Heart of the Woods Limited Merchandise Store

June 2020 Update - Switch Port and VA Patch 99% Done
almost 4 years ago – Sun, Jun 21, 2020 at 11:38:08 PM

Hey everyone,

Sorry it's been a bit since the last update. We were trying to hold off until the Switch port for the game was totally done, but there are still a couple bugs being worked out there and we didn't want to keep you waiting (the current issue has to deal with shaders and some issues with the controls). It's about 99% of the way done, and then we can finally enter testing and start planning for a release date.

We did get the edited versions of the final voice lines yesterday, which means we now have all the files we need for the voice acting update!  We'll still need to do some testing with the newest lines to make sure everything sounds good, but that won't take too long.

Once the game is done - totally, fully done - we can finally start getting the rest of the Kickstarter rewards printed and start sending them out to you guys. Shipping should begin in either July or August. We'll post some previews of the items themselves once we can.

Thanks for your patience with everything. We're super excited to release the voice acting patch for HotW and for everyone to hear how great the actresses sound. And of course, to be able to play the game on Switch. It won't be much longer!

P.S. Today is Morgan's birthday, so adi drew a small gift to celebrate the occasion.

Progress Update - April 2020
about 4 years ago – Fri, Apr 03, 2020 at 12:15:46 AM

Just noticed I put the wrong year in February's update. That's gonna haunt me.

Today's update is pretty short, but things are going well! We've finally finished adding all the voice files to the game, which took a loooong time since we had a lot of takes to listen through. Now though, it's at the point where we're going to go through the game ourselves and make sure everything sounds good, and get any pickups (which are basically selected retakes) done if they're needed. After that, the voice acting will finally be complete, and we can finish the Nintendo Switch port for the game! It's still too early to lock down a release date, but we're getting really close to the end!

If you pledged for a digital PC copy of Heart of the Woods, you should've gotten your key recently. The voice acting update for the PC version will go live at the same time that the Nintendo Switch version goes live, so probably a couple more months at most. The simplified Chinese translation for the game was also recently completed, and will be available soon.

As far as physical merchandise goes, it's honestly tough for us to say right now if we're going to be able to hit our target shipping date of June because of Covid19. Some of the items, like the keychains and magnets, have already been printed and are sitting in storage. Others, like the physical game and artbook, have yet to be printed and could be subject to delays because of the virus. We're still hoping to start sending things out come summer, but it's really hard to guarantee right now. Of course, we'll keep you guys updated as we do know more.

That about wraps it up for today. As always, thanks for your support. We hope that everyone is staying safe and healthy out there!

Progress Update - February 2019
about 4 years ago – Mon, Feb 17, 2020 at 12:52:04 AM

Hey everyone,

Just popping in with a quick progress update! The voice files are 90% ready to go and we've begun inserting them into the game. We still need to get a couple of the bonus scenes from hitting the stretch goal recorded, but there's not too many of those. We're still aiming to have all of that finished by the end of this month!

The Switch port is waiting for the voices to be done as well, and then that can be finished up as well. Still too early to announce a specific release date, but we'll keep everyone informed about it! Our fingers are still crossed for March or April.

Art stuff is going well, too. For instance, our background artist Hui just finished a remake of the background for Morgan's bedroom. Check it out: 

Also, Rosuuri has been working on the new reversible cover for the game. It features fairy queen Maddie plus Geladura the cat. Here's what the initial sketch looks like! It'll stretch across both the front and back covers.

We're hoping to start producing all of the merch rewards soon. Unfortunately, the factory we work with has been closed due to the Coronavirus, so we're waiting for them to be able to safely resume operations. Naturally, we don't have a timeline on that, but we're still aiming to ship stuff out around June like originally planned.

Finally, not specific to the voiced version of the game, but yesterday (Feb. 15) was the 1 year anniversary of Heart of the Woods' release! It's hard to believe it's already been a year, but it's also hard to believe that it's only been a year. A few of us wrote up some quick messages on our feelings one year later, so you can read those on our devblog! The accompanying anniversary art was drawn by our PR superstar Miko.

That's about it for now! We'll see you next time we've got big news to share. Until then, take care!

Backerkit Reminder + Quick Update
over 4 years ago – Wed, Dec 18, 2019 at 01:30:07 AM

Hey everyone,

Just a quick update to remind you to fill out your Backerkit if you haven't yet! Backerkit will be open for two more weeks, so if you're interested in any of the add-on's we have, be sure to get on that soon~ Remember, if you pay with a credit card you won't be charged until Backerkit closes at the end of this year. If you pay with PayPal, you'll be charged right away.

If you need help finding your Backerkit invite, you can go to this link and put in your email address. Be sure to use the email address that's associated with your Kickstarter account.

So what happens when Backerkit closes? Aside from cards being charged, orders will also be locked - no more modifying pledges or adding items to your order. You WILL still be able to change your shipping information at any point up until we lock those and start shipping goods. We'll give a heads up before that happens, of course.

If you have any other questions, we're happy to answer them! You can send us a message here, hit us up on Twitter, or send us an email at [email protected].

On the game side of things, we're making smooth progress! We actually just wrapped up recording with Maddie's and Morgan's voice actresses last week. The only character who remains to be finished is Abby! Once all the dialogue is recorded, we'll then have an engineer go over the audio for stuff like noise removal, equalization, and any other technical work that needs to be done. Then we implement the lines into the game, and then we're pretty much set! It's still too early for us to say when it'll be done and released, but we'll keep y'all informed about it.

Until then, we hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday season!

Cheers,

Josh

PS: We recently announced one of our upcoming games, "Lock and Key," a story about what it means to be a magical girl. The lead writer and director is Rachel, who was HotW's co-writer. Be sure to follow us on social media for more news about LAK or come join us in our Discord server! 🔒🔑

Backerkit Live!
over 4 years ago – Sat, Nov 23, 2019 at 07:03:43 PM

Hey everyone,

Backerkit invites have been sent out! Please check your email address that you use for Kickstarter to get your link. Even if you're not planning to purchase any addons or physical items, please make sure to fill out the survey anyway, as we'll be using Backerkit to fulfill some of our digital rewards. If you are ordering physical goods, whether as part of your pledge level or as an addon, Backerkit will allow you to modify your shipping address up until we start actually sending items out. We'll be closing our Backerkit at the end of the year, which means you'll no longer be able to add items or change your order. Remember, all of the physical goods other than the game/artbook/OST and Collector's Edition are exclusive to this campaign! Once Backerkit closes, that's it! If you know or anyone you know missed out on the campaign and want to grab some of the goods, you can do that via the Pre-Order Store. This will also close at the end of this year. Please note that if you're purchasing addons or preorders and paying with a credit card, you won't be charged until the end of the year when Backerkit is closed. If you pay with PayPal, you'll be charged right away.

So, speaking of physical rewards, let's talk about what I assume is gonna be the big question: what's gonna happen regarding physical Nintendo Switch copies. At the moment, we're not going to be using Backerkit to try to hit the stretch goal. Although our final amount raised came close to the stretch goal amount, a higher percentage of the total amount than we anticipated - nearly 25% of the total - comes from shipping costs. Between shipping and taxes, as well as the costs of VA recording and goods production, we're not confident that we'd have enough to afford the cartridges even if we hit the stretch goal.

Instead, we're going to be looking into other options with our publisher to see if we can make them happen. We have a couple ideas that we're going to try exploring. Please note that is NOT a guarantee that we'll be able to offer physical Switch copies. But I promise that we want them just as much as you guys do, and we're going to do our best to make them a reality.

In terms of progress updates, voice recording is going well. Recording for Tara, the fairies and fairy queen, as well as Evelyn have been concluded. Morgan will likely be the next one to finish, followed by Maddie and Abby. We're on track to finish all of the recording by the end of this year still.

Lastly, we're really excited to show off the finished version of the Collector's Edition box illustration and sticker sheet designs by Sanglim! She was also the artist for the illustrations at the beginning of each chapter of Heart of the Woods. You can pick up the sticker sheets as an addon in Backerkit~

We'll be starting on the new cover illustration for the game itself by Rosuuri pretty soon, too.

That just about wraps things up for now! If you've got any questions, feel free to hit us up in the comments, via messages here on KS, or any of the other usual places. Until next time, take care, and thanks for your support!

PS: If you're interested in our other titles, be sure to follow our Twitter or our Patreon - we've got some pretty cool non-HotW related news coming up soon.