(Big thanks to @colorfulspirit for this month's shitpost! You da best.)

Oh it's update time again already? Man. Wasn't it New Years a second ago?

Anywho; today's update mostly concerns the writing process of the game, particularly as it relates to Team Spice. I won't be covering any real plot details here, but if you're hoping to go into that route blind now is a good time to switch off!

Now, with that out of the way...

In retrospect, I think one of the reasons I found it so easy to write Sugar's route is because I was drawing at the same time. Taking a step back to do sprites, backgrounds, and CGs gave me opportunity to think about the characters and how to fit them into the story.

So, there was my problem: the art is already done. With that part of development gone, how was I going to better visualize Team Spice's route?

Solution: MORE ART.

(Rough art. That's dubiously canon.)

Specifically, the first chunk of this month was spent on character dynamic sketches. Every possible duo in Team Spice got a sketch, and a few train-of-thought-y notes to help dictate their interactions.

I'm not going to show most of these off as I don't want to give anyone the wrong impression about what their finalized histories are. Even when I had sketches I liked, I still had to go back and cross-check them with their designer's notes!

Regardless, seeing everything on paper highlighted which characters needed the most work. And what jokes I was using far too much.

Team Spice's dynamic is a lot more solid in my brain now. If Sugar is a heist team that operates in the safety of the suburbs, then Spice are urban explorers. For one reason or another, they've all made trips back into the Circadian ruins -- and had to improvise ways of dealing with its many hazards.

'Course, they still need a safe place to live when they're not doing stupid shit -- which is why they get so mad when Sugar starts bringing chaos back to the part of town that's supposed to be quiet.

And they all get especially mad when something happens to the Cafe.

Speaking of, the Cafe has had a few minor adjustments to fit the second draft. Here's a small preview of something I discussed last update: the Cafe Wall!

Much like the view from the train station in Sugar's route, you'll be able to examine and discuss the weird stuff on display. Doing so doesn't change anything from a mechanical standpoint, but it's a nice way to acknowledge important hobbies and backstory characters the cast might have.

And who knows? Maybe there's a clue about Ria's disappearance buried in there somewhere...

Hoo, okay. Now it's time for the boring (but necessary) part of the update.

My final semester of University begins tomorrow, and if all goes well I'll have a Master's degree by the end of it. As such, this game may need to be shelved while I focus on my studies.

As stated in the past, I have contingency plans in the event that I am unable to finish this thing before the 2021 Fight. I can guarantee at least one more update to this project, but if I go radio silent for a month or two please don't be alarmed!

Thanks again for following along, and I'll (hopefully) see you in March.