Hey guys!
It's been quite a while since the last post. I know I really took my time writing it, and I honestly expected it to be finished at least a month earlier, but apparently reality had other plans, heh.
So... I don't even know where to start. The finished Episode 12 script comes in at 136 pages, which is damn huge. The previous one was around 80 pages, and I thought that was super big. Apparently Episode 12 now wants Episode 11 to hold its beer.
I ended up having to rethink and rework a lot more than I expected. First of all, I realized that the original outline no longer quite matched the current state of the story. It was also missing several key pieces needed to connect everything properly to the final Episode 13.
I had to fix all of that first and brainstorm every route, taking into account all the characters and every possible path they could be on. I guess I spent 1-2 weeks just putting together a super detailed plan for every single scene in the final two episodes.
Then, once the "new rough plan" was done, I needed to make sure it covered all the necessary events and that every storyline developed logically. Only after all of that could I finally start the usual routine: writing the actual dialogue.
So, what will be happening in Episode 12?
First, the main story. There are no random scenes, no scenes "just for fun," and no scenes built solely around a specific sexy idea or situation. In one way or another, every scene in the new episode either pushes the main story toward its conclusion or develops, and sometimes even finishes, a character's storyline.
I don't really want any of the characters to have their story end abruptly. They all deserve a full arc. ;-p
And obviously, now we'll see much more of what Jake has been doing all this time, what Violet really wants, how Laura's investigation is going, what Emma has in store for us, and so on. It'll be packed with events.
The biggest scenes will involve Violet, Laura, Nora (Charlie's widow), and Emma.
Our all-time favorites, Megan and Sarah, have their own scenes too. Megan's sequence is big this time, and it'll be tied directly to the ending of the episode.
Our favorite-to-hate antagonist, Jake, also gets a lot of screen time in this episode. I wanted to do something unexpected, dumb, original and... smart with him at the same time. I know it's quite a combination. And I don't want to spoil too much, but I think his story turned out to be really fun. Bet some players would love to do something similar too, lol.
So... to sum it all up, I tried to make a really eventful episode that covers every possible loose end I could find. It'll feature the majority of the characters, even those who haven't appeared in a long time.
A few characters are sitting this one out, like Faith and Dr. Wood, but I guess they can always be voted for in the Special Scene polls.
The biggest problem with the script right now is its massive size. Of course, I'll keep editing it throughout the actual development and rendering phase, but even with every possible and impossible cut, I can probably shrink it by only 10-15% at most.
That's why the only reasonable way to release it somewhat faster is to do it in parts:
Episode 12 will be split into two chapters.
It'd definitely have a much stronger impact as a single update, like Episode 11. But on the other hand, I nearly went nuts rendering and then coding the entirety of Episode 11 in one go, so splitting this one doesn't look that bad anymore, heh. And you'll be getting content faster this way.
That's it for now, guys.
I need about 1-2 weeks to get started with rendering and gather some material for spoilers and sneak peeks. After that, I'll be back to regular weekly posts.
The first scene of the new episode is a teaser. I'll be adding a new lady there (just a one-time side character, not really important to MC), so I guess she could make a good first spoiler. ;-p
Stay tuned, guys. I'll talk to you soon!