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Progress Report

Death Wave (Progress Update)

In ancient texts, there once existed a rumor detailing the notion that all living entities and souls were part of the very force that brought the cosmos into existence. It follows that if Void is the power that spawned the universe, it's plausible to surmise that all mortal souls will return to the Void upon their passing. - REDACTED

The notion of VR is an interesting one, we've always wondered what it would be like to have a fully immersive metaverse, where all our senses can dive and experience virtual reality. But in reality, virtual reality is just data, and our mind is interfacing with data. Now ponder this, if we are able to digitize our consciousness to dip into the virtual reality, what's stopping us from doing the reverse? What's stopping us from having the information of the world, right here, in our mind? - Ravier Connor

Hi, and welcome to, at this point, a once in a year kind of update. I've made quite a number of progress lately, mostly in the side quests of things, because I realized they need to be pretty much completed before the story can potentially move forward. Since they do not directly spoil the story, I'm more than happy to share my progress on this area. I've also had a bit more time now that my schedule has stabilized, and able to work on the game more consistently.

New Side Story Quests!

The side quests are a trio that can be done in parallel with each other which converges to a finale in Death Wave. The following are the premise for the quests. They are also required to be completed to unlock the post game.

Treant Premise:



During the party's adventures, they will encounter a wildlife scientist residing at Viscaria City who talks about how wildlife has mysteriously disappeared from Quince Forest, and tasks the party with figuring out the cause of this phenomenon. Damien is reminded about the passing remark Isabel made a while back about the rumor of a ‘living walking’ tree that was spotted by a couple of anonymous users on @*Channel. Most have dismissed it as a hoax, but the wildlife scientist claims it isn't. What is causing the wildlife to disappear in Quince Forest?

Angel Fall Premise:

A mysterious drug epidemic has secretly been making its rounds in the country, and the head doctor for Cliva's public health ministry: Dr Hope has tasked the party with identifying and eliminating the root cause of the drug epidemic with Vexed being the primary suspect. Given their alleged law abiding nature, it is unclear if they have a hand in it, and if they do, what could be their purpose, aside from making money?

Death Wave Premise:



During the party's visit to Quince town, they stumbled upon their acquaintance Rinne Scion, the detective they assisted with in solving the murder case and Athena's disappearance together with Dr Louise de la Vallière (eerily similar to a certain historical figure), the Chief Scientist of GMO research for Super Wheat cultivation. Here, the party finds out about a mysterious ailment that has gripped Quince Town, the town where the country's famous ‘Super wheat’ are cultivated.

In their attempts to figure what was causing the mysterious ailment, they stumbled upon an old nuclear reactor plant known as ‘Omega One’ as described by a witness who saw movements in and out of the supposed incomplete nuclear plant. In there, they stumbled upon a ‘living weapon’, a calamity capable of leveling cities…

New areas!

Quince Town:



The town where Death Wave quest takes place: Quince Town. Famous for being the only agricultural-focused town, it produces 'Super wheat', a food touted by Cliva to solve world hunger owing to its locational adaptability with minimal water requirements and short cultivation time. Though many scientists have raised concerns about its genetic homogeneity, Cliva says the tradeoffs are worth it...

Omega One Nuclear Power Plant:



Another new area, Omega One is a nuclear reactor plant that was never completed. It is also part of the Death Wave quest. It is home to many irradiated wildlife, and certain drops can only be found in this area.

Viscaria Sewer Level:



Sewer levels. Yes, some more sewer levels have been added and one notable location is the Viscaria Sewers where it can be accessed directly from Viscaria Entertainment District.

That's all from me for now, there are other things in progress, and new areas to explore - like Meridome Point, which I didn't include here, as it's part of the story and still being fleshed out. I know updates are sparse and few and far between, but I'm still working on it, even if ever so slowly...

If you've read to the end, thank you for taking the time to read through it, I really do appreciate it! Hope you have a great day!

Progress Report

The Tale of Two Lovers (Progress Update)

Hi! It's been a while since I've written a progress report, but that's more so because I haven't worked on the game that much lately due to other real life commitments. But I still find time to work on it from time to time, as and when inspiration strikes. I originally wanted to write this particular post on Valentines day, but I was too busy that day.

Reminiscent 3 focuses on the origin and background story of both Aeon and Damien, the events that occurred which brought the two together in an unlikely scenario.

During this time, I've completed two full chapters, (well, the other is sort of complete). So I'll like to show off some progress. The two chapters in question are Reminiscent 3: Silent Lost and Chapter 11█: Grid Palistia


Bet your life!


What is life?


It's just a theory, a food theory!

There are more. especially from Chapter 11, but those areas are too spoiler heavy for me to include, so I did not add in for now. So for now, all the images above are from Reminiscent 3. Personally, I'll like to complete the game eventually, but it'll just take longer for now.

Hope you enjoyed this random out of the blue progress report! See you next time, whenever next time may be.

Progress Report

2020... What a Year - Progress Update

Well... this is a tough post to write.

I've been mulling over wanting to write one but not knowing exactly what to write. One thing is for sure, I am still working on this game, even though it might seem like I'm on infinite hiatus with the updates because things have been slow and the current climate doesn't exactly stimulate my creative senses.

Though, funnily enough, since my game takes place in 2020, I wonder if I should retroactively add current events into the game? I might add some interesting current events easter eggs here and there, since this game takes place around the April - May 2020 period. Hmm... I recall SpaceX's first human launch to the ISS was around May...

Anyway, I digress, here's my update report for... August?

The first Ending is Officially Complete! - For now
Huzzah! After like what? 3 to 4 drafts rewriting and reviewing the plot again? I can finally say that the first ending is complete and to my satisfaction - For now. Given the circumstances, it is likely it would change again, depending on the ultimate direction I take with the next two endings. But for now, I'm satisfied and able to move on to the next 'ending'.

Not too sure if you guys would be interested in a preview, or a spoilerish screenshot, but let me know!

Reminiscent Chapters - Damien, Lyeric and Isabel
One of my favourite things to write about is finally on the horizon, and I can start on their own individual chapters in life. Lyeric's own chapter will discuss a little bit about his past and the circumstances that led him to be adopted by the Horzon Family. It's probably the SHORTEST story out of the three, and like some of you speculated, the least involved in the overall plot.

Isabel's own story will be slightly longer and discusses about her past with the Aria Family, and perhaps answer the most important question weighing in her mind: What exactly happened to Venor Aria? Her long lost forgotten estranged brother?

Followed by Damien's story, which will be the longest of the three. It delves into his relationship with a girl he met 3 years ago, expanding on his personality and the background of Cliva and what life was like before Grid Palistia was completed.

I'm most excited about Isabel and Damien's story. For reasons I'll talk about next time.

For now, I have the draft completed and ready. So it's time to start implementing stuff!

Designing Bosses
Another thing I love doing, and spend quite a bit of time doing, apart from writing is designing bosses! I've revamped quite a few bosses and added some interesting gimmicks to make each of them feel unique. While I can't share the bosses themselves, I'll share some of the gimmicks they're using!

ID Wave - A special field effect that increases Attack on both sides of the field. Both enemies and allies utilizes 'ID Nullifier' to remove the effects of ID Wave for 3 turns. While simple, it's a gimmick that will drastically change the way you approach battles on a certain chapter! Especially for opponents who are FASTER than you...

Daze - Inspired by XCOM's War of the Chosen, this is a unique status effect that in function works similarly to Stun, but lasts for 7 -9 turns. It can only be lifted by slapping some sense into your own ally in combat. When Daze is removed, there is a chance your ally will be confused, so be wary! On a tactical level, the way you approach the flow of battle will be different. Weighing against the pros and cons of wasting a turn to remove 'daze' vs doing damage to the boss against the clock...

That's all for now! There are more interesting gimmicky fights, but I can't share them all yet!

Expanding the Locale
Another little thing I've done is to expand on the locales a bit. That's so it makes things a little easier for me when I move onto more plot heavy chapters.

Some new areas I've added:
  • Viscaria Amusement Park
  • Added some 'fun' activities to do
  • Added a new district to Marzus City


And that's all for now! I hope it's interesting and I do hope to make some more progress by the end of the year.

Thoughts on Current Events...

I just hope everything will be smooth going in the upcoming months... since we can expect the economy to plunge into further contraction in the later months and not expected to recover for the next 1 - 2 years.

For now, stay safe, stay happy, and don't despair if things look bleak! You're not alone!

Thank you very much for reading! Till then!

Progress Report

Rewrite the New Year~!

New Year, New progress update! It's been a while since I wrote these, but the main objective of writing this post is to let you guys know that, yes. I'm still working on it. I'll also talk about game's progress and how Rewrite works.

Today's update post will not have any images, as most of the content henceforth would pretty much entail spoiler, unless you don't mind. But even so, I prefer to keep it to myself for now :)

The Ending of the Game
Black Galax: Rewrite will contain 3 endings Delta, Alpha and Beta/Gamma. However, you CANNOT choose which ending you will get. Delta is the first mandatory ending that you must achieve. With the appropriate 'requirements', only then can you proceed to the Alpha ending, and subsequently Beta/Gamma.

If I were to give an example, it would be the equivalent of pursuing all three what-ifs path rather than having a collection of decision influences to result in one ending. How would it work, you ask? Well...

Game Progress: Delta Timeline (True Ending)
Currently, I'm almost done with the general outline of Delta Timeline's ending. Which means with some touch-ups, the game is TECHNICALLY COMPLETE with its first ending. But of course, it's never that simple. Before I go there, let's talk about some of the new locations and Side quests added!

New Location: Viscaria City
This city is technically still not completed yet. I still have to think about what to add to this city area. It's likely I'll only come back later to complete it once I start working on Alpha Route.

New Location: Caladium City
Home to Caladium Deus Ex, Caladium Armed Force, welcome to Caladium City! Located to the east of Merritus Island, it's the most technologically advanced city of Cliva! Home to Cliva's International Airport and Caladium's Space Program - Site X. Unfortunately, you won't have a chance to explore their International Airport :(

New Locations: Caladium Site X!
Caladium Site X is the equivalent of US's space program. It's where modules and rockets are sent back and forth from space that caters to the maintenance of Grid Palistia. Which also means...

SPAAACCEE!! I mean - New Location: Grid Palistia
Yes! You get to explore the world famous arcology satellite in space, Grid Palistia. The ultimate Grid that powers the innovations of Cliva! Learn more about Cliva's ultimate achievement while you're here!

New Location: Jalvoc Woods
A wooded forest that connects Cereus Square and Caladium City. Home to Mylarkis Ruins.

New Location: Mylarkis Ruins
It's a secret for now ;)

Difficulty Curve
You MIGHT find the Delta Timeline to be easy. As the bosses here are generally... 'holding back', their true power. It's meant to slowly ease you into the hell that is the Alpha Route! I hope you'll look forward to it! I intend to make my battles spicy and I'll make sure of it!

Side Quests: The End of all Endings
As usual, it won't just be a simple 'Side Quest'. It will have its own plot lines that will connect to the post-game of Rewrite. The side quest tree for this is pretty long, but to keep it short: They can only be partially attempted in Delta Timeline. You can only complete it in Alpha and finish off in Beta/Gamma. Yes, this side quest spans across all three endings. What could it be?

Idea: Passive Bonding Level
In case you're unaware, Rewrite introduces a new mechanic that adds Passive Abilities to each character. When placed in reserve, they will activate their passive ability to aid you in combat. It's simple, not too complicated, but I wonder if I can introduce a way to add progression to Passive abilities that is outside of combat.

The idea I came across is the idea of bonding the characters. Through special cutscenes and events, when they bond over say, a meal, a game show (oddly specific I know) and other things, they gain Bond EXP. Once they reach a new bond level, everyone's passive abilities will grow together as a whole.

If I do implement this, it'll be event base and simplistic. In the sense that since the party will almost always be together, I think it'll be fair to just implement a single EXP bar. Once their bond has increased, their passive abilities will improve too!

What do you think? I'll love to hear it from you!

Game Progress: Alpha Timeline
I've laid the groundwork for Alpha Timeline and in essence, content wise not story, it'll be an expansion of Delta. You'll face 'new' bosses, new scenarios and new areas to explore! Alpha Timeline will come with an additional chapter compared to Delta.

That's all from me today, I hope you'll have a great new year ahead! To all those who read this loooong progress report, thank you! But the tl;dr of it is, yes, I'm still working on the game, but slow as per usual.

Now back to making progress and I'll see you... Idk, maybe the mid year or something XD

Announcement

Showcase Demo / Changes (Up till Chapter 8 ONLY)

Finally! A showcase demo! Anddd it's already August, even though I said I'll release a Demo on June. Welp, better late than never right? This showcase demo only contains Chapter 7.5 (For those who has yet to complete) and Chapter 8.

The stats of the boss of Chapter 7.5 has been nerfed by ~10%!

The objective of this showcase demo is to showcase some of the new stuff that is added into Rewrite, testing Save File Compatibility while gathering feedback on certain design choices. PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE PLAYING. Very Important!

Would appreciate some feedback and bug reports if any! Thank you! The 'recap' at the start is just a text placeholder. At the end, there will be events and images accompanying a full complete recap of Revert's events.

Now...

What's added? GUI:
For Rewrite, I've used Luna Engine to create a custom battle GUI. It's still very much work-in-progress and I'll like to get some opinion on how I can make it better. Below is a demo of the Battle System GUI:



As you can see from the image, there are Four HP States. I'll elaborate a bit more below.

What's added? Battles:

HP Break System
From here on out, most of the bosses you encounter will usually have more than one HP Bar. When broken, without going too complicated, enemies can throw new gimmicks or attacks at you. An enemy can have up to five HP Bars.

State Report/Turn Counter
Now, you're able to view detailed description of your status ailments IN BATTLE via Party Command! You can access them in the 'Fight/Escape/Party' menu. A turn counter is also added for all battles, you can find them on the top right hand corner.

Reserve Buffs
Party members in the reserve party can aid you in combat via Passive Reserve Buffs. Different party members in the reserve can provide different kinds of buffs!

AI/Guarding
Some enemies now have proper targeting AI that fits the routine of their battle gimmicks/theme. Guarding now reduces susceptibility to Critical Damage and Radiation Poisoning!

Field/Passive Effects/Critical
Mainly in combat heavy chapters. Rewrite introduces Field Effects and Passive Enemy Buffs. One of the passive buffs introduces Critical Damage to the enemy side. While in Revert, enemies won't deal critical damage. Now, they do!

Force Swap/Death Mark
A state similar to 'Branding' in many MMORPGs or RPGs. When branded, or Death Marked, enemies can deal extra debuffs/damage or even outright kick your party members out of battle permanently. The only way to avoid this is via swapping.

There are more interesting stuff, but I won't pad this section with too much examples and keep it to the more notable changes.

What's added? General:

'Crafting'
For Rewrite, I've added a graphical interface to your trading with Limit Minute Crafting shop! You can now have a better idea on what ingredients you'll need to craft a certain item! You can experience a demo of this at the bottom left of Vizrel City!

New Wildlife
Enemy wildlife has DOUBLED! Which means there is a greater variety of enemies to encounter in Rewrite!

Increased EXP Curve + Increased level Cap
When you enter battle, you'll notice that most of your characters have 'deleveled'. Not to worry, that's because the EXP curve has increased together with the Level cap. The Level Cap now is the proper Level 50!

And there are A LOT more additions and changes! Too bad they will only come AFTER Chapter 8 which is what is demo is limited to. Hey, you can't reveal everything so quickly! You'll run out of stuff to talk about!

Overall Notes:
As you can see, the biggest changes to Rewrite is its Battle System! While it still keeps the original default Turn-based system from RPG Maker, it has received many changes that make fights not only more complicated, but significantly harder!

That's all for now, have a great day!
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