Aether Skies [Dark Fantasy/Mystery/Dual Protagonist] [Demo]

[wyverngem]

Hello again! I have some new progress to share with you. I’ve been at work on the demo as well as Eir’s side of the story.

1) A new opening shadow sprite has been updated in the main screen. The sound has been turned off in the video.

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2) Can you change the font so it’s easier to read? Yes! After 130+ lines of code there is now an option for an easier to read font. Do enjoy it.

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The preference screen has been updated as well:
1) When self-voicing is enabled After Choices says “Skip After Choices”, Transitions now says “Skip Transitions”, Test now says “Test Sound”, and Mute All will say “Mute All Sound”.

2) You can choose to set the game to display the default font or an alternative which is easier for those with dyslexia to read. The character’s name will still be fancy, but the dialogue is changed as well as most of the menu items. It doesn’t effect the Quick-Menu as it is image based.

3) Added “On” and “Off” options for Auto-Forward Time to enable or disable it. This can still be found in the quick menu.

4) The Quick Menu will no longer jump when moving the mouse cursor from one button to the next. It will finally stay still. ^^ No more jitters!

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Not much in the art department for sprites, however Eir does have his second pose now in the game. In the future demo we’re looking at two more characters coming into play. They’re sprites are on hold while Whit is working on other projects. Before the end of summer we’ll see their sprites.

I’m still working on fixing a few other technical things, but I’ll keep you posted. The updated for the demo will be out later this month as I wait for an Editor.

Take care everyone!
(^^; If anyone is still reading...)

[Ertal77]

It looks amazing, both the art and the story!

[wyverngem]

It looks amazing, both the art and the story!

^_^ Thanks Ertal77! Hopefully we'll have more updates soon. It seems like a waiting game this summer for art. However, not a waiting game for story progress.

[Zelan]

The title screen looks beautiful! The animation is spot-on. And props to you for taking the time to code in another font option. I personally don't need it but I'm sure there are lots of people who will be grateful to have that option. c:

[wyverngem]

The title screen looks beautiful! The animation is spot-on. And props to you for taking the time to code in another font option. I personally don't need it but I'm sure there are lots of people who will be grateful to have that option. c:

Thank you Zelan. ^_^ I appreciate it.

Progress is going slow, but still progressing.

[abscission]

Wow! I have just finished the demo, so there's question 1 for you.

The concept and execution is definitely A+, and the art and typeset and music is very fitting for the story. The pacing is good for a short demo, and I like that the choices reveals different bits of plot/backstory that looks to have weight on the plot. Perhaps Eir will be required to make choices based on the information he received from Reina in the following chapters?

If I may ask, how do you keep track of the consequence of these choices, through a stats system (coding) or through a twine-like system of cause and effect (writing)?

Regardless, the writing of the scene with the golem suffered a little in comparison to the beginning of the demo, but that can easily be changed during the revising/editing stage.

I liked the characters - they were all very real, and I especially enjoyed the dynamic between Reina and Percival.

If I may suggest, there should be more inherent personality to Eir. You already do a very good job with the player character - I especially love the little details such as the expression change during mouseovers of different options, that was very immersive - but perhaps Eir should have more carry-over personality. He's already been living on his own for a long while, after all, so there's no need to make him entirely a player-insert. Perhaps in the actual game, there should be a prologue, or a kinetic novel stage in the very beginning that gives the player an idea of Eir's overall starting personality. The choices therefore during the first chapters will be intentionally restrictive to show the limits of Eir's personality e.g. perhaps there shouldn't be a 'panic' choice, or there isn't a choice for taking Reina's hand as Eir is very independent, only a choice for different reactions to her offer, and then as the game progresses the choices open up.

Of course, the above is only a suggestion. Much of the coding must have been done at this point, making large-scale revisions unwise, and anyway that was merely a suggestion - I loved the demo and will be following your tumblr to keep updated!

[wyverngem]

^_^ Thanks so much for so much feedback. I really appreciate it and am glad you enjoyed the game.

As for consequences, it's not based on a stat system. At least not in my understanding of stats. Stats to me are limiting to the player, especially when it comes to check points such as when you have to have certain stats to continue the story. You can't play the way you want when you're worried that the next day you're character you're building will be dead or you just waited an hour to realize that you've been ignoring the stat that was the important one. Some find it a challenge, I find them frustrating.

So to answer you're question I use a dynamic system based on your choices as a player. You don't need to worry about stat building in the game. Only about what choices you're making and how you respond to the events around you.

I keep track of what happens in the story based on how the player reacts to situations and choices. There are straight forward choices as well as choices that change based on the personality you're playing. It's not stat based in the least.

The demo is pretty short, so you really don't get a chance to see how choices really affect your characters. Most of them aren't one shot choices, and actually build up to a variety of events. As a writer it adds more for me, but as a player it gives you more to discover. I'm trying to keep a balance as to not overwhelm people with too many choices.

As for Eir's personality in the original draft of the game there was a few scenes in Eir's early life that were written out. I thought that they could be expressed in a better way that didn't take away from the story. So they have been added back in, but in more a shadowing way meaning that Eir mentions his past while talking to others and slowly as you play you can get a better idea of what his pre-life was. Him falling into the cave isn't the start of the story for the actual game. There's a bit of a start with his as well which may give him more a personality.

The difference between Eir and Reina is that with Eir I wanted him to become what the player wanted to play. He's past will gradually reveal itself as you play through and with choices you get to see different parts of him. One play through won't be enough to scratch the surface, but it will give you something to hold on to.

Wow, this is getting long. I hope it make sense. Anyways, I hope I was clear and I don't mind suggestions. I'm happy to hear them. Thanks again.

[wyverngem]

I've been working on a new choice menu style recently. When I first envisioned the game I didn't want typical text boxes in a row. They're so boring! The game choice menu is pretty amazing. In the original release when the player highlighted a choice it would change Eir's face. It was a visual cue on how the choice would be displayed. Also the game remembers what choices you've already made and changes the color of the text if you've already chosen it before. If that wasn’t enough you could choose something by simply keying 1-9 in accordance to what was displayed.

The new changes keep the old features, but add a more visually diverse set up for the choice buttons as well as adding the last line spoken so you don't have to rollback to remember the last line. This also helps you as a player keep track of what choice branches. I like this a lot better than the old version. I think it's more dynamic looking, though I'm not 100% sold on the new GUI. I find the text harder to read and I've always wanted to hide the numbers when the player used the mouse to select them. However, they're there to help players know which key to press for a quicker selection.

If I'm ever able to convert this to mobile, which is a long term goal, I will be removing the numbers. There's no point if you're on a touch screen.

So I did the video to show the difference between the two different choice menus. The default, let's call it, isn't vision impaired friendly because you can't use the keyboard easily to cycle through the different menu items. When you press down often it thinks you're accessing the Quick Menu.

What’s really nice is that when the players hit "V", entering self-voicing, the menu changes to a vertical alignment so the user can simple use keyboard up and down. It also voices "How should I respond?" to note when the choice screen is activated.

Thoughts?

[wyverngem]

For reference I've added the side by side comparison of the two different styles. The first is close to the demo and the second is the new one from the first choice in the game. Ignore the buttons on the top. They are not in game and are for development use only.)

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Originally released.

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The updated Version (alpha)[/size]

[wyverngem]

Verision 1.1 of the Aether Skies alpha demo was uploaded to itch.io last night. You can find the new link at the bottom of the page:

https://castingdreams.itch.io/aether-skies

Still looking for a image hosting site to update the main page, though haven’t found a competitive service quit yet. As for the game itself the I’ve welcomed bana as the new cg artist. She’s a wonderful artist and has already done a few sketches for the CG’s in chapter 1.

My goal is to have the game released by the end of the year. The new sprites in the second half of chapter two are scheduled to be started sometime in September and the CG art is in progress now. Crossing my fingers for no more medical bumps on my part. I’ll keep you posted when I get the chance. The game isn’t dead, it’s just boring on the updates right now.

[Zelan]

Oh my gosh, hi, wyverngem! I'm super late to respond to all of your updates but WOW, the new GUI is fantastic. I love how much more interesting it is compared to the usual boxes across the screen, like you said. And the accessibility features are great as well. I'll definitely give the 1-9 toggle a try when I play.

[wyverngem]

Oh my gosh, hi, wyverngem! I'm super late to respond to all of your updates but WOW, the new GUI is fantastic. I love how much more interesting it is compared to the usual boxes across the screen, like you said. And the accessibility features are great as well. I'll definitely give the 1-9 toggle a try when I play.

Thanks Zelan! ^_^; Things have been kind of crazy this summer, but the game is still active. I'm trying to get the photos back up for the main character sprites. I've got a few new characters to be introduced, but I'm waiting for sprites sketches.

[wyverngem]

Good morning! How is everyone doing? The game is progressing in all fields. The artist taking over the CG has completed nearly all of the new ones for Chapter 1. ^_^ They look really nice and I hope to share more with you soon. A preview can be found on the main Itch.io page. Also news for coding I’ve also found my happy medium for the choices menu! Still the original functions of being able to press keys 1-9 to make a choice, and Eir’s expression changing when you hover over an option. The new feature includes animations on the bars when they first appear and Eir’s sprite is now forward on the screen. It looks pretty sharp in game.

A patch/update will be out for the game sometime around the end of this month. This will be the final version of the demo that will remain free to download. Progressing through the whole story has gone pretty smoothly for the writing as well as implementing it in the coding. I’m not going to make further changes to the GUI or overall feel to the game now. That said our sprites for the second chapter should be here before the end of December meanings chapter 2 will be here before the new year.

I’ll be honest with you. When making a VN art is the biggest resource that takes the most time. Artist get tired, people burn out, and sometimes even leave before the end. Sadly, the later is what I’ve experienced more often than not. The group of artist, though few, are really talented and I love working with them. I just bring this to you to ask for your understanding.

That said, I’ve received a lot of emails asking about voice acting for this game. I’ve done voice acting in games before, not released here, and while I enjoy the experience of working with VA’s at this time it’s a soft no for this project. I’m on the fence, but it’s not a hard no just yet. If you’re interested in being a part of this project I’ll let everyone know my decision by the end of the month.

[wyverngem]

Hello! Just popping in to share a quick update for Aether Skies. A whole lot of project development happened over the holiday season.

1) We’ve reached 40,000 words and 100 choices and counting.
2) The art for the new sprites is finishing up nicely and the new CG should be done soon.
3) I removed the link for the demo, until the new one is posted.
4) Post have been updated with new characters

5) Have an awesome day! (Okay not an update, but still wishing you a great day.)

The new characters above of Vleorae and the Exalt both are seen in Chapter 2 and 3.

[wyverngem]

Demo version 10.28.18 has been uploaded to itch.io for download. The new demo features the following updates:

- Auto-forward text, Quick Save, and Quick Load can now be accessed through hotkeys on the keyboard. A, Q, P
- New sprites and additional art.
- CG art added to important scenes.
- Additional scenes added and reworked for flow, grammar, and future story secrets.
- GUI updated from textboxes and choice screen.
- Choice screen function properly with self-voicing.
- Additional self-voicing on menus and for better clarity
- Itch.io to reflect new art and changes

(Full update info on Itch.io )

If you haven't played it give it a shot. Hoping to have more chapters out soon.

Take care,
gem