The Black Hare Log #2

This post was originally posted on my tumblr account on November 18, 2024.

Current Status:

• The game has approx. 30k words so far.
• I’m currently writing/developing the Prologue, which establishes the routes you will take, your core traits, your background, and more. 2/4 main routes are near completion.

Goals for end of month (Nov 2024):

• Release the Prologue!
  (Oh, God, is it already the seventeenth?!)

Snippet:

She eyes you, scrutinizes your face carefully, her gaze grazing over every centimeter of it. “Hmm…” she hums, a small smile tugging at the corner of her painted red lips. “You… you do not believe, do you?” Her eyes twinkle knowingly. “No matter, my dear stranger. We shall remedy that.”
She reaches out her hands, fingers adorned in thin golden rings, palms up on the table. “Place your hands in mine,” she commands.
Her eyes bore into you, and you find yourself compelled to do as she says.

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New features!  

(There’s so many, but I’ll stick to the ones I’ve already implemented/currently implementing.)

• Player Character Background: You can now choose from three backgrounds for your character: Did they grow up by the seaside, in the countryside, or in an urban setting? The choice will unlock 3 additional character traits/skills for your character, allowing you to perform unique actions. These are in addition to the 3 traits/skills you unlock upon choosing a core personality trait (Integrity, Outlaw, and Risktaker). That gives you 9 possible combinations.
• Journal: A place to collect all of the clues and information you want to save for later reference, available in the menu in the sidebar to be checked whenever you want. May come in handy when you have a puzzle to complete…
• Hint Mechanic: I’ve included a subtle hint mechanic in the form of an object you can choose to take, which then allows you to “see” what your next goal should be whenever needed. If you get stuck at some point in the story/game, this can help you hopefully get unstuck.
• Unique Paths: Depending on your personality traits and background, some parts of the story will be uniquely explorable. For example, if you are an Outlaw, you can do some sneaky snooping that you wouldn’t have the option to do if Integrity is your core personality trait.
• Progressive Customization: This is based on my personal preference. I’m not a big fan of chunks of text that describe “me” for looks customization right at the start of a story. In The Black Hare, you customize different parts of your character’s looks as they become relevant to the story. For example, if you’re playing piano, you will be prompted to describe the tone of your skin against the keys.
• Coins/Economy: I’ve implemented a rudimentary coin/economy system. There will be some crucial points in the storyline where you may need to spend some money in order to get information, to bribe someone, purchase something important, etc. As such, there will also be ways to earn money through mini-games!
• Page numbers: Originally I was interested in this so that I could keep track of bugs - if someone tells me there’s something wrong on Page 47, I know exactly where to look. However, the page numbers will differ from player to player depending on the choices you make and what you choose to look at or not look at. Despite it no longer being helpful for bug-tracking, it’s still a neat feature to have for readers.

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