r/vndevs

To prefice, i’m new to game development and somewhat to writing. I’ve been a decent writer all my life and have gotten compliments and appreciation for it, but i’ve never quite been confident enough to really make anything i enjoy, which is games!

While i love all kinds of games, Visual novels just a part of that, i feel like my idea fits in a VN format best. I dont have a lot of exciting gameplay ideas, but i do have a story in my head that i really love. I tend to keep all my stories in my head, which is unfortunately where i run into problems.

I want to be very consistent, or at least as consistent as i can be with my writing. I dont want characters forgetting things or knowing things they shouldnt. I dont want one branching path to not be quite as good as another. It sucks because i have always had the issue of actually just doing it and writing the damn thing, but in an effort to deal with my perfectionist mindset, i really want some advice on how to structure my story.

I have an idea for a VN centered around a main character and two love interests, along with several townsfolk. Both characters have a secret that they’re hiding, both being dangerous monsters. I want to have some branching options or choices that give you a plus to a characters relationship, while others may make them dislike you or distrust you. To keep it simple, i just focus on the two love interests. Only issue i have is, i have only ever really written one-shot type content, or writing a whole short story in one or two sittings. Since this is larger, thats where my anxiety about consistency and the scope of everything comes in.

Have any of you dealt with similar issues, and if so, what writing advice could you give me? I dont really feel comfortable jumping into writing scenes since it’s a VN, and i want to outline what i want and the scenes i need, and then write it in a format that i can just move over into a script for Tyranobuilder or Renpy, and have it be much simpler than trying to write and code at the same time. Tried it, was a bit too difficult and not too motivating😅

I really want to make this game the best i can since i have a good artist in mind, and if i can write it all down, learning the system seems like a way smaller issue and it’d make putting it all together at least seem easier, since i can transfer over my work. I dont really do a lot in my life that seems important, but i do know im good at writing, and if i can make one game and it fails, at least i can be glad that i made it, and if it succeeds, i can do more writing and really be motivated to tell more ideas and stories i’ve had forever.

To be a bit sappy/sad, i dont really get motivated often, and im coming out of a very tough part of my life that im still struggling with, and i feel tired of playing games, and i want to return that favor for all the years of enjoyment i’ve gotten from devs like all of you. I have so many ideas in my head that i dont really follow up on because i know i could never really write them down, and i often feel like im too lazy or paralyzed by anxiety to ever really get them down. Im honestly tired of feeling that way and really want to make something that i can be proud of, even if it’s hot garbage to others.

Im looking for any advice, doesnt even need to be about writing, but i would appreciate anything regardless. Im not expecting some kinda miracle advice or anything, but i do hope that something finally sticks and i can do what i feel like i was always meant to do, and that’s tell stories. I used to love to do that for school or for friends, and i want that fire of creativity back.

Please ignore my sappy writing, i am a bit too tired and a bit overwhelmed by the thought and scope of it all, but i dont want to just drop the idea like i have for so many other things. I may not be able to do a lot, but if i can write a little VN that someone enjoys and becomes a fan of, i’d feel like i made it in the world.

Hey everyone, I wasn't sure if I should put this under the "jam" tag or the "question" tag so please correct me for next time if i used the wrong tag.

I have never done a Game Jam before, but I decided to enter the Spooktober VN Jam this year as a sort of self esteem building exercise for myself, but I am wondering about pre-jam preparation.

I know the games actually production, starts in September, but what is generally allowed work wise pre-jam?

All the videos ive seen have tips for when production starts, and the jam page itself doesnt get super specific about what pre prep your alloud.

What is usually allowed before the jam starts as pre-production?

Thank you!

This has probably been asked a lot, pardon my repetition. I've been working on a slice-of-life VN project for a few months now, sometimes on, sometimes off. Where can I find people who are interested in this kind of still-text-so-far visual novel.

Still text because I suck at art; and I've yet to learn how to mess around with some VN engine (considering Ren'Py).

I've already posted my idea on Lemmasoft, so far it's been just views (it was yesterday, I'm not complaining), and I feel like if I do everything without being able to discuss stuff with someone else, the writing will come out... subpar.

Would I be better off waiting and learning everything to make a demo? It's just I was thinking about working on art (probably commissioning) as one of the last things.

Hello everyone!! I‘m writing this cause my main focus and passion is writing, and while I have a friend who might help with coding (or I could handle it myself), I’m completely on my own for everything else. I could draw and do basic graphic design, but it’s not really my passion. I'd much rather collaborate with professionals who actually specialize in art, music, and trailer making, instead of forcing myself to do a mediocre job.

One important thing: I deal with social anxiety, so I strictly prefer communicating through text or email. Video calls as last resort hahaha, but I’d prefer communication via text anyway.

I wanted to ask: is there a specific hub or platform to hire reliable professionals for VNs? Or do you usually just scout people through social media and hope for the best? Also, since I haven't published a visual novel yet, how do I show potential collaborators that I'm serious? I have published some books and comics before, but is that enough to build trust? I'm a bit worried that people won't take me seriously without a past game release if they see my page (if you want to have a look, here it is: ourclab.carrd.co).

Any advice on where to look or how to approach professional people, or how to improve, if there’s anything to improve, my page would be of such help (I’m in your hands honestly hahahaha)!

Hello! What's your take on mobile based visual novels? In a world where you see high quality visual novels mostly on PC, do you think a mobile based one will be a good difference?

There are visual novels for mobile but we all know the experience you get there is entirely different from what you get on a PC. From the craftsmanship of the story, the characters, the immersive experience, everything changes.

Would you ever consider such a good quality game in a mobile based version?

If yes, please do provide any more context or pointers you have in mind. My friend and I are coming up with a new project and definitely would love to have everybody's words heard :)

Hello! My friend and I are coming with an interesting concept for a VN based app. However, we need guidance and who else is better to ask than the community of VN devs?

Just drop some of the biggest tips that you consider helped your journey of being a dev. Any tips that can make us understand how different and unique everybody's journey is!!

I’m from Venezuela, and it turns out I can’t use platforms like Indiegogo or Kickstarter to fund my visual novel.

I’m handling the technical and scriptwriting aspects of developing a visual novel, but not the artistic and musical parts, so I need to find an illustrator and a composer to complete the project.

Unfortunately, salaries here in Venezuela aren’t very good at all, and many crowdfunding platforms require payment methods that are nearly impossible to obtain in my country.

So, I have to ask: What can I do to fund my visual novel?

P.S.: My visual novel would aim to raise awareness and promote respect for people with DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) who coexist with their alters.

Asking for any visual novel devs. Production of my visual novel is going slow but progress is being made. I have made a teaser trailer that doesn’t really give much information and I have some sprites I can showcase.

But before I market, I wanted to get the thoughts of other visual novel developers on this topic.

How would you market your visual novel and what should I focus on?

I first heard about it on Spooktober jam and got curious about it. Is it worth to try making vn here? How hard it is compared to ren'py? By first glance it looks interesting, but I am concerned by lack of community (since I am a newbie in vn development and almost every step I do usually was guided by some YouTube tutorial).

Over the last year, we have seen a meteoric rise of low quality visual novel toolkits, engines and plugins proposing to make no code solutions, all of which inevitably have roots in Generative AI.

I do not want to purposely or inadvertently support the attempts to root generative AI into this community or in the general visual novel sphere. As such, I'm implementing this new rule.

If you are working on a visual novel engine, toolkit, or plugin slated on bringing generative AI to visual novel developers, kindly see yourselves out. Anyone else is welcome to send us a modmail to discuss any of the afformentioned post types for your tool kit.

Hey there, I'm an illustrator looking into creating my first Visual Novel with zero programing or game engine experience. I'm considering: Godot, Renpy, and Narrat. I've come here seeking input from those with expertise using Renpy, and if there is also experience in these other options to compare them, that's a happy bonus. Please help set my expectations and offer some direction on where to start and possible after steps based on what my goals are.

It's all a jumble in my head, and I'd appreciate anyone willing to share some of their time to help focus and organize my thoughts.

Scope: I have large projects that I want to do later, but as not to overwhelm myself, I'm content to maintain very small and focused projects to learn one or two systems at a time.

Short term Goal (1-3 Months?):

Follow a tutorial/template to create something bite-size that briefly touches on what I want to do for my larger project. Mostly text with pictures, expression shifts, maybe small animations to make characters blink or perform some other small gesture. Ambient sounds and or music. Perhaps make a series of these small projects, or expand on the first one in chapters for more practice until I have all the plug ins set up and feel familiar with them. I am guessing I could easily do this in Renpy, but I'd like to lay groundwork for more complex projects in the future and don't know just how much of the ground work I can carry over from one to the other.

Long Term (6-12 Months, or 24 months?):

Include something more than a blink, or a single gesture or include these small gestures more often. Create vague mouth movements, include voiced dialogue, build a larger library of character and background drawings. Experiment with an Experience Gain RPG system, and perhaps currency and inventory management, and or a navigable map graphic user interface with nodes to click on to change scene locations. Animated scenes are far down the pipeline.

Current Perspective:

From what I gather, Renpy would fulfill my short term goals for sure, and maybe Narrat would fill the same needs as Renpy, and possibly more that Renpy lacks? Should I take the easy win? My current logic is to learn Godot to make simple projects that lay a foundation for more complex ideas down the road be they grander Visual Novel, or another genre all-together, such as a D2 art isometric or side scroll game. I want to start learning a game engine with room to both pivot and grow, and to have a modest gamified visual novel for sale in three years or less. Thank you for your time!

Hello! I am new to working on any type of game/esque writing, but I want to work on a short vn! Looking at scripting seems rather daunting, and I never know where/how to start! Is there any tips or tools in formatting/writing that others have found to just getting it down? Any tips would be really appreciated!