Something simple !

I kinda wanna try to do stamps for signatures in salons or something… idk

Anyway, it’s been so long since I drew him ? And I also just realized his bday is coming soon so I guess it’s fitting. 🎸

I read this tweet on X by supcocoloco saying Priya from My Candy Love and Lara Raj from Katseye are the same person, and I COULDN’T AGREE MORE!! So I felt compelled to draw Lara as Priya, mixing up their outfits!! I love her character, and her design is my favorite😭🫶🏼

1- Will there ever be new content for Eldarya?

Eldarya has come to an end. There won’t be any updates or new stories in the Eldarya universe.

2- Which of the characters you created is your favorite? 

I no longer answer this question as I unfortunately receive multiple hate comments and I get accused of favoring some characters over others. On top of that, I tend to appreciate a character more the more I work on them and develop their story and appearance. Each and every character of mine gets the same amount of attention so that players can pick what they like best. Plus, each character has its own fandom and/or fanclub.

3- How much time did it take you to create a full My Candy Love (MCL) High School Life (HSL) episode? 

The time I spent working on an episode would vary greatly because I used to work (almost) alone back then and I created the episodes from start to finish. Thus, I can’t give an accurate estimation of the overall time spent.

We now have a full-fledged team so production is different when it comes to MCL NG: it takes several weeks or even months to provide a finished episode from scriptwriting, sketching and rendering the illustrations, creating different iterations for said illustrations, designing the clothes, testing and translating the game

It generally takes three months to finish an episode but it may take more or less time depending on the complexity of the episode.

4- If you could go out with one of MCL’s crushes, which one would it be ?

I can’t say… They all have their own intricate qualities which makes choosing all the more difficult. This is also one of the greatest qualities of the otome genre.

5- Why have Kentin and other crushes been deleted in University Life (UL) and Love Life (LL) ?

That choice was made by the direction. I was neither told about it nor was I given the choice to contest their decision. Some original crushes were deleted in favor of adding new ones such as Rayan and Hyun. I enjoyed writing the new characters and their stories still, but the original decision did not come from me.

(continued) How many characters do you like to work on? 

Usually, I like working on 5 characters because it isn’t too big a panel to sacrifice the different character stories in favor of choice. In the future however, I’d like to work on a smaller panel of 3 characters so that I can fully focus on each character creation and its development which includes more detailed interactions and more in-game choices in a way that is not overwhelming.

(continued) How do you incorporate choices in a Visual Novel (VN) ?

In order to successfully add choices in your VN you must go from broad choices to more precise choices: it’s like a tree structure. Each character has its own main story, its turning points, and its less important yet more natural choices to make. The more choices you add to your VN, the more difficult it becomes to keep track of the scriptwriting because you must keep in mind all of the different junctions in the story that can occur. This can make it challenging to write a coherent story but in the end it does make a compelling and complex story.

6- Do you take inspiration from existing characters when creating your own ?

We as humans are always influenced by what we read and see. However, I try to distance myself from what I know so as to not copy the things I like and therefore offer original and never seen before content.

7- Considering that generative AI being used everywhere is becoming the norm, do you intend on using it in your games?

No. I am strongly against AI and so is the graphic design team. The direction has already tried to persuade us to use it in the future but we strongly oppose it and we will stand in the way of using AI in our projects. As of now, no AI was used in any of our games and there is no plan to add it in the future.

8- What sparked the idea of creating Eldarya ?

>Eldarya is a mashup of things I like in general with a touch of originality, all of which is displayed in an innovative form.

9- Do you play other video games or VNs during your free time ?

I do not have much time to play anymore but I recently played Sweet Carol and Dispatch. When it comes to otome games, I played Mystic Messenger a while back.

10- Many in the community see Thomas from MCL New Gen (NG) as someone on the autistic spectrum. Did you write his character intending for him to be autistic? 

I did not create Thomas specifically for him to be on the spectrum. I’m not well-versed enough on the subject to offer proper representation. Both his personality and his manner of talking came to mind naturally… because, you know, that’s how Thomas is. If the community likes Thomas and considers him to be autistic as well as relate to him because of that, all the better.

11- How would you explain what an otome game is to someone not familiar with the genre ?

I would say it’s based on the same principle as choose-your-own-adventure books which would focus on the evolving relationship between the main characters and the drama ensuing from it.

12- Why did you decide that Thomas would be a crush in MCL NG when the community first knew Thomas as Iris’s minor little brother in HSL? What pushed you to make the shift from little kid to full-fledged crush?

The two games occur during different timelines. The characters from MCL NG never knew Thomas when he was a child. In NG, Thomas is an adult, and not only does his addition to the game allow for the two games to be metaphorically linked, but it also recalls the characters from both games. 

13- Why do Jason and Ysaline use french casual speech (tutoiement) from the beginning despite being in a professional environment? 

Jason was never professional to begin with so casual speech came naturally.

(continued) Was this choice made for the translation to be easier?

No. The game is first written in french. It is later translated by a team of professionals who come from a country for whom the text is translated and adapted, so casual speech and formal speech (vouvoiement) were never a translation-related problem to consider.

14- Which story in MCL impacted you the most ?

I had the most fun creating Debrah’s story.

15- Any tips to share for someone just starting their own VN ?

I unfortunately do not have any specific tips to share as I am self-taught.

The best advice I could give you would be to surround yourself with people who will help you better yourself and grow. Also, don’t forget that VN creation takes way more time than you think it would.

16- Will there be an online shop in the future ?

We do not intend to re-open an online shop at the time being.

Back when it was operational, the online shop wasn’t profitable and it was a hassle to manage all year long. For instance, the cost of managing and storing the stock would pile up and on top of that we could only order medium sized stock at best due to lack of demand.

17- Do you have a favorite game between MCL and Eldarya?

I do not have a favorite between the two even if I tend to like fantasy settings in stories more.

18- Have you already planned the end and the final number of episodes for MCL NG ?

Yes, the number of episodes is set and so is the ending. However the story is still being written.

19- Do you have anything against fanfiction ?

As long as the author is honest and credits the source material I have no problem with it, have fun !

20- Does the Beemoov team have a schedule for 1AP weeks?

Direction decides when to place 1AP weeks spontaneously, there is no schedule to speak of and I don’t know when the next 1AP week will take place.

21- Considering you’ve been creating visual novels and otome games for a while now, how do you manage to remain motivated? What made you decide to create visual novels? How do you deal with negative/hate comments online? 

My beginnings were spontaneous, I did not bother myself with any questions before jumping in. I wanted to do it, so I did.

The community’s feedback was very useful as it helped me grow. When the feedback becomes more negative I do some reflection.

The Internet as a whole is getting worse as time runs by: it’s becoming more and more violent so that makes it difficult to stay motivated. Some days I find myself wishing to create something else and I wonder if I haven’t already explored all the different possibilities of my line of work.

Nevertheless, my on-and-off will to create pushes me to move forward. I am trying my very best to please every player even if it’s becoming somewhat more complicated to do so as time goes by.

22- If we were in another timeline, what game would you have loved to work on?

I would have loved to work on Baldur’s Gate. I like its universe, the RPG side of it as well as the story and its romance options.

23- How did you write Castiel, exactly?

He was written to be complicated to deal with: the player has to be able to manage his mood swings and his sense of humour, which makes him puzzling to understand since the way he takes an answer may be positive or negative depending on his mood. 

24- What do you take inspiration from?

I do not have any specific source of inspiration… I used to read mangas back when I was a teenager, I watch series and movies but I simply do not have as much time as I used to. I recently started to read romantasy again a year ago. A lot of my inspirations come from my own experiences.

25- How do you pronounce the names of your characters?

I don’t enforce upon anyone my own pronunciation, but here is how i articulate some of the names : 

Armin (aʀmɛ̃ / arm-in) (FR phonetics)

Kentin (kɑ̃tɛ̃ / kent-in) (FR phonetics) 

Castiel (kɑ:siɛ:l / ka-ssiel) (FR phonetics) 

Lysandre (ɫi:sɑ̃dʀ / lee-ss-and-r) (FR phonetics) 

Jason ('dʒɛzɔn / jay-zon) (ENG phonetics) 

Leigh (ɫi:s / lee-ss) (FR phonetics)

26- Will you create a new fantastic story after MCL NG is over?

Currently there is no new project in production at Beemoov. MCL NG takes up most of my time (especially scriptwriting) which ultimately doesn’t allow me to focus on other projects for now.

27- Will the MCL anime ever have a comeback?

Back then Beemoov financed the MCL cartoon pilot available on Youtube hoping to send it to producers, to no avail. We do not have any contact with any animation studio and this particular medium requires specific abilities as well as an extensive budget. The cartoon will not resume in the future… unless Netflix wants to send me an e-mail ?

28- How much time did it take to finish Moonlight Lovers? What were your inspirations when creating the vampire characters?

When it comes to character creation I wanted to detach myself from modern representation of vampires in media such as Edward from the Twilight saga who is inoffensive and sparkles under the sunlight.

Unfortunately, when it comes to ML, it came to a halt multiple times during its production due to frequent staff turnover which in turn generated important delays.

(continued) Who among the vampires would be the most evil/violent?

It would either be Neil or Ethan. It’s a battle between the white-haired men.

29- Has MCL NG suffered changes midway through production? What about episode 21?

AS NG didn’t go through any major changes midway through production since episodes are made a long time in advance and changes following the player’s feedback can only be applied much later. A few adjustments were made in order to cater to the player’s demands although I won’t say anything more so I won’t spoil anyone.

Regarding episode 21, I do not recall any major change being made on this specific episode, however it did happen on a few previous episodes. We try to anticipate the player’s needs as much as possible, however only the final result can testify to our success or not.

A few changes were planned from the beginning such as alternative outfits for the LIs. We try to balance episodes so if one episode is more centered around Jason then the next episode will revolve around another character and vice-versa.

30- Rayan’s character is seen as problematic by many, notably due to his role as the player character’s professor and the age gap between the two. How did you create Rayan?

The direction made the original decision to include a professor crush in the game. I was skeptical about this decision at first, but not opposed to it. Rayan was added to the cast to create a hidden/taboo romance story between a teacher and his student. Even though I don’t like it very much to be told what to do I still found this “scandalous” relationship interesting to work on.

The character might be surrounded by controversy; however, he remained respectful in his behavior from start to finish. Furthermore, we added an option in the game letting the player choose a dialogue locking Rayan out of interactions with the player character in a romantic setting. Everyone is free of choice, whether it comes to choosing your favorite character, messing with the different options available, or testing the different consequences just to have fun discovering the multiple options.

31- Which historical era would you like your next story to be set in?

Futuristic and post-apocalyptic stories aren’t my cup of tea. If I were to create a new story I’d like it to be in an older era, maybe in a medieval or a fantastic setting.

32- Would you rather have kept all the original crushes from MCL HSL and moved them over to UL and LL? Has Hyun’s character been created to cater to some demands during the rise of Kpop?

I would have liked to create UL and LL featuring all of the original cast from HSL but the decision was made before I even had the chance to think about the project. The only thing I know is that if UL kept the original cast, I would have written something reasonable about Lysander’s breakup as he is very calm and is a good communicator. It might have been more difficult to add drama resulting from this specific breakup.

Regarding Hyun, his creation wasn’t to cater to a specific demand but rather an attempt at innovating.

As for the creation of AL, the project was greenlit after countless demands me and my manager addressed the direction. I think I coaxed the agreement out of them.

33- Canonically, do Lysander and Castiel ever make up?

Lysander and Castiel were never on bad terms. They continued to see each other and Lysander never stopped helping Castiel in his music career.

34- Which process is your favorite during the creation of a story?

My favorite part would be brainstorming the basics of the story, its characters and their background, as well as how to convey emotions. Presently, I edit my scenarios a lot which is time-consuming and thus takes all of my focus. However, it allows me to reconnect with the joys of creation.

35- A picture of an exclusively male Beemoov team is circulating online and because of that there have been rumors that Beemoov is a male-centered company which aims at making money off of women-centered media and interests. Is that true? 

The picture you’re mentioning dates back from the very beginnings of Beemoov. In this picture you can see the developers of the studio who are mostly men. However, the rest of the team is composed almost exclusively of women, whether they’re in marketing, in testing, or in translation… I myself work on the scenario and take the responsibility of editing or re-writting if necessary.

36- Will there be any new crushes on MCL NG such as Brune?

Secondary characters will not become datable in the future since the core scenario has been approved already. Including additional LIs at this stage of the story would add a ton of work and would disturb the pace of the blooming relationship between the player character and the LIs. 

37- How is it to work at Beemoov?

Beemoov enforces decisions at the beginning and towards the end of each project. One example would be to remove/add a character or to cater to a specific demand. They intervene on the economic model of the game but I have full creative freedom once the project is in production. I might have to defend and explain my choices from time to time but my creative freedom is seldom impacted.

38- How did you land on the final title for the game “Amour Sucré” in french?

It took a lot of time to find a suitable title for the game as the previous attempts we made would redirect to adult content online. The title of the game had to be cute, hint to romantic content, and be family-friendly.

39- Why does Alexy cheat on Morgan during MCL LL?

This was a narrative device used to add drama to the story: it further develops other elements of the main story without negatively impacting the player character itself. 

40- What are Ezarel’s parents’ names?

The names of the love interests’ parents are mentioned during Eldarya season 2– a season I barely worked on. Personally, I haven’t thought of Ezarel’s parents’ names.

Notes, editing and translation by @arcana-chan, @veraluminista et Chrome. Drawing of our pristine physical and mental state by the talented @arcana-chan !

This past weekend I went to the Ready, Set, Romance! convention in Paris. Beemoov's booth was very cute with so many posters of MCL and Eldarya. I couldn't attend the whole event but lots of interesting things happened including a Q&A, round table about visual novels, and lots of nice conversations between Chino and players, so I decided to collect in this post many of the questions that Chino answered. (Long post, more below the cut)

Q. Why did you include a threesome scene in Lysander AL when he is described as being very jealous? And did he and Castiel also touch each other? How did it work? A. Having a threesome scene was always part of part of the fandom's fantasy, it was something that was requested a lot and we do try to incorporate the fandom's requests to some measure, while trying to remain true to the characters and story. Of all threesomes requested, Castiel and Lysander are the two characters that have the strongest friendship, so this is the only threesome I could see potentially happening in the story. We know it's of course not something all players want that's why it's still a very clear choice, for the player as well as for Lysander (you can choose for Lysander not being into the idea). Also it's only one possible branch. It is less canon than the other branch, which includes the proposal and follows with the wedding. No, Lysander and Castiel did not touch each other, they focused on Candy of course! But as for everything else it's basically open to imagination, you can picture the logistics of it as you wish 😅

Angry Nath on a stamp by @chinomiko