louroth
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Lou Roth writes and develops the interactive fiction OUROBOROS. The current draft is being written in choicescript, while the final game will be ported through twine and released on Steam, Google Play and iOS app store.
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Your mouth finds theirs again, slower this time. To reclaim, yes. To mark: the beginning and end. The reluctant acceptance of a worrisome path. A knot. A sign, carved in cheek. Here; to drink from, however slow the trickle— a gathering of dew. To be voraciously savored. Salaciously licked from corner to corner. They hold you in a way that feels a little like a secret, held too long. How it stutters in your chest, how it seeps back into foundation. The way the earth siphons rain when it's gone too long.
#ouroboros-if#while i'm here.idk if I'll ever consolidate between the blogs honestly I never expected. This. so we take it as it comes. sometimes my hous#is over there. and sometimes i like to sneak into here#like tugging a lover by the cuff of their shirt into the broomcloset#hmm.
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Face Yourself, digital painting by Caelan Stokkermans
#sene/selene#sometimes I gotta. yknow. I couldn't just scroll past it#someone for the love of god tell me to go to sleep#i have exams at 10am and im all jittery#no one look at my coffee machine (its heaving and moaning) (I break out the whip and slash it) (I start humming We All Lift Together#) that's it. thats how this evening is going) wish me luck I have to code a whole website by hand (probably) tomorrow :> yay#wcag can you kindly suckle my balls (lovingly)#god why am I rambling on here. nothing is sacred anymore. NOTHING
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[UNIDENTIFIED] unlocked codex
LOCATION DESIGNATION: Outer Ring of the Riven Expanse
STATUS: Fractured perimeter zone [Stabilized, contested]
NOTES ON ACCESS: Restricted to authorized Pathfinders and Runners only
“The trees forget the hands that shaped them. Tongue of rot. Tooth of renewal.”
— Anonymous runners diary, salvaged at 89.29891,-21.84670
Suspended high upon the bone-like lattice of ancient trees, the Outer Ring is the last veil of order before the wilderness swells into its endless, unshaped heart.
The walkways rise like a second spine across the forest canopy. They bear the weight of countless Paths taken, countless footprints pressed into salt-streaked planks. Here, Runners and Pathfinders trade whispers and scars, making ready for sorties into the heart of the woods.
Each path is marked by sigils and knots, some official, many unofficial — wards scrawled by desperate hands. All agree upon one rule:
Never walk alone. Never walk at dusk. Never trust silence.
Researcher’s Note: The deep is suspected to operate upon an unknown physical logic. Periodic excursions conducted to map its terrain have yielded no coherent cartography. Teams return fragmented, their instruments rendered meaningless. Occasionally, the forest itself returns fragments of those departed — a boot, a horn, a page from a waterlogged journal — deposited upon the walkways as if to mock the endeavor.
#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#codex#Those of you who haven't seen me be giddy on the forum or such lemme show you a snippet of a codex entry. I'm still workins on the layout#but!!! I'm kinda in love with the tone of the codex (it has narrative significance#not just info#it...gives and takes.) it's oakwerthian so idk what pf expected#>:3#Ok bye!!!! see you sometime maybe!!
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#gnight!#(am I writing? yes. yes I am. have my soundtrack. TAKE IT.)#thank you for the asks.#ill be back with more sneaks if you keep being so sweet: unfortunately i cannot fight the overwhelm#it'll just be me and the docu for a while now; sorry#and this absolute tune. ✌️#(hm. meant to post that here)
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Hey nony, :} It is. To me, at least.
You have me a little watery-eyed. I'll share ONE excerpt with you from a far-away, deep-into-it section right before all hell breaks loose, one I haven't even shared with patreons, but one that truly drove this story home for me. Idk if it'll mean the same to you, I am certain it won't, but I hope, in time, you'll see it the same. It all starts to unravel, from here, for our poor pathfinder, for the crew; not knowing their way.
MWAH!!!! thank you for writing me.
#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#pathfinder#I just realized the pathfinder tag has NO foothold on my louroth tumblr but has all its establishment on my defiledtomb tumblr-- I didn't m#mean for this to happen lmao. Tis how it is though *shrug* head over there for more insights or. genuinely don't. Tumblr is my little house#you better not knock unless you bring some marzipan treats#or you are okay with me endlessly scowling#MY HOUSE!!!! Get out!!!!
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I've been around the IF scene for decades. I've been lurking on lemmasoft forums since before there was ANY officially released visual novels geared towards women. I've dabbled in all the formats (renpy, twine, cscript), I do understand how difficult it is. I've seen many stories and games come out that were game changers. They were so unique, did something no one else was doing, and changed the way things went going forward. There's Wayhaven with the RO POVs, Our Life with the whole everything they do, ZESH with the full RPG madness, Steamberry studios with the painterly art style and unique worlds, Shepherds of Haven making a beautiful DAO style rpg, and many many more. They all raise the bar and change the landscape of this community. They spark new inspirations in others. I really truly do think that Ouroboros has the potential to be one of those stories that opens all of our minds in a whole new direction, to be possibilities. It's lived in my mind ever since your first demo. Take your time, take care of yourself, and do what you have to so that you can live well- but don't let Ouros disappear into the ether. It would truly be a tragedy. <3
I'm just gonna lay down here. And die.
#THANK YOU?!?!#mouthing to the empty corner of my room: what the fuck???????? oh my god#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#if anything. darling. you just stoked the embers. I know I have a story that is fun and winding. but some days#especially after going off the leash and doing this in quiet. the doubts are like hounds straining their leashes getting their barks in#and. ough. I know my writing/coding/presence isn't IDEAL-isn't perfect in the least. I do strive to be honest (i don't know any other way#to be)-ah- and truth to be told. those of you who know will know#I can't keep talking in tags forever but. genuinely thank you. for the endorsement- for the puff in my chest. Some days I wake up and think#all of fuckall. lmao. but ouro is always there- in scenes- in character actions- in the fading light of a dungeon-lit subwaystation#it's with me wherever I go. And it pains me that I can't keep it 'relevant' as my peers do- as it is relevant to me-- but it's all give and#take#I just. ugh. one day. I keep seeing it in my minds eye. one day. Im so close. Yet so far away. [desperate wailing and mussing of my makeup]
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A little devlog for all of us; to catch you up to where I am at (vaguely, my worm, do try better next time)
And a side-shout-out to @shepherds-of-haven that has me fucking gob-smacked, slacked-jawed in absolute awe. Wraow. Have you seen it? God damn. Bites knuckles a little bit. Mh.
Anyway! Onwards. We'll see it through, won't we?
#devlog#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#renpy#twine#only reason Im making this public is as you can see in the post itself so: talk to me.#Am I headed down the wrong path? I honestly cannot tell anymore. All I want is to lay this baby in your hands and tell you to take a bite#yeah? ok. glad we're on the same page#you got a little something-- yeah just there at the corner of your lips#glad as always that you found your way here. I wouldn't know what to do without you-- I wouldn't do ANY of this; without you.#Before the poll drops I just wanted to let it out into the open: that I crave your guidance. (SOOOOO soppy eyes: can I have it?)#BWAH.#This is so wholly undignified#Why is making creative things such a purging of the heart.the soul? [dials phone] mom? can u pick me up im scared
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For a fleeting second, your hand gripping the counter so hard it hurts, digging in, your brain mutes everything— the footsteps approaching, the shuffling of clutter on the floor— until you are back there. Until you feel the smell of wet earth and the rain on your shoulders, your cheeks, so fine it felt like running through a curtain of mist. The brief had been, well, brief, and you had set out to take down a hive just southwest of the outer ring. Easy. The boardwalks were new, pristine, gripping the soles of your boots as you stomped your way forward into the silent night. Light rain— the forest asleep. Huddling. Perfect for eliminating growing threats, the hives of beasts, gestating. Cooing in the dark. You nodded towards the exit your squadron was supposed to take, setting up shop at the junction, counting heads as they passed— smiling lazily as leith passed with a wink and a noisy kiss to the air between you. Sights aimed; all stationed, drop-ropes secured and ready to go: a breath of words passed down from mouth to mouth until it reached you: clear. But something felt off.
You blink, and swallow. A deep breath.
You couldn't have saved them.
They were gone the moment you affirmed the clear.
But.
You could have called it. As soon as you saw the flicker in the corner from your eye, before the ground rumbled from a starting stampede—
you could have called it.
It was only seconds. You've had so many of them.
You could have saved them. And now you can't even save yourself.
#SHRUG#ouroboros#interactive fiction#alright this is the last one............................unless? Im kidding. Joking. Having a laugh. (thank you!!!)#(ohmygodthishasgivenmesomuchenergytowriteimREELING.mmmm.BYE
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You reach the table, where Y takes up a quarter of the seating space. Although he is tucked into the corner by the lace-clad window, he is not afraid to take up space, arms outstretched across the bench that spans your booth, a dreamy half-smile on his face. You slide in next to S, opposite Y, and covertly ask, “Did you drug him?” S laughs; a dozen bells, ringing. “Gods no. I gave him a stiff drink, and the band is setting up. He has always fancied live musicians.” Sure enough, there is a band tuning their instruments among the mingling crowd of the dance floor. Just in the middle of it, a carpet designates the space for a cello, drums, musicians. A microphone is tapped, reverberating with feedback; no one flinches. The volume is high enough around the bar already, but it settles the more organized the band becomes, barhand waving people off, shushing, handing drinks over with mirth coursing through every twitch and turn of their all-aware movements. Drink-tray carrying girls swirl through the crowd like leaves on a current, trilling, the occasional slosh of liquid gleaming in the warm glow of gas-lit fire. Deals pass between mumbling gentry at the back. Glasses clink. The perfume of oil permeates, near rancid.
There’s a whole world here.
A whole world.
#interactive fiction#ouroboros#THERE IS A WORLD OUTSIDE OF RIVEN?! alright excuse me but i just bit into a theme and the flavor made my pupils blow wide#I am so distraught that I have been so silent and no one knows. The extent of it all. So I'm posting snippets tonight. Don't hold it agains#me because the fobiac self will come reeling once I feel like it's not enough. but im here... now....? can't be suave all the time. ANYWAY.#HIRSWREATH#CITY OF ALL TIME#Am I gonna give you a timeline? No. :>#although could be worth mentioning for people out of the loop: everyone is a he/him in the initial draft. I don't have the energy to change#it. They are dudes. all of them.#THIS IS THE NIGHT. OUGHHHHHHH. I love hirswreath a lot. Also hjorth but hirswreath. and then the sea. AUGH!!!!!!#more snippets???#romance ones??
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All this nervous energy just running off of you as long as you. keep. moving. The adrenaline feels lovely as it surges, past the last set, into another, and a third— you're going for failure, aren't you?
Always.
It is not enough to coast the high of enough. It has to be more. There has to be the tenuous sigh of relief as your body scrambles to survive within the frame you've made for it. Just one more. Another.
The weights fall to the floor with a clatter and your mouth splits into a wide grin of approval as everything— your vision, your limbs, your spirit— trembles, quakes: the good kind of exhaustion. The ceiling is the loveliest view you've ever seen— you did it. The something you can do. Colors dull in comparison to it. As you lay on the mat, tracing worms of fracturing color that twitch with your heightened breath, a face steps in, swirling your vision into whirls of lights and traces of sweat. A smirk, a raised eyebrow— distant, not staring, but aware. He hefts his own weight. Flicks his focus to your red, flushed face. Meets your eyes for a fraction of a second before curling the iron once more.
"A sight for sore eyes."
You, at a lack for words, trace an eye over his form. He rolls his lips. You flick a brow.
And that is all there is to it.
#AURYN.#AURYN#i cannot get ENOUGH OF YOU#ouroboros#interactive fiction#mmmmm. auryn. i have had so many fights with this character over the course of the rewrites but you know what? perfect as you are.#expect more sneak peeks bc im growing SO bored of just writing this for myself. There's so much!!! if only someone would help me code it al#(falls to the floor in a very victorian way) ack..... these brackets.... how will I live.....#[ANYWAY IT'S COMING ALONG. SLOWLY]#another one? yes? I'm dying to share another snippet but I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO THIS SOCIAL MEDIA JKDFHLKSJDHf. you cool with me hopping on#here whenever I feel like it? Whenever my skin itches so much I might peel it off myself? idk. IDK!!!!!!#thank you patreons for putting up with my shit. at least you know. at least you know.
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#shut up I just need this on here it's the entire aesthetic of ouro. goodbYE#aest#thats a tag now ig. ok kiss kiss i go back to dinner
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Hello sweetcheeks! Just letting you know that the OUROBOROS old demo is now uploaded here: OUROBOROS ON COGDEMOS
Although... it is not as pretty as the new app, coming to you soon.
:> ❤️
#interactive fiction#ouroboros-if#dashingdon#soon as in I'm in uni freshly separated from my longterm partner and JUST moved into my new apartment#and life is a tornado and im just the cow being spun around for cinematic value#but lsdhfskljdhgf 🥹 it's coming together SO GOOD. AUGH. !!!!!!#see u soon xx
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wwgat the hell did you put in id i just scrolled through their tag a bit prompted by your return and i feel so sick and filled with despair bc theyre not real and i cant throttle them in real life (sexual/platonic/romantic/secret fourth thing/etc). literally feel like a wild chimpanzee rn
>:3 What I put in Id? Well.
But really?

a little of this.

of that. and we can't forget:
#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#idren/ida#the best part about them is that they just get worse#NO redemption. only bloodlust.#for pathfinder or others? your choice.#truly. Truly. they live to serve. but they are soooooo angry they don't know how to anymore
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Hi i love you i read the demo a LONG time ago then completely forgot about it and got to experience everything more or less for the first time and cheer and clap the whole time. Since then every few weeks or so i will remember a random scene from the demo which haunts me/fills me with zest for life/peace and serenity forever. i lvoe you goodbye and good luck im so excited forever and apparently a fan for life👍
ANON :sob: SO KIND TO ME.................
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UNPROVOKED LMAO???? went on a whole face journey reading that while riding the bus and then a teen laughed at me. thank you for my life but at what cost.
I missed your asks so much lmao the feeling is unparalleled. helppp.
#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#I WISH i was there i would tease you relentlessly. and kick the teen in the shin. MWAH#not me absolutely twirling my hair giggling. oml the uniting power of Id being a loser. real. real real real
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thank you for the id snippet just last night i had a dream you posted a side story game with id pre mist set in some dingy labyrinth where one of the endings was getting a little handsy but not too much because. dingy labyrinth. if you thought your characters only haunted your mind just know others are still similarly affected by your brainrot
bro.... my brother. broski.......
it's literally a filefolder in my project....... ..........................
#ouroboros-if#interactive fiction#more in a metaphorical sense but still..... what are we........#idren/ida#love your mind. please elaborate. OR I WILL.#dingy labyrinth getting handsy.... id would love getting dirty pleassseeeeeeeeee. fear. fire. the sky overhead. hands n dirt n knees. UGH#thank YOU for the brainrot
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