Arvale IV Progress?

So, it’s been a looong while since I’ve said anything about Arvale.

So first, some good news:

All of the maps in the game are done.

All of the music for the game is done.

All of the art, barring the Title screen, is done.

All of the major plot points in the story are done.

What have I recently been working on?

Content. I hit a snag recently and wanted more art for NPCs, monsters, tiles, etc. as what I had so far simply wasn’t enough. Luckily, my knowledge of Japanese actually came to the rescue and uncovered several treasure troves of amazing art, sprites, monsters, backgrounds, fog, effects, and tile graphics.

Arvale IV will be a freaking treat to look at.

So what’s left?

Dialogue, lot’s of it. This includes all the NPC’s and the random stuff you click on, including wheelbarrows.

Dungeon Puzzles. Nothing too complex, but without them, it just wouldn’t be complete.

New magic and skill animations. I have the content, I just need to figure out what to do with it and who does what with what groovy new spells.

Balancing. A lot. Not only because this game will be bigger than the previous three, but also because this. is. the. end. And there are more characters than before, yada, yada.

Tying the whole flipping thing together. The gameplay and story is actually going to branch out into 3 different segments, with three separate parties, which you can choose to play in any order; then finally meet up in the end. This involves some tricky bit of design and balancing, so it will actually be quite fun once it all comes together.

That being said, I am still not brave enough to give even a soft date for a release. But I will say things are progressing, and the game is heading towards completion.

Thanks to any and all for your patience and I hope someone else out there is as excited about the game as I am.

In the meantime, here is a rabbit in half a suit to ponder upon.