ZERO DAYS [Horror]

[Souffle]

STORYLINE
Bunka is a high school girl who hides her misanthropist thoughts behind her appearance.
One night, she noticed a black ring had appeared around her neck.
A shadow was behind her in the bathroom mirror… and when it stepped out from the darkness, it became a boy with a sinister smile.
“That... that is the mark of a shinigami.”
He pressed the cold scythe’s hilt into her hand and disappeared from sight.
From that day forward, Bunka began to see omens of death around her classmates.
When their days reaches zero, there is no other option – put a blade through their heart and rip out their soul.
This is the story of the girl that became Death’s goddess.

CHARACTER

Left to Right - Bunka, Issun, Ink
{These are only sketches}
Bunka – She is a high school girl suffering from social anxiety. Her bad experience with bullies have made her into a misanthropist, but she can easily hide her feelings from others. Wielding the power of Death's scythe, will she follow her duties as a shinigami, or will she use her new abilities for other, darker reasons?
Ink – This boy appears to Bunka only when night has fallen. His presence is a comfort to her - he seems to hate people just as much as she does. But he speaks about humans as if he is not one of them... so who is he, really…?
Issun – A classmate that Bunka often admires from afar. He is quiet and always seen alone, and is usually missing from class. There are negative rumors about him...
Kanako {picture coming soon} – Bunka really hates this girl. Always harassing Bunka and calling her names… why won’t she just leave her alone?

There are 2 endings only – Alternate and True

Screenshots will come soon.

My English is not perfect, so proofreaders will be extremely helpful.

Answer these questions if you will!
I would like to know what players think about a dark themed otome game?
How do you feel about the fact that this game will contain gore and descriptions of violence?
Does it bother you that the color scheme is monochromatic?
Any other comments welcome.

[Angel Beats]

I think a dark themed otome game is..interesting, actualy, I prefer it that way. I'd very much like to see how it would come out in the end process.
The fact that the game itself is going to contain acts of violence and plenty of gore is exciting (for me) because I LOVE Horror games, and it wouldn't be a horror game if you didn't put in lots of gore and semi-violence. I assume there's going to be some added mystery in the scenario?
If so, making the player "think" is the main goal. You don't want them to just casually go through choices, you want them to stop and take a minute to think about the choice their about to make.

EXAMPLE:
Perhaps they just witnessed a murder and the player has a choice of either confronting the murderer right their and then, or avoiding -said murderer- until later on, etc. Perhaps even the choice to fight -said murderer-.

This gives the player a difficult choice. Should they comfort the murderer? -- Will the murderer have any sense of reasoning, or is -said murderer- just that? -- Should they avoid the murderer? --But what if they never get a chance to confront them again? -- What if they kill again? --- Should they fight the murderer? -- The murderer has a weapon, so they're at an advantage, but the killer isn't facing towards the player's direction --

Choices. It's all about making it hard for the player to decide what to do. In a horror game, you have to make sure you make it as hard for them as possible.

Another EXAMPLE:

What IF the murderer was the player's bestfriend in the scenario? -- Could the player really have the will-power to turn in their own friend? -- Is the best-friend just using the player's history with them to avoid any future consequences down the road? ..


Anyway-

No. I think the monochromatic color scheme would work VERY well. It's supposed to be a horror game, right? You don't want a bunch of bright, contrast colors! You want dark, gloomy, almost depressing if you will.


last comments:

I love your art style, and the story. Though, the plot reminds me a lot of the anime "Zombie Loan". I assume that's where you got your inspiration from? --Nether less, it's a brilliant concept and I look forward to seeing and playing the finished product.

[ShadowBerry]

Reminds me of Zombie Loan..I mean with an unsocial girl and the black ring etc. xD

I love your art style, kinda like Manwha~ nice :3

And the guys are nice too, let's see with who she ends up in the true ending (IF that will happen)

[misamane]

I really like this idea! I would definitely play it. The idea of a dark themed otome game really catches my attention, as I love otome games and dark themes!
The gore and descriptions of violence are fine with me, I'm quite big on gore anyway. (Well, when it comes to anime etc, not so much real people!) And I think descriptions can be really good if done well.
Afor the monochromatic colour scheme, I quite like it. It fits the story very well, rather than bright colours etc.
If you do decide to continue with this this project, PM me! I'm really interested in this game and I can help with coding, plot lines, and proofreading as English is my first language.

[Souffle]

Thank you for the replies and compliments to my art. ^_^
I need to clarify something. I said there are only 2 endings - these are the only endings that have a story along with them.
It is possible, however, to reach a game over without warning.
I will have screenshots up this weekend, so check back!

@Angel Beats
Yes, there will be mysteries. The biggest mystery is who Ink really is {is he good or bad? is he shinigami too?} and why Bunka is chosen as a new shinigami. There is also the mystery of Issun and why he's always absent from school - and {read if you don't mind mild spoilers}

why people start dying before they reach zero days

.
I agree with you that in a horror game, the choices need to be hard and have serious consequences. That way it can really make the player feel immersed in the game {maybe even dreading it when a choice comes up!}
Thank you for the comment! I addressed the Zombie Loan thing in the comment after this one.

@ShadowBerry
I have never read/watched Zombie Loan, so I researched it and found this:
"Michiru Kita is a special girl who possesses Shinigami Eyes, a power which allows her to see a person's nearness to their destined death by seeing a ring, invisible to normal people, around the person's neck. When a person is marked to die, a gray ring appears, which darkens over time. Once the ring turns completely black, the person dies."
Also saw this description of the main character: "Since the death of her parents, she has felt numb, living, but having no will to achieve anything or even care if she dies or not"
Based on this, the only similarities are the ring around the neck and the ability to see when someone will die.
From what I've read, the main character of Zombie Loan can only see when people will die - but she doesn't actually end their life, right?
In that case I can assure you that there aren't many similarities in the story since the main part of ZERO DAYS is the fact that the main character is a shinigami. And biggest of all, there are no zombies in my story xD
Also Bunka is not an unsocial girl. Although she really dislikes people, she hide her feelings and pretends that she is normal. So there shouldn't be much similarity with the main character of Zombie Loan. If the ring around the neck seems like a copy from Zombie Loan I could easily change it to something else! What do you think, should I change it?
I Hope this gets rid of any worries that they are too similar. ^^;

@misamane
It's good that there are some people out there who like dark otome games! I was worrying that no one would be interested in one with a dark theme.
I have coding and the plot line down, but I will PM you when I need proofreading. Thank you so much!

[ShadowBerry]

I was never worried about it, just that it popped into my head when I saw your story
Point is, the main character Is unsocial what you only can see when you actually watch the anime same as in just because it's called Zombie Loan, the main chars aren't 'Zombies' xD

Mhhhh, she is unsocial from the inside but social from the outside? Sounds like a really hard to handle character :/

Well the ring arounf the neck thing isn't really copy...even though it reminds everybody who knows the anime extremly strong of the fact that the ring around peoples neck confirm when they are about to die.
That you made the girl a shinigami, well yeah thats pretty new and refreshing so I wouldn't make the trouble to change your idea, but if somebody claims this idea his own you should change it.

[kaleidofish]

I love horror-blend stories (whether it's horror/romance or horror/mystery, as in your case), so I'm definitely looking forward to this one. I'm hoping for plenty of suspense in regards to those mysteries, too. The idea of a dark themed otome game sounds awesome to me. You can bring on the gore - I used to be a gorehound. The monochromatic color scheme goes hand in hand with your theme. I'm going to guess that you'll keep the blood as red, though, or maybe you'll colorize things of ultimate importance - just for added effect.

Liking the art a lot. Don't pull any punches with this.

[HigurashiKira]

I would like to know what players think about a dark themed otome game?
Well, I am an avid fan of the horror genre, but a dislike of the otome genre. However, if the two are blended correctly and nicely, I'd play it.
How do you feel about the fact that this game will contain gore and descriptions of violence?
*points to signature* What do you think?
Does it bother you that the color scheme is monochromatic?
If it fits the theme, then no since it's a nice mood setter.
Any other comments welcome.
Is the game going to be more story-centric (as in, focus on the choices of Bunka and what she uses her powers for) or who she pursues (which is what most otome games are)? If it's the former, then it really shouldn't be called an otome game but a GxB game since Otome games are (almost specificly) about pursuing the boys and falling in love.

[Souffle]

Screenshot:

The background is a placeholder. There are less than 10 backgrounds in the game, so I will be seeking a background artist once I finish everything on my end ^_^
Here's progress so far.

Statistics:

The game contains 281 screens of dialogue.
These screens contain a total of 3,492 words,
for an average of 12.4 words per screen.
The game contains 0 menus.

Mhhhh, she is unsocial from the inside but social from the outside? Sounds like a really hard to handle character :/

Well, she is a misanthropist {she has a strong dislike for humankind} and she has a social anxiety {but this only applies in certain situations}. Despite all of that, she can keep up a happy persona and appear normal to her classmates... but this is only a false pretense. Deep down inside, she hates all of them.

I love horror-blend stories (whether it's horror/romance or horror/mystery, as in your case), so I'm definitely looking forward to this one. I'm hoping for plenty of suspense in regards to those mysteries, too. The idea of a dark themed otome game sounds awesome to me. You can bring on the gore - I used to be a gorehound. The monochromatic color scheme goes hand in hand with your theme. I'm going to guess that you'll keep the blood as red, though, or maybe you'll colorize things of ultimate importance - just for added effect.

Liking the art a lot. Don't pull any punches with this.

Thank you for the compliments! I'm trying to make a suspenseful atmosphere with the music and sound effects. Once it all comes together, the game should be very atmospheric. And you are right, the blood {and anything else of importance that is red} will be colored. I definitely won't hold back.

I would like to know what players think about a dark themed otome game?
Well, I am an avid fan of the horror genre, but a dislike of the otome genre. However, if the two are blended correctly and nicely, I'd play it.
How do you feel about the fact that this game will contain gore and descriptions of violence?
*points to signature* What do you think?
Does it bother you that the color scheme is monochromatic?
If it fits the theme, then no since it's a nice mood setter.
Any other comments welcome.
Is the game going to be more story-centric (as in, focus on the choices of Bunka and what she uses her powers for) or who she pursues (which is what most otome games are)? If it's the former, then it really shouldn't be called an otome game but a GxB game since Otome games are (almost specificly) about pursuing the boys and falling in love.

It is a story-centric game with very little to no romance

and the romance that's in the game isn't the 'fluffy' kind

The choices basically make it impossible to "pursue" anyone {there's nothing like talk to Guy A vs talk to Guy B}. Looks as if I made a mistake then, because I thought that otome game simply means the heroine is female. I will change it to GxB. This isn't anything close to a love story ^_^;
Thank you for pointing that out.

[GARLICBREAD]

Ah your art is really cute!

And I wouldn't say that it's wrong to call it an otome game. Repeating the words of a friend:

"In Japanese Otome means maiden, so officially the genre of otome game means a game aimed at girls/women. It does not have to be a romance game, as long as its focus is towards women and it has a female main character. GxB on the other hand means there will be romance in the game with a girl and guy.
These are terms as they are meant when applied to the Japanese Visual Novels. I'm not sure if they have been changed when applied to English Visual Novels though.
It's pretty much stereotyped that otome games are romance based, as most are, but that is not the original and true meaning of the genre."

[HigurashiKira]

Ah your art is really cute!

And I wouldn't say that it's wrong to call it an otome game. Repeating the words of a friend:

"In Japanese Otome means maiden, so officially the genre of otome game means a game aimed at girls/women. It does not have to be a romance game, as long as its focus is towards women and it has a female main character. GxB on the other hand means there will be romance in the game with a girl and guy.
These are terms as they are meant when applied to the Japanese Visual Novels. I'm not sure if they have been changed when applied to English Visual Novels though.
It's pretty much stereotyped that otome games are romance based, as most are, but that is not the original and true meaning of the genre."

The problem is that in the community here, otome has come to be known as lovey-dovey couple games which is why I brought that up. Though then again the term "Otome" can be used for anything aimed at women, this includes BL games.
GxB just means that there is a female protagonist, and a possible male love interest. Though just as she has it labeled right now is good since it seems to be more plot-based than anything.

[CassieHolloway]

Interesting! I'm glad you already have some vn ideas up! I'm thinking of putting some rough ideas of mine up and see where I can get information on them.

If you ever need motivation or other types of help... Don't hesitate to message me.

[misamane]

Was just wondering if you're still working on this? I was just going through my posts and saw this and remembered being really interested in it ^_^

[Souffle]

Hello all, I'm sorry for disappearing for so long.
I've returned to this project after a long break and have made some changes to the story line and characters. Since this is my first VN it will be relatively short, I'm aiming for around 15,000-20,000 words and there are still only 2 endings. I'm planning to post the finished character sprites later today. I was planning to get a BG artist but I think that will take too much time and I don't have a budget, so I'll probably just use free sources for that. Even though my art skill isn't amazing I'll be doing the CGs as well. Hopefully it won't disappoint.
It's my goal to get this out by March~April.
By the way, this should no longer be considered an otome game. After changes to the plot, it contains absolutely no [conventional] romance, so hopefully this will appeal to a broader audience.