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Backer Bulletin: Scene A, B, or C? An Everyday Theme Preview and a Country Path
almost 2 years ago
– Fri, Jun 07, 2024 at 12:43:20 AM
Dear Backers,
I fondly remember June of last year as being the month when I truly put my all into promoting this very crowdfunding campaign. (As I say almost every month in these posts: how time does fly!)
At the time, I really had to attune my sense of what draws people to Of Sense and Soul; beyond its main draw of a queer period romance, what makes this game special? The answer I arrived at was that OSAS is hopeful and wholehearted in everything it is. Those of you who have played the demo or who backed this campaign will hopefully agree!
It's my hope that these monthly bulletins have assured you that you can continue to expect that same wholeheartedness in all else we do.
That said, I'd love to know what you as backers would like to hear more of — and here, in the most literal sense:
In our next Backers-only Bulletin, which Voiced Scene Preview would you like to hear? 🎙️
Let us know in the comments below! 👇
Scene A -Camilla convincing Hugo to look through The Matrimonial News in Chapter 1. 🗞️
Scene B -Seamus introducing Mr Brooks to James at The Opal in Chapter 4. 👋
Scene C - Hugo and Seamus bonding over a fairytale in Chapter 5. 🦆
Production Updates 🛠️
Story
Since our last update, not too much has been added to the story, but for good reason — voice direction sessions, after all, mean that the script needs to be prepared and finalised for our cast to sink their teeth into! (But more on that later.)
Since the writing needs to be finished before voice acting can happen, Rowan and I have determined our plan of action for the next few months. We have Chapter 10 and half of Chapter 11 of Hugo’s route, Hugo’s endings, and Seamus’ good and bad endings left to write, and we expect to complete those alongside our voice recording schedule.
Fortunately, we have a fairly direct writing-to-voicing pipeline — both Rowan and I are confident writers and we're working from a solid outline, so when we edit it’s largely to solidify the nuances we want to convey. And so, while we will both be travelling this summer, we will still be able to write, edit, and have editing outsourced if need be in that time.
Voice Acting & Music
These are very busy months for us on the voice acting front — we're now nearly done with our second round of recording.
We held direction sessions with Lottie, Shaun, and Brian, who respectively play Sadie, Seamus, and George; despite them each being directed individually, their work melds together to make the very Charkham family dynamic we envisioned! A true testament to their talents. The remaining two group direction sessions for this round are coming up in the remainder of June, meaning the voice acting for the vast majority of Seamus' route will soon be ready for engineering.
(Speaking of which, Haru is currently hard at work engineering the first half of a massive batch of voiced scene lines. There should be more progress on that by our next bulletin in July!)
As for music, Henri has been hard at work and is now polishing two new music tracks to a fine sheen: the untitled Everyday Theme mentioned in April's bulletin and a Music Box version of Seamus' theme, Desire for Connection. The in-progress version of the Everyday Theme has already been implemented in the newest version of Act 1, and it already melds seamlessly into the rest of the game!
Have a listen to it in the start of Hugo's route alongside Mr. Coulston's new intro lines:
Scripting
In preparation for the new round of beta testing we opened in the previous bulletin, I went through the entirety of Act 1 and smoothed out more wrinkles.
New voice soundbytes and intro lines have been inserted into the act, and refinements have been made to the camerawork overall. Minor bug fixes have also been made (with sniper-like speed) thanks to our programmer Fen.
A screenshot from the end of Hugo Chapter 4.
One improvement I made to the user interface was adjusting the sliders for Text Display Speed and Auto-Forward Time. By default, these work in inverse: for text speed the right side of the slider was faster, whereas for auto-forward time it was the left side — infuriating, to say the least!
Both sliders now travel in the same direction, with relevant descriptions underneath either end of each slider, and I am satisfied.
The previous sliders, with the fast end on opposite sides.
The updated sliders, now both going the same direction.
Visuals
We've now moved on to the next set of backgrounds Joseph will be taking care of, consisting of the Country Path, Manor Dining Room, and Seamus' Bedroom backgrounds. As we leave our London setting to paint a picture of Seamus’ former home life, we’re also doing so equipped with knowledge of how to plan backgrounds for camerawork.
I have a specific composition in mind for the Country Path background, which I’ve sketched for Joseph to reference:
A grayscale sketch for the Country Path background, with thumbnails of each layer displayed on the left.
I’m always a fan of finding ways to maximise the use of our contributors’ work, and using backgrounds to their fullest extent in cinematography requires layering. This background will be used for mainly atmospheric purposes, but is the main setting for a pivotal voiced scene which takes place during an outdoor walk. The image being longer than our standard backgrounds will facilitate more horizontal camera panning, and the foreground forest layer on the right will be moved sideways, forwards, or backwards in order to enhance the progression of the scene.
As for character art, I have made some headway on Ananya's Sprite — however, the edits to it are minimal, and so I'll wait till the next update to share more of her.
I unfortunately came down with a bout of Covid-19 two weeks ago and was forced to rest for a full week, in every sense of the word; of course, that meant drawing was off the table.
When I was well enough to sit and draw again, however, this is the first thing I drew:
oh la la...
Clearly, binge-watching Bridgerton while half-delirious and sick in bed put me in the mood for romance — fittingly, we're working on the endings to the game now!
What's Next?
June will be a relatively lowkey month production-wise; as mentioned above, Rowan and I will be off on our own travels. While we write and edit, the rest of our team will be doing what they do best, be it voice acting, composing, painting, or audio engineering.
In our next update, I think it'd be nice for you all to hear a little more of the voice acting we've been working so hard on, wouldn't you agree? What we share is up to you: comment below and let us know if you'd like to hear scene A, B, or C! 📝
Till next time, have a joyful June! I hope you'll stay warm — whether by choice, for those facing the winter cold, or under duress, for those in the summer heat. (In which case, I hope a nice cold beverage is in the cards for you.) ☀️☃️
Backer Bulletin: Beta Access Expansion, and Scripting Again!
almost 2 years ago
– Sat, May 18, 2024 at 06:47:39 AM
This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.
Backer Bulletin: Embarking on Endings, and a Fresh Coat of (Online) Paint
almost 2 years ago
– Sun, Apr 14, 2024 at 08:09:53 PM
Dear Backers,
First, I have an addendum: You may have noticed in last month's update there was a conspicuous lack of imagery — alas, some mishap occurred in posting and several images intended for it were omitted!
To quickly get you up to speed, here they are in quick succession:
The emotes mentioned at the start of the last update. I already overuse the first two!
Style tests for Seamus' backstory flashbacks.
WIP shot of George's sprite.
The hip bath in Hugo's Bedroom background.
There we are, all sorted. Now, on to the new stuff!
A Fresh Coat of Paint ✨
In the spirit of spring cleaning, I've made some updates to our presence here online — namely, the new and improved Of Sense and Soul Website! While not completely different from our previous website, the new site will be far easier to manage down the line.
The revamped OSAS Homepage.
In conjunction with this, I've also taken the opportunity to move our newsletter to a new platform. As someone who's very detail-oriented, the improvements in customisation I can make to the newsletter now are liberating!
(To our existing 165 subscribers who received another welcome letter from Hugo: it was due to an automation mishap and I am terribly, terribly sorry. Enjoy the free wallpaper, though!)
Hugo's proper signature rounding off his segment of the newsletter
Production Updates 🛠️
It's now April 2024 — a month you may recall as being one of the markers on our production timeline. Considering the start of Act 3's Production was announced in our last update, we're on schedule, which is great news!
Story
Rowan and I have been pottering along on Act 3, with lots being added to Hugo Chapter 9 and Seamus' chapters 9 and 11. Excitingly, we are incredibly close to finishing writing for Seamus' route! This past month, I wrote three endings (which are considered Chapter 12) for his route: the Best ending and the two Neutral endings, which are called the "Loveless" and "Growthless" endings respectively. (There's still a fair bit of editing to be done, but our current priority is getting all the words down so there is something to edit.)
A scandalous grammar suggestion from Google Docs...
These additions put Seamus' route at ~49,800 words, which means we're on track to finish right around 53,000-57,000 words for his route — not far off of the 50k word count we'd expected! That, in combination with the updates to Hugo's route, bring OSAS' total word count to 86,156. It feels surreal to have so much of the story written after all these years, but we're very happy with how it's all going!
The current word count of OSAS as a whole.
Voice Acting & Audio
At the end of March and start of April we held two live direction sessions: one for Seamus and James (Shaun and Oliver) and another for just Hugo (Max). This concluded our first round of voice acting for the full game, and it was a good first attempt in coordinating our various cast members — we recorded in an order that would help us set up the solo session with Max at the end, and I think that ultimately helped us a lot. I have a much better idea of how to do the same for future recording now, and I'm very happy with how everything is sounding! (Voice actors never cease to amaze me.)
The soundbytes mentioned previously are also still being processed (there are 150 of them, after all) and I'm also in talks with our composer Henri to get another soundtrack in the mix — yes, a new one!
Through writing the game and scripting scenes, I've noticed there is a gap in the emotionality of tracks we have ready; as in, they're all far too emotional. I feel we need a track that's more neutral, which can be used to bridge between scenes or convey normalcy or boredom in the progression of conversation. And so, our soundtrack doesn't appear to be finished after all — but this track addition, I feel, is one which will greatly help the music match the story all the more.
Below are two tracks I've shared with Henri as inspiration, from Layton's Mystery Journey and Great Ace Attorney Chronicles. I seem to gravitate towards sending references from other games set in London!
Visuals
Admittedly, I've been preoccupied with writing and managing VA the past month and haven't made as much progress on art assets as I'd have liked. However, I have worked a bit on those sprites I've been mentioning! Sketches for the other WIP sprites (Ananya, Howard, and Nathaniel) were refined this past week. Here's a look at Ananya's sprite!
In making assets for OSAS I also make a lot of patterns and trims to help smooth the process. For Ananya's sprite, I've already started to create the trim that goes down the front of her dress as well as made a lace brush to use on her bustle and sleeves:
Ananya's Sprite Sketch, showing the decorative trim on her bodice.
A lace brush test showing the brush versus its final effect.
I've now also contracted an artist to sketch sprite arms for me. Figuring the arm poses out is probably the most time consuming part of sprite work for me, so I'm more than happy I've pawned those duties off on someone else who's willing to split the load!
Joseph is continuing work on Hugo's Bedroom background, but it's nearing completion — I should be able to share a snippet of the final in our next update.
What's Next?
My own focus will stay more on writing for the next month because it's required for the next round of voice acting as well as for the creation of art assets. Chapter 5 remains a thorn in our sides, and I'll have to see whether it warrants rewriting. I'll also be editing material from Rowan as it emerges — they're currently working on Act 3 of Hugo's route, which is an exciting shift from the main self-discovery pacing of his first two acts!
Those VA cast announcements I mentioned at the end of the last update will also need to be put aside in favour of refining the story to give work to our VAs — which I would consider more important!
Last but not least, I feel it'd be remiss not to inform you that Hugo's 176th birthday is approaching, on April 22nd!
A silly birthday doodle of Seamus failing to feed Hugo cake.
Perhaps by then, we'll have one of Hugo's happier endings written for him...? We shall have to see!
Backer Bulletin: Letters from Hugo and embarking on Act 3!
about 2 years ago
– Sun, Mar 24, 2024 at 07:34:14 PM
Dear Backers,
In March we've been busy—very busy, actually—but before I get to all that, I have to say I also decided to make some emotes of our characters this month. Aren't they just adorable?
I'll happily take any suggestions for more! Perhaps once they're done I can offer them as a download to you all.
Seamus, Hugo, Camilla, Everett, and James as chibi emotes!
Now on to more serious matters...
Did you know we have a newsletter? 💌
If you fancy receiving a letter from Hugo from time to time, some of our production updates are also shared in the form of the Illustrated OSAS News, our email newsletter!
You can join in on the fun at ofsenseandsoul.com/newsletter, and you'll also receive a pretty digital wallpaper of Hugo and Seamus with your subscription.
Act 2 is largely considered finished, though there are still kinks to work out in Chapter 5 and 6, so this month we've moved solidly into adding content to Act 3 of the game!
Act 3 sees the climax of the growth arcs of both routes, as well as the climax of their romance. With the end of the game so near, we're paying extra attention to bringing the whole plot together in a way that results in satisfying endings. It's the most challenging part of writing thus far, given that the rest of the game doesn't have as much branching.
The current word count tabulation for OSAS
Visuals
Seamus' backstory, as touched on briefly in the demo ("Miss Hawthorne" might ring a bell), is integral to making his route come together — and so, I've been working on how it'll be presented when it arises! The below are art style tests I worked on for parts of the game where Seamus recounts his past. This sepia, noir-like style departs from the rest of the game's style to distinguish it from its main events, as well as the way Seamus remembers his past. I'm still playing with the colours to be used, but I'm enjoying the simplicity.
Tests of a silhouetted art style for a reminiscing sequence.
(This style is heavily influenced by this style of CG from Great Ace Attorney Adventures, which I've been playing in my off-time this month. You'd think that I'd have played it sooner, since it combines my loves of Ace Attorney and Victoriana, but I've only just gotten round to it! I'd highly recommend it if you're into a bit of courtroom drama and need another visual novel to play.)
A silhouetted CG Illustration from Great Ace Attorney Adventures, which serves as inspiration for the above flashback art style.
We're also continuing onward with art for the rest of the game—namely, with backgrounds and sprites. Hugo's Bedroom is Joseph's current project, and I've started working on bases for new sprites, starting with George's! I'll be working on getting the default appearances for each sprite done over the next while, then moving on to expressions and poses.
A close-up of the in-progress Hugo's Bedroom background
A close-up of a WIP of George's sprite
Voice Acting
March also marked the start of further voice acting for the game. Independent recordings for Chapter 7 of Hugo's route with Camilla, Howard, and Nathaniel's voice actors have been made, and we held a live direction session with Seamus and James' voice actors to record for both Act 1 and Act 2. Having only recorded full scenes for the main characters, it was a treat to hear more of James!
Next up is a solo direction session for Hugo's VA, where we'll bring all the new recordings together for him to act across. Unlike previous sessions where I've been absent, I will actually be able to attend it which is very exciting!
As mentioned in our last update, we're also going ahead with audio engineering for soundbytes we recorded over the remainder of last year, after the Kickstarter. Excluding those we've already recorded and edited, there are 150 soundbytes being engineered at the moment. That's spread across 10 existing cast members who had already recorded soundbytes for the Extended Demo as well as 6 new cast members who were recording fresh!
I'm so thankful we have the privilege of hiring so many talents in all areas to bring our game to life (and this is in no small part thanks to you, our backers!)
What's Next?
As before, I'll be shifting over to artwork production for sprites first and foremost, but I'll also be getting back to work on CG illustrations. After all, what is a visual novel without its visuals? (Just a novel, that's what!)
Writing, of course, will continue, with emphasis placed on adding to Act 3's pre-ending contents and editing Act 2's early chapters so it all meshes nicely together.
I hope to finally get to those cast announcements for our new characters in April as well—I feel I've kept those VAs waiting long enough! Once their soundbytes and default sprites are ready, we'll be good to go.
And, if you're so inclined—remember to check out our newsletter at ofsenseandsoul.com/newsletter, and I'll see you in the next update!
Backer Bulletin: Steam Broadcast VODs, Act 1 Beta Closed, and Production Updates
about 2 years ago
– Mon, Feb 19, 2024 at 01:24:34 AM
Dear Backers,
Is it too trite of me to remark, once again, how quickly time has gone since our last update? This feeling never seems to fade.
While the time since our last update has been a preoccupied one on account of the Lunar New Year and general state of being alive, there has been exciting progress ongoing with the game, which you'll hear more about below!
(You may notice that this is a publicly visible update! Every so often, instead of offering separate devlogs elsewhere which repeat all this information, I'll be making these updates public. It's much more efficient this way!)
The Storyteller's Festival 2024
At the end of January, we participated in The Storyteller's Festival held by Two and a Half Studios over on Steam! You may remember we were featured in last year's festival as well, and we were thrilled to be selected again.
This time, I went all out and ran a Broadcast: For the majority of the festival, this pre-recorded stream of our leading VAs playing the OSAS Demo alongside me was looped on our game page!
I also ran a special livestream during the festival: a "Playing with History" developer's commentary on the first three chapters of the OSAS demo.
These streams are now uploaded to our YouTube channel for you all to enjoy. (I toiled and spent real sweat and tears on these, so I very much hope you do!)
You can watch the broadcasts below:
VAs Play the OSAS Demo 🎙️
Playing with History Developer's Commentary (Livestream VOD) 🤓
Act 1 Beta Access is Closed! 💪
Thank you to everyone who has downloaded and taken a romp through—and of course, do remember to access the Beta Feedback and Bug Reports Form to share your thoughts with us 💌✨
You now may be wondering...
When is the next Beta Access Period?
While we haven't put solid timelines on the readying of Beta Builds for our testers, it is unlikely Act 2 in its entirety will be ready for beta testing any time soon, due to the addition of all-new location backgrounds, character sprites, and CG illustrations. Since these are integral for the game to feel finished, it will be some time before Act 2 matches our definition of a playable product.
What is more likely is the release of intermittent bite-sized builds—containing just individual chapters from the game. More updates will come as we get closer to sharing those!
Production Updates 🛠️
Writing has been ongoing for Act 2, with chapters 6 and 7 of Hugo's route now drafted and being edited. Chapter 8 of Seamus' route is also near completion. Chapter 5 as a whole is proving to be a thorn in our sides, so we'll be outsourcing for editing support there.
With the addition of those chapters in their current state, the overall word count for Of Sense and Soul now stands at over 70,000 words! An exciting thing indeed.
The current word count tabulation for OSAS.
If you've subscribed to The Illustrated OSAS News, our email newsletter, you may have seen the completed Camilla's Parlour background already! It features most heavily in Chapter 7 of Hugo's route and is in fact the only location that chapter takes place in—and so, we've gone for an ultra-wide background! This, in combination with additional layering on this background, will give us a parallax effect that accompanies camera movements as characters move around the room.
Camilla's Parlour Background: Drawn extra wide for more camera fun!
You can see this effect demonstrated in the video below:
Current Challenges
On a personal note, the past month has been a trying time for the two of us outside of the game—as a result, the continuation of voice recording for Act 2 (which relies on the finalisation of the Act 2 script) has been put on the back-burner till March or April.
This shouldn't affect the overall timeline for production, as there is time buffer added to our schedule, but with some knots to work out in Act 2 it'll be necessary to take the time to finesse them before we can send it out for recording. (Looking right at you, Chapter 5!)
What's Next?
Up next (for myself, really) is the continuation of artwork production, and character sprites will be what I work on first so we can announce the roles for our new voice cast members! This will be handled in tandem with my writing and editing responsibilities for Act 2.
Some audio engineering will be happening as well, considering the soundbytes we collected last year have yet to be edited. Voice Acting remains contingent on the addition of content to Act 2 and 3, so we'll be recording again after the required content for Act 2 is readied.
And once (knock on wood) Act 2 is written and finalised...? After that, we'll be moving ahead with writing Act 3 of Hugo's route, which is handled by Rowan, while I shift away from writing to producing more art for the game.
