Hello, everyone! Welcome to the first devlog of the game!

Introductions

I should start by introducing myself.My name is Robert also known as Thunderent around the game-dev community. I've been working on this game for the past two years by myself, though most of the work has been done in the last year when it became a focus project of mine. The game started as a small practice project( with a 10-minute gameplay time ) and has been received quite well by friends&family. They provided the encouragement to continue the game and try to make something bigger out of it.

The demo which I have published almost a month ago has been received quite well by the community. I want to express a warm thank you to everyone who played it. The quality and quantity of the feedback which I have received has exceeded my expectations and it helped me notice the aspects of the game which still require a lot of work. Thank you!

Future of the game

Now, let's talk about the next few months and what I plan on doing.

1. Work on the new scenes which at the current stage are only a concept. Progressing through the game means that the simulation in which David is in will get more and more "abstract". As David realizes that the world around him is fake, the fabric of the simulated reality will slowly tear itself apart, letting room for more imaginative environments.
2. User Interface Updates. There will be an improved helper system for both the controls and the usage of the main game mechanics. Panels with pictures&information will appear on screen when the player is introduced to a new element or game mechanic. The previous 5-second tooltip wasn't enough and most of the players missed it.
3. Puzzle updates and new puzzles. The youtube playthroughs have been a tremendous help in seeing what kind of puzzles people enjoy the most. I try to take all feedback into account and see what parts people enjoy most and iterate and improve on them.
4. Hint system - in real escape rooms you are allowed a set numbers of hints, so why shouldn't the game also have them? In order to avoid frustration or getting stuck, the Journal will have an additional separate page which will offer hints( images or texts ). The player won't get these hints for free though.
   
   1. Each hint is unlocked by collecting photo paper( think polaroid-paper ) scattered around the scenes. Each hint requires a specific amount of "papers" to be unlocked.
   2. The photo paper will be plenty and easy to find. With this system, I am trying to reward exploration of the game.
   3. If the player is stuck, most likely he has explored all possible options, so rewarding him with hints is an idea to help combat frustration.
5. Better camera mechanic. The demo didn't introduce the camera mechanic and the picture taking aspect of it that well.The objects which are hidden will be a little bit easier to find.Putting the camera on and off multiple times to see what has changed took too much time.The hidden objects will have a slight short-interval glitch when viewed through the camera( not the whole screen just the specific object). The glitch will happen randomly and at various intervals. Not too obvious, but not that hidden.
6. Corridor-scene improvements. Yeah, I know...the corridor-tutorial-level could've been made much better.There was too much walking and I've recevied a lot of feedback on this. Don't worry I have more events planned within it to better introduce the game mechanics and more puzzles. BTW : The corridor was supposed to be a dream from which David wakes up from! Shh...
7. Story-line development. The story is not fully finished yet only the rough-concept of it.If any of you have feedback on it so far I would be glad to hear it.
8. [OPTIONAL] Depending on the development time and the budget the game I might be able to include voice acting for it. No promises yet! Just an idea on the table.
9. Steam Release. No ETA. As soon as possible.
   

That's it for now! Hopefully you enjoyed playing and this devlog clarified some of your questions.

Have an awesome day!
Robert(Thunderent)