Dev Log #47 - Dialogue makes me smile-logue (smile-a-lot)

Hi all, pardon the strange dev log title above, they are getting slightly challenging to write without repeating my previous dev log titles, and I do want to make it seem more alive than constant re-runs of titles. Probably a me issue, if I'm honest!

Anyway, welcome back to another installment of the dev log! It has been a fruitful week to kick off September, as I'm well into the development of Day 2 which I expect to finish up in about 4-5 days from now.

Keeping a tight noose (and some game details!)
Scope-wise, I do aim to keep the days that do not have free roams more compact and tight in terms of what I do or do not render, with the opening day having over 500 renders alone (in comparison, the usual render count for a day in previous releases is usually around 250-400 renders).

To speak more on the opening day, there will be a major choice presented to you after making Cara use her phone, which can be seen in the attached image below (avoid it if you do not want spoilers). Keeping to my idealogy of making the story tall and wide and also making meaningful choices, this choice will be one of a few big choices in this episode that will decide how the story plays out for Cara in her adventures!

Of course, this means a slightly increased workload for me but it will be something I keep a noose on so as to not prolong development times unnecessarily.

Smile-logue
It has been a good week for writing dialogue, to put it simply, with over 2000 lines of dialogue written and refined for the opening day itself and several hundred more for the 2nd day. I do intend to hold on to this pace for as long as mentally (and physically) possible as I navigate and progress the story while keeping my vision of the episode in mind!

A long-term payoff
When the phone was first introduced, the pervasive bugginess and generally unsatisfactory feeling (even for me) of using it initially made me consider removing the feature altogether. Thankfully, keeping the mechanic and refining it has now allowed me to tell a more coherent story without the need for making Cara teleport to multiple areas at once just to achieve a scene's purpose.

This, together with the map mechanic (also refined) will be apparent when the first free roam is experienced!

Release date... maybe?
As much as I promise or prop up what I've detailed above, obviously, the best way for you guys to find out is to play it for yourself! With regards to this, I do have a release window in mind for Episode 2, which is considering my current pace and development speed, which has recently returned to its proper form (i.e. consistent development, consistent results) and is going at a smooth rate.

With that in mind, the tentative release date for Episode 2 is early November 2023 to mid-December 2023. I understand if this is a long wait and I want to apologize first and foremost, as I do find the pace of my development over the last 2 months to be slow at best, and I am also not one to rely on excuses as to why this was the case. Slow development is slow development and the only way to make up for it is to continue with my current pace and finish strong, even though the start was slow!

---------------------------------------- PROGRESS BREAKDOWN ----------------------------------
Story: 95% done. No change.

Renders: 22.5% done. Day 2 is in full development, expect to wrap up before the next dev log and start on Day 3. Up 2.5% from last week.

Dialogue: 17.5% done. Day 1 dialogue is finalized, and Day 2 is progressing smoothly. Up 2.5% from last week.

Gameplay: 25% done. Refinement of map and phone mechanics completed. Up 15% from last week.
---------------------------------------- END OF BREAKDOWN -------------------------------------

A productive week for all areas, and it's something I'm thankful for. I will continue to work hard on the episode's development and will be back for more updates next week!

Thank you and stay safe!