The Silent Column (Thread Closed, New Development Blog)

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SelLi
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The Silent Column (Thread Closed, New Development Blog)

#1 Post by SelLi »

Latest Update wrote:Though this thread should still be considered closed I'm happy to announce that I'm not dead, I have been working, and the game now has an official development blog on a dedicated website :) Feel free and invited to check it out, here: http://hazemuth.weebly.com/

Also feel free to contact me whenever you want with questions or comments by PMs here on Lemmasoft, or by email at: poizonedtwizler@hotmail.com

Thanks, all of you. See you around. :)
(You can still browse this outdated thread if you want to, though.)
Image
__________________________________________________
Synopsis:

The Silent Column's story starts just before a worldwide disaster referred to as the fall, during which, people were driven into madness that lead them to kill those around them, and themselves. Natural things also changed during the fall, and most machines and other electronics stopped working.
After a few days, the fall stopped and the many dead quickly vanished under the soil, and most of what changed went back to normal as though nothing happened at all.
Only a few people remain, and the fall has scarred them. Some want to find out why it happened, while others want to ignore their personal pain and others still, want to endure and live in this world.
As the story unfolds, glimpses of a grand puzzle start to appear to some and they realize that a greater mystery than they've known surrounds them on all sides.
A story about many things beyond individuals' understandings.
__________________________________________________
Characters that may have Routs:

Amy, Female, 16~:
Location: Liberare
Amy can very often be found in a certain park. She has a tranquil air to her, loves life and people, and enjoys their company when she sees them. She often thinks about life and other broader topics without quite focusing. She had a very close relationship with her father, and remembers him fondly. As time goes on, she begins to wake up from her trance.

Image
Serra, Female, 12~:
Location: Liberare
Serra meets Tashen in the middle of the night after pounding on his door in distress. She loves the people she befriends and tries to help them in whatever ways she can. She is grateful for the hospitality of Tashen and his family, and enjoys playing with Kina and Keith, though her mind can slip into dark places, and she can be quite mature and serious at times. She is also friends with Nithi, April, and Sal.

Sal, Female, 16~:
Location: Liberare
Sal spends most of her time gathering scavenge and looking for survivors in the fallen city with her friends Trad, Saile, and occasionally, April. She can be harsh and often takes time to be alone. She is easily overwhelmed by the courtesy and love that others show her, and tries to show them more kindness. Before the fall, she would write and sell small, rough stories to anyone who would buy them.

Nithi, Female, 15:
Location: Liberare
Nithi acts much like Serra's guardian, and tends to be level-headed. She spends much of her at home with her thoughts or with Serra, and can be sharp-minded and unwavering when she sees something that needs to be confronted or solved.

April, Female, 16~:
Location: Liberare
April is often disturbing and unpredictable when she's not with her friends- especially when around Tashen. She is very kind to Serra and has many skills, including hunting, skinning, cooking, lock-picking, and being very physically agile and competent in many situations. She seems to suffer from some form of schizophrenia, yet it seems that she isn't only suffering from a mental illness. As opposed to being called April, she often prefers to be called Pril for reasons that often change. She can be quite dangerous due to her wild personality changes and mood swings.

Thidria, Female, 14~:
Location: Liberare
Thidria lived by herself near the edge of the city alone before taking Life in. She doesn't want to go see most others and says she's content where she is, seeming to become uneasy when the topic of other survivors arises. She often focuses on solving puzzles, thinking about philosophy, and trying to understand mechanisms.

Life, Male, 17~:
Location: Liberare
Life was found wounded and washed up on shore by Thidria, who gave him his name when he remained silent. He tends to be cold, but loves and respects the one who saved his life, listening to everything she says: keeping her company and following any orders she gives him.

Zaikrady, Female, 17~:
Location: Liberare
Zaikrady lives with Christiana and Amelia. She seems to hate herself and is slightly off and cold despite being polite and perhaps good natured to others. She is hard to anger, but is very dangerous once angered. She deeply wants to be accepted and forgiven, though she trouble understanding emotions. She paints pictures about death and other ugly things to express herself. Most of her paintings aren't of good quality, but very high quality ones can sometimes be found destroyed and abandoned by her.

Gassa, Female, 16~:
Location: Vadleen
Gassa is often bullied by her classmates due to her father's unclean reputation, also being abused by her father in ways. Despite this however, she knows he still loves her dearly and she loves him in return with all her heart, offering him anything she can. She is rather weak, frail, and often seems sick- being slow to heal and quick to bruise. She's often nervous around others but can also be calm and collected, though she most always tends to be quiet. She loves ??? dearly and tries to be kind to everyone.

???, Female, 16~:
Location: Vadleen
??? is kind to those she's close to and stern around those who bully her friends, specifically Gassa, who she won't hesitate to defend.

Suzu, Female, 16~:
Location: Vadleen
Suzu is a firm girl who's responsible, hard working, and trustworthy. She tends to get annoyed easily and often seems to be focusing on something important. She's known throughout her school as a reliable tutor, and has made a habit of occasionally playing the piano.

Maielle, Female, 17~:
Location: Vadleen
Maielle is a friendly extrovert: enthusiastic, and often teasing. She loves to take pictures of anything she wants to remember.

Risa, Female, 17~:
Location: Vadleen
Much about Risa is unknown, aside from her being mute and attending school.

Nightmare, Famale, ??:
Location: Vadleen
A serial killer who calls herself Nightmare who kills, rapes, and eats whoever she pleases however she pleases.

Pettit, Female, 12~:
Location: Liberare
Pettit is a small, cute girl found after the fall with her brother, Jun.
__________________________________________________

Please feel free to tell me your thoughts on this project. I'd like to hear from you.
I'll keep updating this first post with significant updates.

OST:
https://soundcloud.com/sellillianna/denial
Attachments
TitlePage2.png
TitlePage.png
SampleScreenshotJanuary28th,2015.png
Last edited by SelLi on Tue Jul 14, 2015 2:44 am, edited 65 times in total.

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#2 Post by LizBeth »

I won't pretend to know what kind of writing experience you have, Zais, but as someone also working on their first game, here's what hits me.

Your idea for the end is intriguing--it almost appears to be some kind of cleansing, what with the disappearance of the bodies. What would make it most memorable for me would be if it had an explanation other than nuclear bombs or the devil, but that's more of a personal preference, and it's your story.

If part of the game's goal if for Tashen to find out what happened, then perhaps giving him a more concrete reason for wanting to find this out would provide more momentum in the story. Maybe he's just the type of person that needs to know, or maybe he wants to improve Kina's illness somehow? Or he could have no interest at all in learning about it, but is forced to come across these things in his efforts to save his family? Or maybe you've got this figured out already ;D

As far as the characters go, you're right, there are a lot. The time it would take you to make them all unique, meaningful personalities within the game aside, it strikes me as too many to expect the audience to keep track of at once. If Tashen's family is only meeting them in passing, then that's one thing (we wouldn't really need to remember each one in detail, and they could be less developed while still having an impact on your central characters), but if they're all meant to be fully fleshed out... That doesn't mean you should scrap their stories, although that's always an option, but you could try combining a few of the less developed ones.

I think it's awesome that you've decided to take on all of this on your own (I'm just hoping to do the coding and the writing for my game…) and I'm definitely interested in the mystery of what happened to these people--the Man Who Flies and the Foreign Boy in particular. I hope my suggestions came off as exactly that, well meant suggestions, and that your project is going well!

Oh, and I think coding questions go in Ren'py Questions and Announcements. Thanks for that, I wasn't sure until now, but I'll definitely need help in that area later! :D

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#3 Post by SelLi »

Thanks a lot for your feedback, Liz :)
I enjoyed it ^^ It really means a lot.

There are a lot of Characters and Tashen does mostly meet a few of them in passing or maybe only hear about them. I think it would be neat, though, to have these characters relatively fleshed out.
Depending on choices you make, perhaps you can "pursue" some of the characters to find out more about them in depth.
And I was also thinking that after you beat the game as Tashen, you'll be able to play through it as other characters.
Or perhaps the point of view will occasionally change among the main characters in mid game.

Though it's certainly very different, I was kind of inspired by the Kanon anime, where there are unique characters with unique backgrounds, and for the most part, uncovering things about them and their pasts is what the story's all about.

You gave me some good ideas! :) Though I've been thinking a lot about this project, I've only got a (large) chunk of it worked out in my head, thanks for helping me out with ideas for the main plot for Tashen.

Ah, and don't worry *laughs to myself* The End is explained, and it's for a more complex reason than just "the devil did it".
XD oh man...
... if you were in my head right now, you'd find that funny too.

Good luck with your first project, too :) and thanks again for all the feedback.

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#4 Post by Reikun »

Hi Zais :) I really like the concept you've outlined so far for The Silent Column. Some questions:

1. Do you know how this is going to end already?
2. Is Tashen forced to learn more about The End? Or does he unwillingly/unintentionally stumble upon the secrets through his bid for survival?
3. Will learning more about The End depend on the player's choices? (So would it be possible to survive without learning about it?)
4. Is the title, "The Silent Column," foreshadowing anything plot related? *U*

And something you may need to consider without explicitly stating it here:
Where does Tashen live? What kind of climate is it? How will the weather affect his survival? How has the world/area changed due to The End?
ImageImageImage

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#5 Post by SelLi »

Reikun wrote:Hi Zais :) I really like the concept you've outlined so far for The Silent Column. Some questions:

1. Do you know how this is going to end already?
2. Is Tashen forced to learn more about The End? Or does he unwillingly/unintentionally stumble upon the secrets through his bid for survival?
3. Will learning more about The End depend on the player's choices? (So would it be possible to survive without learning about it?)
4. Is the title, "The Silent Column," foreshadowing anything plot related? *U*

And something you may need to consider without explicitly stating it here:
Where does Tashen live? What kind of climate is it? How will the weather affect his survival? How has the world/area changed due to The End?
Thanks for your interest and questions, Reikun. :)

1: I don't yet know how this is going to end, but It'll be fun to see how it will ^^ every day I work on it I feel better and better about it and things connect more and more, and more plot comes to me.

2: He will probably find out no matter what path he takes, but I suppose he may not- depending on how much time he spends getting close to certain characters, so I'm not quite sure myself, yet. :)
On one hand, some character(s) had a large part in The End, and I've written a lot about these events.
(In fact, for the last few years, I've been writing a manuscript based around the events related to The End.)
So it would seem a little foolish for me to not make it something you need to find out.
However, on the other hand, because I've written so much about The End, perhaps I should make it an optional path so that the player really feels like they've uncovered something great on their own.
--edit--
...
It will definitely be discussed a little bit, but I don't want it to take over the entire rest of the plot.

4: *grins* The title "The Silent Column" is related to the setting which the story takes place in, so it's neat that you asked those questions right after each other.

5: I was thinking of it snowing or raining sometimes. It would be really interesting for some character(s). Nothing set in stone yet, though.

I feel a little sickly today but I'm excited now. Perhaps I'll brainstorm and write more about the plot.
Thank you for your questions, you guys. They really motivate me to do more work. :)
So feel free to ponder and wonder about some things and ask questions. I look forward to your thoughts :)

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#6 Post by LizBeth »

Eeep! Thanks a lot too, Zais! I was sorta worried I wouldn't come across right, but I'm glad I could help a bit!

And it actually hadn't cross my mind that the characters would have separate paths. I think that would be a great way to keep such a large cast straight in our heads, and it would add replay value since you'd encounter different characters each time around. Playing through as another character could also add a new perspective, especially if it's one we were able to learn relatively little about through Tashen's paths. I like it.

The snow and rain would be cool too. When I read your VN was post apocalypse, I assumed it would have a desert setting, but I guess an original end to the world would have an original impact on it too. :) I'm very interested to see how it all ended now...

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#7 Post by SelLi »

I'm getting hang of my tablet for drawing. I'm making character sprites right now, and even though they're just sketches, I really love the looks of them so far. :) they look way better than that Serra sprite in the first post.
I'd like to show you guys my progress once I'm done a sprite, but I don't know if this game will end up being commercial or not. So should I cross out the finished sprite with "SAMPLE" or something? :/

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#8 Post by Reikun »

Great to hear you're getting used to using a tablet!
I'd like to show you guys my progress once I'm done a sprite, but I don't know if this game will end up being commercial or not. So should I cross out the finished sprite with "SAMPLE" or something? :/
If this is your first game (or first game you've considered selling), make sure you've researched what it takes to release a game commercially. As for showing sprite progress, you could probably just have a signature or something if you're worried about your work being used without your permission.
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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#9 Post by SelLi »

:) Yeah, I've gotten quite used to it. It's a really great tool, thanks for helping me out in the other thread.
Yeah I guess I've got some research to do ahead of me~ all well... it'll be worth it.
Hmm~ I suppose that another way that I could prevent people from steeling my sprites is if I just show you shots of the characters, shoulders up, instead of the full sprite. That should work.

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Re: The Silent Column [PostApocalypse][SciFi][drama][mystery

#10 Post by SelLi »

-No longer relevant-
Last edited by SelLi on Mon Dec 02, 2013 7:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Update

#11 Post by SelLi »

-No longer relevant-
Last edited by SelLi on Mon Dec 02, 2013 7:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Update

#12 Post by SelLi »

Hey there, I just made a background. It's attached. Tell me what you think. :)
Attachments
The Park (Shot 2 at sunset)
The Park (Shot 2 at sunset)

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Update

#13 Post by SelLi »

-No longer relevant-
Last edited by SelLi on Mon Dec 02, 2013 7:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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HMM~

#14 Post by SelLi »

-No longer relevant-
Last edited by SelLi on Mon Dec 02, 2013 7:39 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Writing update

#15 Post by SelLi »

Hello all, I wrote a lot of back story for Thidria and Zaikrady today, as well as some for Pril.
I wrote a bit about their personalities too, and just gave them more substance.
I don't want to tell you what it is though, they're spoilers.
But things are going good, I'll keep you posted. ^^

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