1): At the very beginning, could we have another option in regard to drinking? Like, what if I don’t want margaritas because I don’t enjoy that specific drink (as opposed to not liking/drinking alcohol at all)? What if I simply didn’t want to drink anything because I wasn’t in the mood (I like alcohol personally, but that doesn’t mean I always want to drink). Seems kinda odd to me that it’s a bit of a binary choice, with no in between (especially because it locks us out from drinking alcohol altogether later on)?
Likewise, later on, even if we chose to drink at the beginning, maybe have an option to decline having a drink when we go to Tony’s bar (again, just because I chose to drink once, doesn’t mean I’m going to choose that all the time)?
2): Also at the beginning, would we be able to choose what our degree/choice of study was?
3): Seeing as how no one else has mentioned it, I thought it would be kinda nice if one of the ROs was a bit on the smaller side. Of the four, three are described as tall/very tall, with only one of an average height (how exactly is very tall anyway, for example? 6ft? Taller?). Alex (who may or may not be a RO) is also described as tall too. As someone who’s not particularly tall themself, I feel a bit like I’m in the land of the giants (not that there’s anything wrong with tall ROs, was just hoping for at least one other character who’s closer in height to me). Maybe a little bit more diversity in ROs heights wouldn’t go amiss?
4): I noticed that a couple of the characters (like Charlie and Judy) refer to their mother as “mom”, but shouldn’t it be “mum” instead? I saw something on your Tumblr about the accents of the characters, and a lot of them have a British accent (so seems kind of strange to me that they’d refer to their mother in the American way).
5): I find the new options to choose whether or not we see another character’s POV a bit confusing and unclear, to be honest. I feel like it would be a bit more obvious if the choices had something in brackets (maybe in italics or something too?) indicating what we’re supposed to be picking between.
Could you tell me when you encountered that bug? I uploaded a fix for it last night, so it should do what’s it’s supposed to now
As for this one–I haven’t encountered it at all. I’ve done at least 10 playtests, so I’m not sure what’s going on here. Maybe it’s a save file problem? I don’t know why that would happen, but I honestly don’t have a satisfactory explanation
Thank you so much for reporting these!
Thank you for your feedback! I will consider adding a choice to order something instead of a margarita
Although I definitely understand where you’re coming from here, I doubt I will be implementing any #options for this. It is simply much easier to keep track of a binary.
I’m afraid this is also a no! The MC’s academic background doesn’t really matter much, so it’s much easier to keep it the same across the board, and since I already know a lot about Russian literature, so does the MC
This is a good question! Hopefully the answer will make you feel less among giants. Here are the heights of the characters (format for gender flippable is f/m):
B - 5’10"/6’4" - described as “very tall”
G - 5’8"/6’0" - described as “tall”
R - 5’3"/5’10" - described as “average”
T - 5’5"/6’0" - described as “tall”
Everyone else
Oliver - 6’1"
Charlie - 5’5"
Frankie - 5’10"/6’0"
Ines - 5’0"
Alex - 5’10
Sebastian - 6’0"
Judy - 5’2"
Tall and short are relative terms, of course. 6’0" seems tall to me, but it might not seem particularly tall to you, even though that is the way I have described characters who are 6’0." I need to go through and make my descriptions more consistent and accurate–part of the problem is that the characters evolved over time, and some of their physical features have changed. I hope this clears up that confusion, and I will add cleaning up height descriptions to my to do list. As for whether I will change any heights, the answer is no.
That’s a good point! I’ll add it to the to do list.
Thank you for this feedback! I will continue to tinker with this and try to figure out the best way to do it. I hate to add cues to #options, but maybe I can do something like the romantic dialogue indicator
Today was my first time playing it so I didn’t have any save files and I did play the game again just before commenting to see if it wasn’t just me clicking wrong.
Hi! I really love this game and all of the characters (especially Gabriel, he’s adorable) so thanks so much for all of your hard work! I’m not really sure whether I’m being dumb or whether this is just me but I came across a bug after Sebastian asks what I want from the grill. No matter what I choose, I can’t continue.
I’ve been holding off on responding to this to do some additional playtesting, but I still haven’t been able to recreate these bugs have you tried clearing your cache? Thank you again for reporting your experience! It’s extremely helpful
Thank you so much for taking the time to play and comment! I’m glad you have enjoyed it. Are you using an old save file? A few other people have had trouble with this section, and I’m pretty sure it’s because I retro-added new variables to an earlier scene. If you don’t go back and replay that scene, then when you get to this scene you run into my *bug
In other news, I have gotten at least one clean play through with B, G, R, and T. So I’m hopeful that I have corrected the mismatched route errors. If you continue to encounter these errors, please let me know!
I have a question though, do Charlie and Frankie have any thoughts about you showing up for the fireworks with someone other than Bertie if you have been flirting? The siblings obviously know, like Charlie doesn’t vacate the kitchen when you bring the Carrols the buckeyes if you haven’t been pursuing Bertie and Frankie makes the comment below on the ferris wheel. I used a save point to try all the routes but it always feels awkward/mean meeting up with your neighbors for the fireworks and then slipping off with someone else while Bertie is also in attendance. `
Frankie lets out a low chuckle before his eyes land on you. “Yeah, I think you’re right. I can probably find something to attract him.”
Thank you for pointing this out! I’ve made a few changes that I hope will effectively highlight the awkwardness of the moment. I’ve already uploaded the new files, but I also want to include some of it below so that you can enjoy the sweet, sweet angst without having to replay the whole chapter!
The code is kinda confusing to look at all by itself, so I’m going to post both the code itself and a simplified version of what it should look like if you come across it in the wild.
When MC and their chosen partner meet up with Alex, Judy, and the Carroll siblings, this will now happen if Bertie has feelings for the MC:
With code
When you catch up with
*if (yr1_07_19_20_4 = true)
Alex and Frankie
*else
Charlie and Judy
again, they have already found
*if (yr1_07_19_20_4 = true)
Charlie, and
*else
Frankie and your best friend, and
*if ((yr1_07_19_20_5 = true) or (yr1_07_19_20_6 != 1))
*if (yr1_07_19_20_5 = true)
Judy
*if
Bertie
*if ((yr1_07_19_20_5 = true) and (yr1_07_19_20_6 != 1))
have
*else
has
also joined the group.
*else
someone pulls out a map so that you can choose where to go next.
*set boo false
*if (((yr1_07_19_20_6 != 1) and (yr1_07_19_20_6 != 5)) and (yr1_07_19_20_7 = true))
*if ((yr1_07_19_20_4_2 = true) or (yr1_06_11_20_2 = 4))
*set boo true
*if (boo = true)
Bertie glances at you, a pained frown on ${b_their} lips.
*if (yr1_07_19_20_4_2 = true)
Frankie glances between the two of you with a matching expression.
The resemblance between the two
*if (f_gender = "f")
siblings
*else
brothers
jumps out at you, but the confusion on Frankie's face renders ${f_them} even younger.
Bertie's face, meanwhile, is all hard lines and angles.
$!{b_they} won't meet your eye.
*if (yr1_06_11_20_2 = 4)
Charlie bites her bottom lip and looks to her older ${b_sib} for her cue.
A miniscule shake of Bertie's head seems to be the answer she was looking for because she drops her eyes to the ground.
When she looks up, she shoots
*if (yr1_07_19_20_6 != 4)
${part} a confused look.
*else
Tony a dirty look.
Either oblivious to the undercurrent of tension or looking for an escape, Judy is the first to speak.
"So where to next?"
The seven of you break into two groups, joined roughly at the center by the force of Alex and Frankie's attraction.
Charlie, who eyes you with suspicion, sticks to the outer edge with her older ${b_sib} and Judy.
You find yourself on the opposite side with ${part}, who shoots you an occasional concerned glance.
---
Although Talverton is small, it's packed to the gills with things to do today.
Taking turns picking what you want to do, the day flies by until the sun starts to set.
*if (boo = true)
When it begins to get dark enough to think about getting ready for the fireworks show, Alex invites everyone to follow you back to the other side of the lake.
"I don't know," Charlie says, her bottom lip caught between her teeth.
She glances at her older ${b_sib}.
"It would be nice to stay in town for the fireworks, like we used to as kids.
Wouldn't it?"
With a glance between Alex and Frankie, Bertie frowns.
$!{b_they} then turns ${b_their} attention toward you before shaking ${b_their} head and forcing a smile.
"I think most people would prefer to accept the invitation, ducky."
Charlie nods, her lips forming a little pout.
"I guess it's settled then."
Without code
When you catch up with Alex and Frankie again, they have already found Charlie, and Judy Bertie have also joined the group.
Bertie glances at you, a pained frown on ${b_their} lips.
Frankie glances between the two of you with a matching expression. The resemblance between the two brothers jumps out at you, but the confusion on Frankie’s face renders ${f_them} even younger.
Bertie’s face, meanwhile, is all hard lines and angles. $!{b_they} won’t meet your eye.
Charlie bites her bottom lip and looks to her older ${b_sib} for her cue. A miniscule shake of Bertie’s head seems to be the answer she was looking for because she drops her eyes to the ground. When she looks up, she shoots Tony a dirty look.
Either oblivious to the undercurrent of tension or looking for an escape, Judy is the first to speak. “So where to next?”
The seven of you break into two groups, joined roughly at the center by the force of Alex and Frankie’s attraction. Charlie, who eyes you with suspicion, sticks to the outer edge with her older ${b_sib} and Judy. You find yourself on the opposite side with ${part}, who shoots you an occasional concerned glance.
Although Talverton is small, it’s packed to the gills with things to do today. Taking turns picking what you want to do, the day flies by until the sun starts to set.
When it begins to get dark enough to think about getting ready for the fireworks show, Alex invites everyone to follow you back to the other side of the lake.
“I don’t know,” Charlie says, her bottom lip caught between her teeth. She glances at her older ${b_sib}. “It would be nice to stay in town for the fireworks, like we used to as kids. Wouldn’t it?”
With a glance between Alex and Frankie, Bertie frowns. $!{b_they} then turns ${b_their} attention toward you before shaking ${b_their} head and forcing a smile. “I think most people would prefer to accept the invitation, ducky.”
Charlie nods, her lips forming a little pout. “I guess it’s settled then.”
Then later at the lake–
With code
You sit with ${part}, Alex and Frankie a few feet away on the other end of the quilt.
*if (per >= 58)
When ${f_they} manages to tear ${f_their} eyes away from your best friend,
Frankie occasionally looks back at you
*if (yr1_07_19_20_7 = true)
and ${part}
*if (boo = true)
with a frown.
---
*if (boo = true)
"What did the two of [i]you[/i] get up to today?" Frankie asks in an accusatory tone.
*else
"Where [i]were[/i] the two of you earlier today?" Frankie asks, all innocence.
"Where did you [i]get off[/i] to?"
Without code
You sit with ${part}, Alex and Frankie a few feet away on the other end of the quilt. Frankie occasionally looks back at you with a frown.
“What did the two of you get up to today?” Frankie asks in an accusatory tone.
Thankfully Frankie is already a little shit, so I didn’t actually have to edit their convo with MC & partner very much. Their earlier hostility should color the whole interaction.
There’s a little bit more in the way of flavor text and small changes, but these two sections should give a pretty good idea of the general tone. Thank you so much for this feedback! The changes it has spurred have made the game better and more nuanced.
I love this story so much. I’ve been playing a lot of SDV recently so having this pop up again was very exciting. Gabriel is still my favourite, and I’m so happy to see some passive aggressive flirting options now between the two—it suits Gabriel’s character so much.
The fireworks festival is very cool! What a nice surprise that was. I liked being able to give people an entire bouquet of flowers, or choosing to give some people a single one.
The new add on with the awkward encounter with Bertie and the new LI is a nice twist. Yeaaaah, I wouldn’t want to be MC in that scenario, Bertie could totally double down on their workers fee lol.
The only issue I had was brought up above, and that’s the confusion with perspectives. Namely, the one with saying goodbye to Charlie; I was confused who ‘I’ was if it wasn’t my MC.
Great update! I’m looking forward to seeing what happens down the line. Woo!
Hi! I was about to play your WIP, and when I went to DashingDon to play it. The option to save is not available, and it shows the message: “Error: Bad Slot - Has smPlugin been included?” Then I took a look at your code in the startup scene to see if I could see why it isn’t working and found this:
*comment SAVE PLUGIN
*comment sm_init A_Comedy_of_Manors | 20
You put the smPlugin coded with “*comment”.
It should go in your startup.txt file before any story text:
*sm_init A_Comedy_of_Manors | 20"
I hope it helps, at least, to narrow it. Also, this error shows in Firefox, Chrome, and M. Edge. I did play your WIP before, and I am excited to play it again with the updates.
Thank you for letting me know. I unfortunately often forget, when debugging my game, to remove the *comment command before uploading a new version of startup.txt. It should be working now!
Thank you so much for taking the time to play! I’m glad you are enjoying it I’ll definitely be taking the POV scenes back to the drawing board to improve them. Hopefully I will be able to come up with an elegant solution that indicates what the reader should expect without breaking the fourth wall
I have played the A route, and the festival scene is rare. I explain; It doesn’t feel natural that after choosing all the romantic interactions with A, A sits down with F without telling you anything and leaves you alone. There is also no option to sit with them, nor any kind of interaction with A, except for flowers.
If the MC has% of direct or genuine, they should be able to decide whether to say something to A or sit directly -abruptly or not- with them.
It has left me cold because if MC goes through all the romantic’s interactions with A - including the flowers at that same festival - A leaves the MC alone without blinking. It says very little about A. In that last interaction, I lost all interest in following the A route because of that…
The game is very entertaining and -leaving that last scene- I enjoyed playing it again. I probably will play another path soon.
Thank you for your feedback! The reason none of these opportunities exist is because Alex is not an RO. Though the MC can have feelings for them—and act on those feelings to a certain extent—they are unrequited, and Alex is interested in Frankie. There will eventually be an opportunity to confess (I have a scene in mind), but only once. Allowing multiple opportunities would just be too much!
I hope you find an RO you like! Thank you for playing and leaving feedback
That part is quite evident. It dawned on me first in the cafe scene and I finally realized that during the festival. And honestly, it is refreashing. It’s so refreashing to see a NPC rejecting your feelings/having feelings of their own towards other NPC’s rather than 99.99% of other stories out there where once the MC decides on one NPC it’s like it’s set in stone and that NPC is meant to be with them even if all hell breaks loose.
This idea on top of being refreashing also solidifies the immersion and projects the NCP as a real person and not just another placeholder.
The pain is exquisite I especially enjoying writing the internal monologue! There are also some really small changes in the text that I think are kinda hard to notice, but I believe (hope?) they have an impact
I’m so glad you (and others) are enjoying this–I definitely had my doubts about it when I first started writing it, and there have been a good number of people who are looking for that happily-ever-after with Alex. But there have also been a lot of people who seem to appreciate the less conventional (and less happy) parts of the story. I’m looking forward to following it to its conclusion
I’m glad you’re enjoying it! Thank you for reading
That’s fine and a good thing for several reasons. I did not read the section where each character is explained. I assumed that A was an option because of the heart symbol on some options. Knowing it in advance, the impression on A path is different and more interesting.
I have played some other games where the MC can flirt and try to romance and not being corresponded, and that’s ok and a fine option. To me, it’s not better or worse because it depends on how the story flows and it’s written, and you clearly know how to do it. I love the variety in the options. The Mc has a wide range of options when it comes to developing x personality.
I can’t wait to see how the manor evolves and what becomes of it!
I’m completely fine with Alex being an RO, and I’m fine with an unrequited crush, but I just kinda wish he would tell us straight up instead of hints at the beginning (he’s less subtle later but still….), this might be my fault, bc irl I 10000000% would’ve picked up on these signs and stopped flirting, but in choice game you usually don’t have Flirt options unless the NPC is an RO. Because of Alex’s lukewarm reactions I thought it was maybe one of those “he’s in denial,” tropes which again!!! IRL!!! Would be super uncool of me!!! But I’ve seen that trope over and over here, so I thought this was just a repeat. I’m also dumb and thought maybe he would open up later on or something and that it was slow burn but when I realized it wasn’t I felt SO guilty!!! i never would’ve persisted in flirting if I realized he wasn’t an RO!!! i would never want to make a friend uncomfortable!!!
So while writing an NPC like this is completely valid and even refreshing, maybe for dummies like me, who’ve been playing so many choice games that I’ve been trained to see hearts as automatic RO indicators, maybe make it a bit more obvious? Fee free to completely ignore this, it’s your game and my dumb brain shouldn’t mess with your vision for it!! I super don’t want to overstep my bounds, create extra work, or come across as rude or demanding, but just thought it was something worth pointing out!! The game is AMAZING and I adore all of the characters, ROs and NPCs alike
I’ll definitely be taking the POV scenes back to the drawing board to improve them. Hopefully I will be able to come up with an elegant solution that indicates what the reader should expect without breaking the fourth wall
I especially enjoying writing the internal monologue! There are also some really small changes in the text that I think are kinda hard to notice, but I believe (hope?) they have an impact
Flirt options unless the NPC is an RO. Because of Alex’s lukewarm reactions I thought it was maybe one of those “he’s in denial,” tropes which again!!! IRL!!! Would be super uncool of me!!! But I’ve seen that trope over and over here, so I thought this was just a repeat. I’m also dumb and thought maybe he would open up later on or something and that it was slow burn but when I realized it wasn’t I felt SO guilty!!! i never would’ve persisted in flirting if I realized he wasn’t an RO!!! i would never want to make a friend uncomfortable!!!