#higurashi zine full pieces

[stones-and-birds]

Some Updates! July 16, 2024 🐦‍⬛💎

Howdy! Been a bit since an update, and while not a ton of folks are actively keeping up with this I figured an update was still worthwhile. Updates under the cut.

-Kieran

Development Updates:

This project is still actively being worked on! There's a ton left to do before I can even properly begin coding the VN and making assets - character designs, outfit, logo, and abnormality designs, not to mention continuing to flesh out the plot + properly write down the full summary. Things are slow due to life - we've got obligations outside of working on this, but it's still full steam ahead as this story is very important to us.

I had initially planned to release Chapter 1 on its own for the Children of the City Zine - I ended up switching to an illustration for my piece because I didn't want to work under a deadline for this. I am learning very quickly not to overestimate my abilities to get stuff done while dealing with multitudes of other stress.

The plot has, for the most part, been finalized - I'm still extending what I had written out and making tweaks here and there for better story flow, but we know what the overarching plot is as well as what the conclusion will be. Of course things could change, PM is still putting out new content and we don't have all the worldbuilding we could, but we're taking it in stride.

As of right now, the amount of chapters slated to be in the final product will be 9, and 7-8 of those will unlock optional story snippets at the end of each chapter (think the 'tips' feature in Higurashi, for example). It's very possible this will change!

I've switched to planning mostly on a Notion board which has helped productivity a lot more than having things scattered across various Google Docs files!

We've added @winterbunz to the dev team for proofreading and additional writing help!

Feedback needed?:

We're still deciding on whether or not to release the story in parts or wait until it's complete before releasing the whole thing - If we decide on releasing it in parts, It'll likely be a release similar to Limbus in that the primary release has 3 chapters and the rest will be released as completed. Still not sure though, feedback is appreciated. I may post a poll regarding this soon for easier engagement.

I would really like to add some minigames of some sort, as well as a functional Abnormality Codex for the fan abnormalities. I have some ideas on how to implement these, but it's going to take some studying and planning and such to figure it out - so nothing's set in stone on that front yet!

Some Adjustments/Fixes:

I had somehow mixed up Canto 1 LCB's L Corp branch, D-02, with Canto 2's, J-03, and ended up naming the branch J-02. This was an error on my part and I'm embarrassed to admit it took me so long to realize - The primary branch featured in this story will be J-03! I intended it to be the one from Canto 2 from the start, I just can't read.

I've also maybe been a bit too loose-lipped regarding plot beats, so I'll be avoiding that more in an effort to prevent spoilers for people who don't want them.

Misc Updates:

A good amount of the main cast of this project is uploaded on Art Fight for 2024's fight! Since a majority of the main characters are mine specifically, most of them will be located on my AF account, demonerium. I'm on Team Stardust this year!

Oracle also has some of his characters that are a part of the SaB cast on AF - you can find his profile as oracle_milkman, he's on Team Seafoam.

While you're at it, attack Michelle too! They don't have any SaB characters yet, but they have their own Lobcorp OCs as well as others.

TL;DR:

Development is still in progress! We're currently still working on finalizing the plot and chapter summaries, but it's getting closer!

Branch J-02 is now referred to as Branch J-03 to correct a mistake I made... and somehow only recently noticed...

Some discussion/feedback would be appreciated regarding release methods and minigame/extra feature additions!

[gativo]

Full piece for @neonbell-zines higurashi fanzine