Status Update : 4

Progress has been slow, but things are still being worked on. Rika's route is completed which leaves only 3 routes left to draft. There are still a lot of BGs needed, but most of them I cannot get until the summer because they are beaches, parks or seasonal places and it is way too cold & grey outside to get them. 

Rika's route was so hard to write because I personally have no interest in the character. I'm going to improve it in editing, but as a character she is the most bland. I hope the route can be more of a showcase for how Tatsuki deals with relationships with others and hardships, rather than completely focused on the romance. 

I am thinking about participating in NaNoRenO this year, and I might talk about that on Twitter ^^ I have so many ideas. 

Pound Cake Diary : 5

 I have gotten a lot of work done over the past two weeks! The most notable achievement is the completion of the game's GUI. I get bored of writing the script so in between writing sessions I worked on artwork. I think it looks pretty good for what I am currently capable of. I hope to continue improving my skills! I really tried to capture the right mood. The whole game is ocean themed so of course I incorporated as many sea creatures and water motifs as possible. This included fish, bubbles, dolphins, and a lot of blue!
(This version does not have the white uniform spikes or proper lineart color. This was fixed later on.)

I really struggled with the save/load slots! This was probably the hardest GUI feature to change. When I downloaded the art for the slots from my IPad they were not transparent or PNGs like I had selected so I had to fix that. Then the thumbnails weren't centered on the slot backgrounds so I had to go through a whole learning curve to figure out how to move them T_T I was so stressed. Then the text was too high so the slots covered it...everything was a mess. It turned out well in the end so I am very pleased with myself!

I am almost done writing the first draft of Kaori's route (About 90%). She is an interesting character to write because the way other people see her is vastly different from the way Tatsuki sees her, and even the way she sees herself. The drama of her route is definitely less "stressful" than Ayaka's, in the sense that the conflicts are lower stakes (At least towards the beginning). The routes keep getting shorter and shorter...maybe it's my attention span.

I hope that my writing style doesn't seem too shoujo-esc or girly! I am female after all lol. I want emotion to come through in the story but I know that a lot of Bishoujo games/stuff written by men for men don't delve so deep into the feelings or thoughts of the characters. It's just so hard to write romantic things about girls. What do I even say? She has nice eyes, a cute smile...? ^^ I am definitely going to make an Otome game next just to treat myself!! 

I noticed that each CG I draw keeps getting better than the last, and they look WAY better than the sprites. It might create an odd contrast between janky looking sprites and good CGs but I guess that's just how the development of skills goes. It will at least add some more artistic value to the game. I know lots of people won't like how the sprites look, but I am ready to take the criticism for that :3

Happy new year everyone! I am looking forward to all the great things I will make in 2025! <3

Pound Cake Diary : 4

The first draft of Ayaka's route is complete! I am so happy with the rate things are going. This route is definitely less impactful (and shorter) than Midori's route, but that is to be expected. Hopefully with the many edits I'll be doing of the script I can make the story better ^^

I have been getting lots of BGs and now I have a good method of editing them. I just got an app that has a filter that I think works well enough with the style of the game. It's nothing crazy but it will have to do. I was able to get photos of my school when it's completely empty!! (Yes, I am still in school.) I joined a club recently so I am at the school after everyone is gone. I take photos in lots of places. It'll just pop into my mind like "Oh! This would work perfectly for that one setting in Emit Glass." and then I awkwardly take the photo hoping nobody is watching me. 

Here's a peek at what the game looks like right now. (This is one of the first scenes in the game) 

I am happy with the backgrounds I have right now but turns out the photos I took on my phone are not wide enough for the dimensions of the game. I can't change the dimensions though because I already have CGs drawn in 1920x1080 X_X

Either I crop the photos a lot which will make them look super skinny and awkward, or I continue every scene with a colored border on the edges. The blue is temporary (obviously) and I plan on making a cuter design for the border if I end up going with that. I'm not sure what would be best at this point. 

For future VNs I will make sure the BGs are the right size, which will probably mean the game will not be as wide.

ALSO- Merry Christmas everyone! I won't be posting anything on the 25th so I thought I should say this early ^^ Wishing everyone a happy holiday & stay safe <3

Pound Cake Diary : 3

Heyyy, little update! If you haven't noticed, there is now a new page on this site >:)
I finally finished the page for character bios where you can see all the girls you can romance in Emit Glass ^_^ The artwork shown on that page are the character sprites that are used in the game. Hopefully you like the style ^^ (I am not very good at digital art yet, pls forgive me if it's wonky)

I am writing Ayaka's route & am already halfway done with it!! Things are going smoother now that the routes are shorter and less emotionally taxing :-) 
I talked to a few people I know about VNs and have been getting a lot of good advice. I wish there were more resources on YouTube for making them :( There are only a few channels that make good tutorials and most of them are only about technical coding stuff which I don't really need. I prefer to look on Lemma Soft or Reddit when I have coding issues. It would be nice to have videos deconstructing Japanese VNs and how they are made...most of these videos are through a very western lens.

I can't say much about the music for the game, but the ED is completely done. The ED was written and voiced by someone who does not want to be named at this time. It sounds very good and I am really pleased with what they were able to put together. For consistency the OP is going to be done by the same person, which I have high hopes for! ^^ Thanks!!