🌈 Dear Diary, We Created a Plot Hole! (A Slice-of-Life Fantasy Adventure) ~ [UPDATED Dec 25 — Chapter 4 & 5 is here! | 509,000 words]

Um, hi again!

I hope everyone liked the update! I forgot to put it in the survey, but I figured I’d also make a poll here for those who have already checked the update:

Did you play with the background music on?
  • Yup!
  • Yup, but I turned it off / I didn’t like it.
  • Nope!

0 voters

I wanna know if I should keep doing it for the next chapters. I would’ve added more sound effects to the notifications, but unfortunately CS doesn’t allow you to loop or play two sound files at once.

1 Like

The only reason my vote is ‘nope’ is because I like reading in silence; it makes “hearing the characters’ voices” easier to imagine. I also have to be in a place where sudden sounds from my phone won’t disturb someone, or be wearing headphones which isn’t always pragmatic in public situations.

Your question does make me more curious about it, though. :thinking:

I’m enough of a music lover to know about “boomwhackers” of all things, so you can trust that I can have feedback related to it when I go to give it a try.

1 Like

Ah, no worries! I totally get both of those things.

But yes, I’d love and appreciate some feedback about the music. I consider it to be a significant part of the story, especially because of the musical scenes. The songs don’t match what they sound like in my head of course, but it’s the next best thing I can do. Also I totally didn’t know what boomwhackers are lol

I’m probably gonna continue adding music anyway, since I really enjoyed it.


Anyway, I’ve updated the demo to include some bug fixes:

:memo: v2.2.81 Bugfix

  • The background music that plays when cleaning the classroom will now trigger when the song starts instead of when accepting the weekly quest.
  • You will no longer automatically discover Wayne’s third secret, but there might be another way to discover it later.
  • Discovering Wayne’s third secret no longer requires you to pick the star locket (personality stat check is unchanged).
  • Fixed certain traits appearing in the stats screen prematurely.
  • MC is no longer set as short prior to picking your height.
  • Fixed various typos regarding the lockets.
  • Fixed incorrect header and locket graphics.
  • Fixed a couple of diary inconsistencies.
  • The leftover cookies now properly disappear from your inventory when giving them to the beggars.
  • Roselyna’s character level is now displayed correctly.
  • Fixed stats screen error after translating “I hate you”.
  • Roselyna is now slightly more huggable.
8 Likes

Would it be possible to not be constantly called “kuya” when playing a trans girl? And as a minor thing related to that, to have the wording switched so instead of saying “a little girl and a little girl” when referring to the twins if they’re the same gender, it’s just “the girls” (in my case)? I don’t know how much of a pain that would be. The second is pretty minor but it hurts the immersion to me, though the first is pretty grating. I get needing to keep the uniform, and that’s even mentioned (I think), but being called the functional equivalent of brother is pretty bad to me.

2 Likes

There are a couple of ways to do that, yes. The first one is of course to choose to stop calling each other ate/kuya, or choosing that you’ve told your friends and family. If you chose to keep it a secret, you will be given several opportunities to tell the others later, most notably in Chapter 5 during Wayne’s Secret Exchange.

There’s also an option to call your twin ate/kuya (but not the MC), but I just realized that I left some variables from that option, so I’ll have to fix that in a bit.

I also realize that your twin should address you properly if they’re the only person you’ve told and there are no other people around, but this might have to wait for the next update since I might need a save wipe to prevent errors from existing saves. It’s all so confusing to have so many name/gender/secret variables to keep track of so please bear with me! :woozy_face:

Oh, this is definitely something I’ve overlooked. Thanks for pointing them out!

Starting Chapter 3 you can pretty much wear anything you want for the rest of the story! :slightly_smiling_face:


Let me know if there are other problems or if something is unclear!

3 Likes

Honestly with how much you’ve done with the customization, the fact that it’s just small things that slip through is really impressive. I’ve noticed the awkward wording thing before, but I never wanted to bring it up since it’s so small, but figured I might as well while I’m on the subject.

What’s funny is that I’ve both chosen to stop using the labels as well as being out to everyone. I feel like I saw it, but it might’ve been at some point earlier, before you set your gender. I’ll keep a lookout for if it happens later :slight_smile:

2 Likes

@WeisseWoelfin Oh, if you spot any more awkward wording, inconsistencies, or other weird stuff, please let me know! I’d rather fix them than just let them linger around.

Same goes for character traits: if your MC has eyeglasses and I neglected to mention them when I should have, please do tell me! I care a lot about the flavor text.


Anyway, here’s the update:

:memo: v2.2.82 Bugfix

  • MC’s Twin should now always appear in the party member screen if they are in your party.
  • Quest Log now properly displays completed quests.
  • “Twin no longer calls MC kuya/ate” choice restriction has been removed.
  • Fixed Patrick’s emoji in the diary.
  • Fixed missing text when choosing a preset Twin Language name.
  • Fixed various typos, inconsistencies, awkward wording and notification formatting errors.
  • Roselyna is now slightly more huggable.

On another note, I’d like to hear more about your twins!

What would be your MC’s gifts/presents for Roselyna and Wayne’s birthdays? Would it be something personalized, store-bought, or something from their own possession, like their stuffed toy?

I am terrible with gifts myself so I’m looking for suggestions for gifts you’d like to see. :sweat_smile:

6 Likes

I just played the demo again and I really enjoyed it. Can’t wait for more! My MC wants to be a musician so he would probably write them a piece of music as a gift, but if he can’t come up with anything, would probably just buy them a birthday card and some cash

1 Like

@ChopinMan207 Hello there! I’m glad you enjoyed playing the demo! :blush:

And aww, that’s really sweet! :kissing: A song/piece of music is definitely a great idea, but I think I’ll have it as a recording instead of a live performance since I don’t really wanna deal with that can of worms. Although I can probably have an option where the MC didn’t finish it completely (they’ll both love it anyway—it’s the thought that counts).


Anyway, I finally stopped being lazy and finished the logo designs for LCU and LiteraTours!


9 Likes

So, I’ve been thinking about the stuffed toys lately


I don’t really consider this a spoiler since I already mentioned it on the introduction post before, but


Summary

My original idea for the stuffed toys coming to life was that they can just move and talk, but what if they were more like Barney and transform into bigger animals?

They’d pretty much act like Pokemon that you can “summon” from your imagination (which means they can speak your twin language too). Of course, they’ll turn back to stuffed toy form when you lose focus—I imagine it’d be pretty draining to do so for long periods. This way you can have your own customizable animal companion, and this would actually help reduce the amount of active characters on the page than if they were just “alive” all the time.

I’m probably going to make MC’s stuffed toy different from your twin now, and maybe change/remove some of the existing ones so it fits the new concept.

And before you ask, this ability would come from your locket so Wayne and Roselyna wouldn’t be able to do the same for their stuffed toys. Tommy (Rosie’s stroller bag) will still be able to move and talk though.

But don’t worry, Wayne and Rosie will have their own fun stuff to play with from their own stories. :3

7 Likes

While it’s nowhere near complete, this update changed and added some new variables in preparation for Chapter 3 (which means another save wipe).

As usual, please report any bugs, typos, or continuity errors!

:memo: v2.2.9 Update

Update Log
  • MC’s Twin now addresses MC properly when in private if you kept your gender a secret.
  • MC now refers to themselves properly if you kept your gender a secret.
  • You can now choose “secret” pronouns if you kept your gender a secret.

    Can I just say that having three changeable pronoun sets for the MC is such a headache to keep track of? I wouldn’t be surprised if lots of stuff went wrong here.

  • The start of the Adventure bedtime story is now more adventurey and takes place in a catacomb.
  • MC’s Twin now has a different stuffed toy.
  • MC and Twin’s stuffed toys are now made by Uncle Robert.
  • Most of the genre-specific stuffed toys have been removed because there were too many.

    Please note that the new stuffed toy list isn’t final and may be changed again later! Check out the post above for more information.

  • MC’s Twin no longer likes MC’s favorite genre, and now likes MC’s second favorite instead.
  • Moved the second favorite genre choice.

    Changes have been made to the stuffed toys and favorite genres, for the same reason the twins now have different locket gems.

  • Decreased starting relationship with your twin if you have a good relationship, and slightly increased starting relationship if you have a love/hate or complicated relationship.
  • Increased minimum and maximum relationship penalty from the emotional stat during the fight with your twin because the relationship values were getting high too quickly.

    Both of these changes will also slow down the effects of relationship increases with your twin as a side effect.

  • Added LCU logo.
  • The crush option while people watching is now only available if you have the [Romantic] Trait.
  • Added some information to JM’s diary entry.
  • Added missing text to Aunt Julie’s secret in her diary entry.
  • Added a note when checking the stats screen on the first page of the prologue, that causes the background colors to not revert normally.
  • Fixed name variables that weren’t using MC and Twin’s preferred names.
  • Fixed error when choosing a preset Twin Language name.
  • Playthrough Stats have been updated with new data.
  • Minor edits and typo fixes.
  • Roselyna is now slightly more huggable.

A little more information regarding the favorite genre change:

There’ll be two different genres of the bedtime story now, which means two villain groups will be chasing the twins.

It just sounds more fun and plot holey, plus it feels like a wasted opportunity if the second-fave genre doesn’t influence the story that much. It wouldn’t really increase the workload anyway since I’ll have to write a variation for each genre. If anything, this makes all the variations more worthwhile to write since more people will see them.

12 Likes

That sounds like it’ll be a lot of fun, with some interesting interactions if the villains are contrasting :slight_smile:

1 Like

Wow, so much! :hushed:
I was actually worried for a moment there that Rosie’s huggable-ness wouldn’t level up for her specialty skill tree. :sweat_smile:

My main MC may be a tad chilly, and grouchy, but he doesn’t say no to a Rosalyna hug!

3 Likes

@ElliWoelfin Hehe, yup! I’m not sure how much interactions there’ll be, but I do like the idea of recurring villain characters. :thinking:

@LadyUmbreon89 Heehee. I’m glad you’re looking forward to Rosie being more huggable on the update logs. Good thing she especially enjoys hugging people who are grouchy. And omg, I love the idea of a hugging skill tree. :kissing: Stop giving me ideas


Anyway, I just wanna address some of the feedback I received:

When I did the genre change, I admit that I forgot to account for the choice where you choose if you’re writing it for yourself only or not (it actually affects quite a few things in the stats screen, and how often MC mentions their twin), which might seem unfair to MC’s Twin.

But I think I found a solution: the “safe place” Maggie sends the twins to will be the setting of Twin’s favorite genre (so maybe I’ll move the second-favorite genre choice there). I hope it’s a good compromise—I promise all the changes will make sense later.


Mythology is the second most popular genre in the survey, so I just want to say that yup, JM’s story world will be more diverse (which includes Philippine Mythology of course), and some other mythological creatures will also appear in Wayne and Lily’s story worlds.

Maggie’s story just primarily features Greek Mythology because they’re recognizable, and it doesn’t feel right to just have random monsters from various mythologies (when there are no plot holes just yet).

6 Likes

I’m going to have a little surprise for December :eyes: , but here’s the follow up update for now!


:memo: v2.2.91 Update

Update Log
  • The safe place mentioned in the bedtime story is now MC’s second-favorite genre.
  • Moved second-favorite genre choice to the prologue.
  • Added [Hug Averse] Trait, which is acquired when choosing to push Roselyna away in her introduction.
  • Added [Cuddlebug] Trait, which is acquired when choosing to hug Roselyna tightly in her introduction, and you do not have Physical Touch as your love language.
  • [Emotional] MCs no longer loves hugs and hug Roselyna automatically in her introduction. The special interactions are now only available to MCs with Physical Touch as their love language.
  • Renamed [Chubby] passive to [Fat].
  • Added a neutral opinion choice regarding LT’s PR e̔̄͘ẋ̶̫c̞͖̀uÌŽÍÌŻs̶̔ͅẻ̷͖.
  • Added an opportunistic choice when choosing that you want to be Lily’s sidekick.
  • MC and Twin’s second given names now appear in the character page.

Please note that MC’s Twin will not appear in MC’s character page if you choose to write the story for yourself only.

  • Added ‘why’ to the The Twin Language Guide.
  • The Twin Language Guide completion should now update properly.
  • Minor edits and stat adjustments.
  • Roselyna is now slightly more huggable.

:memo: v2.2.92 Bugfix

  • Added another suggested class for MC based on Twin’s favorite genre.
  • Added a couple of stuff in the glossary.
  • Main Character page now properly shows MC and Twin’s preferred names without surnames, for consistency.
  • Removed leftover code that made the MC like fantasy.
  • Removed notifications showing relationship changes to F6E members in the prologue.
  • Fixed various typos, genre-related inconsistencies, and formatting errors.
  • Roselyna is now slightly more huggable.
8 Likes

So, I like the Enneagram a lot for character development and wanted to make Traits for each of the birthday wishes. I know this is very simplified, but I hope these make sense/fit your characters!

Summary

trait_types

They might give small percentage bonuses to your personality stats as well, but I haven’t decided them yet!


Oh, and since you’ll get to customize your bedroom in Chapter 3
 I need some ideas, and I’d love to hear what your headcanons are for your twins’ bedroom(s)!

Here’s my own design for MC and Twin’s 5-year-old bedroom!

By the way, if your twins are sharing a room, there will also be a choice to have bunk beds! I’m actually pleased that the split between twins sharing a bedroom is closer to 50/50 now (according to the survey, at least).

The Organized/Messily Organized/Messy Traits will determine how orderly your bedroom is, so keep that in mind!

7 Likes

story sneak peek
Eyy, it’s another story world sneak peek!

This one is a little shorter than the previous sneak peeks, since it’s not really divided into different areas.

Summary

Lily’s Story World

The third world you will visit (Chapters 10-12) is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi story world (with light mystery elements), set on a faraway colonized planet, which is based on Lily’s short story. There’ll still be plenty of slice-of-lifey scenes of course, or at least, as much as “slice-of-life” as it could be for the setting.

You will meet two possible minor crush options in this story world!

So, the original inspiration for this setting is the movie Waterworld (and a little bit of Mad Max). My idea for this setting existed even before Lily and JM did, and at the time I just wanted a setting in the ocean.

The setting actually didn’t change much when I made the rewrite. It was set on another planet, but it didn’t really feel “sci-fi” until I got the idea (relatively) recently that instead of making it a sunken colony, it should be more of a space station/colony graveyard instead. It’s still set on an ocean, so the inhabitants have repurposed some of the spacecraft to water vessels to keep the pirate/adventure vibes. And by inhabitants, I mean, other children
 mostly.

The planet has an axial tilt like Uranus, where half the year is “daytime” while the other half of it is “nighttime”, so this is why the colonists need to be on the move and traveling the water constantly.

Yeah, it’s a little messed up. And who knows what the pl̶͖͉͗o̶̙̐̄̕͜t̶̟̝ hole̖͔̭̎̆͌̕sÌ·Í ÍÌŸÍÍœÌź will bring to the story world


Sources: 1 | 2


In other news, I am currently outlining the code for Chapter 3 and it looks like it’ll be a monster chapter as well. :sweat_smile:

On the bright side, I’m a little excited to actually write the scenes again because it has so much fluff (not 100% fluff of course) and dialogue-heavy scenes. I guess I was just dreading writing the descriptions because I suck at them.

Also the cliffhanger for Chapter 4
 I would love it if it happened in real life. :star_struck:

17 Likes

Come on that’s not fair. Now I really need to play the new chapters badly when they are ready

1 Like

I seem to have encountered a bug with class selection. For some reason, selecting Police Officer gives me Architect. I’m not sure if this is related to any other factors or not.

1 Like

@Christopher_Bull Hi! Hello there! :slightly_smiling_face:

I know it’s unfair that I have to write them first, right? What’re you looking forward to the most in the upcoming chapters? As for the cliffhanger, I’ve kinda foreshà̶̜̩d͚̔͘o̜̔͐w̶̫̄̋eÌ”Ì‘Ìąd it already in Chapter 2, hehe.


@geldar Hiii! Thank you for the report! :blush:

I am aware of the issue (along with some other errors), but unfortunately I won’t be updating the demo until I finish Chapter 3, as it would create complications if I upload the file right now. For now, you can work around it by just using the input class option.


Anyway, if anyone has any comments, questions or suggestions, feel free to let me know! Progress has been a little slow lately, but Chapter 3 has a lot of moving parts with all the quests, and now’s the time for me to decide some details I’ve been holding off on figuring out.

5 Likes