As those who follow me on itch or Twitter may have already heard, I've been working on a major update to Blooming Nightshade that re-works a lot of the game to hopefully improve the story. That update is finally here as a release candidate build; hopefully there are no issues, but I will also be taking a look at any problems that may arise to make sure the update is as polished as it can be.
"I want to keep playing v9"
If you'd prefer to continue playing the release version of the game, there should be a new beta option for "v9_release". If you enter this beta, you will download the original version of the game instead of the v10 update version.
"What has changed?"
Quite a lot. I went over a lot of the planned changes on itch when I first started working on the update, but here's the short version:
- Randomized weekly events removed and incorporated into route storylines.
- Date choices have been removed; the player selects a specific route to play at the end of the prologue.
- Potential side couples are now based on the route chosen, and one cut from the previous builds has been added.
- New/modified scenes for every route.
- Romance afterstories will automatically play after the credits.
- "Jealousy"/cheating events and the scene gallery removed.
- (Steam version) Achievements for going down the friendship route with a character have been added, as well as an achievement for helping a side couple get together.
Hopefully these changes make the story seem a bit more connected in each route, while also encouraging people to try just being friends with the characters they don't want to date.
"What about the itch/Android versions?"
Those are on the way, but I'd like to see if any issues arise from the Steam version before I put out the next itch build. That way, I can fix the issues before people have taken the time to install the game in a way that doesn't have automatic patching.
Final Notes
I may also update the survey that is linked to from the discussion forum to reflect v10, but I'm not sure when I'll get the time just yet, so no promises.
If you notice any bugs or issues with the game, be sure to let me know so I can take a look. I will probably do another testing run before I put out the itch version, but sometimes I'll miss things during testing. If it's a bug that doesn't seem obvious, it may be a good idea to point it out.
At any rate, I hope people enjoy the new update!