Twist of Fate: Anathema

HIATUS! The official tumblr of the dev team of Twist of Fate: Anathema, a fantasy visual novel. We follow the  #Twist of Fate: Anathema tag!

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🌙☀️🌠 Hear ye, hear ye! To all our faithful supporters, followers and friends of the crown:

TWIST OF FATE: ANATHEMA WILL BE GOING ON AN INDEFINITE HIATUS.

While the project is not perfectly abandoned, various circumstances have made me, Meishali, decide it was time for a change. There will be a future in which I’ll return to finish what I have started: Anathema deserves its place in the world, and I shall find it. 

If you wish to read a more transparent why/how, please follow the link under the cut.

BEGINNINGS AND ENDS

For those who follow the blog and have read our entries, many know that Anathema is a love project, and many, many hours went into Anathema’s writing, code, visual designs, and overall conceptualization since 2016. It was something we did ontop of our IRL jobs, commission work, and other things. 

While working on it was its own reward, Merriweather got somewhat swarmed by life’s imperatives; and if it was something we discussed, I planned and even braced myself for, I failed to keep myself steady when I was left to my own devices.

Things moved slowly on my own, and true motivation never came. I considered hiring assistance in writing and corrections to keep this burden off of my shoulders while I tended to the game’s visual assets, unfortunately, these plans fell through due to an absence of communication or true interest from the interested parties.

INTEREST DWINDLING

Needless to say, this was just a bummer. Nothing seemed to work. I am not one for group projects, but I considered Anathema as a way to keep each other in check; both through the competitive aspect of group work and the fact that I knew that, no matter what, I was not alone. 

I wanted to try, before I gave into any personal project. It didn’t work. Anathema didn’t feel like something I would write, or design, or direct, or produce anymore. It felt as though it wasn’t mine, at all, and I came to loathe the idea of even having my name associated with it.

CUT THE LIMB

To stick by Anathema in this state was a chore. To draw assets, to read pages and pages of python and Ren’py documentation. To write chapters in the background, juggling with commission work and hobbies. It didn’t provide the satisfaction production typically offers me.

I also felt shame: this is not the first time I’ve started up a project only to see it fail because of my own shortcomings. Friends and family are supportive, but they want “tangible results”, and most are unable to understand how most artistic processes work. 

This added a layer of stress I didn’t, or couldn’t explain to anyone, as my actual entourage know I’m not one to bend to other people’s whims. I forced myself to keep up with the production because of other people’s expectations, namely those who struggle to understand why I do what I do. To them, it seems to amount to nothing but pretty characters posing on blogs, for nerds and geeks to consume and enjoy.

I realized I started to resent its characters, its concepts, its story, and more: when I felt that growing inside, I wasn’t proud of it at all. Thankfully, a moment of clarity allowed me to cut the limb and stop forcing myself, lest it influences the work. And it was already starting to. Quality can never be achieved if love isn’t present, and I found myself realizing I didn’t love Anathema anymore.

In the end, it’s not unlike a bad breakup. You feel it coming, and it can not be prevented whatsoever. I was saddened by own attitude and decided it was best to take some genuine distance with it and come back with hindsight, and only when I get the (internal) firepower needed to battle this project.

I still have a lot of affection for its main character, the Runereader, and I hope to do them justice some day.

WHAT’S NEXT IN STORE

My webcomic project: CAUSE. A thing I planned on doing the year Anathema was conceptualized: this is something I can do now and on my own. Something I will do, something I have absolute love for, and something I will write in good faith. It is mine, it is something I would write, it is something I would design, and it is something I would direct and produce. I can see the Runereader passing the baton my own protagonist, and I am thankful for the gesture.

A MILLION THANK YOUS

We’ve had a couple hundreds of followers, and I want to thank you for making this journey enlightening, and a wonderful learning opportunity. Your likes, asks, and reblogs have been seen and provided additional energy I needed then.

You can find my art and other projects on tumblr and on twitter, and do a little extra-support gesture by checking out my patreon.

See you soon, hopefully somewhere in As-Surim,

Thank you.

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This VN looks amazing, I can't wait to play it!

Thank you so much anon! We are ALSO excited on your behalf!

If you have any questions, feel free to send an ask! 

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Happy Monday! Oswyn’s smiling for once...

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What are the main trio's personalities like? Also just wanted to say that this game looks super cool and all the art is absolutely stunning! 💖

Hi anon!

Meishali speaking here. I’m in charge of writing and visuals.Thank you so much for your interest!! So about the main trio… They were developed together, so we tried our best to make sure interactions between the three of them (together or duos) were always interesting. In the same way, visually, I tried to make them all very separate from one another, and to make their personality “easy to guess” for players, while still giving room for surprises. What you’ll read down below is just a minuscule part of who they are as people.

Oswyn, color coded green, was originally designed by Merriweather, my co-writer. She is the one who cared for his written personality and visual design (she gave cues, I simply transcribed them). He has a military education and is a very firm respecter of rules. He doesn’t just like order, but thinks it is mandatory for people have a solid ground to stand on.

Oswyn raises wyverns and is a drakerider (wyvern knights - he also one of the army’s commanders), and this proximity and comfort with the beasts has made him a little distant with other human beings, among other things. But it seems the man wants nothing more than to connect - he’s hot-blooded due to his bond with the wyverns, something that is both spiritual and psychic. 

He’s extremely straightforward and sometimes a bit too brutal, hardly respecting the court’s etiquette. He has issues understanding the subtleties of languages and the implicit in spite of being well-spoken. He is also extremely wary of noblemen in general, even though he’s of noble blood himself. He surrounds himself with capable commoners who ascended from their castes through the military. He is a touch intimidating, but can be very compassionate, tolerant, and understanding. Oswyn is well liked by people all over his kingdom because of this.

Oswyn, Andrea and the Main Character have some traits in common: they’re all hard-working and infinitely loyal to their friends.

Andrea, color coded red, is my design, from visuals to writing. Andrea was raised to be the perfect diplomat, is infinitely perceptive, and married to his work (minister of foreign affairs & spy master). If his persona sells him as suave, warm, approachable and playful, it is implied very early that it is a mere act. The man has a sharp tongue, and isn’t afraid to use it to pulverize his rivals’ egos, or express tough love to his allies, preparing them for the worst.

Andrea can be extremely serious when it comes to his kingdom, and believes the role of a nobleman is to protect the small folk, following true principles of knighthood. Passionate, Andrea is a patron of the arts, an accomplished linguist and scientist, but does not have an excellent reputation in and out of the palace due to most of his maneuvers: supposed blackmail, rumored poisonings and indirect assassinations in order to protect the kingdom’s secrets. A direct clash with what he would prefer to be, but a necessary evil according to his supporters.

Save for a really intimate circle of friends and relatives, Andrea purposefully keeps his distance with people emotionally, for his own safety, and his entourage’s.

Oswyn, Andrea and the Main Character have some traits in common: they’re all hard-working and infinitely loyal to their friends.

The Main Character, also known as MC, The Runereader, or Imane (default), is color coded blue. Unlike other visual novels, Twist of Fate: Anathema offers the MC a mind of her own. Even if players will project as her, make choices for her, she is both a companion to the player, and a character they might grow attached to.

MC is infinitely tolerant and understanding of others due to her education - one close to an anthropologist’s (social, philosophical, cultural) in the world of Anathema. She is honest, reliable, respectful and expects if not demands the same from others. Should people fail to treat her kindly, she’ll make sure to correct them; always eloquently. Even if confident for her young age, her bright personality is dimmed at the very beginning of the story, as she’s thrown into an unknown place, surrounded by unknown people who, let’s say, aren’t particularly approachable. While of noble birth, she’s never experienced extensive contact with other people that were not commoners or scholars like her.

MC sometimes speaks before thinking proper when confused or anxious, and isn’t always patient, but her blunt behavior is tied to her sheltered lifestyle, as is her curiosity. Realistic and intelligent, she does her absolute best to guide the young monarchs, and decipher the oracles for them. Oswyn, Andrea and the Main Character have some traits in common: they’re all hard-working and infinitely loyal to their friends.

I hope this answers you! It was hard not to reveal more, but that’s already a lot, isn’t it?

Can’t wait for you to see them interacting!

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DEV’S WEEKLY BLOG: CHARACTER HIGHLIGHT #6

“ Having fled the Ashen Lands, her home country, Soraya is one of the former convicts who found refuge in Mana, for crimes they may or may have not committed. The woman is another of the prince’s most faithful Captains and drakeriders. Soraya and her mount, Charybdis, are known as the most resilient fighters in the army. What they lack in intelligence, they make up for in endurance, loyalty, and brutality. 

Even tempered and surprisingly soft at times, the woman is still best known for her unrivaled strength in battle—Something she is looking to change. Soraya is known to loathe the house of the Moon, Para, due to their friendly ties with the Ashen Lands, and her former gaolers.”

Soraya Bhar

Allegiance: House Theodoridis

Age: 30?

Favorite Color: Ash grey

Favorite Flower: Daisies

Birthday (DD/MM): 30/11

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DEV’S WEEKLY BLOG: CHARACTER HIGHLIGHT #7

“Andrea’s uncle, and informal caretaker since his parents’ death. Well-known on the political scenes of the Eastern world, Lord Farall has had a seat at Mana’s council for nearly twenty years. The man earned his place by marrying a woman of House Para then, thus quelling the conflicts between the Ashen Lands—his homeland—and the Kingdom of Mana. Originally Ashen Nobility, Rheagan first came to Mana as an emissary.

The Ashen Lands and Mana’s conflict is one of faith: while freedom of religion has been severely limited in Mana, sacrifices and death penalty are one and the same in the Ashen Lands. Many Ashen convicts escape to live new lives in Mana as they benefit of the Kingdom’s protection… Breeding immense conflict between the two countries. Acting as a middle man, Farall’s true allegiances remain a mystery for most. Sharper individuals know that politics no longer interest him as they used to.”

Lord Rheagan Farall

Allegiance: House Para

Age: 46

Favorite Color: Black

Favorite Flower: White roses

Birthday (DD/MM): 02/06

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Dev’s Weekly Blog: Character Highlight #1

“Marie of Menos is one of the Crown Prince’s cousins. While bound to the house of the Sun by blood, she’s openly displayed great interest in the house of the Moon’s politics, much to her family’s dismay. 

Seemingly aloof, perhaps a little rude at times due to her straightforwardness, Marie possesses a tender heart— She has little to no tolerance for bigotry and the bullying of the downtrodden. As fierce as she’s beautiful, Marie’s interests lies in mercantile matters, siege weapons, turning down courtiers, and studying her Kingdom’s history, in order to best plan the future.”

Marie of Menos, of House Theodoridis

Allegiance: Supposedly Theodoridis (Sun), though has taken recent interest in Para (Moon)

Age: 24

Favorite Color: Orange

Favorite Flower: Daffodils

Birthday (DD/MM): 18/07

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Dev’s Weekly Blog: Character Highlight #2

“Lady Téthys is a revered ‘merchant-prince’ hailing from the lands of N’kabo. Téthys is part of N’kabo’s new generation; one that is living freely, away from the talons of Laneare—Another neighboring Kingdom that gnawed at N’kabo’s borders, and enslaved many of her peers just thirty summers ago. 

The woman is a renowned vintner and entrepreneur as well as an unparalleled arithmetician. While part of N’kabeean nobility, she cares little for court intrigues and alliances. She is here to sell, and secure trade routes across the Great Continent; while Andrea is an old friend of hers, Téthys has been heard praising Oswyn’s candor and methods quite often. According to most of the court, she’s one of the most beautiful women roaming the palace, and is known for her incredible sense of style, as well as her penchant for masculine outfits.”

Téthys N’gozi of Lagardère

Allegiance: Albeit close to Para’s heir, she seems to favor house Para (the Moon) and house Theodoridis (the Sun) in equal measure.

Age: 28

Favorite Color: Whiteleaf’s Teal

Favorite Flower: Forget-me-nots

Birthday (DD/MM): 12/03

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Dev’s Weekly Blog: Character Highlight #3

“A seemingly insignificant courtier, but a prince in his country, Sylvio yearns for a better world. Currently thirteenth in line for the Lanearan throne, the young man was sent to Mana’s court as an emissary and token of good faith. Laneare and Mana have been at odds for decades now, disputing borders every now and then. The most recent and violent occurrence would be the Parole War which took place twelve years prior to the story’s beginning. 

One of Mana’s greater houses, Para, has officially taken him as their most esteemed guest, hoping to better the relationship between Laneare and Mana. Sadly, Sylvio’s voice in the affairs of his own country is often silenced, if not perfectly ignored… Leading Mana to question why he was sent there in the first place. Laneare may be insincere, but Sylvio isn’t.”

Sylvio Philippe Louis IX of Laneare

Allegiance: House Para

Age: 24

Favorite Color: White

Favorite Flower: Lilies

Birthday (DD/MM): 29/08

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Dev’s Weekly Blog: Character Highlight #4

“A good humored courtier and an unparalleled architect, Ahsan hails from the Kingdom of Amadora, and acts as one of their emissaries. Amadora is known for its builders, artists and inventors— All are revered and respected, and many schools of arts have been built on Amadoran soil in the past few decades. Despite arriving at court just two moons prior to the story’s beginning, the man is already well-liked by most of the palace’s dwellers. 

On excellent standing with the crown prince due to his appreciation for Mana’s legendary wyverns, the man is also a favorite of Lord Bassanelli, as both discuss inventions and siege weapons every now and then. Looking to study the history of Mana and come back to his beloved country with a head full of new ideas, Ahsan’s outlook on the world is a positive one, and it is a terribly contagious thing.”

Ahsan Esperenza

Allegiance: None officially.

Age: 32

Favorite Color: No preference

Favorite Flower: Dahlias

Birthday (DD/MM): 18/10

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DEV’S WEEKLY BLOG: CHARACTER HIGHLIGHT #5

“A well spoken and well traveled spear wielder, Darius acts as one of the Crown Prince’s Captains. As a drakerider of Mana, Darius has studied the wyverns extensively, and possesses his own mount and wyvern he’s bonded with, Scylla. The man comes from a poor background— His extensive family emigrated in Mana years ago, yearning for a better life that the one they had in N’kabo. 

After being told of Mana’s legendary drakeriders, Darius did everything that was in his power to be recruited in the military, despite failing its selections the first time. The man begged to work with the brood pit— And was given a second chance. From that moment on, Darius rose as a wonderful rider, and was noticed by the Prince, thanks to his extraordinary leadership skills and exceptional bravery.”

Darius Sambare

Allegiance: House Theodoridis

Age: 28

Favorite Color: Gold

Favorite Flower: Impala Lily

Birthday (DD/MM): 16/07

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Our hiatus is over and that we’re resuming production, let’s dust off the blog with some new posts.

Andrea went through MANY reworks solely for his outfit... But this is final! What do you think?

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A reminder to new followers that...

Our ask box is always open! If you’ve got a question for the devs… Or the characters, they’ll be more than happy to answer you. Here’s the ask page!

Looking forward to your messages!

ABOUT THE GAME — CHARACTERS AND WORLD — Art by @borderbipoline 

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Music anon again! Will the game have any voice acting?

Hello again anon! Still Meishali talking.

This is something we’ve seriously considered and are still considering, but this is not something we could afford. For now. Several tryouts have been made with voice actors, namely ProZD for Andrea, for a “FE” style audio chat. 

Overall, what’s very important for us is also to get voice actors of the ethnicity of the characters. Even if all come from “fantasy countries”, all characters of main cast are effectively PoC. (Andrea is, for instance, from Banxu, a Korea/China/Mongolia mix with viking elements. His father is from Benissia, an italy/greece/france mix, hence his name.) This isn’t difficult to come by, but as with any recruitment for such work, it requires research, tryouts, auditions, etc.

Beyond that, the game will likely be massive, anon. A loooot of words. Mini-novel like. If we do go for full voice acting, we’d need to be sure it’s a ride the actors are willing to take. We’re looking into 20+ actors if we want something convincing (i.e. not have someone make more than two voices), if it were to happen. That’s not a small number.

If the VN is successful and donations/goodies make us able to amp it up, we might seriously look into it to publish a final edition/updated version with new content. We’ll of course make voice acting toggle-able, as not everyone enjoys it!

Thank you SO much for your questions! Keep them coming.

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Hi Anathema devs! Will you be composing music for the game yourselves or will you be enlisting help from other content creators? And what kind of music will the game have?

Hi anon! Meishali here.

We’ll use free resources and buy royalty free pieces from a japanese composer I really like (I’ve already purchased the rights to several songs, and keep on doing so as patreon support money drops!). Keeping it quiet for now so people aren’t going to take a look, but I’d like to think he’s pretty popular to those who dig.

I doubt we will have a person on the music team; but perhaps for future projects…I’ve asked several acquaintances of mine looking to participate in such a project, but most appeared busy, or roughly uninterested. Perhaps one main theme would be good.

I’ve thought about learning how to compose, as I was inspired by several indie devs to make my own music. I think this is not something out of my reach, so I’m seriously considering it. I’ve had FL studio opened and studied some in the past months, but between learning code and having to write and draw, I feel like it’d make Anathema’s development very slow to push myself in learning something new ontop of everything else. But I’m seriously considering it. It’s still early, and it could still change.

For what was already bought: the game’s music will be pretty grand. Choir motifs, piano, violins, somber things. There’s very, very little uplifting themes to Anathema. It overall has a very regal and even cool feeling to it, to mirror the Main Character’s feelings regarding the palace and its political intrigue. There’s also pretty spooky strings in and about for bad endings and… Tense moments.

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Since dragons will be present in the game, are there any other mythological creatures that would have a regular presence within the story?

Hi Anon!

There’s only one dragon mentioned in the story—But wyverns are a thing! We separate them in Anathema! In Anathema, Wyverns have 4 legs, two of them are wings (like Skyrim dragons), Dragons have 6, two of them are wings too.Anathema is a world of legends, but its bestiary, wyverns put aside, is mostly standard—As the Lion and Panther are both symbols of the Sun and the Moon noble houses respectively, for instance. There might be “special” creatures mentioned, but magic proper does not exist in Anathema, so all of them are classified as non-magical animals. Wyverns are just really big birds of prey that have been domesticated for war, in that regard. It’s a pretty grounded setting, for all its colors.That being said, it’s heavily implied “men” (never referred to as “humans”, even though they seem to be it—their species not named), can bond with animals in a way that’s metaphysical, or likely used to be animals themselves. The two monarchs of the main trio have retained animal like features visible physically and in the way they behave, for instance. Bizarre, but not perfectly unusual in the setting.

Hopefully this answers you!

If you’ve got more questions we’re always around! We love receiving those!

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Good News!

Hello everyone! Long time no see! Meishali here, Anathema’s producer, artist, baby-codemule, and lead writer. We’ve been quiet in the past few months mostly due to other projects, and tough real life shenanigans. I come here with a special announcement, that I felt needed to be made official, and visible on our tumblr and my patreon. This was not easy to come to originally, but here goes:

TWIST OF FATE: ANATHEMA WILL BE A FREE GAME. FOREVER. FOR EVERYONE. 

Preferably available on Steam and Itch.io once the development reaches completion. Yes: that includes potential DLCs and updates, if potential DLCs and updates are to come. Our main point: accessibility and diffusion.

We are also on semi-hiatus until late January / Mid-February in order to sort in real life issues and finish side projects. Past that point, we plan on resuming weekly posting!

Do read more under the cut if you’re curious about what it means, and why I, Meishali, took this decision.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

So, what’s happening? Basically, nothing changes. The development is the same, and will not be slowed by this change at all. This was something I’ve had in mind for a long time, but nothing had been announced yet. 

A lot of people assumed it would be at an ‘accessible’ price (5€-10€), with good reason; so that the contribution could help fuel more projects, and get all contributors to touch something fair for their hard work. But over time, this decision made less and less sense to me. Or rather, I felt compelled to try something far less traditional.

Anathema is currently being created on my own “free time”; those are actually working hours, but I am not remunerated, and neither is Merriweather, my co-writer. I know Merriweather to be juggling with dire jobs to simply afford to live. 

On my end, this is done while I undertake commission work and I often look to my patreon patrons for assistance: audio licenses, textures, additional scripts and resources, are all paid from my personal pocket, and always will be.

WHY IT’S HAPPENING

I’ve always been self-taught in art and writing, and I am currently learning how to manipulate Ren’Py as I code the game how I want it (with the help of friendly Python coding angels!). 

Most of the things I’ve read, copied, learned from, were put out there for free. Something that, as a starving artist, is marvelous. Over the years I’ve developed some manner of “e-gratitude” toward all those people mashing free resources together for the sake of sharing, hoping to help or inspire others… Enough to substitute consequent school fees, or degrees, when you know where to look and when you know how to practice.

I want Anathema to be accessible. Among people of my generation, not everyone can afford even $1 on games and distractions without feeling some manner of spender’s guilt. Always gravitating around bills, and health, and just… All sorts of things that I think should be free, but are extremely expensive (even if just mentally) in our current society.

I want people to enjoy and indulge in content I create without ever having to worry about what they paid to consume it. In the same way, if the game is not an enjoyable experience, as in, it doesn’t suit a player’s taste, they can simply stop playing without going through the hassle of asking to be reimbursed, or simply regretting the purchase.

THE REAL TRIGGER

I’ve done a lot of research, lately. Looking what was in the market, and that implied playing visual novels cross platforms. Steam, itch.io, mobile apps, all independent works. And what I’d seen is, of the things that are appealing and breaking with the genre (inclusive, etc.), a vast amount are simply not worth the price.

I was looking at the horror of micro-transactions namely, that mobile VNs (even from friendly-looking independent studios) seem to have adopted. While I typically have no problems with such practices, in those cases and games I will not list, they were wrong.

Things as odd as paying a couple of euros for extra lines (200 words) that remain locked behind a paywall even after paying for access once. As all you know, microtransactions are always like that; such small amounts trick people into thinking it isn’t much, but overtime, games end up costing hundreds if counted in cumulative spends… When they hardly contain more than half a short story. 

Buying games by chapters when the content is so minimal is… Absolutely wild, in my opinion. And putting core story elements behind a paywall is unfair.

My reason for doing this is attached to principles. This is how I think games should be, and this is how I think games can be.

I want people to know that this is a possible way to make it work, while being fairly compensated by others. I put my trust in our fanbase, and in VN appreciators in general, that they’ll know how to diffuse us, rate us, and remunerate us in consequence overtime.

HOW WE WILL SUPPORT OURSELVES

We do need to eat, and pay bills, too, admittedly.

If people do enjoy the game, and do want to contribute, they’ll be invited to do so through tips or patreon subscriptions, though details are still being worked out at this point. But something is certain: they will likely be able to buy official goodies and physical merch available then!

ETC...

The game is also now an official project of “Erwan Hermine Productions”, my (Meishali’s!) micro business company. While that affects nothing, the fact that it’s official is pretty exciting. We even have a splash screen and all!

Thank you for reading, and again, thank you for sticking with us!

— Meishali