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Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][DEMO][NaNo'17]

Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2017 4:38 am
by Qazhax
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“Atlus meets Log Horizon”

NOTE: Demo has been released! (link below) So far we’ve got 25 000 words of script, 3 hand-drawn backgrounds, 9 tracks of custom music, sprite sets for 3 characters, one dungeon, and most of the basic gameplay mechanics in place. We’re going to try and double those specs for the full version, so stay tuned until 6.6.17!

Please give us honest critique on this! We’re at a point where you can still have a huge influence on how the final version will look, so do give us feedback on anything you’d like to see improved.

Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire is a hybrid dating sim / pseudo-rpg set twenty minutes into the future. A large part of the game involves balancing your relationships and daily life with success in the popular VR MMO, Dragonfire Online.


Description:
It's 2024, and gaming has been revolutionized by the new high-quality VR gear. You play as a gamer who has recently gotten addicted to Dragonfire Online, captivated by a mysterious new player who joined your group a few weeks back. Only problem is, you already have a girlfriend, and she isn't too happy about getting ignored! All is not as it seems, however, and as the world you knew starts crumbling around you, there's only one question demanding an answer: what will be your choice?

Characters:
Nicholas
Protagonist
Nick is a hardcore gamer obsessed with virtual reality and the next-gen MMOs utilizing it. He seeks immersion at any cost, up to and including shady mail-order VR drugs. Recently, he’s been neglecting his relationship with Catherine.

Catherine
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Old flame
Catherine is an MBA student whose relationship with Nick is nearing its breaking point as the pressure of writing her thesis and Nick’s growing negligence combine explosively.

Players:
Nick
Guardian
Nick’s old tank had already reached the level cap by the time he stopped playing a year or two ago. Upon his return he discovered that the cap had been raised, so it’s time to hit the dungeons!

Silvia
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Assassin
Silvia is a mysterious new player who joined Nick’s party a while back. Not only is she high-level and an apparent roleplayer, Nick suspects her of being a beta tester for the original version of Dragonfire Online.

Aerith4Ever
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Priestess of Phopassus, the Light of Mercy
Aerith is the de facto healer of Nick’s party. She joined him shortly after he started playing, and seems to have a bit of a thing for him. Regrettably, she appears to be worse at the game than her level would indicate.


Dragonfire Online:
One of the most popular VR MMOs in recent memory, Dragonfire Online presents its players with an unique fantasy setting of knights and dragons, cats and demons - at least according to its website:
Participate in raids with your party! The Ruins of Kvaagwyr, the Tower of Sin, and dozens of other intriguing dungeons await!
Play as any of the three races: humans, catfolk and demopyres!
Donkey-rhinos, firebreathing ostriches, and dozens of other fascinating enemies!
An honorable knight wearing a chicken suit, and other unique players for you to befriend!

Team:
Our team, Klein Hyperbolic, currently comprises eight members. A writer/programmer, sprite/BG artist, sprite artist, UI/logo artist, dungeon master, background assistant, "sound guy" and a musician. Most of us are not yet very experienced, however.

Progress:
Planning:94%
Backgrounds:85%
Sprites:85%
Writing:90%
GUI:15%
Extra Art:0%
Code:90%
Sounds:90%

Questions:
What scene, boss monster or type of dungeon do you absolutely want to see in the game?
Did we manage to pique your interest?
Does the project sound too big for NanoReNo (we’re going to do it anyway)?

Update:
Link to demo: https://qazhax.itch.io/simulacrum

WARNING: This game deals with mature subject matter and may not be suitable for especially sensitive players. The game contains swearing, violence, horror, explicit drug use, mild sexual innuendo and bad humor, and is rated M for “don’t let your Mother see it”.

Still, if you’ve ever watched / played Higurashi or Persona 4, you should be in the clear.

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2017 7:08 pm
by Zelan
What scene, boss monster or type of dungeon do you absolutely want to see in the game?: I don't play MMOs myself, so I can't really answer this question. A dog-type boss might be kinda cute/funny since you've got cat people, but I dunno.
Did we manage to pique your interest?: Yeah, I'm interested.
Does the project sound too big for NanoReNo (we’re going to do it anyway)?: Probably, but you can always start with a demo. And there was a VN/RPG last year that was finished for NaNo called Diamond Rose, and it was pretty nice. Probably one of my favorites from last year.

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 8:51 am
by YuukiCrossPudding
What scene, boss monster or type of dungeon do you absolutely want to see in the game?
Maybe a secret dungeon kind of thing? With secret boss monsters!

Did we manage to pique your interest?
It did, hopefully the project will go smoothly for you!

Does the project sound too big for NanoReNo (we’re going to do it anyway)?
Maybe? But it's alright! As long as the project is finished in the end.

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2017 2:47 am
by Qazhax
The first week is nearing its end and we already have a lot of progress! If only I could clone myself a few times to have more time to draw, heh x_X; Anyways, we have our first background and a lot of great script.
desert background
desert background
Zelan wrote:A dog-type boss might be kinda cute/funny since you've got cat people, but I dunno.
Oh, now we just must implement a dire dog >:D I can already see it, three meters tall, glowing red eyes, drooling everywhere.
Zelan wrote:And there was a VN/RPG last year that was finished for NaNo called Diamond Rose, and it was pretty nice. Probably one of my favorites from last year.
Whoa, sure looks cool! We'll have a more pseudo-rpg approach to this, hoping it will feel just as engaging even without a full rpg engine.
YuukiCrossPudding wrote:Maybe a secret dungeon kind of thing? With secret boss monsters!
We'll do our best, but but it will probably be too well hidden in the demo for anyone to find it. yet.
YuukiCrossPudding wrote:It did, hopefully the project will go smoothly for you!
Thanks!

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2017 4:54 am
by Yunou
Qazhax wrote:What scene, boss monster or type of dungeon do you absolutely want to see in the game?
Like Zelan, I don't really play MMOs so I'm probably not much help in this. Something unexpected would be nice--like a doll-like little girl controlling the strings of something. That's always fun.
Qazhax wrote:Did we manage to pique your interest?
At this stage, I'd like to see something that sets this project apart from the other MMO-type VNs. Either in art style or storyline. Most of the main storyline to these MMO-type media are the player getting obsessed or unable to escape the game either by some force or addiction. What makes this one unique and will set these characters apart?
Qazhax wrote:Does the project sound too big for NanoReNo (we’re going to do it anyway)?
It sounds like it could be a lot of work, but that doesn't mean it can't be done.

Also, what title are you striving for with "Simulacrum Duorum Graduis"?

Latin's my second language and I'm assuming you are trying to to say "An Image of Two Positions/Grounds" or something along those lines. "Graduis" doesn't exist to my knowledge as a noun--I think you are looking for "gradus". But even then, you'll need to make it agree with "duorum" which is genitive plural. "Graduum" is genitive plural and would agree with "Duorum".

"Graduis" looks like the dative/ablative plural of "gradus" if it were a second declension noun, but it is fourth declension, and if it did exist, it would sound more like "An Image of Two with (to/for, with/from) Positions". It could also look like a third declension genitive singular, but that doesn't agree.

tl;dr I think you need "graduum" instead of "graduis" because that word doesn't exist, and if it did, the ending "is" would not agree in number or as a part of speech with "duorum".

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2017 10:57 am
by MagusDei
Hi, I'm the scenario writer for this project!
Yunou wrote:Like Zelan, I don't really play MMOs so I'm probably not much help in this. Something unexpected would be nice--like a doll-like little girl controlling the strings of something. That's always fun.
Strings I can promise you, though perhaps of a more metaphorical nature...
Yunou wrote:At this stage, I'd like to see something that sets this project apart from the other MMO-type VNs. Either in art style or storyline. Most of the main storyline to these MMO-type media are the player getting obsessed or unable to escape the game either by some force or addiction. What makes this one unique and will set these characters apart?
The basic premise is intentionally conventional. It is hard to strike the right balance between revealing too little and spoiling the plot, so there's not too much I can tell in that regard. But, mechanics-wise, I'd say we are striving for a higher level of interactiveness than many traditional visual novels, both in combat and in conversations.

We're hoping that the twists we put on these cliches will provide an experience that is simultaneously original and evocative. And really, I'm just trying to follow the first commandment of all writers, coders and adventure game heroes everywhere:
"Steal everything that isn't nailed down!"
Yunou wrote:Also, what title are you striving for with "Simulacrum Duorum Graduis"?
Latine loquor, non autem bene ^_^;

It was supposed to mean "Simulacrum of the Second Degree," an off-hand reference to Jean Baudrillard's concept of second-order simulacra. Graduis itself is an archaic singular genitive of gradus according to wiktionary, so that should be fine. But figures that I would choose the plural cardinal "Duorum," 'of the twos' rather than the singular ordinal 'Secundi.'

So I guess it should have been "Simulacrum Secundi Gradu(i)s." Let's all just pretend it is an ironic meta-reference to the gratuitous latin of most pretentious VN titles like this and move on, huh? ;)

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2017 4:03 pm
by Yunou
MagusDei wrote:
Yunou wrote:Also, what title are you striving for with "Simulacrum Duorum Graduis"?
Latine loquor, non autem bene ^_^;

It was supposed to mean "Simulacrum of the Second Degree," an off-hand reference to Jean Baudrillard's concept of second-order simulacra. Graduis itself is an archaic singular genitive of gradus according to wiktionary, so that should be fine. But figures that I would choose the plural cardinal "Duorum," 'of the twos' rather than the singular ordinal 'Secundi.'

So I guess it should have been "Simulacrum Secundi Gradu(i)s." Let's all just pretend it is an ironic meta-reference to the gratuitous latin of most pretentious VN titles like this and move on, huh? ;)
Oh, ok! I was honestly just really curious where you found "Graduis". I had looked on Wiktionary, too, and did not notice the:
Archaic form of genitive singular is graduis. Fourth declension.
That makes sense. I stand corrected.

Carry on and good luck!

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2017 4:52 pm
by MagusDei
Yunou wrote:That makes sense. I stand corrected.
No, no, you were correct in pointing out that duorum doesn't fit. Thanks for correcting me, I really need to work on my latin skills.
Yunou wrote:Carry on and good luck!
Thanks, we'll need loads of it!

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2017 5:19 pm
by MagusDei
Okay, I've got some good news and some bad news! Our script word count recently surpassed 18 000 words, and we've got most of the RL sprites and backgrounds. On the other hand, that means we're only halfway done, and it's already the 18th ^_^;

Anyway, we're looking for alpha testers! If you'd like to help, just PM me or Qazhax and we'll get you on board!

Re: Simulacrum Duorum Graduis ~ Dragonfire [BxG][scifi][NaNo

Posted: Sun Apr 02, 2017 9:14 pm
by Qazhax
Nano is over and we are quite a bit late... Complex scenes don't really debug themselves...

Anyways we have most of the stuff that we planned. We will have to review the plans and make sure we will finish this before summer.

We have a demo out at https://qazhax.itch.io/simulacrum

I'll write down a small retrospective of the problems that we had during this month and that we probably could had avoided.
  • The scope was too large from the beginning and I was unable to notice just how much too large was it. Feature creep added some extra work as well.
  • We should had planned the script by amount of text per planned feature, instead of just a target word count for the whole story. So we could see that we were making progress but unable to see that the progress was not as well focused towards the main storyline as it could had. Increasing target word count in the middle of nano was a consequence of this.
  • It probably would had been better if we had chosen a clear director/leader, who would be aware of the progress everyone is making, check that we stay on schedule and make sure everything will fit together in the end. Clearly setting different areas of responsibility for everyone could also had helped in this.
  • We decided to make the game fairly nonlinear, with scenes that could be triggered in a number of different orders. When we got the first playtest results, the scenes got played in orders that did not make sense or some scenes were never gotten to. There were also a large amount of bugs. Anyways playtesting is important from as early on as possible.
  • Nonlinearity also makes it harder to tell a deeper story that feels like it's progressing, I'm not sure yet if we have succeeded in this but hopefully we'll get some feedback on this.
  • There should probably be a lot of different, but shorter, events that could happen if the story is as non-linear as this one. Now every bigger scene is a considerable part of the story, well at least we have a lot to replay I guess?.
  • We chose to have a story centering on an fairly unhealthy relationship, but it may have mixed the main theme unnecessarily.. The girlfriend character is probably slightly inconsistent or hollow as creating any consistent storyline is pretty hard to make non-linearly, not to mention a proper relationship that could get better or worse. Generating appeal for an almost ex-girlfriend is also not really the easiest task I guess..
  • We use two art styles to differentiate between the two worlds, I guess it works just fine even if the 'photorealistic' sprite is pretty bad..
  • Even though we were using git, we were afraid to make edits to the same file to avoid merge conflicts. rpy files have a lot of different data - dialogue, graphics, programming and sounds are all done in the same file, all over the place, so if one person fixes bugs and another one adds graphics at the same time in the same file, there will be a lot of merge conflicts. Luckily we had the script split up over several files, so it was not as big of a problem as it could had been, but we probably could had split the script even better. One file for defining transforms/etc, each larger scene in their own file, programming/etc in their files.
  • We got the sound files three days before the deadline and we did not have any placeholders for sound effects, so the sounds needed to be hand placed throughout the script. It is time consuming, but we did not really have any time allocated for it.