The little exuberant details in this: the static screens for unused save slots, the color differences in character speech, the anime-esque special effects for the sprite, the sly static blurring transition from screen to screen, the wide color palette for skin color (and its carry-over effect on CG's), the neon pink and blue dialogue box styles, the chapters designated as "levels", the coin-dropping-into-the-slot sound as you advance a level, and I haven't even touched the character designs or the story or the routes or the character writing! What the french fry! The world-building in here is so lively and animated and obvious--who knew there could be so much spirit in one game? I adore the heck out of every bit of game design and hope to keep noticing more and be delighted!
Like the others below, I received this in the Bundle and loved it. Just finished my romance playthrough with Ashley and I'm actually coming back for more. Well done.
I got this game in the recent bundle, thought I'd give it a go, and I've been completely blown away. Its so good, and honestly really touching and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it. It was addicting, and I'm likely going to play it several more times.
Tried to save before I go on to level two, but it won't let me- whenever I try, it says there are no valid save locations. I can just ignore the error and continue, but I don't want to leave it running in the background forever while I work on stuff... The only advice I can find for dealing with this problem is advice for games downloaded through steam. I could probably figure it out myself if I had access to the files, but they're encrypted, so I don't think I can change the save location easily.
Did I maybe make a mistake when extracting the game files? Is it something I can't fix? Help would be appreciated. T_T
Windows. I'm logged in on the administrator account, but I didn't set it to run with any permissions- I can explicitly run it as administrator if you think that would fix it, though.
hi! i love this game so much but all of my save files on my mac keep getting deleted :/ i've made it to level four multiple times and i make sure the screenshots of the autosaves show up in preferences, but when i open the game the next day theyre all gone. im really excited to continue the game, anyone have any advice?
Okay, I asked, and the most likely reason is you're running the game in a sandbox mode -- it may be the security settings on your mac causing that. If the game is sandboxed any files it makes will be wiped once the sandbox mode ends. Sorry, I don't know much about macs so I can't say what's causing it, just what it could be in theory.
hey! i bought the itchio bundle and found this game there. i decided i should give it a play because i love dating sims, but oh god did this blow me away.
i don't want to spoil too much in public comment but i went through a specific character's route and found that they struggled with their gender identity... it hit home so much. because i go through the exact same thing. something about presenting feminine, identifying partially with that but also something else? and being confused when you see yourself. it's such a confusing shifting thing, and i saw myself so much in them.
human nonbinary characters are a rarity these days, even with so many lgbt+ creators putting themselves out there. i love casual acceptance (referring to characters with their preferred pronouns/genders and thats it) but there's also something else about just.... Talking about gender experiences? and also finding someone and a community who accepts you and learning to grow from that, not just relying on them 24/7?
i'm so sorry for rambling in the comment i'm so so emotional and i just want to thank you again and again. this is a character i'll treasure deeply forever i think and i want to thank you for creating them.
I downloaded this game for my PS4 the day it came out and was absolutely glued to it until I finished it completely. I absolutely adore it. I was originally drawn to the art, as art design is my biggest draw in a game, and it's absolutely adorable.
It can be difficult to find a visual novel with a dating element that also has a great story to go along with it, but Arcade Spirits is a great example of that done well. I'm usually invested mainly in dating portions of games like these, but it's a testament to the great storyline that even the non-dating arc was interesting to me.
It's easy to see the love Fiction Factory put into this. I was more than happy to support them with a purchase already, and I have no problem doing it again with their inclusion in the Racial Justice bundle. You guys have a great piece here. Highly recommended to anyone who loves visual novels like I do, and I can be picky ;)
this game is awesome from the art to characters and dialog but idk I'm having problems with the skip button it won't let me skip text I've already seen even when I load or anything
This is the first game I've played in literally years but I couln't say no to the racial justice and equality bundle and OH MAN I've been playing this for hours instead of sleeping!! The art's beautiful, the voice acting is top notch, the characters are interesting, it runs really well! The writing is also both hilarious and really reflects that 'depression making me feel like life is just getting by and what's the point of trying anything if it's never worked out' aspect of mental illness that I have a hard time explaining because people don't talk about it a lot. Also Teo is very cute.
I'd just like to say: I'm only on chapter 2, but this game is GLORIOUS. The writing's BRILLIANT, the characters are amazing, and the art is *chef's kiss*! Definitely super excited to continue playing. Props to you guys!
Hey, I'm just on chapter (?) 1 but I wanted to drop in a comment about how beautiful this game is. The writing and characterizations are top notch, I'm already attached to MC's voice and humour, and I love how meta things can get while still working with the game's mechanics. Can't wait to sink dozens of hours more into this game!
Oh man... This setting. No fair mining my brain for my deepest desires and most deep-seated personal failings. At least that's how it felt when I first started the game. The writing is great, and the voice acting is spectacular. Thank you for a great game. Also, Jacob and Graham as Matt and Ben, *chef kiss* perfection.
I loved this game so much! Thank you for such a great story and characters, and the varied dialogue options. Also loved the art and sound design. Description says this already, but you get to pick your pronouns and whether you want romance options or not, which I appreciated.
Thank you! I can't talk about our future plans yet, but keep an eye out. We're not considering a mobile port at this time as mobile visual novels require drastic overhauls to account for free-to-play monetization which really disagrees with us, and would need a UI overhaul as well. Right now we're more focused on other projects.
Hello!! This is one of my favorite games ever :). I was wondering if you would be having a booth for the game at anime expo in July? If not, I eagerly await a storefront in which to buy game merch from!
I did encounter one bug but it was an engine bug on the demo. If I put the game in fullscreen mode it would always go to my monitor on the right not my left monitor regardless of which was set as primary. This was a bug with the Ren’Py engine not specific to Arcade Spirits as it happened on various Ren’Py games I tried. It was fixed with the most recent version of Ren’Py (7.2.1). Just letting you know, not sure if it is feasible for you to upgrade the engine version the game is using. It only happens on Linux multi monitor setups as far as I have seen.
You are correct that Itch.io allows payment by credit card in this case maixot is correct. When you click on the Buy Now Link the only option is paypal. Normally there is the option of "Pay By Card" but it's not there. I'm not sure why. May have to reach out to Itch.io support staff to have it fixed.
The absolute best visual novel I've ever played. Every character is well written and interesting. It contains the most impactful depiction of mental illness I've experienced in any artistic medium. I cannot recommend this game enough, even if visual novels aren't normally your cup of tea.
I absolutely love this game, I came across it thanks to the links with Loading Ready Run. Watching on Now Kiss pushed me to buy it as I loved the humour and characters and wanted to experience it myself. I love the choices when making my character, and the option for romance vs friendship.
Definitely recommend this to everyone because it's wonderful.
Hands down one of the best written Visual Novels I've ever played. I felt connected to each and every character; I was with them through their ups and downs. It's the perfect balance of realism to fantasy: it keeps you engaged while still allowing for fun plot points. Every character is an individual, unique in their own right. The player character, too, is amazing. Each playthrough is unique and captivating, allowing for a lot of replayability. The art is stunning, and the little animations added to both the characters and the backgrounds are truly the icing on the cake.
I cannot stress how highly I recommend this game. I can say, without a doubt, it is worth every single penny spent. It is, of course, not perfect, but it's pretty damn close. There are a couple of grammatical errors here and there, and the character customization is a bit limited in regards to facial features and body types, but those are incredibly minor gripes.
I really, really hope there's more to come from this wonderful studio. (Like, perhaps, a wedding scene? Hint, hint, wink, wink) But above all, I'd like to thank the wonderful people who put so much love into this game. Your hard work and dedication show in how fantastic every facet of your game is, from the tiniest details to the biggest CGs. You are incredibly gifted storytellers, artists, and coders. So, from me to you, thank you so much for sharing this piece of art you've created. And most of all, keep on truckin'.
Enjoying the game so far, but just want to report a bug I've found - seems that the script hits an exception during the date with Naomi on Level 5 if you're using 'they' pronouns. You can skip past it and keep playing but I thought I should report it somewhere!
EDIT: Another quick thing I noticed - unsure if it's only while romancing her, but when you talk to QueenBee to back you up during Level 6, her jacket changes back to the L7 jacket halfway through the dialogue.
Definitely a great game! Can't wait for the full version! At least the wait won't be so long at this point.
I loved the characters and their sillyness at some points, and also the whole scoring and personality system, though I'm wondering if the score will affect the ending or some other things. I also can't help but notice the game has "7 romanceable characters", but it seems there are only 6, which means secret character. Nice!
Teo is definitely my favorite of the bunch, though Ashley isn't far behind. They're so lovely.
I have only one complaint about the game - the fact that right-clicking the mouse doesn't bring up and close the save menu as with most visual novels. It bugs me to no end and I always right click before realizing it doesn't work. I also wish I could save during all choices - I always save at each choice, so I can check various outcomes of my actions and also they serve as checkpoints, since I like to re-read parts of routes I liked, and having a save at a choice helps me with knowing that's the right moment in the game. Not to mention not having a scroll back option prevents me from easily going back before the choice to save at that point. I mean, can understand the desire not to let people save at choices, but I'd really like to be able to open and close the save menu with a right click at least.
Other than that, I really have nothing to complain about with this game - it's really great!
You can save at choices -- hit the Escape key to pull up the menu. I do this often, myself! As for right click we found it was a problem for folks less familiar with Renpy's default contro mapping, that they'd hit it accidentally and get pulled out of the game. We can look into a way to allow the user to change the mapping to whatever they want, though. Thanks!
EDIT: As for scrollback -- we intentionally left that out so your choices matter, but it IS unlocked after one complete playthrough of the game. Or if you enter a cheat code. :)
Well, I needed the scrollback only because I couldn't save at choices. I think it's the first time I play a VN where you have to hit Escape in order to do so - couldn't have guessed XD
Just played the demo and instantly fell in love!, The music, writing, and art is so amazing and I absolutely love Naomi!!!!!!! So hyped for the full release
Cool game! Im looking forward to play full game. Interesting colorfull characters. Customization is nice feature, though i wish there would be more options. Maybe for example chance to change face shape or clothes.
Beside the obvious nostalgic ambiance from the graphics and BGM, it has all that good rom-com potential : warm work and social environment with unique but also down to earth characters, absurd to hilarious turns of event, and of course the air of romance xD
I uploaded an LP for this game! I loved it a lot, my only thing would be maybe you could make more hairstyles, body types, etc. for the playable character. Besides that I had an absolute amazing time playing it and I will definetly be on the lookout for the finished product!
Thanks so much for the Let's Play! Unfortunately due to the number of customizable CG event scenes where your character appears, we couldn't go hog wild on hair and clothing -- it'd balloon our budget. This is something we're going to be taking into account if we get to make a sequel, though.
Still on track to release the full game in Q1 2019! We'll update everyone who's following the game here on itch when it's ready to roll. If you'd like to follow weekly developer blog updates check out http://stefangagne.com/blog or http://arcadespirits.tumblr.com !
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The little exuberant details in this: the static screens for unused save slots, the color differences in character speech, the anime-esque special effects for the sprite, the sly static blurring transition from screen to screen, the wide color palette for skin color (and its carry-over effect on CG's), the neon pink and blue dialogue box styles, the chapters designated as "levels", the coin-dropping-into-the-slot sound as you advance a level, and I haven't even touched the character designs or the story or the routes or the character writing! What the french fry! The world-building in here is so lively and animated and obvious--who knew there could be so much spirit in one game? I adore the heck out of every bit of game design and hope to keep noticing more and be delighted!
Like the others below, I received this in the Bundle and loved it. Just finished my romance playthrough with Ashley and I'm actually coming back for more. Well done.
I got this game in the recent bundle, thought I'd give it a go, and I've been completely blown away. Its so good, and honestly really touching and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it. It was addicting, and I'm likely going to play it several more times.
Really, highly recommend this.
Tried to save before I go on to level two, but it won't let me- whenever I try, it says there are no valid save locations. I can just ignore the error and continue, but I don't want to leave it running in the background forever while I work on stuff... The only advice I can find for dealing with this problem is advice for games downloaded through steam. I could probably figure it out myself if I had access to the files, but they're encrypted, so I don't think I can change the save location easily.
Did I maybe make a mistake when extracting the game files? Is it something I can't fix? Help would be appreciated. T_T
Are you running the Win, Mac, or Linux version? And are you running it with elevated security permissions of some sort?
Windows. I'm logged in on the administrator account, but I didn't set it to run with any permissions- I can explicitly run it as administrator if you think that would fix it, though.
Running as admin let me save! Thank you :D
hi! i love this game so much but all of my save files on my mac keep getting deleted :/ i've made it to level four multiple times and i make sure the screenshots of the autosaves show up in preferences, but when i open the game the next day theyre all gone. im really excited to continue the game, anyone have any advice?
I'll ask on the forums for our engine but I'm afraid we're reliant on RenPy for mac and linux support -- we don't have any macs to test it on.
Okay, I asked, and the most likely reason is you're running the game in a sandbox mode -- it may be the security settings on your mac causing that. If the game is sandboxed any files it makes will be wiped once the sandbox mode ends. Sorry, I don't know much about macs so I can't say what's causing it, just what it could be in theory.
okay, thank you so so much!! i love the game so much and am excited to continue it, this time with sandbox disabled! thanks again <3
hey! i bought the itchio bundle and found this game there. i decided i should give it a play because i love dating sims, but oh god did this blow me away.
i don't want to spoil too much in public comment but i went through a specific character's route and found that they struggled with their gender identity... it hit home so much. because i go through the exact same thing. something about presenting feminine, identifying partially with that but also something else? and being confused when you see yourself. it's such a confusing shifting thing, and i saw myself so much in them.
human nonbinary characters are a rarity these days, even with so many lgbt+ creators putting themselves out there. i love casual acceptance (referring to characters with their preferred pronouns/genders and thats it) but there's also something else about just.... Talking about gender experiences? and also finding someone and a community who accepts you and learning to grow from that, not just relying on them 24/7?
i'm so sorry for rambling in the comment i'm so so emotional and i just want to thank you again and again. this is a character i'll treasure deeply forever i think and i want to thank you for creating them.
I downloaded this game for my PS4 the day it came out and was absolutely glued to it until I finished it completely. I absolutely adore it. I was originally drawn to the art, as art design is my biggest draw in a game, and it's absolutely adorable.
It can be difficult to find a visual novel with a dating element that also has a great story to go along with it, but Arcade Spirits is a great example of that done well. I'm usually invested mainly in dating portions of games like these, but it's a testament to the great storyline that even the non-dating arc was interesting to me.
It's easy to see the love Fiction Factory put into this. I was more than happy to support them with a purchase already, and I have no problem doing it again with their inclusion in the Racial Justice bundle. You guys have a great piece here. Highly recommended to anyone who loves visual novels like I do, and I can be picky ;)
this game is awesome from the art to characters and dialog but idk I'm having problems with the skip button it won't let me skip text I've already seen even when I load or anything
Check your preferences -- there are various kinds of skips you can enable or disable. Purple means it's enabled.
This is the first game I've played in literally years but I couln't say no to the racial justice and equality bundle and OH MAN I've been playing this for hours instead of sleeping!! The art's beautiful, the voice acting is top notch, the characters are interesting, it runs really well! The writing is also both hilarious and really reflects that 'depression making me feel like life is just getting by and what's the point of trying anything if it's never worked out' aspect of mental illness that I have a hard time explaining because people don't talk about it a lot. Also Teo is very cute.
I'd just like to say: I'm only on chapter 2, but this game is GLORIOUS. The writing's BRILLIANT, the characters are amazing, and the art is *chef's kiss*! Definitely super excited to continue playing. Props to you guys!
Hey, I'm just on chapter (?) 1 but I wanted to drop in a comment about how beautiful this game is. The writing and characterizations are top notch, I'm already attached to MC's voice and humour, and I love how meta things can get while still working with the game's mechanics. Can't wait to sink dozens of hours more into this game!
hello, i see the game works on linux, can someone tell me how to install it?
Simplest way is to use the itch.io app. Alternatively, download the archive and extract it, and then run `ArcadeSpirits.sh`
thank you so much. I didn't know there was an app for this. ^^
Oh man... This setting. No fair mining my brain for my deepest desires and most deep-seated personal failings. At least that's how it felt when I first started the game. The writing is great, and the voice acting is spectacular. Thank you for a great game. Also, Jacob and Graham as Matt and Ben, *chef kiss* perfection.
I loved this game so much! Thank you for such a great story and characters, and the varied dialogue options. Also loved the art and sound design.
Description says this already, but you get to pick your pronouns and whether you want romance options or not, which I appreciated.
This has been on my wishlist for a year :)
How many levels are there?
Eight total!
Thank you! I can't talk about our future plans yet, but keep an eye out. We're not considering a mobile port at this time as mobile visual novels require drastic overhauls to account for free-to-play monetization which really disagrees with us, and would need a UI overhaul as well. Right now we're more focused on other projects.
Hello!! This is one of my favorite games ever :). I was wondering if you would be having a booth for the game at anime expo in July? If not, I eagerly await a storefront in which to buy game merch from!
We don’t currently have plans to go to anime expo, but we do have plans for a storefront. Keep an eye on our Twitter for details!
I did encounter one bug but it was an engine bug on the demo. If I put the game in fullscreen mode it would always go to my monitor on the right not my left monitor regardless of which was set as primary. This was a bug with the Ren’Py engine not specific to Arcade Spirits as it happened on various Ren’Py games I tried. It was fixed with the most recent version of Ren’Py (7.2.1). Just letting you know, not sure if it is feasible for you to upgrade the engine version the game is using. It only happens on Linux multi monitor setups as far as I have seen.
The actual game is running the latest version of the engine. I’ll update the demo after we get back from PAX. Thank you!
No, I'm pretty sure itch.io lets you buy directly with a credit card without needing paypal.
You are correct that Itch.io allows payment by credit card in this case maixot is correct. When you click on the Buy Now Link the only option is paypal. Normally there is the option of "Pay By Card" but it's not there. I'm not sure why. May have to reach out to Itch.io support staff to have it fixed.
The absolute best visual novel I've ever played. Every character is well written and interesting. It contains the most impactful depiction of mental illness I've experienced in any artistic medium. I cannot recommend this game enough, even if visual novels aren't normally your cup of tea.
I absolutely love this game, I came across it thanks to the links with Loading Ready Run. Watching on Now Kiss pushed me to buy it as I loved the humour and characters and wanted to experience it myself. I love the choices when making my character, and the option for romance vs friendship.
Definitely recommend this to everyone because it's wonderful.
Hands down one of the best written Visual Novels I've ever played. I felt connected to each and every character; I was with them through their ups and downs. It's the perfect balance of realism to fantasy: it keeps you engaged while still allowing for fun plot points. Every character is an individual, unique in their own right. The player character, too, is amazing. Each playthrough is unique and captivating, allowing for a lot of replayability. The art is stunning, and the little animations added to both the characters and the backgrounds are truly the icing on the cake.
I cannot stress how highly I recommend this game. I can say, without a doubt, it is worth every single penny spent. It is, of course, not perfect, but it's pretty damn close. There are a couple of grammatical errors here and there, and the character customization is a bit limited in regards to facial features and body types, but those are incredibly minor gripes.
I really, really hope there's more to come from this wonderful studio. (Like, perhaps, a wedding scene? Hint, hint, wink, wink) But above all, I'd like to thank the wonderful people who put so much love into this game. Your hard work and dedication show in how fantastic every facet of your game is, from the tiniest details to the biggest CGs. You are incredibly gifted storytellers, artists, and coders. So, from me to you, thank you so much for sharing this piece of art you've created. And most of all, keep on truckin'.
Enjoying the game so far, but just want to report a bug I've found - seems that the script hits an exception during the date with Naomi on Level 5 if you're using 'they' pronouns. You can skip past it and keep playing but I thought I should report it somewhere!
EDIT: Another quick thing I noticed - unsure if it's only while romancing her, but when you talk to QueenBee to back you up during Level 6, her jacket changes back to the L7 jacket halfway through the dialogue.
Thank you! We'll look into those.
enjoyed stream today, make me want to play it more, all ready pre-ordered game.
Definitely a great game! Can't wait for the full version! At least the wait won't be so long at this point.
I loved the characters and their sillyness at some points, and also the whole scoring and personality system, though I'm wondering if the score will affect the ending or some other things. I also can't help but notice the game has "7 romanceable characters", but it seems there are only 6, which means secret character. Nice!
Teo is definitely my favorite of the bunch, though Ashley isn't far behind. They're so lovely.
I have only one complaint about the game - the fact that right-clicking the mouse doesn't bring up and close the save menu as with most visual novels. It bugs me to no end and I always right click before realizing it doesn't work. I also wish I could save during all choices - I always save at each choice, so I can check various outcomes of my actions and also they serve as checkpoints, since I like to re-read parts of routes I liked, and having a save at a choice helps me with knowing that's the right moment in the game. Not to mention not having a scroll back option prevents me from easily going back before the choice to save at that point. I mean, can understand the desire not to let people save at choices, but I'd really like to be able to open and close the save menu with a right click at least.
Other than that, I really have nothing to complain about with this game - it's really great!
You can save at choices -- hit the Escape key to pull up the menu. I do this often, myself! As for right click we found it was a problem for folks less familiar with Renpy's default contro mapping, that they'd hit it accidentally and get pulled out of the game. We can look into a way to allow the user to change the mapping to whatever they want, though. Thanks!
EDIT: As for scrollback -- we intentionally left that out so your choices matter, but it IS unlocked after one complete playthrough of the game. Or if you enter a cheat code. :)
Well, I needed the scrollback only because I couldn't save at choices. I think it's the first time I play a VN where you have to hit Escape in order to do so - couldn't have guessed XD
wow! i love the style and the whole idea of this game! i'm totally coming back in feb. to play the full version!!
this game is so awesome and cool i love it
Just played the demo and instantly fell in love!, The music, writing, and art is so amazing and I absolutely love Naomi!!!!!!! So hyped for the full release
Cool game! Im looking forward to play full game. Interesting colorfull characters. Customization is nice feature, though i wish there would be more options. Maybe for example chance to change face shape or clothes.
I loved this so much!!! Can't wait to play the full game. Also love the customization especially being able to use they/them pronouns
loved playing this naomi is waify material x
Anybody know where I can throw money at this and produce a game? No seriously though, I love this demo and I really would love to play this!
Beside the obvious nostalgic ambiance from the graphics and BGM, it has all that good rom-com potential : warm work and social environment with unique but also down to earth characters, absurd to hilarious turns of event, and of course the air of romance xD
Thanks so much for the Let's Play! Unfortunately due to the number of customizable CG event scenes where your character appears, we couldn't go hog wild on hair and clothing -- it'd balloon our budget. This is something we're going to be taking into account if we get to make a sequel, though.
Oh, I didn't think of that! That makes a lot of sense. Thank you for taking the time to read and reply to my comment!
I really love this game! I love Teo and percy <3 I can't Wait for the full game :D
That demo and characters was amazing!! I can´t wait for the whole game, good luck with the project!
Any news? ^^
Still on track to release the full game in Q1 2019! We'll update everyone who's following the game here on itch when it's ready to roll. If you'd like to follow weekly developer blog updates check out http://stefangagne.com/blog or http://arcadespirits.tumblr.com !
Fantastic demo :D Now just waiting for a full version and I've a feeling it's gonna be epic :D