Heya, wltr3565 here. The game’s progress right now is pretty close to the game’s conclusion. If things go well, the game will be clearable by December. By that point, the game will only require several tweaks and balance adjustments until the game can be considered gold. For now, let’s have this devlog explain the current state of the game.
The Dilemma of Simplification
Firstly, as the game’s programmer I wish we never have to reduce the game’s skill ceiling. It must be admitted that the streamlining we have done to the game reduces your options to push the game’s boundaries. The game is designed from the very start for each Day to be detailed. The 5+2 recipe is already good too. In the long run being fixed with 4+3 (or 2+5, 6+1, etc) recipe will feel suffocating. Your daughter’s Max Stamina can increase, after all. She will be able to handle things better as time goes on.
Although in the end, maybe this is a necessary sacrifice. Inputting 7 unique decisions in a row instead of 4 might be too intimidating. It reduces the number of button presses up to 3 presses to complete 1 Schedule as well. Still, I’m concerned about this. I hope you guys can give us feedback if this simplification is worth it or not. For this game, the sky is the one that decides the allowed limit. Either way, it’s our job to make your decision-making in the game as comfortable and meaningful as possible.
Also, the game’s long playtime estimation is because of the slow max animation speed of the Week Progress. No simplification can drastically reduce the game’s actual speed. We still need to test this by playing through this game. We’re targeting to have the game clearable under 5 – 6 hours with full-speed skips from start to finish. That means the game have to be able to make 1 Week to be over within 37 seconds. I do believe the game can do better than that. We will adjust the game’s speed further when the team is done clearing the game multiple times.
By the way, regarding the Grid and List mode of the Schedule interface, we’re still figuring out how can you guys choose between the two. We will tell you guys when it got properly implemented. One of the reasons why the game’s Schedule interface got a facelift is to make the process more comfortable, especially when you’re using a touch screen.
Ciel’s Hidden Power…?
The thing that doesn’t get simplified? The Battles. It has returned to its original form. Your daughter deserves to have her capabilities to be tested to her limits on various situations, after all.
The Technique Slots returned to become 3 again. You can put in any kind of Techniques as you wish too. No restrictions because of differing types! Put any of them as you wish and experiment with them to your heart’s contents! Social norms still apply, though, so please be careful. You can use the the ones marked with the caution mark, of course, but you will get penalized. Oh, do you feel like the Techniques are useless? We have made the game more difficult and designed more around the Techniques, so please look forward to many challenges the game will provide!
Your daughter’s Power Up (Wish we have a cooler and more accurate name for this one) is still available. This is tied to her SPI now. The details? Let’s just say the better her SPI the better this power will work for now. When she uses this it she will get so focused it’s as if the time has stopped. Yes, you can stop the time with this. Great for when you’re in a pinch, huh? The cards will turn into rainbow too. Setting them up will give her Rainbow Power Stock. It will substitute any color for the Techniques!
This will strain her, however, so she will only be able to use it once per Battle. Use it wisely!
Oh, the Card list on the right will tell you which Card will appear when you Draw one. This is available when she has enough SPI. A great ability to have to be able to plan ahead!
The Supports’ Arsenal
Oh, it’s time to talk about the weapons.
To be frank, the weapons for the Supports are just cosmetic. But hey, those do tell how they will do their job, don’t they? Especially Becky and her indispensable dual-pistols.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brTKVNqTJr8
Exciting Explorations
About the Exploration, this part of the game is 5 Zones away to be completed. I can’t share much, but I can share with you some stuff that you can encounter early on:
We have adjusted the game to only have 1 Node per Day in Explorations. In other words, you will only encounter 7 things at most within 1 Week of Exploring. We have to reduce it to ensure the 5 – 6 hours playtime target achievable. At least the amount of Years you have to dedicate to be able to clear all of them stays the same.
Also, the game now tells you what are the Stats that will be raised from Exploring the Zone. If you feel that Training feels sluggish at raising her Main Stats, maybe it’s time for her to take some strolls below.
That’s all for now. For those of you who want to try the latest experimental build you can find the download link and the changelogs on our Discord server:
Why on the Discord? As explained by the illustrator, the experimental builds are very fresh from the oven, both in stability and design. You can also give us your feedback as soon as possible via Discord too. We don’t recommend the build, though. Some stuff are still missing and haven’t been ironed out yet like design oversight and lack of any explanation in-game. For first time players, please download the stable version instead: http://studionamaapa.com/2018/09/demo-release-ciel-fledge-alpha-6-demo/
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