Esoteric Update #149 - Reintroduction (New Release)

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 have to say.

1) What's new?

Superficially, there's a new intro, changes to the character creator and a load of bugfixes. However, it's all about building the first interactions based on my v2 systems at the core. It took me a while to develop them, but now they've allowed me to do this intro, and it seems to me, at the moment, that the systems in place right now allow me to build the game in the form it was envisioned in, rather than my previous attempts to get "content" out ASAP.

2) Why the intro and not new content?

A few reasons.

Firstly, the intro was just badly written. If you disagree, I'm sorry, you're wrong. This is a massive step up from the old version, but it also allowed me to address a few other points.

Secondly, the intro as it existed no longer matched up with the lore of the game's world. Things clarified since it was written; I brushed everything up to match with the current lore, which is also the lore we've been working with regardless for a longer time now.

Thirdly, it was a good way to test out the v2 systems. So it's not just revamped in the literary sense. It's also wholly updated in terms of coding. I tested many different possible tricks for building interactions, passing about information and using as many new subsystems as I could.

3) What changed in the character generator?

Some minor changes include removing the "dyed" trait from hair, including red eyes (for albino characters), and tweaks to saving, loading, editing, and updating characters.

But the significant change is the inclusion of two more character generation steps, the language and faction options.

4) Can I just reload my save from the old version?

Yes, but I'd suggest you don't. Loading an old save will force an update to your character and world, but you'll miss out on the intro, which is the whole point of this version.

5) Can I import my old characters for a new game?

Yes, it will force you to update the character. You can save it again when you are done with the update and proceed to the intro.

6) Do all the new character-building options work in the game?

No. Idiolects don't work outside of the new intro (this will change in time), and two of the factions have features that are not completely implemented into the game yet. However, everything works otherwise, and in particular, all of the locked options are available if you can figure out how to access them (yes, it's possible to figure it out).

7) I found a bug; what now?

Good! Make sure to send a screenshot of the white box that pops up and explain what you were doing. I'll try to have a fix ready ASAP.

8) What next?

In the immediate future, I have a load of text to go into and incorporate into the game, primarily things like generic actions, generic texts. It will take a week or two. After that? We progressively expand the game and include more content.

9) How's your health?

Bad, but I'll manage.