The Dolls' Stories (REMOVED)

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fioricca
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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#31 Post by fioricca »

Screaming because I did not think that people would still play this weeks later -- ahh you guysss
saguaro wrote:I agree with Moya's suggestion about making the comic-book-style scenes clickable. I tried to back up at one point, so I could reread something, and couldn't.

I am torn between embarrassment and flattery right now, because you are one of the developers I look up to! Thank you so much for giving Dolls a go, and for the super useful critique! I hadn't thought of players needing to rollback during cutscenes as I felt that it would mess the scenes up overall... I did have a lot of timed transitions. But I see your point about wanting to re-read the precious lines again, so I'll definitely keep that in mind.
saguaro wrote:The input box was interesting to me because it was used largely for static dialogue, where I had to say something rather specific, and a choice menu was presented when I seemed to have a real story choice (like whether to ditch mdoll... at least I assume I had a choice, I've only played through his route once and I chose to stick with him). The response did feel more personal when I was typing it, but only when I had leeway, rather than instances where I had to type the keyword phrase exactly to progress.
... b-but if players don't have much leeway all the time, then the chat must not have felt very personal at all. XD";; The only thing that I allowed for was synonyms, which, judging from the reviews, must not be very adequate at all.
saguaro wrote:I don't think anyone's mentioned the skipping issue... Obviously you can't skip easily on multiple playthroughs when the input box keeps popping up. It might be worth the trouble of making the input box a preference option for people who just want to play it like a more standard VN. Unlockable chapter selection might be another possible solution.
I'm not so sure about that, to be honest. The chat system is a major feature of the Dolls game; it adds an element that I don't wish for players to skip. Interestingly, you can skip the textboxes in the early demo, as I recall, but for some reason my programmer disabled it and I wasn't able to get hold of him towards the end. I think what I'll do for players who dislike typing (sob it'd be like YGO without the card games though) is to include an option in the preferences screen to toggle skip for chat boxes too. Would that be enough...?
saguaro wrote:One thing I wondered about was the sexual component in the doll-puppeteer relationship. Gil and Mel appear to have a completely platonic relationship, but Mdoll seems to skirt the issue (he says something about having strong arms and telling the player how he feels, I can't remember the exact line, but I honestly hadn't considered a romantic aspect until that point). So I wasn't sure if there can be a romantic aspect or if it's an agape love thing.
... haha that was Mdoll being confused about the meaning of love. Dolls cannot have romantic feelings, even if they can grow to understand that it's an emotion that exists in humans. The love they feel for their masters is from their complete loyalty and servitude, so Mdoll is interpreting the book wrong because he equated romantic love with servitude love. I guess I didn't do such a good job at getting that across |D";;

Thank you so much for the helpful critique! o////o I'm so flattered that you'd try out the game and liked it enough to leave a comment. It means tons!
sayu_k wrote:Ok. Finished the male doll route. I did wanted to cry but I'm too much of a brute at the moment.
I kind of liked the idea of having a doll and raising it to be my partner, but the typing was just bleh! 'Cause I just couldn't write what I wanted... I liked the fights being like those of comic books, it was a nice surprise!
Didn't get how the doll ended up growing up in ANOTHER PLACE. Ok, just weird!
I think if you made something like this but with a life simulation like Princess Maker 2 it would be much more fun! that's what I think! XD

oh! beautiful art :)
Pixelen wrote: I loved the mdoll route though, he was so sweet and he grew up so handsome! I wanted to see more of him as an adult though! I nearly cried when the credits came up as I thought it was the end of the story but I'm glad he survived Didn't really understand how he grew up because of the clay thing though or why he was cracking?
... haha er yeah I never explained anything about what happened to Mdoll/Fdoll (same story, which is why this is a kinetic novel) as I thought it wasn't necessary. |D";; I mostly just wanted to test out the input system with this game, so I focused entirely on the dolls and skirted the plot. I hope to be able to talk more about doll mechanics next time, so players can understand the logic behind what happened. ^^";;
ririruetoo wrote:I just finished the male dolls route *named him Apollo* and I really enjoyed the game play and story, are you planning on making similar type games in the future (where you write responses)? Or perhaps a sequel of some sort?
Aww, thanks for checking Dolls out! I am planning further installments to the series -- currently, a Dolls+ that explores the plot of Dolls in greater detail, as well as a Dolls 2 that will feature great improvements in gameplay/chat -- but it depends on if I am able to find a writer/programmer or not. :D";; Dolls+ will explore the world of state puppeteers in greater detail, and Mel and Gil's backstory. Dolls 2 will focus on rich people and dolls; both games will feature new doll types. ... if they get made... XD

Jamesaguilar, RockyIII, Nisey and Blackcrown, thanks for the comments! I still can't believe that there are people still trying the game out weeks later. XD";; So far, Dolls has been downloaded more than 800 times, which I think is a feat considering how I didn't post this on anywhere but LSF and Tumblr. Thank you so much for the support. ;o;

Speaking of tumblr, have a WIP I'm working on:

Image

Again, a huge thank you to everyone who's tried the game and left critique. Everything is going into making better future installments!

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#32 Post by janrrah18 »

waaahhh!!!*downloading it now* :D

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#33 Post by MJDAlleria »

I seriously should get into more games.
Well I downloaded it and played it through. I have to say I was
disappointed that the female doll, I named her "Pia", route was incomplete.
However it was still satisfying. So next I continued playing for the male doll
route. I named him Bane. And he's so surprisingly so endearing. Especially
after the 1st visit of library search. I wasn't expecting that at all! It was so
nice. Then it came to the ending... I felt like crying when he... but I'm happy
with the ending. Even if it didn't much make sense or solve somethings.
But I could try to reason it out in some way.

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#34 Post by Ran08 »

This... was... super... duper... amazing! I mean it. I love the story so much! <3 I especially loved the ending for the male doll. <3 Will there be a sequel?! Oh please say yes! =)) I love the concept of dolls. I hope you'll make a similar VN to this!
My complete thoughts. I just think it'll be too long if I copy and paste the whole thing here. Teehee.
Last edited by Ran08 on Fri Mar 22, 2013 3:51 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#35 Post by VerdeICe »

This was actually really cute. I loved it, and it was a lot of fun. Really creative. I raised a doll, holy shit.

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#36 Post by saguaro »

Re: input
fioricca wrote: ... b-but if players don't have much leeway all the time, then the chat must not have felt very personal at all. XD";; The only thing that I allowed for was synonyms, which, judging from the reviews, must not be very adequate at all.
Sorry, that must have sounded better in my head. I tried to type my first natural response each time. There were times when it was accepted, giving the illusion of an actual conversation, and I liked that illusion. But if I had to make multiple attempts, and was eventually forced to type the keywords exactly, it destroyed the illusion. So more synonyms might be good (IIRC I kept wanting to say colloquial things for yes like, "right", "okay", "sure", I can't remember which ones weren't accepted.)

Re: skipping
fioricca wrote:I'm not so sure about that, to be honest. The chat system is a major feature of the Dolls game; it adds an element that I don't wish for players to skip. Interestingly, you can skip the textboxes in the early demo, as I recall, but for some reason my programmer disabled it and I wasn't able to get hold of him towards the end. I think what I'll do for players who dislike typing (sob it'd be like YGO without the card games though) is to include an option in the preferences screen to toggle skip for chat boxes too. Would that be enough...?
Sure, I think what's important is they get the option to play/replay as they like. I think the chat system could be a great feature, but I wouldn't want to turn away potential players who aren't into it when there are so many other aspects (art, story, world, etc.) that they will enjoy.

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#37 Post by janrrah18 »

it's really cute story..i pick the guy doll
i was really sad when i thought that he really died at the end but happily i was surprised when there's an epilogue and i jumped all over my room and squeal and my dad got angry because it was midnight at that time :lol:
i also like the interactive typing something (sorry don't know the right word for it) it is a really nice touch to the game :mrgreen:
overall i ENJOYED IT!!!LOVED IT!!!!! :mrgreen:
Last edited by janrrah18 on Sat Mar 30, 2013 12:15 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#38 Post by Aisserium »

I just finished the male version, and... I feel like a bad person, saying to my doll to shut up, I would explain everything to him, he's too cute to say no.

I really enjoyed this, although it's a bit short, if there ir a 1.1 or other version, I will play it as well. I liked the "thing to write" (you know what I am talking about), and I wrote a lot (too much, I thought it would be better). I would like more two kinds of answer, like "bad answer" and "good answer", and be able to choose if I'm a bad person or a good person.

But! Thank you for create this!

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#39 Post by Akitsuki »

I manage to play all the dolls! Too bad the fdoll's story is incomplete.
I really like the drawings, they are so perfect! *A* And the story is quite touching too. Good job!

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#40 Post by yukoneko »

Great work! Great jobs, guys! Both art and story are sooooo refined, I love it. Thank you

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#41 Post by CuppieKeyk »

Aww. This is really, cute !

I've always wanted to use that kind of method XD "Answering them by typing." But I can't understand codes that much so I wasn't able to :< Anyway! I am really amazed by this game, ooohhh XD. If you just knew how happy I am to be able to play this. haha..
Very good arts, I AM REALLY HAPPY.

Thank you for this XD.
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Pilot
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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#42 Post by Pilot »

This is really awesome, and I love the typing thing. It has its pros and cons, but I liked it. The art was really good!

I don't know if someone pointed it out yet, but one thing I noticed is that the people are called Towsfolks. I'm not sure if that was intentional, but I misread it as Townsfolks multiple times. x]

You did great though. I'm sorry that the writer and the programmer fell out. =[

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#43 Post by Chibichann »

the game is lovely till the point i have played through but with no offence the girl doll's part is kind of short

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#44 Post by fioricca »

How am I so terrible at responding to comments ahhh I just want to thank everyone who's tried Dolls and taken the time to reply again! Every feedback makes me super happy! :D
Ran08 wrote:This... was... super... duper... amazing! I mean it. I love the story so much! <3 I especially loved the ending for the male doll. <3 Will there be a sequel?! Oh please say yes! =)) I love the concept of dolls. I hope you'll make a similar VN to this!
My complete thoughts. I just think it'll be too long if I copy and paste the whole thing here. Teehee.
jfgdjf OHMYGOD I can't believe you made a blog post about it ;___; Oh man oh man oh man I don't know what to say, I'm honoured. Thanks so much for that! And yes, I am quietly plotting an upgraded version.
Chibichann wrote:the game is lovely till the point i have played through but with no offence the girl doll's part is kind of short
Um, that's because fdoll's route is incomplete. |D";; I'm terribly sorry about that.

*

Thanks so much to everyone else who liked the chat/characters! NGL in the early stages of Dolls, when I was writing the script out, I thought Mel and Gil were so cool that they might overwhelm the individual dolls haha. (I mean, those two got much more art than the two dolls.) I'm glad to see it isn't the case. :D I'm sort of finding hard to believe that Dolls has managed to stay on the front page of the Completed Games forum for more than a month /o\ Thanks so much!

To everyone who's looking forward to seeing more Dolls games, we (I've roped in a partner-in-crime) are definitely planning more games, but the production might be a bit slow. I had initially wanted to release a Dolls+ in August/September, but looks like it's going to be delayed a couple of months more as I work on a smaller project to boost my art skills. Nonetheless, it's really because of everyone's support that I'm encouraged to keep making games; I was so embarrassed by this first release that I truly wasn't planning on making any more games. Then your comments came in, Trick said I should take your feedback home and act upon them, which I plan to do. So seriously, thanks so much! You guys are the best. :D

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Re: The Dolls' Stories

#45 Post by Infernity Zero »

I finished playing your game a while ago and decided to make an account here to tell you that I enjoyed it.

Both of the dolls were adorable, and the story was really touching. A pity that the female doll's path was incomplete. I must say that I liked the male doll's personality a little more, but that's just me and my weakness for, well, weak boys. It's also the first game that had me crying several times. Fortunately, no one was around to see :D.

The typing feature made me feel more immersed in the story. The only "flaw" was that the keywords were quite small and I had a little difficulty reading them, but obviously it didn't keep me from playing.

I usually don't spend time on kinetic novels, so your game was the exception to the rule ;). Thank you.

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