Thank you for the kind words and the encouragement, that really means a lot 💕
I don't know what will happen in the future. We will see if some more time focused on other things helps. Although my job and life situation is not really helping. I want to enjoy creating things again but my relationship with my games and art (and myself for that matter) is just not great right now LOL But I am trying my best.
Hopefully I can refind my spark for things with a bit more time to clear my head.
I thought so too 🤣 I was sure at the very least it would perhaps help get the same kind of traffic I had to the game from before it was deindexed on itch. Instead it's... getting about the same amount of traffic it had while dexindexed 🤪 Hence the feeling of the whole endeavor being rather pointless now LOL
Well. One never knows until one tries. I am still ultimately glad to have released it: I did learn a whole lot along the way, and I'm glad to have the remaster out rather than having it half-finished on my computer, as the remastered version is just 1000x better in so many ways (some of the art in the OG game honestly embarrasses me now and I don't even like to look at it hahaha). But it's also stolen some of the last of my hope and motivation for game dev along with it. I hope that I can get some of it back with more time spent focused on other things. We shall see!
Thank you so much for the kind words though. It really means a lot 💕
Yeah...... that is the assumption I'd had going in, as well. Basically hearing so many times that because Steam is simply so much bigger, no matter what, the game will do better on Steam and give you more visibility than on itch. But after this I can say with certainty that that is not the case (my traffic on Steam is lower than on itch LOL). So I don't know. It likely depends on many factors, including just general appeal. It seems like the free VNs that do well on Steam do very very well. But most other free VNs on Steam do not do very well. So it's probably the case where a free game can break through in spite of the disadvantages in the algorithm if it's very popular and appealing and then do very well, but all other free games generally do middling at best. (Also free games that have paid DLC can do very well because the purchases from the DLC will count as sales and boost it.)
There is also the fact that maybe some ppl talking about how well games do count every "free license" as a "download," when actually 99% of those are bots, because Steam is super botted (like half of my daily traffic is bot traffic lol...) So they look at the large number of licenses and think "wow it's doing great!" When actually those licenses aren't real. For instance, I have over 17,000 "licenses" claimed for the game, but only a bit over 1000 players, i.e., people that actually installed and opened the game. That's an enormous difference. But only the actual players count and help in the Steam algorithm (and are most similar to "plays" and "downloads" on itch.)
Well, for any possible reason, or maybe even that it's just changed a lot in recent years compared to a while ago, Steam is definitely not a guaranteed path to a larger audience by a longshot. And maybe it's also because some games just do better with the audience on itch than on Steam. We'll see, I guess. But this definitely makes me not want to release another free game on Steam hahaha. It's simply too much work to then have it simply be buried.
That's really kind of you to say about my art and means a lot 💕 I actually recently applied for a freelance tax number here, so commissions may be something I can do in the future. However, I can't until my unemployment benefits run out because then I'll lose my benefits 🙃 But doing various freelance and commission work is definitely something I'm considering if I can't find a job (which is looking more and more likely with each passing month lol). At least then I would not go completely broke (we hope).
At any rate, thank you for everything you'd said. Reading it really meant a lot 💕 I do know there are people out there that do enjoy my art and work. But I suppose it's the fact that it's so few and so low-regarded that none of my skills or works can even help me out of my current miserable life situation that is really getting to me LOL Like it makes everything I can do and have done feel rather worthless. So maybe that's where a big part of my current cynicism and hopelessness is coming from. I report to my case worker that I released a game on Steam but it doesn't matter, "I'm not trying hard enough" and I'm worthless and have no skills, I can't even speak German well. So that's not helping things much!!! LOL
Sorry that turned into a vent LOL 🤣 Well. As I said, thank you again, Chim, it really means a lot. Thank you for taking the time to leave such a kind and encouraging message 💕
Thank you, Len 🫂💕💕 Ahhhh.... this was very sweet...
I'm trying to take care of myself. The disconnect has helped a lot: only by completely switching my head to something else besides the game was I able to at least feel a bit better, even if now it's made me feel rather cynical about the game and my work in general (which is better than spiraling at least, that's for sure lol)
But I think sometimes we also need to just be able to step back objectively and realize when something isn't giving us the joy that we had hoped it would. I get so much joy when I create and make stories and characters but I always end up losing that joy when I share my work and then that turns into hating myself. So maybe I do just need to figure out a new path for myself. I don't know. We'll see. I'm just feeling a bit nihilistic about everything right now I suppose 🤣 Maybe I'll just be done after this and this is the last thing I try to do. Or maybe in a month from now I'll get a little spark again and I'll be working on something new. Who can say. For now I'll just keep trying to focus on other things and give myself some peace where I can while battling the unemployment depression.
Anyway, what you wrote means a lot. And it also gave me a smile. Thank you so much for everything and being so sweet and encouraging always 💕
Thank you for this, Alaric, this is really sweet 💕 And it means a lot. I'm just feeling really lost and like I don't really have any sort of future (even outside of game dev), so I think that's affecting me a lot right now. But I really appreciate these kind words.
I don't know. I know I was just being too naiive to think that the launch could change anything about my current situation, because that's just silly. I think that's my problem, too. I get too much hope (even though I tell myself constantly not to, but it happens anyway LOL) Ahhhh.
Well. We keep moving forward. Don't know what that forward is going to entail but we keep doing what we can. Thank you again for taking the time to write such a kind and encouraging message 💕
This doesn't have anything to do with reviews, rather the Steam algorithm. It is more brutal towards free games than I could have thought (I watched it drop rapidly in N&T despite getting more reviews than the surrounding games). I am extremely touched and grateful for the many reviews the game got (they are what keep me hopeful that the game is still reaching some people) -- it's more so that I thought they would help the game do well on Steam but they didn't. Currently the traffic I get on Steam is even lower than on itch LOL which feels a bit ridiculous given Steam is thousands of times bigger than itch. So it makes it feel like all the hard work of putting it on Steam to begin with was a bit pointless. I can only attribute this to the combination of the game being free and simply not appealing enough for Steam audiences.
I hope so, too, thank you. And I'm sure I will. I always do eventually get the spark again. Somehow LOL Though somehow I feel like a little bit of it dies each time over time.
I struggle greatly with marketing and trying to find an audience. I just don't know what to do anymore LOL Feel like I've tried everything on every platform at this point 😂 And when it consistently doesn't work, one must admit that it's something about the game itself and not just a marketing issue. But who knows.
Anyway, thank you for the kind words, that means a lot 💕
Hey, we haven't ever spoken before, but I just wanted to comment here saying I know how you feel and give you a big hug. Reading this was like reading my own thoughts that keep coming back and rearing their heads every few months just when I think I'm doing OK again hahaha. (And this from someone who actually does relentlessly try to market LOL)
I don't have any solutions unfortunately. Mostly I just feel horrible for a few weeks, a few months, a year, and then I'll randomly get inspiration for something and get some renewed motivation and start something new against all odds because despite it all in the end I get boundless joy when I'm creating even with all the mental health breakdowns LOL I don't really know anything else to do. It's rough hahaha.
So I just wanted you to know that you're not alone and to show my support and hope that with some rest you'll refind what it is you love and get inspiration and want to create again, for yourself, whether that's returning to this, or finding another new outlet to fuel your joy and inspiration into ♡♡♡
Awwwwww thank you so much!!! 😭💕 I will return to this game soon! It will be what I come back to first. I am also looking forward to working on it again!
I'm so sorry, your comment got eaten by itch's automatic spam filter and I've only just seen them now 💦
Ahhhhh I'm really so happy you enjoyed the game so much though!! That means so much! Thank you so much for playing and for loving the characters!!! 😊💕💕
I'm so sorry, your comments got eaten by itch's automatic spam filter and I've only just seen them now 💦 But yes that's my game LOL I have released it on Steam.
HELP IT AND AMERICAN MCGEE'S ALICE WERE TWO OF MY BIG ORIGINAL INSPOS LOLOL 🤣 ( I haven't played the Little Nightmares games tho)
Thank you so much for playing the demo! And for playing some of the other games, too! I'm so happy that you've enjoyed it so far! I'm really excited to launch the full remaster soon!! 😊💕
Awwww thank you so much!! I'm so glad you enjoyed the game so much!!! 😊💕 Don't worry it's not forgotten -- I'm just focusing on a big Steam release now for another game so I don't have any time currently. But I plan to return to this afterwards!
THANK YOU SO MUCHHHHH!! I got a little overwhelmed LOL as my first Steam release it felt very intense, even though it's just the demo. I'm a little worried for the full game release next month LOL
I hope you'll enjoy all the new art and everything ahhhhHHHHH 💕💕
