In today’s definitely on-time fortnightly update: I’m almost done with rebuilding the game from the ground up; a bunch of new illnesses (in the game, fortunately); and a hefty dollop of anxiety (not in the game, unfortunately)

This fortnight has been a bit of a slow one, again. I’ve been plugging away pretty consistently, but there have been some roadblocks preventing me from moving on to the game’s new content just yet.

However – nearly there, nearly there. I just need to re-jig the game’s tutorial and it’ll all be done. Then just some testing and it’ll all be done. Then just some bugfixing and it’ll all be done. Then just some…

In other words, I’ve been a little ill at ease recently. Partly because making games is hard and I have very little experience. And partly because I’m in the middle of planning a giant move from the city I’ve been living in for the past five years (Nagoya) to the countryside (Nagiso, in Nagano) that’ll determine basically the next decade of my and my fiance’s life.

Everything’s kind of up in the air at the moment, and while it’s about 85% an excited nervous energy, it’s a nervous energy all the same. I’ve been very happy with my ability to not let all this Life Stuff affect my focus on game dev, but all that nervous energy is definitely whirling away in the background, having an effect.

Don’t worry die hard The Red Market fan – I’m committed to continuing with this project until the late June-early July end date (and likely beyond). And I am enjoying it. It’s just that right now I’m a little bit anxious about the whole thing.

Will I be able to do what I want to do with the project? Will I be able to learn the things I feel I need to learn? will anyone like it, Will I —

(And when I consider the possibility of starting up a Patreon at some point in the next year or so that nervous energy does some very menacing things to my poor, poor brain.)

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Anyway, ignoring all that – I should have the new re-jigged version of the game (with no new content, but in a much nicer state than before) available to play online around the end of the year. And from there it’ll be 100% adding that exciting new content.

Here’s a glimpse of some of the actually new stuff I’ve implemented into The Red Market this fortnight. Namely, Scars and Boons (these names might change before the final version of the game is released, because the current ones are very beige):

Right now we have the following stat-ravaging Scars:

• St. Ernestine’s Tar, Lingering Mortality, Profound Enervation, Withered Veins, Fungal Infection, and Butter Lung

And the following useful-if-sometimes-very-icky Boons:

• Shepherd’s Dropsy, Royal Touch, Preternatural Insight, and Loving Embrace

The former can be contracted from the game’s various nasty monsters, and various Very Bad Decisions on the player’s part. The latter can be gained by discovering secret interactions with those various nasty monsters. They’re all permanent, and will have significant effects on the player’s effectiveness throughout the game.

Scars can only be removed by very specific methods (which the player will have to discover on their own). These treatments may involve anything from hot water bottles, bed rest, and taking in the ozone, to consuming a still-warm bezoar torn from the stomach of some half-formed monstrosity. Modern medicine can only only get you so far, after all.

And here’s a glimpse of some lovely-if-sometimes-very-icky writing players will see when they gain these status effects:

“You can feel something new and fecund within: a fungal infection growing across your skin like rings of mould on old fruit.”

“You can feel the Loving Embrace of the Lystsceap surrounding you, even now. Your limbs are warm; the soft skin of your armpits slick with longing.”

“You can feel the presence of something new and burning within: St. Ernestine’s Tar has colonised the space beneath your skin.”

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Next time: more lovely boring work putting the game’s foundations together like a deliberately obstinate jigsaw puzzle.

Thanks for reading! And remember, you can follow me on twitter through the magic of hyperlinks by clicking here. Or here, here, or here, if you prefer.

Nick