#quaint vn | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

slitherpunk · 2 months

Text

games i liked in 2023 (And Other)

I like games ! You know that ?! and I played a lot 2023! and I liked a lot :). They aren't in any specific order, it's just a little highlight of games that stood out to me this year. I've attempted to write a few thoughts on each so I hope take a look. I wrote playtimes for some also but that is very subjective.

-Ones that actually came out 2023-

Lunacid https://store.steampowered.com/app/1745510/Lunacid/ I think I mentioned enjoying this in 2022 but it officially released so I can say it was one of my favorite games in 2023 :3! I like to feel around this game's walls for secrets. I like the npcs that are full of hope and whimsy despite the bleakness of its world. Chill and occasionally spooky first person dungeon crawling around moody caverns and ruins varying from underground forests to vampire castles and blood lake. (Blood lake!!!! Lake of blood!!! Big creature there.) Lots of fun weapons and spells to find, I like the one that lets you turn blood into coffins.

~20 hours

Orbo's Odyssey https://feverdreamjohnny.itch.io/orbos-odyssey If you played the massively popular demo for "Peeb Adventures" by feverdreamjohnny then you know that Johnny makes some fun and funny games and this is certainly one of them. speedy and satisfying platforming! funny dracula moments! short and sweet.

~2 hours

A Walk in the Woods https://mooncaller.itch.io/a-walk-in-the-woods Quaint little GBStudio game :) Made by some friends of mine for a jam :) It's cute I like it. There's minigames where you catch bugs and birdwatch.

~30 minutes long

Undertale Yellow https://gamejolt.com/games/UndertaleYellow/136925 I've only completed the pacifist run and checked out a neutral run so far. as the title somewhat implies, this is a prequel to Undertale where you play as the fallen human who had the yellow colored soul. This Undertale fangame has a lot of charm!!! A lot of battles really feel like they could have been in the original, with quite a bit of extra flair in some circumstances.

~10 hours

vs really cool bird https://bobacupcake.itch.io/vs-really-cool-bird you know that really cool bird that rob bobacupcake made well you can fight it in undertale and it's really fun. yeah two undertale fangames. . . wat of it …

~30 minutes

Misericorde: Volume One https://xeecee.itch.io/misericorde I wont lie the main draw for me into this was cute anime nuns I sure didn't know a whole lot else about it when I dug into it. But it's (the first part of) a VN murder mystery! And I enjoyed it a whole lot. All the characters are memorable and I really enjoy how all of them have differentiating designs. The protagonist is so failgirl. She sucks so much and I love her. I'm very intrigued by the mechanics of the game's world, it clues you in near the beginning to expect something a bit supernatural/fantastical, which gives you (and later the protagonist) a curiosity about what's real and what isn't. The music is all very impressive too, with the ost reaching past 100 tracks varying through post-rock, folk, drum & bass, and others. (Remembering when the track "Scandal" played and my friends and I took a moment to be like- okay hang on this track pwns.) Big fan of its haunting locals and how the aesthetic of the game fits them well. Also the humor is a lot of fun, and I love all the moments getting to know the different characters. Very excited to see the eventual continuation of this.

~12 hours

Absolutely Perfect Specimen https://chambersoft.itch.io/absolutely-perfect-specimen It seems like a lot of people are craving toxic horror yuri lately. Here's a recommendation. It's a VN about the android maid "Pan" and the mad scientist girl who created her. Horrifying & gut wrenching & largely about having other people define you. The art and music is haunting & poignant and matches the ever increasing feeling of dread throughout. It's yuri with the chunks. Peak robotgirl horror for those who can stomach it.

~90 minutes

Wordhopper https://kokoscript.itch.io/wordhopper Very quaint word search type puzzle game for ms dos! I think its style is very slick and that's pretty impressive to see. Chill game with nice vibes and eyecandy visuals. also it was so cool to have played this and then ended up seeing the dev's booth at Vintage Computer Festival Midwest. I was like omg woah I just played this.

~bunny

Bossgame https://lilyv.itch.io/bossgame This game is yuriful as f*ck. Delightful humor and fun character dynamics! A simple-to-understand-difficult-to-master boss rush battle system that makes you satisfied to get it right, and enticing to get just a little farther if you get it wrong. There's a lot of detail and charm to this game's menus and dialogues and win screens, I remember noticing that once you beat a boss there would be some marquee text that would pass by with some prose on it. I love how it balances its silly moments with its heartfelt moments and its high octane moments. I like the character development and revelations had throughout the plot. & I like how good the protagonists are for each other :) It's very sweet. It's hype as hell. if you want some boss rush action paired well with that sweet sweet girl's love, you *will* play this game.

~5 hours

Elly's Adventure https://bikwins.itch.io/ellys-adventure Very cute and witchy!! You are the little witch girl "Elly" on an adventure to get your toys back!! Feels like a pretty authentic gameboy type experience, it takes a lot of design cues from Kirby's adventure and the like. I am a big fan of how playful it feels.

~1 hour

Nour https://store.steampowered.com/app/1141050/Nour_Play_with_Your_Food/ This was a treat for me, but I understand that not everybody is going to get it. It's a game where you play with food(and food accessories). And that's it. It knows what it was going for. I think a lot of people were expecting something else for some reason. It's a cute little toy game and I felt satisfied with my time with it.

~food

Hi-Fi Rush https://store.steampowered.com/app/1817230/HiFi_RUSH/ Do I have to say this game is super fun? It's a big one everybody probably already knows it. This game's dopey humor made me laugh a lot and I'm not afraid to admit it.

~12 hours

WHISKEY.ST2007S https://bonicle.itch.io/whiskey-st2007nes One of the last games I played in the year because it released super last minute. Does anybody else get a rush when running a shopping cart down the parking lot? This emulates that feeling. Short game where you collect whisky stones in the whisky stone dimension because you forgot to go christmas shopping until the very last minute. it rules. It's very short you can go play it right now & get a highscore.

~5 minutes

re:curse https://devpalmer.itch.io/re-curse Discovered this one near the very end of the year also. Fun little rpg maker horror/humor game about a weird scientist lady, her butch, and an evil clown computer virus that figured out how to warp reality. I got a kick out of it. and also enjoyed digging through the game's files, which was actively encouraged by the dev, which I thought was very fun.

~90 minutes

-Didn't technically get to until 2024 but released last year-

SWOLLEN TO BURSTING UNTIL I AM DISAPPEARING ON PURPOSE https://1207.itch.io/swollen-to-bursting-until-i-am-disappearing-on-purpose People love to dunk on a lot of indie rpgs for being "quirky Earthbound inspired and about depression" or whatever. Earthbound's great. If people can nail the kind of humor and absurdity it likes to pull off while also balancing difficult topics I think that deserves a high mark. SWOLLEN TO BURSTING was fun. Bizarre and charming places to explore & distressing secrets to find. I like how it blends meander-around-the-town gameplay with Yume Nikki sort of exploration and effects. Also I'm a big fan of the music. I like how it has the lofi sound which matches the early 3d look of the game.

~6 hours

HalOPE https://starbage.itch.io/halope Another for the fans of sweet little rpg maker games that have a lot of heart. HalOPE is about an incomplete little angel wondering through worlds. Each has a theme, usually to do with an emotion or feeling, and they do well at evoking that feeling as well as its antithesis. a lot of the music is very homey and charming at moments and unnerving at others, sometimes lonely, all doing well in their corresponding chapters to further the feeling of its specified theme. There are so many delightful characters and designs in this & I found myself feeling really attached to their tiny little stories. The narrative at the core of it all hit me. If I may be vulnerable, I cried a whole lot at various moments in this game. It was really cathartic. I feel very excited for people to experience this game.

~5 hours

-Favs I finally got around to that didn't come out 2023-

An Outcry https://quinnk.itch.io/an-outcry Kind of sad it took me so long to get to this one, but glad it meant I got to play the "definitive" updated version of it. Apartment wandering RPG maker horror. Bum smokes from your neighbors and use them to save the game. I wish I could unwrap a lot more of what I like about this game than I can without spoiling too much. But if I could, I'd probably go on for too long. Let me attempt to be succinct & not giving too much away. You can tell pretty early on that An Outcry is about taking action when necessary & not turning a blind eye. What it explores about player vs protagonist agency is very fascinating to me as well, and I enjoyed learning about the inspirations for why the game's narrative works the way it does. The character Anne is such a sweetie and I love her a whole lot. This game has a very tangible feeling, this apartment complex is dirty and crumby, it smells of smoke, and there's a surrounding desperation you can feel.

~5 hours

Pigments https://punkcake.itch.io/pigments Honestly I had gotten this game in a bundle and while I was playing it I hadn't looked at the name and I just kept calling it FRUIT. On call with my friends I'd be like "hey im gonna play more FRUIT". I straight up didn't read the title screen. But it's called Pigments. You play as a fruit and you try to paint the whole floor and not get sliced by buzzsaws. Fun little arcade type game.

~fruit

Bridge, October 3rd https://lowpolis.itch.io/bridge-october-3rd Very short vignette. I like it. It's what it says it is. I'm not going to overexplain.

~like a minute

-Other Games I Want To Mention-

Pseudoregalia https://store.steampowered.com/app/2365810/Pseudoregalia/ I think a lot of people might have already known this one but I felt like it was a pretty fun 3d platformer. There were a few issues I had with it (boss fight at the beginning was frustrating, and I got lost a lot [but it looks like there's been a map patch by now, so, perhaps for some that is a fix]). I enjoyed it but sure felt weird that the only accessibility option was to give the protagonist pants. What kind of joke is that?

~5 hours

Mushroom Musume https://mortallymoonstruckgames.itch.io/mushroom-musume (Disclaimer, this game is still early access, but I saw a lot of people talking about it last year. SO I will mention here?) Haven't played much of this yet, but I have enjoyed what I played so far!! As of writing I've gone through 6 playthroughs, I feel like I've hardly scratched the surface and I've been so impressed by its depth. It's very charming, you never know what sorts of fairytale shenanigans are going to happen, and it's very cool to see how your different stats will affect things. It very much plays out like a roguelike vn. Which is not the sort of thing you may expect to make much sense but it pulls this off well. Also all the mushroom girls are very cute and I love them very much. I hope the sad goopy one who had bugs in her skin rests in peace.

~mushroom

Knuckle Sandwich https://andybrophy.itch.io/knuckle-sandwich -_- Hm. Where do I start with this one. I was pretty excited for this one since the demo and kickstarter in 2018. I felt like the demo was a hell of a hook that got me curious & horrified. As time went on, it seemed to be shaping up into something really cool. turn based combat with action commands and wario-ware-type microgames?? with a banging soundtrack?? like, count me in!! Then it released and well, the gameplay, art, music all delivered. It was very fun and engaging in those aspects. But the story… oh it just devolves into disappointing nonsensical randomness. The whole hook at the beginning seemed to be completely thrown away for the wild goose chase plot that ensues, leaving you to wonder if it was ever going to be relevant again. It felt like it had no idea what it was trying to say or do. It disappointed me that a game that has so much good in so much else about it gets brought down so much for me by this plot.

~12 hours

Rhythm Doctor https://store.steampowered.com/app/774181/Rhythm_Doctor/ (Putting this one in mentions because it is early access.) I really enjoyed the act 5 release. When I first saw this game, I kind of shrugged it off, thinking "that base mechanic doesn't seem like it will last". I thought it was basically just that one ghost shooting game from Rhythm Heaven which I Hate. Well let's just say I am now seeking penitence for my previous transgressions. It's really fun. There's a lot more to it that I didn't know when I first took a look. Also, consistently amazed by people's custom levels, I had no idea that its level editor allows people to do so much in it, I look at some levels and think "This editor seems as complex as an industry standard video editor". I'm looking forward to what they're planning next, very curious how they could possibly one-up the last update.

~rhythm

El Paso Elsewhere https://strangescaffold.itch.io/el-paso-elsewhere This was really fun & funny so far but unfortunately I had been encountering an issue with a certain level where the game would crash. I reported the issue, got a response, and there has been an update since then so I think there's a possibility that it got fixed but I have not tried yet. I would like to return to this sometime but having to relearn controls midway through is always daunting to me.

-Things that looked good but didn't get around to-

Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood https://store.steampowered.com/app/1340480/The_Cosmic_Wheel_Sisterhood/ Still don't know a whole lot about this. But there are witches, and I like witches.

Casette Beasts https://store.steampowered.com/app/1321440/Cassette_Beasts/ I haven't felt thrilled about Pokémon lately. I know a lot of people seemed to really enjoy this little monster-collecting-rpg. The style is appealing to me as a die-hard gen 5 fan. I started playing it but haven't set aside the dedicated time for it yet, but I'm excited to dig in more when I do.

Little Goody Two Shoes https://store.steampowered.com/app/1812370/Little_Goody_Two_Shoes/ Started watching a friend play this, and I'm certainly curious.. Some sort of horror fairytale but also there's yuri? Yum. Enjoyed the style and animation in the nightmare segments that I saw.

Venba https://store.steampowered.com/app/1491670/Venba/ I've picked this up a while ago but still haven't gotten around to it, but I'm eager to, I've heard nothing but good things.

Goodbye Volcano High https://store.steampowered.com/app/1310330/Goodbye_Volcano_High/ I think there are gay dinosaurs in a band and it's going to be the apocalypse? I have also heard nothing but good things about this.

-Things I watched friends play-

Signalis https://store.steampowered.com/app/1262350/SIGNALIS/ This was a pretty big one. You probably already know it, right? Watched a friend play this and I missed various parts but I understood a solid bit of it. hey. robotgirls are always getting put in these fucked up situations. have you noticed this? one time i got really high and cried about it. it isn't fair

Bomb Rush Cyberfunk https://store.steampowered.com/app/1353230/Bomb_Rush_Cyberfunk/ This one was also probably big enough you don't need me to sing its praises. but it looked really neat. swag.

-Various Thoughts-

Lately I've been thinking more about design and narrative. I feel like I haven't been doing as much analysis as I should be when it comes to games. I want to dissect more what games are saying and figure out meaning. Also attempt to see how the mechanics aid in that. I feel like most of my own work is pretty abstract & random. I simply make what I like. While that's fun and all, I still want to improve in a lot of ways, especially in having more of a theme or message. Figuring out how other games accomplish this is obviously a good step toward this.

If you saw games here that interest you I highly urge you to take a look, many are pretty short, and I pretty explicitly wanted to highlight some smaller titles. If you know me you know I like to uplift small games. (Save for the occasional big game, but that's rare these days) I think it's healthy for you to play and support independently developed & published works. I don't want to ramble too much this time about why that's important, but I hope that you might have found something you may enjoy here and if not then I encourage you to find small stuff that you would like. And I would like to encourage everybody to share their findings as well! Little games need our help to be seen and talked about! They don't have the budgets the big ones do for advertising, and advertising on your own is a whole ton of work. If you like something, spread the word! I'm sure the developers would very much appreciate that.

462 notes · View notes

karagna · 4 months

Text

A Pound of Flesh link: https://karagna.itch.io/a-pound-of-flesh-concept

For this year's Global Game Jam, I decided "Hey why don't I solo dev an entire visual novel in Renpy with absolutely 0 prior knowledge in coding?"

And so I did! Presenting A Pound of Flesh (part 1), a short vn where you play as Agatha, a girl who begins working at a quaint butcher shop.

It's around 20 mins play time, and if there's interest I'll most likely add on more sections as well! Right now you can only play up to the end of week 1 because I only had 36-ish hours to code and draw the entire thing. Let me know what you guys think if you play it!

#li draws #artists on tumblr #original character #global game jam #ggj #ggj24 #visual novel #renpy #vn #A Pound of Flesh

177 notes · View notes

hollowmend · 2 months

Note

Happy birthday (for tomorrow)!! 🥳 I hope you have an awesome day! For my question, what are your personal favourite indie VNs (can be otome, amare, BL, non-romantic, etc.) that you’ve played? Do you have any favourite MCs and LIs? Favourite tropes?

I have a confession to make... I haven't been keeping up on a lot of indie VNs 🥲 I read them here and there, but my "to read" list is waaay longer than my "read" list.

That being said, here are some that have stuck with me:

Soul of Sovereignty

Aelfric the Wonderous

The Five Steps to Ensuring Momo Graduates Successfully

Dear Devere

One Night, Hot Springs

I might be a bit biased, but if you like scifi, check out my friend @brii-nanas games! Their most recent one, Under the Skies of Ikarus is getting a voiced update soon ✨

And here's a quick list of VNs I've been eyeing up but haven't played yet - Quaint, Our Wonderland, Tattoos and Tulips, The Summit Library, To Die in the Shade

Favorite MC - I'm not usually very good at picking favorites, but the MC that's coming to mind is Lee from Dead Man's Rest. I ended up liking him way more than any of the LIs, which is almost never the case for me.

Favorite LI - I know this isn't an indie, so it might not be in the sprit of the question, but Kent from Amnesia. I love that strange boy.

Favorite Tropes - Kuuderes. I like when a normally stoic LI has strong feelings for someone and is cute and/or awkward about it.

Some more specific ones - Overly affectionate drunks who accidently reveal their feelings to their crush, that thing where a character wakes up from being sick/injured and their LI has fallen asleep watching over them.

Thanks for the birthday wishes!

#asks

2 notes · View notes

faepunkprince · 1 year

Note

Have you heard of the game Our Life: Beginnings and Always? It is a very cute and quaint VN that is free on itchio that is so inclusive I can't mention it all. One of things I can talk about without spoiling anything is that you grow up along side your neighbor, Cove, who's personality in later life is shaped by your choices. Another thing is that, you, the protagonist, has 2 moms and a sister. The devs are even making a second game called Our Life: Now and Forever, that's going to include a pictures of the character's head. If they get enough funding for it, they said they could add polyamory with your co-protagonists.

I have!!! I've got a friend that's played it and I've heard about it from her, it's definitely something I'd like to look into playing myself!

#thank youu!!!#it looks super cute i just never have energy to play anything 😭

1 note · View note

ktarima · 5 years

Text

New Life: Prologue

Hey yall! I recently got the inspiration to write my first fanfic ever since I started to play the VN mobile game, Choices! Lets just say … I got addicted real quick lol. This fanfic series will be Julian x M!OC (HSS) This is my first time writing..so any feedbacks is appreciated ^.^ Enjoy!

Word count : 1780

Rating: T ( for mention of profanity)

Pairing: Julian x M!OC

All characters and mentions are property of Pixelberry studios

tag list: @choiceslife @griffinsbigdickenergy

On Highway 12, Tuesday, 10:00 PM

I stare lazily outside into the night sky; the view of trees turning into a sea of green as we drive down the highway to our new home in Cedar Cove.

“Are we there yet?” I ask the driver. My dad briefly looks at his phone.

“No. Don’t worry , we’re almost there”

“That’s what you said two hours ago” I groan. He chuckles slightly. My mom chimes in.

“We’ll be there before you know it. Take a nap sweetie.”

“Fineee” I grab my ear buds before leaning back in my seat and rest my head on the window. I shuffle my playlist before falling fast asleep.

“ All of this could have ended differently. I screwed everything up back at Bowie. I lost all connections I built with my IB friends… and most importantly, Devin; my crush” I sniff softly “Maybe moving away… was the best choice” I thought before falling into a deeper sleep.

A brief memory of Richard comes across my mind in my sleep; a memory that I wanted to delete from my memory. He marches towards me, furious.

“You!” He seethed , jabbing a finger in my face “You caused this disaster!” This really wasn’t the time for confronting me.

I scowled. “Excuse me?! You know I was just following your orders!”

“I DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!” We were now face to face “Now because of you, we lost the competition and the funds to support the IB program!”

I was one second away from punching his face. “If you give me a momen--” Before I could finish, he turned away.

“Fuck you, you piece of shit” he growled “Lets go “ He ordered everyone else. After that, rumors started to spread around the school; that I was the worst person in the entire school. Cold glares and isolation was only the tip of the iceberg. I came across Devin one day from the opposite direction. At Least I have one person that could brighten my day, or so I had thought.

“Oh. Hey Devin!” I greeted.... A moment of silence, not a single glance in my direction” Devin?”

He grunted. “ Get away from me.” This wasn’t his normal behavior and I made the mistake of confronting him.

“Wh-- Please don’t tell me you believe the rumors that's been going around these past few weeks.” Devin gritted his teeth and pushed me towards the lockers. “Ow- What the hell was that for?!”

“I’m not gonna say it again. GET.AWAY.FROM.ME. I don’t want to see your face anymore” He threatened.

That was when my world started to break into a million of pieces. Richard’s words echoing through my mind. “THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!”

Gritting my teeth,“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” I scream back, waking up. A moment of silence pass as I try to regain my composure. “Oh”. I look up to my parents staring back at me from the front mirror.

Turning back,“Oh honey, another nightmare?” My mother asked, face slightly frowning in concern. “You were thrashing back and forth again.”

“I-... no...maybe” I sigh “It’s nothing really”.

“Are you sure Ben? You’ve been having a lot of these night scares recently ever since we moved.” My father asked,throwing a concerning look in the front mirror.

I shrug. “Just a bit stressed from the past few weeks. Don’t worry.” Life was hectic for all of us due to sudden changes at my parents’ jobs and it showed. “Once we get to our new home, I’ll be all better.” I cleared my throat. “How far are we away from Cedar Cove now?”

“Well..” My dad looks at his phone again “We’re not too far away now. About ten minutes. We’ll probably see the sign for the city along the way.” No sooner than he said, we pass a sign with Cedar Cove in big letters. The sea of green gradually shifted to buildings and highway lightings.

“Ugh ten more minutes until I can sleep in a real bed--”

Suddenly,the car came to a jolting stop to a stop light.

“Woah!” I gasp, thrown out of my seat. “What was that for dad?” pouting as I got back up.

He chuckles. “Haha, sorry about that. Just tired from all the traveling, didn’t see that stop light”. My mom elbows him from across. “Ow! Sorry Sorry” he laughs. “We’ll be in Cedar Cove and to our new home soon..”

I roll my eyes “ ugh just save me from this nightmare already.” I grumble as I look out into the night sky.

We drive down the streets of Cedar Cove, taking in the view of the town. The town looked pleasant enough.

“ Turn left and your destination will be on the right.” The GPS stated.

The car came to a stop as we arrived to our new driveway. “FINALLY! WE’RE FREE!” I shout as we get out of the car. “Hey mẹ* . Can I borrow your arms?” I hold onto her hands and lean back to stretch my spine. Crack, Crack. “Wow … that must have been one long ride” I thought. We stretch for a bit longer before dad came over to hand me the keys to the house.

“Don’t go losing the keys now.”

Rolling my eyes“When have I ever lose the house keys?” I joke. He chuckles.

“Anyways, the moving truck should be here tomorrow . Go help mom bring in the beds and call it a night. Tomorrow is going to be one busy day.”

I nod. “The sooner the better” I laugh as I help my mom bring in the beds into our new house. The house didn’t look half too bad, in my opinion. It was smaller than our old home, but it had that familiar quaint feeling. At last, I chose my room and dropped my bed in a corner. I took out my phone and checked the time. Yikes, 11 P.M. I flop onto my bed.

I flop onto my bed.“Good night mẹ”

“Good night darling, rest up. We have a lot of stuff to do tomorrow” I groan a reply before falling asleep.

Beep. Beep.Beep. I half open one of my eyes to look at my phone.8:45 AM. “Ughhh, too early for this” I roll across my bed. “5 more min--” I mumble before the door to my room suddenly opens.

“GOOD MORNING SQUIRT!” My dad beams. I really wasn’t in the mood for this. I squinted.

“Good.. morning to you to dad” I mumble as I lazily wrap myself in my blanket.

“Time to rise and shine! We have a lot of stuff to do.”

I don’t know how he’s so active in the morning. “Yeah.. i’ll,rise and shine in like 5 min--” I start before he yanks the blanket away from me.

“AHH! Fine i’m up.” I complain.

He laughs “Go get some breakfast and i’ll see you in a bit”. I yawn before getting out of bed to do the usual morning routine. Afterwards, I plop down on one of the makeshift chairs in the kitchen with a bowl of cereal.

“So what’s the plan for today?” I ask before eating a spoonful of cereal.

“Well” My mom takes a sip of her coffee”The moving company is arriving this afternoon. Then we have to head to the local dealership to get you a car and we’re going to shop around for furniture.” She hands dad a cup of coffee.

Finishing the last bite of my cereal and gulping the milk down. “I see and by we, you mean you and dad?” She playfully slaps my shoulder.

“ Yes dear” rolling her eyes

”We’ll handle the moving stuff, in the meantime you’ll drive around town and visit your new high school” My dad states.

I felt a knot form in my stomach. “Fantastic. What’s the address to the school?” I lend my phone to my dad as he types the address in. “Oliver M. Berry High. Not too far away from here.”

My mom chimes in “ We contacted the principal before hand, and she’ll get you settled.” Both of them finishing their cup of coffee. “Ready to go?”

“Yep. Give me a min to change into some clothes and i’ll see y’all at the car.” I got up and walked back to my room.

Berry High, eh? Let’s hope it’s better than my previous school I thought before changing out of my house clothes. We drove to the local dealership to rent a car for me. I’m not entirely picky when it comes to cars, as long as it gets me from point A to B. We drive up to the entrance and a employee comes to greet us.

“Good morning there! Welcome to the Cedar Used Car shop. How may I help you today?”

“We’re here to buy a car for my son. We just moved into town today.” My dad says.

“Oh! Welcome to Cedar Cove. Please come this way to view our selection”

We spent two hours or so testing out the multitude of cars available. We decided on a 2005 Honda Accord. My parents signed the papers and soon I find myself inside my car.

“Drive safe son” He hands me the keys to the car. “We’ll take care of the rest”

“I will.” I look at the time on my phone, 11:30 AM. “ Oh it’s almost time for me to go. I’ll be back later tonight.” My parents nod. “Have fun shopping” I joke before driving away.

“ Your destination is on the right” my GPS stated.

I glance over to my right and came across my first sight of Oliver M.Berry High school. I furrow one of my eyebrows in surprise.

“Huh… this school looks a bit smaller than Bowie” I thought in disappointment. I searched around for a guest parking spot to park my car. “Well, this is my new car now. Better than nothing I guess”. I parked my car and got out “ Well here goes nothing. “ I took my first steps on Berry High’s ground. A small grin comes across my face.

“Wow this place looks a bit better than I thought it was” I thought as I observe the environment. I opened the front doors of Berry High and a woman in a yellow blouse came to me.

“Good afternoon , young man! You must be Ben Burton, our new student.” She offers a handshake, smiling.

“Uh… Yes I am.” I shook her hand “and you must be?”

“ I am Principal Hughs and I welcome you to your new home.”

TBC

*mẹ= mom in Vietnamese

#Choices HighSchoolStory Julian x M!OC #my first fanfic

12 notes · View notes

marketingadvisorvietnam · 5 years

Text

Cự Nẫm – from a military station to renowned tourism village worldwide - Travel - Vietnam News | Politics, Business, Economy, Society, Life, Sports

Marketing Advisor đã viết bài trên http://www.ticvietnam.vn/cu-nam-from-a-military-station-to-renowned-tourism-village-worldwide-travel-vietnam-news-politics-business-economy-society-life-sports/

Cự Nẫm – from a military station to renowned tourism village worldwide - Travel - Vietnam News | Politics, Business, Economy, Society, Life, Sports

Viet Nam News

by Phan Phương & Lương Hương

A village that once suffered intense bombing during the American War is now a tourist destination.

Cự Nẫm Village, located in Cự Nẫm Commune, Bố Trạch District in the central province of Quảng Bình, used to be known as a military station and one-night halt for Vietnamese soldiers heading southwards.

Guiding us around Cự Nẫm Village himself, the chairman of Cự Nẫm Commune’s People’s Committee, Nguyễn Thanh Hùng, could not hide his pride to introduce his hometown.

“More and more tourists have arrived at the village not only because it possesses picturesque scenery but is also a must-visit or legendary destination of patriotism,” he said.

According to Hùng, the village used to be the gateway to the north and south of the country, as well as being a communication station – the final halt of Vietnamese soldiers before entering battle. During the wars, it was called a “one-night” village as divisions of Vietnamese soldiers and the wounded would stay there for a night to rest before continuing southwards.

Putting your ducks in order: A tourist feeds the ducks with a local in Cự Nẫm Village. — Photo courtesy of Phong Nha Farmstay

Hùng led us to meet Mai Xuân Giá – a war veteran who still had a sharp mind, even though he was 100 years old. His memories of that brutal time were clear as day.

“On those days, the Vietnamese soldiers kept coming in and out of the village constantly. Cự Nẫm villagers used to work hard in the field in the daytime while at night; they carried and transported food, military equipment and weapons to help the soldiers. Everyone was willing to make room for the soldiers to rest overnight.

“I remember one or two groups of soldiers arriving at the village every day and all the villagers helped them until one or two in the morning,” Giá recalled.

Most local elderly can recall memories of a difficult but prideful period, like Lê Thị Ngạn who cut down trees to hide artillery, Phan Thị Luyến who washed clothes for a platoon or Nguyễn Thị Xê, who cooked for a whole company and tended to the wounded.

Quaint: A visit to Cự Nẫm Village enables tourists to experience typical rural life in Việt Nam. — Photo courtesy of Phong Nha Farmstay

Attracting international tourists

Cự Nẫm Village today is no longer a one-night village like it used to be, but is an attractive destination to not only domestic but also international tourists.

A visit to the village allows them to explore the lifestyle of Việt Nam’s rural area and enjoy its pure air and picturesque landscape. If they wish to, the tourists can also join local activities like farm work.

According to Hùng, dozens of households in Cự Nẫm Village and its vicinity have invested in building hotels, restaurants and homestays.

One popular and pioneering local accommodation is Phong Nha Farmstay, opened by couple Benjamin Joseph Mitchell – an Australian construction engineer – and Lê Thị Bích, a local.

After visiting his wife’s hometown several times and being enchanted by its scenery, Mitchell decided to quit his job to set up a tourism business with his wife. Phong Nha Farmstay was then established in 2008.

Despite being located in an isolated village not near beaches or UNESCO World Heritage Site Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng (despite its name), her farmstay is surrounded by immense paddy fields and a peaceful rural atmosphere.

Every morning at 7am Mitchell or one of the staff take guests that want to go on a walk around the village and the rice paddies and tell them about the village and farming. They can also try their hand at farm work or join excursions to Phong Nha- Kẻ Bàng National Park to explore the world’s largest cave, Sơn Đoòng.

According to Mitchell, various things entice the tourists to come back to Phong Nha Farmstay, one of which is the service quality.

“Happy staff enjoy what they do. Information is gold. Foreign guests appreciate understanding what is happening around them. Communication is very important, and so is comfort and cleanliness.

Brisk stroll: From Cự Nẫm Village, tourists can go trekking to Phong Nha- Kẻ Bàng National Park. — Photo courtesy of Phong Nha Farmstay

“Good food and a wide selection of food and beverages help too, in addition to activities. It is okay to have expensive tours to caves on offer but you also need to have many suggestions of things to do that are fun but inexpensive. We have worked hard to build this up in the area,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell and Bích have also assisted many other local households to run their own tourism business and gained success, like Trần Văn Quý and Nguyễn Thị Nhất, whose lives used to depend on illegal logging.

In 2010, Quý and his wife quit their illegal trade to offer tourism services in their house. They run a “farm to table” restaurant named The Pub with Cold Beer, serving primarily local food like BBQ chicken, roast peanuts or fresh vegetables with cold beer. This simple food has attracted more and more tourists from around the world to their house.

“To tourists, particularly international ones, the service attitude is the most important. We the hosts always serve our guests with happiness and friendliness. The prices are also reasonable. When they come back home, their positive feelings towards their experiences will be shared on social networks like Facebook, which has helped to introduce more guests to our house,” Nhất says.

According to Hồ An Phong, the director of Quảng Bình Province’s Department of Tourism, Cự Nẫm Village possesses not only beautiful natural landscapes but also unique culture and traditions, and friendly, hospitable and sociable locals.

“All of these elements have created the community-based tourism trademark of Cự Nẫm Village and attracted an increasing number of tourists there,” he said. — VNS

(function (d, s, id) var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "http://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.4&appId=432442403603400"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); (document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));

0 notes

hiro-sama · 4 months

Text

Get ready for confessions of love and guilt, tragic reunions, and heartbreaking goodbyes. 💔 The final part of Quaint releases February 16th.

And in the meantime, play the first two parts here (for free): https://takanohiro.itch.io/quaint

#quaint vn #visual novel #indie game #interactive fiction #amare game #vndev

31 notes · View notes

rastagong-tearoom · 6 years

Text

Serving of Tea #1: The eternal search for Photographic Backgrounds

Hello everyone, welcome to the first serving of this tearoom! It is getting cold and depressing out there —in all sorts of ways— so please enjoy today’s blend and warm up!

As you can see, I truly am no good at giving frequent updates… Apologies for this, this is probably not going to change anytime soon. You’ve probably heard this one before, but here goes anyway: the end of my school semester was pretty heavy in terms of workload, so I haven’t been able to work on Sylvan Disappearance much before this week. Working both for school and on this VN at the same time hasn’t always been easy, but the holidays should grant me much time to make progress! I’m still going to try to take it easy for a little while, working slowly but surely is always better than burning out, and I think I could use a little rest.

Progress Report

Progress-wise, I haven’t made tremendous steps, however, I have almost finished scripting half the story of Sylvan Disappearance.

It might be time for me to introduce you to Coline, a new friend that Mirabelle made in the seaside city!

Being halfway through scripting is an important landmark for me, both within the story, because the mystery really starts to thicken about halfway through, and on my end too, in the process of scripting the story in Ren'Py.

To put it simply, the more I script the story, the easier further scripting becomes. Like with any other tool, digital or physical, the more you practice with Ren'Py, the easier further usage comes.

I have reached a somewhat satisfying workflow, where I know how to position sprites, which transitions and atmosphere to use to make the story come to life on the screen. I have also mostly finished coding the most important systems, like the epistolary screen, which allows Mirabelle to read and respond to her correspondence, or the GUI. I still have a few final touches to add, but I’m saving those for the end. So, for the most part, I’m able to script the story easily!

But the main reason why further scripting is becoming easier and easier is because of my use of photographic backgrounds.

A short history of photographic backgrounds in VNs

As you may have noticed on all the screenshots released so far, the backgrounds I use are not drawn, but based on photographs.

Those of you familiar with visual novels will immediately recognise in this use the favourite solution of small VN creators with little to no budget to present their works. Using royalty-free or outright freely-licensed photographs as backgrounds is cheaper than commissioning artists to draw backgrounds. This technique is used by many small VN devs in the West, but it was really pioneered by Japanese VN devs throughout the 90s and 2000s, many of whom have released VNs now critically acclaimed.

However, when VNs aim for higher production values, which is a general trend for both commercial and small-scale VNs, they tend to abandon this technique and to prefer drawn backgrounds. The re-releases of Higurashi and Umineko on consoles are perfect illustrations of this fact. Both originally used photographic backgrounds based on real Japanese locations, respectively the Shirakawa village and the mansion of the Kyu-Furukawa Gardens. Both abandoned these photographs in favour of drawings exactly based on them for the console re-releases.

While this is a perfectly understandable choice because drawn backgrounds have qualities of their own, I think this trends has also resulted in the relative under-appreciation of photographic backgrounds, and of their own potential.

The charm of displacing reality

I have been using photographic backgrounds for a long time in small experiments, mostly by constraint, but I have also become very fond of the process of searching for photographs.

Usually, when a story requires a certain type of location, I start by searching on Flickr with general terms like “Victorian manor” or “forest village”. (I always filter results by license, and use mostly photographs licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC. You can do so by appendng “&license=2″ at the end of the Flickr search url.)

It is not always easy to find the fitting background. Sometimes, I have a very specific setting in mind, and it is hard to find it, because in their descriptions, photographers do not always use terms which describe the things they have photographed accurately. This makes complete sense: if you are visiting, say, Highclere Castle in the UK, you are probably not going to describe each photograph with the specific county where it is located, nor with the period where it was built. You will most likely say “Entrance Hall of Highclere Castle” if you photographed the entrance hall. Maybe you will not even mention the ornamental details, unless you know what they are, because to you, this is just “the entrance halll of a castle”.

This makes the search for certain settings difficult! However, once you have found the ideal real-life location for a fictional setting, everything changes. Now, you are able to search photographs by the name of this one specific location which perfectly fits for your fictional setting.

At this point, it is possible to base the entire fictional setting upon a real-life place. This part to me, is always the best, because I always search for additional information on the location, explore its history, find unexpected rooms or points of view, and in turn it influences the way I decide to present the story through photographic backgrounds.

There’s always a certain charm in displacing reality to fit your fictional setting. It warps both your knowledge of the real location and the internal idea you had of the fictional setting. The end result is something which is halfway there, between reality and fiction.

This effect is always heightened by the application of filters upon the photograph, to alter the image and fit a certain mood. Most people use the filters of Photoshop, but I use Paint .NET, any good image editing software could do.

For instance, the painted oil filter, of which I’m very fond, can grant an old-times atmosphere to the setting. It could also be as simple as B&W filter to underline the emptiness of real life, as in Lucky Me, Lucky You. You might choose to present the photographs raw, for the sake of a lo-fi aesthetic, as in We Know the Devil. Or perhaps you will decide to accentuate bright colours, as in Tokyo Alice, to render more vivid the fantasy of Alice’s word.

Anything is possible, depending on the atmosphere of your fictional setting. This is not to suggest that photographic backgrounds are intrinsically better than drawn backgrounds. I rather think that just like an artist may choose to paint in a specific style to fit a certain aesthetic, photographic backgrounds allow VNs to display many different aesthetic effects through the way they distort the reality photographed.

As you can see, it’s something I’m really interested in and would like to explore further!

The real-life locations used in Sylvan Disappearance

To get back to my progress, the main reason why scripting is becoming easier and easier is because I have found and edited the majority of the photographic backgrounds that I will use in the course of the story! I will still need to find a few additional backgrounds for the second half of the story, but most have already been found and will be reused, which means further scripting should be only easier.

Here are a few of the locations on which the VN heavily relies.

The seaside city

The seaside city mentioned in the synopsis is meant to evoke a Mediterranean setting. As you might recognise by the distinctive style of the houses below, it is heavily based on Dubrovnik in Croatia.

Upper and lower backgrounds of Dubrovnik courtesy of Suhas Dutta on Flickr. Both are licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC 2.0.

In recent years, Dubrovnik has been famously used as a filming location of Game of Thrones, but as a general rule, Dubrovnik is a common setting for fictional works which require a seaside city with a certain pre-industrial atmosphere. It certainly fitted my own requirements, since Sylvan Disappearance is set in a “fairy-tale” setting.

A few backgrounds are based on other Mediterranean cities, like Menton and Nice, in the South of France. Those cities were my initial inspiration, but it soon appeared that it would be difficult to get views without cars or modern technology, so I used them only for the most general views with the sea!

Upper background of Menton courtesy of Axel Naud, licensed under Creative Commons BY 2.0. Lower background of South Queensferry, near Edinburgh, Scotland, courtesy of Beth, licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC 2.0.

That said, most of the less important backgrounds used in the seaside city are not based on Mediterranean cities, but on any real-life location which fitted the bill for a specific detail, and that I found suitable through my search on Flickr. I have bits of Edinburgh for certain hilly streets, of Lisbon for a central square, of London and San Francisco for the harbour. I even needed bits from the Botanic Garden in Chicago and from an island in Maine to evoke the quieter, more rural atmosphere of the outer neighbourhoods.

So my focus on specific real-life locations is never entirely accurate. I try to avoid making a patchwork of different cultures and places, but sometimes, there is no other way. Hopefully the end result will still be convincing!

The village area

The village from which Mirabelle and Célia comes from is the second important location in the story. I had absolutely no idea of the real-life locations I would use when I started my search. I wasn’t even certain I would find a single village which would fit my criteria. The general idea was to find a small, quaint village, if possible with woods in its surroundings.

But it turns out, there was such a village! Much like Dubrovnik, the village of Gerberoy in Northern France is a location known for its specific architecture and atmosphere. It is often visited by tourists, and its roofs, gardens and old mill have all been photographed numerous times.

Upper and lower backgrounds of Gerberoy courtesy of JR P, both licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC 2.0.

Finally, though I will not reveal more about it, I also needed a country mansion, which would be located in the surroundings of the village. Finding one is usually pretty easy, since most remarkable mansions are open to visitors in some capacity nowadays, and are usually pretty popular. The whole thing is to find a fitting mansion in terms of style and architecture. Bonus point when the gardens and rooms inside are in a suitable state to be used too.

I was very lucky this time, because I found the right country house right away, when searching for a background for the title screen:

Upper background courtesy of David MV (licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC 2.0), middle background by David Merrett (CC BY 2.0), and lower background my Matt Cornock (CC BY-NC 2.0).

This is Scotney Castle in Kent, England, and I will not say anything more about it, except that you will see much of it throughout the story!

#Sylvan Disappearance #vndev #vn development #visual novels #Photographic Backgrounds

0 notes