Before we get down to business, I wanted to remind that until December, I will not officially return. Although I'm already working at an almost normal pace, the difference is that now I'm more focused on my health than work. However, I still try to work every day from Monday to Friday and some Saturday afternoons. If you want more details about this off-topic, go to the end of the post and read the PS.

So! In the last diary, we discussed the first steps in developing LA:Memories. This time, I'll show you everything I've done so far. It's worth mentioning that Yuna's story is finished and revised; I just need to work on the renders.

But let's get to the point: The main interface.

If you remember my previous post, the desktop interface was based on a mix between Mac and Windows, there you can see the final result. I want to keep a ‘modern but old’ look, so many icons, if not all, will be the same or very similar to the ones I used in the first versions of LA. The idea is to give it that ‘classic’ touch, and I would like to keep this for the rest of the development, although there will be changes as usual, I have no doubt about it. Still, I show you what the icons looked like in the first versions of LA (quite nostalgic):

After a few days of working on the interface, I remembered how tedious it was to work on an interface from scratch... it took me several days to decide how some panels were going to look as I wanted to keep some familiarity with LA, but I also wanted to bring something fresh.

I think I've found a good balance. By the way, ^ this one is the general girls' panel (files/memories).

And this is the specific panel for each girl, in this case, Yuna's panel.

I want to keep this template because I like the final result although I might add more things in future versions, but I'm not sure what will be the final decision about this panel because I haven't finished designing what will be the RPG aspects (points system, rewards, etc), so just in case I left some space here & there. Still, I think it's an interesting result. If I come up with a better design idea, I'll change it, you know me, but I'll try to leave it as it is.

On the other hand, we have the wallpapers:

This time, I remembered the style that Windows had (XP/Vista/7), so I adapted it to my style. It reminds of the LA gallery, doesn't it? As I say, the idea is to be familiar with the interface but with a fresh touch. NOTE: As you can see, some things are not finished (the general section is duplicated, the bar on the left is not the right colour, etc).

Although it took me longer than I thought to find a design that I liked and was also functional... the final result is not bad at all, I hope you like it too, and above all, I hope you find it intuitive.

Right now, I'm finishing the design of the first mini-game (interface): The Quizzes. They will be something similar to the ones you already know from LA but with a design more similar to a Google form. I won't show anything because right now it's a chaos of squares and random images that I'm using as a template while I finish designing the final version.

NOTE: In case I haven't explained it yet, most of the interface or manual interaction you will have will happen inside a PC, more specifically the PC of Lisa, the descendant of Lisapi, but I don't want to spoil anything for the moment. Also, the PC has its own OS: Peach SO. It's a reference to asses plus parodying Apple.

And that's all for the moment. I have to finish the quiz panel, prepare the questions/answers, design the shop system, design another mini-game, and work on renders. There's still some work to do, although it's not as much as it seems, maybe the most tedious thing will be to decide the design of the points shop interface and the other mini-game.

I know I said that maybe the first version would be available at the end of this month and that it would include Anna and Mara but... huh, that was my demanding self and my usual self, the one who is not aware that there are always setbacks and having fixed dates is complicated. It's something I want to change, honestly, because it adds a lot of pressure and in the end, I end up doing things in a hurry and sometimes even incomplete (how many buttplugs are available and how many should be available? Same with the dildo events...).

I still have to think about how I'm going to manage this whole thing of saying release dates, but I think that instead of just saying an approximate date, I'll be showing more things I'm working on so that you can join me in the process and when there's only translating left, that's when I'll give an exact date. I think it's one of the best ways to keep you all up to date with the development status of each version of any project. Years ago I tried to do it when I was writing two DDs per week, but in the end, I focused more on working and less on sharing what I was working on. In any case, I will try to find a balance.

I have to say that it's easier for me to post things on Twitter, but I'll do my best. Still, as I said, now that I'm no longer on Discord, I want to find new ways to be in direct touch with you and show you interesting, technical, boring, etc. stuff.

You don't need to follow me on Twitter, but... if I want to show something spicy and quick, I do it there, just like I randomly make renders just for there, sneak peek, even memes.

That said, nothing more to add... see you in the next post!

PS: I don't want to say goodbye without talking a bit about my health, because it's the main reason for this disastrous year... I don't know how to describe it, I just know that I want it to end once and for all. Anyway, after deciding to visit another physio instead of the usual one, I'm feeling a bit better, especially because last month I was leaving all the sessions more sore than when I came in, plus I had the feeling that he only wanted to get my money, instead of trying to health me, so I looked for alternatives in the city near where I live and... not bad. At least now I know what's wrong with me, or at least it's a close approximation of the diagnosis, and yes, it's all caused by the car accident I had last year. And if it's not caused by that, it's like 80% of the reason why I've been so sick this year (let's not forget that I also got infected with a stomach virus, and that also fucked me up, I'm still recovering from it, and obviously, excessive stress carried over the last years).

Not only have I made that change by deciding to visit another physio, but also by changing my daily routine and how I plan my day-to-day life. Starting to go to the library or a cafeteria to work/study, see people, life... it changes a bit how your head processes things. I'm a very anti-social person, but I admit that I'd rather see people even if I don't like it than be locked up in my room all day. Locking yourself in all day causes you to lock yourself in and can fuck you up mentally.

So if we put together everything I've managed to change plus other changes that are still to come like for example next week I'll start going to the gym once and for all... I'm not recovered, but I think I'm 90% recovered. There is still a lot of work to do, and the physio has already told me that until I start to strengthen my body I won't notice a real improvement, the muscle weakness caused by a sedentary lifestyle sucks.

As a final note, I will say again that my idea is to return to the ‘new normal pace’ in December. Once I publish the first version of this, I will focus on working in LA but I will also focus on planning and deciding what this ‘new normal pace’ is about because the crazy work pace I have been doing the last few years has led me to where I am now and I honestly don't want this to happen again, because yes, the accident and the stomach virus have been the last straw, but I have been doing an unnecessarily crazy work pace for the last two years, and let's remember that I am only one person doing all the work, I'm a "solo dev", you know... I don't want to downplay the importance of Robin's help with proofreading or Locu's help with bug hunting, but at the end of the day, all the weight and responsibility of the work falls on me, so I'm on my own in the face of danger. All that plus my stupid perfectionism working on an imperfect product... Huh.

Anyway, I'll say goodbye for today. See you soon!