Newsletter 1

Hello! It’s 2ndgear, the director of Undertale Lavender, and the team’s been working hard to bring you our first (EVER) newsletter. This is a pretty monumental occasion for the project, so we hope you enjoy what we show off. In this first newsletter, you’ll see what we’ve been up to ever since we started work on the game, and you’ll hopefully have a clearer vision of our goals by the end of it.

SOME BACKGROUND

While UTL only went public last month, the project has been in concept phase for around two years. @Velora and I (@2ndgear ) spent this time fleshing out a story, making necessary edits, and composing songs for the game. As a result of this prior work, the progress on OST and story is VERY far ahead! And, therefore, our team has made a lot of progress upon this framework; we can’t wait to show you what we’ve done.

But you’re here to see some tangible results, of course! I don’t wanna hold you up. So let’s move into something far more interesting - very, very interesting!

PROTAGONIST DESIGN

Most importantly of all, the reference sheets for our fallen human (Sterling) are finally completed! We went through multiple iterations of the design, but I believe you’ll love the one we landed on. Behold, the fourth fallen human, bearing the soul of Perseverance: Sterling.

This incredible piece by @Franbobisdrawing perfectly demonstrates our vision for the character. In due time, we’ll be releasing other renditions of Sterling by more members of our incredible art team. Here’s how he’ll look in sprite form, illustrated by @Ajiyuu7 and @Peacefulorenz :

But appearance is only one half of Sterling’s character. You might be wondering - doesn’t the Perseverance soul need a Torn Notebook? Something to keep records in, perhaps? Well, we’ve decided to subvert that a little bit in Lavender. 

Sterling’s notebook is a character that will speak to him throughout the game. An expression of his SOUL? Perhaps. A magical presence, simply seeking a vessel? Maybe… We’ll be revealing more about this twist soon.

However, Sterling’s notebook has a double-sided purpose as the focus through which Sterling casts magic. In Lavender, its role permeates both gameplay and story! For more info, check our updated blurb.

PROFILE RENOVATIONS

“What? Updated blurb?”

That’s right, we’ve updated our game’s description with some much-needed information! This has been long overdue, and we’re so glad that we can finally supplant the old, boring placeholder description with something that represents the effort going into the project. In addition, we’ve updated our profile with new assets:

A new profile picture and banner, both featuring Sterling! Illustrated by @Ajiyuu7

Description headers, courtesy of @Peacefulorenz (Check out the description to see them all!)

We’re so grateful for these contributions by our art team! And, if you’re interested, make sure to check out the new profile. Maybe while you’re there… drop the game a follow???

NEW OST TRACKS

Before I get into the new tracks we’re releasing, I want to thank everybody for the positive feedback on the current OST! We’ve received plenty of messages, both public and private, praising the tracks that we’ve uploaded so far; our new members on the composing team have cooked up some more for you all. You’ll now find, on our profile:

• FALL - @MidRow

• Uwa!! So Purple - @im8lues

• Library, But It’s Spelt Correctly This Time - @Velora

• Rise Above! - @2ndgear (you guys are gonna love this one... )

• First Floor - @Peacefulorenz

We hope you’ll enjoy these! They'll be out on our YouTube channel shortly.

They also share a couple of details about the story that won’t be revealed for quite a long time, so listen closely. More tracks will be uploaded with future newsletters and when we reach follower milestones.

ACTUAL GAME PROGRESS, PLEASE?!

Okay, it’s about time we address this!

In regard to planning, the Pacifist and Genocide routes are fully drafted, with Neutral well underway. This is a combination of our efforts in the 2 years leading up to the project’s announcement, and contributions by Team Lavender to polish the overall arc.

In regard to programming, we’ve decided to build a cohesive engine from scratch in Godot.

This will take time, but if it means an easier time for the programmers in the future, it’s well worth it. It allows the other members of the team to create ideas as the engine is being built, and will result in a better end experience for the playerbase. (That’s you!)

So, it’ll be a while longer before we share game screenshots - feel free to visit the updated blurb to learn more about the game’s concepts. (This is the millionth time I’ve mentioned it, but you’ll love it, trust me.)

A TEAM LAVENDER REFERRAL: ASCENT

As a side note, you should definitely check out UNDERTALE: ASCENT. [https://gamejolt.com/games/undertaleascent/972064] One of our composers, @im8lues , has done some incredible work for it in conjunction with the rest of their team! If you like the way that UTL is going, you’ll love the stuff they’re doing over there as well.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Well, that should wrap up our first ever newsletter. Thanks for coming along with us! On behalf of all of Team Lavender, we appreciate your support greatly. If you’re at all interested, be sure to follow the game on GameJolt if you haven’t already! We’ll be frequently posting new content.

Stay safe, keep persevering, and remember,

B E W A R E     T H E     F O U R - P O I N T E D     S T A R .