#theycallvn

not done a post, i caught the morbs and forgot, but i have been working!

finished lining the monster sprites and started colouring. worked on bg stuff also

worked on outlines for chapters 4, 6, 7, and 10.

did some research for something which... well, the last thing i searched in that particular mission for clarity was "what does it feel like to be mauled by a crocodile"

not explaining because spoilers, but yi

put ch 2 draft into the code, did the sprites n shite too. had to make a new "effect" for a scene (which i needed to add a new "flashing images" warning for - it's not too bad, i am epileptic myself and was real careful about my own limits, but it is still needed) and put in some new sprites.

also while i was doing that, i noticed something that i needed to fix. it was just something i overlooked, one of those "why is that- oh, wait. duh." things

i won't admit how long it took for me to fix cause i over thought, that's embarrassing, but i have fixed it. possibly. no issues yet, anyway lol

wrote stuff for ch 2 (new scenes) & ch 3 (added detail) also

two sneak peeks. first, a bit of writing:

and second, some art. i said i wouldn't be showing anymore peeks of monster bb, but oh well:

wip peek cause i haven't finished shading

gonna keep working on various stuff til bed time but pretty sure all wips will remain wips so i'm gonna go ahead and post this early

finished the lines this morning, finished the colours this afternoon, put it into the files + added it to the meeting bb cg as a background as intended.

it took a bit of trial and error to get the angle right, but i managed!

so yes. sneak peek, as you've seen ^

this means that i have all the art needed for demo done! gonna do some edits to put these last pieces in, then get the files ready so i can send it out for testing

fuck man i'm so nervous and excited and scared. it's just the prologue, it's not even the whole game, but i'm just so fucking anxious about it ksjdhalkjh

Is this romance-centric?

Only if you want it to be. They Call is first and foremost a story I desperately wanted to write, and that will always be the core of it. What you build for yourself within that story is up to you.

Why keep the information to yourself?

To be blunt, I'm paranoid. I do not want someone to find and use any of the work I've put into this before I can even put it together. What information you have from the demo, the sneak peeks, and occasional ask (depending on what's asked) are all I'm going to share until the full release. I'm also spoiler-prone and really trying to avoid that!

Theme?

They Call is both dark and not? The story itself is dark, but it's intended to be balanced out by... mundane fluff. Both with and without the other main.

Who is the other main?

They have been called the guardian, protector, and BB, now officially named. I will continue to call them BB and I'll be tucking their name away from public posts. I'm doing this so it can be a silly little surprise for you to discover when you play!

Anyway, they are the (entirely optional) love interest. You can develop the relationship you have with them any way you want - you can even complete the story as total strangers that vaguely tolerate each other's company!

Are there bad ends?

Technically, yes, but it has nothing to do with the relationship you have with BB. There are a lot of bad ends, and I do mean a lot.

What about other endings? Any "true" ends?

Without getting too into it, there is more than one. The good ends are all the same in that they are all the "true" end. They're merely... flavoured by your choices throughout the story.

18+?

Yes, this game is definitely 18+! Not just because of the (optional) sexual content, but also because the story itself can get very heavy, gory, and generally unpleasant. At current, I'm unsure how bad it's going to be. It's already very dark, but it's still super early in development. Content warnings will be clearly displayed once I'm able to list them all!

When can we expect sneak peeks and updates?

I am working on this entirely alone. I'm writing, programming, and making all the art for it (characters, backgrounds, CGs) on my own. Which, obviously, is going to take me a super long time. Especially considering this is my first time ever making something like this! Basically, you'll get sneak peeks when you get them - sorry it's not a more concrete answer!

How much will it cost?

After giving it some thought, I've decided to keep it free. On Itch.io, anyway. There will be an optional payment thing, of course. Only $3, (the price may change) seeing as this is the first time I've ever done this.

But! If things go well, I'm happy with the finished product, and I can drum up the courage, I will put it on Steam too. (if they'll let me) But that one will not be free - same price as whatever the optional Itch payment is.

What inspired this?

In truth, it started with a (literal) dream. (You can find out more about this dream in the very first progress post!)

It was dark, violent, and I could see BB and the UI used perfectly. So I made it a reality. I will also mention that most of this is written as catharsis, using my mind and mental struggles as inspiration and creative fuel.

In terms of technicalities, though, I was inspired by my favourite visual novels. That specifically being story structure and how you develop the relationship you have with the other main.

FAQ will be edited as time goes on.

As I said, if you have any more questions, (or even suggestions based off the "progress" posts) do not hesitate! Asks are open and will remain open. I'll answer as soon as possible.

Progress posts are now a little structured - the brain flavoured rambling is still there, just under a cut beneath the summary. For summaries: - x1.0 means finished - x0.5 mean worked on but not finished

Important tags: - theycallvn (general tag) - theycallvn progress post (progress posts - what i've worked on) - theycallvn peek (sneak peek tag - writing & art) - theycallvn chat (ask tag)