Hello again, friends.
Some time ago, we decided that we would only use the blog when we had a major announcement. However, we are now looking to change that, in order to reassure you that we are still working behind the scenes.
When Alienworks first began, we were a very different team. Just to drive home that point home, I say “we”, but I would not be joining for another two and a half years. Early on, and with no in depth undertanding of the realities of visual novel development, the team made several promises- one of the largest being that we would never seek crowdfunding.
Unfortunately, finding skilled and reliable artists willing to devote years of their lives to a free project is surprisingly difficult. It soon became apparent that the most reliable way of finishing the art for the Human Reignition Project would be to hire contractors.
Doing just that, we were able to fund the basic assets of the demo, including backgrounds and character art. This was all money we had raised from our own jobs in real life, and we were ready and willing to use it to finish the visual novel. However, it became obvious that fundng six entire routes, even keeping assets to an absolute minimum, was going to be far beyond what we could handle ourselves.
That was when the team decided to shoot for a crowdfunding campaign. We would fund the rest of the demo ourselves, and hopefully complete something good enough that it would inspire others to contribute too.
We contined operating with that plan, and were able to negotiate deals that would allow us to finish the demo. As we neared completion, however, a handful of team members began to express dissatisfaction with our number of CGs: zero.
Given we were aiming for such high quality everywhere else, they felt we were letting ourselves down. We argued back and forth for a little while, and finally shook out our wallets to see what we could scrape together. As it happened, it was just enough for a handful of CGs.
Fortunately, that’s where Sekai Project will be helping us out. They’ll be assisting us in paying for a higher number of CG’s, so that we can bring the demo count up to a number that we feel is acceptable.
With that, we really do have enough funds needed to polish the demo, and release something as good as we envisioned. Of course, to match the art, the script has been under harsh scrutiny. Replacements, rewriting, removals, and polishing are all gradually lifitng the standard.
All that said, we would like to formally reintroduce our characters, with Myuto’s updated art. In the renovation process, a few details with regards to backstory and and personality were changed, so while lots of this should seem familiar, not all of it will.
Without further ado:
Kanahito Hitomi
Anyone looking for Hitomi can probably find her between two and ten in the evening at Huangquan, a family owned Chinese restaurant. If you need her after-hours though, you’re out of luck – she could be anywhere. Downtown
trying to find a new arcade, in the park feeding ducks, or in a movie theater treating herself to a marathon. Hitomi goes where the people go, or rather, where she thinks the people go.
Her dedication and strong work ethic shine through at her job, where she pulls many busy shifts with little to no support. Relentlessly cheerful, consistenly curious, and occasionally clever, Hitomi is an introvert’s nightmare.
Kusakabe Shion
Shion is a quiet girl, sheltered from the harsher realities of life. She has a child-like curiosity which often leads her to view issues simplistically, and can even leave her seeming a little naive. As a result, she can struggle in complicated social situations.
Despite her uncomfortableness with socializing, Shion always tries to be warm and friendly to those around her. Too often, however, they can be left with the impression that she is full of good intentions and little else.
We still have a great deal of work ahead of us, but we are dedicated to making the Human Reignition Project as good as we possibly can. I hope you’ll all be patient a while longer.
Until next time!