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Void Dreaming Blog XIX - 0.03.50 Update Build and May Retrospective
🕑 Added 2025-06-07 00:00:06 +0000 UTC((Editor Fae here! This build has a, uh... few problems left in it, and fixing them has broken other things. I'm working on it and this post no longer contains the build in question, but an updated post with the new build is available now! I'm so sorry about that!))
Hey, everyone! Fae here with another big update to Void Dreaming! That’s right, it’s updates across the spectrum; today’s the day you get Day 2 on Itch, and the rest of Day 3 on the Patreon. There’s a lot to get into between the update notes, the transparency update and state of Void Dreaming’s development, and what’s coming up next. Let’s not waste any time and get right into it!
V0.03.50 Update Notes
You’ve been waiting, and here it is! What can you expect from the 0.03.50 update for the Patreon build?
- Day 3 Part 2: The second half of Day 3 has been added! Follow on from Anwill’s introduction and receive an invitation from the marten to join him in a more private milieu. Eavesdrop in the commissary (and elsewhere!) in order to catch some new saucy content. If you’ve built up your relationships and the time is right, take the opportunity to explore some brand new Event scenes with several members of the crew. The opportunities are not actually endless! They have ends! I hope you enjoy them anyway! Exclamation points!
- Background Updates: Rico has been busy! He’s surprised me on his month off with some touchups to some existing backgrounds for Void Dreaming. The Embarkation background has some upgrades, as does the Dreamer’s main corridor (in both normal lighting and emergency red), and the Infirmary has been tidied up some as well. Good times!
- Credits Update: The credits at the end of the build have been updated again to reflect the Patreon supporters active when I compiled the list the night before the update. Thank you once again to everyone listed for your support for Void Dreaming!
- Menu Changes: It’s minor, but there’s been a tweak to the way the menus are organized now that should see people not running with instant text speed more smoothly move into the menus presented to you. It’s not exciting, but it’s hopefully a nice change!
- Bug and Typo Fixes: Thanks to your very helpful efforts, more of the typos and lingering bugs in Void Dreaming’s existing content have been tidied up! Please do keep them coming in the appropriate part of the Discord; I’m so grateful for your keen eyes, and your help in making this as clean as possible!
Don’t forget that just like the initial launch, we’ll be having another livestream Q&A two weeks after this release! In a week’s time I’ll be opening up the Discord’s Q&A channel again for readers to leave their questions about the Day 2 build, and what all they’d like to know. You all seemed to like it last time, so let’s do it again!
And, uh... I'll actually get the first up here sometime soon. Promise! I've just been so busy and I haven't had the time to implement a solution just yet. It's coming!
State of Affairs
It’s been another incredible month for Void Dreaming, and I can’t even begin to express my gratitude for everyone who’s been reading and supporting this project. That Void Dreaming continues to be spoken of so positively (from what I’m hearing, at least) has been utterly gobsmacking for me. I can only hope that with the public Day 2 build and the full Day 3 release for Patreon that people are only more enthusiastic and hungry for what I’m cooking.
But that’s just me faffing about, isn’t it? What do the numbers say, as of last night? Let’s have a look at how everything’s doing!
- Since the initial release, Void Dreaming’s various versions have been downloaded from Itch.io over 4600 times!
- Void Dreaming continues to hold an overall 5-star rating (technically 4.9, but who’s counting?) thanks to readers there showing up with love for the VN. That’s derived from 161 reviews, with 154 of those being 5-star ratings. Thank you all so, so much for rating Void Dreaming so high; I’m so glad that you’re loving the story, and I hope the Day 2 build for you only validates that love!
- Slower growth on the Patreon this month doesn’t change the fact that there has still been growth on the Patreon, which is more than I ever dared hope for. It’s utterly incredible and my gratitude for the supporters of the project is boundless. Our total active subscriber count is sitting at 183 now, with 28 of those subs taking on the higher, Officer tier of support to better fund the VN. Your generous support is never something I want to take for granted, and I hope that you’re pleased by what you’re seeing from me!
- The Discord continues to grow as well, so if you’d like to chat with other fans of Void Dreaming then this is absolutely the place! We’ve now got 291 members present, and don’t forget that the most active parts of the Discord are the Patreon sub channels; link those two accounts and sub at even just the base tier, and you get access to some of the most enthusiastic supporters of the project. The theorycrafting I’ve been seeing go on there has been particularly entertaining!
- And finally, the Void Dreaming Bluesky page is now up to about 730 followers, too! It’s not growing as fast, but I do suspect that things will pick up once I’m posting more update stuff there. And don’t forget to tag the account in with any fanart you’re making for the project, too; I’d love to share it as wide as possible to highlight the love you’re showing my creation!
It’s been just the absolute best thing to see how the community around Void Dreaming continues to grow and support this project, and it’s utterly humbling to see the love for it pouring out through the Patreon, the Discord, and the Bluesky. Thank you all, so very much, for enjoying what I’m doing!
Transparency - June 2025
Last month I committed again to transparency, and here we are again! Another month (and change), and a lot more going on behind the scenes with Void Dreaming. Let’s see where we’re at now, what I’ve got done this last month, and what’s coming next!
Writing and Programming
- Day 6 writing content has gone from roughly 75% complete to closer to 90%. This last 10% consists mostly of audio and sprite programming (with some nonessential writing left over that I’m picking away at), which will be finished up closer to release when all assets are in place (unless I get time after Day 8 is complete).
- Day 7 writing content has gone from roughly 65% complete to closer to 95%. This is for much the same reason as the Day 6 content, and also will be finished once all the assets are in place! Fortunately, there’s no writing left there to worry about. Day 7 will be shorter, but still meaty. It can’t be helped, and you’ll see it when you get there!
- Day 8 writing content has begun, insofar as very basic groundwork has been laid. Day 8 is going to be one of the most technically challenging Days of content to write, so I’ve budgeted a longer development cycle for it accordingly. ETA for complete writing and core programming is September.
- The Patreon-exclusive short story Integrity has been drafted and is in the editing stage, and is on track for upload on update day next month on schedule
- Bug and typo fixes have been rolled out as soon as I’ve been able to find them! This means the intensive viewership of the Patreon build has hopefully created a Day 2 build for the public that should be relatively flawless… but please do let me know if it’s not!
- The Public Day 1 build hasn’t required any further updates. Huzzah!
- The Patreon Day 3 Part 1 build has seen one update before today’s Day 3 Part 2 update
Art Assets
- New backgrounds were not sourced in May to save money for upcoming expenses both personal and project-oriented. This pause won’t affect any future updates!
- I’ve reached out to Vall for pricing and to pay for new CGs for Day 4 to be created
- Slight correction to last time! I said I’d reached out to Vall for pricing (true) and paid for new CGs for Day 4 (false). Vall and I agreed to reconvene in June to discuss, and this conversation has now been sorted out; I merely await the invoice to pay it. Everything’s on course still, but I wanted to correct the record. I’d forgotten to update the blog post to reflect that before I posted it, which is no excuse but… accountability!
- My wallet continues to weep. Recent personal expenses have hit far in excess (read: roughly four times my conservative estimates) of what I was expecting them to, and this has put me firmly on the back foot. However, I remain committed to the project and am continuing to set aside money to supplement the Patreon income for it. I won’t lie, though… it’s rough!
Project Finances
- Patreon earnings per month are now up to a gross number of AU$1430 as of the night before this update (it fluctuated a fair bit before that for some reason, despite not losing any subs), and the present number can always be seen on the Patreon page itself. Given the continued growth, I’m very excited about what this will allow me to do if this rate of growth can continue for a few more months! By the end of the year, I’m hopeful that the Patreon will have grown sufficiently to fund the project’s essential needs across the duration of its development. Fingers are crossed and I’m cautiously optimistic!
June’s Goals
- Progress Day 8 writing and programming content
- Complete July Patreon exclusive short story (Integrity) editing process for story’s release on July 5th
- Maintain bugfix/typo correction processes for Day 3’s new update
- Secure next batch of backgrounds from Rico (gap-filling)
- Begin initial preparation for Day 4 Part 1 Patreon release on August 2nd
Upcoming Main Updates:
Jul 5th: Short Story Integrity (Patreon Release)
Aug 2nd: Day 4 - Initiative Part 1 (Patreon Release)
Sep 6th: Day 3 - Wraiths (Public Release), Day 4 Part 2 (Patreon Release)
Release Plan Status: On Target
Whew. It’s been a busy month, but things are only heating up behind the scenes here! There are so many more art assets I need to secure before the end of the year, from CGs to future splash screens to new sprites, all as I’ve mentioned in the post-launch roadmap blog that you can find right here. These are all part of the bare minimum I need to get for the project to function, so I really have to hope I can get the funds necessary to do so.
It clearly won’t all come from the Patreon just yet, but thankfully the new financial year means I have a tax return to file and a nice chunk of tax return I can turn around and use on Void Dreaming. My hope is that I will have enough between the Patreon and the return to secure the CGs I need well in advance of their implementation into the VN, and then I can save up and use the Patreon funds still to come for the new sprites we’re going to need going into next year. Recent setbacks in my personal finances are, I admit, putting me in a tougher spot than I’d like, but I’m confident that between continued Patreon growth and diligent frugality on my part, the project’s development will not be inhibited by this. If that should change, you’ll all be the first to know.
So that’s it for this update day! Thank you for reading, and thank you so much whether you’re about to download the Day 2 build to enjoy for the first time, or the updated Day 3 build giving you so many new options and ways to spend your time on the Dreamer. I hope you enjoy your time with Rael and the crew… and that other guy, as well!
As ever, typo and bug fixes will be rolled out as they’re necessary, but I expect there won’t be as many this time around for the Itch build. The Patrons are doing a frankly astounding job of going through literally every piece of content with a fine tooth comb, digging up snippets of story and lore and finding so many little problems that have eluded my testing team. To all readers who are submitting their typo and bug discoveries to the Discord, I remain committed to ensuring your discoveries don’t make it past a single update build!
And while this represents the end of the initial release surge of content for Void Dreaming, have no fear! We’ll settle into our initial release cadence for the rest of 2025, and by 2026 I hope I will have so much going for Void Dreaming that you’ll never be able to wait for the next update. There’s going to be some exciting stuff coming, and I hope you’re all as keen to see it as I am to share it.
Until then, stars guide you.
- Faora
Comments
TempestArtist
Congrats on pushing out Day 3 Part 2! Glad to hear things are still on schedule and letting us know about how its going behind the scenes. I'm finishing up college assignments right now so I will play the update when I have time.^^ (finals will start up tomorrow or next week. I'm dreading it lol x3)
