Zelan wrote: ↑Sat Sep 09, 2017 6:47 pm
1. Do you like the premise of the story?: YES YES YES. I was loving the AI stuff in the thread for Girlfriend Material; this is obviously a very different sort of story but I think the way that you write the AI will be just as good.
2. Do you think having a story that is mostly linear, but gives the reader the ability to express their own opinions of worldviews openly is a good concept?: I think that's great. There's never anything wrong with linear stories (I mean, that's literally what a book is), but since it's a visual novel with an essentially newborn protagonist there's still room for some interesting development and choices.
3. What do you think of the characters so far?: I like them! Obviously, I like KAIROS, and ATLAS seems like it'll be cute, too. I don't know too much about Satoru yet but I feel like it'll be interesting to get to know him.
I also really like that you're adding the option to choose KAIROS's gender identity, but I'm curious; when and where would they learn about femininity and/or gender identity as a concept?
4. Do you like Satoru's design/the art style? If yes, what do you like? If no, what would you change?: I do, the art looks very clean, and like Celestial_Toast said, the duller colors are good for the post-apocalyptic scenario.
I also super appreciate the fact that you're taking the time to give Satoru different outfits - that will really add to the immersion - but I would also completely understand if you scrapped it so that you could focus on other elements.
Good luck! I've seen your other projects around and I think you have awesome ideas. I can't wait to see one completed. c:
1. That's really good to hear! Oh, I need to check that thread out, then - lately I'm loving everything that has to do with robots. (My current obsession is Reg from Made in Abyss. Poor little robot boy.)
2. That's what I'm going for - I want the game to be more book like in that things just happen. And as an Android, KAIROS isn't really someone who can actively affect the choices that Satoru makes for himself, while Satoru can very much influence KAIROS' choices. It's an imbalance between them that is best developed by focusing on KAIROS' emotions instead, I believe. The start of the game is especially linear, because KAIROS doesn't grow a real sense of self until a certain event happens. From then on you get to control more and more about them and their way of narration changes. It's really clean and strict at the start, but becomes rather poetic later on.
3. One thing that I can tell is that Satoru is a heck of a lot of fun to write! Seriously, I've rarely had this much fun letting a character talk - and Satoru talks a lot. I really hope people will end up liking him, because I absolutely adore making him say cheesy things and having KAIROS react in a deadpan sort of way. The story gets a lot of its humour from this, which I think is good given that the background of the game is rather grim and the plot is pretty dramatic.
KAIROS learns about gender identity during the course of the story. It's a learning curve for them - when they first gain their sense of self they simply accept that they are an Android, but one that can understand and make use of the concept of curiosity. No matter how you play them (And you can play them in a very free way, from choosing their aspirations, fears, personality traits and their relationship towards Satoru.) they are
always curios. It's their only given character trait, because it moves the plot forward and lets them grow.
Once they learn about gender identity (mostly through Satoru, his collection of movies and self reflection) you can then decide whether KAIROS 1. Believes they aren't a part of the gender spectrum and just an Android 2. Wants to be seen as either a man or a woman 3. Prefers to indulge in the gender spectrum, though doesn't want to tie themselves down to either end of it. KAIROS doesn't have to think of themselves as more than a machine, but if they do want to be equal to Satoru, they can be so in any way they want to. And no matter which identity you give them, not a single option shuts you out of romancing Satoru, should you want to, as Satoru doesn't care about gender and never did, not even before the end of the world. The only thing that is fixed is KAIROS robotic body and it's ambigious look. KAIROS doesn't simply gain metal breasts just because they see themselves as a woman. But not having any sexually connotated body parts doesn't make them less of what they choose to be. =)
4. That's great to know! I try to keep it simple enough to be able to give Satoru a lot of arm placements and poses without sacrificing too much time, so the shading is pretty hard and the style is a bit on the clean side. Since this is a one-woman-project cutting down on complex shading is needed to ensure a lot of variety instead.
Oh, giving Satoru multiple outfits was always part of the plan~ I'd rather invest the extra time to give him more personality through different outfits. (That way I don't get bored drawing CG's, either!) You only really get to see Satoru for most of the time, so I believe it is absolutely necessary to give him a ton of poses and outfits to make up for the fact that you'll be staring at his bespectacled face for a long time. Also, I've always been a fan of shaping the personality of a character through the things that they wear. (And Satoru loves cheap nicknacks like his plastic star necklace.)
Thank you! I'm working hard on this project now, since it's the easiest to tackle. Since I'm a person who can't work on only one project for long periods of time without feeling the itch to switch, I like to rotate between different projects instead. That way, if I feel stuck with one, I can always work on another and come back later without falling into a writer's block or art block. I haven't had much time to work on any projects during the last few weeks, but that was due to getting accustomed to a new job that I have. Since I'm a terribly lazy person who loves afternoon naps and can't function without a strict routine I've constructed a time table to work on projects during the week, which I will implement starting next week. It gives me two hours per day to work on my projects and I can churn out about 3k-4k words within that time frame on good days. So if everything works out well I can finish this project during the winter of this year~