A little over 2 months have passed since the release of version 1.100. I didn't actually intend for there to be too long of a break, but compared to how long I have spent working on this game, 2 months isn't that bad. And the break will continue even further as I do not plan on returning to working on the volleyball game for the next two months. My schedule requires me to work on two videos that have a deadline and I can't find any time to squeeze in the volleyball game until those two videos are done. You will have to be patient until then, but then again things seemed to have quieted down since the relaunch. I don't think there is much activity on the game, and this will give me time to prepare.
But it won't be on version 2 if you are thinking that. Version 2 is still a long ways from now as I still have version 1 to see too in both development and promotion. I am still trying to figure out how to get the word out about this game and I won't be reaching for version 2 just yet until I can figure something out in that regard. So for now, all I can do is make necessary improvements to version 1, which is what this announcement is all about. I'm going to take this time and talk about some of the things I want to improve the current game. I'll be starting with the some of the points I made in the last post, as sort of update if you will about what I plan to do come November.
Live Streaming
This is still an interest I have in doing since the relaunch week. It was really fun to play with the viewers of the YT channel and I would love to continue it. I'd have to adjust a day in the week but I can see it be done even with my constrained schedule. While I don't want to give up time for the videos, I do have time off afterwards and I figure I can use that time to live stream the volleyball game on another platform like twitch and see if I can get results there. It's worth a shot so I'm still considering this.
Compact Youmu Edition
This is going to be the next major task during the return for sure. Those of you wanting or even expecting the compact personalities in the game will get your wish with this update. It will be locked behind a password because it's not aiming to represent the game itself, but if you pay attention to the videos on the channel, you will find the password somewhere in there. So if you wanted a Compact Youmu game, this will be the best alternative.
Mobile Version
This idea is still on the table, but it won't be considered as a main priority. I still believe it will have a be a lite version of the game as even though I now know that you can play with a controller, it just feels cumbersome and I doubt many will want to play this game on their phones the way it was meant to be played. But I still see comments from potential players wanting a mobile version, so I figured that making a lite version may be the best way to achieve this. It won't be the full game and it will most certainly not be updated past that, but if I can get some interest in the game through mobile, it's worth a shot.
Thank You Fairies
I will get this done for the remainder who still need their fairies. Things got crazy busy the weeks following the release that I had to put this on the side. Thankfully, it's not too much work so I can get this done quickly when the time comes. So don't worry, the remainder fairies will be in the next update.
New Character
You heard that right. A new character will be added in version 1. Aside from just wanting to expand the roster, the true purpose of the new character is because I have forgotten the process of how a character is added in the game. From the top of my head, I know it's planning their special moves, drawing the corresponding graphics, testing them, adding them to the story mode, and others in-between. I have notes written and the old files to work with but I generally just forgot the process on adding a new character for the game. I want to take this chance to remind myself and make notes of it so that when version 2 comes with its new updated roster, I won't be struggling to add the characters for the current build as well as whatever new features v2 will have. As for who is it, you'll just have to be patient.
Update balancing
This one is inevitable. I've been getting feedback on the game and I have been planning on doing some addition patches. There are many things I want to update to make the game a better experience such as improve the difficulty of the story mode as some players are still finding it too challenging, adding some extra features to make offensive play much more exciting, and balancing the characters even further.
Update UI
I've gotten comments about the UI being too bland and eye straining. UI design is not my strongest point so I will take your word on it that it needs an update. I'll be looking around and testing things out to see how I can improve the graphical aspects of the game to something much more pleasant.
Cloud saving
This feature was requested by a player and I have an interest in learning more about it because I'm ignorant about the subject. But Steam makes things easy for developers and I'm sure there is a simple way of adding cloud saving. I'll look into this and see what i can come up with.
That is all I have for you right now. I'll most likely make another announcement in November when I have returned to working on the game. I thank you guys once again for your support as this game did moderately well. Perhaps it is not the next Touhou fangame everyone goes crazy about, especially since mostly everyone will be playing the Touhou 6 remake for the next few months. But I still have confidence that this game can be something the Touhou community can enjoy. It is a unique experience that I want many players to check out, but I also know that its kind of rough around the edges. It needs further refinement, and that's what I'm going to be working towards to. I love working on this game, I love playing it myself, and I want others to feel the same way about it.