Friday, October 5, 2018

TLS 0.38.2 + Crimson Gray 1.5!

Download*: https://mega.nz/#!bhd3nAYC!c3poh4j_hdwbVea8YuyO2w4apSLrunWDUAObXrMc8kk
Mirror*: https://www.mediafire.com/file/acacf7qsv613xbu/TLS_0.38.2.exe/file
RTP: https://mega.nz/#!PxNj3KDR!D1c3jFuiGtyU8zFxwvJ35l6l-KKxrvRf_3fhcDJG8gw

*Requires RPG Maker VX Ace RTP to be installed. If you don't know what that means, use the RTP link.

TLS 0.38.0
 - New section of the plot with a bunch of followup to last update's reveal.
 - New round of investing and research available.
 - Several new mini-dungeons and another option unlocked.
 - One new scene.
TLS 0.38.1-2
 - Minor polishing and bugfixing.

There weren't too many bugs found in this one, so all that's new in the public release are some minor fixes, improved dialogue, etc. I'm putting it out early in honor of the new Crimson Gray release, which should be coming out later today:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/894460/Crimson_Gray_Dusk_and_Dawn/


I'm glad this project is finally released! At minimum, it provides a nice coda for Lizzie and John's story together, plus it let me write from Lizzie's POV, which I enjoyed. ^-^ I hope you will at least consider taking a look at the game!

Those who have played the TLS update will know what the next update is about. It will be large and complex, so I'm not sure how long it will take to finish. But with Crimson Gray 1.5 releasing soon and some other things winding down, I should have more time to devote to it. See you next time!

56 comments:

  1. I don't know if this is just me or maybe somebody else has this problem.
    I waited for the public version to come out to play it and when i start the text starts but i am stuck in the loading area or to say the area when we end up always after the end of every new update.After some text and we get our money the game continues and we get to control Wendis.Not something big of a problem or bug just wanted to tell.

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    1. Oh, hmm. While that sounds like a bug, it's difficult to pin down the exact issue. You say that as soon as you regain control in the new section, your character is Wendis? Is your party changed, or the same?

      In the short term, advancing the plot through the first step should fix any party issues, as everyone gets reset there.

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    2. Nearly the same issue here. The first scene takes place in the "waiting room", but afterwards I don't get to control Wendis. Just regular old Simon, with the same party setup as usual.

      Game seems to function as intended afterwards. I could upload the save somewhere if you think that'll help pin down the issue?

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    3. If the first scene takes place in the waiting room, that's mildly undesirable, but it should be 100% compatible with the game going forward. Starting from the waiting room might occasionally have a cosmetic quirk or two, but it should always be mechanically the same.

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  2. I haven't found princess puppy kicker. Didn't she made it in this update or is it my bad that I didn't met her? I want to know what use she'll have.
    A few hints for new the investing opportunities would be nice. I'm not sure if I want to search everything again.

    I hope I don't sound annoyed even it's an pretty short update I actually feel a bit better about Wendis now.

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    1. For Princess Puppy Kicker try going to the Chalice States.

      Off the top of my head, there are two new places for investing, one has to do with the elves, and the other to do with your HQ.

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  3. Ok, first the annoying things:
    Bugs:
    Riala looked in last Version talk with here and the same conversation started than all as before and started the Research.
    Wendis still look at the boxes in HQ?
    Is there no Quest for the new seed Orcs or is it a bug?
    Arbiter Quest: Confront the Fucklord incursions is still not done?
    Wall BUG. And yes, I´m sorry in the Room where you pick the walls it is EV 135 and the Base Walls get set to 7. Hopefully that Picture uploading work, but some wall segments where only one pylon stands there are incorrect while others are correct.

    http://s346.photobucket.com/user/Craven12/library/TLS%20BUG

    Now to the good Things:
    Great Story!!! The Doom King has a Palace nice ex unsuccubi and yes using the last slot of Trin for the new Palace stuff that than do nothing with Fuani not even a Comment change? or an Iris reaction? Maybe it would be better used in the church part, but I helped the church so hopefully it it isn´t to worse;) also Yeah we get a meeting of the church!
    YELLOW CANDLES! That is really sweet! Orcent and Wendis go to a bar no that isn´t a joke that is a serious discussion that now need to be there when it is possible for here( Maybe about how convenient Simon encounter all Persons he met and find so many ingredients on the way ;)? also Wendis Sarai than can become fun! Also Simons Ribbon! I had a Gray Lotus but still went to the Alchemist and 100.000 PRON to piss of the Mother totally worth it;)!
    So take your time and if someone have a problem with it, let them publish their game and when it is same quality level and length they can start complaining ;). So again Thanks for your work!

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    1. Bugs:

      1) You're saying that a conversation with Riala repeated improperly? Can you help me narrow that down a little more?

      2) Wendis is still looking at the boxes? That is very strange and shouldn't be possible - the switch to replace the boxes is the same as for Wendis to be there at all now.

      3) There should be no quest for seed orcs at all, so if one appears, that is a bug. Can you provide any more information?

      4) Hmm, there may be a bug with the quest log. Unfortunately, it's easy for old bugs to be inherited based on how the quest log works, so it may be tricky to look into.

      5) Unfortunately, the wall bug is a known issue that I have no solution for. It's built into the tile-swapping script.

      Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed so many things about the new update. ^-^

      Using Trin to get more staff helps the Fuani quest, but if you've already gotten her scene, you won't see much benefit.

      I look forward to bringing everyone the next update when it's ready!

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    2. Hey i loved the update!

      I had a question about Wendis mentioning the ribbon.
      Because i'm a completionist and a hoarder i never actually sold any items so i still had the ribbon in my inventory. Does she mention it for everybody or only those who actually kept it?

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    3. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    4. That conversation only happens if you kept the ribbon. Glad you liked the update!

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    5. Which conversation? I still have the ribbon but I don't remember anything being said about it, when does it happen?

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    6. Right before the conversation about ingredients. It should be unavoidable this update.

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    7. Found it. After rereaing the earlier comment, I'd like to add that Wendis is still staring at a bunch of boxes in the base for me too. She's also in the Teleport room (and very oddly was beside the map and at the bottom area simultaneously until I agreed to go into the area alone)

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    8. Also what are the new Investment options mentioned? Obviously, the base has one, but that seems to be the only one. You can pay for access to the potions maker, but that doesn't feel like an investment so much so as a way to get the item if you missed it (or tick off the Mother if you didn't), so are there any others or did the update only give us the one?

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    9. Wendis being in two places is an artifact of how I do things, but the boxes bit is weird. =/ I'll have to look into it further.

      Anyway, this round of investing is less new options and more just getting money to pick options you couldn't last time. In addition to the minor additions you mentioned, an option that was once locked off is now... slightly less locked off.

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    10. 1. The 100 Conversation to lock her affection i had it last Version and this version when i go to her for research it get displayed again.

      2. Sorry after extracting the game files it are still two diffrent switches.

      3. There is no quest for that so right now that is intended.

      4) ok
      5) than i may tryout other walls there are still some left i didn´t tried out.

      Question will the research be ready before we start the church conference? otherwise i might replay to have the purity before the orcs. Also the Strange gold give 10500 Sx max so sell it now or keep it to get i sold somewhere else because new equipment is normally higher price and therefroe it seems a little less. Also forget the nice Megail Nalili conversation about Doom King statues.

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    11. 1) Hmm, will have to look into this.

      2) Ah, my bad. What confused me was that the boxes switch IS currently switched, but if you have an old enough save, it would be from a version where it wasn't. Will just change the boxes for now.

      Can't comment about the research at this time, sorry!

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  4. Are we done with Estaven's invasion and its Tower business?
    I screwed up a bit in one part (locked myself out of the unique orc club), and I decided I'll wait until it's over before I continue playing (and replay an earlier part) so I don't miss anything again.

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    1. While there will be new Estaven content in the future, the past sections you're referring to are completely done, yes.

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    2. if estavens invasion is done then should arbiters : confront the Fucklords incursions be greened out as completed?

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    3. Possibly. I think it's reasonable to leave it white, since there will be more similar events. While I completely see your logic, messing with the quest log retroactively can raise issues in ongoing saves.

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  5. i did all the last 4 researchs a looooong time ago, should the door to the next tier be open already?

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    1. It isn't possible to have completed all the research unless you cheated or used an exploit to get multiple research projects. You're welcome to play the game how you like, but I try to balance for intended play.

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    2. Weird, i havent done anything illegal, just followed wiki

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    3. Didnt you get a question to focus on research or other things earlier in the game?

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    4. No, as of the latest update you should have 2 research done, and one started but not complete. There was a bug a looooooong time ago that let you just research all of them at once that was patched. I recommend fixing your game with cheat engine, or starting from a save at the very start of chapter 4.

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  6. Replies
    1. Only if you're concerned about your save being normally balanced. The game won't punish you for having all the research done.

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  7. This update might seem somewhat calm, but all Wendis interactions managed to keep it interesting as always.
    Though, we know why you wanted to make Reletima uncongenial, but did kicking the puppy was really necessary? Marrying such person left bad aftertaste ;)
    And now I realized I can't help her maid because Trin doesn't have free slots... Will she get to dispose some copies in the near future? Or maybe you have alternative reforming plan for the princess?

    Also, I noticed two very minor things. In the teleport room, two portals with more than one destination have 'stay' option and two others 'no' (Aram and Zirantia). Would be nice to have uniform 'stay' as it sounds better.
    And in Yhilin merchant quarter street there's a woman who says 'It's strange, but I'm started to get used to...'. I might be wrong, but this passive voice doesn't seem right to me.

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    1. For Reletima, my goal was to subvert expectations: after offering so many balanced choices, I wanted one to be utterly unbalanced. =P And since I was going for that, I decided to lampshade it via the "Kick the Dog" trope.

      Regarding copying her, I have no comment except that I like presenting the player with a variety of different choices.

      As for your minor things, I agree with both. Better to standardize the portals, and the Yhilin line of dialogue is just a tense error on my part. Fixed, thanks!

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  8. First impressions on Crimson Gray D&D.
    It's so good. Seeing the world from Lizzie perspective is quite scary to be honest.
    The feeling, as a reader, that you're walking on eggshells never quite goes away. You never know if your choices would make Lizzie a little more stable or actually inch her closer to OH, SNAP! EVERYONE'S DED.
    I haven't finished reading it yet, but i am planning to.

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    1. I'm glad you've enjoyed it so far! I definitely enjoyed writing things from Lizzie's POV.

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    2. Hm... It seems i got um... Abrupt end. Basically there were news on the TV and then suddenly Title Screen appeared. That's weird. Like. whoops, you've fucked up, but not really, and there's nothing you can do about it.

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    3. That's the depression premature ending. Next time, have Lizzie sacrifice a little more to help John - I wanted it to be tricky to balance between the two and get the real endings.

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  9. You know with all this stuff found in the tower yet no entity can see what happens when you die it would be interesting if Simon managed to by accident stumble outside of the tower into an area where none of the Towers inhabitance ended up and something that lives outside the tower interacts with him because Simon isn't something it's met before so it's very curious. and it could be just as abstract and confusing in how it talks because they even by tower standards it's confusing. The entity has seen dead souls or souls departing to destinations but it never bothered watching them because their were entities that would be protective of these soul's paths. It would probably be interesting if they did encoutner an etity that would throw another layer of mystery that their is something outside of the tower and thus a new layer of reality or unreality that is impacted by this. If that entity found it's way into this world it would likely act like a child seeing the outside for the first time with no experiance in human interaction much it might behave very strange. Talking in confusing riddles and moving around like a small child but maybe wearing an imposing cloak. With Wierd sparkalies around him.

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    1. Have to give a huge "no comment" on the question of death for now, but I'm glad people are interested! You will like some of the things yet to come. ^-^

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  10. Well..... This I did not expect. I did wonder how you going to write your way out last release, but I honestly did not expect schizo approach with BOTH Wendis' personas totally outta whack. This definitely explains unhealthy and unrealistic behavior and opens up quite a few delicious possibilities :) Still a bit sore about Wynn's initial reaction, but overall, this gives much better impression. I know you don't need approvals and compliments, so once I'll get back home I'll throw some money at you :)

    - Dark Art

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    1. This was my plan, anyway - I hope people find it satisfying in the end! And I appreciate your support!

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    2. I should've known better by now than to doubt your tricksy Simonish ways :P

      Off topic - I hope you wouldn't mind a few cosmetic suggestions:
      1) That cloth washing orc we select as a seed for early stage Baila's experiments, shouldn't he graduate to something better? Maybe palace butler or majordome? Its kind of sad to still see him still silting in that corner after so much changed with him being one of the brighter ones to begin with.
      2) Once of the offspring of First Fancy Walker was very much into armour and do we know any succubi who is heavily into armour and cant really find partners in her hometown because the neighbors think her weird? Wouldn't they make a fine pair? ;) Also, since that succubus is already making custom armour, maybe with her new apprentice they can do some custom work for orcs as well?
      3) I know I've asked already, but I'll mention it again just in case you've overlooked it and definitely not because I really want to see it happen: south-west corner of the HQ would be an ideal spot for a garden/park/orchard and that would be an excellent money sink/hospitality boost. Also, Carina's shrine and second water well would look so much better there and if you'll ever feel inclined to add an option to start collecting rare plants for medical/magical/culinary purposes (kind of like the library downstairs) that would add yet another layer of ownership feeling to the HQ.

      - Dark Art

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    3. Suggestions are always fine!

      1) I hadn't really thought about that guy in a while. Sure, seems like a fun addition to give him a promotion, probably tied to Yhilin final.

      2) All I'll say on this is that you'll definitely see more things involving the succubus armorer.

      3) This one is a nice idea, but would be pretty tricky to implement. The base customization is already pretty close to the limit of what RPG Maker can manage.

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    4. Since suggestions are always fine I'll allow myself to throw in a few more, but these might be a more involving :)

      1) I kind of wondered why after so many years of being a mix of a free agent/senior trainer Simon never build up any viable connections with with Church military personnel. I dont mean higher ups, but mid/low level grunts. And if he did why none of them were trustworthy enough to be recruited/persuaded to join up with his armies. Sure thing, he had tons of boots at his command, but there is no such thing as too many veterans, especially if you know you can trust them. Also, these connections would be very valuable as spies or if thats a nono for some reason, then at least useful source of intel. I know its vague. but its kind of meant to be - just something to consider and exploit under right occasion.
      2) Real estate related stuff: why Withered Mountain fort and especially Incubus king fort (the one where we find the Armour) are completely abandoned. I can see somewhat weakish reason for Simon's gang to abandon WM fort, but I think it would be a very good place for some kind of military to take control of the installation. Sure, its a bit of a dump, but its still a fort and if we cant use it, I am sure the locals wouldnt let it just sit there as a potential hiding place for ne'er-do-wells. ancient IK fort is a totally different story. Not only it might be worthwhile to fully study the place, it being undiscovered and untouched for many years, but its location is excellent for an outpost of some kind to keep an eye on the not entirely friendly neighbours. Same thing goes for Varia's old base.

      The reason I mentioning all this is because you've used a very good technique of braiding seemingly forgotten strings into current developments (healing crazed women from WM fort much later in the story, Kara's story, succubi immigration trio showing up much later on in air ship trade negotiations, etc). Not many book writers do this well and very, very few game devs do this at all. Its a shame really, because its a very strong engagement technique, but does requires quite a bit planning and creativity to be done well.

      - Dark Art

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    5. For the first I think the simple answer would be Simon does not trust them enough. It's one thing to be war drinking buddies, it's another to convince church members to abandon everything they know about corruption, trust his new power, and help him conquer half the world. Even if he gave them a limited version of the plan they'd still see plenty of disturbing things like the conquering of Yhillin.
      Another unconfirmed and mostly fanfic answer is that all of Simon's war friends were killed. Simon mention working with Sarai for years, and both saying they made good progress but he left when "too many people died." And his one other 'war buddy' commander Geoff makes several references to men who died because of Simon's choices. It could be there was a huge massacre of Simon's squad and since then he limited himself to just the choosen.
      As for your second question I think it is just not worth the effort. The base was on top of a mountain, and overlooking mostly unimportant lands. The surrounding area was also full of monsters, and devoid of plant life. So maintaining the base with food caravan would be dangerous and costly.

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    6. Sorry friend, but I think you misunderstood me there. I can easily argue for and against using items mentioned story-wise, but thats not what I am trying to say there. I am simply pointing out that they COULD be used to create more emotionally strong links. For example: ancient IK fort could be repurposed as church or even the cathedral for Ivalan succubi, that would make sense story-wise and reconnect the player with strong and critical story-wise much earlier content.

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  11. Great update as usual! During this update, while I was running around to see what had changed I began to think about the various religious organizations on Arclent. (which is funny given the ending of the current update) However, while I was in Ari-Yhilina I noticed that there is a base for all the religions found in the city except the one for the Lustlord. I forget if it was mentioned if they got one and where it was placed, but will we get to see it. I'm very interested on how this one is and how similar or different it is too the one in the old Incubus King... Emperor territories. Thanks again and looking forward to more as always!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the update!

      A temple to the Lustlord in Ari-Yhilina has been mentioned but not yet seen. The main reason is that I don't actually have many ideas for what it would contain, so it would feel a bit like a copy of the other temple shown recently, or at least that's how I felt about it. That fact could still change, since you're not the only person who's interested.

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  12. Okay, I have a problem! Whenever I run the game, the 'game.exe' file deletes itself. The only thing I've figured out to fix it is to reinstall it each time and port over the saves. Except the installer is doing the same thing now. Help?

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    1. My best guess is that your antivirus program is falsely flagging the game and deleting it. Try looking into that first?

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  13. Welp, got around to playing Crimson Gray 1.5......and kinda mixed opinion....maybe it's because I have been in a chronic depressive state before so I empathised with John more in the first part, but I can't help but think the plot is kinda weaker this time. I get the whole theme of the world moving on and how most events now are just paranoia and the inner struggles of her mind, but the whole feel of the story doesn't feel as invoking as the original, where you had to carefully measure every decision fearing whether the next one would end with an axe in your chest.

    Also the negative options are too obvious, I really missed the kind of vague options that John used to get, where any one of them could be right or wrong, and where sometimes the obvious correct one really screwed him over (such as not letting Lizzie's paranoia affect how he treats the house nurse, fearing it harms John's sanity or causes an increase in treatment prescription from the nurse, only for it to really bite him in the ass when he's captured, drugged to mind break and then euthanized by Lizzie). Now, it just takes a little understanding from the player to know which one is the best. (Then again, maybe it's just me, I know as a person who went through those stages that you get FAR more depressed if a person prefers to struggle alone when you offer them help than place extra weight on yourself, so I knew that holding back harms him more as well as not helping Lizzie).

    Now, ignoring my critical side, loved the change in mechanics, including the mouse movement and the way characters arts changed as she felt threatened by them. And while I don't think it's as great as the original, that's only because I hold the original in such amazing regard. Stand alone, it's still a great game. I love that we were able to get a complete ending for these two, especially since after going through the struggles of 1.5, this one feels much more solid and complete than the "Good End" of the original (where John and her control their mental problems and manage a quiet life in peace undiscovered).

    So....yeah, sorry about the harsh start, but got to say that after everything, I enjoyed it. Keep up the great work, looking forward to the Religious Debacle that's gonna come out in the next update! Let's see if we can get another civil war started lol!

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    1. Yeah, I knew people would have mixed reactions to CG 1.5. This one definitely has less of a plot focus than before, which is why I called it a "half" sequel. My main goals were to revisit the couple, spend some time inside Lizzie's head, and give them a bit more resolution.

      As for how clear the choices were, that's always tricky. I've gotten reactions from all over the spectrum on this one, so at least some people didn't feel they were obvious.

      Anyway, glad you enjoyed it overall. ^-^ And it may take me some time to do the next update right, but I hope everyone enjoys it!

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  14. I probably should have read through all the comments to double check that this hasn’t been mentioned but I skimmed some of the later ones in part because I haven’t finished the update yet. There is a bug after speaking with Wendis in the void if you enter combat and escape the dialogue boxes’ vertical height becomes much shorter and remains that way. The dialogue itself also gets cut off and not all of it is displayed.

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    1. I didn’t say as much in that last comment, but I wanted to mention that I absolutely adore the game and the writing. Easily the best rpg maker game I’ve ever played, haha.

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    2. Yeah, this is a bug that will be fixed next version. In the short term, you can reset the dialogue box by opening the Ledger item or replaying a scene.

      Anyway, I'm glad to hear you've enjoyed TLS!

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  15. Hi! I'm excited to finally check out Dusk and Dawn and I'm happy to hear that the adult content has been included from the start. I recently noticed that some other visual novels on Steam with adult content have released their 18+ patches as DLC on Steam- separate from the base title but still officially available on the platform itself (e.g. Highway Blossoms).

    Is there any chance of doing the same for Crimson Gray?

    I like to support the platforms that don't handicap the way consumers choose to play the games they buy, and being able to officially purchase both games uncensored from the same source would make me very happy. Hopefully I see your games offered in their entirety in more places, including Steam, in the near future. Good luck to you!

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    1. This is a reasonable request, but I don't know that I can promise it. I would need to go through the approval process with Steam again, plus the new version would de-patch the versions of everyone who owns the game currently, so there are some downsides.

      I know it's less convenient, but you can modify the original Crimson Gray to its intended form via the free patch.

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