Hello and hello. Hope everyone is doing well, or at least as well as can be expected. This is my continuing effort to share more of what I've worked on in the background, so I feel less like every other thing I do is just swirling the drain before it gets... well... out there. For the pressure release that comes with sharing stuff with the world.
Today is a lengthy one that's been added to and chipped away at over time. What I call the "Daega Compendium". For those not in the know, "Will" and "Daega" are different words for the same thing. They are the ever present egos of existence, and a major part of most of my works let alone my main one, Between.
Let's start with the very first one.
Now, there's probably some typos in there. This format was an early way I was using to document them. Document how? Well, it's a compendium. Think Persona Compendium. Or a Pokedex. Or any other 'creature encyclopedia' you'd find in a game.
That's the idea, at least. The art acts as key art, and inevitably comes from designs and renders from many artists. Because I'd be crazy to try and do this sort of slow burn effort via just one artist. I came to that decision at the start, and I embrace the different design sensibilities and flare that has come from it.
It's been a lengthier effort that I started around 3 years ago, or so. We've got... 30-40 of them now? In the interest of the various ways we can use them, I've even got Icarue to contribute a handful over the years in the fun crossover way we can do as developer friends.
And you might ask... Wait, so what are these planning to be used for? To the point Icarue was interested in getting a few works as well? Well, there's a few things.
First, it actually serves as a pretty solid way to experiment working with a new artist. You can understand how well you communicate with them, their pacing, and all the important things that make you understand if it'll work long term via that collaboration. Not continuing to work with them isn't always because this went poorly (sometimes there isn't budget or schedules that work continuing from it) but it could be, even for a good artist, a way to understand that. Both Icarue and I have leveraged that.
Second, a quick one. It has helped my flesh out lore and make the world feel more populated - if at least in my own head - to this point.
Third, there's actually fruit of this effort that has born fruit already. It's backfilled into Between for the 5 star bond links. And, in Nightshift, the art available at the time was used for the rare cards in it used art made for this. Narratively, there's even reason to use them, for that and beyond.
Fourth, and art book. Well, for these. Or in general. So much art has been made, you can probably do a few of those for the games and projects I've done. They'd make for great art book art should I ever decide to make that effort.
Finally, this effort was started with a very specific future project in mind. That will happen. Add to that, a couple other ideas have popped up that could potentially make use of it. Card game related things are one obvious one. And any system that wants a Pokemon/Persona/Xenoblade 2/etc type element to its mechanics can leverage it too.
It's actually heavily filled out at this point. I said I've 30-40 of them, give or take, and that doesn't include all the minor ones you'd use to fill out such mechanical systems. If I wanted to start a game today, I think I've developed a good amount to take that plunge quite easily.
I can assure you that at least one thing will do that. I can look at that project, and I can know that it will happen because one of the biggest art questions is heavily settled. And, potentially others can happen, too.
So, hopefully this preview into this slow burn initiative was interesting. Very rambly like usual. I never know how much to be specific on or reveal, but hopefully this slice was a good amount for now.
Have a good day, all.