Yep, it is a bug. It’s the achievement system (again), which has been a little bit of a headache to test. Quicktest isn’t catching it apparently? 
Regardless, fixed! Thanks for letting me know.
1 Like
Update: BfP was originally scheduled for release as a HG on June 3rd, but this release date has been moved to August 5th.
I figured I would let folks know what’s up. I’ve said it before, but I’m busy busy busy. I’m a grad student presently studying for my comprehensive exams in addition to my teaching responsibilities. In other words, I’m busier than I’ve been before. There are plenty of authors who manage day jobs and write plentifully and quickly; I’m not one of them!
Either way, I’m excited to get this thing out into the world (finally) as a published product, but unfortunately the game has always been something I’ve had to do between other responsibilities. I know people say it has taken forever to complete the game (8 years or something), but I’m just proud I managed to do it at all despite everything.
Anyway, thanks for the patience and support over the years!
18 Likes
Thanks for the update! Definitely buying this story when it comes out. I remember reading this years ago (yikes I’m old 
) in 2012 and it’s always stuck with me ever since!
Good luck with exam and teaching and congrats on publishing it and sticking with it after all these years!
5 Likes
@AChubbyBlackCat
You can say this game has stuck with me all these years too. I went through pretty much a decade of life while toiling on this thing! I was a baby when I started and now I’m old haha.
Thanks for the support, as always!
BTW, I have three black cat siblings that I love very much, so your avatar/username makes me unreasonably happy.
3 Likes
You should be proud. It takes time and effort to write a game. Even longer when you take into account possible work, study and family duties as well.
You kept at it despite it all and you finally finished it. That is enough to be proud. Just remember the only reason someone will comment about the time it takes is someone who your story has swallowed up and drawn in completely.
Looking forward to the release 
2 Likes
Congratulations anyway @LacetheDisgrace. And you should already know that life is messy and heavy, you fighting through everything in irl and finishing this story is an extremely incredible thing to do.
And there are so many people (like almost 200 users) followed this over all those years, it’s really a proud worthy work.
I’ll definitely wait for this to come out.
1 Like
I’ve talked about some of my struggles before, so I want folks to know that I’m in a much better place now than I was even a year ago. It’s taken a lot of time, but I feel like I’m finally on the other side of grief and depression. I mean, I’ll never be completely over it. It will always be a part of me, but I feel a sort of peace and contentment. It’s nice, and a year ago I wouldn’t have thought it was even possible. Blegh, getting personal, but the point is that I’m doing well.
Wise words. Thank you. People underestimate how much work it is, I think. We know that the planning, writing, coding, bug-testing, and etc. is a lot. I don’t know how authors like Gower produce games over a million words long (and not only is it long, but good!). Haha I wish but not likely to happen!
Ah, thank you! Sweet words and very helpful to me. I’m happy people have stuck around, although I try not to pay too much attention to numbers. If people enjoy it, I’m glad. If they don’t, well, I made something I want to play.
8 Likes
I know what you mean I’ve passed by 377,000 words for season two of UnNatural and that is the longest thing I have written. I can’t even imagine how much 1 million words looks like lol
5 Likes
It’s amazing to think that though. And it’s scary wonderful when they write an amazing content in half the time.
2 Likes
Ah, that’s amazing. It sounds like season 2 is a complex game. That reminded me to download season one and play through it again. I’ve started going back through some CoG/Hosted Games classics again (Way Walkers! Unnatural! CoV! and many more). Everyone should go play these right now if they haven’t, but I’m sure everyone has played these already.
Oh, uh, and to update everyone on BfP.
On my end, I’ve submitted all of the required art and game assets. There have been revisions and changes, but it makes for a better game. I will likely take the beta-testing link down soon since this thread has run it’s course and an official release is imminent.
As always, thanks for the support!
Right now I’m kicking around a few ideas for the next fiasco. Obviously this would be a long-term project (expect nothing soon!). Which one I pick will depend on whatever medium I choose. If I do another text-based choice game, I’d probably do a Discworld/MythAdventures-esque fantasy. For a visual novel, I was thinking about a dark fantasy otome game like DemonHeart or Berserk with a feminine perspective. Both very different ideas haha. IDK, we shall see. I’m in no damn hurry.
7 Likes
Pre-Release Update (7/23/21)
Didn’t think I would post in this thread again, but here I am! I’m so happy this thing finally has wings, so to speak, and is soon-to-be released. Happy days ahead indeed.
Beta-tester Credits
Now that all assets have been submitted and the release date is impending, I’m working on creating a more detailed credits page that specifically accounts for betatesters who helped with the project. Obviously, since this has been an ongoing project for years, many folks in this thread have contributed. I have a list of individuals to contact personally, but it’s likely I’ve missed many people who contributed substantially at some point over the years! I should have kept better track of this earlier in the process, but that’s water under the bridge now.
If you would like to be credited for beta-testing contributions for BfP, send me a private message addressing the following:
a.) Consent that you would like to be credited.
b.) The name under which you would like to be credited. This can be a screenname or your actual name.
As always, thanks!
New Art
Oh, and there’s new art to go along with the official release. I’m hoping to retain all of Pale_Strider’s art in the official release (because it’s perfect), but since I only have .jpg copies that can’t be resized appropriately and no communication with the original artist, I also had to scrounge up new art to use alongside it. I tried to keep it in the spirit of Pale_Strider’s style. Anyway, HG has pretty specific guidelines for art assets I wasn’t aware of 8+ years ago.
14 Likes
Congratulations! Looking forward to finally seeing it coming out. I’m loving the new artwork by the way. Any chance we could see artwork of Doctor by the new artist at some point?
To put my two pence in, I’d be interested in seeing a revival of Down and out in damnation.
1 Like
Thanks! I actually created the new artwork myself. I didn’t have a lot of time to put all this together, so it’s unlikely there will be any additional art. I definitely considered adding art of Doctor at one point or the other, but this ended up not happening (I think I was busy and distracted at the time). I may create a portrait of Doctor to add into the game, but this would happen after release since I don’t have time to do that right now. As far as I know, the release is still August 5th! Eep. So soon.
I’m toying around with returning to Down and Out in Damnation. It’s an interesting little project. I even tried pursuing the webcomic format for it (Down and Out in Damnation | WEBTOON), but I’m not very experienced with creating comics and my interest fizzled. I’m definitely most interested in it being a choice game or visual novel. My only hesitation in returning is that I haven’t quite figured out where that story would go. Like I said, I’m in no damn hurry, so I have plenty of time to figure it out. Your vote of confidence has been noted!
1 Like
Wow! You are a good artist.
Like I said, I definitely would like to see a portrait of Doctor at some point, as I’ve always wanted to know what he looked like.
Congratulations again for completing this game, especially keeping your motivation over all these years. 
1 Like
Congrats! 
3 Likes
I know it’s considered taboo for asking COG/Hosted Games staff but I’m not sure where to look for updated info. This game is on the hosted games list for an estimated release on August 5th but since that, the date is now past I’m confused why they haven’t changed it to a later date or removed it from the list until a new date is set/agreed upon.
Anyway Can’t wait for the release as this appears to be a great game.
13 Likes
Hey! I can answer that question. Everything is submitted and complete on my end, but I was informed the release date is getting pushed to August 19th.
9 Likes
Congrats on the game release! 
I always love a dark setting so I’m looking forward to binging on this one<3 I only wish there was an option to romance the doctor but, oh well 
This was beautifully written. Extremely atmospheric settings, it reminds me of the stories printed on Gothic Lolita Bible magazines and softer j-rock albums like Roentgen, all the things I love and am constantly nostalgic for. I love that kind of understated, evocative narrative that presents the most banal and trite things in beautiful images, painting portraits of troubled ones who struggle to hold on to whatever’s left of them as life becomes increasingly bleak and surreal in a hostile, difficult world.
1 Like
It seems a little strange to me that the actual release thread for the game has so few comments, that they’re all here, but so it goes. I got through my first playthrough of the game tonight, ended up with the rare ‘underworld’ ending, trying to portray a character that doesn’t really grasp morality normally. The story itself reminds me of the story of Dr. Spencer Black- essentially a real life version of this, in a sense. Monster Surgeon: The Lost Work of Dr. Spencer Black - YouTube Was inspiration taken from this, by any chance?
3 Likes