Dev Log 05 - Back At It

Boy howdy—it’s been a while!

After parting ways with my last 9-to-5, I’ve been in a bit of an adjustment period. While I’ve made plenty of progress on Theseus, I’ve admittedly neglected regular dev posts in favor of freelance work and wrapping up a few long-standing musical projects.

Current Progress

When I last checked in, I’d just started building out the dialogue system. Since then, my focus has shifted toward blocking out the home’s basic layout and establishing a consistent environment art pipeline. The house is now fully explorable in its rough form, though I haven’t begun populating it with detailed assets—aside from starting to refine the kitchen. You will also note that there is some low resolution visuals at play in the gameplay footage. After a recent re-watch of 28 Days Later, I found myself inspired to try and recreate Danny Boyle's iconic early digital camera style. The post processing on display in the footage is a very early iteration of that effect stack.

Writing & Documentation

I’ve also spent a considerable amount of time writing “script-like” documentation now that I’ve landed on a format I’m happy with. Whether I’ll share much of that process is still up in the air; it’s tricky to talk about story structure without spoiling too much. For now, you’ll just have to trust that a lot of writing is happening behind the scenes.

What’s Next

My next milestone is to finish scripting the first full scene—hopefully right after I get back from Spain on the 11th. From there, I’ll begin prototyping that scene in-engine, adding more detailed art, and tightening up the game’s core mechanics.

I’ve also started thinking seriously about funding opportunities. I’d love to justify dedicating more time to this project without the constant financial strain. The goal is to build a polished early prototype that showcases my capabilities and helps make the case for outside support.

Thanks for tuning in to another installment of this sad nerd diary. More soon—see you next week.