Sacred Sand [BxB] [Fantasy]

[v3-kei]

THIS. IS. AMAZING.

At first the lack of music was kind of jarring, but as time went by, I was just way too immersed in the story to care about it. All of the endings were cute! So cute, AMG. It makes me want to make BxB game too. Very satisfying, thank you very much for making this. And hoooow I want to have the PG18 endings hnngggg

[SilverHyena]

@Akisakura: Thank you so much! You're too kind! I'm glad that you liked it enough to try to get all of the endings! I didn't think so many people would try for all of them. I plan to keep making vns so hopefully you can continue to enjoy them! (As for commercial vns... Well, I need to work on my programming before I consider that route. It'd be cool to have it as a job though. Then I could dedicate more time to them.)

@Einara: Ending 5 is a fun one! I'm glad you found it entertaining!

@v3-kei: Yeah, sorry about the lack of music. I only realized how important it was to people after releasing the game. (I usually play with the sound off so it's not a big deal for me) I'm going to make a serious effort to include music in any vns I make in the future. On a side note... You should so make a bxb game! The world needs more bxb games and I would totally play it! And I'll have you know, I considered making it a more "adult" game. In the end, I decided to make it something more people would be able to play. Still, I may just do one in the future.

[Fairy Godfeather]

I've lurked around here on and off for years, peeking in sometimes in the sort of vain hope that perhaps one day I'd get my act together and make a piece of interactive fiction of some variety or other. Anyway playing your game finally made me break down and get an account just so I could comment on your game.

Other than a couple of games made by Hanako Games and Winterwolves, and a BxB game I downloaded years and years ago which was the only game of its kind I could find, I've not played much visual novels.

I found the BxB category on the renpy site. When I saw your game at the top of the list, and the lovely graphics I couldn't resist. I broke down, downloaded the game and I had a lot of fun playing it.

I didn't miss the absence of music. I almost always turn music off since I find it repetitive and intrusive to my experience. At best I'll mentally block it out, at worst the repeating tune will drive me slowly mad. So no music was fine with me. I would have liked optional sound-effects admittedly, to make the game less silent but even that wasn't an issue.

A gallery would have been nice as well. I hope for your next game you learn how to make one.

I liked the ending with Ahrel best, he was good and nice. He respected your boundaries and I thought the little we glimpsed of him was lovely. And you're the guy who helped save his life, who wouldn't let him die even though you didn't know him.

I found the whole brother's thing uncomfortable. I was glad we could totally brotherzone Aidyn (do you realise the spelling of his name switches throughout the game?) and didn't have to end up with him. Likewise it seemed really odd that you could offer to be his wife. Is that sort of thing common in the BxB genre or was it just a weird character trait? I found Aidyn a bit, annoying, to say the least. That he was willing to do whatever you asked, it was like he had WELCOME stamped on his head.

I liked Rhael, he was a rather loveable, rakish rogue, with a good heart.

I do wish there was an ending where you could have set Rhael and Aidyn up together. (Isn't that typical, you create a game with over 20 endings and still someone isn't happy?) I think they'd have been better for each other. Aidyn needed someone else as a friend, someone outgoing who could tease him and make him laugh. And I think Rhael needed Aidyn to balance him out a bit. I think and their scene where Rhael was teaching Aidyn the language made me laugh. At least there was that threesome ending. But I'd have rather left them to it and snuck off with Ahrel.

I'd have liked Merris better if he hadn't tried to force-kiss me. I've known him five seconds and that was extremely inappropriate.

I liked the inclusion of so many endings. I liked the story. I loved how the story was complete, beginning, middle and end, along with the flashbacks of your and Aydin's childhood and the war and, you did a really good job.

[SilverHyena]

@Fairy Godfeather: Wow! Thank you so much for taking the time to write all those thoughts! It's really detailed feedback. I'm glad the lack of music didn't bother you too much. Still, I plan on correcting that in the next vn I do. I agree that sound effects would have really added to the atmosphere in some places. For instance, it would have been good to add sword slashing sounds to the battles and so on. I also really want to learn how to make galleries. I mean, I drew so many cgs. It would have been good to have it so you could view all the ones you'd collected over the game. I must become a more competent programmer in order for that to happen though. I'm going to try to learn for the next vn since it shouldn't be quite as involved. And I'm sorry about all the typos and stuff. I thought went through it pretty well, but after looking at it for so long it all looks the same. Next time, I will have it proofread by other people first.

There were a lot of people who liked Aydin, but I can see how that blind devotion can be annoying too. If I did it again I would probably still keep him pretty similar. Still, I think I would include more past events where the reasons behind his devotion can be explained better. But yeah, I decided to allow people to friendzone him since I do realize that that kind of relationship can get a bit too creepy for some people. Also, I think you're right about Rhael and Aydin. They actually get along surprisingly well. Unfortunately, you only really get to see it in one of the endings. If I ever do remake it (I have no plans to do that yet though so don't get your hopes too high) I would include a Rhael x Aydin ending.

A lot of people agreed with you on the Merris kiss thing. I wanted to let the player get a little Merris action in (especially since his endings don't have you kissing him or anything), but it was way too random. I regret putting it in. OTL

Anyway, I'm glad you liked Ahrel and Rhael. Rhael was surprisingly fun to write and probably the easiest for me too. I thought he was going to be harder to work with since the flirty types aren't usually part of my personal preferences, but I ended up getting to know him rather well. I like Ahrel too, but I didn't have time to really develop him too much since he's really only available at the end of the story. I'm glad that you still managed to love him!

Non-Sacred Sand related Comments: Agh, I feel ya on the lack of bxb games! There really isn't much out there. (One of the reasons I love Winter Wolves is because it helps me get that bxb fix.) That's why I plan to keep making bxb games! (Well, that and I like them) The world needs them! Anyway, making VNs is challenging, but it's worth it in the long run. I hope you do eventually make some kind of interactive fiction story! I'd love to play it!

[Fairy Godfeather]

Your games will just get better from here with each new one being another learning experience which will improve your skills. The typos were just minor flaws in a good game. All the things you didn't do this time, you'll be able to do for the next time, or if not then for the game after that.

Rhael did seem like one of those characters who the author adores. I grinned when he first showed up, I knew he was the sort of character that I'd like. I just didn't think he was a good fit for Lorr. But he was fun and amusing and I'd have liked to have played him since I'm sure he'd be an absolute blast as a protagonist.

I think the reasons behind Aydin's blind devotion were explained. He never had anyone who really loved him, apart from Lorr. Never had anyone he could rely on. Even near the end, he goes along to the dance on his own. Which is why I smiled at the endings where he and Rhael were talking.

I can see your reasons for the Merris kiss. It just came completely left-field though. It may have been better kept for the end so everyone could get their hot general action with his ending and no one would worry about you filing a sexual harassment claim against him.

Winterwolves games will no longer work on my computer, which makes me sad. I have been gazing enviously at Loren Amazon Princess though. I enjoy the games over on ChoiceofGames for their inclusiveness, although there's no pictures and it's a different style of telling a story from visual novels.

I am really looking forward to your next game. Do you have plans? Do you have a thread about it?

[EchoLove]

Thi looks really good, it's my first BxB game so I'm really excited xD

[SilverHyena]

@FairyGodfeather: First, I'm sorry it took me so long to reply. Again, thanks for all the constructive comments! It's really very helpful and I'll keep it in mind for my future games! And I'm sorry winterwolves games aren't working on your computer! It's truly tragic! (This might be rubbing salt in your wounds, but Loren is my favorite of all of them so you're right to be eyeing it)

As far as my future game plans go, I'm currently working on a gxg game which might not be your cup of tea. I figured gl fans needed games too. That, and since it's not my favorite pairing I figured I'd make it shorter and focus more on the mechanics (didn't necessarily work out that way). Anyway, I'm about 25% done with the script. It's moving along slowly, but I am working on it. After that I'll probably do another bxb game since I enjoy it the most. Anyway, here's the thread's link if you're interested:http://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewto ... 16&t=17587 (Warning, I haven't updated in awhile)

@EchoLove: Haha, there really aren't that many to choose from, are there? Anyway, I'm glad you're taking the time to try it out. It definitely has it's flaws, but I hope you manage to enjoy it anyway.

[Anne]

Playing this was SO much fun, thank you. And I really liked characters' facial expressions (smiles and blushing especially)

[Fairy Godfeather]

@Silverhyena I just finished my very first game in Choicescript. Well I say game I mean I finished the first Episode of it and can't talk about it much yet since it was written for a contest. It's kind of a GxG game, in so much as the protagonist is bisexual (with a preference for women) and her best friend is a lesbian. But it's not actually a romance game and it is a bit silly. So I'll definitely be looking over at your other thread once I've posted here because I agree GL does need some love too.

I just wanted to say that you inspired me to get my game finished, which I know is a bit weird but it's true. I've been saying "I want to write and finish a game like SilverHyena." I liked Sacred Sands a lot, so I'll forgive you for rubbing salt in my wounds and the pain that Loren not working causes.

[Chibichann]

This game was totally COOLZ,I finished all the routes but if u do not mind,i would like to suggest something if u would remake this game GxB it would be more interesting.

[GreyLadyHelenaR]

This was so fun to play! I love BL games, and this one is now one of my faves. I got all the endings (May the Chocolate God bless you for the walkthrough ), and I loved them all. The one I liked the most was the threesome ending because you don't see many of those in visual novels, and this one was funny and sweet. The perv in me is satisfied. I look forward to your future projects!

[SilverHyena]

@Anne: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it! And yeah, expressions are one of the things I'm fairly good at-- I kind of love drawing them!

@FairyGodmother: Oh good! I'm glad it's something you can enjoy! I imagine not everyone who played Sacred Sand will enjoy my new one simply because it is gxg. Ah well, I'll make another bxb game at some point (probably sooner rather than later) so they'll just have to wait a bit. Anyway, it's really kind of awesome hearing that I've managed to encourage you! That's just about the highest praise I can think of so thank you! I hope you keep working on your game because I'd love to play it at some point!

@Chibichann: Thanks so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it enough to get all the endings-- it's definitely a good amount of work! As cool as it would be to have a gxb version of it floating around out there too, it probably won't happen. It'd be a lot of work to change the protagonist (considering I'd have to edit the text, do another character sprite, and replace all the cgs that Lorr was in, etc.) and I'd rather spend that time making a new game. That being said, if I do eventually remake it in the future (when I'm an expert at Renpy or something), I'll consider adding a choose your gender option since it would definitely give players something new to try. Don't despair too much though-- I do plan on making a gxb game at some point since I want to dabble in all the pairings at some point. It won't be Sacred Sand, but hopefully it will be something you can get into just as much.

@GreyLadyHelenaR: I'm glad you enjoyed it and I'm right there with you about the bl games! I love them too so it's tragic that there aren't more of them. Thanks for taking the time to get all the endings-- it makes writing them (and doing the dang pictures for them) all worthwhile. And I'm glad you enjoyed the threesome option! I kind of put it in there for that very reason. I like the idea of non-traditional relationships and I think that something like that could potentially work out *gets stoned by monogamy believers* Anyway, I hope I continue to entertain! XD

On a side note, the Chocolate God has blessed me a little too much. I'm getting super fat off Easter Chocolate. It's glorious though.

[sf2000]

After my first adventure in the desert (ending 21) I wanted to thank you. It's been said before that this is a nice game, so let me tell you that I really did not like the art style. I think it's well done. But I'm really not into the whole anime/manga thing. They are all spikey chin and spikey hair and spikey everywhere and they look like 5-year-olds.

I'm writing this because sometimes, when a game (or VN) is good, I forget about that. And this game turned the 5-year-olds into believable characters, and when I looked up, I did see Lorr and Aydin, and yes, they could both use a haircut - but I could not imagine them to look any different. It's a thing I also encounter playing (good) JRPGs, and it leaves me wondering why it's so rare that I get this kind of "bonding" in western video games. Maybe it's because they take their "comic" characters more serious. Anyway, I am impressed and also inspired. Hope I can introduce my first very own BL-game in a while.

[SilverHyena]

@sf2000: I can understand that. I love the manga/anime style myself, but I have styles I dislike too. It can make playing/reading/watching things kind of hard if you dislike the style. I'm taking the fact that you managed to get over that as a great compliment! I'm glad so many people have managed to enjoy it despite certain aspects of it (for you, the style, for others the lack of music, etc.)

On a side note, I'm totally on board with you when it comes to wishing that western video games worked more on the bonds between characters. One of the reasons I'm into jrpgs is probably for that very reason. Granted, there are a lot of jrpgs that have horrible character development, but the attempt is usually there at least.

Anyway, good luck with your bl game-- the world needs more of them! I look forward to playing it when you finish!

[Ryuu]

This is the greatest BxB visual novel game.
Normally, I'm lazy to comment (you can see my 1 post there). I do it only when there's an urge, lol my bad. Although many people says that but I think I'm at top of them (nah,it interrupt my serf and download time lol, and I'm not native. Although I'm not comment in my language board too. Because I usual surf English site.)
I must admit at first I random download BxB game that why I found this one. As I always did (random download them) I end up play plenty of them so I know their pros/cons.
First that touch my eye is your art-I skip the bad one first because I think I can come up with a good story in my head. No need for VN just because of that.

Your art look good and when I play it.. I know more about it. I love your art style very much. At first, I think it'll be just short story with lack of art one -- nice image but few of them and plain emotion. Because first few scene have not much scene. I also like sound so it kind of slow at first.
But it's not after I found it's very well emotion sync. and plenty of adorable image.

The story is really cute too. I love their nature. Even the very bad guy in main char's view have his own reason, not unreasonable one.
OK in real world may have very bad person that we see he's unreasonable at all but most of the time there're some reason behind it. So I like your story. Many of game have a choice to end up with bad guy like yours. But they're real wick so it seem not real.
Very good story may be just hard but I may talk technically about another great point of your game.
Your game has a very good branch. You can see many VN and much more with Ren'Py have very few branch. There's no difference about choice. Many people here and there say about why we must choose if it make no difference or only some difference. Most of them just make follow dialog changed.
Game dont have to contain many ending as this one (which is better). But it must make some difference like this. Few game out there pass this required.
Why required?
Because it has choice.
It's ok for VN to have no branch at all. But just drop out all those choice. Many people lazy to think for nothing like me, I'm sure about that ^,^.
So your game is great one. It's cute, fun to play even without any sound.

I want to say some more about art anyway. I like that it's manga style ^^, contradict with above comment. I hate Western comic style, I must admit that. It's not in a bad way, I can read/watch it if it's fun but I hate those style (nah I'm asian anyway). Dont confuse yet with many contradict opinion, I may if I were you lol. Moreover, I think your art likeliness is at acceptable. I found many story that almost same if not count their color. But I can identify yours without color so I think it's OK. You may change it a bit anyway, mohawk? long one-tailed hair? bald? nah but I hate this one lol but someone love it. Some freak scar, glasses (no I'm not into it lol but someone very into it, realllly).

Last, I think about playing your GxG game after I search to this page again (to view # of ending) and see it. This is very unusual for me. I never want to play GxG (and never play). The reason is branch impressive and story line on this one-purely, because I'm not into 2d girl. I really want to praise you on that. I'll wait for its complete version : D (no demo play because as I said it's GxG anyway lol wait for finished version). I think 7 endings are ok but you should maintain inner-story to difference enough between each choice instead like this one.

Misc thought about playing: I like your 3some ending-my first ending (in theory because I like to switch to bad choice at a few last to clear misc. path-it's a habit-so I load and end up with Morris first). I want to go to Aydin and I think I select all correct with him but I end up with 3some. I know anyway that it's because I think of them both (hehe, it cant help to select this kind of choice because for me I think it's not bad kind of action. I care for Aydin anyway but why I must do bad to Rhael-although I think Aydin will die at first because of my indecisive, but I think it's not that anyway. If there's a choice about protect one of forbid Aydin to help Rhael because he'll risk his life. I'll choose it but this's not that kind of it so I end up think of both ' ,'. Rhael mouth is so cute. I wish Aydin will do like that once. I think if I'm Lorr I'll pull his cheek to match Rhael cat mouth. I like Lorr because he's kind of cute but he's not girly. Somehow I want to play as seme-I know it's hard to find one because most of player's girl : ). A bit stunt at wife as someone say, lover seem better.

PS Aydin name is Aidyn at last few scene (but not just once, it's many.)
PS2 makes more BxB or BxG one. And you should have gallery on new one. <Whisper in our Shaheron between the two of us only: I want to say dump that project but some GxG fan may kick me. shh dont tell them this mischievous opinion. It's our hi~mi~tsu~ ok? ^^> www