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Astra - Mega Update! Art, Music, Writing and Development Progression
🕑 Added 2021-04-15 15:33:32 +0000 UTCHello Patrons,
Hope everyone is having a great April so far!! We haven't posted on Patreon in a while though there has been bits and pieces of news on Discord. We are taking all the updates together and making a super post with everything so far and what is upcoming in the near future.
So without further delay, let's get started!
ART
Background Art
Background art is coming along smooth so far! We are actually experimenting with two different styles and will be making another post later this month to get your thoughts on if you prefer a unified style, the mix is fine, or if they should be for select sceneries. For now, check out some of the new ones that were done! (hint, first and third are same artist, second is another artist):
Character Art
I'm sure you guys noticed a lack of CG artwork for the last little while. This is because Sunimu is currently busy working on the Live2D models which requires quite a lot of time especially since we are making the models more in-depth! We are starting with Luna and then will continue onward with all the other characters. Attached to this post is all of Luna's Live2D outfits as still images in how they will appear in-game.
Speaking of Live2D, we are in the process of rigging and animation as well! For Astral Ascension, we are taking a bit of a different approach. For our previous games, we made the models feel more 'grounded' and 'normal'. For Astra, we are purposely going in the other direction and dialing up the 'anime'. That means the physics are more smoothed out, exaggerated in some instances, and have a more 'flowy' feel to it. Overall, I feel that the hair looks much more feminine and clean, and I'm not one to complain about plot physics. ;^) You can take a look at a rough rigging so far to get an idea!:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/10sj46z__KqqZkJ-UbmCQ7ZeGXq1xSAwr/view
(File may be processing, if that is the case, you can download it and view it instead of seeing it in the preview window)
MUSIC
Our man Eric has just finished up 10 tracks from the OST so far! We have two soundtracks on the works which we'll be sharing as soon as they are sketched out. For now, we have the lossless version of the existing 10 finished tracks along with their variances!:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15D30f8fHCRZQMBC6y8dklirVwvDynpfv/view?usp=sharing
WRITING
This is the writing progression we have so far for episode 2! Please note that the scene summarized titles has spoilers so if you just want to see how far along we are, check the colored bars for the status!
Based on what I am seeing, we should have a read only version of Episode 2 sometime later this month or early May at the latest!! Please look forward to it.
DEVELOPMENT PROGRESSION
The last thing on the agenda is development progression! Let go ahead and say right now that the decision to make the full game in a read-only way before touching anything has been the best move we made. We have gone back and retroactively added new scenes to episode 1 to help the storyline, we have made massive adjustments to the storyboard to help with believability and continuity, we have addressed a ton of plot holes and inconsistent motivations...etc. The fact that we aren't going piece-meal lets us make adjustments easily which is doing absolute wonders for the game.
Right around this time we'd be forced to do a Kickstarter campaign as well as sell episode 1 on Steam Early Access to help fund the project. But thanks largely to your support via Patreon, we are able to make the game in a much more clean way and the final project will reflect this immensely. I honestly can't thank you guys enough for how much your support is helping Astra develop into our most ambitious project yet. :^)
That's all the news for now! We'll have a couple posts in the upcoming weeks so please look forward to those. As always, feel free to share your thoughts below.
Thanks again for your support! <3
Comments
PixelFade Studio
Depends on if we need it or not. Right now we are leaning towards not needing it but that being said, we will most likely have a private/patreon option to snag some rewards cause I know some people in here still want them reward tiers. ;^)
RPG_SeekerOfTheTruth
Heretic time to begin a crusade All hail luna !!!!
Benjamin Koomen
You spelled 'Iris' wrong. ;)
The Gentleman
Wow, wow, wow, wow. This post is so TIGHT! Three amazing CGs, a beautiful girl, but not best waifu, ;) and the animations look amazing! I’m so looking forward to what will be such a good game to be completed! But Dishu, you said in the post that at about this time PixelFade would be forced to do a KS and sell Ep. 1, and as great as it is that PF is financially stable, will there still be a KS campaign? That kind of sounded like there wouldn’t be. You’ve got my money one way or another though! Keep rocking and rolling!
Tansetsu Fuyuka - 鍛雪冬花
Regarding the different art styles, each one brings something different to the table. Obviously just 1 comparison isn't enough to say anything about everything else, but just for the sake of doing it, here we go. 1 and 3: Pros: All the shapes are well, sharply defined, with flat and cleanly saturated shades and colors, which is to be expected from ultra-modern aesthetics. You don't even have to know any prior context, and you could tell that this is supposed to be the future. Cons: There is a lack of proper shading, and inconsistencies in what are supposed to be reflective surfaces. The shadow borders don't depict any sort of diffraction, and are cast in places not consistent with the location of a light source, and the same goes for the light sweep effects across reflective surfaces, which feel cartoony. 2: Pros: A very impressive amount of detail was given to the shading in this. The lamp post, bins, the tiny shoulder on the side of the road, bench in the far background, even the tiny little crease on the sidewalk tiling, all cast shadows that diffract, decay, and interfere realistically. The diffusely reflective nature of the road, sidewalk, and walls is made so clear that you can almost see actual texture on them. It's a very impressive technical work. Cons: The overall aesthetic is more akin to cyberpunk rather than a true ultra modern look. The amount of and brightness of lights is way over the top, and almost forces the rest of the work to be in a dark palette in order to be distinct. The palette is also quite a bit oversaturated, making it harder on the eyes to look at any details.
Tansetsu Fuyuka - 鍛雪冬花
The read only versions are made available to us as they're completed for feedback reasons. They aren't sold separately from a membership.
Kyle Colley
Well. Looks like things are going nice and smoo- THERES A PLANET PANGO AND IM FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW 😆🥰😆🥰😆🥰😆🥰
Chrixai
The read only version is being sold right or the first episode? 😮 Sorry, asking a dumb question.
RPG_SeekerOfTheTruth
Luna forever 💞 !!!!!
