#lachesis or atropos

[4noki-vns]

The Art of Asset Reduction: VNConf 2024 Write-Up

This is a write-up for my Visual;Conference 2024 talk on asset reduction: presentation of scenes with reduced art labor.

I will discuss how to reduce production requirements via various methods of asset presentation and staging, walking you through case studies of existing visual novels. This talk will guide you to answer the question: How do I fulfill my project scope without asset bloat?

This is an art talk that assumes you have already scoped down your story and have created a list of scenes that you need. This is not a talk about scoping down your game's story.

You have scenes you need to make. How are you going to make them (and with style)?

Abstraction

Cut-ins

Reduce

Reuse

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I. Abstraction

I start off with abstraction as a reminder that visual novels are a combination of visual and novel (amongst other aspects)

Abstraction

Abstraction is a strong tool for bringing focus to the writing, highlighting ambiguity and setting the mood with colors.

Examples I mentioned in my talk include:

Black screen

Solid colored screen

Sky BG

Of Components

The mood-setting power of abstraction also extends to scenes with characters, especially CGs.

As again, abstraction draws focus to what you choose to emphasize: the characters.

(FLOWERS -Le volume sur ete-)

They are gay. Thank you for coming to my VNConf talk.

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You can similarly abstract characters.

(Lachesis or Atropos)

Consider representing irrelevant characters (e.g., NPCs) as silhouettes. The reader can fill in the details within the shapes themselves.

Silhouettes are especially great for crowd scenes where you want to draw focus to the main characters.

This will be a recurring theme:

What do you really need to draw?

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II. Cut-ins

One common not-quite full screen piece of art you'll see in many visual novels is the cut-in.

The cut-in typically consists of the:

Item/focus

Frame

And is often for topics such as objects or small animals, which may exist in the scene but may not be within the same frame of reference as the background and sprites.

The separate framing informs the players that the item is "separately framed."

(Who is the Red Queen?)

For example, this small bird is not huge and would not be the size of a character's head even had a sprite been on screen.

The Foreground-Backdrop Heuristic

Cut-ins make strong use of what I refer to as the "foreground-backdrop heuristic."

(Shikkoku no Sharnoth)

A general backdrop informs the reader of a broad location or scene (especially if characters are present). Then a more specific foreground (the cut-in) informs the reader of the specifics.

As the foreground cut-in is in a different frame, the pairing of the two helps create a mental model of the space in the reader's mind.

Cut-ins can be used for:

Backgrounds (mix and match foregrounds with a backdrop)

Reduced CGs

Presenting existing assets in a different frame of reference

CG variants

Try tackling your visual presentation in a layered, comic book-esque fashion with cut-ins!

Just be careful about clutter.

Whether you want to go for the layered cut-in style, the 3d stage cinematic style, or a combination of the two, make sure you have a vision before you jump in.

SD CGs

I had to make an obligatory mention of SD "super deformed" CGs in this talk, so here it is in the write up as well.

(Grisaia: Phantom Trigger Vol. 1)

SD, chibi. However you call these, they're great for playful scenes that might require more art than your classic sprite-background combination.

What SD CGs do best is that they:

Fulfill the role of a CG

Are easier to draw than fully rendered non-chibi art

Can be distributed to different artists to reduce artist workloads due to style difference

Just keep in mind that a simplified CG is still a CG and thus may lack reusability.

Consider what scenes really need a CG.

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III. Reduce

Now, consider asking yourself: "Does what a player does not see need to exist?" (mostly applicable for games with opaque UI)

Yet, what you need to draw is what you need to draw. How can you reduce the work in what you need to draw?

One option is:

Palette Limitation

You've heard of gray scale games, but don't forget about other ways of limiting your palette to reduce workload.

Dramatic, mood setting color power

Less rendering work

(Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows)

A similar idea can be applied to NPCs for a more detailed take on silhouettes.

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IV. Reuse

Lastly, please remember to be economical and reuse assets as necessary. One of the great joys of cut-in BGs, for example, is reusability.

I had to give an obligatory mention to CG variants in my talk, such as:

(Fatal Twelve)

However, overall, you never know when you'll want to use various components of your art elsewhere such as intermixing CG and sprite art.

Please keep your working layers if possible.

Other reuse examples:

UI (especially in episodic games)

Gameplay (e.g., Kogado's rhythm game)

Consider asking your programmer to work on a framework to reuse, reducing repeated code work.

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Conclusions

All in all, you can make your game.

And it doesn't need to be hellish on your budget or timeline.

If you take anything away from this talk, let it be to:

Prioritize reusable assets

Maintain aesthetic; avoid clutter

Display important scenes

Do not scope up; aim for a set goal

A scene can be presented in many stylish ways, some of which will suit your workflow better than others.

So, go on. Make your game!

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Interested in my works? Find me on itch:

And check out my newsletter:

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VNConf 2023 Talk Write-up:

[boffinhillem]

any shiki enjoyers? she's best girl to me.. have a doodle i liked of her

[blubbly-pizza]

I played - Lachesis or Atropros - 2023

"Not enough of anything?"

The last and least of my trio of "Free visual novels I wishlisted on Steam an indeterminate amount of time ago and then thought, I should just play those." It advertises itself as horror-mystery yuri. It has all those things but just didn't deliver to my own expectations. Except maybe the mystery? Though that kind of goes part and parcel with exploring the different endings of a VN. Getting sprinkling tidbits of excitement and intrigue with every death CG. Something in the horror just didn't connect to me. The yuri and relationships felt rushed. All that sounds real bad, but I did enjoy my time with this thing.

It is translated in a way that it has a veneer of formality and literalness that a native speaker wouldn't use. I only point this out, because it brings me joy. The creator wanted a larger audience to access it, and made it happen, it's impressive and cool.

It's also funny that of the two romantic interests, after seeing all of the endings, there was clearly a preferred party.

Overall? If you sit down for the evening and look at the tin of Lachesis or Atropos, and the buzzwords and synopsis sound interesting. Definitely give it a go.

[linuxgamenews]

Lachesis or Atropos uncover the truth in this wild journey

Lachesis or Atropos horror yuri visual novel game launches Free on Linux, Mac, and Windows PC. Developed by 4noki and delivering a unique adventure. Available now on Steam. Quill Yuri, an indie game maker, is launching an epic, free horror adventure story Lachesis or Atropos. This incredible story was created by 4noki and is available today. In Lachesis or Atropos you take on the role of Shirasagi Mana, a private detective with a special skill. Since She can actually see the black threads of hate that exist between people. Now she's in a far-off town trying to fulfill her mentor's final wish. As a result, she stumbles across some weird details, including horrific creatures and some unsolved deaths. The big mystery, she's trying to find out what happened to someone who has been missing for years. The plot thickens when she meets two sisters who also have the same ability she does. But these aren't just any sisters - they belong to the powerful Mikami family. And here's where things get interesting... you might find love along the way. Lachesis or Atropos horror yuri visual novel is a wild journey with a lot of different paths to take. Since your decisions can either help Mana survive to reach one of four main story endings. Or, if you're not careful, lead her to her end.

Lachesis or Atropos - announcement trailer

This Lachesis or Atropos story is immersive with about 45,000 words. Due to taking players around 3-6 hours to get through. And if you're a fan of the Japanese style of visual novels, you will also appreciate this original gameplay. The look of it all is absolutely stunning - from the anime-style characters to the incredibly detailed backgrounds. While the original art drawing drops you into another world. And let's not forget about the soundtrack! The original music also adds to the tense mood of the story. Plus, there's no need to worry about the text size or style. You can adjust it to suit your preferences. Since you can make it as comfortable as possible for you to read. If you're a fan of horror yuri visual novel, you need to check out Lachesis or Atropos. It's Free and available to play on Linux, Mac, and Windows PC via Steam. Trust me, you don't want to miss this!

[pimientosdulces]

gotcha &

[cannibalspicnic]

KAOS (2024)

THE FATES Sam Buttery as ATROPOS Suzy Eddie Izzard as LACHESIS (LACHY) Ché as CLOTHO

[pineconebitch]

I'm in love

[weirdlookindog]

“Summoning of the Fates”

© Grace Aldrich, 2024

acrylic on wood panel

[assmaster-8000]

the full body sprites for my touchstarved oc's :^) the alchemist, unnamed, and hound in order

credits to @vaultureculture for the lovelyyyyy commission work, such a pleasure to work with 🌷 still in awe of how well you render different textures by the way

[eldrbraus]

did you realize how og ortho, AI ortho and idia represent the moirai

og ortho - clotho - past

idia - lachesis - present

AI ortho - atropos - future

its cute

[4noki-vns]

a lesbian, moments before disaster

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Lachesis or Atropos is a horror-mystery yuri visual novel with 4 major endings and lots of bad ends. Kiss girls! And find all the ways you can die...!

@ Steam || itch io

[boffinhillem]

the demons in my head telling me to reread lachesis or atropos (again)

[himitsusentaiblog]

The Three Dark Sister from Kamen Rider Gotchard, Atropos, Clotho and Lachesis.

[sci-fi-fantasy-art-collection]

A cover artwork for the tabletop game 'Moirai', based on the fates of the greek mythology, Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos.

Loles Romero

[pimientosdulces]

family

[catskullery]

The three fates.