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I'm glad to hear that!

I think this game came to have a more traditional narrative arc than my previous games and it's been a challenge to try and structure a story in a classical way like that. Fool Around had a dream setting so I think a stream of consciousness was definitely the way to go there. Shape Village had the branching storyline so again it offered much freedom. Also due to the lesser amount of exploration and gameplay in general there's been a special focus on the story in Menial.

All in all I do hope it's an enticing story!

Hiya!

I'm checking in before christmas 'cause, you know, gotta visit the folks and all. I'm happy to inform that the story is nearly complete! Like 90%. I couldn't hold back and so I continued writing after my last update and I've scripted days 1-7 (of which days 1 and 2 are playable in the demo) leaving only the last, day 8, undone. It'll be a kind of an epilogue. So progress has been swell. Location backgrounds are complete minus the last one. I think the full release will be ready well before 2024 contrary to what I first thought. But still I shouldn't haste 'cause there's much to do with the non-narrative sections, for example there's still no black jack! :p The game has two new songs on the soundtrack and I'm planning to make more music after the story is complete. And the dreams... oh the dreams. There's one I should showcase! But not in this post. In this post I'll share this nice piece of art with Maria sitting in the rain. The location is the Industrial Area that can be seen in the map of Ineria and which Maria will go to on day 6. Terrible events will take place there!

Peace.

Hello!

Here's a little presentation of the Shopping function from Menial.

You can buy things with the money you earn or win gambling. There are two types of items; the first type are puzzle items you'll have to use to access the next bagel stand, and the second type is various trophy items with which you can decorate Maria's room, such as the cigarettes that are bought in this gameplay snip. I'm happy that I managed to pull this off! and there are many items to add, for sure.

On top of that I've written a good deal of new dialog, drawn new environments and scripted the story forwards, but it's all a bit rough. I think I'll have to stop at some point to polish it a little, maybe once the item shop is order, before continuing to write and script the story.

Cheers and have nice day!

@selmiak Lovely!

Thanks a lot for the longplay!

DEMO RELEASED:

https://wavey-games.itch.io/menial

Go ahead and download it, yes... 

Hi! I wanna share this little gameplay demo here. It shows how Maria makes bagels for her customers using the Bagel Simulator 1.0. Check it!

The demo's coming along nicely. I've been sending it to awesome playtesters, making fixes and adjustments according to feedback.

Cheers!

Thanks Rik and Nahuel for the encouragement and good wishes!
I guess the blend of different genres puts the game in it's own division. Gets my weirdo juices flowing, at least.

Welcome!

I've been working on my latest game for a couple of months now and I feel it's time to post a little something here. Thus I proudly present: Menial - A Utopian Bagel Simulator!

A demo is available!
Here's a link for downloading the demo: https://wavey-games.itch.io/menial

This is a non-adventure game. I'd quickly describe Menial as a restaurant simulator and a visual novel, with some light point 'n' click puzzling in a comic pixel art style very much inspired by the NES.

More broadly Menial is a game about making bagels and living in the City State of Ineria, a fully automated utopia. You step into the shoes of Maria who's lifelong passion has been the (perhaps modest) art of making bagels. What does the following of your passion entail in a world of myriad possibilities? What pressures and attitudes must Maria endure from her surroundings? What is the utopian state of Ineria like and who lives there?

The gameplay is inspired by bartending simulators and visual novels like VA-11 HALL-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action and Coffee Talk. So you'll be making and serving bagels and meeting different characters with their own stories. After work you go home and you'll have a chance to spend money in a shop or go gambling! Currently I've made a robot race minigame where you can bet on three robots who race, but I'm hoping to make a blackjack simulator available too. The shop's been created but I need to put more items in it.  I'll also be adding into the mix some surreal minigames you can play by going to sleep while at home. I've made one dream thus far and it's quite horrific, but I don't want to spoil it.



Maria has to go through a morning routine each day, which involves light puzzling.

A shot from the Bagel Simulator 1.0 where you construct bagels for customers.

A guy talking about the world after having bagels.

A picture of Maria's recepy book.

I think a Status Report would be something along the lines of:

Graphics: 70% more or less
Story: 90% or less
Scripting: 70% more or less
Music and Sound: 33% or more

So the game is still in the very beginning of development and I'm going to take time with this project. My plan is to release a final version somewhere in early 2024. Do play the demo!

Haven't finished the game yet, but I have to say this game is incredibly well written. I'm really taken by Mara and her story. Plus there's tons of stuff to examine in each room and it's always carefully and inventively written. I find I'm looking the hell out of every room!  Soundtrack and animation is real impressive too. Excited to see it through to the end!