Are you a fan of idols, making wishes, and finding love?
So am I - and that's how Paper Stars was born.
http://paperstarsvn.tumblr.com
Every time you fold a paper star, you make a wish.
When you have an entire jar full of them - one thousand stars - your final wish will come true.
Paper Stars is a visual novel, created using Ren'Py visual novel engine. It's a labor of love, and is now years in the making - started in 2014, it's been Kat's goal to create the visual novel she always wanted to play. And that's what Paper Stars has become - an LGBT+ inclusive dating sim / visual novel, complete with a customizable player character, ten different romance routes, and multiple endings. Plus, it's all about idols and the entertainment industry - so you're in for a year of excitement. The goal is to have this game completed by January 2021, and for it to be sold commercially. Phew! Even though that's a couple years away, it's going to take all that time to really make this game with the amount of quality that Kat wants.
After an intensive application process and entrance exam, you have been granted a full-tuition scholarship to prestigious Kitano Academy, where college-age idols and performers from around the world train for debut. After the school year begins, your studies fill your days with training, performances, meet-and-greets, photoshoots, and more. After every event, you fold several paper stars and add them to a jar, with the goal of making a wish once it is full. As you slowly fill your jar with paper stars, you must decide what to do with your wish: do you follow your heart, your song, or the stars above? With the pressure to succeed in an industry that demands so much of its stars, you must rely on the bonds you share with the people closest to you in order to shine.
Paper Stars has a variety of features planned, including:
- Customizable name, gender, and pronouns for the main character.
- Game spans the length of a year - get to know others, and spend a year improving your skills!
- Ten different romance routes, including heterosexual, homosexual, and pansexual choices - each with year-long story arcs.
- Raise your stats with performances, classwork, and everyday interactions.
- Multiple end scenarios, based on game performance and choices.
- Interactive image gallery, jukebox, and character bio menus.
- Initial release on Windows and Android, with Mac OS and iOS to follow.
That's me, Kat! I've been working on Paper Stars slowly (but surely) since 2014. It's been sort of on the back burner for a while, since I've had to dedicate more time to other real-life priorities. However, the end of 2018 has given me the time (and most of the resources) needed in order to get past the initial planning stages of the game. I've hit the ground running, and I'm excited to say that I've already made a lot of progress - almost a month of in-game script, character sprites for half the main cast, backgrounds and CG illustrations in progress, and an OST in the works. Now that I have all of the building blocks in place, I'm ready to start getting the word out about the game! My goal is to have a public demo ready in autumn / winter 2019. For patrons, I'll be releasing beta demos, starting in June.
I'm working on all the planning and writing, but certainly can't make the game on my own. I've hired the following individuals for Paper Stars.
- Carrot Games - Developer
- Kathaeris - UI Design
- Caastles / Catrie Art - Sprite Art
- Camille C. - CG Art
- Rialyn - Background Art
- Stessie - Music / Audio
We're all over the place online! Visit us anywhere listed below. Links will be updated / added periodically.
Need to get in touch? Send us a message here, or an email at paperstarsvn@gmail.com.
So, what's going on in this thread? I'll be using this to post updates and to get the word out about Paper Stars! If you play any of our demos or have thoughts about the game, the characters, etc. - we'd love to hear them! Feel free to post here, ask questions, and learn more about the game. We're excited to share it with you all!
