Dev Log #1 – Rebuilding, Feedback, and Branching Paths

Sorry for the long text, but I wanted to give a transparent look into what’s been happening behind the scenes, what’s coming next:

First, a huge thank-you to every single follower here—and an extra-big hug to all paying Patrons. Your early support (even pre-update!) means the world to me, and it keeps this crazy little project rolling forward. 🧡

Release cadence

Target: an update every 2–3 weeks

~2 weeks for new content

up to 1 extra week as a buffer for unexpected bugs or awkward story break-points

Next build: v0.2 on 02 July

Because chapter lengths vary, an update might cover two chapters or half of one; the goal is meaningful progress each drop, not a neat “chapter per patch” rule.

What’s happened since launch

Three weeks ago I jumped into my first-ever game project. Coding is my day job, so back-end logic feels comfy; AI art generation, Twine, and web deployment… not so much. Learning curve = vertical. 😅

Still a ton already changed

Addressing Key Feedback & Improvements – with Context

Before I go into the specifics, I want to make it clear that I appreciate all feedback, even when it's blunt or harsh. The review I’m referencing (see image below) isn’t sugar-coated - but it raises valid points that helped me reflect on the current state of the project and where it needs to go. In fact, I’m using it here not to complain, but because it lines up well with what’s already in the works and what you can expect in the next update:

🔴 Bad:

Static images are massive — in resolution and file size.

File names aren’t consistently cased, so things break on Linux/mac/mobile.

The AI-generated animations look awkward and rough. Honestly better left out.

So far, it plays like a mostly linear kinetic novel.

🔻 Ugly:

There’s basically zero real content. Unless you count feet and an explicit shot right up front.

The current fetish focus (feet/gay content) makes it pretty clear where this is heading.

The “Soul System” looks like it’s going to collapse under its own weight. With so many variables, it risks becoming a bloated mess — too wide, too shallow, and confusing as hell to follow.

1. “Images are gigantic” → Now significantly optimized

In the initial release, the game assets weren’t compressed, which led to a bloated file size. This is now resolved:

The total build shrunk from ~1 GB to < 100 MB, without any noticeable visual downgrade, This should also reduce memory usage and improve performance.

“File-name casing breaks on other OSs” → Windows-first, best-effort elsewhere

I attempted to normalize all filenames with a script to improve compatibility on Linux/macOS—but the script wrecked the project and backups. Everything had to be manually restored.

I ran into major issues trying to implement a file-fix script, which ended up breaking the entire game and even corrupted backups. After working through most of the night, I’ve managed to recover and rebuild most of the game, including all of Chapter 0 and parts of Chapter 1. Not everything is fixed yet, but most critical parts are functional again.

What this means:

• The game is intended for Windows and tested only on that OS.

• I don’t own a Mac or Linux system, so I can’t guarantee cross-platform support.

• Mobile is not supported or planned—the game relies heavily on a UI layout designed for desktop, including sidebars meant for tracking character stats and future features.

“Animations look janky” → Temporarily switching to static

AI animations looked inconsistent and required 12+ hours per render, often for results I wasn’t happy with.

• I’ve replaced them with clean static renders in v0.2.

• Once I upgrade my hardware, animation may return—but only if it meets a higher quality standard.

“Mostly a kinetic novel / zero content so far”

It’s true that early chapters are mostly linear. That was intentional—I wanted to reach the Soul System point quickly, because it’s the real core of the game’s mechanics.

• From here on player choices will impact relationships, story branches, fetishes, etc more.

• The system is built to evolve gradually—more complexity unlocks as the story progresses.

“Hundreds of variables = feature-creep risk” → Handled by a custom engine

This concern is very valid. Twine alone isn't built for managing hundreds of variables cleanly.

• That’s why I built my own logic layer on top of it—essentially a small engine that handles state, flags, conditions, and branching logic in a modular way.

• It ensures that adding new systems (fetishes, mechanics, story flags) doesn’t turn the game into an unmanageable mess.

From the player’s point of view, I honestly can’t say yet. The structure is in place, but how well it plays out in practice will depend on future feedback and testing. We'll see how well it holds up as more content and complexity is added.

NTR Content: Design Decisions & Development Insights

The NTR system in this game wasn’t just thrown in - it went through three major iterations

Attempt 1: Full Player Control (Rylan or Seryk)

Originally, the player could choose whether to play as “Rylan” or “Seryk”, name both, and even switch perspectives. The idea was to give maximum freedom and personalization. This version was fully implemented up to the middle of Chapter 1.

But once I started writing the first NTR scene, I quickly realized something important:

Giving the player control over the point of view - and even when NTR occurs - removes a lot of the emotional impact that makes NTR work for its fans.

Features like “hidden NTR” just doesn't land properly when the player could toggle perspectives or prevent it at will. The tension vanished. It felt more like a menu toggle than a lived experience.

So I scrapped that approach and started again.

Attempt 2: Fully Unavoidable NTR

Next, I went to the opposite extreme:

NTR would be fully built-in and unavoidable. You were just along for the ride. This felt much more in line with what a lot of classic NTR content does, and it helped restore that sense of helplessness or tension.

But the more I planned future scenes and character arcs, the more I realized this wasn’t ideal either.

Why? Because not every player wants NTR. Some might enjoy the story, the corruption themes, or the slow character development - but strongly dislike NTR itself.

I also noticed this in myself - sometimes I want a full-on NTR experience, other times I just want a more standard corruption or romance route.

So once again, I changed direction.

Attempt 3: Optional, Branching NTR (Final Version)

In this version, NTR is optional, but once you make a choice, it has real consequences. The goal was to allow players to opt into the kind of experience they want -without making the NTR content feel forced or artificial.

Key Principles:

You decide whether NTR happens - but not when.

That means you don’t get a pop-up saying, “Do you want an NTR scene now?” Instead, you make broader choices about relationships and direction, and the game unfolds naturally from there.

Seryk × Mariel is avoidable:

Even this early pivotal scene can be skipped by pushing Seryk away. If you don’t, the event progresses—and that sets the tone for the NTR mechanic:

The more you let it happen, the less control you'll have over stopping it later.

Chapter 2 introduces the first clear route choice:

You can choose whether Liora goes down the NTR path with Seryk, or stays away from him.

Choose NTR path → Scenes will start to happen naturally between Liora and Seryk.

Choose no NTR → You’re locked out of NTR scenes for that pairing entirely.

But! You might still trigger other NTR pairings later based on your choices - like Liora × Serin, even if you said no to Seryk earlier.

Regarding Gay Content, Feminization & “Straight Content”

This topic came up a few times, so I want to address it clearly:

Gay content will be fully avoidable.

If you're not into it, you won’t be forced into any scenes. There will be clear paths that allow you to skip this content entirely.

Feminization has been separated from gay content.

That means:

• If you're interested in feminization of the MC, but not gay content, that’s now possible.

• And if you want to see masculine gay content without feminization, that’s also supported.

I believe this split provides the best experience for both sides of the audience.

Main focus remains on straight content.

Most of the adult scenes will be centered around female characters.

The male/male content will mostly involve the MC and Seryk, and maybe later Thalor or a few background characters, but it’s not the primary focus.

Is straight content avoidable?

This is a bit harder to answer clearly, so here’s an honest breakdown:

In general, I previously said nope, straight content is unavoidable.

But in practice, that depends heavily on how you define "straight content."

For example:

The MC is straight from the beginning, so he naturally reacts to female characters.

In Chapter 0, you already see some teasing and flirtation from female characters.

As the story progresses, there will be kissing and romantic tension with female characters -even before any actual sex scenes happen.

Vaginal sex and most explicit scenes will likely be skippable or avoidable through choices.

So the real answer is:

❌ Straight content is not 100% avoidable, especially not in the early/mid chapters.

But actual intercourse and deeper scenes will usually depend on your choices.

What to Expect on Patreon Going Forward

In addition to full updates, I plan to start posting exclusive teaser renders, behind-the-scenes insights, and Patreon-only polls going forward.

Regarding character popularity polls or decisions that influence upcoming events:

I’m holding off on those until after the next update.

Why? Because right now, the story heavily focuses on Serin (and maybe Mariel)—so the results would be biased. Once more characters are properly introduced and developed, the polls will be more meaningful and fun for everyone.

Thanks for reading through all of this and for supporting the game, especially so early in development. 🙏