Ren'Py The Null Hypothesis [v0.4a] [Ron Chon]

[TeeEight]

The latest I saw in the Discord from Ron (3/19) is that they're still anticipating an end of March release.

Huh, that'd be surprising. The current release is about... A week old, give or take a day or two. Glancing at old updates, it kinda seems like they release every middle of the month. I saw an old January post that says every two weeks, though... Guess we'll see on the 31st.

 

[buttfan]

Honestly, it's a porn game. I'd imagine it doesn't have anything to do with mutant powers or anything. I guess you could maybe argue pheromones but nothing about Null's power would justify why he has that power beyond Porn Contrivance. Much like the fact that Rogue, Laura and Jean are somehow fine with Null sleeping around. 'Acceptable' breaks from reality.

Did you see the discussion about Null's power and Laura's adamantium?
It was hard to miss, went on for 2 pages and some posts were practically essay length.

But, if you insist...
Yes, nearly EVERYTHING in fiction is because it serves the story, not because it makes any damn sense (which annoys me at times). Even when they are trying to be true to real life, they still do it.

For example, in the movie Apollo 13 the Apollo crew were yelling at each other and arguing, but in reality, the crew says it never happened, they were trained professionals and they focused on their jobs. It was added to the film for dramatic tension - I doubt the actual crew needed any more dramatic tension than possible impending death...

 

[TeeEight]

Did you see the discussion about Null's power and Laura's adamantium?
It was hard to miss, went on for 2 pages and some posts were practically essay length.

Nope, missed it still. I don't really do a complete backread and if they were practically essay length, If I saw it, I likely didn't read it. I could have assumed that it's probably some theory crafting or basically actually confirmed.

It was added to the film for dramatic tension - I doubt the actual crew needed any more dramatic tension than possible impending death...

I would imagine they thought "These people are about to die, they should be arguing and yelling." Something, something reality is often stranger than fiction.

Anyway, my point was there's a good non-story reason why Null could make some woman cum just because he was kissing and stroking them. Besides, a lot of the stuff he's doing is foreplay anyway and it's not like penetrative sex is necessary to make women cum. It doesn't have to be magic.

Null may be a

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but I doubt there's any actual magic (or mutation). Just a dude who knows what he's doing. It's headcanon territory but for all we know, he had a bunch of flings before he ended up in Xavier School/Institute.

 

[buttfan]

Nope, missed it still. I don't really do a complete backread and if they were practically essay length, If I saw it, I likely didn't read it. I could have assumed that it's probably some theory crafting or basically actually confirmed.

It was the same sort of "how does this work" thing as what I was asking, but much more in depth.
I'm a little miffed for getting my balls busted for a couple sentences that were meant as more of a throw away comment than anything, while that gets a pass.

I have been annoyed by this for years, and others have experienced it as well, out of everything you say, someone is going to focus on the throw away comment and turn it into a Big Deal.

Besides, a lot of the stuff he's doing is foreplay anyway and it's not like penetrative sex is necessary to make women cum. It doesn't have to be magic.

Actually, the majority of women don't orgasm from penetration at all. So it definitely isn't necessary.

I was more referring to the speed with which it happens. Typically orgasm - if it happens at all - will "result from a combination of at least 20 minutes of direct, gentle, extended massage—by hand, tongue, or sex toy—of women’s whole bodies followed by caresses focused on the genitals, especially on the visible clitoris." (according to a study published in 2021).

It's not the what I was talking about per se (with the possible exception of orgasm without clitoral stimulation, which while possible, is definitely playing on hard mode), it was the speed with which it occurred. But I can definitely understand that as being sped up for the purposes of the game.

I do give credit to the devs for having you move around and change up what you're doing, and knowing that the inside of the thighs is an erogenous zone.

 

[TeeEight]

It's not the what I was talking about per se (with the possible exception of orgasm without clitoral stimulation, which while possible, is definitely playing on hard mode), it was the speed with which it occurred. But I can definitely understand that as being sped up for the purposes of the game.

Purposes of the Game and I don't know about you but if there isn't any new moves to be made. I've just been pressing the play button/spamming it (the fast forward button is a bit too finicky for my tastes and I like having more control). Either way, I'm assuming it takes 20 minutes with the girls, longer when it's the first couple of times for obvious reasons. It just feels faster since I feel like it would take a combination of sadistic game design and masochistic players to want to sit through 20 real minutes.

Suspension of disbelief, so far the game hasn't been so egregious with it that I'm bothered. The game does enough right and there's something to be said about finding the balance between realism and gameplay. At least the sex minigame doesn't feel grindy or at least, once you've learned what makes the girl tick (unlocked more moves). It stops being grindy.

 

[Augustus Commodus]

Funnily enough, it did represent a nerf when he lost it but not for the reasons you might think.

With his healing factor used to working overtime to stop the adamantium, once the metal was gone his regenration was so good it healed his brain... and then kept on healing, basically the healing factor made Logan go back to monke.

Yeah, I have some vague recollection that Logan was slowly becoming more feral, and the adamantium retarded his regression into a more bestial state as part of his backstory. I'm not even sure how he got it back. Someone told me Apocalypse did it, but I missed that entire story arc.

I know I say I read everything, but I'm skipping on that spoiler tag.

Coward! Don't you know mental trauma is the new IT thing. All the cool kids are going it.

Intentionally ruining set ups is my kink.

My condolences to your SO. It must be really tedious to get you in the mood.

And this is one of the reasons why a confirmed date in 2005 would assist us.

Modern linguistics is very easy to track trends with.

Just be glad you don't also have to account for changes in orthography and paleography. It would probably make me giddy, but I imagine 99.999% of players would either quit or be ready to lynch you after two paragraphs.

For those wondering why he'd bother phrasing it this way, Mr. Sinister was alive during the time of its original meaning.

And someone from Chaucer's time would be either very confused or very offended by the way we throw around the word nice. Although maybe not as much as speakers of British English are put off by the American use of fanny. Language is fun.

You water down your Bourbon? Weak.

Does ice count?

Just try all the available options. Asking once doesn't punish you. Just don't ask a second time. If you make a mistake you can just use the back button.

Even if you accidentally select a rejected option, it only costs you 1 love point. Given how many love points you gain from the sex minigame, and how easy it is to earn love points generally, it really isn't a big deal. On the other hand, it might be one of the things the devs might want to consider tweaking in the future to make it more punishing.

The latest I saw in the Discord from Ron (3/19) is that they're still anticipating an end of March release.

Sort of in the same vein, given how often I've seen "planned in chapter 2," any idea on how far off that might be? And I mean that in the vaguest way possible. For example, is Chapter 2 envisioned to correspond to version 0.15 or something, or is it more of a TBD sort of thing?

Honestly, it's a porn game. I'd imagine it doesn't have anything to do with mutant powers or anything. I guess you could maybe argue pheromones but nothing about Null's power would justify why he has that power beyond Porn Contrivance. Much like the fact that Rogue, Laura and Jean are somehow fine with Null sleeping around. 'Acceptable' breaks from reality.

Yes, it's a porn game, and there is an element of wish fulfillment, but it is also a game, and a fun or challenging gameplay element is also important. Of course, everyone wants something different out of their games. Look at a shooter. Some people will hack it to make themselves invulnerable and use an aimbot, but for others, the fun is getting good and trying to legitimately overcome the obstacles the game provides. Ultimately, it will depend on what the devs are aiming for, but my vote would be for it to be more difficult to achieve a good grade, particularly at the beginning.

 

[buttfan]

It just feels faster since I feel like it would take a combination of sadistic game design and masochistic players to want to sit through 20 real minutes.

Yeah, those 20 minutes can fly by when with a real girl, not so much when sitting in front of a keyboard.

The game does enough right and there's something to be said about finding the balance between realism and gameplay. At least the sex minigame doesn't feel grindy or at least, once you've learned what makes the girl tick (unlocked more moves). It stops being grindy.

True enough.

Yes, it's a porn game, and there is an element of wish fulfillment, but it is also a game, and a fun or challenging gameplay element is also important. Of course, everyone wants something different out of their games. Look at a shooter. Some people will hack it to make themselves invulnerable and use an aimbot, but for others, the fun is getting good and trying to legitimately overcome the obstacles the game provides. Ultimately, it will depend on what the devs are aiming for, but my vote would be for it to be more difficult to achieve a good grade, particularly at the beginning.

And also true. I think I lean more in this direction, although not the 20 minutes thing.

Not being able to get her off the first time you are making out is perfectly reasonable. Both of you coming away with blue balls (blue ovaries?) is not actually unusual in those circumstances.

And truth be told, I don't like the idea that my character was a playa' (man whore/ slut/ fuckboy) before meeting Rogue, Laura, and Jean. Not necessarily as virginal as them, but not super experienced either. It feels... wrong.

 

[veil1667]

Sort of in the same vein, given how often I've seen "planned in chapter 2," any idea on how far off that might be? And I mean that in the vaguest way possible. For example, is Chapter 2 envisioned to correspond to version 0.15 or something, or is it more of a TBD sort of thing?

Since you quoted me here, I'll go ahead and answer with all the authority I have*: sometime in The Near Future™!

As for the version nomenclature, I'm not even going to try; my powers of bullshittery only go so far.

*None whatsoever

Edited to add something actually useful- this is the roadmap the dev team shared relatively recently, so this is what we've got for general expectations. Still not going to try to figure out how the numbering scheme relates to chapters and converts to more standard (whatever that is) version nomenclatures.

View attachment roadmap.webp

 

[TeeEight]

Ultimately, it will depend on what the devs are aiming for, but my vote would be for it to be more difficult to achieve a good grade, particularly at the beginning.

I don't know about you but I got C Grades at the start. I think it took about 2 or 3 future dates/"Let's hookup" and possibly even needed more moves to get unlocked for me to start getting those consistent A's. I'm not sure what the rubric is but I'm guessing you need I think a minimum of 4-5 moves and maybe 2 orgasms. But yeah, it doesn't feel easy. Honestly, if it's possible to get an A on the first hookup, I'd say that shouldn't be discouraged, especially since it isn't that easy to get it anyway.

It's that small sliver for me on those initial hook up that gets me... I need a quarter more but it starts to stall. Ah well, a big part of that was "I'm not ready for that".

Yeah, those 20 minutes can fly by when with a real girl, not so much when sitting in front of a keyboard.

To be fair, if you're long-distance with someone and on the keyboard (or phone) those 20 minutes still fly by but yeah I see your point.

 

[buttfan]

To be fair, if you're long-distance with someone and on the keyboard (or phone) those 20 minutes still fly by but yeah I see your point.

Heh, okay, I'll give you that.

 

[Augustus Commodus]

And also true. I think I lean more in this direction, although not the 20 minutes thing.

Not being able to get her off the first time you are making out is perfectly reasonable. Both of you coming away with blue balls (blue ovaries?) is not actually unusual in those circumstances.

And truth be told, I don't like the idea that my character was a playa' (man whore/ slut/ fuckboy) before meeting Rogue, Laura, and Jean. Not necessarily as virginal as them, but not super experienced either. It feels... wrong.

I quite agree on both counts. Having it take 20 minutes in the game would be detrimental to the "fun" aspect, and I feel the same way about the protagonist. Null doesn't come across as a player.

Since you quoted me here, I'll go ahead and answer with all the authority I have*: sometime in The Near Future™!

As for the version nomenclature, I'm not even going to try; my powers of bullshittery only go so far.

*None whatsoever

Edited to add something actually useful- this is the roadmap the dev team shared relatively recently, so this is what we've got for general expectations. Still not going to try to figure out how the numbering scheme relates to chapters and converts to more standard (whatever that is) version nomenclatures.

View attachment 3481717

Sorry to tag you specifically. I was more that your exchange is what made the thought pop into my head in the first place. Thank you for the information.

I don't know about you but I got C Grades at the start. I think it took about 2 or 3 future dates/"Let's hookup" and possibly even needed more moves to get unlocked for me to start getting those consistent A's. I'm not sure what the rubric is but I'm guessing you need I think a minimum of 4-5 moves and maybe 2 orgasms. But yeah, it doesn't feel easy. Honestly, if it's possible to get an A on the first hookup, I'd say that shouldn't be discouraged, especially since it isn't that easy to get it anyway.

It's that small sliver for me on those initial hook up that gets me... I need a quarter more but it starts to stall. Ah well, a big part of that was "I'm not ready for that".

Spoiler: Gameplay Mechanics. Might Impact Enjoyment so Read at Your Own Risk

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[TeeEight]

A+'s

I'm sorry what? There's a A+ rank?

 

[buttfan]

And personally, I find it boring and frustrating; there's no thought involved. I think I see what the dev's are trying to do with their system, and I think it could be a ton of fun, but without some major tweaks, it isn't there. And I'm not even sure what tweaks are necessary.

I do think the girl's desire count increases too quickly. We don't want 20 minutes, but we don't want to be able to make her cum by just following a quick pattern either, especially when she's only got 2 orgasms in her (although, truth be told, most women are happy if they get one orgasm in an encounter, let alone two). The second orgasm is too easy to reach as she starts at 50% - most people are A. tired, and B. super sensitive after a good orgasm, stimulating her clit in any way for a minute or two afterwards is actually more painful than pleasurable. Same is often true for a guy's penis after orgasm, especially the head of the penis.

So you usually need to slow things down for a few minutes before picking it up again. Kissing, cuddling, just light touching elsewhere is good.
In reality, that is. The game has her ready to cum again in 30 seconds.


One thing of note is that in reality what worked on a girl today, won't necessarily work on the same girl tomorrow. It might, but it might not. This is as equally frustrating for women as it is for men. The devs may want to keep that in mind.

The system is better than RLE, and I generally like it, but it still needs tweaking.

I'm sorry what? There's a A+ rank?

There is.

 

[TeeEight]

(although, truth be told, most women are happy if they get one orgasm in an encounter, let alone two). The second orgasm is too easy to reach as she starts at 50% - most people are A. tired, and B. super sensitive after a good orgasm, stimulating her clit in any way for a minute or two afterwards is actually more painful than pleasurable. Same is often true for a guy's penis after orgasm, especially the head of the penis.

I'll have to disagree with you on this bit here. Women and men aren't the same. Men's refractory period is longer but for women, it's shorter. It takes them 20 minutes but it's very easy to domino into multiple orgasms. Hell, I've read that some 'single' orgasms might be 'micro-orgasms'. I agree that clitoral stimulation hurts, that's a bundle of nerves getting flicked by a dumbass. Sure, I've met women who liked getting that stimulated and some claims that's the only way they'll orgasm but that's certainly not the only way to make em cum.

Anyway, the second orgasm starting at 50% makes sense, maybe 25% if you're feeling like you want it harder but its definitely easier and faster on a woman to reach that peak on the second round. But I digress.

The system is fine, not necessarily as is (I want more positions damn it) And for some reason, cunnilingus is not consistent for all girls in the missionary position.

There is.

I'm going to need to figure out how to get there... Hmmm... Fewer unique actions maybe? Or more... Maybe focusing on the erogenous zones instead of clicking makeout and then some heart options to get that bar filled as fast as possible isn't the right go.

 

[Wallsfalldown]

I love going into these threads and reading some of the dumbest arguments around. Y'all are great, never change.

 

[TeeEight]

I love going into these threads and reading some of the dumbest arguments around. Y'all are great, never change.

I like how I was going "Don't overthink why these women are dropping their panties for you" and somehow still ended up overthinking something else... Like christ, the dev team definitely aren't doing that. We're kinda hyping this thing to unsustainable levels with all the overthinking.

Ah well, I'm a sucker for theorizing and I guess, keeping expectations low means there's not much room for disappointment.

 

[buttfan]

Women and men aren't the same.

True, but neither are all women the same (or men for that matter).

What is effective for one woman, will be ineffective for another, and as I said before, it can even be the case that what is effective with a woman today, won' t be effective with her tomorrow.

It is a very complex situation, that is hard to represent in a game. True, you don't want to deal with the full difficulty all the time (as I said, Jean is so wound up for the first two sections that I think she would find it extremely difficult to orgasm at all), but - depending upon who you are - don't want it to be too easy either (some do, some don't).

Hmm, Devs might want to think about a difficulty level. Call them "easy cum, easy go" and "orgasm: the final frontier".

Like christ, the dev team definitely aren't doing that. We're kinda hyping this thing to unsustainable levels with all the overthinking.

Well, we gotta do something until the next version drops!

 

[Augustus Commodus]

I'm sorry what? There's a A+ rank?

There is indeed. Good job, stud!

I do think the girl's desire count increases too quickly. We don't want 20 minutes, but we don't want to be able to make her cum by just following a quick pattern either, especially when she's only got 2 orgasms in her (although, truth be told, most women are happy if they get one orgasm in an encounter, let alone two). The second orgasm is too easy to reach as she starts at 50% - most people are A. tired, and B. super sensitive after a good orgasm, stimulating her clit in any way for a minute or two afterwards is actually more painful than pleasurable. Same is often true for a guy's penis after orgasm, especially the head of the penis.

So you usually need to slow things down for a few minutes before picking it up again. Kissing, cuddling, just light touching elsewhere is good.
In reality, that is. The game has her ready to cum again in 30 seconds.


One thing of note is that in reality what worked on a girl today, won't necessarily work on the same girl tomorrow. It might, but it might not. This is as equally frustrating for women as it is for men. The devs may want to keep that in mind.

The system is better than RLE, and I generally like it, but it still needs tweaking.

Also, the whole preference system should matter. Right now, it is only cosmetic. It is better to pick a non-preferred action (small heart) than not under the current system. Also, if the player chooses to delay their orgasm, it probably shouldn't reset them at 0%. Maybe 75%? I also agree about the girl's desire count and not just being able to do the same thing each time.

I'm going to need to figure out how to get there... Hmmm... Fewer unique actions maybe? Or more... Maybe focusing on the erogenous zones instead of clicking makeout and then some heart options to get that bar filled as fast as possible isn't the right go.

Under the current system, more actions is the key.

 

[Augustus Commodus]

I like how I was going "Don't overthink why these women are dropping their panties for you" and somehow still ended up overthinking something else... Like christ, the dev team definitely aren't doing that. We're kinda hyping this thing to unsustainable levels with all the overthinking.

Ah well, I'm a sucker for theorizing and I guess, keeping expectations low means there's not much room for disappointment.

Same thing happened to me two days ago. I made a comment about how comic book logic isn't real world logic implying we shouldn't overthink things, next thing I know, I'm giving a frickin' dissertation on how Adamantium poisoning would manifest in the real world.

 

[ShinyBoots1993]

I'll state that I'm not gonna be taking part in female anatomy discussions as it's a bit too off topic for me.

In the first section she seems to always be reacting to him as if it is skin to skin contact, but she's wearing gloves, and her suit covers everything but her head.

As shown in other scenes, he has a limited range. Doesn't require skin-to-skin.

This is why the other girls weren't even allowed in the room while Null was draining Laura's vitality during his second coma.

(assuming her comics backstory)

X-23: Innocence Lost and X-23: Target X are 99% canon to our game.

The change is that during the point in the comics that we're focusing on, Captain America is going around as Nomad. This prevented him from aiding in the arrest of X-23. Thus, Wolverine was able to take her to the mansion. All that drama happened 1 month prior to Null arriving at the academy.

Yes, this means the Dazzler appearance is likely canon, do with that information what you will.

Honestly, it's a porn game.

We have several reports of people forgetting this fact.

Much like the fact that Rogue, Laura and Jean are somehow fine with Null sleeping around.

Correction, they're not fine with Null sleeping around. You have to ask them permission to date another girl.

Girl Motivations: Rogue is just happy to be loved and as long as she feels that way she's willing to share. Laura just wants it clear that she's top bitch. She doesn't consider the others as competition for that position. Jean is going in with the mindset of "I'm so awesome in the end he'll pick me."

As why they're open to polyamory to begin with? There is an in-universe explanation that my OCD ass demanded to happen. I won't spoil it, but for comic book fans, it involves James Madrox.

I'd argue that could just be a case of Null being an attentive partner who pays attention (Hearts, Question Mark stuff).

Honestly this. I've gotten a girl off without taking her clothes off. Not hard if you know where to touch and how hard or light.

It's headcanon territory but for all we know, he had a bunch of flings before he ended up in Xavier School/Institute.

Null's dating history and sexual experience is open to player interpretation.

The only enforced character trait is that he's quick to pick up on girls' preferences. Which is the in-universe explanation for what you see on the UI.

Suspension of disbelief, so far the game hasn't been so egregious with it that I'm bothered.

We try to stay as grounded as we can.

My condolences to your SO. It must be really tedious to get you in the mood.

You have no fucking idea my dude.

Does ice count?

Depends on the local temperature.

Sort of in the same vein, given how often I've seen "planned in chapter 2," any idea on how far off that might be? And I mean that in the vaguest way possible. For example, is Chapter 2 envisioned to correspond to version 0.15 or something, or is it more of a TBD sort of thing?

To be 100% transparent, we just want to get the foundations and Chapter 1 finished.

We really don't want to go to work on chapter 2 only to have to come back and fix things later.

but it is also a game

Thank you. This is why the game can "challenge" you.

if it's possible to get an A on the first hookup

It is.

especially since it isn't that easy to get it anyway.

That sounds like a skill issue.

Honestly, this is our equivalent of the "Get in Rogue's pants" speedrun in RLE. "How high a grade can you get with starting options?"

We've had people get the highest grade with kissing and heavy petting.

I do think the girl's desire count increases too quickly.

Congrats on again being the first person to claim something. I have pages of complaints about how slow it is.