Chapter 1 and 2 Progress - April Demo?

It hasn't been very long since my last devlog but I felt like I've made enough progress that it was worth sharing regardless.

If you've been keeping up you'll know that my focus recently has been on creating the games Chapter 1 and 2, as well as further quality of life improvements. Unexpectedly, and way ahead of schedule I have completed the vast majority of Chapter 1.  So today we'll be taking a look at that and what to expect from it.

Chapter 1

When asked in the past why the demo began with Chapter 3 I have repeatedly explained that the games first two chapters are quite different and don't reflect the core gameplay experience.  If you've seen Chapter two you might have wondered just how different it actually was since it largely looked the same. But Chapter 1 is where that claim really shows itself.  The games prologue takes the form of a strange visual novel styled sequence. 

The imagery in this section is quite a bit different as well.  And the first things that aren't REALLY created by me.  Shout out to Potat0Master  and Pandita Studio whose asset packs I used to create these strange school images that are featured in this section.  Backgrounds are very much not my speciality and while I'd love to have created all the art in my game, I also don't want to hold it back by having the intro look pretty shoddy.  But yeah so back on track, you awaken in the evening finding the class empty.  A strange silence fills the room.  What do you do?

And you better get used to being asked that question, because this whole prologue is a sort of "choose your own adventure" kinda thing. There are several routes you can take to get to the ending, and there's a few different endings you can get here as well.  Well, "endings." There's only ever one outcome to progressing to Chapter 2 but you can get there via a variety of paths and under different circumstances. As well as that there is a possible Dead End available which likewise is only treated as one unique ending but there are variants with different text for how you end up dying.

Speaking of dying, I bet you're wondering HOW you would die in an empty school building?  Great question, and the answer is, you're not exactly alone.  While it's perfectly possible to avoid Death here, the chapter gets quite a bit more exciting if you  find yourself in a tense chase sequence. It's not a very long chapter so I hope you'll enjoy messing around with the variety of routes you can explore and seeing how different things can end up.

Regardless though, as long as you manage to survive, you will find yourself here. Standing in front of a strange mirror. Compelled to walk forward. As you've likely already done in the game numerous times, you'll step through that mirror, and find yourself in a strange new world. And what do you find on the other side?

A world that has changed from black and white, to full color. A strange girl sits at a desk in the occult club room and asks you a question. But I won't be spoiling just what she asks yet. You'll have to wait and play the game yourself to find that out.  I'm sure some of you will also see the obvious reference that this image is.  I'll just say I love that game but please don't think this MEANS anything lol.  This isn't a subtle hint or anything it's just a cute shout out!

And from there, the scene transitions to Chapter 2.  I've already covered that section in the last devlog so I won't go over it again here. I want to reiterate that in terms of narrative, these new chapters will completely change the way you look at Project Red, and the story being told. The context you are given here for what is happening is some weird shit that might make your head spin.   I'm excited to see how people will react to the revelations, though I always get a bit anxious with big things like this haha.

I do have several other updates to share so don't go anywhere just yet. 

Voice Over Updates:

We've got some news in regards to voice overs! First of all Scarecrow will be fully voiced in the April update.  I've already got his lines and added them to the game.  Likewise I have added more voice lines for Hati's optional conversations.  The two boys just need to get their battle lines added in and they'll be all set

Additionally not only has Cheshire FINALLY been cast but her role has been recorded and completed.  She will also be fully voiced in the next demo update.  Red will also have TONS of new dialogue to go with the above three characters, as well as some brand new stuff that simply didn't exist in the game in prior versions.  All in all there's a massive amount of new voice work to appreciate coming your way in april.

Miscellaneous Updates:

On top of that Icons are being updated to no longer be default assets and to better reflect the games actual status effects and such. Book items are being updated as well with newer visuals and more detailed information to help convey enemy weaknesses and what statuses and ailments actually do.  These inclusions should give you all a much smoother time with the game and alleviate some of the more frustrating situations that can occur from the existing icons.

I'm currently working on updating the opening credits movie.  Trying to get more artwork in there as well as the updated full voice cast.  Progress has been moving well.  I don't have a CLEAR update date in mind yet but I'll make a follow up post before the month ends with all the details once I have a stronger picture of my progress and when I'll be ready to release that. Thank you for patience and your continued support!

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