sierralee
patreon
April 19 Update
🕑 Added 2020-04-19 20:11:01 +0000 UTCIt is almost, almost time for a clearer schedule. First, two items that may be of interest to you:
1) TLS is on itch.io
I hadn't realized there was any activity for free games on itch.io, but I've finally put TLS there now. Also, did you know that you can rate games there? I honestly didn't, and having no ratings hasn't had a negative effect on sales as far as I can tell. But this is potentially a new avenue to attract players to TLS, so if you have an account, would you be so kind as to leave me a rating? Alternatively, let me know if anything looks amiss or could be improved, as I just put up the page.
2) I'm doing a panel/AMA this week
I will be part of a potentially big panel (basically group AMA) on r/fantasy. Truthfully, I might be the least popular author on that panel (it includes Amazon Top 100 authors and some very popular web serials), so there may be a lot of new eyes on my work. I shall attempt to be appropriately scintillating. I may send a reminder message about this if anyone is interested, or unless people express disinterest now.
What Comes Next
I knew my schedule for the beginning of 2020 was going to be a bit hectic, but now I'm nearly to the point where I can breathe easier. All launches or unusual releases are done, my scheduled novels for a year are written, and I pray there will be little more promotion. I've intentionally avoided scheduling much in this upcoming period so that I would have some time for more free creativity.
What will be happening now? More normal TLS updates, definitely. Maybe the major Eustrin elements next, but since those will be variable locked, I may want to throw in some more content.
Another thing I definitely want to do is try to clear some old projects off my plate. Don't Save the Princess, unfortunately, is waiting on other people at the moment. But Once Ever After could theoretically get finishing work and a new patron beta whenever I decide to put sufficient time into it. Many types of art are done or nearly done.
I hope the less busy period will also help me think on what projects I want to do after TLS. It's been over a year since I polled everyone about a variety of things, but I still haven't decided. The end isn't imminent, but I want to have an idea fully matured before the conclusion.
Most likely I'll write something new before the end of the year. NGM, SC, and TBS together formed the first step of my writing plan. It has been both more successful and less successful than I'd hoped, depending on what metrics you use. I've been reflecting on potential ideas, but I likely won't put too much time into this in the near future because I want to invest more time into game work.
Or I might do something that isn't work, Did you know they've continued producing movies and shows over the past year? Shocking.
Anyway, other than the panel, this next week should be clear. I hope by the next weekly update, I'll have not only a clear idea of what I'm doing next, but meaningful progress on it. That's all for now!
Comments
Sierra Lee
I appreciate you sharing your thoughts! I've actually wanted to do a strategy RPG at some point, but the difficulty is indeed the engine. There's an SRPG Studio, but from what I've seen, it's limited to Fire Emblem clones. I havne't fully explored the plugins, but in the past they've often been a bit limited compared to a satisfying RPG. Though I've considered if I have an interesting take on the trainer genre in me, the specific subgenre you mention is actually one of the gaps in my experience. I just haven't tried them up to this point.
aby
Hey Sierra, since you haven't decided much about your next major project yet, if it is okay, I'd like to make a couple of suggestions, at least for possible genres for your next game: First, a Tactics-RPG or a Strategy-RPG. The big battle events in TLS are super engaging and easily one of my favourite parts of the game, so what if you made a game mechanically centered around those type of events? Be it the more moment-focused approach of the Tactical-RPGs (being a commander in a campaign, having to plan and execute battle-by-battle, trying to do the best they can for their soldiers) or the more broad approach of Strategy-RPGs (A leader overlooking a map in the face of a inevitable war, How will you organize your forces? What you must hold and what you're willing to concede? What alliances are you willing to make? Who can you trust?). I think you'd be able to write really good stories and create great puzzles and scenarios for those types of games! Admitedly, I don't know how difficult it would be to make those games from a technical standpoint. I heard there are some plug-ins that allow you to make those type of games in RPGMaker itself, as well as some other similar engines specifically for those genres, but I do not know for a fact if those would be easy to pick up. And for my second suggestion, I'd love to see what you could make in the Trainer/Management genre, something in the vein of Long Live The Queen or the Princess Maker series. Another one of my favourite things in TLS is that I think you write super nice and warm teacher-student relationships. I'd love to play a game centered around such a relationship (even if it wasn't all roses) and with your min-maxing route-planning puzzles. I feel like anything you did would be quite a breath of fresh air on that genre since, at least for adult games, most of those games end up being grindy, inevitably turning abusive, and becoming irrationally depraved as their endgame, which ironically enough ends up being a turn-off for me. Of course I am only making those suggestions in case you want to try something new and different. I love TLS for what it is and if you think you have another incredible classic RPG in you for your next project, I will eat it up all the same. But if you want to branch out, those two genres are where I'd love to see your work.
Sierra Lee
I'm doing the best I can, anyway! Soon I must take a break.
Dubsington
I know it's not a competition, but you're wiping the floor with these guys. Scintillate on, brave Sarah!
Sierra Lee
Yeah, I hope this will be an opportunity for me. The panel has started now!
snusnumrik
You are on the same panel as nobody103. Nice!
Sierra Lee
Thanks for taking the time! I've gotten these corrected, except for the Yarra repetition. It's entirely possible that something is repeated, but at the moment I can't be sure.
DukeLeto7
In the interests of being helpful, and because I don't think Sapharlantis has the RPG Maker VX Ace and the decrypter, and thus couldn't answer, and definitely not because I'm procrastinating something else; I went through the list of counter questions you asked Sapharlantis in that big giant comment thread on the TLS blog and looked up the answers for him. Teleportation Event Map: 14: Third Arclent War/Aram Events/Aram Battleground Event ID 001 Preceding Line: Hilstara: "Whew... is it finally over?" Animation should be changed to "Wind One", centered on either Event 003 (Altina/Mage) or Event 002 (Altina/Mage) depending on whether the switches 0248 and/or 0439 are on. (There needs to be a nested conditional around the show animation.) Megail "to to" Map: 14: Third Arclent War/Aram Events/HQ Campfire 2 Event ID 001 Line: Megail: "Just because we're trying to to save lives here doesn't mean we should let them walk over us." Delete duplicate "to". Yarra speech duplication: Map: The Tower/Twisted Space Calm Event ID 003 Page 3 (Minor issue phase of Synod) Yarra lines: No, I get it. I really do./I grew up thinking the older succubi knew better than me. I trusted them and assumed that at the top there must be someone even smarter./But instead, there was only the Incubus Emperor. The world I knew was ruled by a madman. Not sure what Sapharlantis is on about but I vaguely recall the second line might have been repeated in an earlier release. Sapharlantis IS playing the current release, right? --- I think that leaves the questions about mana potions restoring Yarra's SP and the probably impossible possibility of getting penalized for opening the ruins before Ancient Ruins before the Erosian Crisis/Erosian War. (Sapharlantis is a bit unclear on this.)
Rachnera
Might simply be because NSFW games are excluded from the search as a default: https://itch.io/t/126473/two-questions-about-nsfw
Nathan Phoenix
Sierra I searched for the last sovereign on my icho.io desktop app but your game so far does not show up. Looks like new games can take a while to appear but keep your eye on it. Make sure your tags and appearance options are set correctly.
Sierra Lee
It's appreciated!
pokemorph
Well couldn't rate game on phone but I left -what I hope is- a decent review I hope it helps
WaxerRed
Question for the artist known as Scintillating Sierra, "Is mayonnaise an instrument?"
JJS
Oh I get it, I'm certain I don't have to worry about that but I wonder what else she would add.
Lamsey
It means that the new Eustrin content may not be accessible yet depending on your Eustrin score (or possibly other factors). For some players, that would mean an update with no new accessible content, hence the desire to add some other new stuff.
JJS
What do you mean from the part you mention the new Eustrin update but you say that since those will be variable locked that you will add more content for TLS? Could you please clarify?
Dubsington
I look forward to the public unveiling of Scintillating Sierra.
