Once Ever After Beta Testing

I've been putting this off for a long time to finish  more content and get TLS on Steam, but it's finally time to do major testing on my next project. People at the $10 tier on Patreon and SubscribeStar now have access to the first build of Once Ever After:

This build has 5-10 hours of gameplay and 9 fully-illustrated scenes (art by Crescentia). After making improvements to this build, I hope to make more content and finish the core storyline, though it will take quite a while for the rest of the scenes to be drawn, not to mention the improvement of mapping/UI/etc that I hope to do before the game is released.

I also finished putting together the art package for Desecration of Wings. This is all the game's art at full resolution - I said that patrons would get access to it, but hadn't put together the package until recently. I plan to give that to patrons later this month.

Work on TLS will continue as it always does, but meanwhile I hope people enjoy this side project. If you want to wait for the final version, you can count on me mentioning it here once it releases.

TLS Steam Release!

It's finally happening, everybody! Go here if you want to play TLS via Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/951830/The_Last_Sovereign/

Even if you aren't interested in Steam, check out the link to see the fancy trailers Lamsey made. They do a much better job of showing off the game than I could have made. ^-^

If you have an account you're willing to associate with an adult game, please review! As a free RPG Maker game, it's pretty much going to sink or swim based on good reviews. Letting people know your thoughts about the game is good, but even short reviews are votes of confidence!

There is also a pure donation DLC because people on the forum requested it. This fixes the game in your Steam library but otherwise does nothing. Originally I wanted to make the DLC give you a few images, just for fun, but I've given up on this because trying to work with Valve's back end systems is misery.

Hopefully the Steam release will encourage some new people to try TLS for the first time. I also have my fingers crossed that it won't prove too time-consuming, as I'd like to get focused on creating things again.

TLS 0.41.4 Public Release + SubscribeStar

The new release is below, but first, two announcements:

1) Many people leaving Patreon have asked for an alternative and I finally got my SubscribeStar account approved. If you sign up via this link, in theory I get more of your support:
https://www.subscribestar.com/?sref=kG2r

2) The Lunar New Year sale is way bigger than I expected, so it would be unwise to launch TLS on Steam right now. Expect it fairly soon, though, as there are no real obstacles to the release.

Anyway, the newest version of TLS:

Download*: https://mega.nz/#!Okd2hACA!YABiPLEZglUetnQvxz7fd8tuoYeftMEaNEalBdNGFNo
Mirror*: https://www.mediafire.com/file/68a9rxmhf1p8pal/TLS_0.41.4.exe/file
RTP: https://mega.nz/#!ehEWSarR!WxznvRGAuXdD6ZxF7OlWJUnm00icIdm7Dfhw0vClpnM

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

TLS 0.41.4 [2/8/19]
 - More fixes and tweaks.

TLS 0.41.3 [2/6/19]
New Additions
 - Previously, nothing changed in Zirantia. Now more things are updated.
 - This includes an event leading to a brand new scene.
 - Herin and Kaskia can be found in various locations. Not essential, just flavor in response to the synod.
 - Depending on vote results, Tak'Kan has a sanctification team in the Wilds.
 - Also potentially a new location in Tak'Kan.
 - A foreign succubus captured during the Gathering shows up then and later in Gasm Falls.
Minor changes
 - Usual typos and minor improvements.
 - Synod: Slight balance change to Esmera's deal.
 - Small lore addition giving Sarai a formal title.
 - Xerces coloration standardized thanks to Decanter.
 - Retroactive: Lady Entila now has a faceset and her conversation has been modified to use multiple expressions.

There was a whole lot of tweaking in this one, plus I spent the two weeks of beta testing adding some more conversations, events, and scenes. I hope the result is enjoyable and makes it rewarding to revisit old locations.

Barring an unnoticed error or serious new issue, this is the final synod balance. Doing such a complex segment was quite an endeavor, but I hope it's a satisfying climax to a lot of the social elements.

Following this release will be the Steam release and some special events, so please look forward to those! The next TLS update will come after those and will get back to some recent plot points, moving us closer to the end of chapter four.

TLS 0.41.0 Released!

New update for patrons! Version history updated, you know what to do, etc.

TLS 0.41.0
Core Updates
 - Significant synod overhaul. (see details below)
 - Entire world updated based on synod results.
 - 4 new plot scenes, 3 new affection scenes.
 - Sarai can now join, depending on your synod results.
 - Orilise can now be maxed, depending on your synod results.
Synod Overhaul
 - More speakers added to the votes in the latter half (flavor only).
 - Zirantia now sends a representative. He's mostly flavor, but he influences the last vote.
 - Tak'Kan Vote: Ignias's support increased.
 - Tak'Kan Vote: Simon speaking now grants an additional bonus.
 - Tak'Kan Vote: Nabith + Sanitation Guild bonus improved.
 - Tak'Kan Vote: Kerannii's deal has an impact on her results.
 - Fucklord Vote: Kerannii's deal now has a greater impact.
 - Economic Vote: The cost now varies based on the Religion stat.
 - Eustrin Vote: There is now a new option to spend additional influence on this vote.
 - Eustrin Vote: The result requirements have been tweaked.
 - Goddess of Magic Vote: Requirements and rewards tweaked.
 - Goddess of Magic Vote: Yelarel's contribution now varies based on her influence variable.
 - Mother's Guard Vote: Requirements and rewards tweaked.
 - Mother's Guard Vote: Yelarel's contribution now varies based on her influence variable.
 - Inquisition Vote: You can now receive a bonus from Religion, but the requirements increased a little.
 - Succubus Holy Knights: The cost of applying Sarai's influence now varies based on Yelarel's influence.
 - Succubus Holy Knights: The Yelarel bonuses have changed.

TLS 0.41.2 (1/29/19)
 - Lots of polishing and minor variants/fixes, no significant new content added.
 - New scenes added to Reflection menu.
 - There was new content added to the Aramite fort, but it was inaccessible before now.
 - Fixed the bug in the harem menu.

Well... this one is the synod overhaul plus the update to the entire world plus some of the content I was originally planning to put in 0.42.0. There's a lot of work to do: test final synod balance, check many different outcomes, add more content, and polish in preparation for the Steam release. The public release of this version will likely take two weeks, but hopefully the Steam version will occur around that time as well.

Speaking of, all my games on Steam are on sale right now, most 50% off or more. Check them out if you're interested.

This update isn't the flashiest, but it includes some elements that I've been waiting to do for a long time. I also want the world to really feel responsive to the player's choices, so I intend to keep adding more content based on the decisions you made during the synod.

TLS 0.40.5 Public Release

I should probably have taken two weeks for this public release. One week was barely enough to iron out all the bugs and inconsistencies from an update this complex, and I'm very grateful to the patrons who went above and beyond to help me with it. But this update needs more than simple testing/fixing - there have been some good suggestions about adding new elements or shifting balance that will simply require more time to implement.

However, I failed to signal the possibility of a two week wait clearly enough, and I don't want to delay the release until people are busy around the holiday season. So the update is going public, but please be aware of the following:

WARNING: While this update should be a smooth and bug-free experience, it is NOT the final version. Patrons have suggested subjective changes that I think would be improvements and we will need to tweak the balance further.

Download*: https://mega.nz/#!m8VlSKRK!Ge40Eoe5nkOEdtVx4CkChoKUsUsbmiGZesrTf2fZ6h4
Mirror*: https://www.mediafire.com/file/0m21o2ecf6m531b/TLS_0.40.5.exe/file
RTP: https://mega.nz/#!v0UXyQiC!pBX5w-c5IsRX9bBcRsIU49Qvfo6j-r2oA4dS3SqmSWg

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

TLS 0.40.0
 - New content finishing the Council of Gawnfall.
 - One new scene.
 - Misc fixes on previous sections in preparation for the Steam release.

TLS 0.40.1-5
 - Wrestling with the scope of the event.

I hope people enjoy the update, but please be understanding when I need to take some time to continue improving it. Though providing regular releases is a high priority to me, my ultimate goal is to make TLS the best game that I can manage.

If after playing the update, you have ideas for additional content during the summit, feel free to make suggestions! I will not be massively changing things, but as an example, some patrons suggested that the second half of the summit could use more minor speakers for flavor. Another notable suggestion was that Zirantia could have a representative to speak on international issues. Anything that will make the summit feel like a richer event.

I intend this summit to be the most complex political segment of the game, and I may have gone a bit overboard, but I hope that it is part of a satisfying overall experience that reacts to your choices in nuanced ways. Thanks to everyone for following the development of TLS.