Reset
Posted: Sun Nov 06, 2011 7:55 pm
Alright! This has been a long time coming, but I finally feel confident enough in my progress with this game to make a thread for it. Now I'm counting on you all to make sure I don't give up, haha.
RESET
a visual novel about love & existentialism & videogames
Sometimes you screw up. And times like those, it feels like life would be a whole lot easier if it had a reset button.
Zack's your average 18 year old gamer geek. He worries about graduating high school, saving up for the next big Xbox game, and what kind of traps his DM will throw at him next D&D session. But his boyfriend Jason is different; he thinks too much, reads too much. Jason worries about life and human nature and the difference between fiction and reality. Now Jason's kind of in the middle of an existential crisis, and he needs Zack to lean on. Is Zack strong enough to support Jason without losing himself?
RESET is a drama about taking care of those you love and holding yourself up too, about the lines between love and dependence and obedience, about whether it's worthwhile and those times when it all falls apart. Heavy on psychology and emotion, with a sprinkling of romance and philosophy and video games and kink.
Characters
Isaac (Zack) Nicholas Levy
Protagonist and narrator.
18 years old, 12th grade, majoring in computer science next fall. Responsible, open-minded, easygoing, practical. Enjoys video games, cooking, and sewing. He takes after his dad quite a bit.
Jason Christakos
Zack's boyfriend.
18 years old, 12th grade, intending to major in neuroscience and psychology. An artist and a dreamer and a thinker, there's always something running through his head--usually some great heavy philsophical query, or a quote from that one book/song/movie/anime, or both.
Joseph Levy
Zack's dad.
English teacher working to become a guidance counselor, single father. Patient, insightful, innocently sarcastic. His chicken parmesan is legendary among all who know him.
Melissa (Mel) Agapé Christakos
Jason's sister.
21 years old. Photographer by aspiration, holder of several part-time jobs by necessity.
I expect her only direct role in RESET to be one scene that has her voice, so she probably won't have a sprite, but nonetheless she gets mentioned plenty.
Details
There are several choices along the way that allow you to shape who you are, and four endings based on what you've proven yourself to be. One of them is good.
Estimated about 15,000 words, 15-20 minutes per path. 16+ rating: kinky (but not explicit) sexuality, foul language (high school boys will be high school boys), and some seriously heavy and emotionally charged situations. Note that a slim possibility exists of the rating changing to 18+.
Yes, the main characters are a gay couple. I'm not calling it BxB because that's not the point. Also because you've already obtained the only obtainable, so to speak.
Be warned: This is a rather dismal game. The bad ends are very bad, and the one good end is more hopeful than happy.
More?
RESET has a website here, with image previews and a list of what still needs to be completed. It also houses some older art and short stories about Zack, Jason, and Joseph, in case anyone wants to familiarize themself with the characters.
Progress
Script: 85%
1,203 screens :: 16,845 words :: 8 choices :: 11/12 scenes
Art: 18%
title screen :: 1/3 sprites (2/? expressions) :: 3/6 backgrounds :: 0/2-7 CGs
(as of 1/1/12)
Help Wanted
I am musically challenged. Anyone who wants to help with music, I'd greatly appreciate it. And I don't necessarily mean making music especially for Reset--if someone could help me just with selecting music from the places it's freely available and matching music to scenes that'd be great, because I'm no good at determining what music is appropriate for what mood.
Feedback Wanted
All critique and comments would be great, and questions are welcome. I'd particularly like to get some opinions on these things:
My decision so far is that the art will all be loose, scribbly black-lines-on-white. The title card is in this style, and you can see some in-game examples on the website. How do you feel about a VN having all its art in black and white? About the sketchy style in general?
Does the sketchy art conflict too strongly with the retro game styled GUI?
The art style is meant to be a reflection of Jason's perception of the world; in fact, the game is drawn in a style very similar to the style in which Jason himself draws. But Jason's not narrating, Zack is. Is that a problem, having the art represent a point of view that doesn't belong to the narrator?
I'm also curious to see how much interest there is generally in a VN that has elements of romance without being a "try to get the guy" sort of deal.
RESET
a visual novel about love & existentialism & videogames
Sometimes you screw up. And times like those, it feels like life would be a whole lot easier if it had a reset button.
Zack's your average 18 year old gamer geek. He worries about graduating high school, saving up for the next big Xbox game, and what kind of traps his DM will throw at him next D&D session. But his boyfriend Jason is different; he thinks too much, reads too much. Jason worries about life and human nature and the difference between fiction and reality. Now Jason's kind of in the middle of an existential crisis, and he needs Zack to lean on. Is Zack strong enough to support Jason without losing himself?
RESET is a drama about taking care of those you love and holding yourself up too, about the lines between love and dependence and obedience, about whether it's worthwhile and those times when it all falls apart. Heavy on psychology and emotion, with a sprinkling of romance and philosophy and video games and kink.
Characters
Isaac (Zack) Nicholas Levy
Protagonist and narrator.
18 years old, 12th grade, majoring in computer science next fall. Responsible, open-minded, easygoing, practical. Enjoys video games, cooking, and sewing. He takes after his dad quite a bit.
Jason Christakos
Zack's boyfriend.
18 years old, 12th grade, intending to major in neuroscience and psychology. An artist and a dreamer and a thinker, there's always something running through his head--usually some great heavy philsophical query, or a quote from that one book/song/movie/anime, or both.
Joseph Levy
Zack's dad.
English teacher working to become a guidance counselor, single father. Patient, insightful, innocently sarcastic. His chicken parmesan is legendary among all who know him.
Melissa (Mel) Agapé Christakos
Jason's sister.
21 years old. Photographer by aspiration, holder of several part-time jobs by necessity.
I expect her only direct role in RESET to be one scene that has her voice, so she probably won't have a sprite, but nonetheless she gets mentioned plenty.
Details
There are several choices along the way that allow you to shape who you are, and four endings based on what you've proven yourself to be. One of them is good.
Estimated about 15,000 words, 15-20 minutes per path. 16+ rating: kinky (but not explicit) sexuality, foul language (high school boys will be high school boys), and some seriously heavy and emotionally charged situations. Note that a slim possibility exists of the rating changing to 18+.
Yes, the main characters are a gay couple. I'm not calling it BxB because that's not the point. Also because you've already obtained the only obtainable, so to speak.
Be warned: This is a rather dismal game. The bad ends are very bad, and the one good end is more hopeful than happy.
More?
RESET has a website here, with image previews and a list of what still needs to be completed. It also houses some older art and short stories about Zack, Jason, and Joseph, in case anyone wants to familiarize themself with the characters.
Progress
Script: 85%
1,203 screens :: 16,845 words :: 8 choices :: 11/12 scenes
Art: 18%
title screen :: 1/3 sprites (2/? expressions) :: 3/6 backgrounds :: 0/2-7 CGs
(as of 1/1/12)
Help Wanted
I am musically challenged. Anyone who wants to help with music, I'd greatly appreciate it. And I don't necessarily mean making music especially for Reset--if someone could help me just with selecting music from the places it's freely available and matching music to scenes that'd be great, because I'm no good at determining what music is appropriate for what mood.
Feedback Wanted
All critique and comments would be great, and questions are welcome. I'd particularly like to get some opinions on these things:
My decision so far is that the art will all be loose, scribbly black-lines-on-white. The title card is in this style, and you can see some in-game examples on the website. How do you feel about a VN having all its art in black and white? About the sketchy style in general?
Does the sketchy art conflict too strongly with the retro game styled GUI?
The art style is meant to be a reflection of Jason's perception of the world; in fact, the game is drawn in a style very similar to the style in which Jason himself draws. But Jason's not narrating, Zack is. Is that a problem, having the art represent a point of view that doesn't belong to the narrator?
I'm also curious to see how much interest there is generally in a VN that has elements of romance without being a "try to get the guy" sort of deal.