Progress update- the brain and the body, pt 2 (Patreon)

A thrilling conclusion to last week's post~

I have a coding stream starting in two hours!

To new patrons: We’re in the middle of an absurdly-long update cycle. Here’s the summary and how to access content.

What's being worked on?

The brain/body connection.

So I've massively improved the system we talked about last week. I was originally trying to prevent feedback loops that would blow out the characters' brains/genitals, but we've shifted gears since then. The conversations I had during the stream were illuminating. Feedback loops are dangerous but I also want to have them.

A great example would be a character who is aroused by being embarrassed, but also embarrassed when having an erection. The feedback loop that happens there might instantly spring their dick to 100% hard and set them on 100% embarrassment. But also... don't we kind of want a little circular feedback like that?

Ideally it wouldn't max out the values instantly. And it'd fade over time. 

First solution: Slow feedback.

This one's "simple" (tm). Each game tick, we run through all effects one at a time.

The order is:

• Stimulation from player/toys
• Sensitivity modifies incoming sensation
• Transmit sensation to brain
• Brain and full-body values (emotions, building orgasm, etc) do stuff, including sending values to body parts (e.g. causing an erection on erect-able parts)
• Each body part's values do stuff, including creating new sensations for the brain to read next tick

This might feel complex, but the key here is that we just do the same order every time. This prevents the instantaneous maxing-out effect. So in one game tick, the body doesn't send something to the brain, which sends something to the body, which sends something... etc.

Second solution: Fatigue and decay.

Probably the biggest cure to feedback loops is a simple decay. The infinitely embarrassed boner example is cured by making embarrassment fade over time. It's tiring to feel anything at its maximum. Fatigue will eventually overcome extreme feelings and situations. 

Pretty simple but powerful. 

There's also one final piece of wisdom here-

Third solution: Just don't make feedback loops lol.

Less of a solution and more of an annoying truth about the situation. Some infinite feedback loops are part of the core design. But accidental loops would break everything if I'm not careful. So I guess I just need to... be careful? 

Apologies in advance if I miss a feedback loop and a character suddenly bursts into tears and jizzes with the force of a supernova for no reason. 

And now, a brief talk about queerness.

Relevant to some, including me, is the way queerness is (or isn't) present in the game. Previous versions included a three-way toggle. Characters could have penis/balls, vagina, or both. Teats have a separate toggle. Is too limited :(

The both option is more of a 'futa' depiction of sex. It's a fun fantasy kink that isn't accurate to real bodies in any way. There are a lot of other fun realistic and fantasy-like depictions of sex that deserve to be in there. 

I intend to make each part toggleable (including the option for no genitals), plus have more accurate trans and intersex genitals/bodies besides that. There's a lot of juicy inspiration to pull from. 

This is an often overlooked or poorly-represented aspect of porn. I appreciate insights from players as well. 

Some personal thoughts.

(feel free to skip, there's no game news here)

This was a good but frustrating week. Progress always feels slower when solving conceptual problems. Not much code is being written, and tasks aren't being checked off of the board. Instead you're just staring at the code wondering if you're about to make a good decision, or create more problems you'll have to undo next week.

Thankfully, it's not in vain. I came away from these past two weeks with a lot of clarity about how the game engine works, and how I'll use it in production. That feels good, and it's the key I think- the question "How will this be used in production?" keeps me grounded to the end goal, and what this is all about.

When I can answer that question, it's a reminder that I'm on the right track, and bringing the game one step closer to players' hands. It keeps my eyes on the prize.

While there's a million resources out there for learning to technically code a game, nothing out there adequately informs you about the other big factor- mindset. Morale is a nasty thing for a dev on a long-term project. Low morale means slow progress, which lowers morale. Suddenly mental health and self-care don't feel like a "side" thing you do separately from your work. Your mental health is your work.

If I have one piece of advice for anyone wanting to make games, it's to focus on your mind/body at least as much as you focus on learning the code. Coding requires your mind to be as pristine and unburdened as possible.

I don't complain on these posts to garner sympathy, but to show openly and honestly where the project and its creator are at, and to help inform anyone interested in what the process actually looks like. I think it's important that the good people investing in my project see the whole thing, guts and all.

... and that's all for now!

It's incredible that me and my projects have enough love out there to keep us going through such a long dev cycle. All that stuff above to say, I'm actually feeling quite great, if impatient to see the next steps unfold for the game. Thank you all so so much for supporting my ridiculous lewds~

<3!