Dear Villains and Villainesses,
Have you enjoyed your summer, even as the last few days slip away? This is Tanya and Emily, the two devs behind Save the Villainess, and we’re missing our fun in the sun already. Still, we got a lot done this August and we’re eager to share our progress with you. We also want to share a glimpse of a new map of House, a celebration of Edmund’s birthday, and the release of a free prequel novel!
First, we wanted to share this map of House’s eccentric layout that was created by the amazing Saleha Chowdhury, who created almost all of our item art, animal/creature art, and many backgrounds.
Saleha designed this map using dozens of different layers. We programmed her layers within the Ren’py game engine to create a clickable and ever-changing map. This map will change depending on the choices you make within Save the Villainess. There might even be a map-based mini-game depending on how you choose to build your story. Have fun experimenting with your choice of destination. You never know what secrets you’ll uncover by taking the wrong path on the road…
This month, for scene 24, we programmed both the first map mini-game and a skippable map tutorial that offers some sassy dialogue from Voice that is based on the choices you make. We also programmed scenes 22 and 23. Scene 22 offers some interesting character development and challenges for Jane. Meanwhile, Scene 23 features Jane meeting a fan-favorite character who loves to give cryptic hints about the plot!
We also significantly revised scenes 25 and 26 for coding next month. These long and detailed scenes tell you more about Carcosa, the fantasy kingdom that this story takes place in. Carcosa is a beautiful and bizarre land full of royals and nobles who justify their immense privilege due to the powerful magic they wield. Are these royals and nobles Jane’s allies, her enemies, or something else entirely? You’ll find out more as you explore these pivotal scenes, read important documents, and make deductions that could save Jane’s life… or doom her forever.
To learn more about the people and magic of Carcosa even before the game arrives, you can also read our free prequel novel – ‘The Villainess Wants Her Prince to Live!’ We’ll discuss more about the novel below!
This August 20th, we celebrated Crown Prince Edmund Alpin's birthday!
Edmund's birthday fan-art was commissioned from LuckL!
As was deduced by clever fans on our discord sever, we chose this date to reflect both the Leo star sign as well as the tarot card of the reversed Knight of Cups... though there might be other interesting aspects to August 20th if you look further.
Together, the Leo star sign and reversed Knight of Cups tarot card reflect Edmund's warmth, optimism, passion, potential to be a leader... but also the clash between idealism and pragmatism that he goes through as he prepares himself to rule the land of Carcosa.
Will Edmund be the fair and just ruler that he wishes to be by the end of his story?
Decide for yourself when you play his route. After all, it's your story too... isn't it?
On a more light-hearted note, we also created this video to show how Edmund and friends "celebrate" his birthday. Maybe one day, he might even get a good present...
Finally, as a gift for the end of our summer, we wanted to share the complete version of Save the Villainess’ official prequel novel, “The Villainess Wants Her Prince to Live!”
Cover art by Kmochi; Cover design by Best Laid Plans Productions, Inc.
This prequel novel follows Lady Regina Sheridan, a noblewoman in Carcosa who can see into the future. Unfortunately, the future says that she will be executed as a villainess unless she can keep her new fiancé, Prince Artem Alpin, alive.
The future also tells her someone is hunting Artem… and that he has the survival instincts of a goldfish.
Please universe, The Villainess Wants Her Prince to Live!
You can read our prequel novel online at Royal Road. You can also download the pdf and the epub version at this Google Drive link.
Note: You do not need to play the game to understand the prequel novel or read the prequel novel to understand the game. However, the mysteries and events of the novel do affect the game, which takes place decades later in the same fantasy kingdom of Carcosa. So if you read the novel, you’ll learn more information ahead of time about the great families of Carcosa, including the Sheridans, Alpins, Nevilles, Burens, and Kuzeys.
Warnings: Please note that this story contains non-graphic depictions of violence, murder, assassination attempts, death threats, and an adorable Alpin prince who has the survivability of a goldfish. Mix in all of the above with one determined villainess lost in a world with terrifying politics and even more terrible families, many orphans, and even more ducks. Stir all of these ingredients vigorously to generate a romantic dark comedy murder mystery action adventure story where changing the future requires cleverness and the ability to frolic. Happy reading!
In any case, thank you for ending your summer with us. We truly appreciate your support and would love to have you keep in touch with us through the links below. Have a great end to your summer and a wonderful start to the autumn that lies ahead!
Finally, please remember you can always catch us at the various sites below:
Our discord server - come chat with us and hear what other players have discovered about our game!
Our mailing list - we send free cards featuring new banter from our main characters every month. This June, everyone will discuss what kind of flower represents their love in this season of Pride.
Youtube, Bluesky, and Tumblr - our main social media accounts
With Much Love,
Tanya & Emily
Best Laid Plans Productions, Inc.