Home Creators Posts Import Register Favorites Logout

Content

Okay, TLS 0.59.0. I've been working on it for a while, just not making as much progress as I'd wanted. It's easier to make update posts about things that are going well, or discrete accomplishments, than to ramble about vague frustrations.

At this stage, there's a bit of an inertia Catch-22. The longer I push hard on TLS, the easier it is for me to keep all the variables in my head and maintain momentum, but the more I risk burnout. When I work on other things, I come back refreshed, but I also need to review so many details to avoid losing certain elements I'd planned.

The good news is that I'm in a great mood and really enjoying my work on TLS. When I'm near burnout, I sometimes contemplate simplifying or shortening segments, and I don't want to sell the game short after so long. The conclusion of the Incubus War isn't going to be enormous, but I promise that it also won't be a minute shorter than it needs to be.

More updates weekly, of course. Can I make a release before the holiday season begins? Probably not, but I will give it my best shot.

Meanwhile, I can finally show you all the Vhala comic! Vhala tries not to bother the harem, but if an orgy is sprawled across a hallway, she's going to walk through. ^-^ Also, I've collected the TLS comics in another place: the Steam community page. So if you think you might have missed some, or want to see a little other fanart, please check it out!

Files

Comments

Darthjake

I have to admit, I laughed so hard on that, my wife came to look in, and I had to explain the deeper meaning of the comic, but she chuckled too, even though she's not into computer games.

Grim8P

I really love all of these comics! I can definitely see this happening.

sierralee

Haha, I thought this one would be pretty opaque to others, but I'm glad it got a chuckle.

Captain Hair

GIVE ME VHALA AFFECTION SCENES! Scenes of her just going about her day and having conversations with ridiculous sex in the background sounds hilarious.

Desertopa

I'm actually really curious to see more about what Vhalla actually does for fun and how she spends time with friends and stuff. We've seen lots of bonding scenes between harem members, but not a whole lot about Vhalla's relationships IIRC. The fact that she's one of the oldest characters in Simon's social circles (older than Simon himself,) might be a bit of a barrier to getting close to some of them, but then, does she stay in touch with her old unperson comrades much? Who are her closest friends?

sierralee

Have I really given Vhala so little screen time? I like her as a character and have all kinds of ideas for her, but I guess they haven't made their way into the game as much as they could have. Vhala does have Unperson comrades, though they don't have much role in the game. In the harem, she's friends with Riala and Dari.

Q-Riff

I wonder what Vhala was like before her unperson transformation. Was she a mother?, did she make lots of sexual jokes? (much like the unsexual jokes she does now).

sierralee

Vhala was never a mother. She had a wry sense of humor, but wasn't particularly inclined toward sexual jokes. The Unperson transformation just gave her a lot of material, so to speak.

Reddy Bread

Great to see Vhala in 1 of these. 1 can only imagine the things she sees in that base haha. But I think she has a really good sense of humor especially toward the woman who are into other woman lol. As far as the update all I can say is dont burn yourself out we all love your creative genius and want it to stay at its peak for this and every other update.

WaxerRed

Damn, here I thought Vhala became an unperson to better serve during the wars with the Incubus King. Now we learn she just did it to assist with her comedy routine!

DukeLeto7

The most unkindest cut of all...

Long Tran

Balancing workflow vs burnout almost sounds like a game mechanic. That said, it's better to take the long road vs burning yourself out. ESPECIALLY if it's just you/small team.

Long Tran

...Why is ProN so scarce!? I need moar ProN!!!!! ...Dammit! I NEED MOAR PRON!!!!

Andrei Bucur

Maybe try making notes on things you might want to change/ add to TLS. Like a Things you want to do/ add to Notebook / Goals Notebook.

Andrei Bucur

After another playtrough, after the last update, I can say that I am Sorry about any negative comments I may have had about it. The more I play after each update, The more I understand what you have in mind for it and the more I'm thankful for it.

Andrei Bucur

I really liked the change you made to Simon during the last update. Effectively going from having Everything to having Nothing. A good change of pace I would say. Meanwhile I patiently await what you can come up with on next updates. keep it up when you can.

Andrei Bucur

I discovered that you could possibly take out 2 incubus kings during the fight with ship battles plus 1 more. :-)

sierralee

Haha, I'm glad that I can still get people caring about the economics of the game.

sierralee

Hello, glad to have you back! If you dislike cliffhangers, I do try to note when updates end on a concluding note. For example, the upcoming update will finish the war, so while you won't have free roam, there won't be any major events up in the air.

sierralee

I tried to include some interesting little variants. ^-^

Long Tran

1. The economy is important so of course I'd care!!!! I need that cash money for investments and affection!!!! PRON!!!!! 2. Tbh, I've barely played any game outside of Rance level SRPGs that require this level of apmost migraine inducing micromanagement since damn near EVERY action is relevant... almost to the point of overwhelming. On one hand, TLS is smartly making the most of creating a reactive, immersive, and complex games out there. You can't grind, your resources are barely adequate, and you're pretty much forced to make choices on what you can do and what you can't... to a scarily high degree while using RPGM VX:A... And I'm talking about the mind numbing level of system/eventing detail I'd expect from a AAA title... that we almost never see nowadays. Even the level design reflects that design philosophy. Every area is small sure, but serves to really hammer home how 'big the world really is'. It's hard to explain. On the other hand... All that shit ro consider can sometimes make you feel like you 'have' to play a certain way to get a certain outcome by a certain timeframe. It can feel less like playing a game/enjoying a story and more like optimizing the best run/build and you kinda forget that you're supposed to enjoy the ride. It can just feels restrictive more than freeflowing at times. Thankfully, so far the game does a good job balancing itself out that it never feels overwhelming or not fun, but it does feel like you don't get as much breathing room as one might like. Honestly, TLS, on a gameplay level, makes us really feel how cornered, broke, and despate Simon really is. It straddles the line between genius indie dev power and get gud trolling. All that being said.... I LOVE THIS GAME! ...But I think a little extra breathing room to max out everybody's affection or handle investments/research while not feeling like a life/death choice at damn near every choice would be nice too. I get that it's a balancing act and resources are limited, so milking a good system is normal... but holy shit was I blindsided by the level of 'talking to random NPC A can maybe kinda fuck you over 3 hours/events/arcs later'' moments. Upsides? Everything, even the minor random bits, feel weighty. The girls are amazing! ...I LOVE Cumdump(and the Succubi haremettes in general) and Trin. Sim9n really does feel like an older me, but less cautious and a tad greedier, but not by much. Also, does being a Chosen automatically make you stupid? Because it seems unnatural af that damn near every Chosen would conveniently be THAT useless, even as a parody. Yeah, you got Kalant, but he gives ip his power and doesn't really count. I mean, even among the Incubus Kings... you can name a few who AREN'T totally useless and are legitimately dangerous, flawed or not. It's just weird that EVERY Chosen just cones off as a idiot or useless... and yeah, even Kalant falls under kinda useless by not really using his power. ...I guess there's Ginasta, but she's more Counterguardian than Chosen... and only guys seem to be total idiots in this game....

sierralee

Yeah, the game has become increasingly detail-oriented in a way that people both love and hate. I do think there are mistakes as well as weaknesses to this style, but it's what has drawn many people to TLS, so I'm sticking with it to the end. I hope that you'll find the endgame bonuses more forgiving, at least for final outcomes. Regarding Chosen, they're not selected randomly. That's all I'll say about it now. >and only guys seem to be total idiots in this game.... Hey, give Andra some credit. =P

Long Tran

Religious zealots like her are dumb, but she's the minority example of dumb in this game.

Long Tran

NG+ gonna be a thing?

Long Tran

And no, I love the game's style and approach. I'd just like a little more breathing room here n there. Specifically, being able to max out my harem's affection.

sierralee

Sorry, probably not. It would be difficult from a technical perspective, and I don't feel I have enough to add to such a mode.

Long Tran

No NG+? sucks, but understandable. Well, if nothing else, the game's high level of depth does mean replayability tho, so I guess it's not that huge a miss. I'd just kinda wanted the chance to start the game off stronger than a Chosen off the bat. Getting screwed over by Ivala's XP bonuses ticked me off. ...Yeah. something from that far back irked me! Damn unfair blessing!

sierralee

Haha, I've wondered how many people remember the XP bonus thing. Let me just say that I have been waiting to reference it for a long time. ^-^

Long Tran

See, I'm the detail and lore obssessed kind of RPG addict that TLS was made for, so I often remember the little shit like that. Like the amount and quality of the dialogue and flavor text for just exploring.... it just makes me want to max all the girls' affection even more, which 8s kinda... almost needlessly hard sometimes. I kinda wish there were more random items in pots tho, given how many there are. But yes. Being gipped by that lack of XP bonus irked me!

Joker

These comics are fun. Is there any place where they are all collected. Would be cool to be able to read them without scrolling through so many patreon posts. Also I was curious: was Vhala on the asexuality spectrum before going through the unperson transformation. She alludes that she had sex in the past, but didn't really care for it and was happy to be rid of it entirely.

Joker

Thanks for the quick reply. I'll check them out. And thanks for your great work on TLS. One of the few games that really kept impressing me more and more as I played through it.