within-your-eyes-if

[within-your-eyes-if]

Personal Update #2

Hey again!

So, I'm still doing okay, but I found out stuff that makes a lot of sense for what I've been experiencing over the last year. I wanted to talk about it a little, because... damn. This update will be a bit personal, and for that I apologize. I try to keep these matters out, but since it directly affects my writing and some choices I made, I thought it would be important to talk about.

My official diagnosis won't come until later this month, but it's heavily pointing toward neurological (the neurologists in my area are all booked out, so this is how my doctor explained it in the meantime). I had something diagnosed a couple years ago by former doctors, but it was never explained what it meant nor looked into further. Apparently, it only appears in neurological disorders like Multiple Sclerosis or similar.

Some time last year, I started struggling with comprehending what I was writing. I could not make sense of it. I started spiraling because suddenly, "Oh no, it sounds awful. It doesn't make sense!" And ugh, the anxiety. I had such overwhelming anxiety all the time even for no reason, and I would spiral into things, my writing most suspect. Eventually, it spread to physical stuff, like these migraine like headaches on one side of my head where half of my face would go partially numb, and a whole slew of other things — a few that hit hard in February and on. I blamed it on stress and a different medical condition I have, but those are unrelated or just another piece in the puzzle.

I'm doing a little better now that I've been given tools to handle stress, and I'm trying to write because I genuinely want to. I never disclosed these struggles because it felt silly, "how can I not understand what I'm writing?" And honestly, now that I'm more calm, I'm a bit embarrassed when I look back at some of my older posts. I jumped the gun on changes more than once, mostly because my thoughts were all over the place, and anxiety made everything feel worse than it probably was. T.T

I'm okay with whatever diagnosis I get, I just want solid answers. I know I'm sharing this a bit early, and I'm sorry if it's premature, I just needed to say something because I'm very relieved there's a potential name for what's happening. That I'm not actually broken, regressing, or even failing.

Anyways, thank you so much for sticking with me, and I apologize for the long post and if it's a bit scattered. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

[within-your-eyes-if]

Personal Update

Hey everyone, I'm so sorry for the silence again. To get right into it: February sucked. Medical issues flared up. I'm not sick or dying, but my quality of life took a hit. I am getting help, but right now I'm still mentally and physically exhausted.

I feel a lot of guilt despite knowing life is unpredictable. I hate that something seems to happen every time I think things are getting better. I'd almost finished coding before this hit, and I'm slowly working my way back... again. I've been trying to figure out what to say, and honestly, this is all I really can say.

I'm still here, still trying, just finding my footing is still hell and varies by the day. I appreciate you all, and I promise I'm okay.

[within-your-eyes-if]

Future Update

Hey everyone, I hope you had a good New Year!

So, I wanted to share more, but I think it's best to keep this one short again. I'm still working on the next big update, and at the moment, I'm deciding on a few things I want to include and what to wait on. I'll go through what's new when I update, but I do want to share two things:

Elies will become gender-selectable.

My overall focus is on Chapter 3: Part Two.

I will also be skipping beta testing this time around. I cannot handle coordination at the moment and I apologize for any potential issues I don't catch in my own testing.

I don't have a specific date yet other than I want it out before March.

Thank you all for your patience, and here's to another year of WYE!

[within-your-eyes-if]

General Update 12/26

Hey everyone, I hope you had a good holiday!

I had planned to work heavily on my itch.io page this morning to update RO information and make some changes. However, my kid woke up sick and threw up all over the place (they're fine now, thankfully). As a result, I wasn't able to send this sooner and well...

I initially wanted to post a longer update with more details about the story overall, but I'll keep this short and focus on the itch.io page changes I made:

No more secret RO(s): I initially liked the idea of ambiguity and intrigue, but in hindsight, its not necessary and just... ugh. I'm sorry for the frustrations with this. Their appearances will come soon. (Yes, yes, some of you knew - har har)

Height customization: Certain ROs will have customizable height options (this isn't a major concern for me, so it feels like a good change). However, this is not in the game yet, for now that's just removed.

I originally intended to share more details about the story and other changes I want to make, but I'll save that for another post in a few days. There's a lot on my mind, and I've been overthinking how to approach this. (Also, I wanted to avoid spamming notifications while making edits to the page — I'm still not sure how itch.io handles those.)

The page is back up now, and I'm very sorry! Today's events have left me scattered, so I'm sorry if that's showing. Comments are disabled on Tumblr and itch.io because I don't want to go into discussions yet, especially as I prepare for bigger changes.

[within-your-eyes-if]

Still Here

Life got incredibly rough after my last post and I'm very sorry for my silence. Progress slowed, but I'm still working when I can, though it has been sporadic, mostly on writing rather than coding. I hope I can share something soon. Thank you for your patience and understanding — it still means so much to me.

[within-your-eyes-if]

September 1st Progress Update

Hello everyone!

First, I apologize that there was no progress update for August. I took a break after the last update, and then personal matters came up, which extended it.

I'm starting to find my rhythm again, life loves to toss us into loops. I have the codes implemented and working, a few scenes done, and more revisions underway — particularly focusing on the poly routes. I wanted to share some samples today, but I want to polish things a bit more first. I'll make a random post with those soon.

Patreon: It's still in the works, I promise, but I'll be honest: I got a bit of cold feet. I had things planned out and ready to go, but self-doubt crept in. I'm working through it, and I'll probably launch it once the first chapter's new systems are fully implemented so that Patrons can check it out.

Asks: There's a lot I'm trying to consider. I'm not quite sure how I want to proceed just yet, and I'm sorry for any uncertainty. Right now, I'm trying find a balance for everything again.

Save Issues: I've received reports of save issues on mobile. This seems browser-related and not something I can fix myself. I've tested Firefox and found no issues personally. Someone on itch.io shared that Kiwi Browser and Brave work as well. Opera GX doesn't work at all, and Google Chrome seems to be random.

Anyways, it's a bore of an update and I'm sorry for that. I look forward to sharing some samples for these new systems and seeing what you think! Thank you all for your patience and support. Have a lovely month!

[within-your-eyes-if]

Ohh, these are cute! I'll be honest, I adored Mo Dao Zu Shi a fair bit more at the time, I had a hard time getting into Heaven's Official Blessing. However, this inspires me to fix that :'>

My interpretations of a few of @within-your-eyes-if 's characters! I gave Leese some eye bags because of all the inner turmoil he has to deal with. Lyth's design was heavily influenced by Heaven Official's Blessing. I kept imagining both him and Xiang as if they were in that universe.

I'm excited to see how the story progresses!!

[within-your-eyes-if]

This is so awesome! I'm so honored and a bit speechless. Thank you so much for sharing, and I hope I can create many more moments that inspire you! ♥

First time in a LONG while I've had the motivation to do a comic on my own time, so I went and illustrated one of my fav scenes from @within-your-eyes-if

NOTE: spoilers for the demo (one of the last scenes), specifically Gabriel's romance route, also TW for vague references to depression and self-harm

[within-your-eyes-if]

June 22 - Vice Update Release

Hello everyone!

The long awaited vice update is now released. Thank you to all of my testers for their dedication and assistance!

The list of changes can be found in the latest devlog: here.

I'd like to just repeat the last bit though:

I changed the style of the choices for the next update. However, I did not intend to do this yet, so it was not included in the beta test. Long story short, I wasn’t paying attention to what I was editing but decided to just get it over with since I'll be doing it anyway. There should not be any broken links, but if you come across any weird styling, please submit a bug report.

Finally, the moods and thoughts feature is not fully implemented in Chapter 3. This is because I'll be reworking parts of it, especially the poly routes. I apologize for the incompleteness on this aspect, but since things are going to change, I don’t see the point in adding elements that will be erased or redone anyway.

Regardless, thank you all for your patience, and I hope you enjoy the update!

[within-your-eyes-if]

June 1 Update & Testing Begins!

Hello all!

I am sending out links after posting — please check your emails/Discord when you get a chance!

Aside from that, I'm feeling a little nervous but pretty good overall. I'll go over everything once the update is ready to be published.

How long do I plan on testing?: At least a week. I want to give everyone time, but this isn't a new chapter. It may be extended depending on feedback, but I think a week or two is sufficient.

Once testing ends, I'll put on the final touches (if needed) before releasing publicly.

What comes next?: I'm redoing my To-Do list today, but I will share what I have on my test page:

Arcane Sense System with Basic Inventory:

The code is ready and working in a test environment — implementation is planned for Chapter 1 rewrite.

This system will make it so this ability can be tracked and used 'at will' in certain cases — it will be mostly utilized in Ch3 Part Two and going forward.

Armor and Stance System:

The code is ready and working in a test environment — implementation is planned for Chapter 1 rewrite.

This will have greater impact on the fight scenes — it will be a little more "game-like" but not overwhelming or super-complex.

Rewrite Chapter 1:

I want to introduce the MC's abilities better and with more sense. This rewrite would aim to redo the combat areas (again ;-;) but for these new systems. I don't think it will be too bad since the systems are working.

Redoing the Guilt Mechanics:

Since announcing this previously, I've see a few of people mention they enjoy it as it is or find it might not make sense regardless. I'll be contemplating this more along with a 'trust system' that a reader suggested for the time being.

Reworking the Poly Routes:

Changes in tracking have been made. I plan to add new scenes and revise existing ones to improve these relationships. I was hoping to have it in this update, but turned out to be a rather large undertaking so will likely be included in next big update or an update following that.

I’m also working on a few other systems, which I will detail in later updates as they become more fleshed out.

What About Chapter 3 Part Two?

It's still in progress. I'm currently at a part where the MC meets various characters, leading to the dinner with Admos. This may seem straightforward, but with five potential encounters and branching paths, it's quite intricate.

My plan is work on the arcane sense system that will be utilized in this chapter quite a bit so I can get it out sooner than later — I am aiming for this to be the next big update.

Goodness, it feels like a lot — and it probably is. But, we can only move forward! Thank you all for your loving support and incredible patience!

[within-your-eyes-if]

Coming Beta Test

Hello everyone!

I'm pretty confident testing will begin sometime this weekend. I'm making the finishing touches, but I wanted to mention a few things.

First, if you're chosen for testing, I ask that you read the test page thoroughly, as there's important information you should be aware of before diving in.

Secondly, I decided to begin testing before finishing Chapter 3's explicit scenes. I think it'll help me ensure I'm on the right track with these sorts of events.

Thirdly, I've mentioned in different places the various things I want to work on/include. I've decided to break these up into other updates—some minor, some large. So if this update doesn't contain something you were expecting, I'm very sorry. It's coming and either needs more work or is awaiting implementation (these new systems require some rewriting, so I've divided things up to be more focused).

I'm sorry about all of this; the more I learn, the more I see what I can do differently. I also sincerely apologize that these updates mean starting over a bit, which I understand may be annoying.

Once I get past this stuff, I believe I'll be back on track, more confident, and less of a scatterbrain.

I appreciate all of your love and support, as always! I hope you all have a great week ♥

[within-your-eyes-if]

This is so cute, and Pipu is absolutely adorable ♥♥ Thank you so much for sharing!

my warden, Ravu from @within-your-eyes-if and his lovely raven pal Pipu :D

[within-your-eyes-if]

Testing Setback

Hey everyone!

I wanted to let you know that I'll be starting testing a little later than planned. I've been busier than usual and also fell a bit ill, which has set me back.

Just to give a little progress update, Chapter 2's revisions are done, and I'm currently going over the new scenes before implementing them. Depending on how I feel about it, I may start testing before continuing with Chapter 3's explicit scenes to get an idea if everything thus far is okay.

My focus since recovering has been entirely on the revisions right now, so I decided it’d be best to wait on addressing the Asks until after I get testing going. I apologize for the delay on that.

Regardless, I'll make a post when I start sending out the links. I appreciate your patience!

[within-your-eyes-if]

This is so awesome! Your effects are so cool ;o; Thank you for sharing and keep up the amazing work ♥

my warden crow (they/them) in action from @within-your-eyes-if

i am so normal about this game actually

[within-your-eyes-if]

She really got through to them, though! 😆 I love it — thank you for the laugh!

what can I say, Warden Asp from @within-your-eyes-if has a certain charm to her

[within-your-eyes-if]

I love it! It's always exciting to see the amazing art inspired by my story. Keep up the awesome work!

New hyper-fixation unlocked 🔓 thank you @within-your-eyes-if

[within-your-eyes-if]

Thanks for 100k Browser Plays

Here's a messy sketch of Lyth while I'm trying to dust of my skills after not drawing for a year. 😎👉👉