Lemma Soft Forums

Hi everyone!

It's been a while; isn't it funny how life sneaks up and whacks you upside the head sometimes?

Anyway... I've found myself without an artist for my completed-except-for-the-character-art VN Danse Macabre recently (original post is here), and I was wondering if there were any unattached artists out there who might like to work on a (rather small) project?

I'd prefer a "hand-drawn anime" style if possible, but I'm flexible (and quite in awe of the whole "art" process)!

Everything besides the character art is done, from the backgrounds (photoshopped) to the music to the programming. I could literally upload it today if the character placeholders were replaced with something not quite as horrid.

There are three characters, namely a female bit part (two facial expressions) and two male leads (for each, five facial expressions, two different outfits, and a "wounded" version, and a vampire pose for the vampire). That's just the bare minimum I have coded in, but I'm more than open to anything else you'd like to do or add.

Plot! On one life-changing night, our heroine, plagued by dreams of what might be a tragic past life, encounters a brooding vampire and a reckless vampire hunter who both want something from her...

It's a very small game, and who is the hero and who the villain changes depending on the player's choices. The first trip through takes around fifteen minutes, and there are seven main endings, each with a positive or negative variation, and two "easter egg" endings.

Please let me know if this sounds like something you'd be interested in working on, and thank you!

I'd still play it without any character art ...

I shall upload it and send a link to you, spoiling it for you forever, if you'd like. <g> We could call it a "beta-test" thing.

(Uh, the placeholder character art is, to put it nicely, ugly. It's not even art, so to speak -- just text blocks turned sideways!)

I've been reading the original posts...and scratching my head wondering why I don't recall ever reading them...until it hit me they were over a year old!

In that case, congratulations for completing your game!

I am interested in this game, but I should hit myself on the head since I usually take on too many projects than I have time for. But regardless, unless my work really is incompatible, I usually finish. I usually want other (especially more talented) artists get first dips because of my time constraints.

The main reason I am interested in this is the vampire theme. Just curious, what century is this taking place in? I just got a ahold of an excellent costume designer's resource and am looking forward to applying authentic period costumes to anime-style characters in my projects.

DaFool wrote:I've been reading the original posts...and scratching my head wondering why I don't recall ever reading them...until it hit me they were over a year old!

In that case, congratulations for completing your game!

Thank you! It was actually technically done to this point over a year ago (only thing I've done since then with it besides updating Ren'py is to today make the easter egg endings a bit easier to get since I couldn't remember how to get them myself).

I haven't been in a hurry for the art since the original artist, well, her art was most definitely worth waiting for. But it's been four months without word or post, and I'd prefer not to have it hanging over her head (sometimes a project like this can snowball if you feel obligated until you feel as if it weighs a ton and you find yourself pegging the person who roped you into it with a fork, uh, no, no experience, why?). That's the absolutely last thing I'd ever want to do to anyone, especially over something as much fun as this.

DaFool wrote:I am interested in this game, but I should hit myself on the head since I usually take on too many projects than I have time for. But regardless, unless my work really is incompatible, I usually finish. I usually want other (especially more talented) artists get first dips because of my time constraints.

Well, if you'd like I'll PM you the link to the unfinished version -- a sneak preview, so to speak. But, while I'm certainly excited (and it's really a nifty game -- something I'm very proud of) to have the finished game to show off, I don't want anyone feeling obligated or overwhelmed over it.

DaFool wrote:The main reason I am interested in this is the vampire theme. Just curious, what century is this taking place in? I just got a ahold of an excellent costume designer's resource and am looking forward to applying authentic period costumes to anime-style characters in my projects.

I wrote the game while I was learning Ren'py, so I went with something comforting and soothing to me. So the historical parts are horribly sloppy as far as history goes; I was vaguely thinking late eighteenth century or early nineteenth at the time (Byron!), but from the text it could really be any era where they had masquerade balls, castles, and crossbows. The rest is modern day.

Thanks for the link, I'll let you know if I have problems along the way.

Here's a headstart of how the characters might look like (from left to right, a vampire lord, madamoiselle, and musketeer vampire hunter)
Its my default piecemeal style for handdrawn work...I might have to streamline a bit for batch drawings, but thankfully the additional image requirements for this game are minimal

I figured that these fit well with masquerade balls (just add black facemask and you have zorro lol), but if you want something more Van Helsing-like (whose costume by the way seems historically inaccurate), let me know.

Of course I'll have to see the game to see what the other requirements will be.

How adorable!

You're quite amazing with costumes -- you put my generic, Hollywood-esque, quasi-historical setting to shame.

My "vision" (lol, I'm a Writer now) is a bit more anime-ish, I think. More flowing lace and sardonic smiles?

Oh, and I've cadged some space on a friend's server for a bit if anyone else would like to take a peek for artistic or beta purposes. Just let me know!

Yeah I must say the game was excellently executed and had high production values already.

As mentioned, I'll try for a more anime-style revision sometime soon, specifically their faces. And I need to work more on the guys, since they have the most screentime (I wasn't filled with moe while working on them, but I'll try )

gaahh, working on female characters is so much easier

How does one conjure up the moe to flow towards male characters? Either I become gay, or I'll try to be hit with a firecracker.

Okay, really going out of town now...

AMY-CHAN SAYS: "OJOU-SAMA, ECCHI IS BAD FOR YOU"

I definitely skewed this one in favor of the female player, and I think I may have loaded in too much vampire bishie fanservice.

Wait, is there such a thing as "too much vampire bishie fanservice"?

It's actually funny, because my protags are usually male, but this particular love triangle just begged for a female one.

::pat:: No worries, I'm not asking anyone to get a sex or orientation change on my behalf. Today, anyway!

I tried a female character just to test my own Victorian drawing skills out...but if it's males you need then...I might be able to conjure up some bishies for you! ^_~ Although if you want colour in these, I can't help you there...my photoshop ability is pretty bad...

Ooo! That's lovely!

I'd love to see some bishounen too, if you don't mind -- this is very much in the style I was picturing.

And I absolutely *love* her hair style, and she has such a beautiful face, since I seem to have forgotten to say so earlier! (Must be all the pre-holiday pre-celebration. Or the Christmas cookie overload.)

You guys *amaze* me with this artist stuff. Absolutely amaze.

Hi everyone!

My original artist has returned and has a bit of free time, so I'm going to put the call for an artist on hold for a month to see how things go.

I *really* appreciate all the offers and all the lovely, lovely work displayed here. You guys are amazing -- simply amazing.

I've gotta -- or somebody's gotta, anyway! -- write something Victorian now to use all those gorgeous costumes.

Alas, someone is beating me in the release of bishie vampire games!

(Well, mine will take FOREVER to be done. I look forward to seeing this one!)

Oh, bishie vampires are like chocolate candies; lots of different types, all of 'em good, and there's always room for more.