OK, 2 people have played the "beta" version now! The feedback is good so far, I've fixed some silly grammar mistakes and they liked the story. If you would like to have a play at it, particularly if you have any background knowledge on Judaism, 14th century women or feel comfortable sensitivity playing it for the story elements revolving around SA please let me know! My bluesky DMs should be open!
I don't know what I don't know and if there is anything I can add to make the story more interesting I'm more than happy to add to it.
Updates
As you can see the biggest update now, aside from rearranging some text and effects to make things flow better is the new text box and font! I'm pretty happy with it, on all the screens it adds a little elegance to the game 🤭 The decorational bits in the corners are pomegranates! Pomegranates are an important symbolism in Jewish tradition, symbolizing the 613 mitzvot, fertility and love and they're also very tasty. GOATed fruit for real, perfect for stimming too.
So, I think with the gold representing Johanna's noble background and the fruit Shoshi's faith in her religion it's pretty fitting! But, at the time of creating it I wasn't thinking super deep 😂 That's when I do my best work.
Next...
What's next is more UI elements, one more CG and some backgrounds, I also need to customize the main menu and choose an artwork for that. I have an oil painting I might be able to use if I manage to finish it before this visual novel, which is a big if. Working on a single painting just isn't as interesting as creating something interactive 😅 at least that's the headspace I'm in now.
Thank you for checking in! It shouldn't be too much longer and I'll have a finished game 😍