Anamnesis 261025 Released

Decided to build a web version of the game. Seemed surprisingly easy to do. Too easy. Enough to make me think I've probably missed something important, so let me know if something doesn't work for you.

The other big change is the addition of pregnancies for female player characters and renascents, you can find a post with all the details and the motivation behind this change at the blog. I'm pretty happy with how it reflects the historical female ordeal of childbirth and makes players adapt to it. 

Gameplay-wise, it is rather unfair, so if you prefer the old system, you can bring up the in-game console (shift+o), type "magicalbabies = 1" without the quotes and press enter to make the game revert to the old system.

 

Previous savegames are not compatible. 

Change Log:

• A seemingly working HTML version is now available at itch.io.
• Pregnancies: Female player characters and female renascents in heterosexual relationships will now go through pregnancies rather than instantly pop babies. The process will take several weeks during which Weariness will increase. High Weariness values during these pregnancies carry a risk of losing the child. Pregnancies can be interrupted when discovered at a variable cost depending on related social contexts and the cycle's technological level. These children are more likely to remain loyal towards their mothers in adulthood during subsequent cycles.
• A new "Love" info screen provides information about expected and current children, romances and mastered techniques. 
• Renascents might now initiate or accept romantic relationships with player characters even if they don't match their preferred personality (Hedonist, etc) provided they like the player character enough for other reasons. 
• Renascents become less active as their Weariness increases, producing less events between turns and when at home. 
• Day or night weeks now have a small influence on the availability of some territory actions. 
• More territory events now have small, token requirements to prevent heavily incapacitated characters from doing strenuous work. Many "honest" jobs now also require at least having 1 Merit, so criminal player characters now risk finding themselves in downward antisocial spirals.
• Players will no longer be able to spend Arkhe they don't have to cure an affliction that requires it.
• 2 new socio-environmental and personal contexts.
• Fixed several bugs, tweaked things, removed redundant texts and stuff.

Pregnancies and Other Related Accessory Features

In the next version of Anamnesis, renascents in heterosexual relationships will go through actual pregnancies.

 

I've actually resisted adding full fledged pregnancy mechanics to the game in the past as they are inherently unfair towards female player characters. Then again, I've come to think, that very historical unfairness has created a lot of very powerful drama and conflict in fiction, and the historical experience of being a female in the ages in which the game is inspired just cannot be captured without said unfairness.

Therefore, from the next version on, if your player character is female and gets romantically or even just sexually involved with males, rather than having a magical baby pop up, there's a chance you'll be notified a few weeks after the deed that you're pregnant. This will give you the choice to either keep the child or interrupt the pregnancy, which will be far more expensive in low-tech cycles or even outright impossible if certain social contexts are in effect.

Should you choose to keep the child, you'll experience small, growing increases in weariness as the pregnancy progresses over for the variable several weeks it will last. Should you risk continuing having an active, rough and tumble adventurer life accruing extra weariness, you run the risk of severely afflicting your health and losing the baby. Once the gestation period is over, the birthing itself will also significantly increase weariness and even temporarily reduce the character's EX stat. The one bit of good news is that those descendants you've personally given birth to will be far more likely to feel a strong bond towards you during their adulthood in future cycles.

Male player characters will only notice this if they become romantically involved with a female renascent. The female renascent will go through the same process as female player characters, accumulating weariness and risking losing their child if subjected to too much weariness. Furthermore, they have the most agency over whether they choose to keep the child or not. You might have the money and means to interrupt the pregnancy, but the renascent might not be willing to allow it if she really wants to have the child.

As for player characters involved with others of their same sex or even males involved with mundane female lovers, at least for the time being, the old, more nebulous system of magically popping babies still applies. Make anything you want of that in your headcanon.

A number of related small auxiliary features have also been added, most visibly a "Love" info screen to include all the new information and expand on other love life stats, giving you more information about your past and present lovers and the sexual techniques you've mastered. Renascents will now also be less active overall if their weariness is too high, be that due to pregnancy or other reasons, and there will be small token checks to prevent heavily incapacitated player characters from doing things like hard labour in territories.

 

I think I've only played 2 other games in my whole life that explored the intricacies and ordeals of pregnancy in a manner that's neither fetishized nor idealized. So I'm actually pretty proud of how this turned out despite my years-long reservations to go with it.

Anamnesis 260918 Released

 

Previous savegames are not compatible. 

 

Nothing big, just trying to get the rust off and get my motivation back. I spent some months teaching myself Godot, but ultimately decided against remaking Anamnesis with it as this would take several years of decidedly unfun work just to get to where the game is now with my current amount of available free time. Might start a new, less niche game with it at some point though.

 

Might also set up a Ko-fi at some point or something, Decided to set up a Ko-fi, could be a nice way to fool myself into spending more of that free time writing or developing. Just don't look forward to it because I dislike reward tiers and stuff so there will be nothing in it for you.

 

 

Bugfix 1 Released on 26-10-07: Fixed several bugs this one really nice Discord person reported and added 2 new tier 4 units, Tershere Blood and Tears and Ill-Vess' Crawling Cemetery.

 

Change Log:

• New secret procedurally generated stuff to discover each cycle when engaging with lovers and the like. (As relatively safe for work as the rest of the game).
• You can now acquire relic pieces paying a variable Arkhe cost rather than adventuring, if certain new contexts allow it.
• Two randomly designated renascents at the beginning of each game will be selected as your unconditional ally and nemesis. These will remain secret, but their like or hate towards you will remain fairly strong regardless of everything, even how you choose to treat them.
• You are now asked about your character and settlement name after choosing all other options so that you don't have to name a completely random character blindly.
• Your character's unmodified base stats are now displayed in the "Bio" screen. 
• Starting in "Standard Mode" will put players inside a territory regardless of their starting role. Should help make the first contact with the game less overwhelming for new players. 
• 7 new socio-environmental and personal contexts.
• A number of bug-fixes, tweaks and some other stuff I forgot to write down.

Anamnesis 251024 Released

 

Previous savegames are compatible.
 

Another maintenance release. Mostly just addressing some of the issues people were having with the game.

Might finally get more time to develop the game in the near future. Perhaps even feel something remotely similar to a sense of purpose again. 

 

Bugfix 1 Released on 25-11-11: Arguably more of a small release than a bugfix. Further trimmed redundant menus and unnecessary clicks, did some balancing and fixed some display issues.

Bugfix 2 Released on 25-11-24: Removed more clicks, fixed some more display oddities, made some further balancing and added a chance for certain events to produce children outside normal relationships. Combine this with the "Lack of Contraception" social context for extra fun.

 

Change Log:

• Outcomes for events and votings are now displayed in a single message, some redundant messages and choices were removed, and economic information is hidden from players without at least a Hideout/Outstation to save players valuable clicks.
• Even if a renascent hates you, you'll now still be occasionally shown actions that allow you to gradually earn their favour rather than simply the option to argue with them. 
• Updated to the latest version of the RenPy engine. This should make the game run on the latest versions of Joiplay  for most users once again.
• 2 new units.
• 1 new socio-environmental context.
• Misc. bug-fixes, tweaks and stuff. 

Anamnesis 250723 Released

 

Previous savegames are compatible.
 

A lousy little update. Been working 60 to 72 hours per week at my day job most of this summer. Am dead inside.

Bugfix 1 Released on 25-08-04: Hopefully fixed a bug that caused renascent companions to leave improperly.

Change Log:

• Cycles can now have up to 6 socio-environmental contexts at once.
• Starting a new standard game will give you a starting boon to choose between Arkhe, Merits, negative Weariness or Negative Local Tension.
• Players can now learn about settlement development opportunities during votings. 
• 1 new territory.
• 2 new units.
• 3 new socio-environmental contexts.
• Some bug-fixes, tweaks and typos.

Anamnesis 250407 Released

 

Previous savegames are not compatible.
 

It was brought to my attention that the game is a bit of a mess when played by blind players with self-voicing enabled. Unfortunately I'm really short on free time lately and this literally requires testing hundreds of things and systems, so I decided to slap together a hopefully more playable self-voicing optimized mode and make a release for those interested in it to test, if this is not of interest to you, you can safely skip this release and wait for the next one. 

To access the new mode, after selecting "New Game", open the Ren'Py console with Shift+O, type "simpletext = 1" (without quotation marks), press Enter, then Esc to exit the console. Pressing the v key will enable self-voicing as usual with all tips and redundant text removed and territory lists replacing all maps.

Bugfix 1 Released on 25-05-18: Fixed a bug that prevented maritime trade altogether.

 

Change Log:

• Added an experimental self-voicing optimized mode for blind players.
  
• Other aristocrats might now own trading licenses, allowing you to get rid of them to secure monopolies or bypass having to purchase your own by using theirs to trade once they are under your control.
• Local Tension will now decrease faster during the beginning of each cycle, particularly standard ones, and after obtaining strategic advantages favourable to your side. 
• Outcast players can now attack or try to negotiate with enemy units occupying the territory in which they find themselves through the "Other actions and info" screen, formerly simply called "Other actions".
• Information and some guidance concerning your player character's peculiarities will be shown at the "Other actions and info" screen.
• You will now get a small, once-per-cycle reward for personally visiting each of the colony's territories at least once.
• Blocking the granting of new trading licenses for products in which you own a monopoly now costs 0.5 Merits rather than 5.
• It is now significantly less likely that random aristocrats you meet will try to spy on you.
  
• 2 new socio-environmental contexts.
  
• 2 new player character drawbacks/strengths.
• 1 new player character peculiarity.
  
• New feyfolk content, including 1 new power.
• A few minor bug-fixes, tweaks and typos.