#Salty Salty Studios

[blerdyotome]

Elan Festival 2023 Brings Some Exciting Yuri Announcements

This past Sunday, yuri game development team, Studio Élan announced some exciting upcoming Sapphic visual novels during Élan Festival 2023 hosted by their adorable mascot, Melanie (voiced by Madeline Dorroh)! This is an annual showcase current and upcoming projects from Élan and their publishing wing Bellhouse and trust there is a lot to talk about! So, let’s check out all the announcements from…

[linuxgamenews]

Engaging & Vivid: Hop on the Thrilling Adventure in Twofold

Twofold romance visual novel game launches on Linux, Mac, and Windows PC. Thanks to the brilliant minds at Salty Salty Studios and Studio Coattails for their outstanding creative efforts. Available now on Steam and itch. Ready to embark on a thrilling romance adventure into the world of Twofold on Linux? Let's dive right in. This also isn't your average game. It's a journey about family, friendships, and the ups and downs of life. It all takes place in an engaging and vivid setting. The central character, Olive, is in a tough spot. Their college life is on the line, and they're struggling to keep up. Due to a low GPA and the risk of being thrown out, Olive needs to get their act together, and fast. Enter two club leaders, ready to lend a hand. But, as you'll soon discover, help comes Twofold with its own set of difficulties in this romance visual novel. These two friends, while eager to assist, are tangled in a conflict. This not only threatens their friendship but also impacts the whole group. Olive, being an outsider, plays a crucial role in learning about and perhaps resolving these tensions. It's like being the new kid who walks into a drama-filled classroom and somehow ends up being the peacekeeper.

Twofold romance visual novel Trailer

Let’s meet the key characters:

Olive: The main character, feeling pretty down and isolated. Olive’s self-reliance has been their armor against romance, but now it's time to face challenges head-on and step up in Twofold.

Caprice: The art club leader, bursting with energy and enthusiasm. She's like the sun – bright, warming, and sometimes a bit too intense. Caprice isn't just all smiles; she knows when to be serious and has her own set of worries.

Millie: The writing club leader, as stubborn as she is intelligent. Imagine someone whose love for books is matched only by their fascination with cars. That's Millie. She's got this air of maturity, but even she needs a hand sometimes.

Hayley: Stuck in the middle of her feuding friends, she's the cool and collected one, often leaning on humor and music to express herself. Imagine being the person everyone likes, but you still prefer a bit of solitude.

Now, here’s the unique part: Twofold romance offers not one, but two main paths to explore. It's like choosing your own adventure, where your choices shape the journey. Plus, there are six club members with whom you can form friendships. Think of them as side quests that enrich the main storyline.

Voice Acting and Soundtrack:

The game comes alive with full English voice acting, bringing each character's personality to the forefront. And let’s not forget the soundtrack – it's also a mix of tunes from "First Snow" and new tracks exclusive to this title. This adds an extra layer of emotion and depth to your adventure. Accessibility and comfort are key. Twofold offers several options to tailor the romance visual novel to your liking. Right from UI settings to comprehensive extras like a CG gallery and music room. The cast list is impressive, featuring talents like Dottovu, Lisa Reimold, Jill Harris, and many more. They bring depth and authenticity to each character, making your journey even more memorable. Along with a playable Linux game Demo on Steam. More than just romance, Twofold isn't just about the challenges Olive faces. It's also a vivid tapestry of relationships, conflicts, and personal growth. It's a journey that invites you to dive into a world where every decision matters. Since every character has a story to tell. So, gear up for an adventure, it's about the experiences that shape us and the connections that define us. Available on Steam and itch. Along with support for Linux, Mac, and Windows PC. Priced at $19.99 USD / £16.75 / 19,50€.

[satoshi-mochida]

Twofold releases today on Steam and Itch.io.

There is also a free prequel to the game, First Snow.

[silver-horse]

unfortunately I have opinions about the ascendant astarion ending and I have been holding back from saying it. but it's a problem that applies to the whole game and it's been annoying me

what's actually weird about the ascendant "romance" scene is that the writer considers it a tempting option for the player. They wrote it to be bad, but they also think it's a fun and sexy option. Same goes for the haarlep scene which they also wrote that way because they find it sexy. Except finding this sexually appealing entirely hinges on the idea that the player is a submissive. So RIP to a scene that the rest of us could have found sexy because the lead narrative designer was a submissive. lmao

In this game you can have a scene where you have to kneel for a male character. But you can never have a male character do the same for you. (Halsin doesn't count. It's a vanilla scene, he is not submissive there and we are not even asking/telling him to kneel down) You don't get such options, not even if you play a drow female! RIP the number one reason for playing drow female to be honest. lol You can kneel and fully submit to ascendant astarion or fully submit to mizora or fully submit to haarlep or submit to lae'zel or submit to minthara. you can get whipped by abdirak or you can tell him "touch me and lose a hand" he even responds positively to this remark and yet the possibility to flip the dynamic doesn't exist. There is never an option where a male character truly submits to the player. RIP to a scene that would have been the opposite of the traditional dynamic. the potential that existed but they never used the opportunity

By the way, how interesting that Lae'zel is dominant but she is a woman so ofc you get the option to tell her “no you will submit to me”. You never get such switch options with any of the male characters... Obviously it's not ascendant where they could have made that an option. My point is that it's NEVER an option among so many male characters.

It's a cool idea that the bad ending in a romance means "I saw this character as a sex object" except it falls apart when the scene is very sexually unappealing to anyone who is more dominant leaning. If I see a character as a sex object then I would place them in sexual situations which are appealing to me. so the message doesn't quite work. because there isn't anything that I can selfishly choose for myself just because I like it and I find it sexy.

[zephyrfuse]

spent all that time waiting around for the fest just to be indecisive on a potential agent design

[miradelletarot]

I am more than a little mad

THIS Interview has my blood boiling. I sounded TF OFF about how they talked about Gale, and idgaf if anyone hates my fucking take. If you wanna see what I posted (and like/retweet whatever) I would appreciate it. We need more appreciation for Gale, and I will NOT go gently into that good night.

https://x.com/MiradelleTarot/status/1735713935800594578?s=20

[saltytheswaglord]

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Look! even Highroller’s spreading the Christmas spirit! ✨✨✨

[downtherabbitholewithlucy]

|Limp Bizkit's cover of "Billie Jean" (2009)|

[csphire]

Larian, fix this already! Hells! *sobs* So yeah the Ox Bug In Act 2 is still a thing grrrreat. *sighs*

I loaded up an old save to watch Karlach get her heart fixed again and welp... not happening. Unbelievable! As of January 7, 2024 Larian has still not fixed the Ox Bug. It's been months now and it's unacceptable-at least by what I thought were Larian's high standards.

Can't fix it? Oh bullshit! A simple fix is to simply give Dammon MORE than 8 hp so he can take a few hits. Nothing crazy, maybe 25 hp at least like Afira should be plenty. Another thing that would help is turn-based combat is triggered. Anyone who can mod out there I'm begging you to make this happen if Larian won't. Even in this case, when I was right outside the stables there was no time to save him. As soon as I loaded in Dammon was on that thing trying to kill it. Of course, he got squished. So I took the opportunity to try and cast speak with the dead on him. Because I thought, "Ah yes since I've already been traumatized today by this what's a little more?"

He had nothing to say. But what I did not expect was Anna to actually sob afterward. See the image below: the player character actually gets upset about Dammon dying!!!

Oh goodie, a new little detail I wish to NEVER see again. *groans* This bug alone is why I'm dragging my feet when it comes to reaching Act 2 since it became a thing. I did NOT want to see or be traumatized by this! Don't they realize this stupid bug is hugely impacting our enjoyment of the game? And we're talking about life or death for Karlach too! So to Larian Studios...

[yourqueenb]

Ok I know we’re focusing on Mal rn, and I’m happy about that. But this right here would’ve been a great moment to give MC a chance to speak on how holding the team together affects her since he just commented on how hard it is. Like now you have a bit of an idea of how she feels, but you still don’t know the half of it because she had to come back, pick up the pieces, and rally everyone together again AFTER being kidnapped and held captive.

And I get that MC being gone was hard for Mal, especially since he’s my LI. But he still ultimately got to move on and pursue something he’s always wanted to do. Meanwhile MC went from saving her brother to saving the world to saving herself to being thrust right back into saving the world and her friends again!

[hermit-writes]

Pattern : https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/salty-air-tee

Yarn : https://katsriversidestudio.com/ Colors : Prism, La maison tricotée, corrosion

[faerie-of-faerun]

Us Europeans when Larian wanted to release the game earlier in the day for our timezone but Steam said "nuh-uh!":

[peevishpants]

trying 2 draw the disco elysium cast and struggling so hard bc my natural instinct is to make them generic-hot but it would be a disservice to every character especially kim and harrier dubious and i need to fight it every step of the way

[ladyimaginarium]

[captainofthetidesbreath]

i love it is kinda ambiguous what Fjord and Jester do with their time year-round, especially Fjord, and how their time is divided bc Jester's studio is said to be inspired by Veth's camp, iirc, so like how much of the year does that take up when the camp is a couple of months. And it is unclear what Fjord is doing day-to-day.

I've been saying since the campaign ended but especially since the start of the two-shot, fully like guys, @ especially Fjord, rotate your months: handful of weeks in port, handful of weeks sailing.

excited to work with this as a thought in the future

[thebendsbyradiohead]

contemplating unfollowing someone on here bc not only did they have the audacity to get a gf this year but they also got an apartment & it's like damn leave some for the rest of us losers