#gilded shadows

[steamberrystudio]

Yuu's route is released. Barring any necessary patches to fix major bugs, this will be the last update to the game. 💪💪

Thank you everyone for following me and supporting me on this long journey.

I started writing GS in 2019.

A few years, one global pandemic, and 1,037,000 words later...here we are.

And now, on to the next. 🫡

~Esh

[variouspolltournaments]

Submissions for the Otome Heroines Tournament.

Submit an Otome Heroine, along with where they come from and (if you want) propaganda through ask or submit a post.

They must be from an actual otome game, otome isekai heroines do not count. Just to make sure we’re all on the same page here.

I'll close submissions once I get 32 of them.

Top 6 submissions are the ones I submitted myself.

@tournament-announcer

Submissions in bold have propaganda, submissions not in bold do not have propaganda. Whether they do or do not have some already, you are still free to submit some.

SUBMISSIONS:

Rin/Chihaya: Yoshiwara Higanbana

Angelique Limoges: Angelique

Chizuru Yukimura: Hakuouki

Lucette Riella Britton: Cinderella Phenomenon

Morgan Leone: Gilded Shadows

Mai Mizusaki: Ikemen Sengoku

Sian Goodin: Backstage Pass

Kayo: Ken Ga Kimi

Alice Liddell: Heart no Kuni no Alice

Teuta Bridges: Bustafellows

Julia Darwin: Shall we Date? Love Tangle+

Valerie Amaranth/Diamond Heart: Magical Warrior Diamond Heart

Hiyoko Tosaka: Hatoful Boyfriend

Nora Lewis: Changeling

Tifalia: Radiant Tale

Byakuya/Olympia: Olympia Soiree

Heroine: Amnesia

Kisa Tachibana: Jack Jeanne

Anastasia Lynzel: Even If Tempest

Ceres: Virche Evermore

Hiyori Sena: Charade Maniacs

Lynette Mirror/Cupid: Cupid Parasite

Kotone Awaki: Café Enchanté

[grumpy-nyks]

i felt quite nostalgic some time ago and i've planned to do it (in august actually...), but life hit me with everything, and... yeah.. but hey! it's here, finallyy!!!! it's my version of '#sixfanarts', but with my favourite ROs from games that mean the world to me. Big THANK YOU, to the devs who created these games!

Atlas - The Immortal Kingdom @vouxie-studio xyx - Blooming Panic @robobarbie Alkar - When The Night Comes @LunarisGames (twitter) June - Andromeda Six @WanderlustGames (twitter) Castiel - My Candy Love Caleb - Gilded Shadows @steamberrystudio

[animeomegas]

Gilded Shadows is one of my favourite games ever, and it's on sale right now just saying.

If you love S-tier worldbuilding, excellent characters, and immaculate mysteries, all mixed with romance, I'd really recommend it!

You can get it on Steam (Windows only), or Itch.io (Windows and Mac) for £17.49, which is incredible considering it's over 1 million words of content.

I genuinely can't sing this games praises enough. I think I'm going to start writing some stuff for the game over on AO3, because it's tragically lacking fanfic.

If anyone does like this game, send me a message or ask! I'd love to talk about it! And if you have any question about the game and are wondering about whether to give it a try, feel free to ask too!

[indigofoxpaws]

couldn't stop rotating this au in my mind, so: Magnus Ulrich, the King Undying

"the one time she asked him what he had really done out there in the Wastes, all he'd said was that he 'devoured god for the sake of everyone else.'"

[semioticapocalypse]

Lee Friedlander. New York City. 1966

[justanaspiringsomeone]

More Gilded Shadows Headcanons

disclaimer: this is for fun and the characters belong to @steamberrystudio with that in mind, lets go:

Jack Headcanons

Is a chaotic bisexual

Look at this man and then tell me to my face he does not have bisexual energy

Ironically, never been with a man himself, he has crushes though

It was Caleb and Caissa, he will take those secrets to his grave though

Caleb never knew but I feel like Caissa was aware to some degree

To which i say, good taste Jack

Is def more muscular than the other LIs, almost always on the move no matter what

Lashes are longer than you’d think

The dog energy is strong with this one, more wild rather than fully trained

Fluctuates with nihilistic thoughts and wanting to live still

Emotional intimacy is far and in between for Jack, so he’s… not well skilled

Or rather, he keeps emotional intimacy at bay? I dont think it’s on purpose

At least not always

He thought of getting a tattoo, but somehow managed to convince Caleb into getting one

Or at least thinking about getting one

Has stupid amounts of luck, like there are so many situations he’s been in where he definitely shouldn’t be alive

Lowkey, people have a nickname for him, Lucky Jack or Jack Rabbit

He kind of hates it tho

His sense of fashion is quite literally the badboy your dad warns daughters about HAH

No sense of fashion to speak of when you’re busy surviving though

Likes loose fitting and breathy clothes though, or something that won’t snag or be grabbed on

Gets both flustered and confused when referred as ‘pretty’ or ‘beautiful’ like h u h

Does he look anything like that to yall–

Lowkey doesn’t get genuinely complimented a lot so it sends him for a loop sometimes

Can code switch like none other and it freaks some people out

Rowan Headcanons

Mmmm eldest sibling trauma go brrr /j

Good with his hands and fiddles around with things whenever he’s anxious or bored

Gay

Not a fan of being touched i think? Def not by strangers at least.

Likes his hair being played with, Velli only tho

Bitter about his parents so he chooses not to think about it

Annoying people is his way of showing love

He worries about Celeste a lot, the two are like siblings

Genuinely likes flowers and gardening, don’t tell anyone

A theater kid in disguise

When he first realized he had romantic feelings for Velli, he admittedly freaked out

To the point he purposely avoided Velli until Velli sought him out

They quickly hashed their feelings out

has a customer service voice he accidentally used in the Court and no one let him have peace for WEEKS

Velli Headcanons

Only child

Kind of an attention whore to some extent

Will actually let the world burn for his loved ones (Rowan)

Pansexual

Kind of reminds you of a panther

Likes silver, while Velli likes gold

Job doesn’t let him wear jewelry for obvious reasons

But keeps a ring in his room from Rowan that he absolutely treasures

Velli is shorter of the two but has carried Rowan before

finds Rowan's attempts to spoil him sweet ngl

Celeste Headcanons

She likes lizards, she just hits me as a lover of reptiles

Ties her hair back whenever particularly gruesome injuries are seen

Her and Rory are companions, def close

She can sleep anywhere and it’s nigh impressive

Rory frets over her i think

Feeling aro/ace to some degree

Or maybe she’s just tired constantly

Practical to the point it whirls back around to being a problem

Big trans girl energy

Has a knife on her at all times

And has used her biokensis to kill before

She doesn’t like using it for that and it's a clear indication from inexperience

But she will if needed

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 1 MATCH 23

Caleb propaganda:

“Grumpy physic mother hen. His idea of flirting is trash talk while arm wrestling, and arguing with bureaucracy on your behalf. Sort of kidnapped you once, and will never be allowed to live it down under any circumstances”

Beelzebub propaganda:

No Beelzebub propaganda :(

[lehdenlaulu]

Decided to play Caissa's route last night and wow. My heart. 🥺

I did try Jack's first but I couldn't quite get into it after the two Endgame routes where she was much more of a part of a group -- and I just found myself distracted by Caissa whenever he showed up. 😅 Sorry babe, I just think I prefer you as a bro. I do want to finish his route though because there was some intriguing story/lore stuff.

Caissa was also much easier than I initially expected even though I was apprehensive whether the confident personality would work in this route. I was a little afraid it would be one of those 'be nice, quiet, and submissive and let big bad mafia boss protect you' types, but thankfully no. I mean, I had also seen a glimpse of the 'real' Caissa in Caleb's route, so I had an idea of what to expect.

I will say that Jack's route was much more connected to the larger themes and mysteries in the overall story, but Caissa's was... such a good romance, really. After the somewhat... rocky start it was somehow very easy and natural to make the "right" choices and get the "best" ending -- though granted, I'm more seasoned now after 4 routes than I would have been if I'd started with Caissa.

Also I must say I didn't expect Reuben and Wynter to show up and just go 'fuck it, let's throw in with the Court'. 😆 Caissa feeling mildly threatened by Reuben was funny too -- I mean Reuben is bae too, but baby, that was in another life, and this time she didn't even have time to bond with him early on in the story because she met you instead.

That reminded me, though, that the only thing that could make this game better if there were some poly options to some degree at least. I mean, Jack and Caleb?? There's clearly something there. Also, Magnus and Lance, potentially? Gotta do Lance's route next to investigate. I also kinda expected him to be a bit more present here, but I guess it makes sense why not. The very omnipresent Magnus didn't show up either, which was also surprising.

Anyway, I'll just leave you with this:

[jellyfishcynic]

Guess what everyone! I've burnt through more if works! I'm now on Gilded Shadows!

I am a fan of the ROs, but...

IF VAN HAS ZERO FANS, I AM DEAD! EVERY WORD THAT COMES FROM HER IS GOLD! SHE IS EVERYTHING! VAN IS THE GOAT!

[velvet-cupcake-games]

Hey hey! So I (Becky, the Made Marion writer and the runner of this Tumblr) wrote a big ol' fanfic for Gilded Shadows, a game y'all should play because it's really good.

I love every single one of the game's lead characters, but I became particularly attached to the overall cast in the most recent route to be released, Quill's. I decided more of the side cast needed to find romance. This fic is labeled explicit and is about the same level of spice that you'll find if you choose to read the sexy scenes in Made Marion (they can be turned on or off in the preferences menu).

But please heed the spoiler warning at the beginning and go play Gilded Shadows first! https://archiveofourown.org/works/43268490/chapters/108756912

Me, having too much fun. It helped a lot with my writing discipline on Made Marion, too. I got more done on MM than I have been, so I guess the secret to getting back to writing after a devastating bout of long Covid is... more writing!

[steamberrystudio]

31/12/2023 Devlog

Hey everyone! Time for the bi-weekly tumblr update for Steamberry stuff! Except I skipped one because I can't remember why.

I half-wrote it but I think I just wasn't feeling up to finishing and posting.

I haven't been doing extremely well health-wise lately but still powering through.

Summary

Finished writing Chapter 5.5 (the new chapter in WSC)

Finished editing Chapters 6, 7, and 8 of Asher's path

Finished all the profiles for the GS lore book

Have started wrapping up the "side stories" and additional content for the GS lore book

Ramble

Okay so in my last update I was in the middle of editing chapter 5 and was nearly to the start of chapter six in editing Asher's route. I finished up chapter 5...

At that point when I was looking ahead, I started feeling like I wanted to add in a transition scene to move between Chapter 5 and Chapter 6.

As I started plotting out this scene, one of my ideas took on a life of its own and I realised that it might be better to interject a new, fleshed out story incident that would allow me to slow the pacing as well as flesh out the setting and universe a little more. This incident would also let me tie into some earlier events and connect them to something that occurs in chapter 6, also foreshadowing the chapter 6 incident.

Ultimately, this became too much to call a "scene" and I decided to branch it off into a supplementary chapter (IE a chapter a bit shorter than the others and meant to be released along with another chapter.)

Then that chapter ended up being 30,000 words.

So that happened.

After finishing that I went on to finish editing chapters 6, 7, and 8. I am currently on chapter 9. I only have a few more chapters before I'm finished editing Asher's path. As always, during my edits, one of the main things I do is flesh things out.

So obviously the word count has grown from that (and, you know, the 30k extra chapter I invented).

Currently the word count is 468,000 words.

Other Stuff:

I have received several new BGs and a new BG sketch. BGs are continuing to come in at a fairly steady pace.

I now have all the BGs for The Ophelia and the artists are working on other locations finally. OwO

I've also been, here and there, doing small tweaks to the sprites, small additions and fixes.

Gilded Shadows:

As I mentioned, I finally got through all the character profiles. There are so many more characters than I remembered in this game.

Then I got halfway through and realised that I forgot five. And had to insert them, which...meant rearranging pages, which is a pain in the butt. However, that is now complete.

What I'm working on now is finishing up some of the short stories and drabbles I have planned or partially written out and getting them into the lore book. 

As well as gathering any other content. The lore book is currently about 350 pages. And I am really hoping to wrap it up soon.

Upcoming Weeks:

Next couple of weeks I will be trying to wrap up the lore book and wrap up editing Asher's Path.

When I finish editing Asher's path I'll be moving on to finish drafting the end sequences for the four remaining characters. I'm starting to have an idea of where the word count is going to end up but will have a better idea for sure when Asher's edit is complete.

I have written over 100,000 words since mid-August, just plugging away and trying to hit at least 1000 words a day.

I hit my year end word count goal of 466,000 words for When Stars Collide but unfortunately did not finish the draft because the draft has grown in size.

But I am really hoping to finish it early next year so we can fully move into phase 2 of When Stars Collide.

I am also hoping to get the final KS stuff resolved for Gilded Shadows early next year as well (the lore book, art book, and some residual art and stuff).

For now, I shall just keep plucking away at it until it's all done.

And that is all for now. I will see you all next year.

[variouspolltournaments]

Reminder that submissions for the Otome Heroines Tournament are still open.

Get more information here

I will be tagging this post with the otome games the already submitted heroines are from.

[squeakthemonkey]

In honour of the new route, which I absolutely love, here is a quick fan art of Quill from @steamberrystudio Gilded shadows. He is cranky yet so so kind and loving and I love the new route, I definitely cannot wait for Reuben and Yuu to come. Thank you for creating such a wonderful game and wonderful characters it has inspired me to try writing again after a long time.

[animeomegas]

you mentioned a game called gilded shadows, is it worth buying? i'm looking for a new game now that it's summer~

Hey! Yes, Gilded Shadows is an amazing game and I'm working right now on 100% completing it because I still have lots of endings and a few cgs left to find before the final route comes out (which is pretty soon ahhhh)

The world building is amazing, like the best I've ever seen for a game. The game follows the MC, who is an interplanetary archaeologist student as she's discovered as a Queen Rank Esper that many factions want to 'recruit' willingly or otherwise, or kill.

Each route is entirely different, which makes the play time insane. I already have over 100 hours on it. There are also different personality traits that unlock different text and choices. I personally love playing as analytical because the MC understands things so quickly and adds her own analysis to situations. Although I can't lie, stubborn and confident are also two of my favourites for the sheer audacity that the MC shows with those enabled lol.

There are currently 8 routes released, with one more still coming. My favourite route and romanceable character is Lance, who I played first despite all the warnings about spoilers for other routes hehe. He's so amazing and I genuinely cried three times during his route. I also really love Ruben though, he's probably the one who is most my type, he's very sweet, I love him sm.

The game is pretty pricy, but personally I definitely didn't regret buying it. I'd recommend wish listing it to get notified of sales if it's a little out of your price budget.

Ultimately, you should make the decision based on your own thoughts and feelings about the game, but I'm happy to answer some questions about it if that would give you a clearer picture as to whether you would enjoy it or not.

Hope that helps!

[hummingbird-games]

elmo on fire gif