wrote 3304 words today. at 105 886 / 120 000. part of me is screaming to continue writing but I am out of juice 
so celebratory dance and relaxing with a bit of gaming instead now. Wishing all the other warriors in here good luck!
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90% of the time, indicating how the stats change is a waste of your time. No one really cares if a dialogue option gives you +3 to some relationship, especially when a choice affects multiple variables at once. If you’re gonna add indicators, have them only accompany major choices, and ideally let the player choose if they should appear.
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So the big thing I did with Honor Bound, which I hadn’t done before and which (I think) contributed to more detailed feedback, was making a feedback form for people to fill out. It wasn’t particularly long, but I asked people about favourite characters, decisions they made, how they felt about particular things, etc.
I don’t think something as structured as a form is required, though I like it - but I think some kind of structure helps playtesters feel that they have something to offer that the writer wants. Or helps give testers ideas on what to focus on.
I don’t entirely agree here - there’s no need to include stat change indicators, but it can be useful depending on the kind of game it is, what the stats do in it, and the level/type of strategy intended.
My games are probably what I see referred to as stat-based/stat-heavy, and I did indicators in Honor Bound which has had a very positive response. However, I also got some comments saying certain things felt too easy when people always used the indicators. So that’s worth bearing in mind too. And for some games and authors it wouldn’t be preferred anyway.
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I’d agree with this.
When a game has so many interlocking systems of stats and skills and a relatively slim margin for error, having those signposts can be instrumental in allowing the player to avoid a “quit” moment when they realise that a decision they made didn’t test or affect the stat they thought it would.
Up until now, I’ve avoided these explicit signposts, preferring to contextualise decisions through prose and subtext, but my experience with Lords of Infinity is that - quite frankly - most players don’t read carefully enough to reliably pick up on these, which can lead to frustration on their end.
I say that for “stat-heavy” games, throw it in as an option.
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In tonight’s news, I’m starting to have an urge to draw an organization chart. Navy is navy, but when you start throwing around “lords templar” and “lords errant”…
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I write in a simple text editor, Notepad, but when I don’t have access to my game files I’ll write lazily-coded text* in Google Docs on my phone, and then re-type it in the game files later.
* Usually just looks like this:
“However old you might sound, it’s still younger than you actually are.”
Lucera snorts and then lets out a “HA!”
#“That wasn’t a joke.”
“And yet!” says Lucera, clearly uncaring of the fact.
#I’m glad I could make her laugh.
“You’re a comedian and a truth-teller, $!{name}. I like having you around.”
Basically I just don’t bother with the *choice/*fake_choice since I’ll know they’re choices by the #. And then I do the proper coding and indentation when I rewrite it in the game file itself. (And I prefer rewriting over copy-pasting because it’s a good chance to review the text and do quick fixes and edits—edit on the go, as you say.)
On the rare occasion, if I feel stuck or like I need to switch gears in my brain, I might use pen and paper.
Also: on Wednesday I made progress on both my resume (someone I received feedback from told me I should change some big format things), and my Halloween Jam project. I was body doubling with some friends at a cafe, and it really is different from working at home. I wanna try it again today (though this time I’ll be by myself), since I’m going out to meet ex-coworkers for dinner anyway. (Update: I was running late and couldn’t work on my resume before dinner 
I did do a little bit when I got home though.)
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Sounds useful. Perhaps I’ll give that a try.
(I did have a form to fill up when I was beta reading Leas:City of the Sun)
Meanwhile, I’ll share some analytics from my first game on itch.
Ok, fine, these numbers aren’t anywhere near good. After all, it’s a very short contest entry which I put in little effort into advertising.
Interestingly, while I had only posted the link on two threads in this forum (neither of which were WIP threads), I did manage to get a fair bit of clicks from over here. I’m thinking of putting future WIPs on itch to take advantage of the analytics and the extra exposure from the platform.
That said, if anyone wants a lot of views for your game on itch, it’s really quite simple. Just make sure it has the ‘adult’ tag, and you’re all set.
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This sounds like fun.
I did this with the Ink demo beta testing and it was helpful. Not everyone used it, but I think some appreciated having it as an option. I don’t know if I want to make one this early in the development process, but later down the line I probably will.
whew! My games are not that. 
While I admire those who write games that are masterpieces of stats and story, I’m leaning heavily on the story side with this WIP. There’s a lot of flavor text—I’m definitely using the stats for that, but I’ve written two testing choices in 65k words, only putting them in when they make sense to the story. I expect there will be more as the game goes on, but while I was considering putting in stat indicators, I don’t think they’ll be necessary. I tend to write very forgiving games, though. There’s no game over and you’re guaranteed a happy ending, because romance.
Oh, and someone asked about what people write in: I write directly in CSIDE, doing code and story as I go. Sometimes I’ll go ahead and get the code skeleton set up, then fill in the sections. Other times I just write things as they come.
Yep. Pretty much. I got a lot of hits from the forum and the adult crowd on itch when I put Poetry & Passion up for the jam last Feb. It’s nice to have the analytics to access.
I wonder about putting my demo on itch. @HarrisPS I seem to remember you had a demo on itch for HB. Is that right?
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After a decade of writing in Notepad ++, CSIDE really is a revelation. The ability to open and close indents, automatic colour-coding operators and *gotos, keyboard shortcuts for quicktest and randomtest?
I honestly wish I’d started using it years ago.
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I did! It was helpful to have a version that kept progress when the tab closed, which was one of the main reasons I did it. I probably will do it again, just so progress can be followed in more than one place. It was a bit tedious keeping both versions up to date, though, and I didn’t end up keeping up with my devlog posts all the time.
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In Quiver. Robin Hood’s first sword and dagger depends on which origin the player picks.
Noble Robin currently has a longsword and a Saracen dagger in (a gift from their deceased father).
Farmer Rondel currently has a short sword (a treasure they found while tilling their father’s field) and a Dirk (a gift from their father).
Acolyte Robin currently has a rapier (a gift left to them by the wandering mercenary who taught them how to use a sword) and a Stiletto (a gift from Friar Tuck).
However, I’m not a fan of using longsword, shortsword and rapier so I’m doing some research to the kind of swords they could theoretically have had. I found a sub Reddit that is all about swords and I’m going to post a question in their (although I’m already thinking to switch short sword to a Roman gladius as they could be something they could potentially have found in a field in England).
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I’d suggest switching the rapier to something like a falchion too.
The word “rapier” comes from the Spanish Espada ropera (dress sword), and was originally a civilian weapon which originated in the late 15th century. I don’t think it fits the vibe of the time period or the origin you’ve given it.
A falchion is both closer to the “traditional” time period Robin Hood stories are associated with (though not a perfect match), but are also weapons particularly known to be carried by English soldiers and especially English longbowmen as a sidearm.
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Why, thank you.
“Lord Inquisitor,” Vega says, ears twitching but voice calm.
“Lord…” Lord Inquisitor searches for words for a moment, throat making a funny little movement like a croaking frog but there’s no sound. “…Denwatcher?”
“Close enough,” Vega agrees. “These people are of my pack. Why have you detained them?”
[—]
“Lord Denwatcher?” you ask.
Vega shrugs. “Varg don’t have a concept of medical lieutenant who was formerly a commander before being court-martialed, who was a lord before going MIA and disappearing into the timestream.”
“There’s a concept for that?”
“My point exactly.”
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It is meant to be a gift given by a mercenary who often passes through which is why I originally thought of the Rapier.
I’m just trying to settle on when to set the story year wise so I can narrow down the available swords 
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I would suggest seax, but of course I’m not that knowledgeable of swords. 
(I just like seaxes, because the Finnish name pretty much means “enchanted knife”.)
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Seaxes start disappearing by the 9th century in England - but that could also mean that it could be an ancestral weapon passed down for centuries.
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I’ve finished the day with another 1,481 words. I’m stopping for now as I’m trying to narrow down the year I want the story to be set, which will make naming the swords easier.
I’m considering going a slightly alternate history route purely so I can shift certain characters being alive (for example, having King Richard surviving the crossbow bolt that killed him in real life) with the 14th-century time frame. I was thinking of between 1305 and 1307 (as it is 1305 when they become a wolf’s head, and then the actual story starts in 1307).
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How do you guys get artists for you work? I’d like to get a credible artist to make some artwork for one of my books. I’m afraid to use AI😅
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Don’t bother, CoG won’t publish anything that’s used generative AI. As for finding artists, assuming you lack the time/ability to make your own works the best thing to do is simply look around and see if you can find artists you like who are open for commission. Generally speaking games don’t need art, but if you have the ability I’d take the time to shell out for a good cover. We all say not to judge a book by its cover, but your cover art can be an excellent way to grab some attention. If it looks cheap or unprofessional, you’ll probably turn away some folks who might’ve otherwise bought your game.
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I can’t draw anymore and I am quite busy so I would at least like to get someone to do the art cover. Is it also possible to create one(the cover) using editing software and stock images?
Would CoG oppose to that method? Also what do you think about adding music to games such as these?
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