Welcome to another devlog for Whispers in the Moss, a JRPG with ambitious textmode graphics that will be released for Windows in 2023. As those who have followed me know, I took a long break from game dev earlier this year, but for the past month or so I've been fully focused on the game again. Here's what's new in the last few weeks.

1) A whole new intro quest + new area added

It's something I've had on my list for a long time, but I finally took the time to redesign the beginning of the game. Previously the player was introduced to the game's main quest right away, which always felt wrong and way too hasty, so I designed a new short intro segment that the player will have to finish before being introduced to the main plot. The quest takes place on a small island just off the starting village Thebes. The party goes there to do some training and while they're at it, look for a pirate treasure that is said to be hidden somewhere in the area. The setting provides an important window for some early character building. I'm quite happy with how the island, the enemy encounters, and its little quest turned out.

2) New battle skills added for more varied battles

The battle engine for the game is simple by design, but for a longer game like this it's perhaps been even too simple. Honestly, the player hasn't had a lot of agency in battles, since you've only been able to attack, use magic, use items, or use the three legacy battle skills which are not really designed to wipe out enemies (for example the "Steal" command).

To fix this problem I've added two new unique battle skills to each character. The skills can be unlocked during the journey, and they give you more options on how to approach different battles. For example, Ulric's "Blitz" skill will perform a weaker physical attack but it then fills the (invisible) ATB bar right back to 50 %, essentially allowing Ulric to get another turn very quickly. Borín's "Slash" skill is a physical attack against all enemies, something the game hasn't had available before. Veda's "Psy-Rush" is a psychic physical attack that considers the magic defense stat of the enemy instead of the physical defense stat. Stuff like this. Along with the limit breaks I added earlier this year, the battles are now more interesting and allow the player to make more meaningful choices. And there are a few more ideas I'm currently considering to give the player even more options. Another stream here is to create more enemy skills and attacks so that encounters against different enemies will truly feel different. Don't expect any big changes though: any additions at this point need to be very easily implemented into the engine, which is not a given considering how inflexible my old battle engine code unfortunately is.

3) Going through and redesigning old art assets: maps, enemy sprites, battle backgrounds

I started developing Whispers in the Moss around 11 years ago, but only in the last year or so I've found my artistic expression. What that means is that a lion's share (at least the first 50 % of the game) was developed at a time when my textmode art skills were much lower than where they are now. What that means is that, visually speaking, I'm extremely unhappy with some of the early game content. So, while I'm working on the new stuff, I've also been going through some older maps, enemy sprites, battle backgrounds and other art assets, and reimagined some of them. There's still quite a bit of this work left to be done.

4) More character portraits!

I've also decided to start using the character portraits in some key dialogue moments and interactions. That will be a lot of work, because unfortunately I can't automate it and I'll have to add them manually to all the interactions, but I think it will be worth it. This has, of course, forced me to design many new portraits, since in addition to the party, all the important NPCs will get their own portraits. Only a few left and we're done.

4) What's next?

I recently wrote down a list of everything I need to get done in order to have a minimum viable product in my hands. The list is still long:

• Finishing the last few dungeons and areas, writing the script, creating the enemies
• Finishing at least one, preferably two optional areas + dungeons
• Adding new side quests and character building moments
• Designing the game's ending
• Composing the last few tracks for the soundtrack + design the sound effects
• Redesigning some old maps and art assets
• Going through the game's entire script, adding the portraits, generally improving the script and removing any inconsistencies
• Final updates to the battle engine, including better spell effects
• Balancing and playtesting

So there's still a lot of work even before we're at the MVP level. Time to roll up the sleeves, then!

That's it, have a nice Christmas, y'all!

- T / Uncultured Games