Esoteric ♥ Esoterica

Devlog

• Esoteric Update #291 - All Keys To All Doors
  November 18, 2024 by EsoDev

  4

  Well, it's time for an update, though I find myself in a bit of an awkward position, with a bunch of things started and half-finished. But I'll try to review what I'm working on. Firstly, progress hap... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #290 - Returning To Work
  November 11, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, update time. I'll speak about some personal things related to the previous "update" (or rather lack thereof) and then move on to the game itself. I'm off the medication now, though coming dow... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #289 - A Convolution By Another Name
  October 27, 2024 by EsoDev

  4

  Alright, it's time for the update. I'll be upfront and say I got distracted by a concept I randomly concocted regarding certain image transformations and wanted to implement and test it out. I've also... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #288 - Continuing On With Work
  October 20, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  I'm going to post an early update and rest a little bit. I've now been back from the hospital for almost a week and finally started getting back into the swing of things, but it's hard. Apart from the... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #287 - Return Of The Cat: Long Update
  October 14, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  I'm finally back. I didn't really plan to spend a week in the hospital, much less two. Unfortunately, this did impact my ability to do any work over the last three weeks, in total (because I was alrea... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #286 - Hyperplanar Orthography
  September 23, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Update time~ So, this week was pretty rough overall. There's a flood happening here, I'm sick, and the weather keeps giving me migraines. Despite this, and despite managing to lose the ability to writ... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #285 - Ugh My Head, Anyway, Coding
  September 16, 2024 by EsoDev

  3

  I've not had a good week. I've spent several days at the doctor's, and it seems I might be sick again right now. Because of the rather rough condition I've been in for the last week, I focused on clea... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #284 - Interface Update
  September 09, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Today, we're doing a not very impressive but very important (internally) update. I said last time that I need to take care of some coding for locks before I can implement it. I tackled this by returni... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #283 - Doors, Lies And Emotions
  September 02, 2024 by EsoDev

  3

  Update time. We have a few things to touch upon today. Let's start with the door issue. The door issue is largely resolved; locks are not yet there, but I don't want to do door locks before I don't re... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #282 - The Final Map, Fog Of War, Doors
  August 25, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, I'm doing an early update because I don't feel quite right, and I might as well do this now and devote tomorrow to working on the game instead. As usual, I worked a little bit on fixing error... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #281 - Locomoting All Over
  August 19, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Update time? Yeah, seems to be update time. Last week was pretty productive, too. So, starting with the lesser rabble. I did some writing (two new pieces of erotica are available for reading on our Di... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #280 - The Case Of The Phantom Money
  August 13, 2024 by EsoDev

  8

  It's the middle of the night, but I can't sleep, so let's get this update done. As I've mentioned on Discord, I was at the doctor's yesterday for an emergency; hence, the update is a day late. Overall... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #279 - Finally, This One Has Pictures
  August 05, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, update time. This one will be a bit more visual. So, let's get the matter of writing out of the way first. Or rather programming the game to write. I think I have the issue with countable and... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #278 - Spiders, Stereotypes and Stories
  July 29, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, update time. But before that, let me re-iterate what happened last week and why there was no update around the 22nd. In essence, I suffer from severe chronic pain issues that I take a specifi... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #277 - Summer Cleaning, Captures, Spiders
  July 14, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  As some of you might know, we had a bit of a situation on the server last week that just left me... well, let's say, not wanting to stick around. It still often shocks me that people can keep yapping... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #276 - Provisional Emergency Update
  July 08, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  This is Bear. Eso can't do the update today because of some unfortunate and unpleasant events that happened on the Discord server. So I'm here to fill you in on recent developments and Eso should be b... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #275 - Fuzzy Logic Too Chunky, Like A Cat
  July 02, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  I'm sorry for the late update. Yesterday, I ended up having a bit of an unpleasant episode, and I chose to refrain from making an update due to some concerns about what I might write and how I might p... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #274 - Scribble Scribble Scribble~
  June 24, 2024 by EsoDev

  8

  Update time. I'm a bit out of it at this very moment. I just came back from the lab, and they took like a pint of blood from me, or at least that's how it feels. Anyway, I dedicated wholly to writing... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #273 - Seeded Randomness and Audio
  June 17, 2024 by EsoDev

  9

  Ok, so this week's update? Well, first, before we get into anything else, I would like to say that I am indeed on my break. That means I can more or less dedicate my time to the game (and my health)... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #272 - Technical Update Strikes Back
  June 10, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  So, as it turns out, I got into a bit of a rabbit hole with the functionality I wrote about last week. I got a lot done in that direction, which I understand isn't what I promised to do. However, I've... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #271 - A Highly Technical Update
  June 04, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright. I'm a little late with the update, but something came up yesterday. It wasn't anything serious; it just ate up a lot of my time. So, I've felt burned out working on the adventure. A lot of st... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #270 - Silent Water And Gridded Paper
  May 28, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  Update time: It's a little bit late, though. Nothing specific happened to cause this; I just had a bad Monday and wanted to go to sleep early. So, I've been mostly writing. It's not a very satisfactor... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #269 - Almost Let Out The Magic Smoke
  May 21, 2024 by EsoDev

  9

  Sorry for the late update; I had some health issues on Sunday and Monday that had to be urgently addressed. Anyway, there's another problem, though I did manage to get around it. During the last updat... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #268 - We Embedded Springs
  May 12, 2024 by EsoDev

  9

  Alright, so the strings were indeed embedded. I've spent the last week implementing this tool, and I think it was worth it because the results were exactly what I hoped for. Let's go over what I did a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #267 - Work, Or We Start Embedding Springs
  May 05, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  I'm going to do an early update this week because I'll just use this as a way to clear my head about something I'm working on. First, I did some nice work with the remaining assets. This also means th... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #266 - Oh, Divination
  April 30, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  Alright, update time. It's a little bit late, but we had a heat wave yesterday, and it took a lot out of me. Indeed, it made me feel like an undercooked egg — soft, flabby, and liquid on the inside... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #265 - You Wouldn't Serialise A Whole Class
  April 15, 2024 by EsoDev

  8

  Okay, this week went well, but in a bit of a technical direction, so sorry, the update won't be very visual. I want to mention a few separate topics and then make a little announcement. So, firstly, o... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #264 - A Week That Feels Wasted
  April 08, 2024 by EsoDev

  8

  This wasn't a very productive week. Nothing that major happened, even though I had a medical situation that I really don't wish to talk much about. It's just that it was one of those weeks where every... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #263 - My Precious...
  April 02, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Ugh... I am so full of egg... sweet fucking Mithras on a chocolate pogo-bunny... hnnnngh... Alright, let's see... This week, we're addressing some of the points from post #260. I also have some additi... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #262 - Negaseptendecimal In Hebrew
  March 25, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Hey, I'm back, at least for the most part. Standing up and keeping my body straight is still a bit of a challenge at times. I didn't expect this to kick my ass quite as hard as it did, but I guess we... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #261 - Provisional Update (But There's A Lot Here)
  March 17, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Unfortunately, this is Bear here again. Eso is still not feeling well. Between the food poisoning and her other health issues, she has spent much of the last two weeks too exhausted (due to dehydratio... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #260 - Adventure Progress and Cyphers
  March 03, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Hello, we have an unusual situation today, for this update. I'm not Eso, you can call me Bear if you want. I work on the game with Eso, though I wouldn't say I contribute much, I manage some things fo... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #259 - Penmanship
  February 25, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  This week wasn't good for productivity. A few things happened, but they're not that important; they're primarily just minor issues with my health. Regardless, when I counted up my hours, it turned out... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #258 - Lamenting The Lack Of Preserved Transforms
  February 19, 2024 by EsoDev

  8

  Today's update will be to the point, but further down, there's some technical detail that might interest you or not, so read at your own discretion. Firstly, as mentioned last week, we are working on... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #257 - Bold Face Font
  February 12, 2024 by EsoDev

  5

  Oh boy, that Monday snuck up on me this time! So what's up, you might possibly ask? A few things. Firstly, lots of writing is getting done. We currently have approximately twenty thousand words of jus... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #??? - A Digression In Time
  February 05, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  Ok, ok... how do I put this... I know I said I would work on something specific, but I randomly came up with an idea. This led me to prototyping, implementing and writing content for a new feature/mec... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #256 - CENSORED!
  January 28, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, so today's update might be a bit on the longer side; there are a bunch of details to discuss since I've done many smaller things. Firstly, we've still been writing, and I think we're at about... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #255 - Late-Binding Ad Hoc Polymorphism?
  January 22, 2024 by EsoDev

  7

  This week, I've mostly found myself writing and tackling one bigger problem. Of course, there were also the usual smaller things like tackling assets and bugs, but I don't think that's worth talking a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #254 - U Ded
  January 15, 2024 by EsoDev

  9

  Ok, things are rolling along nicely. I'm also on vacation for two weeks, possibly three, so I will work on the game as much as possible. But yes, let's talk about this week's changes. It's a bit of a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #253 - Loading...
  January 08, 2024 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, today's update is pretty brief. I've spent the last week mainly working on three issues. Firstly, I've been writing on item descriptions for ambience in the adventure. Additionally, these ite... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #252 - Ugh, It's 2024?
  January 01, 2024 by EsoDev

  9

  Ah, so it is time for a new update... I'm unsure how to approach this, so be patient with me; I might ramble a bit. Firstly, I have to unfortunately say that the end of the year seems to have become a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #251 - There's Something In The Walls?
  December 17, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  There's not much new to report today, and that's mostly because the bulk of the work happens to be of the behind the scenes nature. But let's talk about it for a bit. So firstly, about the more visual... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #250 - Donjon (Hon~Hon~)
  December 11, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  Update time, then? Well, a few things happened over the last week, but I want to focus on just one thing. And this is mainly because I just don't feel well right now. The bed tempts me, I desire as ma... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #249 - 𝓢𝓬𝓻𝓲𝓫𝓫𝓵𝓮~
  December 03, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Update time. And this time nothing went wrong, I actually managed to get everything I wanted to do done and everything worked (out in the end). So, this update is composed of two parts. Firstly, in te... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #248 - The Writings Of The Mad
  November 27, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, back to the usual then. So I think I should somewhat explain myself about the last few weeks. I've been worried about how much I can say about this without it crossing that "too much informat... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #247 - A Smaller Asset Grind
  November 12, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Right from the start, I'll need to apologise for the somewhat sketchy progress this update presents. I've been going through several medical procedures over this last week, which left me feeling very... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #246 - A Lot, In A Way
  November 05, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Alright, update time. And it's a Sunday update. Honestly, I will likely stick to this until I stop needing to have long Monday hospital sessions; it just works better this way. So, no lore this time;... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #245 - Reflection, SQL And A Break
  October 22, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Right, I'm sorry to say this, as usual, but I need a break. I'm just not doing well, and I could use a few days for self-care and lots of sleep. The next update will be on the 5th or 6th of November... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #244 - We're Not Making a Boltzmann Machine
  October 16, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  Update time. And as promised, I come carrying something to read, at least: So, you want to be a video game writer? Impressions – Book of Hours Now, what happened for the last week? A lot, actually... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #243 - A Neglected Novelette
  October 09, 2023 by EsoDev

  4

  There's no lore today, and I'm probably going to pause lore posting for a while since I've checked our catalogue, and there's nothing left that I feel is polished enough to share. So until we get some... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #242 - Passive Income
  October 03, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  Yeah, it's a late update. I had some health/people issues yesterday, and I just couldn't bring myself to sit down and do this. Anyway, have some lore: Lore: Manhede Now for the update. The core of whi... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #241 - Stonks Go Up, Stonks Go Down
  September 24, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Alright, this time, the update is a day early, and that's because I'm at the doctor's tomorrow and then at work for three more days. Still, nothing to share in terms of lore, as I just don't have the... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #240 - Cha-ching
  September 18, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  I'm sorry for skipping out on a few things with this update; it's sweltering here, and I am desiccating. Okay, so what have we accomplished today? There are three main things, and they all revolve aro... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #239 - Wealth 2.0
  September 11, 2023 by EsoDev

  4

  Hey, I feel very not-ok, so please just have this report on what we implemented over the last week. Firstly, concerning the updates from the last two weeks, we have continued to refine those systems... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #238 - A Fragmentary Response
  September 04, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Alright, we have a bit of a more technical update today, so instead of lore, you get these two tutorials. Part III is coming when I have time to finish writing it. Mechanics: Modular Writing – Part... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #237 - Maps Of The Mind
  August 28, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, let's start with some lore: Lore: The Self-correcting Error And now for the update... There are a few things I'd like to talk about and a bunch that I'd like to leave for later, when they are... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #236 - Going Philosophical
  August 21, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  So first off, let's drop some lore here: Lore: The Minor Rites Of The Magi And now, concerning the update... Well, I don't actually have much to say. We spent our time improving the thought experiment... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #235 - Laplace's Trolley Funhouse
  August 14, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  Well, the last week didn't go great. Instead of a single visit to the doctor, I've so far been there four times over the previous eight days, and it's not the end. So excuse me. I'm a bit cranky, and... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #234 - What Is A Frame? A Miserable Pile Of Pixels!
  July 31, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Ok, so... we have a lot to get through since the last two weeks have been pretty busy around here. Especially considering I've not felt the best. We'll be skipping out on lore today, as I'm just strug... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #233 - Responder Suspenders
  July 17, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, update time. Let's kick it off with some lore: Lore: The Machine Mind And now for the update proper. I think we're now done with updating the intro. It now presents a lot more of the recently... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #232 - Feeling Blood Drained
  July 09, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Alright, let's throw some lore in here: Lore: Consensus Reality And now the update proper... Unfortunately, there are a bunch of things I'm still in the middle of, but we're edging closer to an improv... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #231 - Smorgasbord
  July 03, 2023 by EsoDev

  8

  Update time, and this time we'll be skipping lore again. I mean, I know it's not really important to anyone, but I'll try to post something extra maybe next week. I'm tired due to a lack of sleep righ... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #230 - The Inner Voice
  June 26, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Time for a new update. First off, have some lore: Lore: Yotsehr 'Or Now for the update proper. About half of our work this week follows directly after what we showed with the last update. Firstly, we... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #229 - There's No Rolling For This Knowledge
  June 19, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Mh... let's see, we should probably start with some lore: Lore: The Fence Is There For A Reason And now for the update itself. There's a new public test version available. The aim is to give the new K... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #228 - Iteratively Improving Terms
  June 13, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Unfortunately, a late post again, and it had everything to do with my physical and emotional health just... running low. In any case, I have some lore: Lore: True Reality and the Human Delusion Now fo... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #227 - Help, I Am Trapped Under A Pile Of Books
  June 05, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  You'll have to excuse me; this update won't be too detailed. Firstly, I am feeling rather tired and under the weather, and there's just so much I have the strength to do today. Secondly, we're in a ra... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #226 - What's A קַבָּלָה Anyway?
  May 29, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Ok, so here's some lore... or is it? Lore: Is Another You Reading This Book Elsewhere? And now for the update. Things have been pretty technical this past week. Stewing on the fact system, it became c... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #225 - 404 Website Has Heartworms
  May 23, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, update time. Once more a day late, but my Monday was difficult, and I didn't have the strength to work on it. Despite that, the previous week was quite productive, which we'll go over after t... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #224 - Why Does This Game Have So Much Lore... Oh Right
  May 16, 2023 by EsoDev

  3

  Sorry for the late update, something happened yesterday, and I don't want to discuss it. In any case, have some lore: Lore: Makhaira: of Shadow and Blood As for the update, I'll keep it brief as I'm n... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #223 - Document Digression
  May 07, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  We'll have an early update today, but my health is kicking my ass, and I feel tomorrow might be a struggle, especially if I don't get this done right now. Anyway, have some lore: Lore: The Petal Chamb... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #222 - Learning Pains
  May 02, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Sorry for the late update. Yesterday was the 1st, and as such, Patreon was timing out for me, as it usually does on the 1st. In any case, I used the time to work on some coding... Anyway, let's start... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #221 - Knowledge And How To Represent It
  April 24, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Ok, so I'm back from my hospital visit... and let's start with that. I got held over for almost twice as long as initially intended due to complications. It sucked. I wouldn't say I liked it. I'm home... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #220 - I Give Up (For This Week)
  April 10, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  This week hasn't gone well. As noted in my previous post, I am going to the hospital in a few days, and I am not having a good time. Quite frankly, working on the game over the last few days has just... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #219 - Public Mechanics Test And Some Announcements
  April 03, 2023 by EsoDev

  4

  There are a few things in this update, but sadly no lore or articles, as I am absolutely too tired to throw something from my backlog onto the blog. Anyway, let's start with this... I've posted a vers... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #218 - Psychometric Cost Of Opportunity
  March 27, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Have some lore; it's humorous this time: Lore: Absconding the Human Predator And as for the update... I've taken a moment to go back to the intro and try a few things in practice just to see how they... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #217 - Contentious Gameplay Mechanics?
  March 20, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Hmmm... well, this might be a weird one. Anyway, let's get to it with some lore first: Lore: The Forest Is Not Dark Now then, the update proper. And if you are reading this, please, try to see if you... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #216 - You Have Mail
  March 13, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Ok, update time. Have some lore to start with: Lore: Aliyat Haratzon And now for the update proper. The main thing we tried to tackle was an issue we were poking at behind the scenes for a bit, e-mail... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #215 - This Image Needs More Salt And Pepper
  March 06, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  You'll have to excuse me again, I've been to the hospital, so I'm not feeling great. But here, have some lore: Lore: Monstrum And now for the update. So first off, I want to say that I did try to put... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #214 - Acorn Meet Squirrel
  February 27, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  You'll have to excuse me; I don't feel good right now, specifically at this moment when I write this. So I'll keep it short and just focus on what's been happening with the game. No lore or articles,... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #213 - Teaching Sand To Draw
  February 20, 2023 by EsoDev

  7

  Well, here we are, another update and the first day of my week off! To start, have some lore: Lore: The One-eyed In The Realm Of The Blind And now, for the update itself, I had a productive week overa... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #212 - Gravatar Move Over
  February 13, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Update time is upon us once more. Well, have some lore to start off: Lore: The Genomancers and Their Gardens I spent a good deal of the last week writing, so there's not much I can present here. But I... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #211 - A Walk Through The Park
  February 06, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  Ok, so last time I didn't have time to post additional texts, I said I'd rectify that so... firstly, have this explanation of the List datatype in Ink: Scripting: Ink – Extra – Ok, So About Lists... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #210 - Ink Gone Emotional
  January 30, 2023 by EsoDev

  4

  Alright, time for an update here again~ No lore, no article and no tutorials today, I'm just running late here, and I have no intention of postponing this update to tomorrow so I can edit and format o... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #209 - A Mod Loader, Of All Things?
  January 23, 2023 by EsoDev

  6

  And now we're back to our regular update schedule. I don't have any lore, and I don't have any interesting articles... but I do have some Ink: Scripting: Ink – Part III – The Other Arrows Scriptin... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #208 - 4th Year Summary
  January 18, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Update time. But today is a special update. And I'm sorry it's late; I just had to take some time to get this written up properly amidst working on a few other things. So, where do we stand for the 4t... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #207 - Still No Happy, But Update
  January 09, 2023 by EsoDev

  5

  Update time... I haven't felt any better since last time, but I can't just continue to be a child about this. In any case, no lore today, but I have an article: The Witcher Might Not Be What You Think... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #206 - New Year, No Happy
  January 01, 2023 by EsoDev

  10

  So, time for an update? Eh... Let me just indulge myself for a bit. I don't think I've ever had holidays quite as miserable as these last two weeks. Never in my life did I feel just so hopeless and in... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #205 - Embracing GPT Doesn't Mean What You Think
  December 19, 2022 by EsoDev

  3

  It's update time... and this one is going to be weird. So because this is an unusual update, let me first explain something. As you've seen in the title, this has something to do with chatGPT, or in g... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #204 - Inkteroperability
  December 12, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Mmmm, yes, time for a more regular update today. So first off, let me just say that I am exhausted, and it's freezing, and I just feel sleepy, so no article or lore today. Furthermore, the novel is st... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update NaNoWriMo Done - Well, Almost...
  December 05, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  Ok, update time. Here's some lore: Lore: From Whence The Geometries Came? And now for the update itself. In short: the novel is done, at least to the best of what I can do within one month and a littl... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update NaNoWriMo 28/30 - Aaaalmost There
  November 28, 2022 by EsoDev

  3

  Update time~ Have some lore: Lore: The Dangers of Oculomancy – A Medical Study And an article: Voices – Part III – Voices With Accent For the game, I did manage some time to clear out a few tech... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update NaNoWriMo 21/30 - No, No, Write More
  November 21, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Alight, the no, no, write more is coming to an end, and I'm working through the quota. Still a bit behind, but it's reasonably fixable, especially since I've been feeling a lot better. Anyway, let's t... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update NaNoWriMo 14/30 - No, No, Write More
  November 14, 2022 by EsoDev

  9

  It's been a while, hasn't it? Well, time for my first update after the break and... it will not be a typical one. As you might have noticed from the title, this does not follow the usual numeration. A... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #203 - I'm Sorry, But... I Need A Break
  October 24, 2022 by EsoDev

  10

  Starting this update is already giving me some issues... Well... guess it's best to rip off the bandaid already. I am very unwell. The last few weeks have been a struggle, and I've now reached the pla... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #202 - Unleash the BèωáST
  October 17, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Definitely one of the weirder weeks of development... anyway, before we get into that, let's start with some lore: Lore: Valerian; All Of Me And also have an article: Voices – Part II – Voices Wit... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #201 - One Rain Check, Please
  October 10, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, time for an update, and I feel pretty ill. I've been at the Doc today and announced that I might not do an update, but I decided to push it after all. If anyone is curious, the issue is that... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #200 - Like A Bucket Of Ice Water
  October 03, 2022 by EsoDev

  4

  Update time once more. Unfortunately, I had a pretty rough run-in with a cloud break today, and I feel like death, so excuse me if this is a bit on the brief side. At this point, despite taking a nap... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #199 - Hats Off, Hats On
  September 26, 2022 by EsoDev

  4

  Things continue to get better, I'd say. But unfortunately, only as far as writing goes, health-wise I've not had the most fun of times. Anyway, have some lore: Lore: Unsolved Cases, Vol 13 And for the... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #198 - This Went Better
  September 19, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  This week was better. But let's start with some lore: Lore: Scars Upon The Soul Now for the update. I had a rough week at work, so I was worried initially, but I managed to get a lot done over the wee... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #197 - Hospital Visit Did Not Go Well
  September 12, 2022 by EsoDev

  11

  Ah yes, two weeks have passed and... yeah, as the title states, I've not had a good time at the hospital. I ended up being held over for about three times as long as I expected. And after returning, I... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #196 - At Least Vodka Was Simple
  August 28, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, a slightly early update this time, but I have something to do on Monday and would like to post before, especially since it's relevant to next week. So basically, I'm going to the hospital on... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #195 - So The Refrigerators Work Now?
  August 22, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  I swear the weather is going to kill me before anything else... Now then... update time. Have some lore: Lore: Meditation As for the proper update, we've worked on a lot, but the current Monday catche... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #194 - Cartography Shmartography, Bah!
  August 15, 2022 by EsoDev

  8

  Oof, it's over, it's finally over. Anyway, have some lore first: Lore: Inhuman Now, let's go over the update. First off, we have the map. It's done. I finished placing every damn building, and it was... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #193 - Jasooooon!
  August 08, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Update time. Let's start with some lore: Lore: Tales From The Museum Unfortunately, as far as the update goes, I don't have much to report. Not because there hasn't been any progress, but because this... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #192 - Serious Systemic Progress
  August 02, 2022 by EsoDev

  8

  A bit of a late update but yesterday was the 1st of the month, and as usual at this time, Patreon wasn't super cooperative about not throwing time-out errors. Anyway, have some lore: Lore: On Economy... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #191 - Refreshing the Map
  July 25, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, time for an update... Just let me recombobulate here from being a puddle of sweat... So let's start out with some lore: Lore: Sand And Time Now for the update. Things have taken a pretty weir... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #190 - Fashion Disasters
  July 18, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  I'm back from work, which was a nightmare, so let me just get this out of the way as quickly and efficiently as possible. There's no lore this time; I don't have the energy to upload it. I was trying... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #189 - Break's Over
  July 11, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Ah, here I am, back from my "break" and just in time for a new update. So let's start by talking about how that break went and how I'm feeling. It's not great. I was at the doctor's 6 times during the... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #188 - Jewellery And A Break
  June 26, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  Early update? Yeah, I guess. I'd like to announce something, and I might as well start with that. My health has not been the best lately, and my quality of life is pretty low. As such, I've decided to... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #187 - Locks, Keys And Tools
  June 20, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  Update time. And let's start with the lore: Lore: Of Non-linear Time There will be no article this time, as I've not written anything new, at least not to completion. Now, for the update. I spent the... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #186 - Hardware Acceleration
  June 14, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  A late update this time. To be blunt, yesterday was too hot and wet for me to get anything done. In any case, it's morning now, and I feel better, so let's get this rolling. First, the lore: Lore: Hum... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #185 - Fleshing Out Some Magic
  June 06, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  Lore for this week: Lore: Aspeciate Life And now for the changes. So apart from doing some code refactorisation and a lot more writing for the tool use, I did focus on continuing the work with the new... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #184 - Some Kind Of Programming Frenzy
  May 31, 2022 by EsoDev

  3

  Sorry for the late update, but yesterday, I managed to mantle the spirit of Augusta Ada King née Byron, Countess of Lovelace, and entered some kind of programming frenzy as a series of realisations c... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #183 - What A Mess
  May 23, 2022 by EsoDev

  2

  Another update then, and I do feel somewhat better. It's a complex issue, there is definitely something wrong with me, but I at least managed to muster the strength to get everything done this week. S... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #182 - Interactive Poetry?
  May 17, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Sorry for the lack of an update yesterday, but I felt really ill. Worst so than usual. I still feel sick right now, and I don't feel like formatting the lore, so we'll get right into the update. So we... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #181 - Twitters And Crowbars
  May 09, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  New week, new update, as things should be. Have some lore. Or maybe I should call it a puzzle: Lore: A Modern Mysterium Also, have an article, as it will be relevant to what I have to say today: Mecha... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #180 - Copy Paste Code
  May 02, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, a bit of an odd weak; we're having a holiday here, and it's disrupting my regular routine. But here's an update. Firstly some lore, just a single one, as I've decided to post only one piece p... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #179 - I'm Still Alive
  April 25, 2022 by EsoDev

  8

  It's been a hard two weeks, but things should be getting better now. In any case, before we go into discussing the update, have some lore: Lore: The Seven Mirrors Lore: The Persephone-17 Experiment Ok... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #178 - This Was A Bad Week
  April 12, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  I'm sorry to say this again, but the last week wasn't too good for me. My health's been on a decline the previous week, and it was a struggle to force myself to do anything. And maybe because of that,... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #177 - A Diegetic User Interface
  April 05, 2022 by EsoDev

  9

  Another update that's a day late? Well, it's because I ended up spending yesterday coding. I just wanted to get something done, and it took precedent over doing the update yesterday. No lore today; I... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #176 - Unlimited GPU Power!
  March 29, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Again, sorry for the late update, but Monday lately has just been difficult for various reasons. I don't even feel that bad today; I just had something that needed to be done yesterday and decided to... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #175 - Humanly Unfeasible
  March 22, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  I apologise for the late update again, but yesterday I was exhausted and decided to postpone. I'm still not feeling great, so I'm skipping the hassle of setting up any lore. For the actual update... D... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #174 - Mostly About The Engine
  March 15, 2022 by EsoDev

  7

  Another week, and quite frankly, it's not been good to me. But I did manage to get a good deal of work done. No lore, though; I am far too exhausted to wrestle with that. So, firstly let's talk about... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #173 - All These Emotions...
  March 08, 2022 by EsoDev

  8

  Two weeks passed, and... well, some stuff definitely happened in that time. Obviously, the update is also late by a day, but let me start by explaining that. Yesterday, I got a model kit, and I was re... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #172 - At Least It's Not COVID
  February 21, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Eeeeeh. Listen, I'm sorry to do this again, but I'm sick. I got the flu (there was a chance it was COVID, but it's not, just a regular one, thankfully), and I'm sitting here with a fever and aching al... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #171 - That's Not Fluff, Those Are Mechanics
  February 14, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  So, time for another update. Here's the lore: Lore: Distances Between Dreams Lore: The Taxonomy of Nightmares And here's the update... So let's start out with just a minor graphical thing. It was sugg... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #170 - No, You Can't Kill The Younglings
  February 07, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  So I'm a bit out of it, and as such, I'm going to skip out on lore today and just give an update on what's been happening over the last week. Starting with minor things - more clothing items, more cos... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #169 - Improving Rendering For A Text Based Game
  January 31, 2022 by EsoDev

  6

  Wow, this was a weird week. Anyway, let's start with the lore: Lore: Ontological Manifestations Lore: The Purple Child Now let's go over what happened over the last few days. Because there was a lot a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #168 - The Asset Grind
  January 25, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Ok, so, lore: Lore: The Myth of Telepathy Lore: The Resurrection Fallacy And now for the update. Apart from messing with the engine a bit more, which is not a particularly interesting topic, I managed... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #167 - Meeting My Own Expectations
  January 17, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Lore for the week: Lore: The Modern Art of Alchemy – Xenochemistry Lore: The Ley Of The Land Now let's move on to the update. What I've done over the last few days can be roughly divided into two po... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #166 - Vaccine Saving Throw Failed Successfully?
  January 10, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Ugh, it's Monday again, huh? So to make things brief, I got the vaccination for COVID last week, and it ended up with me being bedridden for five days. Still, I did manage to eke out some updates to t... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #165 - Hello Twenty Twenty Two
  January 03, 2022 by EsoDev

  5

  Ah yeah, the first post of the new year. So first off, since I took a break for a week, yeah, I rested a lot and felt a little better, but now I'm just falling back into feeling miserable. But I think... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #164 - Happy Mithramas Once More
  December 21, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Hmmm... yes, another update, this one just before the 25th... So before we get to the update proper, allow me to wish you a happy Mitrhamas. Now, I have a bit of lore for you: Lore: Tiefer als Albträ... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #163 - I Am Not Happy To Be Saying This
  December 13, 2021 by EsoDev

  7

  Another update, and this time I don't think it's a happy one. I think we need to talk about my health because it's not good. And over the last two weeks, it hit rock bottom. My physical and mental hea... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #162 - So I Tripped Like An Absolute Fool
  December 07, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Ok, so... the update is late, and the reason is that I've had an accident on Monday. I'm fine, just sad and sore. In any case, I hope you can understand that I just want to get this update out of the... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #161 - Training The Hand That Pets
  November 29, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Once more, no lore this time, but I have an assortment of things I hope to be interesting. A Primer On The Aeons Mechanics: Anticipating The Player With Q-Learning Public Game Design Document: 29.11.2... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #160 - The AI Is Skipping School
  November 22, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  No lore today, but perhaps I can offer you something else instead? A Primer On Alchemy A Primer On The Sefirot Now, for the update. There are a few things I'd like to report on. So firstly, let's look... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #159 - Covers, So Many Covers
  November 15, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Ok, so... lore for today: Lore: Taste of the Ningyo Lore: Beneath the Waves Now for the updates. Last week we managed to get a lot done with the document assets and coding. While we're still congested... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #158 - Doctor, My Everything Hurts
  November 09, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Today's update is going to be very short. The thing is, I was at the doctor yesterday. Unplanned visit as I just wasn't feeling well the past few days. They put me through quite a ringer, particularly... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #157 - Document Revamp
  November 02, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  I was visiting my parents these past few days, so I didn't have much time to prepare any lore... but let's look at something a bit more visual. For the last few days, I've been revamping the rendering... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #156 - 3rd Year Summary
  October 25, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, unusual post today, this is my 3rd year on Patreon (discounting the few weeks here and there that I took off), and I'd like to take this chance to discuss the current state of the game and my... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #155 - Grab-bag Development
  October 18, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Sorry, no lore, I don't feel that great, and it resulted in me wasting 2 hours on an unplanned nap! Anyway, on to the update. This last week I've felt very burned out on life, so I decided to try and... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #154 - Suddnly, Dream
  October 12, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  The update is late because I had an emergency yesterday. By the time it was dealt with, I've couldn't bring myself to do much else than go to bed. Anyway, lore: Lore: Baal, Ba'al; a Falsified Deity? L... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #153 - Progress And Support
  October 04, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  Starting this off with lore real quick: Lore: Homosexuality and Magic Lore: Tentacles and Love Now for the dev progress... well, I went through about half of the texts that we accumulated for nonverba... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #152 - Iterative Evolution
  September 27, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Let's just kick this off with the lore: Lore: The Road to Magedom Lore: What Are We? Now, updates. I really want to report a few things, and I'll start with the minor things. Bug fixes as usual, along... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #151 - That's Better
  September 20, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  This week went a lot better. Not perfect, but considering the previous one, I'll take what I can get. Anyway, let's serve you up some lore and then move to the update proper: Lore: Cognitohazards Lore... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #150 - Failed To Endure
  September 13, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  This last week did not go well. I really don't know what to say. I just repeatedly failed at producing anything of acceptable quality. I'm also exhausted to the point I can't even post any lore, since... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #149 - Reintroduction (New Release)
  September 06, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  The time has come. I'm posting the new version of the alpha - 149. There's some stuff to talk about here, so let me try to answer this in a kind of Q&A form, as I think this best summarises what I hav... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #148 - A Proper Intro
  August 23, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  This week I'll be explaining some details about my situation as well. At the end of the update, that is. For now, let's start with some lore. Since I missed some lore posting recently, I've prepared a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #147 - Content? Content.
  August 10, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  So you might be noticing that I'm posting this update one day later than I should be. It's because I was at the doctor's yesterday and I'll also be there tomorrow. And then probably a few more times d... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #146 - A Faction Of Advantage
  August 02, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Lore first: Lore: Narodnaya Titan Lore: Traversing The Spider's Web And now for the update. Last week, I said I've been thinking about adding one more customisation step: factions. And to start, facti... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #145 - Unorthodox Customisation
  July 26, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  So for this week, let's start with some eldritch elf lore: Lore: Lower Dendric 101 Lore: Living Among the Fair Folk Now for the update. So first off, I've started re-implementing the stuff I've delete... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #144 - So I Messed Up
  July 19, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Ok, so I messed up... Firstly, no lore this week, I'm running late with everything anyway, and I just honestly don't have the energy to pick something out and fight with WordPress about uploading it... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #143 - We Have A Twitter Now
  July 12, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Another week, another update. And we'll start this one with a few announcements. Firstly, we welcome a new member of the team (officially) this week. He'll be taking care of our Twitter for a moment... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #142 - Fashion Digression
  July 05, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Time for our regularly scheduled update~ First, the lore: Lore: The Red Pyramid Lore: The Godavari Journal – A Transcription Now, for the more recent developments. Maybe let's talk about the AI firs... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #141 - Back To Work
  June 28, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Alright, back to regular updates. For the most part, I spent the last two weeks taking it easy and even didn't do anything at all game-related for almost a whole week there. I feel better physically,... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #140 - An Unfortunate Announcement, Once More
  June 14, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  Well, I think I'll just start with the announcement. So, on Friday, I ended up at the doctor's for reasons unrelated to what I'm going to say, but we had a long talk I've stewed on for a few days. Ess... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #139 - Help Needed, And New Clothing
  June 07, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Well, today, the update will be a little bit different. Mainly by the end, if you could, I'd ask you to check what that's about and judge if you might be interested. Now, for the lore: Lore: A Modern... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #138 - Draft Mode
  May 31, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Lore for this week: Lore: Magic Genes Lore: Why Are There Norma? And now for the update! So last week, I didn't manage to get as much done as I was hoping, but that's because one of the things I was p... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #137 - Chokers Are Socially Acceptable Training Collars
  May 24, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Lore for this week: Lore: Ur-Mother Lore: The Occultist's Relationship With Domestic Terrorism Now for the update itself. First off, I updated the indev version available for download. The reason for... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #136 - The Developer Is Now 5G Compatible
  May 16, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Alright, let's start the update for today with some lore: Lore: The Dragon's Eye Lore: Angel of Death Lore: Ruminations Upon The Mountain There's a bit of a history with these. Originally, the game's... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #135 - Corny's Apartment
  May 10, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Right, time for last weeks report. And I'd like to say that I ended up at the doctor. It turned out that because I don't feel my body properly, some things happened that would have likely got me at th... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #134 - Eeeeeehhhhhhhh...
  May 03, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  I'm not feeling too well, so excuse me for being a bit laconic here. Firstly, no lore today. I'm just not feeling up to messing with WordPress to upload something. I'm sorry. Not to mention I know fro... Continue reading
• Random Random Conversation Tutorial
  May 03, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  The Random Conversation Syntax covers building preset conversations for random encounters spoken between random NPCs out in the world. This new module extends the syntax to allow for the exchanges to... Continue reading
• Patch 0.133.1 - A First Time For Everything
  April 29, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Someone kindly informed me of an error they were getting - a hard crash that happened early on in the game when choosing certain paths through the intro. This issue is now hopefully resolved. As such,... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #133 - Exploring Poses (New Indev Release)
  April 26, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  So I'm back from my week-long "vacation", and I can say that everything turned out fine, if anyone is curious. Problems were resolved, and I spent time with my parents, which is not a bad thing at all... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #132 - When You Need A Break But Can't Stop Working
  April 12, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  I'm not feeling well today, so I'm gonna skip out on the lore. Instead, have this, which might be interesting from a game design standpoint rather than a storytelling standpoint: General Writing Style... Continue reading
• General Writing Style Guide
  April 09, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  We all have our different ways of writing. But a game needs a unified style. So here's a brief rundown of all the conventions we use when writing. Breaks from these conventions in the text can occur b... Continue reading
• Random Conversation Tutorial
  April 07, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Ok, I don't have much hope for this, but let's try making a tutorial for my random conversation syntax. Please note that this is a tutorial for writing non-random conversations, but they are used with... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #131 - Finally Done With The Graph
  April 05, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  I think I ate too much egg... But this is how it is during this time, when we remember the sacrifice of Jesus, as the Easter Bunny, giving birth to himself through the means of a giant chocolate egg... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #130 - Why The Goal-Base AI Is Important
  March 29, 2021 by EsoDev

  7

  From talking with a few people, I get the impression that largely what I'm doing with the game right now isn't particularly well understood. Let me try to fix that. This might get a bit lengthy, and a... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #129 - Not Everyone Likes To Be Played With
  March 22, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  I don't feel that well; nothing is happening, I've just been on a long ride today, and my legs are killing me. But I'm still going to cut this fairly short. Firstly, your lore for this week, not much... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #128 - Not Very Good At RPS
  March 15, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Alright, so first off, since last time WordPress was having a herp, here's the lore I was going to post with the previous update: Lore: ZF-Entity Lore: Zombie incidents in the 20th century Furthermore... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #127 - The Final Cog In The Infernal Machine
  March 08, 2021 by EsoDev

  9

  Alright, this will be a difficult update to write since I'm not sure if I can adequately convey what I want to say. B.t.w. no lore today; Wordpress is having some kind of episode. I can't get things t... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #126 - Being Sick Is Bad For Productivity
  March 01, 2021 by EsoDev

  2

  Alright, two weeks passed. As I mentioned in that quick announcement last time, I managed to get sick. It was bad. Very bad. In fact, while I feel on the upswing right now, I'm still not totally fine... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #125 - More About Social Skills
  February 15, 2021 by EsoDev

  3

  Another week and another progress report on social skills. I kinda thought I was done with that for the moment, but a sudden bout of inspiration hit. In any case, let's start with the lore: Lore: Did... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #124 - A 1k Word Post About Social Skills
  February 08, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  Got a lot done this week and I'd like to discuss it or present what I've done for feedback. Sadly, I've not had time to prepare any lore, so there won't be anything new for this Monday. I'll get somet... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #123 - This But A Dream
  February 02, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  This week things managed to both get back on track and get sidetracked by something else! Firstly, the lore for this week: Lore: The Magic Circle Lore: The Body: a Canvas And now, what have I been up... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #122 - A Library!
  January 25, 2021 by EsoDev

  4

  This week proved to be a lot more productive than the last, even though my efforts were a bit scatterbrained. Firstly, I neglected lore recently so here, have three separate entries that share a thema... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #121 - What's Not Good Enough Goes In The Trash
  January 18, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  It's been a while since I last deleted so much of my writing over the course of a week. That means there's very little to report today, considering that the bulk of what I was working on got tossed. I... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #120 - Automated Shoggoth Summoning Procedures
  January 11, 2021 by EsoDev

  6

  This week was rather weird. So it started with Monday. And I was supposed to stream on Monday, but it didn't work out. How badly did it not work out? I ended up with a computer with a fried GPU and MB... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #119 - Blogs And Horns
  January 04, 2021 by EsoDev

  5

  Alrighty, first post in the year of our lord, Yog-Sothoth, 2021. I guess it's as good of a time to do a retrospective on my blogging as any other. Now, later on, I'll get to game updates too, it's bee... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #118 - Bookkeeping Round
  December 28, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  So this week passed under the banner of bookkeeping, which I'll explain in a moment. To start this out though, here's the lore for this update: Lore: Body Trafficing Lore: Athame Now then, moving on t... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #117 - An Exchange of Nods
  December 21, 2020 by EsoDev

  6

  Alright, two weeks have passed once more, and I'm happy to report I am, health-wise, in a much better place than I was a month ago. So, I managed to get a few things done too, it wasn't as much as I h... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #116 - Charting Relationships
  December 07, 2020 by EsoDev

  6

  Ugh, of course, on the day where I do the first post in 2 weeks, I still have a migraine. So, let's get through this. And let's start with my health. It's better. But it's not perfect. As such, I'm ma... Continue reading

  
• Preview Release - version 116
  November 23, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  No update today. Instead, we have a preview build. Version 116 is up for download. Please keep in mind that this is a preview/indev build. Its main goal is testing the item system and item selection... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #115 - The Final Stretch
  November 16, 2020 by EsoDev

  6

  So, what's up this week? Well, some lore to start with. Lore: Extraplanar Atlas, XIIth Edition You'll have to excuse that there's only one text, but I had problems formatting this one in WordPress and... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #114 - A New Look
  November 09, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Continuing being on track this week. There's a bunch of things I managed to get done. But let's start with the lore: Lore: Symbolism and the Elb Lore: Amaranth Now, for changes, in no particular order... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #113 - Eyes On The Prize
  November 02, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  For this week, the plans to get back on track were entirely successful! That said, I don't have much to show off that wouldn't be a bit of a spoiler, but I can at least give a general look into what's... Continue reading
• Event Tutorial - 05 - PC Responses
  November 01, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  And now, finally, the player options. For a start, let's prepare them, the writing is going to be pretty straightforward, precisely the same thing I've done before in the NPC tutorial. Before we get t... Continue reading

  
• Event Tutorial - 04 - NPC Dialogue
  November 01, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  Before we plot down what the characters could possibly say, we'll play around with one more feature of the engine - idiolects. So we're not only going to be writing the words the NPC speaks, but also... Continue reading

  
• Event Tutorial - 03 - The Narration
  October 31, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Continuing on with the event tutorial, we can get to the first bits of text in the event. Since the game has a very poor distinction between writing and coding, we'll be jumping in between a few diffe... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #112 - A Cordial Invitation to Discord
  October 26, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  So this week was horrible for me. The plan was to finish the stuff I started last week, none of that happened though. Instead, I ended up lashing out in a dozen different, random directions. So let's... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #111 - Some Work In Progress
  October 19, 2020 by EsoDev

  6

  This weeks update is a bit of an awkward one. The way things went, I really don't have much finalised right now, but a lot of stuff started. So I'll keep it brief and just sum up what's up, give you a... Continue reading
• Event Tutorial - 02 - The Data
  October 16, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Continuing with the event, we'll now focus on this node. It's a good place to prepare any variables we might need later. No matter if we're using the scripting or the grammar language, it uses the sam... Continue reading

  
• Event Tutorial - 01 - The Outline
  October 14, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  Today I'm starting a small, maybe 3 or 4 part miniseries about creating a little event for the game. Now, this won't be anything that complicated, but I'm also not planning to hold back in what I use... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #110 - Make Tools To Make Work Easier
  October 13, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Another week, another update. So first off, accept this assorted lore to go along with this post. I've decided to throw in something associated more with some of the themes the setting explores at lar... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #109 - Patreon Is On Fire, Update Is Provisional
  October 05, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Firstly, let's just say this - Patreon's site is buggered to all heck. I can't post there, so for the moment, this update is only going up here. Now, let's get to the update. A quick summary of how cl... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #108 - Sweaters Should Be Coats, Not Tops
  September 28, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  Another week, and once more time for lore and updates. Let's start with the former: The Real Secret of Secrets Mofu: the Modern Mage Guild Now for the updates. We're still working on clothing items, b... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #107 - Noticing Changes
  September 21, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  Alright, back on track! So let's start with lore. I must have been an absolute flummoxed buffoon two weeks ago since I uploaded lore and then... didn't add it to the update post. So, below you will fi... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #106 - The Most Fashionable Sweaters
  September 07, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Ugh, this week sucked. Three doctor visits in, I'm just tired. So tired. As such, you only get a very curt update today. I wrote some lore, I wrote some erotica, I worked on clothing. Let's talk more... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #105 - You Love You
  August 31, 2020 by EsoDev

  7

  Because I posted the summary a bit earlier, I ended up with extra time to work on a few things I always wanted in the game but managed to only not included. In any case, let's kick this off with a new... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #104 - 2nd Year Summary
  August 20, 2020 by EsoDev

  7

  Ah, two years now, time for a new summary! I think it's best I divide this up into a few sections: 1) Project overview 2) Development methodology 3) Mechanics 4) Storytelling 5) Issues 6) Questions Du... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #103 - Death By Sun
  August 17, 2020 by EsoDev

  6

  Last week was pretty horrible, actually. The heat has been working on rendering me into a puddle of sweat. That means I couldn't get any focused work done. But I didn't want to waste a week, so I trie... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #102 - Advanced Nodding
  August 10, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  The gist of this week is simple - I added a whole lot more nonverbal templates and more ways they can come together. Essentially, I have a good base for everything I need for the content that currentl... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #101 - He Nods And Then He Nods
  August 03, 2020 by EsoDev

  8

  So, what happened this week? Nonverbals finally became a thing. At the moment the most refined and possibly the most complex grammatical structure I've added to the game, but it serves very well to sh... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #100 - Nonverbally Signalling Progress
  July 27, 2020 by EsoDev

  7

  Well, this week turned out to be weird. I focused on the nonverbals, but it led me to interesting places. Maybe let's start with the technical. A short while ago I described a kind of grammatical AI a... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #99 - Nonverbal Communication
  July 20, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  Alright, time for another update. So first off, I was sick (food poisoning) for most of the weak, so I couldn't really focus on one thing. Thus, instead, I decided to work on several smaller items. Le... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #98 - This Was A Triumph
  July 13, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  So this week, I knew I'd have a lot on my head, so I decided to perform a little experiment that I've wanted to do for a long, long time now. One that I've been thinking of for a while. However, becau... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #97 - Organised Chaos
  July 06, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Alright, new update. I was starting to get worried because the beginning of this week was nasty. (Weather, I'm sure you can imagine... actually, I'm not sure you can. Look, I live in central Europe, w... Continue reading
• Update Cancelled Due To Life
  June 29, 2020 by EsoDev

  5

  Last week (22-28.06.20) has, unfortunately, not been productive at all, I got stuck with a lot on my head, including finishing stuff at work before my four-week vacation (which has now started). I did... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #96 - Planting Trees
  June 22, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  So what's been happening this week? We got back into content. Yes, content. Starting with a re-make of the intro, moving everything to the new formats and tech while also expanding the interactivity... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #95 - Wash The Grease Off
  June 15, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  Like I said last week, I had a load on my plate and it left me exhausted — the kind of exhausted where it was difficult getting much in terms of writing down. So while I did write some lore, I decid... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #94 - Pieces Fall Into Place
  June 01, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  This week I continued working on various technical aspects of the game. The reason for this is two-fold. From one side I did not feel that well and couldn't do much work done elsewhere, from the other... Continue reading

  
• Helltaker and Pancakes
  May 26, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  #pancakes

  Helltaker is a delightful game, but I take issue with the pancakes ... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #93 - Correcting Mistakes
  May 25, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  I wanted to, at least for a bit, rest from the clothing as the feeling of being burnt out with development was setting in. So I decided to just dedicate a week to fixing bugs, and improving code. So f... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #92 - Boa Implementation Inevitable
  May 17, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  Alright, let's get this over with. Look, I'm gonna be open with you, I am not enthused with hos this week went. It was a miserable, miserable hell on Earth for the last 7 days and I am surprised I eve... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #91 - Adequately Expressive (ufufufufu)
  May 11, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  This week was weird. Like I said last time, I decided to go back to writing the clothing interactions, but I just kept... getting distracted by 4 AM pudding incidents. The first incident happened on T... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #90 - Resting While Still Working
  May 04, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Over the last week, I've found myself too sick and mentally exhausted to continue on with the clothing texts, so I decided to make a small detour into unfinished business. So, I took a look at the ran... Continue reading
• Rebranding to Nekomancers United
  April 30, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  If you look at my Patreon name, you might notice that it changed. I've decided to rebrand from a personal Patreon to a team one. But please understand, nothing is actually changing. What I am doing is... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #89 - Take Off It
  April 27, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  This week I was struggling through a very complicated set of grammatical constructions that control some aspects of clothing descriptions. In fact, a lot of different bits of narration can be derived... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #88 - The Lingerie Spreadsheet
  April 20, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  For the last week, I focused on three different things. One of them, the clothing system, I'll discuss in a moment. The remaining two are simpler to explain, so let's start with those. I wrote more lo... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #87 - Going Commando
  April 13, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  Ok, so a week has passed, and I've managed to put some decent work into the game once more. Honestly, I am happy the Jam is over, and I don't have to work on Waifu anymore. However, on the other hand,... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #86 - Date The Waifu, I Dare You
  April 06, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  So the Jam-Jam is over, it really felt like a waste of time for the most part. I think that in the future I won't participate in these events anymore. That being said, apart from not having the time t... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #85 - As the Jamming comes to an end...
  March 29, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  Let's talk a bit about how things have been going. Firstly, I'm fine, most of the people I know are fine, some people are sick, and there are some other complications. But we're trucking along. Hopefu... Continue reading
• Engine Tutorial - 05 - Simple Display
  March 23, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  Alright, let's take a look at how the output for Waifu is generated. For simplicity's sake, I'm doing a single output segment as a state. This doesn't need to happen. In the main game, I use an approa... Continue reading

  
• Engine Tutorial - 04 - Be Done With It
  March 15, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  This will be the final update concerning the animation system, next week I'm starting on the actual story part of the game. But, I think that what I've shown so far wasn't quite conclusive about how y... Continue reading

  
• Engine Tutorial - 03 - A Simple Animation System
  March 13, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  So far, our paperdoll was handcrafted, and our CSS was handwritten. It's time to change that and get into generating CSS! To do so, I've prepared a re-usable state file. I'll demonstrate the use of it... Continue reading

  
• Engine Tutorial - 02 - Playing With Dolls
  March 07, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Let's make a paperdoll. An animated paperdoll to be precise. This will be needed for the next part of what I'll be doing - that is to say for the animation authoring system. But to author animations,... Continue reading

  
• Engine Tutorial - 01 - Waifu and Dating
  March 03, 2020 by EsoDev

  4

  Time to start working on the jam. Despite having a pretty tiresome day at work, I'd still like to have something done today. So let's go over a few basics of the engine by finding a starting point for... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #84 - Sir, We're Being Jammed!
  March 02, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  Last week I already teased working on the clothing system. But this week I finished out what I like to think of as 'phase I' (out of 3). So what is the functionality? Apart from standard item mechanic... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #83 - Boxes and Bras
  February 24, 2020 by EsoDev

  3

  So someone prompted me to fix up the shop interface since it's not as clear as it could be. So I did. I revamped the whole UI for that... And I felt that I might as well continue working on inventory... Continue reading

  
• Public Release - version 0.49
  February 17, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Alrighty, the new public version is up. From your perspective, as a player, I invite you primarily to look at the Internet and the Mall, where you will find a store to browse and use to test out the n... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #82 - Back to Work
  February 10, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Resting for a week was lovely, and I think I'll need one more week of rest soon, but let's try to finalise the update this week. First off, because of content slowly streaming in from different places... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #81 - A Most Unfortunate Thing
  January 28, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Well, let's get the content out of the way and then I'll get to the somewhat unfortunate announcement. First of all, a little UI tweak, I've colour matched the scroll bar to the rest of the game. It l... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #80 - The Little Things
  January 21, 2020 by EsoDev

  Let's make this quick since I don't have much to say. The thing I said I can't figure out last week? Figured it out, implemented it, adjusted everything in the game that needed to work with the featur... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #79 - A Minor Mistake Was Made
  January 13, 2020 by EsoDev

  1

  Transferring content into the game is still progressing, over 10k words done and probably about 10k more to go to finish up that segment. I've also finished writing all requests apart from one. But th... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #78 - Move Along
  January 06, 2020 by EsoDev

  2

  Not much to report this week. Not because I've not done much, but because everything I did was fairly dry and technical. Most of it has been tagging and formatting text. HTML and grammars basically. B... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #77 - The Not-Christmas Update
  December 30, 2019 by EsoDev

  1

  #procedural-generation, #text-filtering

  This week I did mostly maintenance before a new public update (sometime early January if all goes well!) but also ended up introducing text filters into the game... or game engine, to be precise. It w... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #76 - Sorry, I've Been Sick
  December 23, 2019 by EsoDev

  1

  Unfortunately, I've been sick for the last two weeks, most of them at least as I started recovering this Friday. I jumped into a lot of minor things related to tidying up code, pushing things forward,... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #75 - I Have Such BS to Show You
  December 09, 2019 by EsoDev

  2

  #procedural generation, #text generation

  I don't feel well. So first off, I might take a break and just lie down. Unfortunately, that's how things go for someone who's body is as frail as mine. In any case, what have I done? Well, I continue... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #74 - Such Naughty Requests!
  December 02, 2019 by EsoDev

  1

  I needed a break, so I took to writing erotica. Ended up with half a dozen finished pieces, plus one that was donated, and four more that are in different stages of "started to work on it". Out of tho... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #73 - Definition of Madness
  November 25, 2019 by EsoDev

  1

  #procedural generation, #random generation

  I'm done with the coding and a lot of the content for the random character generator, thus concluding Phase 2. It will be a while before I start working on Phase 3. First, I need to implement what I'v... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #72 - Testing The Waters
  November 18, 2019 by EsoDev

  2

  #procedural generation, #procedural writing, #formal grammars

  Ending this week, I find myself in a pretty curious situation in terms of sharing something with you. That is to say, I'm in the middle of making a system that can generate random NPCs on the fly and... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #71 - Internetception
  November 11, 2019 by EsoDev

  1

  So... I feel better. I don't want to get into nor dwell on my state of health, but I had a bad time through most of the last week. Specifically from last Sunday to this Friday. But, I said I'll expand... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #70 - I'm not feeling that well...
  November 04, 2019 by EsoDev

  3

  I'm not feeling that great, so I just want to make this quick. Over the last week, I worked more on the shopping systems. I made some adjustments to item rarity, replaced the item descriptions with mu... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #69 - Shopping, Smearing and Goodbyes
  October 28, 2019 by EsoDev#inventory system, #procedural generation, #formal grammars

  Last week was somewhat fruitful. So I think I'll just go over the highlights. Firstly, I expanded the API with a few more commands. While the sequencer is purely experimental, both the consequences an... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #68 - Shopping In Progress
  October 21, 2019 by EsoDev#update, #procedural generation

  It would seem implementing the shopping had sent me straight into quite a rabbit hole. So first off, this isn't about shopping mechanics, not directly at least. Those have been done for a while. What... Continue reading
• Esoteric Update #67 - The Modding API Strikes Back
  October 13, 2019 by EsoDev

  2

  #modding, #api

  The API is done. Over 200 distinct entries, some of which contain details of variants. In other words, I severely underestimated the size of my API, saying it should only have some 200 distinct instru... Continue reading

  
• Esoteric Update #66 - Modding Api 2.0
  October 07, 2019 by EsoDev#modding, #api

  If you're one of the few people who have been following me since the beginning, you might remember that I used to have an API on my blog. By this point, it would be really incomplete, and I took it do... Continue reading