Pulse Devlog #1 - Character Arcs or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Conflict in Storytelling (Patreon)

I apologize in advance if these devlogs are overly rambly. I thought it would be fun to get some ideas out there to give more insight on Pulse and its development, but a lot of this will be fairly loose and stream-of-consciousness. I hope you enjoy them, and as always please leave any feedback you have. 

Central to any high quality adult (read: smut) game is memorable characters. Obviously, this is central to just about any story-based medium, but with adult games, there’s always the question of why we experience these (often lengthy) stories compared to just, say, watching an adult video, or looking up gifs of our favorite characters getting nailed. Adult games allow the players to feel a level of personal investment and build-up that is unlike most other smut mediums. It’s more than just “I want to see a gif, or a video, of this character model I like being fucked.” There’s a connection that you build, where you want so desperately to see that payoff. It’s kind of beautiful.

The earliest moments of conceptualizing this game were based around one central premise: “What if Batman (for lack of a better term) cucked The Joker?” Now, the game has certainly evolved beyond that premise (a lil bit), but the idea of conflict being a central component of that payoff has remained. What if our hero discovered that a romantic interest was secretly a criminal? What if he didn’t discover it? How does he balance spending his nights beating criminals to a pulp with being a, well, horny bastard? The scenarios are endless.

I wanted to create a game where the supporting cast felt dynamic and alive. The MC of this game is busy, and his life doesn’t revolve around any single character’s existence (except maybe Lydia’s), so likewise their lives shouldn’t revolve around his (again, except maybe Lydia’s). They have goals, multiple priorities, conflicts of their own. They have things they need, things they want, and character flaws that get in the way of them achieving these. MC can get involved in these, but sometimes they also just need to sort out their own shit.

These characters started with archetypes (the quiet loner, the tormented rebel, the ambitious reporter), but were developed from there based on those needs and wants. Some of these characters will change and evolve as the game goes on, some will regress and become worse versions of themselves, and some are so stubborn that they’re immune to change. But despite those differing outcomes, I want each of their arcs to feel earned, and that centers around that core philosophy of pay-off. MC’s dynamics with them revolve around more than just taking 20 episodes to hook up with them (though yes, that may occasionally be a thing. We love a tasteful slow-burn). Some of them become close allies, some are troubled love interests, and some are even sworn enemies, but my goal is that all of them feel like someone you can be invested in.

Part of this also centers around you, the player and supporter of this game. Throughout development, I will be sure to put out polls, Q&As, etc. in order to understand which characters you feel drawn to, which feel cold, and which you wish had more screentime. I have plans for all of them, but your feedback will be essential in shaping the end result of how their stories play out in this game.