This. This is what a good visual novel looks like. I really was considering that maybe I was too harsh about visual novels for being slow and dry - but this completely reignited my standards. Far too many are slow and dry and my disappointment in many is warranted. Thank you for reminding that yes I DO know what I'm talking about and my taste is still solid; many visual novels DO indeed suck in the quality department and are simply comics that gamers are demanded to click through to look at and nothing more.
This is probably one of my most favorite games I've ever played (even though its a demo). The detail, story line, art style and everything about it is amazing! I'm also in love with Theodore (he gives me Prof Snape vibes :D). Thank you so much for making it and I'm very eager for the release of the full game!!<3
Thank you for those heartfelt compliments, it's really moving for me every time someone really loved the demo, thank you for your support!!! I hope the full game can be released in Q1 2025!
I can't wait for this game to come out. great job the entire team and I pray your artist's health is in good condition. May they be safe. I join with the many others in admiring this game. Thanks for making it.
Thank you so much for your encouragement, we are working hard on it! Our artist is doing okay, thank you so much for wishing our well being it's really important for me to have healthy practices for a healthy team <3
first of all i want to say that my comment doesn't mean that i don't like the game. the game is great: it has beautiful art, well thought out system of empire development, good UI. I thought what you did with the display of character sprites on screen was very unique. i liked the possibility to play on easy and hard modes, the amount of work that was put into making this game (it truly feels like a labour of love) and i like the MC.
however while I was playing the demo, I couldn't get rid of the question: do people even know how to do their job in this empire?
so far, out of all the MC's entourage, it seems to me that only three are competent enough to hold their position: Alexander, her bearded counselor dude (sorry, can't remember the name) and her lady-mentor.
the moments that made my eyebrows go up into my hairline:
1. the spy master who withholds information from the empress (and I'm talking about appointing a stranger as her maid-in-waiting). it doesn't matter if it's important information or not. it doesn't matter how big or small it is. it's his job to notify her which he failed to do. and that would've raised a question for me: what else isn't he telling me? what else won't he tell me in the future and how much potential it has to screw my cards? if I was the MC, it would 100% plant the seed of doubt and the thoughts of a replacement needed. with his network he is arguably the most powerful person in her small council. and if the empress can't trust her spy master, it's the end game.
2. a spy girl who is now our lady-in waiting (I'm bad with names). is she aware that in the imperial setting people easily give up their lives for less than a sneeze? the fact that she is a spy suggests that she either doesn't have a title or it is very minor. we have already seen in this setting how many problems MC had before the coronation and how much she had to do to be put on the throne instead of one of her bastard brothers, which means the world there is quite patriarchal. it's very unlikely that a significant noble house would let a woman who could be profitably and beneficially married off to work in a potentially deadly and difficult job like this. so, basically a commoner insulting the empress to her face (and in a political-imperial-medievalish setting, what she said about the “sheltered little princess” is an insult) without much fear of consequences makes me think that the spy-girl-lady-in-waiting considered herself comfortable enough to do that; at least irreplaceable, and at max invincible. which probably means that she has a protector with enough resources to shield her from the consequences of such behavior. of all the people we know, only our spy master is suitable for the role of such a patron, and, with his previous experience of withholding information from us, the picture doesn't look good for him.
3. claims from the lady-in-waiting-girl that our MC “has never been out there and doesn’t even know what it’s like to be out there in the field.” well, yes? because she doesn't have to. she is a princess, now an empress. she is not obliged to know the exact difficulties her subordinates go through, to know their job in detail, to relate to every single problem of her subordinates, or do their job instead. to climb forests, mountains, infiltrate into dangerous settings and whatever else her spies do. the accusation is childish. for this she has people, such as this spy-girl-lady-in-waiting. if the empress did everything herself, she wouldn't need such people.
4. the fact that MC just let the insult slide. I suppose because it was a closed setting (her personal office) she didn't feel the need for anything drastic. however, benevolence like this often gives people ideas that they can have their way, which often gives example to other people. MC doesn't have to go around beheading everyone left and right to instill the understanding that some things mustn't be said. her lady-in-waiting insulted her, that's enough to fall out of grace and end up in a monastery (in imperial medieval setting) if she is lucky enough, and she doesn't even have a title. I think that a week or two in the dungeon on gruel would be a really nice option.
5. and my favourite, probably - the person who has a title of a DUKE accusing our MC of "being born with a silver spoon". excuse me, duke, was your own spoon a wooden one? bronze? did you eat scraps and wear rags? no? then shut your annoying mouth please. yes, his family had some estates and lands taken away, but it doesn't mean that his life wasn't a life of privilege. the fact that he's accusing MC of growing up in privilege while he clearly hasn't been swimming in poverty is so hypocritical that I can't lol
well, this was my Ted Talk and my rant. I want to state one more time that I liked the game. the fact that some characters caused enough frustration for me to compose a bedsheet means that it has a great potential to keep player engaged.
Hello, what a passionate answer! I am not going to answer the part about the Master of Murmurs (the spy master) and Sophie (the lady in waiting). I might adjust a couple of things in the final game on this scene, but overall MM being a wild card and Sophie irreverent was both intended, now I think it's a fair point to envision a MC a bit less forgiving, I will see if I can add small choices about that!
About Theodore (the Duke), if you are curious here is a very old post I did about his animosity over the MC (I thought you might enjoy some extra lore :p) also, as an additional note, the Faraam duchy is right in the middle of mountains. The climate there is cold and sterile, they clearly has the toughest life of the whole kingdom, even if of course Theodore himself never lacked anything, his education were much harsher than MC one that's for sure.
Thank you for giving a try to our demo, I hope you have fun in the full game <3
hi, does anyone know when this game is coming out? i know it says on here Spring 2024, but since that has passed, i was wondering what was the new ''timeframe''?
Hello, sorry we are a bit late I need to update this page! Frankly it's hard for me to give a new date right now, we made huge progress, the script is done but we are late on the art area so I need a clearer view on that. I am still very hopeful for a release this year, something like September/October depending on our artist health!
I genuinely loooove this game the management of the kingdom and actually having to think about your decisions is so immersive and fun!! I was wondering if the full game would cost any money or would remain to be a free download when the full release comes out? Regardless if I had to pay or not to get the full game I still love this game sm and you guys did such a good job with it!!
Hello, yes the game will be commercial in the release (probably around 20$ with a discount at launch), thank you so much for your support and your kind words <3 I am very glad you liked the strategy aspect since I worked so hard on it :p
Hi, I'm a fan from Brazil and I wanted to know if you'll adjust the price for other currencies or if it'll be the same for everyone. I know working with art is very difficult, I've developed games myself, and specially now with everything happening in the world you should never lower your prices for anyone. I'm just asking because for me and most people that live in the south, the devalue of our currencies makes us unable to apreciate and contribute to a lot of games because of the differences in price (for example, 20 dolars for me is almost 100 in my currency - reais -, and even more than that), so it makes it a lot harder to buy games and people just end up giving up on playing altogether, with is bad for both the artist and the costumer.Because of that, some developers chose to adjust the prices according to the countrie's currencies, but I would very much understand if that was not your choice, after all it's your work that is being valued or devalued.
Thank you for reading everything <3
I don't actually know if you can adjust the price here, because I'm used to buying games on Steam and usually there they already have the prices ready in my currency, but nevertheless it is still a relevant question. I wish you all the best on the development and will continue to enjoy playing your demos even if I can't really afford the final product.
Currency disparity is a valid concern. I don't think it's an option on itchio indeed, we are going to consider regional pricing for steam, and I think it was great and fair for a very long time. Unfortunately people abusing the system using VPN has made things very difficult for dev to do that now... and even when there is adjustment they are minor (like the price might be lower but not super low).
It's something that need careful consideration and thinking. Like we will probably do some level of regional pricing following the steam guideline (which as I said are not as generous than before). But maybe I could do other alternative... Like it would be cool to do a partnership with a Brazilian outlet or streamer and have them distributing very cheap keys for ex, I really don't mind "devaluating" my work if I know it goes toward the right person? But then, I also don't know how much English speaking VN fan there is in Brazil either and since I don't speak Portuguese it's hard to reach for the right people...
Anyway, I am rambling, but I heard your concern! <3
Well, regarding English speaking people in Brazil I can say I know a lot of people that can understand the language, given that it is simple structure wise and we have access to lot of media in English. But it is true that it would reach a lot more people if it was in Portuguese.
I don't know if you are interested in translating the game, but if you are, I could do it for you. Like I said I've developed games before (I write visual novels) and have just started freelancing in translation (usually English to Portuguese).
Thank you so much for listening and I understand the problems with VPN (gives me so much rage to see people ruin things like that, but I guess there's always someone to take advantage of nice things). Regardless, I really appreciate your effords.
Keep up the good work, been loving the demo so far!
Hello, thank you for your answer, about the translation, we cannot afford professional translators for a game of this size unless it's a huge hit, but if we do, Portuguese is among the 3 languages I really would like to translate the game so, maybe?
Thank you for your support, it's also annoy me so much that people are abusing systems, I really hope we can do something fair for eveyone!
And I was really happy to hear more about this project since it's been a year for me since the last update.
I didn't remember the Master of Murmurs being so naughty. And it was really fun to tease our dear ice block Theodore.
Still the more the game goes on, the more we can see the consequences of our previous choices. I'm still waiting to see more about our half-siblings but I'm not sure letting them alive was not a future big problem. Still killing them can be a problem. Hummm....
We'll have to be strategic. Really love the extended demo. I can't wait to play more.
Hello, it's true I should communicate more about what is happening on itchio too. Sorry for that! The script is fully written we are finishing the art/editing/scripting right now!
Anyway, I am glad it helped you notice how intricate the choices were, I really tried hard to craft interesting choices with short, mid or long consequences and I am so proud when people notice it and play strategically <3 Thanks for giving a shot to our extended demo!
Hello, unfortunately we are a bit late on the schedule, but it will definitely be in 2024, please join our newsletter or our discord to be informed when we have a solid release date!
Hello, it's not planned right now, we only plan on adding the Master of Murmurs as DLC. That said you are not the only Alden lover and I am very fond of him too, so I was considering doing maybe a bit of fiction for him when the game is done. No promises, but I would like to do a little something for him, but it won't be a full DLC!
Is there any updates on the development of this game? There's really no rush but wow such an amazing demo, like I need more 😭 Art, writing, and style is beautiful!
Hello, hello! True I should post the devlogs here too huh But development is going well, I am super close of putting the final point on the storyline! I hope for a release in spring this year, but we have a ton of work in editing left, finger crossed!
Eheh! I can't wait to show off more of the fullbody sprite we are creating currently thanks to our successful Kickstarter! Even more pretty art and customisation ~
yay im glad to hear it, they're so pretty, you're doing awesome! i've only gotten so far into the game due to a busy personal life, but i love it so far!
Hello, thank you for your interest! For now a phone port seems difficult, but the good thing with Renpy game is that they don't require any installation, you can download them, put them in a USB key and play them on any computer, so like even school/library ones. I hope it helps!
I'd say getting me utter the words "You will approve my coronation or I will trans your gender, don't test me." to a pope like figure makes this a pretty good game
Thank you for your kind word!!! Also, there is no shame at being consistent, I also always loved medieval love stories (if plot is involved even better) even during my teenage-edgy-emo-phase and I am PROUD OF IT!
just completed the demo on steam and i really enjoyed it. the game made it on my wishlist.
i still have some questions
1.) how difficult is/will be normal mode? can i only lose if i make stupid decisions?
2.) will the full game has a difficulty slider for normal mode? maybe with higher strating ressources or "better income"? personally im right in the middle of "storymode" and "normal mode": i enjoy mild ressource management, but also want to enjoy the story.
3.) the demo didnt had the diplomacy option available. i guess it will be in the full game. can you explain, what i will be able to do with this option in th full game?
4.) when you decide with whom you want to spend time with (e.g. at the coronation) will this have consequences beside romance?
=> if i only choose asha in these events will i end up with a bad pöatonice relationship with theodore/does it have negative consequences one the other romance-options?
1) I think the normal mode is quite balanced. When the full game is out, we will adjust the numbers so it's not too punishing, but require a bit of thinking. Basically, besides obvious wrong choices story-wise, the ressources is here to make the player think twice about their decision. Like, I would say the main challenge is you can't please everyone in normal mode, because for example, if you say yes to everyone asking you to give money, you won't have money anymore. It's more this kind of strategic thinking about priority I want to induce in normal mode, not like hardcore management.
2) For now, it's not planned, but I might add it as small goals for the release. As I said, I think the normal mode won't be really difficult, so if I do that, it would more be to have an harder mode for player who really like challenge.
3) Yes indeed it will be in the full game. Basically, you will be able to check your diplomacy level with all the neighbor countries, and to perform special actions like sending gifts, trying to spy someone, sending assassin's to kill an annoying person etc.
4) The people you spend time with, is just a way for you to discover the characters! You will have a clear choice for your romannce later (so even if you spend all your free time with Asha, you can still enter Theodore romance for example. Or you can spend a bit of time with each character to decide who you will romance etc.) Each non-romanced character have a bad ending but they are actually really hard to get. That said, spending a bit of time of Asha if you don't romance her, is a very good way to make sure you don't get her bad ending, it doesn't matter for Alexander or Theodore.
I wish I had more time to develop the friendship of the non romanced character, but the story is already so long so I mostly focus on your romance past the point you choose it, but there is some moment where you can still see they like you even if you are not in romance with them.
to 3): how big is the influence of the diplomacy decisions on the main story? e.g: if i struck a tradedeal will my ressource gain change after a gameloop//if i assasinate person XY of Z-land, will his death play a role in the story itself?
to 4.) thats good to hear. i already decided to romance asha, so im happy that in that case i wont get the bad ending for her.
=>(A) when you said, that the bad endings are hard to get, do you mean they are hidden behind "stupid" decisions? i could think that if you act as a tyrant or send alexander into certain death ("our soldiers bravery is stronger than the enemies larger army..") you would get his bad ending. no idea about theodore
=> (B) if i remember correctly than you get a choice (with asha when you both sit in the garden and "sunbath") to either ro flirt back or not. is this a early "milestone" of enabling her (or the other romancable characters in their scenes) as a romance option?
=> (C) this is more of a direct question: if i play these kind of games i usually decide for a romance option even before the game (here asha) and change it only if the others really impresses me. with that: since i already made up my mind, what would make more sense in your opinion? focus only on ashas events to see all of her content OR do see atleast one of the other?
i still have 2 new questions, sorry for that ;)
- during character creation you can choose one of 4 paths. do they influence anything else besides the starting ressources? e.g. cheaper decision costs depedning on your chosen path
- this last question is more spoilery, so i completely understand, if you dont want/cant answer it: does every romance path have an equal ending? ==> can Calydia has 2 empresses in the end *wink wink*?
Hello, no problem, happy to answer your questions!
- There is rarely direct influence between what you do in diplomacy and the main story (no you did X so Y happens in the main story), but at some key moment if a country like you they will help, if they dislike you they will make it harder for you and some decision might have further consequence on the long term (like epilogue wise).
- They are hard to get in a sense you need to do several precise bad decision to get their bad ending. For Alexander it's "the end justifies the mean" mentality, for Theodore is to put your well being before your country prosperity, and for Asha it's to not respect her.
Stupid decision are more likely to give a direct game over, so you can just reload and try again.
- No this choice with Asha is just about setting your boundaries! She will respect it either way, and you can romance any love interest! Overall simple shape choices (as opposed to the big choice screen) are here to set your MC personality and are "not important" to the story = unlikely to have big consequences.
- If you already know which love interest you will romance, you can spend all your time with them to not miss any content from them, I think it will be more enjoyable.
- Yes, you have unique choices (most of the time more favorable) depending of your starting specialty, as well as two unique scenes to really showcase your skill.
- No Calidya can't have two empress, but you can have an exclusive relationship with Asha. She will also have a route in a mariage DLC we will do later. There is a lot of possible relationship variation, but it's often open secret flavor. Most obvious, being: everybody know you are a couple, because you don't hide how close you are and you never marry etc. but officially everyone will pretend they don't see you kiss and say you are very good friend.
I'm sad I didn't find out about this game sooner because OMG just the demo has me hooked!! The art and story is already just outstanding. I can already tell as soon as this releases it's gonna be one of my fav VN's, keep up the great work!!!
At least you won't have to wait long to play it! (Release planed in April/May 2024), thank you for your kind word and your support, I can't wait to share all our hard work to the world!!!
If you are looking for indie games with a possible male MC and a medieval court shenanigan , I can recommend Royal Alchemist and Celestial crown! Both are lovely game and you can pick a male MC (pronoun + physical appearance). Imperial Grace will never get one, so I understand it's not for everyone ^^
Thank you so much for leaving this message!!! Like I am genuinely super happy to read this nice comment and to know you take the trouble to create an account just to say something nice, it's heartwarming, so thank you, we do put a lot of love and dedication into the game, the development is going well, so hopefully you won't wait too long for the full story <3
I completely forgot I was playing a demo, so when the screen came up showing the end of the demo, I was practically devastated. Can't wait for the full game!
Omg no! Excuse me but I can not wait for this to be fully out! I forgot I was playing a demo!! It is that good! I love that you get to experience such an interesting story and decide on laws and all sorts of stuff! Really excited to see how this turns out!
Getting to customize the MC is nice because you actually get to see her a lot, which is also good! She's been thrust into the role she's always wanted but wasn't sure she would get, which is a neat place to pick up her life. She needs allies but the choices you have to make don't always make that easy. That being said, the politics aren't so bad that you feel you have no good options.
The resource management system isn't too difficult, and having to spend resources in order to choose certain options is engaging. The phases you can enter (such as when you read and decide on petitions) are welcome asides that expand on the view of the kingdom.
The art is lovely and the facial expressions are fun! (The MC biting her lower lip is probably my favorite.) The characters are all very much their own people and make you want to interact with them. The love interests are interesting enough that I'll have to try them all, but the Master of Murmurs is just too hawt.
I'm glad I backed the Kickstarter and anticipate spending a lot of time with the full VN when it's released!
Played the Demo and really hyped for the full Version! Asha is so fkdksdaj adorable <3 Can only recommend xD And the MC is sooo relatable for me, love her already. Only thing I'd ask for are more hair colours xD That's it. Great work, hope all goes well with development!
As for the hair colors, unfortunately we won't add more even in the full game. Our artist is very perfectionist so it's not just color swap, they redraw everything each time so the shadows, contrast with the clothes and skin etc. are always perfect. Since the MC will have several hairstyle, several clothes, several color skin, it makes way too much variation to account for, so we decided to let them as it is I hope you understand!
No, totally. As an artist myself, I 100% get it. And I appreciate the work you did, positively surprised different ethnicities actually have different facial features, no just different skin colours as is often the case. Tremendous job on the art overall, give my props to the artist, they did great! Wasn't a serious critique anyway, just humour. Just saying, I like the game so much that something so minor is the worst thing I found^^ And thanks for the detailed reply, much appreciated :)
Oh I see, sorry I tend to take everything first degree ahah, I am very happy you enjoyed our game and understand all little extra work we put in it, it's so rewarding when people notice the little things <3
Any chance there will be an update? And sorry to hear about the kickstarter ending that's terrible. I myself don't have money at moment but when I do (assuming full version isn't terribly expensive) will happily buy it :)
Yes, we are working on it as we speak! We are doing good progress on the game, the release date is expected around May 2024! Thank you for your support <3
Yay, I love all the twists and turns for the game. My oc's name in it is *grin* Daenerys :D I'm hoping again for another update because I just got past saving the agent and want to play more, I love the interaction between Daeny and Theo for example and those between her and Asha :)
Ahah, a name very on point once again! We might actually released an update demo in a couple of month when we have the new sprites! With a couple of more scenes!
Oooo :D I hope so lol Daeny was just starting to have fun with all of that intrigue! Lol of course she also kneed Theo on the training grounds when he got too presumptuous ;)
By the way, does the current version have the adult scenes? I'm uncertain whether grayed out means their on, or skipped. Also cannot seem to sign up for email updates :(
Yes, I choose to respect the team by paying them, and respect the player by not using micro-transaction design to frustrate them to pay way more than 20$ 😊
Currency fluctuation is very though, I understand! The demo will be updated when we got the full sprite version, but it will mostly be a visual update (not much more content) except maybe some extra scene with the MM.
I could'nt participate in the kickstarter but I would love to read the story from some Li's pov. Do you think you could make this a dlc or a payant option please? and for the guide too?
Hello, all the DLC (MM romance & mariage), the lore book and the guide will be available when the game release. The character booklet with the POV is the only thing that won't. It's a cool bonus but it doesn't impact the game experience, and I really wanted to thank our early supporters with something unique. It's not yet too late to grab it, we have some late pledge through backerkit where you can take individual rewards (so for example you can take just this one) for one more week for people who missed the KS for whatever reason.
Somehow I always end up wanting the men who aren't a actual romance option. Petition to potentially get a romance route for the Master of Murmurs! Other than me always wanting what I can't have, I can't wait for this game to be released. This game has so much potential, especially for someone who loves political intrigue and shows like Game of Thrones.
Hello, so you need to download the windows folder, then you need to unzip it with a software (I personally use Izarc it's free and it does the job, but there is a lot of different software.) You will then get a folder, open it and you will find the .exe to launch the game right away!
If you don't want to bother with those extra step, we are also on steam where you just need to click to download and the play button, steam will launch the game automatically^^
I hope it helps! If you have more question, don't hesitate!
Played this demo as part of the storyteller festival on steam. I have to admit, I was thinking that this game might not be for me. I was happily proved wrong. I really enjoyed the game with the combination of the visual novel and then the decision making elements reminded me a bit of "Ambition: A Minuet in Power" The art is really nice and I love the MC. I love that she is a strong woman trying to survive in a man's world. Looking forward to the full release. Following the KS so I can support :)
Hi, it's a bit more complicated to allow Android, I don't know if I will be able to do it for this game. If you want you can try our other game Autumn Spirit who does have an android version because it's a cute melancholic romance without management element! <3
XDDD It's actually one of the most picked option, but it's close with the influence one, some people try to hide the darkness in their heart at the begining of the game :p
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This. This is what a good visual novel looks like. I really was considering that maybe I was too harsh about visual novels for being slow and dry - but this completely reignited my standards. Far too many are slow and dry and my disappointment in many is warranted. Thank you for reminding that yes I DO know what I'm talking about and my taste is still solid; many visual novels DO indeed suck in the quality department and are simply comics that gamers are demanded to click through to look at and nothing more.
This is probably one of my most favorite games I've ever played (even though its a demo). The detail, story line, art style and everything about it is amazing! I'm also in love with Theodore (he gives me Prof Snape vibes :D). Thank you so much for making it and I'm very eager for the release of the full game!!<3
Thank you for those heartfelt compliments, it's really moving for me every time someone really loved the demo, thank you for your support!!! I hope the full game can be released in Q1 2025!
Your welcome<3 Looking forward to it!!!
I can't wait for this game to come out. great job the entire team and I pray your artist's health is in good condition. May they be safe. I join with the many others in admiring this game. Thanks for making it.
Thank you so much for your encouragement, we are working hard on it! Our artist is doing okay, thank you so much for wishing our well being it's really important for me to have healthy practices for a healthy team <3
first of all i want to say that my comment doesn't mean that i don't like the game. the game is great: it has beautiful art, well thought out system of empire development, good UI. I thought what you did with the display of character sprites on screen was very unique. i liked the possibility to play on easy and hard modes, the amount of work that was put into making this game (it truly feels like a labour of love) and i like the MC.
however while I was playing the demo, I couldn't get rid of the question: do people even know how to do their job in this empire?
so far, out of all the MC's entourage, it seems to me that only three are competent enough to hold their position: Alexander, her bearded counselor dude (sorry, can't remember the name) and her lady-mentor.
the moments that made my eyebrows go up into my hairline:
1. the spy master who withholds information from the empress (and I'm talking about appointing a stranger as her maid-in-waiting). it doesn't matter if it's important information or not. it doesn't matter how big or small it is. it's his job to notify her which he failed to do. and that would've raised a question for me: what else isn't he telling me? what else won't he tell me in the future and how much potential it has to screw my cards? if I was the MC, it would 100% plant the seed of doubt and the thoughts of a replacement needed. with his network he is arguably the most powerful person in her small council. and if the empress can't trust her spy master, it's the end game.
2. a spy girl who is now our lady-in waiting (I'm bad with names). is she aware that in the imperial setting people easily give up their lives for less than a sneeze? the fact that she is a spy suggests that she either doesn't have a title or it is very minor. we have already seen in this setting how many problems MC had before the coronation and how much she had to do to be put on the throne instead of one of her bastard brothers, which means the world there is quite patriarchal. it's very unlikely that a significant noble house would let a woman who could be profitably and beneficially married off to work in a potentially deadly and difficult job like this. so, basically a commoner insulting the empress to her face (and in a political-imperial-medievalish setting, what she said about the “sheltered little princess” is an insult) without much fear of consequences makes me think that the spy-girl-lady-in-waiting considered herself comfortable enough to do that; at least irreplaceable, and at max invincible. which probably means that she has a protector with enough resources to shield her from the consequences of such behavior. of all the people we know, only our spy master is suitable for the role of such a patron, and, with his previous experience of withholding information from us, the picture doesn't look good for him.
3. claims from the lady-in-waiting-girl that our MC “has never been out there and doesn’t even know what it’s like to be out there in the field.” well, yes? because she doesn't have to. she is a princess, now an empress. she is not obliged to know the exact difficulties her subordinates go through, to know their job in detail, to relate to every single problem of her subordinates, or do their job instead. to climb forests, mountains, infiltrate into dangerous settings and whatever else her spies do. the accusation is childish. for this she has people, such as this spy-girl-lady-in-waiting. if the empress did everything herself, she wouldn't need such people.
4. the fact that MC just let the insult slide. I suppose because it was a closed setting (her personal office) she didn't feel the need for anything drastic. however, benevolence like this often gives people ideas that they can have their way, which often gives example to other people. MC doesn't have to go around beheading everyone left and right to instill the understanding that some things mustn't be said. her lady-in-waiting insulted her, that's enough to fall out of grace and end up in a monastery (in imperial medieval setting) if she is lucky enough, and she doesn't even have a title. I think that a week or two in the dungeon on gruel would be a really nice option.
5. and my favourite, probably - the person who has a title of a DUKE accusing our MC of "being born with a silver spoon". excuse me, duke, was your own spoon a wooden one? bronze? did you eat scraps and wear rags? no? then shut your annoying mouth please. yes, his family had some estates and lands taken away, but it doesn't mean that his life wasn't a life of privilege. the fact that he's accusing MC of growing up in privilege while he clearly hasn't been swimming in poverty is so hypocritical that I can't lol
well, this was my Ted Talk and my rant. I want to state one more time that I liked the game. the fact that some characters caused enough frustration for me to compose a bedsheet means that it has a great potential to keep player engaged.
Hello, what a passionate answer! I am not going to answer the part about the Master of Murmurs (the spy master) and Sophie (the lady in waiting). I might adjust a couple of things in the final game on this scene, but overall MM being a wild card and Sophie irreverent was both intended, now I think it's a fair point to envision a MC a bit less forgiving, I will see if I can add small choices about that!
About Theodore (the Duke), if you are curious here is a very old post I did about his animosity over the MC (I thought you might enjoy some extra lore :p) also, as an additional note, the Faraam duchy is right in the middle of mountains. The climate there is cold and sterile, they clearly has the toughest life of the whole kingdom, even if of course Theodore himself never lacked anything, his education were much harsher than MC one that's for sure.
Thank you for giving a try to our demo, I hope you have fun in the full game <3
hi, does anyone know when this game is coming out? i know it says on here Spring 2024, but since that has passed, i was wondering what was the new ''timeframe''?
Hello, sorry we are a bit late I need to update this page! Frankly it's hard for me to give a new date right now, we made huge progress, the script is done but we are late on the art area so I need a clearer view on that. I am still very hopeful for a release this year, something like September/October depending on our artist health!
great, thank you
I genuinely loooove this game the management of the kingdom and actually having to think about your decisions is so immersive and fun!! I was wondering if the full game would cost any money or would remain to be a free download when the full release comes out? Regardless if I had to pay or not to get the full game I still love this game sm and you guys did such a good job with it!!
Hello, yes the game will be commercial in the release (probably around 20$ with a discount at launch), thank you so much for your support and your kind words <3 I am very glad you liked the strategy aspect since I worked so hard on it :p
Hi, I'm a fan from Brazil and I wanted to know if you'll adjust the price for other currencies or if it'll be the same for everyone. I know working with art is very difficult, I've developed games myself, and specially now with everything happening in the world you should never lower your prices for anyone. I'm just asking because for me and most people that live in the south, the devalue of our currencies makes us unable to apreciate and contribute to a lot of games because of the differences in price (for example, 20 dolars for me is almost 100 in my currency - reais -, and even more than that), so it makes it a lot harder to buy games and people just end up giving up on playing altogether, with is bad for both the artist and the costumer.Because of that, some developers chose to adjust the prices according to the countrie's currencies, but I would very much understand if that was not your choice, after all it's your work that is being valued or devalued.
Thank you for reading everything <3
I don't actually know if you can adjust the price here, because I'm used to buying games on Steam and usually there they already have the prices ready in my currency, but nevertheless it is still a relevant question. I wish you all the best on the development and will continue to enjoy playing your demos even if I can't really afford the final product.
Thanks for listening, wish you all the best.
Currency disparity is a valid concern. I don't think it's an option on itchio indeed, we are going to consider regional pricing for steam, and I think it was great and fair for a very long time. Unfortunately people abusing the system using VPN has made things very difficult for dev to do that now... and even when there is adjustment they are minor (like the price might be lower but not super low).
It's something that need careful consideration and thinking. Like we will probably do some level of regional pricing following the steam guideline (which as I said are not as generous than before). But maybe I could do other alternative... Like it would be cool to do a partnership with a Brazilian outlet or streamer and have them distributing very cheap keys for ex, I really don't mind "devaluating" my work if I know it goes toward the right person? But then, I also don't know how much English speaking VN fan there is in Brazil either and since I don't speak Portuguese it's hard to reach for the right people...
Anyway, I am rambling, but I heard your concern! <3
Well, regarding English speaking people in Brazil I can say I know a lot of people that can understand the language, given that it is simple structure wise and we have access to lot of media in English. But it is true that it would reach a lot more people if it was in Portuguese.
I don't know if you are interested in translating the game, but if you are, I could do it for you. Like I said I've developed games before (I write visual novels) and have just started freelancing in translation (usually English to Portuguese).
Thank you so much for listening and I understand the problems with VPN (gives me so much rage to see people ruin things like that, but I guess there's always someone to take advantage of nice things). Regardless, I really appreciate your effords.
Keep up the good work, been loving the demo so far!
Hello, thank you for your answer, about the translation, we cannot afford professional translators for a game of this size unless it's a huge hit, but if we do, Portuguese is among the 3 languages I really would like to translate the game so, maybe?
Thank you for your support, it's also annoy me so much that people are abusing systems, I really hope we can do something fair for eveyone!
I really like the new extended demo.
And I was really happy to hear more about this project since it's been a year for me since the last update.
I didn't remember the Master of Murmurs being so naughty. And it was really fun to tease our dear ice block Theodore.
Still the more the game goes on, the more we can see the consequences of our previous choices. I'm still waiting to see more about our half-siblings but I'm not sure letting them alive was not a future big problem. Still killing them can be a problem. Hummm....
We'll have to be strategic. Really love the extended demo. I can't wait to play more.
Hello, it's true I should communicate more about what is happening on itchio too. Sorry for that! The script is fully written we are finishing the art/editing/scripting right now!
Anyway, I am glad it helped you notice how intricate the choices were, I really tried hard to craft interesting choices with short, mid or long consequences and I am so proud when people notice it and play strategically <3 Thanks for giving a shot to our extended demo!
Hello! Is there already a release date for the full game? I can't wait to play it T-T
Hello, unfortunately we are a bit late on the schedule, but it will definitely be in 2024, please join our newsletter or our discord to be informed when we have a solid release date!
Is there any chance of getting a dlc where Alden of Valbleu will be romanceable?
Loving the demo and looking forward to purchasing the full game and dlcs once they are finished! Great concept and lovely work.
Hello, it's not planned right now, we only plan on adding the Master of Murmurs as DLC. That said you are not the only Alden lover and I am very fond of him too, so I was considering doing maybe a bit of fiction for him when the game is done. No promises, but I would like to do a little something for him, but it won't be a full DLC!
Thank you for your support <3
Will there be a mobile version?
Unfortunately I don't think there will be, I might consider it if when I revamp the UI it's easier to adapt it to proper mobile
Is there any updates on the development of this game? There's really no rush but wow such an amazing demo, like I need more 😭 Art, writing, and style is beautiful!
Hello, hello! True I should post the devlogs here too huh But development is going well, I am super close of putting the final point on the storyline! I hope for a release in spring this year, but we have a ton of work in editing left, finger crossed!
Thanks for your support <3
im soo pumped for this game, it's so beautiful and interesting already. thank you so much for the hair options and actually realistic skin tones <3333
Thanks for the kind words! I can't wait to have all the MC new fullbody sprite finish so we can enjoy how beautiful she is :p
i havent played yet but im excited lollll the art is so pretty and omg customization?
Eheh! I can't wait to show off more of the fullbody sprite we are creating currently thanks to our successful Kickstarter! Even more pretty art and customisation ~
yay im glad to hear it, they're so pretty, you're doing awesome! i've only gotten so far into the game due to a busy personal life, but i love it so far!
Feel you, I hadn't the time to play a demo since 2020
when I say I am so excited for this game. Words cannot express.
<3 <3 <3
When will the full game be released?
Hello, hopefully somewhere in May. It's hard to know for sure, but definitely this year!
Yay! :D Thank! I can't wait
I really want to play this game, but it doesn't have an Android version and I don't have a PC. Is there any alternative way I could play it?
Love everything btw.
Hello, thank you for your interest! For now a phone port seems difficult, but the good thing with Renpy game is that they don't require any installation, you can download them, put them in a USB key and play them on any computer, so like even school/library ones. I hope it helps!
Ayael
I'd say getting me utter the words "You will approve my coronation or I will trans your gender, don't test me." to a pope like figure makes this a pretty good game
LMAO
wooo amazing demo! can't wait for the full game <3 i always loved as a teenager that kind of games and looks like i still do as an adult xD
Thank you for your kind word!!! Also, there is no shame at being consistent, I also always loved medieval love stories (if plot is involved even better) even during my teenage-edgy-emo-phase and I am PROUD OF IT!
2024, at long last.
Just a few more months to finally get my hands on this game :3
YES, we are working hard on it, for now we are on the deadline for a spring release *cross fingers* <3
Fingers crossed 🤞
hi devs
just completed the demo on steam and i really enjoyed it. the game made it on my wishlist.
i still have some questions
1.) how difficult is/will be normal mode? can i only lose if i make stupid decisions?
2.) will the full game has a difficulty slider for normal mode? maybe with higher strating ressources or "better income"? personally im right in the middle of "storymode" and "normal mode": i enjoy mild ressource management, but also want to enjoy the story.
3.) the demo didnt had the diplomacy option available. i guess it will be in the full game. can you explain, what i will be able to do with this option in th full game?
4.) when you decide with whom you want to spend time with (e.g. at the coronation) will this have consequences beside romance?
=> if i only choose asha in these events will i end up with a bad pöatonice relationship with theodore/does it have negative consequences one the other romance-options?
thank you very much for such a great game.
Hello, thanks for your support!
1) I think the normal mode is quite balanced. When the full game is out, we will adjust the numbers so it's not too punishing, but require a bit of thinking. Basically, besides obvious wrong choices story-wise, the ressources is here to make the player think twice about their decision. Like, I would say the main challenge is you can't please everyone in normal mode, because for example, if you say yes to everyone asking you to give money, you won't have money anymore. It's more this kind of strategic thinking about priority I want to induce in normal mode, not like hardcore management.
2) For now, it's not planned, but I might add it as small goals for the release. As I said, I think the normal mode won't be really difficult, so if I do that, it would more be to have an harder mode for player who really like challenge.
3) Yes indeed it will be in the full game. Basically, you will be able to check your diplomacy level with all the neighbor countries, and to perform special actions like sending gifts, trying to spy someone, sending assassin's to kill an annoying person etc.
4) The people you spend time with, is just a way for you to discover the characters! You will have a clear choice for your romannce later (so even if you spend all your free time with Asha, you can still enter Theodore romance for example. Or you can spend a bit of time with each character to decide who you will romance etc.) Each non-romanced character have a bad ending but they are actually really hard to get. That said, spending a bit of time of Asha if you don't romance her, is a very good way to make sure you don't get her bad ending, it doesn't matter for Alexander or Theodore.
I wish I had more time to develop the friendship of the non romanced character, but the story is already so long so I mostly focus on your romance past the point you choose it, but there is some moment where you can still see they like you even if you are not in romance with them.
Don't hesitate if you have more questions!
I wish you a lovely day <3
Ayael
thank you for your answers.
to 3): how big is the influence of the diplomacy decisions on the main story? e.g: if i struck a tradedeal will my ressource gain change after a gameloop//if i assasinate person XY of Z-land, will his death play a role in the story itself?
to 4.) thats good to hear. i already decided to romance asha, so im happy that in that case i wont get the bad ending for her.
=>(A) when you said, that the bad endings are hard to get, do you mean they are hidden behind "stupid" decisions? i could think that if you act as a tyrant or send alexander into certain death ("our soldiers bravery is stronger than the enemies larger army..") you would get his bad ending. no idea about theodore
=> (B) if i remember correctly than you get a choice (with asha when you both sit in the garden and "sunbath") to either ro flirt back or not. is this a early "milestone" of enabling her (or the other romancable characters in their scenes) as a romance option?
=> (C) this is more of a direct question: if i play these kind of games i usually decide for a romance option even before the game (here asha) and change it only if the others really impresses me. with that: since i already made up my mind, what would make more sense in your opinion? focus only on ashas events to see all of her content OR do see atleast one of the other?
i still have 2 new questions, sorry for that ;)
- during character creation you can choose one of 4 paths. do they influence anything else besides the starting ressources? e.g. cheaper decision costs depedning on your chosen path
- this last question is more spoilery, so i completely understand, if you dont want/cant answer it: does every romance path have an equal ending? ==> can Calydia has 2 empresses in the end *wink wink*?
again thank you for your answers.
Hello, no problem, happy to answer your questions!
- There is rarely direct influence between what you do in diplomacy and the main story (no you did X so Y happens in the main story), but at some key moment if a country like you they will help, if they dislike you they will make it harder for you and some decision might have further consequence on the long term (like epilogue wise).
- They are hard to get in a sense you need to do several precise bad decision to get their bad ending. For Alexander it's "the end justifies the mean" mentality, for Theodore is to put your well being before your country prosperity, and for Asha it's to not respect her.
Stupid decision are more likely to give a direct game over, so you can just reload and try again.
- No this choice with Asha is just about setting your boundaries! She will respect it either way, and you can romance any love interest! Overall simple shape choices (as opposed to the big choice screen) are here to set your MC personality and are "not important" to the story = unlikely to have big consequences.
- If you already know which love interest you will romance, you can spend all your time with them to not miss any content from them, I think it will be more enjoyable.
- Yes, you have unique choices (most of the time more favorable) depending of your starting specialty, as well as two unique scenes to really showcase your skill.
- No Calidya can't have two empress, but you can have an exclusive relationship with Asha. She will also have a route in a mariage DLC we will do later. There is a lot of possible relationship variation, but it's often open secret flavor. Most obvious, being: everybody know you are a couple, because you don't hide how close you are and you never marry etc. but officially everyone will pretend they don't see you kiss and say you are very good friend.
I hope it helps <3
Ayael
thank you again for answering my questions.
I'm sad I didn't find out about this game sooner because OMG just the demo has me hooked!! The art and story is already just outstanding. I can already tell as soon as this releases it's gonna be one of my fav VN's, keep up the great work!!!
At least you won't have to wait long to play it! (Release planed in April/May 2024), thank you for your kind word and your support, I can't wait to share all our hard work to the world!!!
I love a good game! I like the unique spin this game has on otome-style games. Can't wait for more!!!
Thank you for your kind word, we are working hard!
Too bad it isn't a male MC
If you are looking for indie games with a possible male MC and a medieval court shenanigan , I can recommend Royal Alchemist and Celestial crown! Both are lovely game and you can pick a male MC (pronoun + physical appearance). Imperial Grace will never get one, so I understand it's not for everyone ^^
Best wishes,
Ayael
Thank you for your recommendations, I appreciate it :)
Can't wait for the full game.
Made an account just for this lol
Being serious now:
I love what I got to see in the demo, it's projects like these that need our love and support, not cheap moneygrabs, too many of those.
You can tell just how much love and dedication went (and will go) into this game. Can't wait
Thank you so much for leaving this message!!! Like I am genuinely super happy to read this nice comment and to know you take the trouble to create an account just to say something nice, it's heartwarming, so thank you, we do put a lot of love and dedication into the game, the development is going well, so hopefully you won't wait too long for the full story <3
waiting for the full game!!
I completely forgot I was playing a demo, so when the screen came up showing the end of the demo, I was practically devastated. Can't wait for the full game!
I feel you, that's why I rarely play demo, patience is not my forte :p But I am very happy you enjoyed it so much! <3
Such a great game!! I am so excited for the full thing. Keep up the good work!! 😁
Thank you so much!!! <3
Omg no! Excuse me but I can not wait for this to be fully out! I forgot I was playing a demo!! It is that good! I love that you get to experience such an interesting story and decide on laws and all sorts of stuff! Really excited to see how this turns out!
I feel you, I am always frustrated at the end of demo I like eheh, I am very happy you enjoyed it <3
This is a beefy demo well worth your time.
Getting to customize the MC is nice because you actually get to see her a lot, which is also good! She's been thrust into the role she's always wanted but wasn't sure she would get, which is a neat place to pick up her life. She needs allies but the choices you have to make don't always make that easy. That being said, the politics aren't so bad that you feel you have no good options.
The resource management system isn't too difficult, and having to spend resources in order to choose certain options is engaging. The phases you can enter (such as when you read and decide on petitions) are welcome asides that expand on the view of the kingdom.
The art is lovely and the facial expressions are fun! (The MC biting her lower lip is probably my favorite.) The characters are all very much their own people and make you want to interact with them. The love interests are interesting enough that I'll have to try them all, but the Master of Murmurs is just too hawt.
I'm glad I backed the Kickstarter and anticipate spending a lot of time with the full VN when it's released!
Thank you so much for this detailed review, it made my day! I am so happy you had fun with the demo !!!
Thank you for supporting us <3
Ayael
Played the Demo and really hyped for the full Version! Asha is so fkdksdaj adorable <3 Can only recommend xD And the MC is sooo relatable for me, love her already. Only thing I'd ask for are more hair colours xD That's it. Great work, hope all goes well with development!
Hello, I am very happy you liked the demo <3
As for the hair colors, unfortunately we won't add more even in the full game. Our artist is very perfectionist so it's not just color swap, they redraw everything each time so the shadows, contrast with the clothes and skin etc. are always perfect. Since the MC will have several hairstyle, several clothes, several color skin, it makes way too much variation to account for, so we decided to let them as it is I hope you understand!
Thank you for your support,
Ayael
No, totally. As an artist myself, I 100% get it. And I appreciate the work you did, positively surprised different ethnicities actually have different facial features, no just different skin colours as is often the case. Tremendous job on the art overall, give my props to the artist, they did great! Wasn't a serious critique anyway, just humour. Just saying, I like the game so much that something so minor is the worst thing I found^^ And thanks for the detailed reply, much appreciated :)
Oh I see, sorry I tend to take everything first degree ahah, I am very happy you enjoyed our game and understand all little extra work we put in it, it's so rewarding when people notice the little things <3
When it will come out for android?? :(
I don't think it will. It require a lot of UI adjustment and the mobile market is really not appropriate for one time purchase type of things
Any chance there will be an update? And sorry to hear about the kickstarter ending that's terrible. I myself don't have money at moment but when I do (assuming full version isn't terribly expensive) will happily buy it :)
Yes, we are working on it as we speak! We are doing good progress on the game, the release date is expected around May 2024! Thank you for your support <3
Yay, I love all the twists and turns for the game. My oc's name in it is *grin* Daenerys :D I'm hoping again for another update because I just got past saving the agent and want to play more, I love the interaction between Daeny and Theo for example and those between her and Asha :)
Ahah, a name very on point once again! We might actually released an update demo in a couple of month when we have the new sprites! With a couple of more scenes!
Oooo :D I hope so lol Daeny was just starting to have fun with all of that intrigue! Lol of course she also kneed Theo on the training grounds when he got too presumptuous ;)
By the way, does the current version have the adult scenes? I'm uncertain whether grayed out means their on, or skipped. Also cannot seem to sign up for email updates :(
Will the full game be free or will we have to pay?
Considering it's several years of hard work, the game will cost 20€ when finished!
Yes, I choose to respect the team by paying them, and respect the player by not using micro-transaction design to frustrate them to pay way more than 20$ 😊
I see. That's understandable although I'll probably won't be able to buy it considering it is much too expensive in my currency 😔
That said, does that mean that there won't be any updates to the demo and the next upload will be the final game?
Currency fluctuation is very though, I understand! The demo will be updated when we got the full sprite version, but it will mostly be a visual update (not much more content) except maybe some extra scene with the MM.
Understandable! I'll be paying for it when it releases, I am truly excited for it!
I could'nt participate in the kickstarter but I would love to read the story from some Li's pov. Do you think you could make this a dlc or a payant option please? and for the guide too?
Hello, all the DLC (MM romance & mariage), the lore book and the guide will be available when the game release. The character booklet with the POV is the only thing that won't. It's a cool bonus but it doesn't impact the game experience, and I really wanted to thank our early supporters with something unique. It's not yet too late to grab it, we have some late pledge through backerkit where you can take individual rewards (so for example you can take just this one) for one more week for people who missed the KS for whatever reason.
Thank you for your support!
I used your link and could buy what I wanted. Thank you I can’t wait for the game release. When will the French version be released ?
Thanks for your support! Simultaneously to the English version! So April/May 2024 if things goes reasonably smoothly!
Somehow I always end up wanting the men who aren't a actual romance option. Petition to potentially get a romance route for the Master of Murmurs! Other than me always wanting what I can't have, I can't wait for this game to be released. This game has so much potential, especially for someone who loves political intrigue and shows like Game of Thrones.
Hello, I have a good new for you, the MM romance was unlocked in our Kickstarter! <3
About how long is the demo right now?
Hmmm, depending on your reading speed I would say between 1 and 2 hours!
How do you open this? I have a DELL computer and I’m confused. Would really love to play it though!
Hello, so you need to download the windows folder, then you need to unzip it with a software (I personally use Izarc it's free and it does the job, but there is a lot of different software.) You will then get a folder, open it and you will find the .exe to launch the game right away!
If you don't want to bother with those extra step, we are also on steam where you just need to click to download and the play button, steam will launch the game automatically^^
I hope it helps! If you have more question, don't hesitate!
Thank you!
Played this demo as part of the storyteller festival on steam. I have to admit, I was thinking that this game might not be for me. I was happily proved wrong. I really enjoyed the game with the combination of the visual novel and then the decision making elements reminded me a bit of "Ambition: A Minuet in Power" The art is really nice and I love the MC. I love that she is a strong woman trying to survive in a man's world. Looking forward to the full release. Following the KS so I can support :)
Oh thank you so much, i am glad you give it a try and liked it <3
Would Love to try this game out but only have android would be cool if you ever did make an android version thx 😊
Hi, it's a bit more complicated to allow Android, I don't know if I will be able to do it for this game. If you want you can try our other game Autumn Spirit who does have an android version because it's a cute melancholic romance without management element! <3
thank you so much I'll look into it definitely but I love games that are like brothel,management😊
We come from all walks of life, but every damn one of us killed the greedy soldier.
XDDD It's actually one of the most picked option, but it's close with the influence one, some people try to hide the darkness in their heart at the begining of the game :p