- Sep 8, 2021
- 76
- 131
- Jul 31, 2017
- 1,499
- 4,269
Honestly can't stand sandbox games, but Callisto was the only one that I actually enjoyed. Now seeing a new one by Xavster, I'm actually excited lol. So far, I'm loving it. Very interested to get more into this story and see the colorful cast of characters that eventually join the crew.
It's a great start so far. I see sandbox is coming next update, so while a part of me is dreading it, I know you'll do it proper justice if Callisto is anything to go by. A small sacrifice for a great story lol.
Either way, best of luck with your new project and can't wait to see what comes next. Thanks Xavster.
It's a great start so far. I see sandbox is coming next update, so while a part of me is dreading it, I know you'll do it proper justice if Callisto is anything to go by. A small sacrifice for a great story lol.
Either way, best of luck with your new project and can't wait to see what comes next. Thanks Xavster.
- Jan 10, 2020
- 15
- 7
Competed Callisro long time ago and on first look i didnt understand what's we have here, terms from first game, some other lines, info drops and some time of thinking i undestand that it's a sequel to Callisto under new name...
But still good start i like it, good luck in creating a new great game will be waiting for future updates!
But still good start i like it, good luck in creating a new great game will be waiting for future updates!
- Aug 22, 2018
- 24,964
- 85,336
I loved Callisto so looking forward to this.
Damnit!
I was hoping the devs next game would not be another shitty sandbox, oh well another game goes to the ignore list
I was hoping the devs next game would not be another shitty sandbox, oh well another game goes to the ignore list
Thanks for the positive feedback so far.
In terms of the timetable, it will likely be about one release every 3 months for the first few releases. This may reduce slightly once all of the game structure is established and it becomes more story creation.
The sandbox element will change quite a bit from Callisto. Issue I had with Callisto is that I created too many interaction points, which was then impossible to populate with interesting events. Goal is for each interaction point to have a repeatable event that has some meaning.
I have recently created a mining / exploration mechanic, which is available to $10 Patreons as a separate little game. This is a step up from the trading / salvage mechanics in Callisto. One of the other things I am keen to do is have greater integration of the mechanics into the overall story line. Whilst it won't be required that you do these mechanics, they will give a more rounded experience and help game progression.
For those that are more interested in the lewd aspects of the game, there will be additional acts added to the tags as they appear in the game. Intent is for fewer, however higher quality animations in Stellar Crossroads. Thus a similar time devoted to their creation, just more time allocated to each one. For reference there was about 250 lewd animations in Callisto, although most were short loops. You will likely have to wait until v0.3 to get your fix.
In terms of the timetable, it will likely be about one release every 3 months for the first few releases. This may reduce slightly once all of the game structure is established and it becomes more story creation.
The sandbox element will change quite a bit from Callisto. Issue I had with Callisto is that I created too many interaction points, which was then impossible to populate with interesting events. Goal is for each interaction point to have a repeatable event that has some meaning.
I have recently created a mining / exploration mechanic, which is available to $10 Patreons as a separate little game. This is a step up from the trading / salvage mechanics in Callisto. One of the other things I am keen to do is have greater integration of the mechanics into the overall story line. Whilst it won't be required that you do these mechanics, they will give a more rounded experience and help game progression.
For those that are more interested in the lewd aspects of the game, there will be additional acts added to the tags as they appear in the game. Intent is for fewer, however higher quality animations in Stellar Crossroads. Thus a similar time devoted to their creation, just more time allocated to each one. For reference there was about 250 lewd animations in Callisto, although most were short loops. You will likely have to wait until v0.3 to get your fix.
You should consider rewording, or clarifying, the first sentence in developer notes as it makes it sound like the tags listed will be the only tags included in the full game.
- Jan 17, 2020
- 59
- 121
As a member of Xavster's dev team, I am also humbled by the amount of positive feedback. It show that His work and by extention the rest of his team's work is appreciated. I for one look forward to helping Xav make Steller Crossroads even better than Callisto.
Thanks, LDW.
P.S. I check comments on here regularly, as do other member of the team. So questions and feedback will reach one of us fairly quickly.
Thanks, LDW.
P.S. I check comments on here regularly, as do other member of the team. So questions and feedback will reach one of us fairly quickly.
- Nov 14, 2017
- 57,756
- 28,648
I made a mental note of a few things to myself while i played this first release:
The characters seem to have a well planned personality and the conversations are genuine.
There is one main obstacle in the first few minutes and there are multiple ways to solve it, all of which lead to the same result, but with very different tone and behavior from the cast along the way.
The first scene with a potentially interesting woman absolutely didn't go the way i expected.
There is a pinch of lighthearted humor in this release to set a tone, but not to overwhelm the story into a full-on comedy.
Whoever made this seem to know what they are doing.
By my last point in the list, you probably guessed that for no reason at all, i never tried Callisto so i didn't recognize the dev either. At least i know what to check out while i wait for the updates.
This is a very nice start.
The characters seem to have a well planned personality and the conversations are genuine.
There is one main obstacle in the first few minutes and there are multiple ways to solve it, all of which lead to the same result, but with very different tone and behavior from the cast along the way.
The first scene with a potentially interesting woman absolutely didn't go the way i expected.
There is a pinch of lighthearted humor in this release to set a tone, but not to overwhelm the story into a full-on comedy.
Whoever made this seem to know what they are doing.
By my last point in the list, you probably guessed that for no reason at all, i never tried Callisto so i didn't recognize the dev either. At least i know what to check out while i wait for the updates.
This is a very nice start.
- Jul 10, 2017
- 21,022
- 25,715
My gripe with Callisto is always (because I like the game and play it from time to time)
either 1- the empty showers MC cannot use and the used showers where he is always booted out of like some creep by his crew
and
2- the endless conversations at the table that MC overhears and then,
after he reveals himself and I wanna join in the conversation, he just up and decides
to not sit at the same table with his own crew by telling them ”I will leave you alone”.
use the many talks to actually give a reason MC would sit in a place while he figgures out a way to use the many trade routes and destinations for proffit.
We are sitting there as opposed to have everyone constantly thinking about and talking of a
way out of that pickle and having this crew member or that one come up with a solution.
That should make for a reasonable clue to us players we gotta grind some stats or sit through some weeks in the early game, stuck with empty showers and all the shameful dissing by our crew, while the plot grows some spine and actually gets going somewhere.
That part of the game, repetitive and annoying is soulcrushing.
either 1- the empty showers MC cannot use and the used showers where he is always booted out of like some creep by his crew
and
2- the endless conversations at the table that MC overhears and then,
after he reveals himself and I wanna join in the conversation, he just up and decides
to not sit at the same table with his own crew by telling them ”I will leave you alone”.
Then there is the constant moving around all those destinations and the game does not
use the many talks to actually give a reason MC would sit in a place while he figgures out a way to use the many trade routes and destinations for proffit.
We are sitting there as opposed to have everyone constantly thinking about and talking of a
way out of that pickle and having this crew member or that one come up with a solution.
That should make for a reasonable clue to us players we gotta grind some stats or sit through some weeks in the early game, stuck with empty showers and all the shameful dissing by our crew, while the plot grows some spine and actually gets going somewhere.
That part of the game, repetitive and annoying is soulcrushing.
- Feb 16, 2019
- 1,314
- 3,278
- Jul 10, 2017
- 21,022
- 25,715
Lies! All lies!!!
You cannot make this game better by making this game be about the supporting cast.
The coworker literally stole the bounty, the spotlight and all the agency in this game.
MC had one coworker who actually pulled for him, the sweetest girl in this whole preview
and we have no option about her.
None. No creampie No monster girl No romance No vaginal sex
The coworker stealing MC ditched all the
romance, all the creampie, all the sex down the drain of false advertising actual action and romance in a game that, in the pilot episode prologue, features none of that whatsoever.
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- Feb 16, 2019
- 1,314
- 3,278
Hardest parts of writing a story: The beginning and the end.
Especially the ending is difficult, but it is one of the first things a writer should sketch out. It will mean the writer won't have to worry too much about the ending, because he already has the outlines, but it also gives the writer a goal for the rest of the story, greatly reducing the chance for him to write himself into a corner or driving the story off-rails. With VNs, the problem is that there are usually several endings, and it's hard to keep the story consistent for all those endings. But, it pays off. It just requires the different storylines not to diverge too early or too much, as that exponentially increases the workload on the writier, increasing the risk that one or more endings get written off, or that development won't ever finish.
The beginning is almost as difficult. If you don't have a vision or direction for your story, then it's easy to start a story with a "one morning you wake up and go to work/school/whatever". But, if you have a direction for the story, it is terrible, as it won't give your character the background that you want to give him or her.. In that case, you'll usually want to introduce the character in a situation giving some background, like, in transit (meaning the character is closing a past), at work/school (giving information about the characters' skills and personality) or busy with some activity like sports or a hobby (giving information about the characters' secondary skills and interests).
Sometimes it works to have multiple introductions within a story, in which case the protagonist is usually the second introduction, while the first introduction either introduces an antagonist (doing something that starts the ball rolling for the protagonist), or the environment (introducing the time, the theme, the circumstances, and hinting at the main plot).
I said that the protagonis is usually second to be introduced, but sometimes the protagonist is already revealed, but not yet introduced. This can be something like an undescript character turning on the TV and then focussing the story on some news item, or the main character being a background or side character on an antagonist or environment introduction.
If you look through your favourite movies, I bet three out of four start with multiple introductions, and set the stage before introducing the protagonist. Most of them probably also already had a goal or a crude outline for the ending(s) before the beef of the storyline got any. The story is about the journey, not the destination. But to make the journey and thus the story worthwhile, the destination will need to be logical and acceptable as well.