INTO THE SHADOWS WIP DEMO 3.0 (UPDATE 18/06) - [redacted title]
Current wordcount: 73k
Average wordcount per playthrough: ??
(I couldn’t get an average wordcount per playthrough because randomtest kept crashing on me. Anyway.)
Play it here: https://dashingdon.com/play/wynnak/into-the-shadows-/mygame/
New to this update:
Chapter Three is partially complete. The title is redacted because of what happens in the second half of the chapter, and it’s ~spoilery~
Depending on your choices, you’ll get to (officially) meet at least two new characters. Fun!
Additionally, people with a very poor relationship with K Delacroix no longer get the option to ride with them to the funeral at the end of Chapter 2. Sorry, I mulled it over and just couldn’t see them willing to do it.
The option to simp for K Delacroix in early part of Chapter 2 has also, ahem, been dialled down. A new conversation with them was also introduced.
Additional notes:
I’m really sorry for the delay in the update! Motivation was a fickle thing, and time was also limited. I’d already started writing the second half of Chapter 3, but as I’m not a linear writer, they’re still in disconnected bits and pieces so I decided to put out the first half for now.
Feedback
Spelling/grammar errors
Continuity issues, feedback on choices/stats
If you could, please leave me feedback as an ask here so I can track them all in my tag https://wynnakang.tumblr.com/tagged/feedback
Hello! The server that supports Dashingdon will be shut down by the end of January.
You’ll want to migrate any and all demos for your WiP to the new hosting service. https://cogdemos.ink/. The support thread for cogdemos.ink is here and it’s run by a user named EvilChani.
I'll quote the announcement below:
“I am no longer able to maintain the dashingdon.com system and server. It is terribly outdated and there are creeping security concerns. So, unfortunately, I will be shutting down the service at the end of this month. The URL will be redirected to cogdemos.ink and all users and games will be permanently deleted (mostly to prevent any user/pass/email leaks).”
I thought I'd give you an early warning since you've been working hard on your games and it would be a shame to lose your progress. https://forum.choiceofgames.com/t/dashingdon-free-choicescript-game-hosting/9250/798?u=harrisps
Wanted to let you guys know that Let’s Talk Palestine has just launched fundsforgaza, an initiative created for the purpose of spotlighting families in urgent need of emergency funds. This list highlights families who’re trying to evacuate Gaza, but which aren’t getting enough attention. Please donate if you can—and whether or not you can, spread this to as many people as possible. The delay between this second and the next could make a difference in whether a family gets to live or not.
They will also be rotating through various campaigns to ensure that families get prioritized in turn. That way no family that’s “further down” the proverbial list gets neglected.
i've learned much in the process of re-writing Into the Shadows, and honestly, I'm starting to think that the best way to plan interactive fiction is through mindmaps.
it's the only medium that works for me when i think about how to get from point A to point B while leaving room to add in other branches and paths. hashing it out on a blank document is just too linear, and limiting. at least, for me.
so nowadays my planning involves my procreate app, and a notebook where i dedicate a blank page to whatever i'm supposed to be planning/writing at that juncture.
the fact that the report [ file available at the bottom of this page ] listing every person who has been killed in palestine since oct 7th is over 210 pages long is fucking insane. the first of the 88 names are from one family. after that, the following 72 are from one family. one family. i am asking you from the bottom of my heart, do not become desensitized to these numbers. 7,028 killed. 2,913 of them children. thousands missing under the rubble. do not ever let these numbers be anything but shocking and disturbing to you.
Development blog for the upcoming IF: The Whisper in the Mist. This IF is based on Pacific Rim media (with a focus on the 2013 film).
Asks are welcome (including explicit asks).
Rated 18+ for explicit language, unhealthy coping methods, dark humour, mental health issues, character death, sexual content (optional), violence, blood, gore, mutilation and body horror, and murder and attempted murder. Will be updated as needed.
Setting: Tsing Yi Island, Hong Kong (with futuristic elements).
Other IF account: @kalorphic
When I was a kid, whenever I'd feel small or lonely...I'd look up at the stars and wonder if there was life up there. Turns out I was looking in the wrong direction.
When alien life entered our world it was from deep beneath the Pacific Ocean. A fissure between two tectonic plates. A portal between dimensions.
They called it the Breach.
- Raleigh Beckett (Pacific Rim).
It’s funny how quickly things can change.
One minute you’re on top of the world, then the next, your world is crumbling down around you…
Five years ago, you and your drift partner had the highest success rates of any Jaeger pilots. Now, one horrific tragedy and a hasty promotion later, you’re pushing pencils thousands of miles away from the place you called home.
That is, until a Kaiju with stealth abilities like nothing that’s ever been seen before crawls out of the Breach.
Recalled back into service, you’re forced to team up with your once rival under the command of your former drift partner, and the advice of two scientists who seem more interested in the Kaiju’s than your safety. All while someone with more money than sense attempts to undermine you at every turn.
With everything seemingly against you, will you take up the mantle of hero once more or will you let the darkness plaguing your mind consume you?
Customisable MC (including name, pronouns, appearance, and identity). Personality is semi-set (MC uses humour and sarcasm as a coping method for their trauma) for a majority of the time, however there will be chances for character development and therefore more personality choices.
Pilot a Jaeger, fight Kaiju’s, and keep the world safe all while battling your own demons.
Five characters are available to romance. Two are only romanceable in a (triad) poly.
Found family.
RO PoVs.
Befriend (and potentially adopt) a baby Kaiju. Also give your dog lots of love.
Ciaran O’Doherty [M/F] - Hot-tempered and viciously in denial of the love they have for you that has only seemed to grow in your absence, Ciaran is your newly assigned drift partner and self-proclaimed rival. [PROFILE].
Killian Zhao [M/F] - Once a talented pilot and your former drift partner, Killian is now your formidable and highly respected commanding officer with a soft spot reserved just for you. [PROFILE].
Brin Kazlauskas [M/F/NB] - Waspish, fastidious, and someone that no one wants to be on the wrong side of, Brin is a K-Science officer with a wicked protective streak towards Zai and you . Only romanceable in a poly with Zai. [PROFILE].
Zai Oumarou [M/F/NB] - Despite a somewhat anxious disposition around those xe doesn’t know, Zai is a K-Science officer with a lot of enthusiasm and a deep curiosity towards Kaiju. Only romanceable in a poly with Brin. [PROFILE].
Ajax Nikolaou [M!NB/F!NB] - With a twisted determination to be a giant pain in your ass, Ajax is the ruthless CEO of Nikolaou Industries, a company that seeks to make the Pan Pacific Defense Corps completely redundant. [PROFILE].
Ferelith [F] - The baby Kaiju with a sweet character that was rescued by Zai, Ferelith loves cuddles, Lord of the Rings (according to Zai), and munching on Brin’s lab coat.
Years ago, you were uprooted from the only home you’d ever known and captured to be sold as a slave. Now, war is at your doorstep once again and you’re left in a delicate position — as a Commander of the country that invaded your homeland. While investigating a case of illegal human trafficking, you come across a nefarious plot that threatens to rip this tentative peace apart.
Precious: The Eyes of Shan is the first book of a trilogy (hopefully) that follows your character, The Commander, through the tumultuous times of an Empire on the brink of war. Set in the fictional Empire of Hae, explore the bitter relationship between two countries and make choices that decide which side you will ally yourself with.
Play as male or female, choose to romance characters along the way.
Pick between various interactions with the people that fate crosses your paths with.
Shape the course of history with your choices.
Participate in a hunt with other nobles and compete for the top place.
Uncover a mysterious black market and auction selling body parts to the highest bidder.
Choose whether to aid a slave in attempting to run away from the palace.
Explore the vast Empire of Hae, from the stunning Gwangjeom Palace to the cold walls of the North.
What choices will you make, Commander?
DEMO | KOFI
As of 3/3/23,
Part of Chapter Two has been completed (111k words w/o code)
CW: misogyny, attempted sexual assault, war, violence, death, torture
Please feel free to leave a comment or review it here on the COG forum!
I just spotted your update and I just wanna say I'm proud of you for doing right by you and putting Into The Shadows on hiatus when it wasn't doing right by you. I wish you the greatest joys with your other writing projects, and if ITS ever comes back in whatever form it may be, there will be people here to welcome it.
Thank you so much for your understanding! It wasn’t an easy decision and I felt guilty at first. But I had to accept that I cannot work on something that didn’t bring me joy, because the work will only suffer. I would never have been happy with anything I worked on out of obligation.
I can say I’m truly satisfied with what I’ve put out with ITS so far and really, I do hope to revisit it one day too.
I usually check on this WIP every now and then. I have been playing these kinds of games for seven years now and this is hands down in the top three for me. I am bummed its in hiatus but hopeful because its not completely terminated. I will definitely stick around for whatever you do!!
Thank you! That means a lot.
I’ll hope I can come back with something too. Be it ITS in a new form, or another writing project. I’ve been writing for more than half my life, and it’s something that provides me with great comfort, so I never want to stop ❤️
Hey, just wanted to say that I'm here to read what you write and post - your blog is one of the only ones on which I turned notifications on. So it is a bit sad to see Into the Shadows go into hiatus, but nevertheless I'm glad about the update. And I'll 100% stick around for whatever else you will be writing.
Have a nice day! 💐
thank you so much! your words mean a lot to me and I really hope you’ll enjoy whatever I put out next 💕
ItS may be on hiatus but it doesn’t mean I’m abandoning it. It may come back better in another form, and when I feel like it. The world and characters I created are still very dear to me 🥹
I always feel awkward giving updates like this, mostly because I think most people wouldn't care. But I want to share what's in the future for this blog, and my writing in general.
Firstly, and I think it is evident from the prolonged silence, Into the Shadows is on indefinite hiatus. I'm sorry for anyone who was looking forward to the next update, but I don't have a good reason for pausing work on it, besides the fact that I simply don't enjoy writing it anymore. I write as an escape, and Into the Shadows no longer offers that to me.
I will still be writing and working on other projects, so if you wish to stick around for that, feel free to do so. If not, thank you for playing and following the progress of ItS.
Hi. Congratulations on the new update! I read your story for the first time last summer, and started following on the forums, but then forgot about, so when I noticed the new update, I was like, I'm pretty sure I liked that one, so tried it again, and it did not disappoint. I liked it enough to go through your blog. Then I saw that you were friends with the author of Ace of Spades and tried that too. Long story short you made my weekend. Keep at it.
Thanks so much! Yeah I took some time to update there (because Life) but glad you enjoyed your replay of it 😊
Knew I forgot to do something the other day!! The update was fantastic and STOP MAKING ALL THESE MEN SO ATTRACTIVE. I am LEGIT stuck I don't know what to do I think I'll just die...(affectionately)
Theo was my dark horse. He snuck up on me with his sexy beard and smarmy attitude...
That’s what multiple save routes are for 😌
I’m genuinely surprise Theo got so much love lol cos they appeared for like...half a scene? Not complaining though. Either I clearly underestimated their appeal or yall just don’t know enough about them yet and that mystery makes them hot (leaning towards the latter here).
What does the 'Lore' progress bar mean? It first changes when you find out about Amelia's cause of death but I'm not sure as to what it signifies (is it like,how close you're to solving the mystery of her death?) Also the 'Lore' button on the stats screen takes you to the 'Stat explanation' screen.
I also noticed there's no M relationship bar even if you choose to go with them to the funeral, is this intentional?
Also, i might be wrong on this one cause I played it last night, but I recall there's a typo when asking them about the cat where it says 'live' instead of 'leave' (could be remembering wrong tho)
Hello! Thanks for these. I’ve fixed the lore page now, it simpy says “WIP” (because I am not done with the lore ksdhsksn) and yeah it goes up if you picked a specific choice during the scene where you talk to K about her death.
I don’t know why I can’t fix the M relationship bar issue though. It’s supposed to appear once you meet M on their route but my code doesn’t work (even though the same codes work for other ROs) so I’ll have to get back to this 🥲
