Hello everyone! Here’s a much-needed update for HOMESICKNESS. There’s a lot to go over here, as the last month (both prior to and after Trailer 2’s drop) was a major investment in development. Workflow on the game has been relatively smooth, though insanely difficult over the past couple of weeks, as I will discuss further in this devlog. However, big things are happening, and the game’s development has not slowed down one bit since the trailer drop!

Focus

Focus has been shifted to major polishing of game mechanics, visual hints, and many quality-of-life improvements. I can safely say that, as of right now, the game is VERY close to completion. Though there is still a huge chunk left to work on, the core structure of levels, their mechanics, and the entirety of the ending are now completely set in stone.

What’s really left moving forward—and this is truly the hardest part for me to overcome—is anything related to guiding the player through game mechanics. This has specifically been my primary focus for the past month, right after the reveal of Trailer 2. There are a lot of new things I’ve been working on, as seen in some of the screenshots above. I’ve really poured a lot of effort into ensuring that the art direction and overall look of this game are as flexible as possible while staying true to the 2000s aesthetic in every fiber of its framing.

Deadline

I’ve mentioned a couple of times that the game’s launch deadline is set around May. This is slowly becoming more of a reality, and I truly think I’ll be able to push it out either midway through May or late May. However, I want to clarify that this is NOT a definitive release date—but it is VERY likely it will be ready by then. That said, take this with a grain of salt.

To elaborate on what I previously mentioned about quality-of-life improvements and overall focus on game mechanics, the game has received a ton of much-needed changes and refinements in how its mechanics are presented. I don’t want to go into too much detail, as I’ve already shown plenty regarding gameplay, but the gameplay loop and guidance have improved significantly. These will likely continue being refined even further before launch, along with added polish to areas that were previously underdeveloped or messy.

Overall, progress has been relatively smooth, and big things are coming. There’s a lot I’d like to keep under wraps to avoid spoiling upcoming surprises; one of which I will only talk about once it is set in stone. Until then, thank you for reading! This game is still in active development.

Expect more news soon.