February 21st Bug-Fixing Build

There was a bug preventing one of the tutorials from being completed, so I wanted to release a bug-fixing build.

The changelog for this build might look small, but that’s because I’ve been spending less of my time working on bug fixes and more of my time making progress on one of my checklist features. It’s almost complete, but I don’t plan to include it in the next build. Why? I’ll explain.

I’d like to collect information on how players complete their objectives when certain game mechanics are unavailable. What alternate strategies do players use when their default strategies are disallowed? Would players become frustrated with the game if they were no longer allowed to use certain features that they’ve become over-reliant on? Does the game actually become more fun and interesting when the player isn’t allowed to use certain shortcuts? What exploits are currently available that need to be fixed and removed?

To truly draw meaningful conclusions about these subjects, I would need to present players with a build of the game that is intended to be as balanced and exploit-free as possible, and then publicly challenge the playerbase to look for exploits and game-breaking flaws. The first step is patching up certain exploits that I’m already aware of, and making various changes to student and rival routines so that it’s never insanely easy to kill rivals with zero effort.

So, before I say, “Hey guys, play this build of the game and try to break it, I bet you can’t!” I first want to…

1. Balance some mechanics that I know are already busted.
2. Redesign some rival routines that I know are already full of exploits.
3. Create an interface for enabling/disabling certain features, to challenge players to play the game with/without mechanics features being available.

One of those mechanics-that-needs-to-be-rebalanced is an aspect of the 1980s Mode tutorial, so we can add another item to the list:

4. Update the 1980s Mode tutorial to walk the player through the new version of an important rebalanced game mechanic.

In short, there is a long list of things I have to do before I can release the upcoming “Try and break the game, I dare you!” build. The point is to openly challenge players (and YouTubers) to try and expose exploits, and I want the game to be airtight before I do that. I’ll have to knock multiple things off of my checklist before I’ll be able to release a build that seems to contain a big exciting new feature, but when I do, I think you’re going to have fun playing the “I dare you to break it” update.

Okay! With that explanation out of the way, let’s move on. To see a list of the improvements and changes in the latest build, scroll down past this haunting artwork by haihondaitao!

Improvements

• Previously, it was possible for the player to conceal a corpse in a garbage bag even if a character was standing right next to it and mourning it / guarding it. This was silly, so it has been removed from the game. From now on, if a character is mourning/guarding a corpse, the character will immediately notice and realize that you are the killer, trying to cover up evidence of your crime.
• Too many players did not understand the “Reputation updates at specific times of day” system, and were reporting “My rep isn’t updating!” as a bug. So, the “REP WILL UPDATE AFTER CLASS” message is back.

Fixes

• If the player was kicked out of a tutorial while in the middle of a dismembering animation, the tutorial would be blurry afterwards. This bug has been fixed.
• Fixed bug that caused the game to think that 4 extra instances of blood clothing had been created when killing Osana with the Fan Decapitation method.
• If the player held a bloody school uniform next to a door, the blood texture would appear on the door. This bug has been fixed.
• Fixed bug that allowed the player to remove their raincoat before the appropriate time in the Dismemberment tutorial.
• Fixed bug that prevented blood splatters from appearing when using the Fan Decapitation method on Osana.
• Fixed bug that prevented the player from being able to complete the Immolation tutorial.
• Fixed bug that prevented blood stains from appearing on the magical girl wand.