Skyfish [BxB] [Friendship] [Fantasy, LGBT+ friendly]

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Aviala
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Skyfish [BxB] [Friendship] [Fantasy, LGBT+ friendly]

#1 Post by Aviala »

Update 23.12.2015
Skyfish is on hiatus due to a serious wrist injury (and a mild anxiety/depression caused by said injury). This means I won't be working on the project for a few months. I'll definitely finish Skyfish someday but it'll take a while.


Update 29th of July: Romantic routes confirmed; romantic intrest(s) will be available right from the start. Additional love intrest(s) may be included as crowdfunding rewards or stretch goals. Story summary updated, and character introductions will be coming soon.

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http://gamejolt.com/games/other/skyfish-demo/49190/
The demo lacks the gameplay features and choices that will be implemented in the full game.
A new, better demo will be released in about a month!

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The world of Skyfish is a mix of fantasy and steampunk.

Airships are becoming more and more common after the discovery of floatstone, a magical crystal-like substance that has the power to make things fly or float in air. It's extremely rare and can only be found from one large lake at the border of the State of Marava and Longan. The society is still adjusting to the arrival of the floatstone but it's already widely used in transportation, fashion and war.

The story follows the captain of one particular airship: A 40-year-old woman who prefers to be known as "Captain" instead of her name. She makes her living as a courier and has a reputation of delivering packages and other goods reliably. Her current mission is a dangerous one: to pass the war-torn border of Upper Marava and the State of Marava. But before she and her crew take off, a mysterious young man appears and demands that they'll take him with them. And it seems that there's something weird going on with the delivery...

In Skyfish, you will guide the crew through tough desicions and dangerous situations as the Captain tries to find magical items for her own mysterious purposes. You can try to keep a balance between personal gain and and ethical behaviour, or go all out and lie, steal and fight your way through the story. Air pirates are not the only obstacles; the nobles of Marava's court have their own schemes and motives.

But Captain isn't your only perspective on the story. You also get to play as Charon, a sly and charming young man who tends to daydream. Charon is a newcomer in the crew, and lets you get to know the crew in a way that the Captain can't. You can make friends or even find love among the crew.

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Features:
-3-part story
-Rich world with unique social systems and cultures
-Two playable protagonists: Captain and Charon
-Two friendship routes; Aifao and Nuipun. Possibly more, if time and funds allow.
-At least two romantic routes; Aifao and Fionn. Possibly more.
-Custom language
-Skippable gameplay sections: strategic airship battles and much more
-Interactive book with clues on how to advance the story
-Two versions: Teen and Adult. Options to switch off nudity and gore.
-Free time on board of the airships to spend time doing various activities or talking to crew members
-Relationships and choices affect the gameplay sections and vice versa.
-Focus on plot, world and characters
-Gay romance option in Part 2 with alternative friendship route

Possible features:
-Personal library with books that you can collect during your journey
-Permanent wounds
-Permanent death of crew members during battle sequences
-Partial voice acting (possibly in our custom language)
-Soundtrack with some of the songs sung in the custom language, Kadatian

More about the project:
This is a project I've been working on every now and then for over 2 years. It's the biggest project I've undertaken.

Because the story is so long I've decided to break it into 3 games. I'm trying to get part 1 done by next autumn. Part one will probably be released as pay-what-you-want (meaning you can get it for free if you don't wish to pay) and a premium version will hopefully be released on Steam. Depending on the situation I'm in, part 2 and 3 will be either pay what you want or commercial.

The story will include a diverse cast of characters. It's LGBT+ friendly, featuring an asexual character, gay romance and a non-binary race (Vesa). There are also appearences of lesbian and heterosexual characters. The focus is mostly not on the romance (at least not in the first chapter), but on the story. There won't be any porn in the VN's but there will be nudity and violence. There will be two versions of the game: Teen and Adult. The adult version will be my original vision of the game, while the teen version has some cencorship going on. Both versions will probably have options to turn off nudity and/or gore.


The crew:

Captain (Audraina Pehat Worwor)
The main character. The oldest child of the Worwor family. Respected.
Seems a bit sad and bitter at times, but gets things done.

Charon of Merkantis
Main character #2. A red-haired young man who's sometimes too cheeky for his own good.

Nuipun
Second in command and the pilot of the ship. A vesaian.

Peqo:
A young boy who's half fuman, half vesaian. Married to the Captain.

Kozru
A young girl who works as the captain's maid. She's Penn's best friend.

Kaimak
The muscle of the crew. She does all the heavy lifting etc. Kate is the shipwright and mechanic.

Aifao:
Young man who's skilled with the sword. He's in charge of safety on board the ship.

Elea
A young woman who's 3'rd in command on the ship. She's Kiko's older sister.

The slaves
A couple of elders who help keep the ship flying.

The mercenaries
They help protect the ship.

Fionn
A mystery person and a love interest who appears in Chapter 2.


Map WIP
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Story: 6000 words / 50 000- 80 000 words
Demo: 7000 DONE :)
Programming: 5%
Demo: DONE
Sprites: 10% 4/10 in progress, 2/10 done
Character designs: 7/10
World design: 75%
Backgrounds: 5%
GUI: 90%

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I'll add pictures of the characters later. I have probably over 200 pages of sketches, charts and other documents of Skyfish planning (but about a half of them are unfinished comic pages and scrapped storyboards so I really don't have THAT much finished material). But most of the material is on paper and I don't have scanner or a camera so you'll have to wait until I get some digital art done. There is also so much material that only a very small portion of it will be released here - and some of it is top secret. ;D

Skyfish was originally supposed to be a webcomic but I decided to make it into a series of visual novels instead because I'm studying to be a game designer so it's better to get games done as fast as possible. The world that I've designed is already pretty complex but I still need to figure out some key things like fashion styles and architecture.


New questions:


1. If you played the demo, any comments on it? Did you like the writing? What about the characters?
2. Do you like the art so far? Most of the BG's will be replaced; are you excited or scared or indifferent?
3. Is the inclusion of gameplay a plus or a minus to you? Would you be angry if skipping gameplay sections would mean that you might miss some short story sections?
4. Do permanent wounds sound exciting or horrible? What do you think about a chance to lose a crew member in battle? Would you instantly load a previous save if somebody died, or accept it as a part of the story and find out how it affects the other crew members and the plot?
5. Would you be interested in reading more about the world from in-game books you can collect?
6. We're thinking of making a PDF book with lots of previously unseen concept art and information about the world and the characters. It would be included as a reward for paying a few dollars extra when downloading the game. Yay or nay?
Last edited by Aviala on Wed Dec 23, 2015 5:08 pm, edited 22 times in total.

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, BxB, slightly GxG and GxB]

#2 Post by eileen »

You have a nice project going on and I like the art style of it. It's awesome that you been working on this for more than 2 years. Like your story, mine is split into multiple games because it got so big. I know how that goes. :D

I never really read a fantasy mix with steam punk story before so I will definitely check this one out. :D
Also, the fact that you play as 40 old woman is nice change of pace as well! :wink: Plus, airships are bad ass.

How does bxb fit into this? I'm guessing that some of male characters are already gay in the beginning or some of them hook up other later in story.. Is that right?

Anyways, good luck with this project and I hope you can get demo of CH 1 done in time. I would like to some of stuff for the web comic and such when get them on the computer.

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, BxB, slightly GxG and GxB]

#3 Post by Aviala »

eileen wrote:You have a nice project going on and I like the art style of it. It's awesome that you been working on this for more than 2 years. Like your story, mine is split into multiple games because it got so big. I know how that goes. :D

I never really read a fantasy mix with steam punk story before so I will definitely check this one out. :D
Also, the fact that you play as 40 old woman is nice change of pace as well! :wink: Plus, airships are bad ass.

How does bxb fit into this? I'm guessing that some of male characters are already gay in the beginning or some of them hook up other later in story.. Is that right?

Anyways, good luck with this project and I hope you can get demo of CH 1 done in time. I would like to some of stuff for the web comic and such when get them on the computer.
Thank you!

The 2nd main character, Charon, is gay. There won't be much BxB stuff in Chapter 1, though! So even if someone doesn't like BL the first chapter should be safe to play, and it should work as a standalone game too (though many questions will be left unanswered).

You can read the prologue of the web comic here (NSFW: nudity): http://skyfish.smackjeeves.com/comics/1717811/prologue/
I managed to finish the prologue of the comic before I decided to turn it into a game.

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#4 Post by Hijiri »

1. Does the idea seem interesting?
It does.
2. Would you play a game that's not about dating?
Of course, gotta support my fellow non-dating sim devs :P
3. How do you feel about a game that's not about dating but has a non-skippable gay love story in it? Is the inclusion of a gay couple a plus or a minus to you?
If it feels like a natural part of the overall story, sure. I personally don't care what the relationship are, so long as it's not suffering from chronic anvil-dropping syndrome.
4. Do you prefer VN's to be storydriven, world-driven or character driven?
I personally prefer story-driven.
5. Do you like the art?
It's different from the typical fare, so I find it interesting. i would have to see more to judge better.
6. If I made the 2nd and/or 3rd chapter of the story commercial, would you consider buying them?
That all depends on how the first chapter does. If it fails to grab my attention from the beginning, I'm most likely not gonna bother with the rest.
7. How much would you be willing to pay for a 50,000 word long VN?
Now that all depends on the content.
8. Would you feel cheated/sad/angry if the 1st chapter was free but the 2nd and 3rd were commercial?
Not really, it gives readers a chance to see how the product is. I personally would feel cheated if I purchased the first chapter and found it lacking.

I wish you good luck, comrade.
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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#5 Post by Aviala »

Hijiri wrote:
3. How do you feel about a game that's not about dating but has a non-skippable gay love story in it? Is the inclusion of a gay couple a plus or a minus to you?
If it feels like a natural part of the overall story, sure. I personally don't care what the relationship are, so long as it's not suffering from chronic anvil-dropping syndrome.
Thanks for the comments! I tried googling the chronic anvil-dropping syndrome but didn't get any relevant results, so could you elaborate what you mean by that?

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#6 Post by Hijiri »

In other words: If you have a message/lesson, don't bluntly state it ("drop an anvil") or you'll just make some people drop the work.Most people who will likely read this work are at least in late adolescence and at the oldest will be in adulthood. We can pick up subtle messages without being told outright "this is what my message is and you should agree with it!"
On a personal note, that's the reason I've dropped some stories before, even when I agree with the message.
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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#7 Post by Aviala »

I see. So, for example if I wanted to say "gay relationships are not morally wrong" I should rather show than tell? And I shouldn't try to impose my view on the reader (at least not too bluntly/strongly)?

Yeah, I don't think you need to worry about that too much. There are some themes and messages I want to convey with this VN but I'd never just bluntly state them. They'll be more like food for thought. I'm not a super experienced writer but I know enough to avoid the most common mistakes: I'm familiar with the "show don't tell" rule.

That said, gay rights is not a very important theme in my VN's but since there will be an important (plot-relevant) romantic subplot between two men in the 2nd and 3rd chapters, I doubt someone homophobic would enjoy playing the games. Similarly, someone who has very limited views on what kind of roles women should be allowed to take might not like my works.

Thank you for your comments! They've really given me food for thought!

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#8 Post by Gabylc »

1. Does the idea seem interesting?
Very! I love steampunk themed stories and I guess from your presentation that some interesting themes will be adressed, it's not just an eye-candy fanservice game ;)

2. Would you play a game that's not about dating?
140% yes. I don't mind romance, it's always a nice bonus, but we already have tons of that!

3. How do you feel about a game that's not about dating but has a non-skippable gay love story in it? Is the inclusion of a gay couple a plus or a minus to you?
A plus if it brings diversity to the cast and make the world looks more realistic. A minus if it's badly written sexual fantasy, but your game doesn't look like one!

4. Do you prefer VN's to be storydriven, world-driven or character driven?
Hard one! Any of this could get me hooked, but I'll go with world-driven. If I want to go there on a trip, I guarantee you that I'll keep the game in my mind for years.

5. Do you like the art?
So far yes! Looks like it's matching the steam punk theme well.

6. If I made the 2nd and/or 3rd chapter of the story commercial, would you consider buying them?
Yes if I liked the 1st.

7. How much would you be willing to pay for a 50000 word long VN?
Around 10$, depending on replay value? I don't really know

8. Would you feel cheated/sad/angry if the 1st chapter was free but the 2nd and 3rd were commercial?
No, it's like a very very long demo, and it's really nice from you to let players try a third of your story for free!
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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#9 Post by Aviala »

Thanks for the comments! Updated first post with Charon WIP art (especially the arms and sleeves need more work).

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#10 Post by sasquatchii »

Daaang, two years?! That is really a huge undertaking, and I think it's awesome that you're so committed to it! Also yay for it being LGBT friendly!

It's also nice to see that I'm not the only artist that renders their characters nude to start (sometimes you just gotta!).

Also, I LOVE the map. The style of it reminds me of Game of Thrones, and I mean that as a compliment. It is very nice & really helps set the scene/world for the game! So kudos.

1. Fantasy and steampunk? Yes yes YES. I also love that the main character is a 40-year old lady (we don't have a lot of visual novels featuring middle aged - older people). I want to know more, though! You only gave us a few sentences so I don't feel like I have a good understanding of what the game is really about.
2. Hell yeah I would! I have before, and both of the visual novels I'm working on are NOT about dating. Honestly, my favorite visual novels ever are basically the opposite of dating sims (although that's not to say that ones about dating are bad, just not my cup of tea).
3. I think that depends completely on how much I like the characters, how good the writing is, how it's presented, and how it ties into the plot. There are a lot of unknowns, so it's hard to say. But it could work! That is entirely up to you.
4. Character driven is my favorite, but story driven and world driven are fine too!
5. I love it! I hope you post your sketches soon, I can't wait to see more.
6. Yes, if the writing/story were good and I enjoyed playing the first.
7. Again, it depends on the quality of writing and art. (I generally won't buy games unless I've played a game from the same group that made it and really liked it) So it's hard to say.
8. Nah, not at all! I don't mind paying for quality content, and I'd be happy that I'd gotten a chance to play the first one that was free.
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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#11 Post by Aviala »

(late) thanks for the input, sasquatchii!

This is just a small update to inform everybody that I'm still working on this game. I've been doing a lot of commissions and other art stuff so I took a few weeks off from Skyfish, but I'm now back with fresh ideas on how to make the storyline and writing better. I've also managed to learn some new things art-wise, so I'll be working on the art as well.

And just a little bit more about the story:

Skyfish is a story about adventure and friendship. The meaning of family, and the many different things a family can be, is an important theme to the story. The characters come from different social classes so a lot of the story has to do with differences in power, attitudes and culture between the higher and lower class citizens.

The captain has lost some of her priviledges and is on a quest to get them back. To make sure she keeps her position as the heir of the family she must make hard decisions and lead her crew well.
Charon struggles with family matters too, but most of his problems come from inside, not outside. He's young and still growing, and even though he acts like he's confident he still has a lot to learn. It's hard to feel confident when you have to completely reconsider your values and attitudes!

I don't want to reveal too much about the plot here because it's also a mystery story, so that will have to do for now.
Here's a couple of quick sketches to make up for the absence of information: http://aviala-doodles.tumblr.com/image/104755368278

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#12 Post by Aviala »

Image

This is Fionn, one of the characters. I painted his head for fun but I'm thinking of using it in a sprite because it turned out pretty well.

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#13 Post by Aviala »

Added more art in the first post! I worked hard to make the Charon sprite better and I was really surprised how much I managed to learn in just a couple of months. Check out the difference in art quality from the first post!

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#14 Post by Aviala »

The development blog for Skyfish is now officially open! It's still a bit empty but I'll be adding more stuff in the future. Stay tuned!

http://skyfishgame.tumblr.com/

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Re: Skyfish [Adventure, Action, LGBT+ friendly]

#15 Post by Aviala »

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Skyfish main menu in it's current state!
What do you guys think?

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