itch.io

Hey everyone,

Long-Time-No-See!

I'm sure you've all gathered as much...but I'm back to announce that unfortunately, LYTP has been delayed until Valentines 2026. (Happy belated Valentine's to all btw)

• The reason for the delay is I suffered a really bad tech loss a few months ago, where a ton of art/assets were corrupted, lost and improperly backed-up. It was a HUGE hit to the project and my motivation/ heart and I've only just recovered from it recently.
• Recovered in the sense that I've only recently recreated everything that was lost. But now, it's all just progress from here on out!
• We're also moving communication platforms to BlueSky going forward. I'll announce that via Itch shortly!

But I want to assure you all that LYTP is still alive and progressing. All character sprites are complete, nearly 70% of BG's are done, and so focusing on CGs, Writing and Coding to round it all off. 

THANKS ALL FOR THE SUPPORT AND UNDERSTANDING

Hi Satan and Jimmylex!

Happy Belated Valentines day to you both (and to the community/anyone viewing this thread ^^)

I've been meaning to send a BIG update to all my followers via Itch, and will do so today which will contain more details (thank you both for the post! You are the reminder I needed)

• Unfortunately, LYTP has been postponed to Valentines 2026. The reason is I suffered a really bad tech loss a few months ago, where a ton of art/assets were corrupted, lost and improperly backed-up. It was a HUGE hit to the project and my motivation/ heart and I've only just recovered from it recently.
  
• Recovered in the sense that I've only just recently recreated everything that was lost. But now, it's all just progress from here on out!
  
• I also deleted Soulsoft's X, and am moving communication platforms onto BlueSky going forward. I'll announce that via Itch shortly!

But I want to assure you both that LYTP is still alive and progressing. All character sprites are complete, nearly 70% of BG's are done, and so focusing on CGs, Writing and Coding to round it all off. 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND EXCITEMENT! 

Hi Charley,

Thanks for reaching out! :)  I'd love to see the stream if I can't catch it live. Will it be saved/available for view non-live?

So yes, the game is family-safe in terms of sexuality. 

Also, there's some AI usage in the BG Art. I use Dream (by Wombo) to generate different objects or mini scenes, and will compose/photobash them together to create something new. There's actually quite alot of editing that goes into the final, if over-reliance on AI is the concern?

And none of the Character Art is done by AI, that's all me. ^^

Thanks!

-Soul

Hey BlancoKix,

Thank you so much for reaching out, but mostly for the unexpected and totally appreciated YouTube playthrough!

I hadn't been sending "Love You To Pieces (demo)" to reviewers or publications like I usually do for walkthroughs and LP's...so its amazing to see it happening out in the wild. I'm SO glad you loved the demo, I know you won't be disappointed by Valentine's 2025.

FYI, I haven't had a chance to watch your playthrough but I absolutely will this weekend! My husband found your review online though (on his own) and loved your reactions, and told me I need to watch it!!! lol

Oh wow, you did a playthrough!? OMG, Bullhead thank you so much! <3

I will definitely be watching it this weekend. 

And yeah as for the limited VO, hmmm, I wonder if it's just a case of the VA's performances that made it feel off, or if it's just the concept of this kind of VO happening in a *horror* VN? I know in more typical VN's (otome, dating sims) it usually works, but perhaps for horror VN's it's not quite so effective.

Hi Bullhead!

It's always good to hear from a fellow indiedev, especially one who also loves and develops horror titles as well. ^^

Yeahhh...I do understand that. The VN format is so static, it is very hard to illicit fear in the same way that something moving/real-time can. So we're going for tension, creepiness, dread and disgust. Hopefully you felt some of that while playing the demo. Thank you though for the comment!!!

Hi Ancava, sorry about the late reply (the week got away from me)

Anyways, thank you so much for the indepth and supportive comment! It's so fulfilling to hear that the tone and "soul" of the game is being totally seen and experienced by yourself and others, in the way we intended. 

I can't wait to share the full game when it's ready, and you'll definitely be updated when that happens. The demo is also such a short slice of the entire game, I think you'll really like the carnage in store for players.

Soulsoft is excited to announce our new Horror IP! 

Love You To Pieces (Demo): Out Now!

"A deranged drag queen, "Tara Heart", leaves a trail of brutal slayings leading up to Valentine's Day, where she terrorizes a group of friends attending Seattle Technical University."

• A Valentine's themed, LGBT-centric Slasher/Visual Novel
• 8 distinct survivors/victims...can you save any of them?
• Mature 18+ content: NSFW, Strong Language, Blood/Gore, Extreme Violence
• Animated cutscenes + partial voice acting
• Classic Visual Novel Gameplay

https://soulsoftea.itch.io/lytp 

If you do end up visiting, thank you for trying out the demo! We're aiming for a full-game release Valentine's 2025.

"LYTP" will eventually be a full fledged title, but currently it's solely a completed demo/teaser.

And thank you for the channel link, I'll definitely stop by and have a look! :) 

Hi Charley, thanks for reaching out! :)

I'd say I appreciated that solo devs weren't held too strictly to the jam's themes, as opposed to (bigger) teams. I've never actually seen that delineation/rule in other jams, and I quite like it! I hope more jams adopt something similar.

Aw, and thank you! I'm a solo VN Dev, who is mostly an artist - so that means a ton.

Best, Soul

Hi Jason!

Thanks for reaching out, and I'm glad you enjoyed the demo for LYTP! :)

Ben and Cam, are only 2 out of 8 characters that players will meet through the course of the story. So we will be needing more VO done at some point as well .

Please send an email to soulsoftea@gmail.com, with your contact info and a link to your reel - and I'll be in touch then.

Cheers!

-Soul

We did it/made it!!!

Thank you to all who were able to submit their game so far. Submission's period ends when the clock strikes midnight tonight (so romantic). So please submit your game by then if you want to be featured.

Once again, thank you and hope you all have plans and enjoy Valentine's Day.

XOXOXO

Hey Jammers!

It's the weekend of February 10-11th. Meaning, yes it's Superbowl Sunday, but mainly that this is the final weekend before your submissions for Valentine's Day. So try to get everything finished/zipped up as possible.

Submission Period is timed to automatically close upon the time/date changing to February 15th.

Goodluck and cant wait to see what else comes in!

Soul~

Hi Krasimir!


Apologies for the late reply, I'm finally getting around to msgs, posts this weekend.

I intentionally left that aspect of the rules rather vague tbh =p.  What would be most fair, is if most/a significant chunk of the demo or game's development happened during the jam's duration, regardless of actual start time, or intended jam.

But with so few days left, I'm honestly happy to have ANY submissions, AS LONG AS THEY ADHERE TO THE THEME.

So please feel free to submit your game! 

Cheers,

Soul

<3

It won't be Bara focused this time around, and not an erotic-thriller. Still LGBT+ centric, so hopefully you'll still try out the demo Cuddlepaw! ^^

Hey VDay Jammers~<3


Sorry for the apparent quiet (I've been feverishly working on my Vday Jam Entry over the weekends), but wanted to  shout out that we've DOUBLED in participants since the jam opened last month. HOORAY!!!

Also, It's now February! So we all have around 2-ish weeks to wrap our submissions up. 

Last bit, please stay on theme and only submit entries that are theme-appropriate. I consider our requirements/theme VERY relaxed compared to other jams, and I've still had to disqualify at least 2-3 submissions already. 

Have fun and can't wait to see what lovely lovey games come out of our jam!!!

Best, Soul

Thank you, I've responded in kind!

Hello Yanagami!

Could you email me at soulsoftea@gmail.com ? I have a question(s) regarding your submission.

Thanks.

Heh, same! I'll definitely be playing quite a few games from Queer Vampire Jam!

Hey Xenu!

Funny seeing you here. I had actually thought of joining the Queer Vampire Jam, but couldn't come up with anything inspiring enough. Besides, I was planning to host and submit to Valentines Day Jam 2024 as well.

Sounds like your game has romance, and pursuit of other characters amorously (even if in the end, it doesnt end so...amorously). So you may totally submit your game to this jam as well.

Happy Jamming!

Thought I'd share this post regarding this jam - as it's not appearing on the Jam Schedule. And when digging through forums, it sounds like approval of jams can be a few days to a few weeks, to never getting approved at all. (And without any notices or contact from Itch.io)

https://itch.io/jam/valentines-day-jam-2024

If you're looking for a team, please use the Community Message Board here on Itch.io to generate some convos.

*** Also, don't forget to tag any work/posts with #vdjam2024 ***

Cheers! - JayS

Hey all!

Wow, I'm so glad to see 11 ppl have joined already! Considering I literally cameup with and  posted about the Jam yesterday :) 

If you're looking for a team, please use the Community Message Board here on Itch.io to generate some convos.

Another helpful tidbit I found - A friend of mine recently highlighted this VN UI Asset pack, that could be a great resource for you VDay-themed game!

ROMANTIC VISUAL NOVEL UI PACK - by "Ari": https://sfilmak.itch.io/airi-minimalistic-vn-ui

Happy Jamming, Jammers! <3 - JayS

Hey Koteq! Unfortunately, OOM in this current form won't be updated. It was a short game/prototype of sorts made during a gamejam.

If we do expand the Orcs of Mordick world, it will be in a new/separate title.

Hi Andurga!

Thanks for the feedback! Tbh, we've gotten similar feedback about OOM. Truth be told, we do see the truth/merit in yours and in similar concepts. Unfortunately, OOM was simply a short GameJam title. And so we weren't able to squeeze in as much content by the game jams ending and had to reduce scope.

However, I can say someday I did want to revisit OOM again and do a full roll out of the game from a small gamejam title, to a full on multi-hour gaming experience with story, more game mechanics, more orc units and an actual ending! One thing I really want to do is create a "Breeding System" which would allow you to mate 2 of your orcs to have one of them learn a transferable Skill from the other. (This would also help with needing MORE NUDES and SEX! lol)

 That said, I dont want to get your hopes up too high. As among the list of ideas and upcoming games Soulsoft want to take on...a full Orcs of Mordick game is seemingly a long ways away.

Hi, Quentin! Yes, I'm sorry to hear about that. =(

Steam sent me an email earlier this month that some TOS changes have happened regarding Adult Content games. Something about either an additional measure or requirement, but we haven't been able to look into the matter yet.

Steam's policy on adult games fluctuates alot, from what I've seen...so I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes available in your country again.

But thank you for bringing it to our attention! We'll look into when we have a chance.

Hi Kaze, thank you for the post! And I'm so glad you enjoyed DSGR, even if it did make you cry at 3AM last night.

Tbh, I really miss/love this genre of visual novel. I recently just saw "Your Name" (yes, yes...I'm very late to the party. lol), and it makes me want to revisit a new game with this same tone/feel story wise. Nostalgic and brimming with emotion.

Once again, thank you so much for your kind words!

Hi Arch! Thanks for the comment. ^^

For a small GameJam game, I'm very happy with how it turned out. Tbh, I would really like to expand this...like...into a full RPG/Story/Game some day. 
No promises! lol. But it is definitely on my mind.

^_^

Any ETA on the next episode? (Yes, I know I'm being greedy lol)

Hi Sly,

Awww, that's actually one of my fav tracks too. You can hear it during the fireworks date, but also it'll come up randomly on the Main Menu/Start Screen.
The track is called "Hurt You" by Erick Torres & Angelo Jusepy. I *believe* it's free/royalty free...but I may have had to buy the track for commercial use. Sorry, I cant recall exactly.

Hey Mica!

I'm super excited and have been unabashedly watching the new LMA2 playthrough!!! I can tell you're enjoying it...even with the voice-acting you've been doing with it! (As over the top as it can be, as you said lol)

LMA2 is different from the 1st, it's alittle more of a slow burn (which I was afraid fans of the 1st wouldn't like by comparison)...but give it a chance, as it's building and constantly building. Thank you Mica for your LP! 

Hi there Samapatti!

It's so good to hear from you, your passion for the LMA series and for bringing this to my attention. 

Tbh, I thought fulfilling the Adult Content self-rating questionnaire that Steam provides was going to be enough. But after watching that video you provided, it does look like Steam just doesnt have enough strong Age-Verification methods to satisfy Germany's requirements.
I'm unsure if my games would be considered "indexed", and if so, perhaps that means even attempting a USK rating would still be in vain?

Regardless, even if I was able to achieve the greenlight via said USK rating, if that meant having to censor or change LMA 1/2...I would honestly not be OK with having to do that. I think the sexuality and gore in our games, are intrinsic to their DNA and the artistic vision.

Are you able to at least view LMA 1/2 in Germany via itch.io? That's something I'm curious to know as well.

Anyways, thanks again for your support and for letting me know about this! ^^

Haha! It worked Uwu!

It it ever. ;)  And thank you! Tbh, I haven't even opened up Steamworks to check on how either game has been doing...as I'm alil scared of what I might find there. I'm sure it's fine...but I'm I admit my heart starts to race when I think about taking a look.

Hello Cetais! (and anyone else interested in the Steam Key prospect)

Ok, sooo...I've done a bit of research into it...and here's some findings/the outcome:


 - Itch.io games can (easily) retroactively have Steam Keys made available, even if they didn't upon initial release.

- While the above process seems simple, IF there's any customer or tech issues where customer's aren't able to get their Steam Key (when they should be able)...a Steam key may have to be issued by myself manually. Which seems quite difficult.

- Itch.io is apparently not very good/fast at getting back to Devs/Customers who're experiencing the above issue.

- It doesn't make financial sense for SSEA at this time, to do Steam Keys. SSEA is just too small for that to make sense business-wise.


So although we aren't offering Steam Keys, I do have some good news! =)  Although far from becoming a reality soon, I'm thinking to do a "remaster" of sorts, to the first "Let's MEAT Adam". Similar to what I did with Dream Savior Gakuen ReDraw.

Bring it more inline (quality, visuals-wise) with LMA2, at least. I'd like to redo all the UI, sprites, BGs, CGs etc...along with other quality-of-life improvements! (and maybe some additional content). This would be a FREE upgrade to anyone who has bought LMA, whether itch.io or Steam! 

I hope that answers your question and isn't too disappointing an outcome. Thank you regardless for your support and interest in our game(s)!

Hi Cetais! :)

Tbh that's something I hadn't even considered/thought of. Let me look into the logistics of what's involved, and I'll get back to you (and others who may have the same question!)

Gut feeling, but if I had to guess it'll come down to how difficult it is to implement on our end, if doing so would derail our Steam release date (Steam...uh, can be "fickle" or difficult...let's just leave it at that lol), and lastly if it makes sense business-wise. Let me do some research and I'll reply back here. Thank you for your support and patience! 

It's...it's finally happening!!!

https://itch.io/blog/373071/lma-12-coming-to-steam-finally

Hey Uwu_F!

So good to hear from you! Sooo the game hasn't been "abandoned" persay...however there's something I've been working on in relation to LMA2 that has been holding up and effectively ate up scope to address the Retired Ending. (I'll be making a post today to announce that "thing"...so be on the lookout! ~WOOT!)

So although said Ending won't become something available/fixed...there's something, I'd say much better, coming soon! (Yes, I'm being cryptic on purpose lol)

Hey again PA!  =)

Sooo, yes! The game Auto-Saves your progress. You dont need to save. If you start a New Game, it will wipe out any progress and Orcs you've recruited. 

Oh so about Summoning Costs, they incrementally get bigger everytime you summon. It's something our Game Designer wanted to try out, and at first I was hesitant as I've never seen that done in a gatcha before...but they convinced me! lol 

The idea behind it, was we didnt want it to be a massive grind to get your 3rd and then 4th Unit right off the bat. The low summon cost will help in the beginning, but the scaling curve of the cost will plateau to around what we wanted the flat cost to be originally. We tested / tweaked said curve a few times, and we feel pretty good that it doesnt get TOO ridiculous by the time you're close to collecting them all.

As for future updates, as of right now, there are no plans for it. It's a one and done deal. BUT...who knows what lies in the future.^^

Heh, I know Ive always had a thing for Orcs myself (especially barbarian orcs, mmm). Oops! Almost lost my train of thought there. ;)  But it's only really been in the last 2 yrs that I've REALLY wanted to do something related to Bara Orcs.

But yes! Please give it a try Ericz, and let us know your thoughts! We're always looking to improve. :) and if you do like the game, please share and let your friends know! The more the merrier. ^^

December 1st! We're waiting on 1 last Battle Track, but effectively, we're done already! =D