A Heads Up (please read before the next update)
So, I have something to tell you.
The next update is going to be the rewritten chapter one, and it is going to replace the existing game entirely.
I know, I know. But let me explain.
I got to chapter eleven of the original and I just couldn’t keep going. Not because I didn’t want to, but because I’d spent enough time with these characters by that point to understand them properly, and I was looking back at what I’d written and it wasn’t matching what was in my head anymore. The writing had changed. I had changed. It felt wrong to keep building on a foundation I wasn’t happy with.
So I started again.
The rewritten chapter one is currently sitting at just over 400k words, for context the original was 26k. It’s not a polish or an expansion, it’s genuinely a different thing. Same characters, same villa, same premise, but written by someone who finally figured out how to write dialogue and stopped being scared of metaphors (some of you have been very kind about the original metaphors, I’m telling you now, those were accidents).
What this means practically:
- The original version is coming down when the new one goes up. I’ve thought about this a lot and I think keeping both would just cause confusion, especially since some details have shifted as I’ve understood the characters better.
- Your saves won’t carry over, there’s no way around that, I’m sorry.
- It’s one chapter, so if you were partway through the original you’re going to lose progress, but what you’re getting in exchange is significantly more content and I think it’s genuinely better, which I don’t say lightly because I find it very hard to feel good about my own work.
I’m not going to pretend this is uncomplicated. It’s a lot to ask of people who’ve already played through eleven chapters. But I’d rather do it right than keep releasing something I’m not proud of, and I’m finally, for the first time since I started this project, actually proud of it.
The update is coming within the next couple of weeks. I’ll post again when it’s live.
Thank you for still being here. Genuinely.
Files
Summer of Love
Join a reality show where the aim is to fall in love.
| Status | In development |
| Author | ChantelleH |
| Genre | Interactive Fiction |
| Tags | Adult, Dating Sim, Queer, reality-tv, relationship, Romance, Text based, Twine |
| Languages | English |
More posts
- Day 1, Part 1 Rewrite Release7 days ago
- Day 4, Part 2 releaseAug 08, 2024
- Day 4, Part 1 ReleaseMay 02, 2024
- Day 3 ReleaseDec 27, 2023
- Chapter 6 ReleaseAug 24, 2023
Comments
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I'm so happy to hear that the rewrite is comming, I've been comming back to check on your tumblr and on here to check for updates. It made my day to see it comming back! its important that you release something you can actually be happy with so I'm happy for you about that too!
I’ve actually uploaded the first chapter of the rewrite today so you can play it now!
The rewrite looks very promising! I love that the occupations actually do a lot and we get to have more of a consistent personality now. It feels more authentic in a way, the characters too. You did an amazing job!
Thank you, it took a lot of work and a lot of learning to get this to where I wanted it to be, so I’m glad you liked it!
So excited to read the rewrite! This is one of my favorite IF's and I can't wait to see what's in store! And props to you for sticking by your characters and having the strength to admit the differences in your writing and do a rewrite in the first place!
I'm really happy this project is going to continue on, I remember playing it a year ago and I really enjoyed it, the premise of it was quite alluring and the characters were pretty cool, so It's neat to know that you're still working on it. When I played it, I was going through a rough time, and even though it was just one chapter, the story helped a little in giving me a least a few minutes of not thinking about the negatives. Hopefully when the updated chapter comes out, It can give someone new, who might be feeling down, an good experience too :D
It was 11 chapters a year ago, at 800k word iirc, so we are back to day 1 part 1 unfortunately, but thank you for this.
Oops sorry, I think I got confused about what counts as a chapter VS what counts as an episode or something? I played through the whole demo a year ago, but I thought what was in the demo was just a very long chapter lol
Okay so each day has three parts, and each part is a chapter, so ‘Day 4, Part 2’ took us to 11 chapters, and that was released in summer 2024. I had the Day/Part at the top in the header but if you’re enjoying it, you may not notice so I get it. I can make the chapter breaks clearer in the remake, I’ll probably put a poll up on Tumblr though to kind of gather info on whether the audience as a whole wants that or if that’ll pull them out of the game too much, and what they want it to look like. Most things, I do tend to poll on Tumblr just because it’s hard to get a general consensus here, but obviously, you won’t notice that until I release re-written Chapter 2 (so Day 1, Part 2).
Sounds good! I believe I follow you on Tumblr so I'll keep an eye out for anything new
Very happy to see that this is in fact continuing, even if in a different form. If you say the new chapter one is even better than the orignal, I know we're in for a good time.
Very excited to read it! I can understand the anxiety around restarting something you've already put out, but I'm glad that you're constructing a full package that you're proud of.
YOU GO PERSON😍 (idk your pronouns)
It can be very hard, both to try something different and to deal with the pressures of an active reader base. As someone still in the early steps of writing for others, I greatly admire both your courage and creativity.
You're the one who managed to put this idea in my mind, that Reality TV makes a great setting for interactive fiction. So thank you for broadening my world, even a little bit. I eagerly await the opportunity to witness your growth. Best regards.
One thing that irked me a little is how the protag wasn't very much fleshed out, I am excited for this update
I don’t know if you’d call them more fleshed out, we’re back to day 1 part 1 so still a lot of building, but MC now has body confidence that changes the text you see depending on your choice, you have the choice to lie about your motive for going on the show (you pick the truth in setup then when Amber asks, you get the chance to lie as 3 ROs are lying about their reasons for being on there and it’s unfair not to give MC that chance), and more text referring to height/age/hair length throughout when natural. Most people haven’t asked me to flesh out MC more, but if you have anything specific you wanted fleshing out that you remember off the top of your head, I can definitely add it in.
Also, in future chapters, you also get the chance to lie about other stuff (so like in never have I ever, each comment, you get the choice to be truthful or to lie about doing or not doing certain things, which may come back to bite you later)
Those new additions are really good! What I meant by fleshing out the protagonist, is by giving us more choices to define our personalities.
Been looking forward to news like this for over a year now, felt a bit surreal seeing the notification in my feed. Summer of Love was one of the first IF games I played on Itch, and frustrations or not, is still one of my favorites to this day. A pure and simple story about finding and fostering love (or at least it was on my end with Mattie), it was exactly what I was looking for then, and still is now. Cannot wait to see what you've made for us to feast on in the time since you restarted development.
Wow!!
Not gonna lie - I thought this was dead. Clutched my pearls, sat shiva, did a breakup bob -- the works. But I ACCEPTED IT. It always hurts getting invested into something that isn't finished; but I know how crazy Life(TM) can be. And it certainly isn't easy creating an IF.
So - I'm shocked (pleasantly), but more so? After reading this update: PROUD. Proud of you; proud of the maturity. I *Know* what it's like to write something and just not be happy with it; you should be Proud of yourself. Going through this process means you've grown. And understanding your characters is Always worth it. Well done.
Can't wait to get back into this with Fresh eyes and Bated breath ;) ❤️🔥
I got to chapter 11 and I just hated it. Not the concept, not the characters, but the quality. It wasn’t what I wanted my writing to be, so I’ve spent almost two years refining my writing skills by writing a shit ton of fanfic so they’re what I want them to be, learning the characters better, and two months ago, I began a proper rewrite.
I am terrified people will be disappointed, I’ve been sharing snippets on Tumblr and they seem to be getting positive reactions but I’m still scared because you never know for definite until it’s out there.
But not dead. Although this is better planned so the version you know is kind of dead.
I hope you will be pleasantly surprised, then. Putting out something you've worked hard on is rarely easy -- once it's out there, it's out there, and anyone can do whatever with it. But you've done it before and it looked like a success; I can only think you coming back more polished (and - not hating what you wrote) will make it all the better.
Bro, those are great news T_T I mean, 400k words? I dont even care if it's only chapter one at this point. I loved your story and I'm sure the new version will be as good as the old one.
If we’re being specific, 435k words.
The first chapter now has one on one scenes with all OG ROs before the coupling so you can actually get to know the ROs before making your choice, and find out Theo and Izzie’s reasons for picking each other, which I’ve really enjoyed writing and is where most of the words are. You can only chat with one per playthrough and you can have up to three entirely different conversations with each RO so there’s an average of 43k possible words per one on one. I just have the coupling left to write, which should take two weeks max (although I’m hoping for one).
I’m just grateful it’s not gonna die not many games like this and I’m very into it even if it must restart it’s genuinely worth it.