Hi, devs! A Heart of Butterblue got a review in the newest issue of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. Check it out if you feel inclined: https://willyelektrix.itch.io/choicebeat-issue-12
I love this so, so much. I actually guessed the truth quite early on and was pretty sure where the plot was going - but that didn't stop me from melting and almost tearing up when the resolution actually came. That, my dear author, is one of the highest compliments I can think of. Just. The FEELINGS.
Some other comments have mentioned how "stereotypical" Phebe is as an otome protagonist. I agree wholeheartedly. This story is ultimately about Phebe and her growth, not the boys, and that is one of the most brilliant twists in this genre.
Your writing is absolutely gorgeous. There's a touch of gentleness to it that enhances both the sadness and the bittersweetness of the story. The relatively minimalist visuals also serve the atmosphere of the game perfectly.
Really well done. My utmost respect to you and this game.
i've tried downloading it once and it wouldn't start deleted and redownloaded it. got through the 1st day but on the 2nd day, when i try to talk to someone, the convo just never starts and the game lags (indefinitely) :/ can't rate the game but it seemed promising
That sounds like it's a resolution error where the buttons to start the different convos are off screen.
I'm in the middle of trying to push out my newest game (due in... 2 days 😱) so I don't have the chance to look into putting out a patch atm.
You can try fiddling around with the resolution options in the options screen in the meantime to see if you can get the buttons appearing that way. Otherwise I'll try to get out a patch as soon as possible!
hi I'm having trouble playing the game on mac. It say it doesn't have the right application to open?? I've tried downloading on the launcher etc> PLz help
It looks like something about version 1.2 doesn't play nice with some Mac OS and will get flagged. My friend did tell me they didn't have this issue at all with build 1.1 though. I've also unhidden the Mac 1.1 build if you still couldn't get the above steps to resolve the issue. (Just a caveat that there are some bugs in this version)
What a wonderfully-crafted visual novel this is. Everything regarding the story, the characters and the progression of what the reader knows about what's going on was done so well. I was led along and I learned what I needed to at just the right moment before figuring it out for myself, and overall I think the narrative and the 'twist' are very well constructed for a game of this length. Especially the 'other' Phebe and her own resolution.
I liked both Phebe and Peyton, though I could feel there was an almost tragic element to the story from the beginning, so I kinda braced myself for tragedy early on. You do that very well. At the end I was sad, but I was also happy that the sadness was genuine because the story was so well written.
Overall I really, really liked this VN, and I think you have a real gift. I'll happily read whatever else you upload in the future.
I really love the game so far but after having triggered Payton's scene when he gave me the flower, the flower isn’t in my inventory so I can't examine it in order to reach the true ending, help 🥹
This bug omg ..... I made a breakthrough with a possible solve for this load/save bug (it's the source of this and the fanny shop bugs) and will do my hardest to fix it tonight! If I can't do that I'll upload a build where you can access the ending via a cheat code instead for the time being. Thank you for letting me know you're still getting this bug!
I've just uploaded a build just for you! It's the "Peyton Ending Shortcut" build (it's a PC build but let me know if you need Mac or Linux!). What you'll want to do is click the "Peyton Ending" button on the main menu and click on the bed in Phebe's room! This will cut straight to Peyton's ending (starting with the underground tunnels). The game should also drop a Flower into your key inventory for you to use in the final scene!
Thank you for letting me know that this glitch was still in the game! I got a nice look at what was going on under the hood and I feel like I've got a lot better idea of what areas to focus on in my own programming journey. Thank you again! :D
Update: It works! I got to see Payton's ending and I really love it! Thank you for making this game (I really enjoyed reading your Author's Footnote). I took the opportunity to support you (it's not much) and I can't wait for your next project(s) and meanwhile I'm going to check your previous game :)
Sorry for the late reply! Thank you so much for your reactivity! I'm on Mac but I'm going to see if I can launch the PC build with Wine Crossover first before asking you for a Mac build :)
This looks so interesting though when I click to sleep it hangs up. I'm clicking everything lol even used my keyboard for y (yes) So I reloaded and just went to town but when I click on the sherrif the text block is empty and no matter what I click nothing happens. Only thing that works is esc which takes me to title screen. From the comments here I see this isn't a problem for anyone else, so im confused :/
Sounds like that's a resolution issue. When you open the game go into options and try out different resolution options. When you click on the bed or talk to the sheriff more buttons appear at the top of the screen. Alternatively you can try clicking the edge of the window screen and drag it until you can see the buttons at the top (when you try to sleep etc.). Hope that helps!
I am INCREDIBLY smitten! Oh my goodness what a lovely little story! I was never 100% sure what was going on, but I didn't feel totally in the dark either, and the concept is FASCINATING.
Even with the darker theme, there were so many heartwarming moments. [Also funny ones, I adore Fanny.] Peyton is just such a refreshing character in his simplicity. Very sweet, very patient, very attentive, but he never crossed into pushover territory. It never felt like he was a one-dimensional character, his dialogue was incredibly smooth and thoughtful and, even though it's a shorter VN, his and Phebe's relationship developed very organically to me. She gradually relaxed around him, it didn't feel abrupt or rushed because of how her responses changed slightly with each day.
The portrayal of her emotions was very well done, it almost touched on unreliable narrator territory just because of how little she really understood about her feelings. I felt like her anxieties and discomfort were conveyed so well, without her having to actually verbalize any of it, just by how she spoke and the way her expressions would change.
[The sprites are SO expressive by the way, Peyton's soft smile made me actually squeal the first time I saw it.]
The writing in general is also just very beautiful to me. The poetic repetition, the callbacks to certain phrases, the nightmare sequences are some of my favorite scenes purely because of the use of prose, the descriptions were surreal, it very much gave the impression of being strange and dream-like. I have aphantasia so I can't picture things, but it set the tone for the setting beautifully. Every morning after one of those nightmares, I would also feel a little uneasy, I kept waiting to see if something outside the farm had changed or gone wrong. The atmosphere was incredible.
I took notes while I was playing, so I could keep track of the things that I found particularly interesting, and it felt like the word choice for specific scenes was noticeably intentional. I like that a lot! I write in my personal time, so I know how easy it can be to just throw synonyms around to avoid using the same words over and over again. With this story, though, it felt like there was a lot of intent behind certain phrases used, I really do think the wordplay was incredibly thought-provoking.
When you describe dead flowers as CORPSES, you have my immediate attention LOL
The soundtrack is wonderful by the way, I didn't used to play VNs with sound on because I tend to get a little overstimulated with a lot of noise, but lately I've been making sure to keep the background music on so I can better immerse myself in whatever mood the writer is trying to set. The title screen song SLAPS, and occasionally I would just tab out and kind of bop along to the general BGM.
Most of my notes are just me screaming about how precious and sweet Peyton is, I wasn't expecting to gush as much as I did since he isn't the type of character I gravitate towards. He was so conscientious of Phebe though, I loved how gently he interacted with her, I loved how he recognized that she would never be the one to call him out, so he took it upon himself to bring up his own mistakes/motivations to clear the air. Absolutely the sweetest man, I should have attempted Hugh first because I don't know how I'll recover now LOL
The resolution was so bittersweet, gonna be honest I'm petty so I didn't want to see the old man get a happy ending, but for Other Phebe it was nice to see her be able to rest. I love the notion of using the butterblue flower as the new core, and I love that it was even hinted at in the journal that there could be something other than bones used.
Speaking of, the set-up for the mystery was also very good. I don't think I was handed too much information too quickly, I did manage to guess what was happening early on, but I didn't get the specifics correct and there were other details I wouldn't have EVER been able to figure out.
And Phebe was a delight as a character, I genuinely enjoyed reading her thoughts because her perspective, the way she looked at the world is so unique, it was interesting. Having a unique lens like that for a character to view the story through I think adds so much more to the experience, it's like there's an added layer of the mystery to sort through. I liked having to stop and think about her word choices for a minute, or certain reactions that I couldn't understand right away. Just a very engaging character overall, even though one might not think so at surface level.
Evocative is a good word to describe this VN, I think. There was so much packed into the few hours I spent playing, I know I'll have to play it again now that I know what's going on just to see if there were any other hints that I missed.
A beautifully strange, memorable experience! I mean that in the best of ways. I look forward to whatever you work on next, and I'm definitely going to go back and look at the other games you mentioned in the authors notes!
This is such a beautiful comment! Thank you for playing it and also leaving such a lovely review! I mean it when these types of comments really brighten my day and are the best part of making games. So glad to hear the themes are coming through!
I don't even have to read past the ao3 tags section to know i'm downloading this one cause idk what "that house is full of bees" means but i HAVE to find out LOL
And about the bees (I didn't want you to be expecting BEES in game), "house full of bees" is a saying to describe an extremely messed up family/living situation that someone just does not leave (for many reasons, mostly trauma/abuse).
Hmm and you tried saving, going to the main menu and reloading your save file?
I figured out a possible new solution for this bug in my code so I'll try to push out a build tonight that will For Real This Time Squash This Bug (I keep saying this 😭 I really hope this fixes it *cries*)
Hi! I've played other games from you and really enjoyed them! I was excited to play this one, but for some reason the mac file will not open and run on my computer? I'm not sure if this is an issue on my end or not, but I was just wondering if there was any way to fix it?
thank you for responding, but I was actually able to figure it out! I just had to use a different application to unzip the file, I used the unarchiver instead of the default archive utility, and it opened! so it was actually just an issue on my end the whole time lol
good game! i like the sheer range of these endings, you really get a sense of what these characters care about
(spoilers: ending discussion)
peyton's ending provides lots of good lore and lots of nice closure. a wonderful way to finish off my playthroughs. fanny's ending was delightful, and i'm pleased with how much characterization was fit into what might be considered a joke ending. but i think my favourite ending was hugh's. when fanny was like "hey maybe stop talking to him you will die" it was very exciting. i love when a game tells you someone is bad news and follows through on it! no "it's okay, he fell in love with you so everything will be alright actually" here. you're warned someone will kill you if you go after him, and then he kills you when you go after him. very nice.
i also like the dr. frank mentions... i wonder what he'd think of all this. seems a bit depressing for his tastes but on the other hand maybe he'd be happy to see his research being used successfully
Haha! I'm so glad you liked Hugh's ending! I've never written anything quite like it, so it was fun writing it out to it's conclusion. There's something about big red buttons that say "Do Not Push" that I'm just so drawn towards in video games. I just wanna push them! and then when things blow up exactly how they said they would I'm like "Hehee, I died. :D".
And that's a really interesting question about Dr Frank! I've been thinking about it all day after I read your comment. I didn't want to explicitly mention it in game, but most likely Dr. Frank is no longer alive by the time of Butterblue. I usually love interlocking stories set in the same world, but seeing characters from one story grow old and die in the background of another story makes me so sad!!! It bums me out so much that I try avoid it as much as possible, even though I know realistically they would not live forever.
Dr. Frank is someone who is love with the idea of discovery and pushing the boundaries of what can be done in a way that ties into his own self-esteem so that the question of "SHOULD this be made possible?" isn't something he would naturally think on his own. It's not that he doesn't care, he's just so caught up in his own personal sphere of influence that he loses the forest for the trees. If he were aware of what his research ultimately was used for, he'd be really horrified I think. It definitely would cause him to think over what his own actions have ultimately led to. :(
Maybe its a good thing he's not aware of what Isaac and co. are doing, in a way.
Could You tell me what the Intro Music is? Really loved it and the story, got the 3 endings but I found this area with a question mark that never seemed to activate is this a bug? Or did I miss something.
was originally going to be another puzzle where Phebe would need to get a rope in order to be able to climb up to see the next scene. It leads to the top of the mountain where you can see the dogs in the pit (and was going to be a point where Phebe could get more clues as to what was going on). I ended up not using it at all, and the screen it leads to can still be seen in Peyton's confessional event (once you find him in the mountains).
The button doesn't do anything and I totally forgot to take it out, haha.
I had been meaning to play this earlier, AND I REALLY SHOULD HAVE!!! It's a pretty fricking great story, aaaa. AND THE PRODUCTION VALUE WITH ALL OF THE PORTRAITS AND BACKGROUNDS AND AAAA. The game looks excellent, is a joy to play (gotta get all the money in the world, y'know!!!!), and the story...... It's excellent!!!!! Dunno how quite how to talk about it without spoilers, so just gonna, y'know, put a big gap here, pff. SPOILERY RAMBLING AHEAD!!!
Really love all the characters here!!! ...I mean maybe not Hugh, but he's got a strong character to him, y'know? You really hate him!!! And that makes him a good character. Peyton is just a sweet lil guy, I love him and how nice he is while being partially brooding. Fanny's extremely fun and kinda wonderful in her interactions with Phebe, I love her and her absolute lack of empathy of any kind. AND PHEBE HERSELF............. aaaaAAAAAAA. She's just. God. She's such a perfect character, from start to finish!!!! All of the characters bouncing off of her is so...... uhhhh........... I mean, fun in some ways and certainly not-so-fun in other ways, all interactions powerful overall. I love seeing everybody be so nice to her (mostly)........ EVERYBODY HAS TO BE NICE TO PHEBE!!!! IT'S AGAINST THE RULES TO BE MEAN!!!!!!!!!! I guess there's one thing that feels way too evil to talk about because it's just a raw spoiler, but I figure the name "Butterblue" is probably the obvious choice, right? But one must take their time in deciding a name!!! It's gotta be perfect!!!!
AND THE OTHER ENDINGS..... The Fanny ending's CG certainly got me to go "Oh" in slight horror, pff. It's almost haunting in a way, with how just...... absolutely stale and miserable it is. AND HUGH'S SURE HAD SOME FEELINGS TO IT HUH. Very intense. And both are very nicely paced to be obtainable right before the true ending, WHICH..................... I mean, I did get a little emotional. IT WAS SO GOOD................ Dunno how to point to my favorite part without it just being a raw spoiler, but...... the one before the awakening!!! That!!!!!! I really fricking loved that. BUT I ALSO LOVED THE REST OF IT, Y'KNOW.... Everything after that has such a powerful feeling to it......
ANYWAY YES. This is a good game. A very good game!!! I hope Phebe has an excellent rest of her life!!!!!!!! And!!!!!!!!! Thank you for making this game!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh!!!!!!! This is such a lovely comment!!!!!!! Thank you so much for playing, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it!!
I wish itch had a spoiler tag but I love the "Butterblue" idea you mentioned! I actually didn't have a set answer for that particular part of the game and wanted players to imagine what they wanted the answer to be. But I've been lightly toying around around with the idea of writing a few epilogue stories (shhhh... but Butterblue might be coming to steam 👀) but it's sort of hard to write anything if you don't have a set answer for that part! But I like the answer "Butterblue" and I think I'm going to make it the default answer and have players change it if desired.
Also if the answer is Butterblue I couldn't get the image out of my head that [spoilers below]
Fanny would probably call her "Butts" and the girl is still too polite to correct her so it just sticks. 🤣🤣🤣
OH MY GOD SHE REALLY WOULD CALL HER THAT WOULDN'T SHE.... IT SOUNDS TOO PERFECT..... Only other name I could think of are.... more flowers with symbolic names, like Lily or Daffodil (Forget-me-nots, too, but perhaps a butterblue is... slightly related to that??? I mean who knows!!! Forget-me-not is a mouthful though pff.) ALSO MORE STORY??? VERY EXCITING (I GOTTA PLAY YOUR OTHER GAMES THOUGH!!! ...They set in the same universe, right? Or is that wrong??? Wanna play them either way!!!!)
But..... Butts and Fanny...... An incredible relationship with two incredible names, pff.
Forget-me-not would be such a wonderful name for her 😭😭😭😭 (even if a little hard to say but it just fits her so well!!)
And yes! :D My other games are all set in the same world at different time points but I purposefully try to keep them as separate as possible so you don't have to know one story to enjoy the others. In Butterblue, the city of New Working that her and her father lived in was the same city that Fia moves to in A New Don! And the textbook written by Dr. Frank is a reference to Dr. Frank's Build-a-Boyfriend. :)
hii not sure if this is just a problem with my pc but i cant advance past the first day..? The morning after you first meet the characters, no matter if i go see Fanny or Hugh, when i click on the question mark to talk to them it just shows an empty dialogue box and it wont let me click on anything else or go back. so im just stuck there,,,,
You can purchase the fishing rod from Fannys shop! There is a fishing spot up in the mountains. It's the screen with the stream (left at the fork on the mountain screen) and there should be a big fish icon on the water you can click.
There's a known bug where sometimes the fishing rod and the guidebook will appear to be sold out even if you haven't purchased them. To fix this, hit the escape button and return to the main menu. Reloading your save will have the fishing rod and guidebook back in-stock.
I just played this, and it's quite a beautiful story.
SPOILERS
My first playthrough was Peyton-focused, which definitely provided the most "complete" experience and was obviously more heartwarming, haha. I just circled around for a Hugh playthrough. 1) Ouch, you pulled no punches there. He is merciless. 2) It was fun to see all the little hints that added unease and mystery in the first playthrough with more context.
...also, I just saw a comment that implies that hanging out with Fanny is a legit ending option, and I am here for it. She's so casually cutthroat but charming.
BUGS
I did notice a few bugs, though nothing that broke the game, fortunately.
1) When I go to buy the fishing rod, it doesn't give any indication that I bought it. No money spent, for example. But I can start fishing, at least.
2) There's a question mark in the farthest right area that doesn't seem to be linked to any text.
3) Peyton continues to "wait at the crossroads" after the scene that is triggered when you interact with him there and start his ending. If you click him again, the scene at the ravine (?) starts again.
4) The game lets you pick up items when there's no room in your inventory, and I think they just disappear when you do. Related, if you click to X out one inventory item, it usually removes 2.
I found the atmosphere in this game especially enjoyable - I love the blend of sci fi, western, and horror that somehow turned out feeling so effortless and natural! The soundtrack really backs this up, it's kind of a spooky farmcore spaghetti western feeling that I was vibing to the whole time and it really set the tone for the story!
I had a lot of fun figuring the puzzles of how to solve everyone's problems, and farming, and I adored Fanny's cold shriveled little heart and her unrepentant vicious greed, she's so interesting and gaslight gatekeept girlbossed her way into my affection <3
But Peyton and Phebe were the stars of the show for me - both their individual journeys as characters, and the slow and tender development of their relationship and the themes of them both being societal outsiders who learn how to deal with and ultimately support each other. I got Peyton's ending and it made me tear up with the combination of hope, sadness, healing trauma, and happiness. Loved them both so much!! There's a delicate examination of difficult feelings in this game, which I adored.
Play this game if you want a blend of farm simulator, creeping sense of tense horror every time it turns to 4 PM and you're not home yet (very effective at getting me to turn in on time and made me feel like such a rebel for sticking around to pick up a few more flowers), generational trauma, an examination of identity and sense of self, and sweet romance. :D loved it!
A eerily quaint but touching tale about slowly learning how to stand up for yourself. Phebe is your stereotypical doormat otome game heroine who agrees with everyone , but the repercussions of such a personality is on full display. I also enjoyed the atmosphere of this game: the monotonous game play loop coupled with the yellow and green palette created a lulling ambience with just a hint of unease.
As a certified villain lover, I went in the game expecting to like Hugh. I didn't. However, I did like how f*cked up his ending was . I also found it hilarious that he was so horrible that even Fanny told you to stay away from him.
Speaking of Fanny, her ending was A++. I laughed at Phebe's employee-of-the-month smile in the ending CG. The two bonding over cloud gazing is so hilarious yet touching in a twisted sort of way.
Peyton is best boy. A genuine nice guy who also pushes Phebe to stand up for herself. It was very sweet to see Phebe slowly and awkwardly warm up to him.
-I feel like the amount of thought put into various aspects of this game is really impressive. The author's notes are worth it-- definitely read them. There's some srs wisdom there idk -- If I had a twitter I would screen some shiiiiit. -It's hard for me to write something here without spoiling it but I would encourage players to think about the themes while playing it. There are a lot of games where the themes are entirely handed to you and this doesn't feel like one of those. But they're also not so obscured as to feel random or thoughtless. Very good balance. -I knew I grew up when I finally managed to avoid the yandere in a game NOT TODAY SATAN -The game is like western+horror+cute farm sim+ scifi. You'd think the genres would not work together but the game kinda nails it? - -One of the things I really like about Heiden's games is the ability to move past cliches. -Also can I just say the music is great? - The farming sim owns my body (hmmmmm? Phrasing??? :3cccc) -- But really though I LOVE this addition to the game. Like I like that you can be very utilitarian and not farm too much at all. But I sure as hell wasn't. -I like that there is a character you don't date who still gives you an ending. -That goddess story insert was really cool even beyond the theme. -I love the ending that I got ;u; It's nice to see something that isn't super saccharine but also isn't totally nihilistic. I guess this goes into the author's notes - but I really appreciate the middle=ground approach here.
That's what I can think of so far. I've played Elvine but now I do have to play Ziva!
Omg fmskfnpsnfonapd thank you so much for playing !
I'm really glad the themes seem to be coming through, that was something I was trying to keep subtle but not too over the top. (A balance I find hard!)
And haha, I see you managed to avoid [spoiler]'s route. 😆
I absolutely could not stop playing this, but now I am stuck at Peyton's end T_T After the "..." choice, I just see the red background and don't seem to be able to do anything - I can access the inventory but that's about it.
I loved the slow build of the relationship between Phebe and Peyton, and the mysterious backgrounds of the characters and the town were enough to keep me planting bloody potatoes all day. The looming threat of nightfall was very tense in the beginning, until I got into a rhythm of the game.
I'll look into it on my end and try to replicate it + push out a fix. Unfortunately you can't get the ending without it.
(I have an idea of what caused it. If at any point you returned to the main menu and then went and got that scene with Peyton, it's possible that the flower wasn't added to your inventory. )
Okay bad news first: I can't seem to replicate your bug on my end!;;;
Good news: I build a special build just for you!
Go ahead and download the build called "Peyton's Flower".
When the game opens, click on the button in the upper right to start the game.
This will load a save that has all the variables ready for the ending. If your inventory is empty, don't worry. Go ahead downstairs and click on the iron door. I've added in an extra bit of code in this dialogue that will drop the flower into your inventory.
Discover the new room and activate the ending (this will make the title music stop playing, haha). This time you'll have the needed item for the ending!
If you're playing on Mac or Linux, let me know and I can make this build in those operating systems for you!
Thank you again for your patience!
(And if anyone else is reading this and has also gotten this bug, feel free to also download this build!)
I'm trying to replicate the problem on my end (and my power keeps going out, so ofc that's making it difficult! LOL) but haven't figure out how it happened just yet!
(A picture of all the key items you can acquire in the game.)
I've tried triggering the cutscene with no additional items, with just the fishing rod, the Guidebook, and also the key (thinking maybe the inventory thinks it's full when it's not...?) but no luck so far. I've also reloaded the game a bunch, opened it and closed it and tested it that way as well and still can't get it to break.
I'm currently using a PC, are you also on a PC or a different operating system?
In the meantime, I'm also working to see if I can just send you a save file that you can load from that already has the Peyton flower in the inventory.
Sorry for the wait and thank you for your patience!!
Just played through the ending using that extra file - I love it, and the author's notes are super cute too T_T <3
Thank you so much for your help with this!! I am using a PC as well. Also, I didn't have the key in my Key Items anymore, even though I was able to use it to get into the next room.
I'm still investigating how the bug happened and I hope to put out a more permanent fix once I can get an idea of what's causing it.
And yes, fun fact that door is controlled by an internal variable and isn't explicitly tied into having the key in your inventory. So thus, you can still go into the basement in the special load I provided bc I flipped a few variables behind the scenes. :)
Phebe struck me as being pliable in an unnatural sense, like someone made her that way. Very literal and to the point she was, needing a command to do anything. I don't think she had a "good" relationship with her father ahaha almost like he robbed her of her will to do anything or her independence. some of what she said gave me deja vu--i used to stare at towels and carpets and find animals in them, eheh.
I'm looking forward to her character development owo
The other characters seemed cool. Peyton struck me as little mr revenge hiding in the barn like an assassin :p and Hugh I had a less favorable impression of but I'm willing to give him a chance, as long as he's not abusive.
all in all i liked the characters. i got tastes of deeper mysteries to them.
3. Which of the two LIs are you most interested in?
i don't know. going off of looks Hugh fits my taste more but he's not winning in the personality race. Peyton seems nice...but it's the nice ones you have to be wary of O.O
4. Would you be interested in being a beta tester for the finished game?
yasss I would be interested! this game seems really cool and i'd love to help >w< i've also beta tested a few games before this too
Ngl Phebe was like a doll to me, she felt like she had no emotions but instead followed the will of what her father instructed her to do so, it's really intriguing and makes me want to know more of her past and what her and her father were like and if Phebe was a result or a casualty to the experiment Peyton has been referring to. Amazing demo, can't wait to see more~!
1. Thoughts on the characters so far?
Phebe - well I did share my thoughts above but she is quite eerie to me since I display a lot more emotions than her, makes me curious.
Peyton - I'm interested in his past and why he's entangled with Phebe's life, I'm actually really glad he was worried over Phebe cause this girl is like still water. And he's also really cool lmao.
Hugh - Just from those few minutes of interaction I could get a feel of his character, he's surely deeply entrenched in mystery and his constant usage of "dogs" makes me want to peek more but I might get my head chopped off, I sure do hope Hugh gets a soft spot for Phebe because man, if you didn't want people all over your business, stop being so mysterious!
Fanny - this woman is an icon, she's rough and blunt and goes by her own tune but it's entertaining to see that. None of the characters are the typical "good guys", everyone's got a secret of their own and are shaped by the wilderness of this town, Fanny looks to be more on the approachable side which is already saying a lot about the town. Great character A++
2. Typos?
None that I noticed, but I did notice that the characters' mouths would move despite there indicidating it was an action and not a dialogue, and the entire segment with meeting Hugh the sprites were kind of glitching in some ways and Hugh's mouth kept moving even though he wasn't saying anything.
3. Which of the two LIs are you most interested in?
Honestly, both. I explained why in the characters but with the most chances I'll survive if I'm curious?? Totally Peyton because the man already has a soft spot over how Phebe just bluntly told the man "Ah yes, btw my dad is dead so yea, lol". Love that girl even if she unsettles me.
4. Would you be interested in being a beta tester for the finished game?
I'd be interested to! However I'm not sure how so unless you guys are patient with me or something I won't feel hesitant or burdened over my inexperience over it and would gladly help in any way I can~!
I won't say much re: Phebe and her relationship with her father because I don't want to spoil anything but I will say you are a very astute reader~! :D
Typos -> Noted! Thank you!
Beta Tester -> Oh no worries! No experience needed! I'll put together a devlog closer to the time I have something to test that will explain everything (how to download etc). There should be an update if you're following the page~! :D
Thank you so much for playing and I'm really excited to share the full story with you!
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Kept me engaged the whole way through! Lovely experience! Well worth a play-through!
Hi, devs! A Heart of Butterblue got a review in the newest issue of ChoiceBeat: The Visual Novel and Interactive Fiction Zine. Check it out if you feel inclined: https://willyelektrix.itch.io/choicebeat-issue-12
Oh!!!! Omg thank you!
PHEBE. i love her
I love this so, so much. I actually guessed the truth quite early on and was pretty sure where the plot was going - but that didn't stop me from melting and almost tearing up when the resolution actually came. That, my dear author, is one of the highest compliments I can think of. Just. The FEELINGS.
Some other comments have mentioned how "stereotypical" Phebe is as an otome protagonist. I agree wholeheartedly. This story is ultimately about Phebe and her growth, not the boys, and that is one of the most brilliant twists in this genre.
Your writing is absolutely gorgeous. There's a touch of gentleness to it that enhances both the sadness and the bittersweetness of the story. The relatively minimalist visuals also serve the atmosphere of the game perfectly.
Really well done. My utmost respect to you and this game.
i've tried downloading it once and it wouldn't start
deleted and redownloaded it. got through the 1st day but on the 2nd day, when i try to talk to someone, the convo just never starts and the game lags (indefinitely) :/ can't rate the game but it seemed promising
Hi there!
That sounds like it's a resolution error where the buttons to start the different convos are off screen.
I'm in the middle of trying to push out my newest game (due in... 2 days 😱) so I don't have the chance to look into putting out a patch atm.
You can try fiddling around with the resolution options in the options screen in the meantime to see if you can get the buttons appearing that way. Otherwise I'll try to get out a patch as soon as possible!
Thank you for letting me know!
I just uploaded a new version of the game to hopefully fix this resolution issue you had run into!
hi I'm having trouble playing the game on mac. It say it doesn't have the right application to open?? I've tried downloading on the launcher etc> PLz help
Huh, thats very weird. Can you copy/paste the exact wording of the message it's giving you?
Is it possible that this is what is happening?: https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/open-a-mac-app-from-an-unidentified-dev...
nope, it just says
The application “A Heart of Butterblue 1.2 Mac” can’t be opened.
and then another pop comes up
Safari can’t open the file “A Heart of Butterblue 1.2 Mac” because no available application can open it.
Ah, okay! I got a friend to take a look at it on their Mac (Mac Monterey) and it appears to be this issue: https://superuser.com/questions/1345755/how-to-fix-the-application-cant-be-opene...
You can try the steps in that post!
It looks like something about version 1.2 doesn't play nice with some Mac OS and will get flagged. My friend did tell me they didn't have this issue at all with build 1.1 though. I've also unhidden the Mac 1.1 build if you still couldn't get the above steps to resolve the issue. (Just a caveat that there are some bugs in this version)
Hope that helps!
TBH i just played the game via a virtual simulator, and it's pretty good.
But i won't lie I'm not a tech coding type of gal and like i tried to follow the steps but it didn't work. It's just really confusing.
What a wonderfully-crafted visual novel this is. Everything regarding the story, the characters and the progression of what the reader knows about what's going on was done so well. I was led along and I learned what I needed to at just the right moment before figuring it out for myself, and overall I think the narrative and the 'twist' are very well constructed for a game of this length. Especially the 'other' Phebe and her own resolution.
I liked both Phebe and Peyton, though I could feel there was an almost tragic element to the story from the beginning, so I kinda braced myself for tragedy early on. You do that very well. At the end I was sad, but I was also happy that the sadness was genuine because the story was so well written.
Overall I really, really liked this VN, and I think you have a real gift. I'll happily read whatever else you upload in the future.
Oh! Thank you so much for this lovely comment! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it!
I really love the game so far but after having triggered Payton's scene when he gave me the flower, the flower isn’t in my inventory so I can't examine it in order to reach the true ending, help 🥹
This bug omg ..... I made a breakthrough with a possible solve for this load/save bug (it's the source of this and the fanny shop bugs) and will do my hardest to fix it tonight! If I can't do that I'll upload a build where you can access the ending via a cheat code instead for the time being. Thank you for letting me know you're still getting this bug!
Oooh thank you for your quick answer and for a possible solution! Fingers crossed it'll work 🤞
I've just uploaded a build just for you! It's the "Peyton Ending Shortcut" build (it's a PC build but let me know if you need Mac or Linux!). What you'll want to do is click the "Peyton Ending" button on the main menu and click on the bed in Phebe's room! This will cut straight to Peyton's ending (starting with the underground tunnels). The game should also drop a Flower into your key inventory for you to use in the final scene!
Thank you for letting me know that this glitch was still in the game! I got a nice look at what was going on under the hood and I feel like I've got a lot better idea of what areas to focus on in my own programming journey. Thank you again! :D
Update: It works! I got to see Payton's ending and I really love it! Thank you for making this game (I really enjoyed reading your Author's Footnote). I took the opportunity to support you (it's not much) and I can't wait for your next project(s) and meanwhile I'm going to check your previous game :)
Sorry for the late reply! Thank you so much for your reactivity! I'm on Mac but I'm going to see if I can launch the PC build with Wine Crossover first before asking you for a Mac build :)
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Omg! Thank you so much! That's really kind of you;;!
And Im glad the build worked! I should have asked which operating system you were using, haha. 😅
So glad to hear it worked out and thank you so much for playing and your support!!!! 💕💕💕💕
This looks so interesting though when I click to sleep it hangs up. I'm clicking everything lol even used my keyboard for y (yes) So I reloaded and just went to town but when I click on the sherrif the text block is empty and no matter what I click nothing happens. Only thing that works is esc which takes me to title screen. From the comments here I see this isn't a problem for anyone else, so im confused :/
Sounds like that's a resolution issue. When you open the game go into options and try out different resolution options. When you click on the bed or talk to the sheriff more buttons appear at the top of the screen. Alternatively you can try clicking the edge of the window screen and drag it until you can see the buttons at the top (when you try to sleep etc.). Hope that helps!
Ok thanks! I'll try!
I am INCREDIBLY smitten! Oh my goodness what a lovely little story! I was never 100% sure what was going on, but I didn't feel totally in the dark either, and the concept is FASCINATING.
Even with the darker theme, there were so many heartwarming moments. [Also funny ones, I adore Fanny.] Peyton is just such a refreshing character in his simplicity. Very sweet, very patient, very attentive, but he never crossed into pushover territory. It never felt like he was a one-dimensional character, his dialogue was incredibly smooth and thoughtful and, even though it's a shorter VN, his and Phebe's relationship developed very organically to me. She gradually relaxed around him, it didn't feel abrupt or rushed because of how her responses changed slightly with each day.
The portrayal of her emotions was very well done, it almost touched on unreliable narrator territory just because of how little she really understood about her feelings. I felt like her anxieties and discomfort were conveyed so well, without her having to actually verbalize any of it, just by how she spoke and the way her expressions would change.
[The sprites are SO expressive by the way, Peyton's soft smile made me actually squeal the first time I saw it.]
The writing in general is also just very beautiful to me. The poetic repetition, the callbacks to certain phrases, the nightmare sequences are some of my favorite scenes purely because of the use of prose, the descriptions were surreal, it very much gave the impression of being strange and dream-like. I have aphantasia so I can't picture things, but it set the tone for the setting beautifully. Every morning after one of those nightmares, I would also feel a little uneasy, I kept waiting to see if something outside the farm had changed or gone wrong. The atmosphere was incredible.
I took notes while I was playing, so I could keep track of the things that I found particularly interesting, and it felt like the word choice for specific scenes was noticeably intentional. I like that a lot! I write in my personal time, so I know how easy it can be to just throw synonyms around to avoid using the same words over and over again. With this story, though, it felt like there was a lot of intent behind certain phrases used, I really do think the wordplay was incredibly thought-provoking.
When you describe dead flowers as CORPSES, you have my immediate attention LOL
The soundtrack is wonderful by the way, I didn't used to play VNs with sound on because I tend to get a little overstimulated with a lot of noise, but lately I've been making sure to keep the background music on so I can better immerse myself in whatever mood the writer is trying to set. The title screen song SLAPS, and occasionally I would just tab out and kind of bop along to the general BGM.
Most of my notes are just me screaming about how precious and sweet Peyton is, I wasn't expecting to gush as much as I did since he isn't the type of character I gravitate towards. He was so conscientious of Phebe though, I loved how gently he interacted with her, I loved how he recognized that she would never be the one to call him out, so he took it upon himself to bring up his own mistakes/motivations to clear the air. Absolutely the sweetest man, I should have attempted Hugh first because I don't know how I'll recover now LOL
The resolution was so bittersweet, gonna be honest I'm petty so I didn't want to see the old man get a happy ending, but for Other Phebe it was nice to see her be able to rest. I love the notion of using the butterblue flower as the new core, and I love that it was even hinted at in the journal that there could be something other than bones used.
Speaking of, the set-up for the mystery was also very good. I don't think I was handed too much information too quickly, I did manage to guess what was happening early on, but I didn't get the specifics correct and there were other details I wouldn't have EVER been able to figure out.
And Phebe was a delight as a character, I genuinely enjoyed reading her thoughts because her perspective, the way she looked at the world is so unique, it was interesting. Having a unique lens like that for a character to view the story through I think adds so much more to the experience, it's like there's an added layer of the mystery to sort through. I liked having to stop and think about her word choices for a minute, or certain reactions that I couldn't understand right away. Just a very engaging character overall, even though one might not think so at surface level.
Evocative is a good word to describe this VN, I think. There was so much packed into the few hours I spent playing, I know I'll have to play it again now that I know what's going on just to see if there were any other hints that I missed.
A beautifully strange, memorable experience! I mean that in the best of ways. I look forward to whatever you work on next, and I'm definitely going to go back and look at the other games you mentioned in the authors notes!
This is such a beautiful comment! Thank you for playing it and also leaving such a lovely review! I mean it when these types of comments really brighten my day and are the best part of making games. So glad to hear the themes are coming through!
I don't even have to read past the ao3 tags section to know i'm downloading this one cause idk what "that house is full of bees" means but i HAVE to find out LOL
Omg I hope you enjoy!!!
And about the bees (I didn't want you to be expecting BEES in game), "house full of bees" is a saying to describe an extremely messed up family/living situation that someone just does not leave (for many reasons, mostly trauma/abuse).
Here's a good link for the definition. https://criminalreviews.wordpress.com/2012/12/19/a-captain-awkward-glossary/#evi...
(And also I learned today that this isn't as common of a saying as I thought it was? Haha! Well the more you know.)
i can't seem to buy the fishing rod no matter what i do ;-;
Hmm and you tried saving, going to the main menu and reloading your save file?
I figured out a possible new solution for this bug in my code so I'll try to push out a build tonight that will For Real This Time Squash This Bug (I keep saying this 😭 I really hope this fixes it *cries*)
I....was not aware of that fix! But that seemed to have fixed it when i tried really quick before work! Sorry to bother you over nothing <3
Hi! I've played other games from you and really enjoyed them! I was excited to play this one, but for some reason the mac file will not open and run on my computer? I'm not sure if this is an issue on my end or not, but I was just wondering if there was any way to fix it?
Hi!
Thats odd. Is it that clicking the .exe icon doesn't do anything?
I don't personally have a Mac but I'll look into things on my end to see what's going on.
thank you for responding, but I was actually able to figure it out! I just had to use a different application to unzip the file, I used the unarchiver instead of the default archive utility, and it opened! so it was actually just an issue on my end the whole time lol
Oh, great to hear it! :D
Feel free to reach out if you run into any additional issues!
good game! i like the sheer range of these endings, you really get a sense of what these characters care about
(spoilers: ending discussion)
peyton's ending provides lots of good lore and lots of nice closure. a wonderful way to finish off my playthroughs. fanny's ending was delightful, and i'm pleased with how much characterization was fit into what might be considered a joke ending. but i think my favourite ending was hugh's. when fanny was like "hey maybe stop talking to him you will die" it was very exciting. i love when a game tells you someone is bad news and follows through on it! no "it's okay, he fell in love with you so everything will be alright actually" here. you're warned someone will kill you if you go after him, and then he kills you when you go after him. very nice.
i also like the dr. frank mentions... i wonder what he'd think of all this. seems a bit depressing for his tastes but on the other hand maybe he'd be happy to see his research being used successfully
[spoilers for endings]
Haha! I'm so glad you liked Hugh's ending! I've never written anything quite like it, so it was fun writing it out to it's conclusion. There's something about big red buttons that say "Do Not Push" that I'm just so drawn towards in video games. I just wanna push them! and then when things blow up exactly how they said they would I'm like "Hehee, I died. :D".
And that's a really interesting question about Dr Frank! I've been thinking about it all day after I read your comment. I didn't want to explicitly mention it in game, but most likely Dr. Frank is no longer alive by the time of Butterblue. I usually love interlocking stories set in the same world, but seeing characters from one story grow old and die in the background of another story makes me so sad!!! It bums me out so much that I try avoid it as much as possible, even though I know realistically they would not live forever.
Dr. Frank is someone who is love with the idea of discovery and pushing the boundaries of what can be done in a way that ties into his own self-esteem so that the question of "SHOULD this be made possible?" isn't something he would naturally think on his own. It's not that he doesn't care, he's just so caught up in his own personal sphere of influence that he loses the forest for the trees. If he were aware of what his research ultimately was used for, he'd be really horrified I think. It definitely would cause him to think over what his own actions have ultimately led to. :(
Maybe its a good thing he's not aware of what Isaac and co. are doing, in a way.
Thank you so much for playing!!!!! :D
oh dear. indeed, he doesn't need to know B)
Could You tell me what the Intro Music is? Really loved it and the story, got the 3 endings but I found this area with a question mark that never seemed to activate is this a bug? Or did I miss something.
The intro song is: https://artlist.io/song/67259/with-the-earth
And the question mark [spoilers]
was originally going to be another puzzle where Phebe would need to get a rope in order to be able to climb up to see the next scene. It leads to the top of the mountain where you can see the dogs in the pit (and was going to be a point where Phebe could get more clues as to what was going on). I ended up not using it at all, and the screen it leads to can still be seen in Peyton's confessional event (once you find him in the mountains).
The button doesn't do anything and I totally forgot to take it out, haha.
Ah very good, thanks for the intro music link as well
I had been meaning to play this earlier, AND I REALLY SHOULD HAVE!!! It's a pretty fricking great story, aaaa. AND THE PRODUCTION VALUE WITH ALL OF THE PORTRAITS AND BACKGROUNDS AND AAAA. The game looks excellent, is a joy to play (gotta get all the money in the world, y'know!!!!), and the story...... It's excellent!!!!! Dunno how quite how to talk about it without spoilers, so just gonna, y'know, put a big gap here, pff. SPOILERY RAMBLING AHEAD!!!
Really love all the characters here!!! ...I mean maybe not Hugh, but he's got a strong character to him, y'know? You really hate him!!! And that makes him a good character. Peyton is just a sweet lil guy, I love him and how nice he is while being partially brooding. Fanny's extremely fun and kinda wonderful in her interactions with Phebe, I love her and her absolute lack of empathy of any kind. AND PHEBE HERSELF............. aaaaAAAAAAA. She's just. God. She's such a perfect character, from start to finish!!!! All of the characters bouncing off of her is so...... uhhhh........... I mean, fun in some ways and certainly not-so-fun in other ways, all interactions powerful overall. I love seeing everybody be so nice to her (mostly)........ EVERYBODY HAS TO BE NICE TO PHEBE!!!! IT'S AGAINST THE RULES TO BE MEAN!!!!!!!!!! I guess there's one thing that feels way too evil to talk about because it's just a raw spoiler, but I figure the name "Butterblue" is probably the obvious choice, right? But one must take their time in deciding a name!!! It's gotta be perfect!!!!
AND THE OTHER ENDINGS..... The Fanny ending's CG certainly got me to go "Oh" in slight horror, pff. It's almost haunting in a way, with how just...... absolutely stale and miserable it is. AND HUGH'S SURE HAD SOME FEELINGS TO IT HUH. Very intense. And both are very nicely paced to be obtainable right before the true ending, WHICH..................... I mean, I did get a little emotional. IT WAS SO GOOD................ Dunno how to point to my favorite part without it just being a raw spoiler, but...... the one before the awakening!!! That!!!!!! I really fricking loved that. BUT I ALSO LOVED THE REST OF IT, Y'KNOW.... Everything after that has such a powerful feeling to it......
ANYWAY YES. This is a good game. A very good game!!! I hope Phebe has an excellent rest of her life!!!!!!!! And!!!!!!!!! Thank you for making this game!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh!!!!!!! This is such a lovely comment!!!!!!! Thank you so much for playing, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it!!
I wish itch had a spoiler tag but I love the "Butterblue" idea you mentioned! I actually didn't have a set answer for that particular part of the game and wanted players to imagine what they wanted the answer to be. But I've been lightly toying around around with the idea of writing a few epilogue stories (shhhh... but Butterblue might be coming to steam 👀) but it's sort of hard to write anything if you don't have a set answer for that part! But I like the answer "Butterblue" and I think I'm going to make it the default answer and have players change it if desired.
Also if the answer is Butterblue I couldn't get the image out of my head that [spoilers below]
Fanny would probably call her "Butts" and the girl is still too polite to correct her so it just sticks. 🤣🤣🤣
Thank you so much for playing!!
OH MY GOD SHE REALLY WOULD CALL HER THAT WOULDN'T SHE.... IT SOUNDS TOO PERFECT..... Only other name I could think of are.... more flowers with symbolic names, like Lily or Daffodil (Forget-me-nots, too, but perhaps a butterblue is... slightly related to that??? I mean who knows!!! Forget-me-not is a mouthful though pff.) ALSO MORE STORY??? VERY EXCITING (I GOTTA PLAY YOUR OTHER GAMES THOUGH!!! ...They set in the same universe, right? Or is that wrong??? Wanna play them either way!!!!)
But..... Butts and Fanny...... An incredible relationship with two incredible names, pff.
Forget-me-not would be such a wonderful name for her 😭😭😭😭 (even if a little hard to say but it just fits her so well!!)
And yes! :D My other games are all set in the same world at different time points but I purposefully try to keep them as separate as possible so you don't have to know one story to enjoy the others. In Butterblue, the city of New Working that her and her father lived in was the same city that Fia moves to in A New Don! And the textbook written by Dr. Frank is a reference to Dr. Frank's Build-a-Boyfriend. :)
hii not sure if this is just a problem with my pc but i cant advance past the first day..? The morning after you first meet the characters, no matter if i go see Fanny or Hugh, when i click on the question mark to talk to them it just shows an
empty dialogue box and it wont let me click on anything else or go back. so im just stuck there,,,,
That's a screen resolution issue. Hit escape, options and Reset Resolution. This will show the buttons at the top of the screen!
oh okay thank you so much!!
How do we fish?
You can purchase the fishing rod from Fannys shop! There is a fishing spot up in the mountains. It's the screen with the stream (left at the fork on the mountain screen) and there should be a big fish icon on the water you can click.
There's a known bug where sometimes the fishing rod and the guidebook will appear to be sold out even if you haven't purchased them. To fix this, hit the escape button and return to the main menu. Reloading your save will have the fishing rod and guidebook back in-stock.
I just played this, and it's quite a beautiful story.
SPOILERS
My first playthrough was Peyton-focused, which definitely provided the most "complete" experience and was obviously more heartwarming, haha. I just circled around for a Hugh playthrough. 1) Ouch, you pulled no punches there. He is merciless. 2) It was fun to see all the little hints that added unease and mystery in the first playthrough with more context.
...also, I just saw a comment that implies that hanging out with Fanny is a legit ending option, and I am here for it. She's so casually cutthroat but charming.
BUGS
I did notice a few bugs, though nothing that broke the game, fortunately.
1) When I go to buy the fishing rod, it doesn't give any indication that I bought it. No money spent, for example. But I can start fishing, at least.
2) There's a question mark in the farthest right area that doesn't seem to be linked to any text.
3) Peyton continues to "wait at the crossroads" after the scene that is triggered when you interact with him there and start his ending. If you click him again, the scene at the ravine (?) starts again.
4) The game lets you pick up items when there's no room in your inventory, and I think they just disappear when you do. Related, if you click to X out one inventory item, it usually removes 2.
Thank you so much for letting me know about the bugs! Im working on a patch so this is really helpful. :D
And yes! Fanny has an ending, haha. You'll need to donate to her shop to unlock her conversations.
Tysm for playing!
Another absolute banger from Heiden!
I found the atmosphere in this game especially enjoyable - I love the blend of sci fi, western, and horror that somehow turned out feeling so effortless and natural! The soundtrack really backs this up, it's kind of a spooky farmcore spaghetti western feeling that I was vibing to the whole time and it really set the tone for the story!
I had a lot of fun figuring the puzzles of how to solve everyone's problems, and farming, and I adored Fanny's cold shriveled little heart and her unrepentant vicious greed, she's so interesting and gaslight gatekeept girlbossed her way into my affection <3
But Peyton and Phebe were the stars of the show for me - both their individual journeys as characters, and the slow and tender development of their relationship and the themes of them both being societal outsiders who learn how to deal with and ultimately support each other. I got Peyton's ending and it made me tear up with the combination of hope, sadness, healing trauma, and happiness. Loved them both so much!! There's a delicate examination of difficult feelings in this game, which I adored.
Play this game if you want a blend of farm simulator, creeping sense of tense horror every time it turns to 4 PM and you're not home yet (very effective at getting me to turn in on time and made me feel like such a rebel for sticking around to pick up a few more flowers), generational trauma, an examination of identity and sense of self, and sweet romance. :D loved it!
Aw omg, thank you for this sweet comment!!!
So glad to hear the themes are coming through and that people like delightfully heartless Fanny!
Thank you so much for playing!
A eerily quaint but touching tale about slowly learning how to stand up for yourself. Phebe is your stereotypical doormat otome game heroine who agrees with everyone , but the repercussions of such a personality is on full display. I also enjoyed the atmosphere of this game: the monotonous game play loop coupled with the yellow and green palette created a lulling ambience with just a hint of unease.
As a certified villain lover, I went in the game expecting to like Hugh. I didn't. However, I did like how f*cked up his ending was . I also found it hilarious that he was so horrible that even Fanny told you to stay away from him.
Speaking of Fanny, her ending was A++. I laughed at Phebe's employee-of-the-month smile in the ending CG. The two bonding over cloud gazing is so hilarious yet touching in a twisted sort of way.
Peyton is best boy. A genuine nice guy who also pushes Phebe to stand up for herself. It was very sweet to see Phebe slowly and awkwardly warm up to him.
Expect some fanart doodle in the future.
Aaaaahhhh so glad to hear you liked it!!!
I tried a lot of new things with this game and it sounds like they worked out. 👀👀👀💞
Thank you so much for playing!
-I feel like the amount of thought put into various aspects of this game is really impressive. The author's notes are worth it-- definitely read them. There's some srs wisdom there idk -- If I had a twitter I would screen some shiiiiit.
-It's hard for me to write something here without spoiling it but I would encourage players to think about the themes while playing it. There are a lot of games where the themes are entirely handed to you and this doesn't feel like one of those. But they're also not so obscured as to feel random or thoughtless. Very good balance.
-I knew I grew up when I finally managed to avoid the yandere in a game NOT TODAY SATAN
-The game is like western+horror+cute farm sim+ scifi. You'd think the genres would not work together but the game kinda nails it? -
-One of the things I really like about Heiden's games is the ability to move past cliches.
-Also can I just say the music is great?
- The farming sim owns my body (hmmmmm? Phrasing??? :3cccc) -- But really though I LOVE this addition to the game. Like I like that you can be very utilitarian and not farm too much at all. But I sure as hell wasn't.
-I like that there is a character you don't date who still gives you an ending.
-That goddess story insert was really cool even beyond the theme.
-I love the ending that I got ;u; It's nice to see something that isn't super saccharine but also isn't totally nihilistic. I guess this goes into the author's notes - but I really appreciate the middle=ground approach here.
That's what I can think of so far. I've played Elvine but now I do have to play Ziva!
Omg fmskfnpsnfonapd thank you so much for playing !
I'm really glad the themes seem to be coming through, that was something I was trying to keep subtle but not too over the top. (A balance I find hard!)
And haha, I see you managed to avoid [spoiler]'s route. 😆
I absolutely could not stop playing this, but now I am stuck at Peyton's end T_T After the "..." choice, I just see the red background and don't seem to be able to do anything - I can access the inventory but that's about it.
I loved the slow build of the relationship between Phebe and Peyton, and the mysterious backgrounds of the characters and the town were enough to keep me planting bloody potatoes all day. The looming threat of nightfall was very tense in the beginning, until I got into a rhythm of the game.
Really enjoyed, but I have to know what happens!
(Big spoiler below:)
Try examining the flower Peyton gave her!
(if this doesn't work plz let me know, haha)
Thanks heaps for replying!
If it's meant to be a Key Item, I don't have it. I definitely did get the event of him giving it to her though!
Hmm. Yes it should be a key item.
I'll look into it on my end and try to replicate it + push out a fix. Unfortunately you can't get the ending without it.
(I have an idea of what caused it. If at any point you returned to the main menu and then went and got that scene with Peyton, it's possible that the flower wasn't added to your inventory. )
I might have done that.
Look forward to hearing about updates! I really really loved this story <3
Okay bad news first: I can't seem to replicate your bug on my end!;;;
Good news: I build a special build just for you!
Go ahead and download the build called "Peyton's Flower".
When the game opens, click on the button in the upper right to start the game.
This will load a save that has all the variables ready for the ending. If your inventory is empty, don't worry. Go ahead downstairs and click on the iron door. I've added in an extra bit of code in this dialogue that will drop the flower into your inventory.
Discover the new room and activate the ending (this will make the title music stop playing, haha). This time you'll have the needed item for the ending!
If you're playing on Mac or Linux, let me know and I can make this build in those operating systems for you!
Thank you again for your patience!
(And if anyone else is reading this and has also gotten this bug, feel free to also download this build!)
Just wanted to update you!
I'm trying to replicate the problem on my end (and my power keeps going out, so ofc that's making it difficult! LOL) but haven't figure out how it happened just yet!
(A picture of all the key items you can acquire in the game.)
I've tried triggering the cutscene with no additional items, with just the fishing rod, the Guidebook, and also the key (thinking maybe the inventory thinks it's full when it's not...?) but no luck so far. I've also reloaded the game a bunch, opened it and closed it and tested it that way as well and still can't get it to break.
I'm currently using a PC, are you also on a PC or a different operating system?
In the meantime, I'm also working to see if I can just send you a save file that you can load from that already has the Peyton flower in the inventory.
Sorry for the wait and thank you for your patience!!
Just played through the ending using that extra file - I love it, and the author's notes are super cute too T_T <3
Thank you so much for your help with this!! I am using a PC as well. Also, I didn't have the key in my Key Items anymore, even though I was able to use it to get into the next room.
Im so glad to hear you enjoyed it! :D :D
I'm still investigating how the bug happened and I hope to put out a more permanent fix once I can get an idea of what's causing it.
And yes, fun fact that door is controlled by an internal variable and isn't explicitly tied into having the key in your inventory. So thus, you can still go into the basement in the special load I provided bc I flipped a few variables behind the scenes. :)
1. Thoughts on the characters so far?
Phebe struck me as being pliable in an unnatural sense, like someone made her that way. Very literal and to the point she was, needing a command to do anything. I don't think she had a "good" relationship with her father ahaha almost like he robbed her of her will to do anything or her independence. some of what she said gave me deja vu--i used to stare at towels and carpets and find animals in them, eheh.
I'm looking forward to her character development owo
The other characters seemed cool. Peyton struck me as little mr revenge hiding in the barn like an assassin :p and Hugh I had a less favorable impression of but I'm willing to give him a chance, as long as he's not abusive.
all in all i liked the characters. i got tastes of deeper mysteries to them.
3. Which of the two LIs are you most interested in?
i don't know. going off of looks Hugh fits my taste more but he's not winning in the personality race. Peyton seems nice...but it's the nice ones you have to be wary of O.O
4. Would you be interested in being a beta tester for the finished game?
yasss I would be interested! this game seems really cool and i'd love to help >w< i've also beta tested a few games before this too
Ngl Phebe was like a doll to me, she felt like she had no emotions but instead followed the will of what her father instructed her to do so, it's really intriguing and makes me want to know more of her past and what her and her father were like and if Phebe was a result or a casualty to the experiment Peyton has been referring to. Amazing demo, can't wait to see more~!
1. Thoughts on the characters so far?
Phebe - well I did share my thoughts above but she is quite eerie to me since I display a lot more emotions than her, makes me curious.
Peyton - I'm interested in his past and why he's entangled with Phebe's life, I'm actually really glad he was worried over Phebe cause this girl is like still water. And he's also really cool lmao.
Hugh - Just from those few minutes of interaction I could get a feel of his character, he's surely deeply entrenched in mystery and his constant usage of "dogs" makes me want to peek more but I might get my head chopped off, I sure do hope Hugh gets a soft spot for Phebe because man, if you didn't want people all over your business, stop being so mysterious!
Fanny - this woman is an icon, she's rough and blunt and goes by her own tune but it's entertaining to see that. None of the characters are the typical "good guys", everyone's got a secret of their own and are shaped by the wilderness of this town, Fanny looks to be more on the approachable side which is already saying a lot about the town. Great character A++
2. Typos?
None that I noticed, but I did notice that the characters' mouths would move despite there indicidating it was an action and not a dialogue, and the entire segment with meeting Hugh the sprites were kind of glitching in some ways and Hugh's mouth kept moving even though he wasn't saying anything.
3. Which of the two LIs are you most interested in?
Honestly, both. I explained why in the characters but with the most chances I'll survive if I'm curious?? Totally Peyton because the man already has a soft spot over how Phebe just bluntly told the man "Ah yes, btw my dad is dead so yea, lol". Love that girl even if she unsettles me.
4. Would you be interested in being a beta tester for the finished game?
I'd be interested to! However I'm not sure how so unless you guys are patient with me or something I won't feel hesitant or burdened over my inexperience over it and would gladly help in any way I can~!
I won't say much re: Phebe and her relationship with her father because I don't want to spoil anything but I will say you are a very astute reader~! :D
Typos -> Noted! Thank you!
Beta Tester -> Oh no worries! No experience needed! I'll put together a devlog closer to the time I have something to test that will explain everything (how to download etc). There should be an update if you're following the page~! :D
Thank you so much for playing and I'm really excited to share the full story with you!
PHEBE IS A BABY AND I MUST PROTECC HER!!!
Im so happy people are liking Phebe, she was a joy to write and Im really excited to see what people think of her whole journey! 😭
It was a good start hihi
Thank you! :D
1. Thoughts on the characters so far?
Phebe: BABY, ANGELLL😭😭
Peyton: A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG MAN ILY
Hugh: BOO GET OUT >:(( (unless you have a hat)
Fanny: she's fanny- I mean funny. I like her
Dogs: woof
2. Typos?
While I was playing I notice none.
3. Which of the two LIs are you most interested in?
I mean, Peyton is the true boyfriend material but I'm kinda interested/curious how things would turn out with Hugh.
4. Would you be interested in being a beta tester for the finished game?
Yes, count me in. >:D
And have a good rest!!!! you deserve it!!!!
Thank you!!!!!
And yes very much enjoying my time off. I'll be getting back into it eventually and excited for it 👀👀👀
Hi Heiden :)
good demo of your visual novel,
Phebe life is hard, I feel sorry for her.
It seems Peyton has an issue with the grand father?
The Sherriff and Fanny, I am not sure what to think but they could have been nicer towards Phebe.
take time to rest :)
Thank you!!
Phebe definitely has a hard life and I'm excited to showcase her full journey in the full game! 😄