Magical Harvest News

Hey everybody!

One thing first: do you know that we have a Discord server? Join and share your expectations and wishes and be part of a community!
Discord

Some news! The good: we have a really good story writer with a focus on romance! The bad: not until we have funding, because of course I want to be able to pay this person.
I'm also starting to get serious about this now. Unfortunately, a lot of time is spent on things like taxes and setting up a company - before the publisher/investor search begins. But well...

In spite of everything, the work in Magical Harvest does not stop. In the second half of August some smaller things have been added or changed:

Dialog system
The dialog system is still being expanded. The NPCs now have a "mood bar". Depending on the course of your conversations, they will be happier or in a bad mood. Some conversation options or their outcome will depend on your mood (for example: you won't be able to propose to an NPC who is in a bad mood).



Herbs
15 different herbs (3 x 5 pet levels) are now in the game, as well as animal food.


Storage boxes
Like the inventory, storage crates now have multiple sections. This means the smallest box has 50 item slots, and the largest currently has 150.


More small deco assets More fence options Signs showing the icons of the crops (the icons can be selected at any time) Don't feel like watering every day? Then get the magic sprinkler! It waters the fields automatically! Unfortunately, however, no design and visual effect yet.


Also, the rough concepts for the 40 different flowers have been sketched ... why do we have 5 different Tier stages of each type again? ... (2 flower types per season * 5 Tier levels = 40 different flowers)


Outlook Further development of the dialog system: the NPCs should start with a basic mood, depending on their characteristics. Morning grouches will not be so enthusiastic in the morning or before holidays most will have a good mood. The flower assets (I really shudder at those! They are truly not exciting to make!) Looking for further preparations in terms of publisher/investor. Finally an actual trailer! Or at least working towards it.

And try to do more towards social media somehow. If anyone has ideas... go for it =D
Thanks for stopping by and see you next time!

Best regards,
Isa

News-Time!
Hey everybody!

Based on a Reddit post in r/cozygames, I made some design changes that I think are very positive: the dialog system with the NPCs and the inventory space.

Dialog system
Before: typical dialog system like in most farming games: you talk to the NPC 1x a day for the friend points bonus and can give gifts.
Now: Dialog system like in "The Sims": several dialog options with different results. But: not all of them increase friendship points (but you can't lose any, but the NPC can get mad at you for the day if you are not nice). Gifts can still be brought daily.
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


Inventory space
Originally, a maximum inventory of 60 slots was planned. However, inventory management is generally quite annoying and especially in Magical Harvest with the 5 different tier levels, the items in the inventory can pile up quite a lot.
Now a maximum of 300 items can be carried around - in bags with 50 item slots each.
The items can be moved back and forth between the bags and thus be separated.
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]



Storage boxes
Not yet implemented, but also planned, will be the size of the storage boxes. Like the inventory,
different tabs will be implemented there to manage items even better.
Originally, a space of 60 items was planned here as well... But it is clearly too little, if not the entire farm is going to be crowded with boxes.


Farm plants
My focus in the first half of August was on the cultivable farm plants. Apart from the herbs, flowers and trees, ALL crops are now implemented. Both the assets and the icons. This was quite a bit of work and some still need some sprucing up, but they are there for now!
15 base crops, each with 5 tiers, makes 75 different base field crops that can be discovered over the duration of the game (for the MVP status of the game).
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Leaf Sheep Slug
One of the creatures that can be caught. And no, this is NOT a magical creature. The Leaf Sheep Slug really exists and lives in the ocean (the green variant)! Crazy, right?! And it is super cute! The 3D model is now finished!


More Deco
In between I create decoration-assets every now and then. This time a few new paths. And of course you can color them and create interesting combinations!


Outlook
* Dialog system
Still the dialog system of the NPCs. It works, but it needs to be better represented in the game engine for future use as a developer to get a better overview of the options.
What you don't see: behind the speech options is a system of conditions when the NPC should say what or which options should be available when.

* Herbs
For the 2nd part of the month the remaining herb assets are planned. Herbs will not be available in the variety as crops and they will also be cultivable in multiple seasons.

* Animal fooder
This also wants to be able to be planted, harvested and used.

* Storage boxes
Storage boxes should also get multiple slots for inventory storage.


So, for half a month this has become quite long. Thanks for reading and looking in! See you in September! Time really flies...!

Best regards,
Isa

Hey everybody!

Currently, a lot is going on regarding the visual aspects of the game.
Summarized:

- Concept art for Azriel (elf bachelor) and Kyle (human bachelor, name will change)

- Added a captivating, magical creature - a furr-ball with ears, awaiting a name worthy of its cuteness!



- Added the in-game transition from badlands to the magical forest and the assets for it


- Added season transitions (spring, summer, autumn and winter) and their assets (further color-adjustments will follow)


- Added secondary characteristics to the farm animals, e.g. intelligence, size. They can be increased through breeding and will be useful for animal-minigames or contests.


- I'm so crazy and started creating all the 3D models of the missing crops - that's the spring crops T4 and T5 and all the summer, fall and winter crops. I'm halfway done with them. Herbs, trees/bushes and flowers will follow....

- Revision of the Steampage & webpage (I still need to create a new trailer and screenshots as soon as the visuals are better)

Outlook for the next two weeks
- All other crops on the farm, perhaps also the herbs. On a day I create about 2 plant types. A plant type consists of 5 levels (2 non-magical and 3 magical) and these consist of about 4-6 growth levels each. That means each crop has 20-30 assets. 4 plants per season (more can follow later) are 80-120 assets per season and 320-480 for the whole year. OOF!
- The icons for these and add everything to the game
- Smaller assets or improvements


Best regards,
Isa

Hey everybody!

finally, some news again!
First: do you prefer more detailed news or just a summary like this one?
Write it here in the comment section! :-)

Now... as previously announced, June was a bit more relaxed regarding the development of Magical Harvest due to appointments, vacations and our wedding.
Nevertheless, the work didn't stop completely:

Paint feature for the decoration system
It is now possible to color some objects. For some of them up to two different colors are possible at the same time (the limitation had to be there to guarantee a good performance).
Actually, I only wanted that you can color crates to be able to distinguish them better... it ended up with a complete standalone feature...
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Storage boxes and symbols
There are crates of 3 different sizes in the game. The last storage box size will include several design variants. Symbols can be assigned to the boxes.


Bachelorette Ky'rah
Ky'rah is our Ki'shen bachelorette. The illustration has now been completed by Lura
Bachelorettes


More assets
e.g. for the decoration system (incl. icons)


Outlook
- Assets: the Environment will be in focus again. The "Badlands" and more forest assets.
- Website: this needs to be updated again, as well as the presskit.

The next news will be on August 1st and from then on again 2 times a month.

Best regards,
Isa

Hey everybody!

This news is going to be a little longer, as I won't be writing again until the beginning of July.
First of all, something personal:
It's been 1,5 years since the project "Magical Harvest" started. Since then, a lot has happened and I'm expanding my skillset more and more. The visuals of the game are getting better and better as I learn new things. The same goes for programming. I've never worked on such a large project that involves so many features that have to be coordinated with each other!
It's even more gratifying that programming is becoming more and more of a sideline as it gets easier and there are fewer bugs. I still enjoy working on MH so much that 12-14 hour workdays are no problem.


However, there is still a long way to go before the game gets MVP (minimum viable product) status. Above all - this in advance - it will not be a 2nd Stardew Valley or Sun Haven with zillions of items. That is not possible for a (currently almost) single person. However, my plan after the first release is to constantly expand the game, as it was the case with Animal Crossing, for example. In Animal Crossing, more than half of the decorations found their way into the game after release.

I'm still planning a Kickstarter campaign, but not until next year, since another farming game is already launching a campaign this year in October and I want to offer better graphics and content first. If the campaign is successful, I would like to hire at least a 3D artist and a writer to support it.

But now to the updates of the last 2 weeks:
GamePlay trailer
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
In the first week I was busy with bugfixes, while I spent more time on video recording. This resulted in a temporary short GamePlay trailer. This shows the current state of the game.
Based on feedback, I have already received more suggestions to improve the game visually. Another improved trailer will follow as soon as significant changes have been made (August, September).

Bachelor Valariel
Valariel is finished - at least his illustration is. I'm still working on his model. Valariel is the Drakys bachelor and my own special character. I "invented" him already more than 7 years ago, so I connect more with him. You can find more information about his actual creation and personality in Magical Harvest here on Patreon.


Map of Hyldena
Already in the last news I reported that I started with the world map/area map of Hyldena. This is a lot of work and takes a lot of time. I only take this time on weekends, so it is going slower. But here you can see the current state (UNFINISHED! Work-in-Progress!). There may still be sections that I'm not satisfied with yet.


Grid System
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
In the game itself, my current focus is again on the grid (for decorating or placing farm plants etc). The grid was previously only very simplified for the farm usable, but now I have expanded it to incorporate more complex grid systems into the game.
There is now also a grid in the house. Unlike Harvest Moon or Story of Seasons, all furniture in the house (including the bed) can be moved. The walls can be covered with different wallpapers, as well as the floor. Almost a bit like "The Sims".
Also, there is no distinction between interior decoration or exterior decoration. So have fun with a garden in the house!
Of course, there are small limitations. A barn or greenhouse cannot be built inside the house. Wall decorations and wallpapers are only possible for indoor spaces - since there are walls there.

Outlook
June will be a bit of a slow month. I have some appointments in early June that will keep me from working. We are going on vacation at the end of June for a few days (premature honeymoon), Midsommer-Fest and after that my fiancée and I have visitors from Germany, as our wedding will be on July 1. So, plans for Magical Harvest are a little lower for this month.

- Deko-system: it will still play a role, as the functionality for the controller still must be built in
- Map of Hyldena
- 3D model of Valariel
- Visual improvements / expansion of the assets

From the 2nd week of July I will be back for you.
Until then all the best and enjoy the beginning of summer!

Best regards,
Isa