AW Expansion Poll

 

As we close in on the last few months of the futa expansion, it's time we start looking at what expansion we'll work on next. That's where you come in! 

The options haven't changed since last time, but here's the details so you don't have to go looking for them:

The Options: 

Transformatives Expansion

This expansion covers four main groupings of new content related to the theme of transformatives. First, the creation of more story content related to experimentation and access to experimental drugs. Second, the addition of support for more robust "animal girl" transformations beyond simply adding ears and tails. Third, adding new mutations and status effects from these transformatives along with the code to support it. Most inspired by animal girl traits, but some more general in nature. Fourth, the creation of a variety of actual drugs/transformatives and other processes to unlock transformations.

Timeline: 6-9 months (partly based on how much we add)

Scope:

• New story content related to gaining access to new transformations.
• Some content will be as an experimental subject at the employee enrichment center.
• Some will involve a research center selling experimental substances as a "beta". These would likely be the safest and most basic items.
• Some will be specific events and opportunities spread out around the world, typically these would be the more rare/complex transformatives. Additional hucow transformatives, for example, would probably remain with the Farm Coop.
• New events for those who are sufficiently transformed. If you're walking around as an animal girl, most people won't care, but some people may ask you about it, or some weirdos may follow you...
• New mutations and status effects coded into the game system to support a wider range of transformative effects.
• The mutations won't be available at character creation.
• These may modify existing mechanics, or cause new effects.
• An example of a new status effect is being in heat or having an estrus. These status effects would appear like other status effects and have corresponding effects.
• An example of a new mutation would be one that causes you to go into heat at a time timed with your monthly cycle.
• An example of a new mechanic is being "unable to resist" which may come into play when in heat.
• Support for new status effects, such as going into estrus and being "unable to resist"
• Expansion of the data structure in player and NPC objects to allow storing a wider range of characteristics and transformation status. This includes having a wider range of possible values, as well as additional values.
• New descriptions/parser output to support totally new variables (such as vulva puffiness or color), and a wider range of variables.

The initial transformatives expansion could be followed up by a second expansion at a later date that adds more animal girl types, more world reactions, and more drugs/combinations without requiring as much coding.

Useful Information:

• We don't have all the details planned out for the specific transformations/mutations/etc. We would depend on your feedback for the kinds of things that we add.
• Animal transformations are going to be limited to the more standard anime animal girl (beast folk) type transformations. Ears, tail, skin color, & hair color, and perhaps some genital/breast changes/effects/coloration. We're not going to go full-furry or even things like centaurs where the primary body shape changes, because of the amount of work involved.
• We will probably add the ability for NPCs to have the transformations at a low rate (controllable in settings) but will not have any effects for them beyond appearance and existing controls. (existing controls example: raising fertility, size, and ejaculation amount for hucow bulls)
• While we can easily add a number of different animal variants, the amount of special effects/mechanics/mutations will be limited due to time. 
• Animal-type transformations like special ears will be mostly vanity items beyond the extra effects. We won't be adding special sex actions where the NPC rubs your ears, and you shouldn't count on new scenes involving them unless we get writing submissions (for example a lover brushing your tail).
• Portrait images are unlikely to change in a significant way.

Sex System Expansion

This expansion will focus on improving the sex system, which a major code revision, new actions with corresponding descriptions, better support for additional activities like sex toys, overhauled AI, improved scene ending setup, and support for things like threesomes and foursomes. For the most part, this is a very mechanical expansion and will involve more coding than adding new content. The system itself is inherently limited by the design decision to allow mods to ingest new actions and text, which forces certain design decisions and makes more realistic behavior difficult. We would remove mod support as part of the code revision, allowing us to make those improvements. Since nobody has ever even expressed interest in creating a sex mod to add more actions/positions/etc, this probably won't be a noticeable loss.

Timeline: 6 months. (+?)

Scope:

• Code revision to improve how the sex scenes work and make them more predictable/reliable in terms of behavior.
• Add a limited set of new actions, mostly related to additional NPCs in the scene.
• Add situations to the game where you can start a sex scene with more than one NPC.
• Add support for additional NPCs in a scene to do things, such as using one of your available orifices.
• Overhaul the way the AI works so that it has more dominant behavior, and add support to allow better transitions between actions/activities, rather than limiting NPCs to a narrow range of possible actions.
• Change the way that sex scenes end so that it's not based on the NPC reaching orgasm.
• It will likely include a fatigue component with starting potential based existing energy system.
• Will allow NPCs that are capable of sex multiple times in a row to do so.
• Add support for consequences of too many orgasms, as well as better support for going unfulfilled.

Useful Information:

• This is the most technically complex expansion on the list. It's been literally years since I wrote most of the code in the system, so there will be a bit of a re-learning curve in our work.
• We won't be able to make regular releases while working on this, because the system simply won't work for most of the time we are working on it. We would just be doing bug-fixing releases during most of the expansion period.
• This won't involve much in the way of new content for the game. For the most part, it's just going to make the sex system (which is somewhat deficient) work better. The sex system isn't a huge part of the game though.

Hucow Expansion

This is a tricky but fun expansion that has the goal of allowing you to live as a full-time hucow. It's also a bit different from the other options because rather than expanding the main game or making it better, it will focus on adding a sort of "side path" or a different way of playing that doesn't have much effect on the main game. That said, being a hucow is a pretty sexy experience, and we have some ideas of how to blend the hucow life with the larger AW experience. Despite the tranquil and hedonistic lifestyle of the typical hucow, you'll still have to meet certain story objectives while satisfying your massively increased libido and beating the clock when it comes to regular milkings. While it's not difficult at all in terms of code, it will be quite difficult to do in terms of game design.

Timeline: 9+ months

Scope:

• Expansion of the Farm Coop area, particularly the hucow dorms, barn, and dairy.
• New initial game content.
• Hucow route is unlocked, and then becomes something you choose when starting a new game.
• New prologue story changes where you end up accidentally becoming a full-time contracted hucow against your will.
• Alternate main story content where you're primarily looking to escape your situation before you lose yourself.
• New/altered prologue
• New game ending
• New story objectives.
• New setup for meeting story objectives similar to how Lily's lab functions.
• New mechanics for milkings and life as a hucow.
• Blocking off several options in the rest of the game because you're a contracted hucow.
• No getting body modifications to shrink those udders!
• No moving to a different home or changing "jobs"
• etc.
• Implementing new "personality" stat (name tbd) that you lose from failing to meet expectations at the dairy, getting pregnant, and other things. 
• Losing all of this stat results in an ending where you live happily as a hucow and never escape, a not-so-bad bad end.
• Adding new methods of tracking arousal and sexual need that line up with your new modified hucow status.
• Penalties for not taking care of them, such as temporarily losing control of yourself and doing things that harm your personality score.
• Lots of new scenes required
• Getting fucked by bulls (unintentionally and intentionally)
• Getting milked.
• Interactions with fellow hucows and hecows
• forced hucow treatments to turn you into a hucow
• Punishment treatments to make you more docile/into a better hucow.
• Hucow activities, particularly in the dorms and the barn.
• Player character reactions.
• etc.
• Creating a new system of hucow transformations and growth that match with being a hucow (both in the game lore, and thematically matching the main story elements of resistance).
• Other things that will likely be necessary but that we're currently unsure of.

This is definitely the expansion that I'm least sure of, mostly because it's such a departure from the main game. It's also difficult to build an experience around a setting that is typically very repetitive (and thus has a high potential to be boring). Adding in the "trying to resist" theme, and the mechanic of needing to satisfy your needs, maintain your sanity/personality, and meet story objectives to get help escaping is meant to help accomplish that... but it's uncertain how well it will work, and we'll likely need to add in ways to speed up time so the game moves faster.

Useful Information:

• This expansion has the highest potential for the scope to balloon, and for the timeline to expand.
• This might be a story that ends up being a lot of fun to "lose".
• This expansion will provide a scenario that is dramatically different from the standard AW experience, so it won't just be "AW, but you're a hucow".
• I most likely wouldn't have added this as an expansion option at all if it hadn't been so commonly requested during AW's development.
• Because it could probably be better as its own game, just borrowing some of AW's simulation source but changing the main game loop.

Career Expansion

This expansion focuses on adding the mid to late game story and more promotion levels to the game's jobs, as well as the already-designed additional job minigame mechanics for the three Institute jobs and Progenerate Technologies job. The main objective here is the expansion of content, but the addition of mechanics to have subordinates and make difficult/morally complex decisions is also something I've wanted. The original plan was for your actions in the later stages of each job to have more to do with the world and the story's outcome. 

Timeline: 6 months.

Scope:

• Additional job event content for each job in the game.
• Including one-off events and event chains.
• Additional promotion levels added to jobs.
• The "Unskilled" jobs like stripper, masseuse, and cashier won't be getting much in the way of new promotion levels.
• Main jobs will transfer to their next phase, with several more promotion levels.
• Other jobs like dairy farmhand and maid will receive more promotion levels but no new job phase.
• New minor mechanics for each of the main jobs in their second phase.
• New story content where you transition to the next phase of your job.
• New bad ends for jobs if you make the wrong choices. 
• New minor events that happen in the world that are related to your job, and the decisions you made (for 2nd phase only).
• New end-of-game content where you learn more about how your job effect's your life afterward (ranging from "no impact" to "changes the whole course of your life")
• Probably more job simulator references and crazy Institute stuff.

 Useful Information:

• This is one of those things that I think will make the game more enjoyable. Currently, you can get through most job content in only a few months of in-game time, depending on the job. While a big part of a job's purpose is to accelerate game time, it also serves as an interesting story opportunity in its own right, and really adds to the quirkiness of the setting.
• Sticking to 6 months will really limit the amount of new content we can add.
• The majority of new content will be directed towards full-time jobs, while the part-time jobs won't get as much.