Job’s done!

And also a detour through a mecha WIP! MECHAAAAAA!!! :smiley:

Hard drive fried couple of weeks ago, so all my dash saves are gone, wheeeee. Replaying from the start.

Stoffs and thangs

“its”

Should be two words.

I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned it, but it’s a nice touch how Lance is the only one that checks their email, because as a parent they can’t afford to miss communications. Parents of young children don’t GET days off. Well, not good parents, anyway.

“that” fits better than “of what”, I think.

Oh, cool, we an talk to more than one person in the bullet now, yay. :smiley:

While “keep ugh the day” is a wonderful expression and I love it, it’s very definitely not what you meant to write here.

Capitalised pronoun.

CP

Still not a later date, I see. :smile:

Two periods.

“creak”

1 am here, so more (the rest?) tomorrow!

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Appreciate the typos and grammar stoffs! I look forward to the silent screams tomorrow when you re-read Ryder’s trauma scenes

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Fun fact: my brain has an EXTREME difficulty in telling time, to the point that I can’t tell two weeks ago from two months ago, and 6 months ago might as well be 6 years (and vice-versa to all of those and everything in-between), without context clues, so Ryder’s trauma scenes are basically present in the back of my mind with a 100% uptick, and got pushed to the front as soon as Hawks mentioned the funeral when I was leaving Ryder’s hotel room.

This to say I come pre-screamed.

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Well, time to have @ViIsBae smash my heart with a freaking morning star again. TRAUMA TIME!

Stoffs, thangs, and special guest appearance by Mary Shelley's ghost

Needs a hyphen.

Two insteads, remove the second one.

“dry” (alternatively, “look to have mostly dried by now”)

“I’m looking” or “I look” (“I looking” CAN be a thing, but here it doesn’t mesh with Ryder’s “looks” - which is why I’d favour “I look” in this instance over “I’m looking”)

Op, morning star to the heart time.

I think you don’t mean density here, because, with the single exception of ice->water, heat makes things LESS dense, not more (because hea- actually that’s a physics thing we don’t need to go into :smile: But if you’re not aware of the reason, you should totally google why water, specifically, is the only substance that’s denser as liquid than as a solid when you have time, cos that shit’s fascinating, and everyone should know that tidbit)

Uncapitalised.

Some demi you’re writing, I’ve talked to them for half an hour and they already want me to take them to bed. :stuck_out_tongue:

That’s not silence, that’s the sound of SIDE-EYE!

“This, I choose to do”

Cullen:


Ryder:Untitled

“lets”

New content! Time to look at dead bodies, woooo! :skull: (I’d say this is the weirdest date, but I can already hear the ghost of Mary Shelley praising my choice)

This sentence is confusing when playing with f!Alvarez, it looks like it’s Alvarez that’s starting to speak again.

Hey, at least it’s an employee and not, y’know, a customer (“what do you mean, a customer would be much grander”, says the ghost of Shelley)

This bit is a bit incongruous if you picked “training to be a coroner” near the start of the game. (“Yeah, or if you have a BACKBONE!” Shut up, Shelley)

I mean… I hate to break it to you, love, but I recently had to stop you from inadvertently setting a residential building on fire, sooooo… :grimacing: Maybe just, like, accept care? :grimacing:

“More like Garbaginski, amirite?” I swear to god, Shelley.

“Speak for yourself, WUSS” I WILL plant roses, Shelley, do not test me! “That won’t st-” PINK ones. “… :fu: :neutral_face::fu:

“here’s”

Oh, the coroner thing does get mentioned.

Not an actual mobile group. Only one comma, after “open”. In the next sentence, add a comma after “labeled”.

“by”

Man, MC absolutely drew the winning ticket with their mutation, didn’t they?

“victim’s”

Double article.

This makes the sentence a bit awkward and doesn’t really add any information, I suggest removing it.

“for”

One word.

Aw, the coroner path has no investigation. :frowning:

“people”

“lets” (also, answering: maybe, you doing anything right now?)

“depending on”

Good thing Hawks is already super-blonde. Makes the grey hairs me and Lance gonna give her much less noticeable. :stuck_out_tongue: (also, it should be “matter-of-fact” in the second paragraph)

:zipper_mouth_face: I will not make the joke, I will not make the joke, I will not make the joke. :zipper_mouth_face:

“Hélio” is a portuguese name. :stuck_out_tongue:

Regarding the transition metals, Z has lost much of my respect for not seizing the opportunity to make this pun:

(can you tell that I have about four trains of thought simultaneously running through my brain at the slowest of times? Your probably can)

Ohshit!

I’m sorry, I know we’re entering a high-stress moment (because of the obvious parallels to when Kate died) and I shouldn’t, but I just can’t help it: :laughing:


More accurate, true, but I thought they were called bulletproof vests? Or is this a different thing?

“chord” If it helps you remember, the trick I came up with is that “striking a chord” means it resonates, and that links it to music:

Should be capitalised.

:notes: Making my way downtown, walking fast. Faces pass and I’m homeb- ahem sorry, what I mean is, you left shift pressed for an extra letter here. cough

“his”

Yay, investigation! :mag: :smiley:

“can’t” Also, in the next sentence, “dried with blood” doesn’t make sense (in general, not just here). You probably want something like “covered in dried blood”. Also also, in the second-to-last line should be “bag”, not “bad”.

“on”

“her”

Oh, I guess this is where we find out, the HARD way, what the other two mutations were, isn’t it? :grimacing:

(btw, the investigation didn’t let me check the lockers. Are they not relevant and I already had everything, or am I working with a limited number of choices?)

I am so torrrrrnnnnnn, why do you do this to me?! Does the dance moves one also progress the romance? Ironically, the “more than just a friend” one does NOT increase relationship points, dunno if intended.

Something missing. “stay with”, maybe?

Issss over. :frowning: (alternative comment: that’s what she said)

EDIT: Oh, wait, there’s another Ryder extra scene! And look at when it takes place. Time to take ANOTHER morning star to the heart, sure, fuck it, why not.

Typo.

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Finally got to read the update, it was fantastic! Can’t wait for more!

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I finally got around to reading this story and I loved it.

I like most of the characters, the MC is competent but not overly powerful, and even though they joined the team at the worst possible time, they never feel like an outcast, the team is receptive but with a certain caution/distance that is to be expected.

Being able to choose a background for the MC such as behavioral analyst, forensic scientist, etc. adds that little extra to the story that is very satisfying to read. I also like that the author doesn’t shy away from heavy topics and handles them well, making this a compelling and engaging adult read. The fight scenes are also superb.

I personally don’t mind the text box investigations, but ngl I felt quite dumb in my first playthrough because I skipped the explanation but once I read it, I got the hang of it. I’m a completionist, so it took me several tries to get my MC to look in all the right places and forever to get the password right, but I understand how it can take you out of the story.

I’m not sure if this has already been addressed, because I haven’t read the whole thread, but the only thing I found rather odd was going to Hawks’ bedroom for a chat. It makes sense for the others, especially Lance and Alvarez, but for a superior idk. Maybe it’s just a me thing though, but it didn’t feel like my MC was close enough to Hawks to knock on their door, them being their superior and all that, even if they’re interested in Hawks. Maybe casually meeting Hawks in the hotel lobby as you take a walk to clear your head and then sitting somewhere to chat or meeting them at the hotel bar would be more natural? Appropriate? IDK. Again, it’s probably just a me problem.

I don’t have any other particular critiques, there are a few wrong pronouns here and there and some typos, but nothing major.

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This is funny to me, because for me, from a purely logical perspective, Hawks is EXACTLY the one you should be having a chat with, EXACTLY because they’re the team leader. :slight_smile: In-world, they’re the ones who assign groups and are responsible for making the unit gel well together, so the more they know about you and what’s going through your mind the better they can assign pairings that work well together and recommend courses of action.

Having a chat with them is the equivalent of giving them an update on your file in real-time.

Except I’m never going to do that, because I just want to wrap Ryder in a fire-proof blanket and hug them until they feel better.

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I guess that makes sense too. Having the option to talk about the case with Hawks helps, so I’m just going to roll with that. But, compared to Alvarez or Lance’s chat, which feels more organic after the heavy conversation with the brother, going to Hawks feels odd to me because, as I said, I don’t think the MC is particularly close to them nor is Hawks chatty/open like Alvarez or Lance plus the whole superior/subordinate dynamic. I suppose it all comes down to the type of distraction the MC needs in that particular moment, a more work-focused one or a more casual one.

I haven’t fully explored Ryder’s romance/path because I’m not particularly drawn to them but in the warehouse when you touch them/hold them and they ask you not to let go I might have teared up a bit :pleading_face:

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Oh. Oh child. You poor, poor innocent child. Checking up on them after the funeral is going to MURDER you.

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I’ll play it tonight and report back. I love the ones I played so far but Alvarez’s was my favorite, it’s so bittersweet it hurts. They holding MC’s hand to feel the pain after the cut :sob:

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I concur. If that moment was heartwrenched. The visit. Oh, definitely will be far more compelled to heart ruptured.

Also want to wrap Ryder in a blankie and hold them.

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I’ll be honest, I’m so torn on the LI’s in this game. I adore Harper’s personality, and the fact that she’s a seemingly amazing single parent doesn’t help that adoration one bit. But Christ, Sarah tugs at my heartstrings. Pity shouldn’t be a factor in wanting to date someone, which isn’t the case for me here either, but seeing her after the funeral? The pain she must go through? It resonates with me way too much, and is something I could definitely see myself bonding with someone over. And bonds forged like that, while having the capacity to turn real toxic and sour, also has the very real chance of turning into something beautiful and healing for both parties.

While I understand why poly relationships aren’t in this game, with the whole being new to development and wanting to make it easier on yourself as a dev as far as I’ve gleamed from a previous comment of yours, it’s cases like these where I wish it was there the most, not gonna lie, haha. Picking between these two women (On the gay path for my MC hence using the female names) is gonna suuuuck, oof.

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Sarah is a poor hurt phoenix chick that just needs some care, support, and nurturing to bloom in to a magnificent firebird.

Ok, fine, A LOT of care, support, and nurturing.

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I’m super later to the party but I just learned about the whole Non-Binary debacle in regards to Ryder, and while I don’t know what the outcome of that ended up being since I didn’t extensively look into it, the easiest way I think to solve the issue that most people had, (I.e signing up for a romance of a specific gender, and feeling like they were rug-pulled) would be to make it clear in their character description that the character would eventually come out as non-binary regardless of the gender they were assigned at the start of the game. I really think that’s the only way to really handle it in a way where people won’t feel like they were rug-pulled, as they then know from the start that if they aren’t interested in a romance involving a non-binary person, that they should stay clear of Ryder’s romance path. Really, in that way no-one can complain about it. Sure it probably sucks for the people that were attached to Ryder’s originally assigned gender and I’m certainly sympathetic to that, but going forward there wouldn’t be any further confusion at all.

As for physical attraction which I ultimately feel like is the largest contributing factor in how most people have seemed to react to this, this could be solved by letting their originally assigned gender determine their appearance in terms of if they’re fem/masc leaning. This would probably go a long way to most of the people who has had a problem with this, as they more than likely (although incorrectly based on very limited knowledge about the trans community and trans issues or just gender identities in general) assume that just because Ryder is non-binary, that they’ll suddenly go out of their way to look or act super differently in the same way that is often stereotypically associated with binary trans people once they start transitioning, which absolutely isn’t always the case for non-binary folk. Plenty of non-binary people are comfortable in their own physical skin and the way they look, but just doesn’t feel like either the male or the female identify applies to them.

Doing it that way also wouldn’t muddy the water and diminish Ryder’s identity by needing male or female pronouns along with they/them pronouns as you suggested as a possible solution in the past, as they could simply use they/them as people would automatically know whether or not they’re going down the path of a romantic relationship with either a fem or masc leaning Ryder based on the original choice they made. Granted I’m a bi trans woman who leans heavily towards the sapphic side of the spectrum, so romancing Ryder wouldn’t be a problem to me at all if I was still attracted to their physical appearance. At that point their gender wouldn’t be the deciding factor, because that would just be one part of who they are as a very complex person, but I do also acknowledge that for almost everyone, the outwards appearance and gender presentation matters in terms of their sexual preferences in a partner.

I don’t know, that’s just my two cents about it. Either way, I’m firmly in the camp that if you feel like Ryder being non-binary is important to their story and character development, then you should go ahead and do that. Ultimately I’d rather read a story that’s a labor of genuine love, than to read a story that has been diminished because of people who were uncomfortable with a character being a little different than themselves.

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I love Ryder myself. I also love how they are all dealing with things. So wish I could be capable of chatting and helping ALL of them! I want to help them all!

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Good work on the text adventure on/off, Vi! You are a ChoiceScript master (or you enjoy the pain of making that work haha).

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How am I supposed to check on someone else after that scene? I simply can’t! Ryder isn’t my preferred RO, but I will always go to them and hug them at every opportunity, they’re just too precious :pleading_face:

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Right? Right?

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Exactly! If I decided Id romance someone else. I cant not go to Ryder!

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Response to notapretzel!

I’m glad! I see you around the forum a bit, so I’m happy you managed to make your way over to my tiny little corner, and even more glad that you’ve enjoyed it so far!

Very pleased that it felt good, as it’s certainly one of those things that I imagine myself really using after everything is written. Meaning I’m gonna go back and add more variable text or change it so, if you chose a specific background, certain checks are easier or possibly even skipped due to your background. But it’s nice to hear that the variable text I have added for it has been good so far!

I watch a lot of crime docuseries and crime dramas on TV and such, so I definitely wanted to make it true to expressing how horrific these kinds of crimes can be. But, I also don’t like things that just try to use shock factor for the sake of using shock factor and instead I wanted to keep it respectful. That’s why, in my mind, it was extremely important to let the player decide how their PC reacts to what they find in the second victim’s home; a few reasons actually.

One, because it’s a tasteful way to let the reader know how horrific those things are, and to let them feel that, without having to go into any heavy descriptions. Two, it also expresses the trauma that officers of the law have to go through, even when they sometimes are just doing routine duties such as delivering the news of death to a family member. Officers never know when they’re going to run into something out in the field that might leave a permanent scar, and the PC just so happened to learn this lesson very early in their career.

Glad to hear it! I wasn’t too sure how well they’d be received as they weren’t super long, but then I remind myself that fights irl are also not super long. Well, maybe boxing matches and cage fights, but certainly not fights in situations like the warehouse.

I hope in that case that you have a good time going through the story to collect all of the extra scenes! So far there are ten in total in the current update, with more coming in future updates. Some unlock naturally through linear parts of the story, some require specific conversations with specific characters to happen before unlocking. I added those in order to try and motivate people to play through multiple times, so here’s hoping it works!

I can totally see this point of view and understanding your reasoning behind thinking this. I think in my mind, at the time of that conversation in the book, it was definitely less about being close with them and more about them being your boss, as to why an PC might go to them. For instance, if someone is having troubles in their home life and it might affect their work, they might ask their boss for a private meeting to talk about things. Granted, that’s an oopsie on my part for not letting that be an option in that scene, and it may very well be something I rectify later as a choice, but I make no promises on that, because if I keep going back to alter things I think of as possibilities the game might never get done LOL

But fun fact, if you talk to Hawks during that scene and talk about the case, you get a hidden option of dialogue to use later in the game when discussing the case with the rest of the team!

I’m glad you’re a fan of different LI’s in the game! Obviously, they all have their own unique personalities and some of them can fit into tropes a bit, but the main goal was to just write them as people, which I think might help reader’s connect with them.

Through the ashes we rise, more resilient than we were
Through the tribulations in life, I will grow stronger

A poster in the window of a self-care shop that Ryder gives the finger to every day on their way to work, probably :woman_shrugging:

Hey, in a way, simply being there on the team is most certainly helping them all!

Thank you! I have to admit, it’s neither though. I simply enjoy the feeling of seeing the finished product LOL

Definitely not a sentiment you are alone in sharing, and one that was kinda intended. This book was always going to be the hardest on Ryder, for sure. But I can confirm, while it is certainly a major mental health crisis for them, they do get help if the PC doesn’t check up on them.


It’s genuinely cool to see some conversation in here. Thanks everyone! Also, nearly done with the next update. I’m on the last seven variations of this current scene, then it will be a scene where Lance and PC talk about what exactly just happened and what it means, then that extra story will be done! Thank you all for your patience!

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