Honor Bound: Creme de la Creme 4—Protect a boarding school as a military bodyguard! [OUT NOW]

[HarrisPS]

Last-Chapter Push NaNo Progress Update #2

Chapter 12 is nearly done. It’s nearly done!! This week I was mostly drafting that part of the game, though I also moved some things around - there’s a scene I was going to have in the final chapter and then moved elsewhere because it worked better there.

Right now I’m ahead of where I wanted to be - which is great for obvious reasons, and also because every so often I realise there’s something I need to edit, either earlier in the chapter or earlier in the game. And I’ve got an ongoing list of things to go back and do once the draft is down.

• Sunday: 1606 (regained where I wanted to be at the previous Friday!)
• Monday: 7186 (a lot of this was code - I very much don’t usually write that many words in a day!)
• Tuesday: 3238
• Wednesday: 3384
• Thursday: 3228 (I spent a long time that day on bugfixing, and despite the large wordcount, lost a bit of ground in where I wanted to be)
• Friday: 4535 (regained the lost ground!)

I’m feeling the intensity as I’m reaching towards the end - this sprint-writing approach is good for getting the words down but isn’t sustainable for the long term, so I’ll be pleased to return to a more measured pace once the draft is done.

• Current wordcount: 517301 words
• Average playthrough wordcount: 92931 words
• Week’s wordcount: 23177 words

Happy weekend, everyone!

[HarrisPS]

Good news for Honor Bound!

Well… my initial first Honor Bound draft is done!

That’s 525000 words that I’ve written for Honor Bound in 15 months.

The work isn’t over yet though by any means. Tomorrow I’m going to start playtesting… a lot. I’ve already playtested the first two-thirds fairly thoroughly, and have done some work on Chapters 9 and 10, but I very much need to test Chapters 11 and 12 because they branch a lot and there’s bound to be some wonky continuity going on there that I need to find.

And I’ll be taking a look at the difficulty balancing as well - the option to show what’s being tested makes it much easier, but I need to make sure it’s reasonably possible to reach the desired thresholds.

Thank you so much for all your support and feedback in helping me make this game. It would have been a much, much harder road without you.

If you haven’t played the Chapter 7 update yet and are curious about what’s in it, please do! Although it’s been 11 days since I last updated the public demo (and there’s something funky going on with the compiled version I originally put up on itch, so that one is now downloadable rather than playable in the browser), I’m still implementing player feedback and will be until the Choice of Games beta testing starts.

Thank you again. I really appreciate all that you do, and please know that if you’ve been in a position to subscribe, it really has made a difference in being able to spend so much of my work time on this gigantic game!

[HarrisPS]

The last couple of days, I’ve been editing and playtesting. It turns out that a very complex 527000 word game takes a… long time to test thoroughly. But still, the polishing is happening!

[HarrisPS]

Revision Push NaNo Progress Report #3

This week was brilliant because I finished the first Honor Bound draft, and also challenging because everyone in my household except me had various stomach bugs. So it was a tiring one for a number of reasons.

I’ve done a bunch of playtesting, and my wife played through the whole game which was immensely helpful and flagged up a lot of things I hadn’t realised.

She is a big Savarel fan:

She also discovered that if you play an emotionally-repressed enough character and then start a romance with Savarel at the last possible point, there was a bug where the game mostly didn’t recognise that there was a romance at all. It also turned out that this happened for the other solo-romanceable characters too.

There was also a scene that just… stopped on most branches because I’d forgotten to fill out the rest of those branches. And a starting-a-romance scene that broke off and didn’t really finish too. Not my finest hour.

However, she had lots of good things to say about it which was incredibly helpful as well.

So, I’ve been editing, finalising the saving system I’m using, and also doing the cheats, hints, and achievement guide that will be available as an IAP (the same way the other Creme games and Blood Money have them).

Sunday: 2537
Monday: 5312 (which was when I finished the first draft!)
Tuesday: 796 (playtesting revisions)
Wednesday: 1500 (playtesting revisions)
Thursday-Saturday: 1990 (playtesting revisions, plus 6557 on the cheats/hints/guides)
Sunday: 559 (playtesting revisions)

Current wordcount: 529995 words
Average playthrough wordcount: 93653 words
Week’s wordcount: 12694 words

I’ve still got some revisions to do - the biggest one is related to one of the branches of the climax which I need to change a bit, and also fleshing out some conversations with friends and loved ones about making plans for the future (as my wife said, it felt weird to make a big decision about your plans without chatting with a partner about them, which is totally true!).

But I’m hoping to get all that done sometime next week.

[leiatalon]

There are so many details to take into account, but you’re so close! Good luck with revisions!

[HarrisPS]

Revision Push NaNo Progress Report #4

I’m absolutely delighted to let you know that I’ve finished the Honor Bound draft and sent it off!

The next thing I need to do is finish off the cheats and hints (very nearly done now), then sort through any editorial notes that come in, and then beta testing.

The public Chapter 1-7 demo is still up until the beta testing begins when I’ll be taking it down. (I’ve made quite a few changes since it went up at the start of July that aren’t playable yet, so it’ll be fun to see what people think of those changes once the testing period starts!) So if you would still like to share any feedback, please send it here, on the forum, on Tumblr, or on the anonymous feedback form.

I was extra pleased because although it’s the school holidays now, I still got a ton done:

• Monday: 361
• Tuesday-Wednesday: 4680
• Thursday: 4926
• Friday: 1707

And for the grand totals:

• Current wordcount: 541784 words
• Average playthrough wordcount: 94811 words
• Week’s wordcount: 11789 words

Thank you everyone for your support

[Nemureru_Mori]

A bit of backstory: having started the Crème series this year, I’ve become a fan of your writing, and so I’ve been wanting to read Honor Bound for so long, but didn’t have time because I had too much work lately. Although I took a quick peek at the first chapter during work, and it instantly gave me several ideas for the types of characters I want to play; I basically already came up with four MCs in my head without even properly reading it once - that’s how inspiring this book is! Thinking about this helped me to survive long and boring work hours, haha. And now I was finally able to play it.

… And I enjoyed it so much! I mean, I didn’t expect less from you. I really loved all ROs – they are so charming in different ways. I loved being military officer and a bodyguard (which tbh I didn’t expect to like quite as much), loved choosing different ages for the MC (and age gap romances as a result of that), and having an injury. Catarina is lovely, and I adore other students as well - such a characterful group of people. I live for the drama between Catarina and Simone, and I’m curious to see if they will make up in the end. And, of course, all the animals!

I’m glad we get to explore more serious and heavy topics in this book. Developing chemical warfare in a secret basement?! I didn’t expect doing that, but I’m intrigued. The latest chapter in the demo was really gripping – I love seeing MC and the crew being so capable and badass while helping everyone. MC getting to show off years of their experience (especially if playing an older MC) was really satisfying. By the way, I appreciate that we can improve our skills later in the story, as opposed to how it was in previous books. And then the MC collapses… I wonder how many people deliberately sabotaged their character’s health for more drama and hurt/comfort moments – I definitely guilty of that!

I have too many thoughts to express them all properly – the WIP demo is already so long, and it’s not even the whole book yet, but I’m very excited for Honor Bound if you can’t already tell. Congratulations on your progress and finishing the draft!

You said it’s okay to give feedback until the beta testing starts, so here are some things I’ve spotted (apologies if you’ve fixed them already, which is very likely at this point.)

Shouldn’t it simply be “I’m in my forties”, since MC can be up to 49?

These two are swapped around (however after choosing them, stats change correctly)

Wrong eye colour

Something is missing

I think a more neutral option is missing here. Something to fit a more calm and collected sort of MC, without being intimidated/impressed/attracted towards Varenn or feeling uncomfortable.

Continuity error 1. In chapter 5 it says this:

But Raffi mentioned his full name in front of Savarel in chapter 3 (and Tedesco spoke his name in front of everyone in chapter 2 as well). Unless “introduce himself” means something else and I misunderstood.

Continuity error 2. From chapter 5:

But Lavinia did mentioned Lucian to MC before:

The last one I need to explain. I play my character as callous, but in a more pragmatic and ruthless, rather than self-interested way. I never choose options to impress anyone and stuff like that. When Raffi was giving Simone special treatment, I chose to test objective:

But what my character said after that doesn’t fit the way I play him, because it’s really self-focused. In case my interpretation of callous trait for this character is incorrect, I feel like it also doesn’t fit objective attitude that it tests.

With objective attitude you “deal with problems in an impersonal way”, but saying “I’ll be in trouble” seem very personal to me in this context. Also Catarina at this point wasn’t bothered by special treatment, so it’s not an objective observation either. The humane version is much more objective:

“You’re giving Simone special treatment,” you say. “Is that wise? Surely the other students deserve a break too, if she does.”

I think having the same text but changing the last part “surely the other students deserve a break too, if she does” could work a little better. Perhaps something similar to “If other students start complaining, it could cause problems”. It’s less humane, but still objective, I think.

[HarrisPS]

I’m so pleased that you enjoyed the WIP, and that you’re looking forward to the release! Thank you so much for your lovely comments (and I’m really glad that it helped you during long boring work time… I definitely relate to dealing with that). And the feedback comments are incredibly useful! Although I haven’t updated the demo (I’m using a save system for the release that isn’t compatible with Dashingdon and it’s a lot of work to retro-engineer a compatible version), I’ve fixed/implemented most of what you’ve mentioned.

Thank you again

[HarrisPS]

I’ve had my editorial notes back so I’m jumping into revisions now, hehehe!

My favourite typo so far: “so fast that it makes your stomach church”

[fsix]

A couple of small bug in chapter 1:

*if ch1_train_outcome > 2
	They bustle over to the window and tap on the glass. "Would you bring the @{(ch1_train_outcome = 2) bandit|bandits} off, please?" they shout, more loudly than necessary.
// ...

This sequence will only execute if the player decided to keep all the bandits. If you only keep the leader it is skipped, because outcome of 2 doesn’t meet condition > 2 even though the branch itself is actually equipped to handle such case.

	*if ch1_train_outcome = 1
		As you haul her by the collar, she makes little effort to make it easier for you.
	*else
		Together, you drag them out onto the platform.

This should be checking for ch1_train_outcome = 2 since 1 is for letting everyone go.

Mayor Tedesco's hair is definitely grayer, though, since you've been here. Yours:
*fake_choice
	#Isn't gray at all.
	#Is graying a little.
		*set hb_grey 1
	#Is pretty much all gray.
		*set hb_grey 2
// ...
*if hb_grey < 3
	@{(hb_grey < 2) But|In fact,} your hair's naturally...

The game sets hb_grey variable at 3 by default, but the first option doesn’t touch it. As a result MC who chooses the first option doesn’t get to set their hair color at all, because it fails < 3 check with the default value. I guess either the default or the first option should be setting it to 0.

[AletheiaKnights]

@HarrisPS

My favourite typo so far: “so fast that it makes your stomach church”

Clearly the congregation has come together to pray to the porcelain god.

[HarrisPS]

@fsix Thank you! I’d fixed the hair one on my end but had somehow never spotted the train outcome one - fixed on my copy as well. I really appreciate it!

[HarrisPS]

No-longer-NaNo Draft Revision Progress Update

I guess it doesn’t really count as NaNoWriMo if the month’s finished, does it?

Anyway, since the 26th July when I finished the Honor Bound draft, I’ve been doing some various edits in response to playtester feedback - some expansions and tweaks, and some fixes. I’ve also pretty much done the cheats and hints, though I’ll be checking through them again after beta testing and any other revisions are done in case the achievement guides are out of date.

Here’s some of what I did:

• added a lot more achievements
• fixed various scenes that were cut off on some branches
• added more guidance about stats on the stat page
• added options to reveal some secret stuff about late-game storylines to various characters
• expanded a branch of one of the sex scenes; corrected a couple of branches that cut off if fade-to-black options were picked
• expanded some bits related to the Catarina and Simone relationship in the latter part of the game
• added some more opportunities to allow a PC to let NPCs make the first move romantically late on
• lots of typo fixes and other small corrections

The game is so complicated that I imagine there will still be lots to fix and tweak during playtesting, but every little helps.

I’ve sent off the revisions to Abby, so it really is close to the time when the public demo will come down and closed beta testing will begin - I’m a broken record about it, I know, but the anonymous feedback form is still open and I’m keeping an eye on what comes in!

Current wordcount: 547236 words
Average playthrough wordcount: 94854 words
Week-ish’s wordcount: 5452 words

[Zaxwlyde]

I’ve been holding off on playing the WiP while I eagerly await the full release!

Super excited to play another of your titles Harris. This’ll be another Day 1 buy of mine.

[fsix]

Small bugs in Ch.2 (sorry it’s slow going, other things keep happening)

*fake_choice
	#There's no need to rush. I'll finish up here. @{hb_showstats [+Objective]|}	
	#I want to show I'm eager to do my job. I'll go directly. @{hb_showstats [+Dutiful]|}
		*set ch2_kass_fast true
	#I'll head over to make sure everything's all right. @{hb_showstats [+Cautious]|}
		*set ch2_kass_fast true
	#I wanted to get on with my day. What's all this about? @{hb_showstats [+Rebellious]|}

The options don’t actually modify the stats they claim to modify.

			*if hb_age = 1
				*set ch2_know_kassie true
				bats your arm with the rolled-up papers. "Goodness, that's quite some fire," she says. "If my daughter Kassie asserted herself that much, she'd have avoided a lot of trouble. Still, she's doing all right. Off on the islands at the moment."
			*elseif hb_age = 2
				*set ch2_know_erik true
				smiles. "Exactly. I think we understand each other," she says. "You remind me a little of my son Erik--he's ever so fiery, always has been. He's off in Zaledo at the moment."

Not sure about this one, but compared to all other variants in that scene the branches appear to be swapped. For all other options the game sets ch2_know_erik true for hb_age = 1 and ch2_know_kassie for 2 but here, it’s reversed along with associated text bits.

[Alex_Parker_Roberts]

Would you be willing to consider leaving an older demo up still so we can continue to get our honor bound fix while the full game is being beta tested ?

[HarrisPS]

@Zaxwlyde Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy it when the release comes

@fsix Thank you! The second one is just Kass referring to the kids differently in response to what the PC’s said, but the first one is an oversight

@Alex_Parker_Roberts I may leave a version up on the Patreon for a bit longer, but I will be taking the main public demo down. As beta testing is often intense and I need to keep track of a lot of things each day, I prefer to keep all the feedback in one place to deal with it methodically. My local version also isn’t compatible with Dashingdon or cogdemos as it uses checkpoint commands, so it’s a bit trickier to keep demos current as well - the public demo is pretty out of date by now.

[HarrisPS]

A little Monday update: I’ve been doing various smallish edits, and have just had some continuity reads through. This is part of the CoG beta process, where my editor generates playthrough text using RandomTest, and professional continuity readers go through checking for typos and continuity errors. It’s incredibly useful - it’s how a lot of bugs and pronoun errors get spotted.

I’ve gone through two playthrough notes now which were astonishingly free of errors - around 30 typos/pronoun errors and only one actual bug. So, I’m ready to be cut down to size when more notes come in and the beta testing starts, but for now I can declare victory over my own mistakes

For now, I’ll be doing the rest of this round of continuity notes when they come in, and then the beta testing will begin. It’s nice doing it this way around because it’ll mean that the first beta testers will be working with a less buggy version - hooray!

[LiliArch]

@HarrisPS

It’s incredibly useful

Ooh, sounds like it! Why haven’t I thought of doing that myself?

[HarrisPS]

It’s so helpful, and takes less time than playing through manually. Of course, it can do things like have a PC behave in ways that would be unlikely for a human player to do (such as changing their mind about something many times in a row) but that’s also handy to spot any issues that would be seen only rarely by real playtesters.

I’m embarrassed to admit that even though I’ve been through the process of other people doing continuity reads for every game, it was only @Sargent mentioning that he does a readthrough himself for each chapter that made me realise it would be useful to do myself. So you’re not alone in not thinking of it!