MARCHE100'S PROFILE

Actually, rather than make another blog I decided I'd just make a comment, since that should shoot a notice out to anyone who's subbed to Danganronpa Team.

But I am happy to announce that as of 5 PM EST, the fifth case also went smooth as butter (although it's a bit on the shorter/simpler side compared to the other cases for a couple reasons) and is completely written! HUZZAH! This is a milestone in the game's development, and I'm really glad that I made it this far, because I think writing the cases is one of the greatest challenges of making a game like this.

With that all said and done, I'll have more information on the game itself in the coming weeks as I actually get to work on it and start putting all of my ideas on paper. Or rather, put the ideas I've put on paper into the game.

author=EpicJackman
The problem with beta testing with me is that I simply don't have the time on weekdays currently (subject to change), and I don't necessarily agree with the episodic releases either (since I assume beta testers play the game episodically). Also, maybe I haven't paying as much attention to detail as I should have, but what's the point of a difficulty setting, since I presume it only affects trials? Does difficulty change how likely it is you'll die?

Other than that, the endings better be good enough to justify only having two :). I mean, I'm expecting some Zero Escape levels of immersion (No pressure). Although, a joke mode sounds strangely enticing...

Anyway, the game looks great so far, and I look forward to more, even if it means waiting for the full release. Honestly, episodic releases would be a detriment to flow and game development. I believe it should be released as a full package (no day 1 DLC plz).

Yes, ideally beta testers would play the game episodically so they can test while I create. But I wouldn't be opposed to having beta testers who just test the full game once it's done as long as they go through it in a reasonable amount of time (within two-three weeks tops would be best). I don't want the game's release to be held back too much waiting for beta testers to get back to me so I can give it some final tweaking.

Yeah, for the most part difficulty just affects trials. They're outlined on the game's page under the features section if you want to see what each one entails. But basically I know there are people out there who just want to sit back and enjoy the story. So I have some easier difficulties to cater to those kinds of people. Then I have a couple of difficulties for people who want more of a challenge. And then there's a joke difficulty just for the hell of it.

So far it's looking like I'll be making all endings available to all difficulties (going by the poll). In that case, the difficulty settings will just be there so they can play through the game at a level of challenge that suits their tastes. If you just want the story, you can have that. If you want the toughest challenge I can possibly give you, you can have that too. If you want something in-between, there are options there as well. I want there to be a little something for everyone, so everyone can play at a difficulty level that they'll get the most enjoyment out of.

As far as only having two endings is concerned, I don't think that's at all strange for this kind of game. This game of course takes after Danganronpa and Ace Attorney (as I say on the game page), and they have at most two endings and one or two joke endings. I wouldn't compare this to Zero Escape. Totally different kind of game with a totally different way of presenting its narrative. But I hope the endings will satisfy and the game as a whole is an immersive experience.

And you have a point about going episodic possibly being detrimental to the game's flow and development. But going by the poll, it looks like that isn't going to happen. So no need to worry there I suppose!

author=TerraQu
I wanna try this game. But say, I would be able to save at any time I want, right?
It's not like I suck at Ace attorney and danganronpa when it comes to trails...

Show

Save me!!!

You can't save during choices (due to a save corruption bug), but there are warnings when choices are coming up. But that's only if you're on the easier difficulties. On harder difficulties the warnings disappear. On the next-to-hardest difficulty saving is completely disabled during trials. And on the hardest difficulty saving is disabled period.

I'm undecided on whether or not I'll allow you to change difficulty settings after starting the game and choosing your difficulty. I might just make it so that if you choose a higher difficulty you're locked into it.

author: dawnbomb
Suggestions and Stuff

I'm making a conscious effort to make sure the trials aren't super short. I'm shooting to make them all at least long enough so there'll be 9-10 "cross-examinations", which is pretty average for Ace Attorney I think. Along with all the other things that trials will entail, I think trials will range between maybe an hour and a half to two hours apiece. That's just a rough estimate, though. I have no idea of how long they'll actually be until I start making them. I can't imagine any of them would be much shorter than an hour and a half, though. Of course, how long they are will depend on how quick on the take you are with contradictions and such as well as if you press statements during testimonies/arguments or if you go straight for the contradiction as soon as you see one.

Honestly though, making sure cases are long enough has certainly been one of the more challenging aspects of writing this. I'm currently working on case three and while I've had a general idea in my head for a while of what I want to do with it, it just wouldn't make for a decently sized case alone. So either I have to throw some more twists and turns in there to give it some meat or I have to rework the case from the ground up.

That said, I'm really trying not to pad cases out with unimportant things. Like I don't want you to get through some cross-examinations and go "Wow, those last few testimonies were totally meaningless. What a waste of time!" I want everything to try to bring you a step closer to the truth. And I want everything to work well with the case and not feel like it was added just for the sake of padding.

But enough about that. I'll probably blur the backgrounds once I finish writing and start making the game in earnest.

I'll fool around with the text once I start making the game, too. Not sure about the text box. Might make it float above the bottom when all's said and done. Maybe not. I'm pretty happy with it the way it is now (it's similar to Danganronpa 2's text box). But I might experiment with it a bit while I'm fooling around with the text.

Charles's image is one thing I'm not going to change. There's a good reason for that, although I'm not at liberty to say what that reason is. It may be plot related. Plus the stark contrast between his image and the drawn images of the other characters lends itself pretty well to the absurdity of the game in general.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

P.S: I'm not gonna make a blog about this or anything at the moment, but for anyone reading the comments, I'm going on a pretty long car trip next week to visit some family. On the ride, I'm going to knock out the details of every other case. All in one fell swoop. So expect a blog post towards the end of next week saying I've finished writing everything.

I'm using a PS3 controller with XInput Wrapper and Xbox 360 Controller for Windows software from Microsoft's website. So, my PS3 controller basically acts as an Xbox 360 one. I don't believe that there's really a difference.