The demo version of Life as Designed is now available for download! In this demo, you can play through the first three scenes of each of the main routes.

Also, the original announcement for the demo on my blog featured a few other announcements as well, which you can find here. In particular, the post introduces Mysteries of Akiramine, a series of short stories that focuses on Shizuka Hirose (from Shireishi and Eldritch University).

I hope everyone enjoys the demo! Which character's story will you try first?

A small update has been made to Eldritch Academy's v3 release. Changes to the way the script tracks story completion in v3 made the achievement "Director's Tenacity" difficult to unlock. This hotfix should make it possible to unlock this achievement in v3. In addition, the conditions for the achievement should now be checked in additional situations. (Previously, it only checked on game start. Now, it will also check upon reaching the end of the credits of most endings.)

A small update has been made to Eldritch Academy's v3 release. Previously, error messages would sometimes appear at the edge of the screen in some situations. This hotfix should remove most (if not all) of these messages.

The long road to version 3 is over! With this update, Eldritch Academy can now be played with the new art, music, and script. Some highlights of the changes:

• Character and event art redrawn to match the style of Eldritch University
  
• Custom music in the same style as Eldritch University
  
• UI adapted from Eldritch University and a widescreen aspect ratio
  
• Improvements to the script, particularly in removing filler/duplicate scenes and making the choices feel more organic
  

• Steam: Open the "Betas" tab and select the desired version. The game will then "update" to that version.
  
• itch.io: Download the ZIP or APK for the desired version and re-install.
  

As part of preparation for the v3 update, the launcher settings have been modified to use the new filenames. However, this means that the game may give an error when trying to quickly launch it from the Steam Library shortcuts.

To open the game when trying to play v1 (original) or v2 (current), there is an alternate launch option that is available when launching the game from the main library page or the collections page. Make sure to select "(v1/v2)" as your launch option from the menu that appears. (If you use shortcuts, you may need to update your shortcuts.)

Once v3 releases, both launch options will remain available, with the default option launching v3+ and the alternate option launching v1/v2.

In order to gauge what level of interest there might be in potential features and such for the games set in the Nightshade universe, I've put together a short survey. The survey can be found here:

link

Just to be clear, the only features that are currently planned for certain are:

• Eldritch Academy v3 update
  
• Additional stories for Flowering Nightshade
  
• Life as Designed for PC/Android
  

The beta that was referenced in this announcement is now available!

Testing for this build went a lot smoother than I expected it to (thus the quick turnaround to release), but it's still possible that some bugs or issues made it through. If you notice any issues (outside of the unimplemented content in Act 4 and the endings), be sure to make note of them in the discussion forum.

Speaking of testing, the one difficulty that I did have during testing was getting the Steam client to download the proper build. This is a more involved process than I recall it being, so I'll give some steps to follow if simply switching the beta branch isn't working:

• Open the game's properties in the library and go to the Betas tab.
  
• Select "v3_beta" (or none to return to the current default build)
  
• Uninstall the game and close the Steam client.
  
• Re-open the Steam client and navigate to the game in the library view. Make sure it shows [v3_beta] in the listing. (Or nothing if returning to the default build.)
  
• Re-install the game. The file size should be slightly different than the other build. (You can also check the build ID number in the game properties.)
  

Last year, I announced that Eldritch Academy was getting a major update for Version 3. After a lot of on-and-off work, that update is nearing completion. In the meantime, I figured it was time to give a better look at the update while the last chunk is implemented. For that reason, I'm planning to make a beta branch for the game here on Steam once I've double-checked the common route for any major bugs or issues.

What's in the Version 3 Beta?

The current plan is to have the full game be available in the beta, though some scenes will not have finalized art implementation and final script checks. In general, this is the breakdown:

• Prologue/Act 1/Act 2/Act 3: Implemented
  
• Act 4/Epilogue: Art not implemented, script under review
  
• Aftermath stories (standalone): Implemented
  
• Bonus Features: Implemented
  

• Right-clicking on Eldritch Academy in your library and selecting Properties
  
• Navigate to the Betas tab
  
• Select the v3 beta branch and apply your selection
  

• Resolution, UI, and art changes
  
• New (custom) BGM tracks
  
• Common route script changes (particularly involving choices)
  
• Redundant scenes removed or combined
  

Flowering Nightshade (v7) is now available for download via Steam! Check out its store page here:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1652030/

Almost five years have passed since Himeka sought friendship and romance at Solana Academy. She and her friends have grown now, and have to face their adult responsibilities.

As a direct sequel to Blooming Nightshade, Flowering Nightshade continues the lighthearted romance story that began there. The player may choose to resume one of the six romantic storylines from Blooming Nightshade or begin a story featuring a new character.

Features

• 6 returning love interests, with stories focusing on the transition to adulthood and maintaining long-term relationships
  
• A new character and storyline
  
• Each story is longer and more focused than the story routes seen in Blooming Nightshade
  

The store page for Flowering Nightshade is now visible! Go here to learn more about the game as it is prepared to launch on Steam:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1652030/

Due to recent updates to the Ren'Py engine and some code that needs to be updated to properly track Steam Achievements, the game will probably be made available on Steam with the v7 update. The current plan is to have the update ready sometime this summer.

I hope everyone looks forward to seeing the game come to Steam!

Now that all of the main routes for Flowering Nightshade are implemented in the public version of the game, I've decided to see how interested people are in having the game come to Steam. The game is currently free/donationware on itch.io, so I don't want to rush into a decision to launch on Steam (with its waiting periods and up-front fee). However, I didn't want to shut down the possibility entirely, so I've put together a basic poll for players of Blooming Nightshade to submit their opinions on a Steam release.

Flowering Nightshade on itch.io:
https://jackkel-dragon.itch.io/flowering-nightshade

Google Forms Link

I'll keep an eye on the responses, and we'll see where things go from there. Thank you for your time and interest!

I've mentioned it a few times elsewhere, but today is the opening of the store page for Life as Designed!



Life as Designed is a romance story with coming-of-age elements that focuses on Cho Fukuda, who first appeared in Eldritch Academy. There are three main storylines planned for the game, each of which follows from the paired endings in Eldritch Academy. (It's not required to play that game to understand this one, but some character traits are assumed to be familiar to the player.)

Life as Designed takes place about ten years after Eldritch Academy. Cho now lives in the city of Yamashiya with her girlfriend, who both reside at a share house. All four main characters from Eldritch Academy have jobs in this city, but Cho's freelance work ends up sapping her motivation after a string of projects that feel unfulfilling or end in failure. Each story shows a different path Cho's life could take, depending on who she was closest to before the story began.

In addition, near the end of each storyline Cho has to make a choice of which career path to follow. Neither of these endings are the "correct" or "wrong" choice, simply different ways Cho's life could go as she moves forward.

The game script is projected to be about the same total length as Eldritch University, with the possibility of one or more bonus scenarios depending on how development goes. The game will have custom BGM, with a few tracks returning from the Eldritch Academy v3 update. However, the game is not currently projected to have event illustrations. The final price is not yet decided, but will likely be in the same range as Eldritch University.

If you have any questions about the game or its development, let me know! I hope people look forward to Life as Designed!

A major update is in the works for Eldritch Academy! This version of the game will have redrawn art based on the style used for Eldritch University, custom music, and other tweaks to the presentation of the game. The highlights:

• Redrawn character and CG art for a widescreen aspect ratio, in the style of Eldritch University.
  
• All royalty-free music replaced with custom tracks.
  
• Date events removed and replaced with new and extended scenes in Acts 1 and 2. (Route determination altered to fit the new scenes.)
  
• Other tweaks and fixes tied to the above changes.
  

Eldritch University, a horror/romance visual novel, is now available for purchase!

The nightmare is not over.

Kasumi Kawamura just wants to get through university while rekindling her relationship with her girlfriend. But not long after she arrives at school, a strange epidemic starts to infect the city, causing the afflicted to have terrible nightmares and lose the motivation to live their lives. Coinciding with the appearance of this Nightmare Syndrome, an old wound that Kasumi thought healed starts to burn and cause frightening visions to those around her. Caught in the center of this situation, Kasumi and her friends try desperately to find a solution. Yet all the while, Kasumi wonders if she might be to blame

Now that the development for the game seems to be winding down toward a final build, I decided to put together an update for the demo of Eldritch University. It covers pretty much the same content as before, but now includes the BGM tracks and all of the script tweaks from the most recent build.

There is also a potential release window, now that I'm closer to a final build. With the primary focus of the remaining development being the final revision pass on Acts 2 and 3 and finishing the bonus stories, I'd like to aim for a summer release. My current plan is to try a June 2020 release window, but I'm not going to commit to a set date quite yet.

At any rate, I hope people enjoy the revised demo and look forward to the full release!

Since I was already in revision mode from working on the v10 update for Blooming Nightshade, I ended up coming back to Eldritch Academy and taking a look at it. While I would need a significant amount of time and money to address some of the criticisms I've noticed for the game, one thing in particular stood out as something that I could fix without too much trouble: redundant and unnecessary scenes slowing down the pacing of the early game, especially on repeat playthroughs. So over the past few days, I took a look at a number of things in the game and tried to find a way to fix the problems I saw.

The result of the changes I made have reached a point where I may almost have a v2 release ready for the game. However, I've not have time to fully proofread or test this build, so for now I've only put the build on a Beta branch listed as "v2_beta", which should become available soon. (For those who would like to retain the release version of the game, there is a new "Beta" for the game labelled "v1_release". Switching to this build will retain the original version of the game.)

Here's a rundown of what has changed in the current build for v2:

• Several scenes removed from Act 1 and Act 2. Remaining scenes have been modified to reflect the absence of these scenes.
  
• "Partner Choices" removed. All partner choice events have been integrated fully into the common route events.
  
• "Date Choices" overhauled. Dates in Act 1 and Act 2 work the same as in v1. However, the ending scene of Act 2 now locks in the route, similar to the special route version of the event. In paired routes, Act 3 date events are automatic and are with the character whose route is locked in.
  
• Due to the shuffling of events, the date/weekday box has been removed.
  
• Breakup endings have been removed and affection points reworked. In the new system, making too many wrong choices in Act 4 will lead to the Nightmare Ending. (Special route is not affected.)
  
• CG Gallery and Scene Replay have been tweaked to be easier to use.
  
• To reflect the removal of certain scenes, the requirements for the achievement to see all endings have been modified. It now checks for all six endings, all twenty-four date events, and seeing the CG in the Aftermath stories. (The achievement still only checks on starting up the program for now.)
  
• Numerous tweaks to the internal code of certain features.
  

Due to some currently behind-the-scenes work, both Blooming Nightshade and Eldritch Academy are getting some changes to their achievement lists. Details are below.

Blooming Nightshade

Thanks to the process leading to v10, a number of the achievements in the Steam release no longer made sense with the planned revisions. While v9 will be available as a "beta" branch for those who want to play it after v10 comes out, I felt the achievements should probably reflect the main version of the game.

Because of this, some achievements were removed (the cheating achievement) or renamed (romance achievements). In addition, a number of achievements related to playing the friendship route of each character have been added. These new achievements cannot be acquired just yet, but hopefully v10 comes soon enough that people can get started on those in the near future.

Eldritch Academy

For reasons I'm not ready to share, the breakup achievements have been removed from the game. In exchange, most of the placeholder art for achievements has been replaced with CG art from the game. It doesn't mean much until the game is allowed to be featured on profiles, but I hope people like the updated achievement art regardless.

The store page for Eldritch University is up! Be sure to check it out and take a look at the demo!

Store Page

The nightmare is not over...

The story of Eldritch Academy will continue in Eldritch University, a horror/romance visual novel currently in development. Taking place three years after the events of Eldritch Academy, this game will focus on Kasumi Kawamura during her first months at university.

Kasumi Kawamura just wants to get through university while rekindling her relationship with her girlfriend. But not long after she arrives at school, a strange epidemic starts to infect the city, causing the afflicted to have terrible nightmares and lose the motivation to live their lives. Coinciding with the appearance of this Nightmare Syndrome, an old wound that Kasumi thought healed starts to burn and cause frightening visions to those around her. Caught in the center of this situation, Kasumi and her friends try desperately to find a solution. Yet all the while, Kasumi wonders if she might be to blame

More information about the game, including a demo of the first section of the game, can be found here.

Eldritch Academy, a romance/paranormal thriller visual novel, is now available on Steam!

Take on the role of Yue Ishikami, a new student at the prestigious Solana Academy. A seemingly normal school life takes a turn when monsters begin to attack from the abandoned old dormitory building. Yue and several of her classmates soon find strange, petal-like objects that grant them the power to fight back against these monsters. But it quickly becomes clear that there are more secrets about their school than they expected, and discovering the truth behind these mysteries may be their only chance to get out of the situation alive.

Along the way, the antisocial Yue must learn to trust her new friends if she is to survive long enough to find the truth. In the process, she may find more than just friendship... if she is willing to set aside her lonely ways.

The game is available for $11.99, with a 10% launch discount. I hope people enjoy the game!

The release date for Eldritch Academy on Steam is being narrowed down, with the current plan being for March 22nd (give or take a week in either direction).

As part of its Steam integration, the game has been given a number of achievements for completing certain endings. The current achievement icons may be subject to change.

The game is planned to be released with a price of $11.99 USD, with a 10% launch discount.