Ahem, so the Spooktober 2024 Game Jam Submission period has just officially ended, and I'm very excited right now! First of all, thank you for all the downloads since I published R U VAMP. I was so surprised and happy to see the support, and I truly appreciate it.ヾ(≧▽≦*)o

This post is just going to be a casual talk about my journey with my first game jam, and I wanted to share it with you all.

First off, the title of this game was something that came to mind while brainstorming the story at the start of the jam. I also really like how it can be called R U VAMP for short! Are You Really a Vampire??? initially started as a visual novel focused on taking care of a certain pampered vampire who had been coddled all his life and couldn't live independently. That was Zephyr's original concept. But as I worked on it, I found myself wanting to add more conflict to the story. I introduced mystery elements, and incidents, and before I knew it, my cute vampire story had evolved into something resembling a thriller. Haha.

From here on, SPOILER ALERT. Please play the game first if you haven’t, or read at your own risk.

A fun fact, in the very first draft of the story, there was no Emily! Originally, the one who died was just an NPC—Villager A in the village—and we were going to investigate and suspect Zephyr. But then I wanted the death to have a bigger impact on both the writer and the player, so I created Emily. I actually tried my best to make her very cheerful and lovable so that everyone would grow fond of her (only to then kill her off...). Funny enough, as soon as I created her, Emily easily became my favorite character. (She still died, though.) o(TヘTo)

And of course, I can't leave out Daniel! Daniel was, like Emily, created on a whim because I needed a reason for the writer to gain access to this secluded village. He was only supposed to fulfill that role, but as I kept writing, I found myself mentioning him a lot throughout the game, and Daniel ended up becoming one of my favorite characters.

To me, Daniel might be the most complex character to write. At first glance, he might seem like a cheerful and eager friend, but there are also moments where he’s very caring and warm, and at times, he's just a worrywart. But throughout, one thing remains true: he cares deeply about you, even more than he does for himself.

Interestingly, I didn't think about Daniel's appearance even after finishing the game. I wanted him to remain that mysterious friend who's always there for you, no matter the ending.

So here's a sketch of my two favorite characters. (Sorry, Zeph...)

Daniel only got a design after the game was finished because I wanted to draw some bonus content—poor guy, haha. Daniel is similar to Emily in that they both enjoy making those around them feel better! I imagine his smile would be a lot like Emily's.

(And, of course, Emily gets a halo—because she’s my angel.)

The hardest part of making this visual novel, apart from finding all the sounds, was definitely writing the story. (Honestly, everything about the process was hard, but if I had to pick, this would be it.) I remember editing it over and over again, even after finishing the ending code. It's funny because I originally wanted to make a very short visual novel during my school break, but the script just kept getting longer and longer. щ(゜ロ゜щ)

I really wish the story hadn't felt so rushed because I wanted everyone to have enough time to get to know and grow fond of Zephyr. I know the story could have been explained better since everything happens so quickly, but with time running out and the start of school approaching, I just didn’t have the time to get into more detail.

Nevertheless, this game jam has been such a great experience for me to step out of my comfort zone, and I enjoyed every single moment of making it (minus the headaches, of course).

With all the support from the people around me—my family and friends—I'm proud to say that I'm very content and happy with how R U VAMP turned out. It will be forever kept safe in my heart. ♡

Thank you for reading this far and for taking an interest in this little game. I wish you all a wonderful day and hope to see you again sometime in the future (if I’m not buried under schoolwork and exams T-T).

Luv u!

Plennty

☆*: .｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆