directly edit it as he writes. And I'll be able to see the changes in real-time, allowing me to make adjustments to the codebase as needed. It's a win-win situation, really.

The software we're using to create this graph is called Obsidian, and it's been a lifesaver. It's a note-taking app that allows us to create links between different notes, which is perfect for keeping track of all the different storylines and characters. It's yet another tool in our arsenal, and we're always on the lookout for new ones to make our lives easier.

That, of course, is just one aspect of the development process. There's also the art of planning, for which we use a tool called Planka. It's a self-hosted digital kanban board that allows us to keep track of all the different tasks we need to complete. From writing to art to coding, everything is broken down into manageable chunks and assigned to the appropriate team member. It's a bit like a digital to-do list, but with a lot more bells and whistles.

And then there's the actual coding, which is a whole other beast entirely. I am using a combination of Python, Ren'Py, GLSL, and a few other languages to bring the game to life. It's a complex process that requires a lot of patience, trial and error, and a borderline unhealthy amount of caffeine. But I wouldn't have it any other way. There's something incredibly satisfying about seeing your code just work after hours of debugging and troubleshooting.

Of course, it's not all smooth sailing. There are plenty of times when I want to throw my computer out the window and take up knitting instead. But I persevere, because I know that every hour I put in is one step closer to creating an experience that we're proud of. Yeah, we're proud of making a porn game, sue me, lol! It's not just about the smut, though. It's about creating a world that's immersive, engaging, and yes, even meaningful at times. We want our players to feel something, whether it's arousal, emotion, or just plain old entertainment.

And that's where the next part of the devblog comes in: the writing. I'll let Johnny take it from here, as he's the one who's been slaving away at the keyboard. So, without further ado, over to you, mate. LoafyLemon out!

Hey, y'all. Johnny here, reporting in from my writing den. As I was planning to cover some of what Loafy had to say, I won't reiterate too much, but instead focus on my experiences using Obsidian so far, and comparing it to what I've used in the past.

Previously, I've been using a couple of online writing tools. First, I used Google Docs, which was fine for the time. I didn't know much about coding, and the collaborative features were useful as I required more assistance during the writing process itself. However, once I started learning a little bit of the basic coding functions, I knew that I needed something else.

So, I swapped to another online tool which supported coding. It was decent at its job, but like with anything else, had its own issues and limitations. Since I'm the main one using the tool while Loafy works directly with game files, it created a bit of a disconnect. You could also not link directly to an editable file to users who should already have access to the folder. This made it quite annoying, as I had to write down where the file is located and instructions where various things should be inserted into the story.

This brings me to another online tool I used to map out events. (The first image) While this tool was useful when learning the ropes, it was also completely manual. Creating event maps took a long time, as every connection, box and icon was added in manually.

What made me want to move away from it the most, came when we started expanding on existing events. Only one person could edit it at a time, and you had to generate and share a unique link each time. With Obsidian, I can just write the events in its own section, then point to where they should be added into the main graph once they're ready to be implemented.

On a more personal note, I tend to get a bit complacent about my workflow sometimes. I spend a lot of time going through and familiarizing myself with existing writing to wrap my head around its complexity and intended nuance. I do keep a fair bit of it in my head, and re-read important sections at times, of course. But there's so much unnecessary trash in there, which I should let go of and rely more on tools like this to easily find what I'm looking for. I'm looking forward to discovering more how to utilize Obsidian, not just for a larger overview, but how I can use it for day to day with writing as well. Of course, the most important aspect is so far is easily showcasing how my writing should be inserted into the game. (Add diagram of "how to sex" here.)

That's about it for me, peace lads.