Yes, yes I am. I’m just trying to focus on finishing the game.
The updates are mostly on Patreon now but there will soon be an update for the public demo which will include new hangouts for Carly, Kaz, Anna, and Charlie.
That’s still the plan, I’ll be adding a hangout for Raquel in Book 1. The most recent update doesn’t include it, but it does include a bunch of fixes for codes, typos, and grammar, as well as a few very minor changes in a couple of chapters. It also includes the compatibility update which is will give you the ability to import saves into Breach 2 once that comes out.
Hopefully not, I’d like it to come before Book 2 finishes or at least as Book 2 comes out. But I’m currently focused on working to get Book 2 out as soon as I can so, that’s my current prioity.
After Breach 2 is finished and released? Yes, I’ll be starting Afar: Mad World again and this time I hope I won’t take longer than a year or two to actually make a goddamn story.
Pretty much a side thing that I was writing after Breach 1 released, but I got sidetracked and went to write Breach 2 instead by popular demands.
I’ll be honest, I really do want to write Breach 3 after Breach 2, but I know for a fact that I’m burnt out on Breach and I need to write something that’s completely different get my brain juices flowing again.
Just finished the FBI route and i love it! I love how the PC now start to feel like the main character of the story rather than some sidecharacter. The only problem i had with it is mouse death is barely explored. I wish it had more impact to the story(or atleast PC motivation). Because as of now it feel like “yes, mouse is dead, condolences, let’s move on”. I just want to give my PC a reason to go on a suicidal crusade against the archangel lol .
So right now I’ll stick with the still breathing cute little mouse although it doesn’t give PC much personal reason to stop the archangel other than justice and morals.
It’s been a very long time since I have posted or done anything on the forums here, but I didn’t want to flood the bug-report channel in the discord. I dunno, I’m an anxious person with these things. If I need to move this or edit it, I will.
My anxieties out of the way, I’ll get into the actual feedback. (I hope you don’t mind that I went snooping through your code, but it was really fun to read and I figured it might be more helpful. I love the names of some of your short-use variables, by the way.)
Both of these dropdowns will have spoilers for the demo, for those looking to avoid them.
Big Opinions
I really like Breach. Like, I think I bought the first game, played through it, played the demo for the second game, became a patron and wrote a short fanfic in like the span of two months or something. I really like what you’ve done here.
The overall tone nails the action-movie style of funny/entertaining moments next to grim/brutal moments without ever leaning too far in either direction. All the characters are memorable, unique and play off each other really well - and I know you’ve said writing romance isn’t your jam, but I think you’ve done really well keeping them all realistic and unique. My crew feels like a little family and it’s lovely.
The MC in general in Breach II is a huge upgrade from Breach I - both in terms of actually feeling like the main character and feeling like a character with a bit of depth. That being said, I actually rather like the feeling of the MC being in over their head/outclassed by their enemies and being able to fight tooth and nail to come out on top anyway. Fumbling through fights during the prison escape in C2P2ARC is delicious.
I can’t talk too much about the FBI side, but that’s kind of a compliment in and of itself - I’m so attached to the Archangels, I don’t think I could handle fighting them. I’ll probably read through the code for the FBI side down the line, though.
Code/Stat Feedback
Generally, the talkative/quiet increments feel off to me. The short verbal lines give you just as much towards talkative as the multi-sentence ones. Makes it kind of hard to play a character that sits just on one side of the fence or another. Or at least that’s been my experience.
game_start
Line 1463, Carly’s relationship doesn’t seem to be boosted by picking her as Sariel. Anna and Charlie get gains/losses, but not her.
Chapter1P1
Around Line 6351, Right after the last SUV comes for the informant.
I think it’s missing an = in the final if statement. If the MC is at 0 wounds it just says “Mouse stands next to you and Uriel, “This shouldn’t hurt much, I hope…” She says.”
Chapter2P1ARC
Line 3240 onward, C2P1ARC_S02OPPfreeAng2cont
In general, other than the first check, the use of knowangelnames seems backwards.
Lines 3254 & 3256, C2P1ARC_S02OPPfreeAng2cont
Both if statements are the same, so Caesar ends up saying both lines.
Line 4244, C2P1ARC_S03concrewmeet
It’s mostly a flow/continuity problem when you’re playing the game, but there’s a lot of code here, so. If you’re not romancing someone in your crew, the section just before Gabriel calls everyone over looks like this “Everyone begins to step away from you and gather with the trio. (loverhe) pulls away from you as the two of you head over to gather with the trio and Robyn’s group.”
C2P1ARC_S04uncoreturnto gives you a bump to ruthless when you charge down the hallway but charging in C2P1ARC_S03AncoLetgo3 doesn’t. Not sure if that’s an intentional difference.
Line 6156, Dealing with the security room on the Save the Angels route.
Again, kind of a flow/continuity error, but it’s caused by code, so. The tactics branch of dealing with The Outfit on approach to the security room gives +1 to C2P1ARC_S03ACresistance on a success. So, if you choose to pick the lock yourself on the first choice and succeed, then choose tactics to deal with the outfit on approach and succeed on that as well you end up seeing Aaron get shot in the shoulder, then Caesar will look at his dead body in the hallway.
Lines 8387, 8493 & 8634, After leaving the room when Michael and Gabriel get into it.
Is lack of code where there should be technically code feedback? Hm. Either way. These spots make hard-coded mention of “Caesar, Heather, and Aaron” without any check as to Aaron’s status.
Chapter2P2ARC
Line 1403, C2P2ARC_S02ConContinue
The variables in the GateWork section of the Bank Heist recap seem shuffled around. MC moved to the back of the line, shuffling the rest forward.
C2P2ARC_S02ConContinue
Bank Heist recap/prep doesn’t seem to account for players that choose to saw through the sewer gate and blow open the wall. Plan C at night, in my case. It routes us to C2P2ARC_S02_2MCworksewerPartner, which is understandably broken.
Line 5535, C2P2ARC_S03
This seems to just set your money to 250,000, in stead of adding to it.
I actually ended up losing quite a bit of the feedback I had written down, but I’ll probably take another look through and send stuff in the discord channel as I find it.
Okay, long post over.
Thank you for the amazing read.
Now THAT is some amazing feedback, thank you so very much for this.
This is only the beginning and a few people have complained that it might be a bit annoying having the MC be tossed around like a ragdoll but, it’s sort of the point. That being said, reaching the halfway point of the game is where your character will start showing what they’ve learned and start getting better overcome more challenges through experience and, well, a bit of luck.
That’s always been a problem, aye. during writing I feel like I go through the MC conversation choices multiple times and I always find it hard to get the MC engaging into a story without saying a word. I’m still learning bits and pieces to improve myself there
As for the rest of the code feedback, I’ve gone through each of them and adressed the issues accordingly. I’m slightly more active in the Discord but I like to always read what goes on here in the forums even if I don’t have much time to reply to them, I do read all of them.
Again, thank you so very much, I appreciate these kinds of feedback!
Oh absolutely something I already have on the to do list. I’m currently focusing on just finishing the game first but, this is something I’m definitely going to have to come back to doing. I get lost in all the coding and I often forget crucial things like these…
… And the cat. God, the amount of times I’ve forgotten about the fact that the MC can have a cat…
Yup! Absolutely. Hopefully the system is compatible, I haven’t tried it myself but the variables should be compatible for immediate transfer.
On a slightly different note.
Update 21 has been released for the private testing
… It’ll be made public in about 3 weeks or so. The new chapters will still be patreon exclusive, but the new update will bring a ton of fixes, as well as 7 new weapons, and 4 new hangouts to complete the Archangel Gamma Crew hangouts. (Anna, Charlie, Kaz, and Carly)
Its not a bad thing though, but canon mc being a woman is the author basically telling you that a canon play through is being a woman. Nothing wrong with that, but it might have been better if that was introduced in part 1 not part 2.
I… am not sure how I could introduce that in Breach 1
The entire first chapter of Breach 1 is you making your character, there’s no canon preset because your character gets created throughout the chapter. But the whole point of Breach is that it’s a game of choices. Which is why I never implemented an option for a preset canon character in Breach 1.
The only reason why I have a canon preset in Breach 2, is for me to be able to quickly launch my own game and get into a story without having to faff about with the character creator every single time I want to bug test my own game. And I very often use the character creator anyway if I wanted to test specifics like different crew configs and different genders and different loadouts, skills, etc.
So, the canon preset is mainly for me and other people who are curious, I’m not telling anyone how how to play the game, sorry if that was how you felt. I didn’t mean for that to be the case. You can play the game how you like it.
There is absolutely no difference between playing a canon character, and playing a your own custom generated character. Cause the character you create for yourself is your own canon character.
we are still the side character? I know in the first game the MC seems so underwhelming to everybody else (especially the leaders. Guys are Terminator badasses lmfao) still really enjoyed it though. Just never experienced a MC that feels more like a fleshed out side character to the real main characters.
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