Game Dev #3 The Lumin Evolution

Hello, did you miss me? I sure missed all of you. And a lot has happened or changed since the last time I posted about Lumin’s progress. I will go over each part in detail, but for those who want the bottom line, here’s a quick summary for you. I tried to make an episodic visual novel series but due to forces beyond my control, such as COVID, that project has been modified quite a bit. A new character has been introduced named Isolde, we are in the process of making a trilogy of free to play games, and I at the time of posting this blog, I am halfway through writing the Lumin Novella.

Let’s start things off with the visual novel series. My original idea was to make episodic free to play visual novellas showing the adventures of The Kismet trio leading up to the climactic finish. We made some real progress too, almost every character was drawn, and we had several scripts written. There were some issues however, the biggest being time. While my previous job was lucrative, it also ate up most of my time, having me work up to 60 hours a week.

The fact that I was scrambling to get my own place, car, and a new computer didn’t help matters either. There was a lot in the works with this project at the time including several unique mini games alongside the visual novel series. I had planned to make it all available in the Google App store, because I felt and still feel that this would be the best way to get the game out to the masses.

Those who know me, also I know I like to take on multiple projects, so I don’t get bored with one, the downside is I tend to burn out (I have been working on this). And while working on the visual novel, I was also writing a comic book for a fundraiser publishing house. I wanted to do something different from my typical anime writing style, so I made a superhero archer named Isolde. I lost contact with the house in time, but I had grown fond of this character, so I wanted to introduce her to Lumin. Since then, she has become a key player in the story.

Another issue I came across, was my computer giving up the ghost. The motherboard went kaput and I didn’t have the money or know how to fix it since I was working overtime every week. I still needed something to type on however, because at the time I was still writing game reviews, and I purchased a $100 laptop from a pawn shop which I will never do again.

For the more technologically literate, the laptop which I am currently typing this on has 4 gigs of ram, and just under 30 gigs of space with windows 10 installed. Even if I had the time to code and write for Lumin, I didn’t have the hardware. And that is what I thought for a quite a while until an idea struck me. Since I was planning on making a free to play game anyways, why not make a text-based game? I had always been a fan of games like those and choose your own adventure books, so I was excited to make my contribution to the genre.

That is where Tanega Manor comes from. It was originally named “You’re going to die!” Escape from Tanega Manor, in the memory of a recently departed folk singer, I figured this would make sense since our favorite bard was the main antagonist. This game places the player as an unsuspecting resident of Lumin who came too close to finding The Trinity Goddesses, so The Host kidnaped and place you into a death trap. The idea is to navigate your way out while exploring rooms and using objects to solve puzzles or avoid traps.

Upon reaching the final stages of this game, in terms of coding, I had another idea since I was in the hunt for a new PC. I already have most of the artwork or programs I need, why not make an RPG and a visual novel? Being both the writer and lead programmer put me in a somewhat rare position which allowed solid continuity between all three titles. I began to work on each game when I could, taking breaks in between so I don’t over work myself. And began to slowly inch each one to completion.

Truth be told, a lot has been going on since I moved back into my old home and began working this new job. Between finding artists for Tanega Manor, health issues, and online classes, I found myself at a point where I finally had to expand on the lore of Lumin. This is something I wanted, and tried to do in the past, but I wanted something that didn’t require a game, artwork, or animation. The answer was simple and may surprise you, but I decided to write a novella.

What originally started as just an exercise to add more to the world, became what will become the entire story of the free to play trilogy. Now with all of this in mind, I plan on concluding both the novella and game trilogy on a cliff hanger in case you guys wants to know what happened next, but just know that while the posts may have slowed down, I have never stopped working towards these goals to get Lumin out into the world.