How I Created a Ghibli Style Bathhouse for My Indie Game

[@harrisonbrewin9126]

I think adding benefits to being in the bathhouse is a great idea, maybe talking to npc's while in the bathhouse would increase your relationship with them faster then normal. It could also decrease the amount of energy used for a period of time

[@PixelArchitect]

Improved relationship gain is a good idea! It makes a lot of sense since people in a bathhouse will be happier and more sociable.

[@harrisonbrewin9126]

i think its a great way to get people to visit the bathhouse :)

[@shred1670]

such a great idea 🥰

[@alexthompson8977]

@@PixelArchitect 16:20 is that a glitch?

[@fatmario8244]

@@PixelArchitect there should be some less obvious mini quests with npc characters in the bathhouse for more exploration and reason to look around and talk to everyone

[@DracoGalboy]

A suggestion, since working as a Chef IRL is an extremely stressful job: have a system of stress and it's management where the bathhouse is one of the 'good' ways to reduce the stress

[@PixelArchitect]

I can look into it!

[@zachreyzhu9060]

​@@PixelArchitect I am not a developer nor an artist myself so take the suggestion with a grain of salt. I have a suggestion where you divide the bath house into segments, where you have more variations of pools, it can solve the problem where the big pool currently don't look as steamy and dreamy as you'd liked. Adding darker tone to your current work is also really going to boost the depth of the feel, where items look more antique and natural, as well as solving the bland coloring issue for the floor. If you really want to improve that aspect later down the line to make it seem very much alive. So, in a way I'd say is better to have more cramped space that makes the place seem sociable, and at the same time more people, where npcs talks to each other with your machines surrounding them doing the bath house routines. Don't even have to make the machines interactable, they just have to be in the background (moving) to give the place more so-called, "atmosphere". I don't know, just feel like this would make the place seem more alive in my mind, and it would definitely be the way I would go about developing my own game. Love to see where you are talking this game next, good luck! :D

[@zachreyzhu9060]

I should clarify it's only the main pool, the rest of the bath house looks amazing!

[@iLlamas1]

100% this one. Life sims have this crazy idea that farming and shepherding are fun easy jobs. The reality is: farming is fuckin stressful and animals are jerks.

[@kasomosi7145]

@@iLlamas1 My dad grew up on a farm and he can 100% confirm this. His least favorite job was cleaning up chicken excrement after feeding day.

[@no-wun]

this somehow gets better with each update. love that you share what you know abt architecture & design while also being open to suggestions & ideas from others. knowing the developer has this mindset rather than the far too common egomaniacal behaviour we witness from ppl on kickstarter is such a nice thing to see. always learning & improving & it is evident in this game’s progress.

[@PixelArchitect]

Glad you are liking the game :) My architecture professors have long beaten into us that we won't make our best work until we are at least 60 years old and have white hair. Was an interesting way to teach hehe

[@bennycook1]

The first thing I thought of after you mentioned player buffs was that the soap items could be used to give specific, otherwise unobtainable buffs. Gives a purpose to the soap items and also gives people another reason to spend more time at the bathhouse.

[@miinerai]

Yesyesyesyes

[@haydenap]

I was thinking something like cooking or life buffs. Say you used your favorite lemony soap and it made you faster at mise en place in the kitchen. This sweet lavender soap gives you a slightly higher "charisma" in NPC dialogue. No soap lowers your charisma or perhaps makes you move slightly faster while in nature. Not sure if introducing negatives buffs based on your participation in this mechanic is a good idea though.

[@EL_Newman]

Or maybe the soap’s sweet scent inspires the character, causing him/her to unlock a new recipe.

[@ulykhbyekmaralbyek6981]

It would be extremely rude to use soap inside the hot spring, hot spring is solely for relaxing, not exfoliating or scrubing. It would make sense if there were some showers tho, you wouldn't walk into the public hot bath or spring with all the dirt

[@parmesan93]

I would make soap give the player a temporary Charisma bonus, and make soap gifting an entire thing that affects different guests differently and may unlock some exclusive dialogue and content.

[@rafaeluchoa1275]

Hello my friend! I made a point of venturing here on google translator, because I needed to tell you these words. I've been following your works for some time and every day they inspire me more and more. The care in which you work every detail, added to your talent, makes this work something that makes me look forward to consuming it every day. It's something that brings me a lightness that is good for the soul. Sometimes I review the videos I liked the most just to relax. I imagine that sometimes it is very difficult to reconcile everyday things with personal projects (I go through this nowadays). But stay strong. You are producing something amazing! Once your game is out, I'll be able to say it's one of the games I've been happy to buy in my life. Greetings from Rio de Janeiro. Note: Sorry for the ebook I wrote here! 🤣🤣

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks a lot Rafael. Really nice to hear your kind words. This is definitely the most challenging and difficult project I've ever worked on (and I've worked on some pretty difficult projects) so it's nice to hear people are looking forward to playing it :)

[@leechby4590]

I'm happy to see a fellow brazilian enjoying this amazing content (tradução: fico feliz de ver um companheiro brasileiro curtindo esse conteúdo incrível)

[@rafaeluchoa1275]

@@leechby4590 tamo junto meu amigo!

[@Skimmer951]

I did not know the character sprites had changed, this goes so much better with your beautiful overworld. This bathhouse is so gorgeous.

[@thasmiel23]

I like the idea of finding sometimes items in the bath tubs because NPCs have lost them.

[@caleblatreille8224]

this is fantastic

[@thwomp1542]

Why would the characters bring items into the baths though

[@caleblatreille8224]

@@thwomp1542 people bring items to gyms, pools, and bathhouses all the time? it's why there's lockers there in the first place, and why literally every business has a lost & found

[@thasmiel23]

@@thwomp1542 For example glasses and jewelry... people bring lot's of stuff :) Even a rubber duck can be brought to a spa.

[@af2954]

and returning them to their owners can increase friendship points! whereas selling them means you have more money (you can choose!)

[@throughawindow321]

Gameplay suggestions for the bath house. a) Some special days, where all the baths would be perfumed with a certain soap / scent. That could be the occasion of a few side quests: Aylin asking you to provide a certain amount of ingredients to make nice-smelling soap. It could have been a traditional thing they used to do, but had to stop due to lack of supplies; maybe you providing the items (flowers, resin to grind...) would allow to restore these special days. It would, from a gameplay perspective, make for both a one-time event (side quest to be completed, maybe one for each season) and a recurring event (these special days now happening regularly). It would also add to the worldbuilding, and give a sense of progression to the player, and the impression that you have an impact on the game's world. Maybe the buffs provided by the baths could be different / higher on those days. b) Chaos ensuing in the bath house, after someone has poured a bunch of live fishes (frogs?) in the baths, as a bad joke (NPC drama - poor Aylin made some ennemies)... To varying effects depending on the temerature: fish soup, or a bunch of happily swimming fishes. Your side-quest task would then be to fish them out. You'd get to keep the fish! And maybe Aylin could decide to allow some fish to remain in one of these side-pools to the right, as a memory of this comically disastrous event, and also because some customers would actually like to have their toes nibbled on by fish. It would also, for the player, add to the impression that events have a lasting impact on the game world. The environment would evolve as you accomplish some actions. And the fish bath might actually fit the japanese theme of the building. Maybe the bath house could also remain closed for a little while, as long as you haven't resolved the fish situation. It would make sense that NPC who also fish would come to the rescue, but hey - it's a video game, as long as the player doesn't get involved in the problems, they don't get solved... c) Other suggestion: as far as I can tell from the videos, we can still access our inventory in the room where the baths are. So what if, when you try to eat something for instance, and employee would interrupt you to prevent you from it because it would be forbidden? Just cutting you off from your inventory with a loud ''Hey! It's forbidden! Put that cupcake back." By the way, maybe there should be one of the employees in the baths room at all times, in order to provide both safety from drowning / passing out from the heat, and surveillance. d) Location suggestion, that could be developed in gameplay opportunities: a secret door you can access from the baths room, that could be a kind of storage / cleaning / machinery room. Could be an interesting place where to have secret meetings, or discover a secret NPC, or maybe just a place to sneak in unseen, and wait until the employees are all gone to bed, to stay in the baths room after hours, to discover some secrets... e) I also have a suggestion to make the changing rooms more than just a transition space. You could develop specific bits of gameplay there. Ideas: rummage through people's lockers when no NPC is around, and find out bits of information about them, or steal things (if you get caught though, if you're in sight of a NPC, you'd have to face consequences); add stuff from your inventory to the lockers, and later, hear NPCs complain that there's straweberry juice smeared on their towel or a bean in their shoe; use the mirrors to re-style yourself (hair); use the toilets to solve a food poisoning debuff (I guess some dishes could be as bad as to make people sick?); occasionnally finding a forgotten soap on the floor, that you could just pick up and keep (bath house foraging :D )... f) Maybe a NPC could occasionally get dizzy from the heat, and if you happen to have a cold drink in your inventory (or run to the tea house to make one), you'd make them feel better and receive a small reward in exchange. Otherwise an employee would attend to them. No a side-quest, but a randomly-triggering event, that would add to the liveliness of the place. g) If you stay motionless for too long in the baths, you fall asleep, and trigger a dream mini-game? If you fail, you wake up splashing all around from your nightmare, and lose a friendship point with the NPCs that gathered around you, and who are pissed because you wet them entirely (head and all); but if you win, you gain a friendship point with them because you said something cute, nice or funny in your sleep, and it makes them remember you as a cool person. It could be a water/steam related minigame. A kind of race, being chased off by a wave of soap, having to swim to safety? The condition for triggering it (staying in the water for some time) would also incentivize players to actually spend time in the baths, and lead them to make use of the buffs they could provide. Maybe there could be a warning ("you're starting to doze off...'') triggering some seconds before the beginning of the minigame, in case you wouldn't want to play it, to remind you that you have to move, even just a bit. NPCs in the bath house could point you towards this gameplay mechanic by making comments like ''If I stay too long in the water without moving, I end up falling asleep... And always have the strangest dreams!'' or something along those lines. Anyway, I hope some of these suggestions will reach you, and that you'll find some of them useful! Take care, and keep workind on what already looks like it's going to be a GREAT game! :-)

[@vincer7824]

Please add paragraphs.

[@kasomosi7145]

Jeez bro typing speed 20000

[@jlin592]

This looks so good! I love the parallax effect on the background through the windows. I think you should make the windows a bit tinted (like white) to make the outside view a little more obstructed. It might make a better split between the outside and inside.

[@snowbob21]

A breath holding mini game would be a cool way to create an emotional experience in the water

[@lukashm4298]

I first thought it a bad idea to redo the bathhouse but seeing the result made me change my mind. It looks super cool! But you should ad some notes and stuff to the managers desk right now it looks more like a podium

[@PixelArchitect]

That's a good tip! I'll add it in. I did need to add some more rooms and fix some of the pixel art anyways (especially in the changeroom and baths), so might as well make some bigger changes =p

[@KelseyRodriguez]

The level of detail blows me away every time. Can't wait to get my hands on this game next year and enjoy this wonderful world you've been putting so much love and care into!

[@lav3nderbees]

As an aspiring architect your videos explaining buildings are extremely helpful, also perhaps the soap could be used as a way for the player to heal? So they take it into the baths and use it, in the same way one might wash blood off themselves

[@peterroth5287]

That would be in line with Spirited Away's use of soap, too. The soaps cleansed/healed the spirits

[@pillowwantan3226]

Maybe add some little puddles from water all around the bathouse? Some areas look suspiciously unused and too dry even though there are people everywhere, walking in and out of water. Also, don't forget about drainage holes in the floor! The water has to go somewhere when you're taking a shower, or when there's water around you at all times. The drainage holes at each shower head would add a nice detail to the shower rooms. Maybe one of the shower heads is broken? Water dripping out of one or another can also give more life and attention to the small spaces. The change rooms all look the exact same and repetitive. Maybe add some clothes hangers, maybe some clothes or towels in there to imply them being used? Mosaic tiles for the bath pools? The pools look a little flat, so I think adding some sort of design to show up underwater could give a bit of depth there too~

[@caleblatreille8224]

So, so, so many great ideas in this video, but the overarching theme is my favourite of all: I've spent so much time impressed by your architectural savvy that I never thought about how it might be a limiting factor in terms of imaginative, surrealist design. And beyond the ideas, the execution is magnificent and recalls so many great moments from other works of art: Hudsucker Proxy, Super Metroid, Totoro, and Dark City all came to mind. I especially love you addressing access to Aylin's suite, and makes me think there's a lot of room for cut-scenes and "reveals" of some of the interior spaces of the bath-house. This mirrors a lot of the joy of SPIRITED AWAY, and would help highlight the beauty of your pixel art. It would also create goals/objectives within the space that would pull efficient players there, and could also narratively serve to tie the world together (who painted that beautiful tree? is there any other work in town by that artist?, etc.). Either way, wasn't expecting such a massive upgrade to a space I was already impressed by but this was a real treat to watch, keep up the amazing work!

[@fatmario8244]

Updating the water effects will add so much more to the pools, adding more steam or a way for the player to fill the room with steam could also add tons of atmospheric effect.

[@KauanHenrique-ie7nu]

I loved what you did in the bathhouse, the new shapes and animations add a lot to the structure, this was very brave as many developers don't update their first ideas leaving them out of place and behind schedule compared to the rest of the game. Now talking about the buffs that the bathhouse can give, I realized that many of the foods require precision to be made, what if the bathhouse gives you relaxation, increasing your accuracy and hit chance (these bonus can be farmed once the player is inside the water, filling a acurration bar, the more your fill more time the player will have the precission bonus, the bonus will slowly decaying once the player leaves the bathhouse or open the restaurant, and if the player sleep the bonus will vanish. This will estimulate the players to stay more time on the bathhouse and better, go more regularly visit the place). If the player is equiped with a swinswit the bar will be bigger (since it will be more comfortable increasing the effect of the warm waters). Ok let's talk about the soap, how about this, on your restaurant you will heave a bathroom to the staf and clients to use, wath if you leave special soaps and lotions on the bathroom, to increase your popularity with the costumer (i love when i go to a restaurant with good smell, specialy when they have nice products on the bathroom, i allways fell so happy, and make me thrust on the place hygiene). I know your game is really far ahead, but i want to give you my character, a train bartender, a human with prosthetic golden arms, that can teach you how to make special drinks, i can make the draw if you want to see. Something i want to know about the train, since i rewatch spirited away today tanks to you kkk, their gonna charge us to ride from a place to another? Are there different tickets that can be purchased at the station? the further he takes us the more expensive he charges us? Are there different classes, like first, second and economy class? If there are, do you think they could have different interactions within them? I really like to see these kinds of details on games, since mostly the things on the world need to be pay. A thing that you can add to the bathhouse too is an acess to the engine room, like on Spirited away, i love the scene whem Kamaji starts to mixes the herbaes and the requests drops, remember me a lot my first work making the ambientation much more real (you can put the acess on the left side on the entrance, since is the side with more machinery). The player can't acess normaly this place, they need to wait the NPC who works on the boilers, go out, he is shy and just leave the boilers at night, if he sees you he will runaway, back to the boilers, if your lucky he will leave the door open, leting the player enter the boilers and interact with him, he can give you special soaps when you bring food, soaps that you can equip on your restaurant bathroom. These ideais will fit perfectly on your game, especially the train part.

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks for the ideas! I can look into them and see if I can implement something like that :) Using soaps to make customers happy makes a lot of sense. For the train, yes you can buy a one way ticket or a lifetime pass. You start to use the train during the mid-game though, so the money won't really be a big deal. Haven't planned different classes in the train, but it could be a way to make the train look more unique. At one point, you will be able to run a restaurant in the train - it's one of the 6 restaurants you unlock over time. Access to the engine room can create a good gameplay mechanic. Someone else mentioned this too - you can collect ingredients & minerals to add to the engine room and change the baths and the buffs you get.

[@KauanHenrique-ie7nu]

@@PixelArchitect I really like trains in games, but most of the time they end up being just a means of transport and don't add anything different, being able to change clothes in the bathroom, having a restaurant, different classes, is a wonderful way to add mechanics in the environment.

[@Alybobson]

The redone bathhouse looks amazing! At first I was a bit skeptical about getting rid of some of the orange/browns in the hallway and stairs as I love warm colours but you were totally right that the blue adds a great contrast and makes the orange areas seem even warmer too. I also agree that the camera should pan out to give the players a view of the whole bathhouse when you walk up to it on the path. Brilliant work as always!

[@bibble4097]

Those hanging platforms and the pumps really bring the whole thing to a new level ! Though now the water in the actual baths is looking kind of plain… maybe adding texture and animation to it will make it feel more cohesive

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks! Will probably play around with water shaders a bit more in the future. Shaders are really powerful but also pretty complicated to learn

[@andrea_granieri]

I am mesmerized, this looks so beautiful! Love all the art in there, but also the calm pace of the video. I am not a game developer but an artist, I liked how you mentioned a lot of design tips! Especially liked the "blue light-red light" one for architecture. BUT you make it look like it's easy peasy, I'm not a programmer but I'm sure it's not ahahah

[@editingahmad]

I've seen in a lot of Japan video, there are boards saying this bath/hot water will "Heal" you. I don't know how your game plays, but you could add this to provide some sort of buff. Or something that restores/replenishes the buff whenever you take a bath. Another random idea, you can hidden hotsprings like the ones in Ghost of Tsushima. Maybe they can have a gameplay function as well.

[@324Orange]

As someone whos just starting on the concepts for my game I love seeing your progress and how you go about your design process.

[@yingli3421]

I am literally speechless! Brilliant idea to use cool warm contrast between the stair and room to differentiate space and make wayfinding much easier and smooth.Keep the great working going and take care of yourself.

[@heyim-jay]

Out of all the big AAA games coming out I’ve had this project on my radar for quite sometime now. I tell my wife all about these update videos and how much she’s going to love this game upon release. I hope your mental health is well during development and I wish you continued success! Enjoy yourself during the upcoming holiday season if you celebrate them!

[@anxiousoptimism5517]

You speak calmly, yet clearly. You don't speak so softly that I mishear. You speak very well. You're good at explaining things. The game looks amazing so far.

[@flakeyartist3533]

The first bathhouse video was the initial way i found your channel and seeing the improvement since then has been really amazing! Super excited for the game once it's out!!

[@cybransloyalist4943]

Oh man. I'm so happy I've found this channel. It's really unique to have someone with architectural expertise doing games and pixel art, and being able to explain so well how all those areas come together. I can't wait to play the game.

[@cutekawaiiprojects]

As for a function inside the bathhouse. I honestly don’t know why, but for some reason I imagine there being like a shady dealer or gambler somewhere in a corner. Changing from place every time you come back and offering unique objects in return for winning a game or doing tasks somewhere. With like a pet of some sort. Which isn’t supposed/ allowed to be inside of the bathhouse 👀 hidden underneath his towel or something 😂 I know it’s very specific 😂 but maybe this could spark some new ideas~✨ Also adding some paper flyers lying around on the ground or bars of soap could make the floor look less empty and more lived in. Or luggage and stuff ^^ Hope this could be of any help~

[@throughawindow321]

Oooh he could have a pet that likes water! Like a toad or a water chicken! You'd think of him as just a shady dealer, but at some point he'd mention that he actually chose the bath house as his dealing point because that's the only spot where his pet, which comes from a tropical region, feels good, due to the heat and humidity. It would make the dealer quite more endearing :D

[@TheDeathToday]

The parallax is a great idea, but I think it moves too fast. With scenery that's farther away, the movement should be smaller and more discreet, which is a good thing because currently it attracts a lot (too much) attention I think. Also it might help to have some glass effect if possible? Right now the windows look too clear, almost as if there's no glass at all. Other than that, what a great video! You've definitely improved the bathhouse, it was already one of my fav buildings so far but seeing those improvements makes it even better ♥ Thank you for sharing, as always!

[@phirenz]

Yeah, the parallax felt way too fast to me too. And a glass shader seems like a good idea, perhaps you can make it so the view through the window gets clearer when as the player character gets closer.

[@CraigHoward]

This is so refreshing to see. I've been following your videos since the beginning, and you're actually doing it. This is real game dev. You haven't dwindled or phased out, you're just continuing to polish and continuing to build upon everything. It's amazing to watch. Keep up the amazing work, this has really come such a long way and you are doing incredible work. I know you're busy as hell getting this stuff done. Once all is said and done, it would be amazing to see how you built the frame work for the game itself. I would pay for a course on how to create the frame work for this kind of game from someone who has built out seperate systems that all talk. Just awesome work, I can't wait to see this continue! Brava

[@animatedmayhem]

Continuing with the Spirited Away inspiration - maybe different soaps could be inserted into a steam machine and change the color of the steam, which will give the player a "scent." For example: pink soap -> pink steam -> player smells like strawberries These scents could be a temporary status effect that will alter NPC dialogue and relationships, making it more likely an NPC will/won't want to talk depending on if they like how you smell. I don't think it should be a forced mechanic across the board where players will start to smell "bad," but could be more of an optional or quest-related feature? Great video as always, love seeing your thought process!

[@BrodyJones]

Dude! I have been searching for just the perfect mix of games I couldn't put my finger on...and you took those inspirations and just completely blew them out of the water with ChefRPG. From what I can see it's gonna be the perfect blend of restaurant, cooking, growing sim all in one package and the art style is next level! Gotta say im very excited about this one!

[@Juniper-22]

Oh wow I didn't think those backgrounds would add to the scene THAT much! Thank you for your continued work on this game!!

[@KayGee_yt]

This game is so impressive. I'm new to these devlogs but you really put so much thought into each piece. Every time I think you run the risk of feature creeping, you pull it off!

[@ClearlyPixelated]

Finding or trading foraged herbs for soap making would be an interesting concept. Different soaps could have different health benefits.

[@nisi3241]

I love the pumps but they are a little too fast and it kind of messes with the slow, warm, chill theme of the baths.

[@farlopote7330]

I feel like the game cover with that anime look does not represent the true beauty of this game and may ignore or not click the steam game preview. Great work keep it up.

[@gusruchaud]

The bath house's raised platforms, up north, are located in such a premium and detached place, that I'd think about adding something special and interactive there. Let's say, a black market NPC that updated it's inventory with random and special items every few days. He could be a really comical, absurd character that pretended to be taking a bath but hid his smuggled goods under his towel or something.

[@PixelArchitect]

Ahaha it's possible. We had a black market character planned for somewhere else but we can definitely look into !

[@cutekawaiiprojects]

Maybe for the soap it might be interesting if you could possibly clean/ repair special dishes like bowls you’ve dug up somewhere or old pots you’ve received from other villagers ^^ To add a special collecting option for custom dishes in your restaurant. Might be a bit of work, but it could also be interesting to consider combining it with other ideas~ Really love your pixel art btw and yesss the blue painting in the background does look really good when walking into her room!! 💙💙

[@cornkernel5253]

A possible storyline for the bathhouse that can give unique minigames could be that one of the staff that help Aylin gets sick, so you offer to help at the bathhouse. This can increase friendship with her, whilst also maybe giving you new unlocks/recipes that she shares with you!

[@cornkernel5253]

I don't think I've seen this anywhere in the dev logs and I'm unsure if this is even relevant anymore but I think it would be nice to change the way one can store items. Instead of dragging things into a chest, it would be nicer to just click the chest (the indicator of whether or not its in storage mode or build/move mode being whether or not its open or closed) and everything you select is quickly removed. Maybe even make a quick animation of the item being stored into the chest with a little bounce effect! In addition, a feature (maybe double clicking the chest quickly, or a button) that stores all items back into the build inventory, so that players who want to rearrange their entire restaurant layout.

[@Slithlou]

I love that you are so transparent with the dev challenges and changes that you make to overcome them. Thank you for sharing your development journey with us normies.

[@kito-]

It's fascinating to listen to your explanations for all the changes you make. It makes me realise just how much knowledge game designers have - architecture, colour palettes, lighting, and so on.

[@MrJ3]

I think sound effects will play a large role in an area like this. Faucets turning on and off, steam hissing, the sound of water splashing. I think nice touches could be if all the doors to the toilets aren't closed, if some of the shower heads are dripping, or better yet, if they can be turned on and off! Details like that make the space feel lived-in and real, I think.

[@heerotomoe]

Just for realism's sake, a Japanese bathhouse usually has a place for patrons to shower/get clean before soaking in the healing waters. That way the water stays clean. Otherwise, looks absolutely lovely. Great work. Looking forward to the day your CookRPG releases (If you have showers and I missed it, I apologize LOL.)

[@rexyswelltown2361]

I am so excited for this game

[@heerotomoe]

I also like the idea of random events (social or otherwise?) that will only happen while soaking or after other activities as an additional benefit to the going to the bathhouse

[@throughawindow321]

Soap suggestion: someone else in the comments suggested it would be cool if you could use the soaps to wash your restaurant. YES. I have a couple more ideas about that. a) Customers could comment on how nice your restaurant smells, once in a while. It could provide a small bonus in the customer's happiness (I assume there's going to be a system to take into account how decorated/nice the environment is, in order to incentivize players to decorate the restaurants? Maybe using nice soaps could be part of that). b) Since, in that case, you'd be storing the soaps somewhere in the restaurant, and the employees consuming it as needed... Wouldn't it be funny if a beginner chef would, once in a while, mistake soap for cooking supplies because of the nice smell, and occasionnally add soap to a dish? Cue burping soap bubbles, an angry customer and a bad review XD It would be cool if restaurant gameplay included a bunch of randomly-triggering special mistakes your employees could make.

[@artsy1447]

Gameplay suggestion: visiting a bathhouse in real life relieves stress so logically taking a bath could give a buff of relaxed and it would make it easier to work faster etc. or maybe adding a stress meter and different ways to drain it (including the bathhouse, fishing etc.) could be an interesting element? Then if the stress meter is too full it slows the player down or something like that.

[@benjattkk]

I think a cool idea would be that, when you stay in the water without moving for a little bit, as you get more and more relaxed, you get a small cutscene where everything around you disappears and some relaxing music starts playing. Could fit with the magical vibe of the bathhouse. This is looking amazing btw"

[@bucher2635]

the cold tree painting in the staircase is really doing the trick for me. it gives u a sense of being in a hot spring surrounded by nature. the pipe bathtub though is not really catching the spirited away vibes for me. If u look at ur favorite scene u can notice that all mechanics are hidden behind wooden planks, if u dont know where that water pipe thing is u could never find it. The magic of chihiro is that she enters the hidden places of the bathhouse, that being the boiler room, kitchen, service staircase, cooling chamber etc. and only through the knowledge of whats going on behind the scenes she can beat the challenge of the river god. So if thats what u want, i think u need a basement with all the supporting rooms, there needs to be a threshold to enter and it needs to be significantly less finished and tidy. Ur doing great work, hope ur game goes well!

[@ShacoPL]

Just found this channel and I'm wishlisting the game, wish more quality content like this was available on youtube.

[@mckrey]

I truly can’t wait to play this but am so enjoying the process of it being created! Your videos are wonderful and very relaxing while also being informative. The bath house looks much more cozy now! You did a great job.

[@callmecarrots9628]

I know I’m late, but if you still get these comments, I think making most or all of the pipework throughout the bathhouse move and spit steam would be a great touch. You could make holes throughout the pipes, and have steam periodically coming out of them, while they bang around and each segment rotates slightly on the screen. It would feel super dynamic! Other pipes or mechanisms for water could drip a little bit, too. Great work so far- been watching from the beginning and I absolutely love your design and thinking skills. I’m definitely getting this game, and I can tell others will too!

[@euroger123]

Wow, I already thought the bathhouse was amazing on the first iteration, but this update is incredible. Well done! One small idea, you could animate some steam coming out of the seams on the pipes as well, I think it would look cool.

[@bleeper47]

Damn this was extremely well done, amazing stuff. Only suggestion is maybe adding some kind of a subtle ripple trail when a character is moving through the water. Overall flawless execution, keep it up!

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks Parssa :)

[@hanyodossta]

This is one of my favorite of your videos so far! I was also wondering how you were layering your images to allow characters to walk behind them, so seeing the breakdown here was really helpful. Your videos combine insights into the design process with gorgeous artwork, and I am always so happy when they drop. Can't wait for the game!

[@BoardOfView]

Wow! I just heard about this game and watching your videos makes me travel through this crazy world without even playing. I'm very anxious to see what you came up with next!!

[@yulaserio]

It makes me emotional to see so much love put into a project. Gameplay suggestions: -cooking soup in a tub. Maybe that could be a tradition in the town lol -Different soaps could change water's color. Some NPCs could prefer or be in the mood with specific soaps.

[@PixelArchitect]

A color change would be cool! And not too hard to implement

[@Maimgocouncil]

Since he bath house can be a big social hub I feel that a lot of character events could happen here. I also think maybe some baby or children npc being held by parents in the water? Just seems like a space where someone would bring their kids.

[@Lasarus842]

I look at this then look at my own pixel art sim game (idea, hasn't gone anywhere but a text file) and i suddenly feel like i need to kick my concept up a notch. Amazing work.

[@DanihelMetalPromotion]

Sometimes clicking on a random video is absolutely amazing! What you have created is gorgeous and completely captures the Ghibli vibe 😁

[@druidofpies]

Tweaking the steam particles out of the boilers could be nice. Even just a opacity fade-in/fade-out at beginning/end of the particle lifetime could make things a bit more polished. Could also have them increase in scale over time, and maybe widen as if they are dispersing into the air and filling the space

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks for tips! Definitely a lot more room to refine the particles and shaders

[@yao_6520]

Learned so much from you walking us through the design, please do more of them!

[@weltar1995]

One thing I thought when you spoke about buffs from being in the bath was having a stress system where the player gets stressed out from working too much in the restaurant. Thus it forces the player to do more things outside of working. Could also be used with coffee as an adrenaline boost effect while also increasing stress.

[@gamewrit0058]

Brilliant update! Thanks for sharing. Excited to see what you and the writer do next.

[@matt-dk1nf]

Maybe certain soaps could have certain fragrances which NPC’s can either like/ dislike and it can improve or devalue your relationship with them?

[@guildofgluttony]

Been following for a while and I'm super excited to play this game! I really admire the work and care that you're putting in to it and for showing us all behind the scenes.

[@xo.teelane]

This is immaculate

[@matcha.always]

I am never not gonna be hype for when this game comes out

[@lloydbickford9324]

Your artwork and skill is simply amazing! Fantastic work! I can’t wait to play the finished game!

[@Daealis]

Amazing improvements all around, glad to see the project chugging along. I had three ideas for the immersion that shouldn't be too difficult to pull off: 1. The entry to the bath house and your idea of panning to see more of the house. It seems your camera is flexible in following the player, so could you make a 'zone' leading up to the bath house, where the camera gains more speed, the closer you are to the bathouse, slowly inching the player towards the bottom of the screen, and showing you more and more of the building. Have it line up so that once you reach the front door of the bath house, the player character is just at the bottom of the screen and the rest of the screen is filled with the bath house. 2. The parallax through the windows looks good already, but since the camera and player can also move left to right, you'd expect the parallax to do that too. Currently it only moved up and down. 3. Once the players and NPCs are in the deep water, maybe change their animation to swimming? Seeing how the game happens on a seaside town anyway, swimming animations would enable you to have some future expanding possibilities for aquatic tasks, and more activities to happen around the town. It wouldn't have to be much more than just having their hands bob to the surface when 'walking' forwards when in water, and maybe have the head swing back and forth to emulate the motion of a breaststroke.

[@PixelArchitect]

Really appreciate the tips! 1 & 2 will definitely be updated. Might add swimming animations in the future, but will shelf it for now since adding new animations can be very time consuming - we will have to add the same animations to dozens of clothing items as well.

[@zentoa]

your pixel art is too good AGH! :))

[@SuperArtsii]

I am honestly so hyped for this game... All the work that goes into this is amazing!! I'm super excited for this is what I'm trying to say, keep up the amazing work

[@erickeugenio]

I love the idea exposed pipes and pumps, i suggest try adding a secret area to discover, like a narrow path with drainpipes, or a machine room or something, even a small one, it adds depth + more fun for exploration.

[@eVGaZeroHour]

Great aesthetic. Moving backgrounds and amazing architecture design in a pixel art game. Truly amazing. Some feedback on gameplay: 1. Make it so bathsuit will provide bonuses when in bath and small benefit if without bathsuit (incentive for us to wear it) Or Auto trigger the change when entering bath so it auto equip the bath suit. 2. Some aesthetics maybe in future post release if you have time is when came out of bath/water some dripping water on floor that dissapear after x sec make it looks refreshing coming out of the bath Great job, can't wait to play the game when Alpha releases

[@Jazz-cr2ui]

Love that your ideas are constantly evolving. Here’s an idea: It could be cool if the character portraits were animated, like blinking and different expressions during dialogue. I think it helps bring the characters to life.

[@14zuzannka]

I enjoy the aesthetics and thought process. I am in love with a game before it comes out! Keep going! This is amazing!

[@riestyruci4704]

Wow, you do seem to implement all the architectural theory in here, including the color theory aspect, and I looooove it! Inspiring.

[@bitbraindev]

One of the best devlogs out there. Watching this just fills me with determination and motivation to work on my own game!

[@richardbaker4440]

I love the views of the world out the back windows in the tea house and office, but feel that they could be more tied to the bathhouse location? like seeing the big pool out the back or some hot spring water features and steam would really add to the sense of place, and especially make the restaurant exciting with its own unique atmosphere. love how it's all coming together!

[@kevinstrating12]

a suggestion regarding the soaps. you could make it that the soaps give you a 1 day buff with certain characters who like the smell of said soap and it gives you a small but noticable friendship boost when talking to them. kinda like irl where if you are talking to someone that smells nice it makes a conversation slightly more fun.

[@bobchabry9844]

I think that it would be pretty cool if there was an animated view of the whole exterior (or whole thing) of the bathhouse the first time you get to that location.

[@PixelArchitect]

That's a good idea! Quick first cutscene

[@max_hendrickson]

Wow, amazing work! I really love the aspect of being able to see outside the windows, maybe it would be cool to have a balcony on the top floor that if you walk onto it the camera pans up and you can see a view of the landscape, maybe changing depending on the time / season, or even just a view of the sky. It seems like it would be a lot of work but I think it could be a nice bridge between the rigid border between inside and outside. Great work, can't wait to see more!

[@helloblocks.4310]

It's always so great to see when you post an update. Really love seeing the process of this! It may be cool to have special dialogue and or events with npcs that active in there after achieving a certain level of friendship? (I suppose thats how it will work(?) that not neccesarily "advances" the relationship, but maybe just nice little moments to make you care for them more. A little bonding and relaxing with your friends

[@PixelArchitect]

The main characters will all have minor and major quests, and romanceable options as well. Still a long way to go but we'll get there eventually :)

[@ItsCon_]

Possibly adding a side quest that involves using the soap and a hidden area in the pipework that unlocks a special item that you can use in your restaurant

[@CiTRusEnIMa1]

Might be late to the party on suggestions but... Adding something like, 'X' amount of seconds of you standing still your character goes into a "relaxed animation" and you can animate the character to lean back and float perhaps, you then start to gain those buffs

[@Kr3ss3nt]

im bursting with excitement for this game, seeing you sketch it then bring it to life is just stunning :)

[@rhysplaysvirtual]

My only notes are that the bathing suit makes the character look naked, and the tile of the bathhouse through the lobby looks like the transparent tile in art programs so I thought that door was incomplete. I do really like this series and the bathhouse looks even better than before!

[@twomur_]

you could definitely add a “comforted” status effect that the player gets by relaxing, sleeping, etc and it could maybe make you unlock new dialog or make friends easier or your workers listen and work harder for you something like that

[@PixelArchitect]

Ah yes, that's a good name for it. I think a lot of RPGs have something similar - but you get it from sleeping.

[@estebanjuan4646]

IMO you can only describe something as if it's a creative that either makes you think or inspires you. This definitely inspired me so thank you for that. Great job and hope to see more from you soon!

[@maz8414]

Adding benefits is a great idea, for the soaps that can be purchased only as gifts you could use them as boosts to either increase the rewards of spending time at the bath house or decrease the time it takes to get those benefits!

[@Knallbart]

Holy crap. This looks incredible! Can’t wait to play this!

[@nenybuns]

Super fascinating as usual! Absolutely stunning to follow your creative process, it's so clear you got so much knowledge and skill you bring! When you made the hallways glow blue I audibly gasped and went "whoa" to myself. I am awaiting every new video of yours with suspense and am thankful every time you share your process with us. You dont have to but it's incredibly interesting to follow! Cannot wait to become a chef in your RPG and walk around to enjoy all the areas your built with so much thought and care!

[@Maksimmy]

Maybe to add additional challenge/realism to the game you can implement a monetary charge for using the bathhouse? Maybe this can be enhanced with different purchase options, kind of how a gym membership would work in real life (one-time use fee, 1-season access fee, or 1-year access fee). This game feature will also make the bathhouse more mysterious/exciting since the player might not be able to afford access right at the start of the game. Maybe the character receives a bathhouse membership card inside of their wallet whenever the membership is active, especially if the player can receive benefits from relaxing there? It would also be cool if the player can eventually receive VIP membership access (24/7 access or something) if they reach max friendship with Aylin. I'm currently studying game design and I would love to know what you think about this idea. Also, just wanted to say I've been following your devlogs for a while now and I have to say I am continuously inspired by your work and I cannot wait to play the game!!!

[@throughawindow321]

Cool idea!

[@erikponti1753]

I love watching the progress but not only that, also the process! You communicate your thought process so well and captivating. Keep up the awesome work! Love it

[@steffanthomson2433]

I think the empty kitchen rooms could be filled with crates and boxes and the types of things that would generally go into long term storage in a business. Make it look like, while the room isn't being properly utilised, it has some sort of temporary use. Another suggestion might be for it to have old and potentially unworking kitchen appliances from the previous restaurant that will need to be replaced or sold for an insignificant amount of money.

[@ButterflyColors]

This looks amazing! Your art style is so beautiful! A suggestion for the outside scenes out windows: maybe when the player moves left and right the outside should also move instead of just up and down (like if the player moves left, the outside should move slightly right)

[@PixelArchitect]

Yup it's true! Recently updated this and it looks better now hehe

[@zachandrews5]

I really love every aspect of it, and I feel really bad critiquing but I feel as if it would be better just filling up the place with gizmos and another non gameplay aspect could be certain characters having favourited spots in the bathhouse. E.g a quiet more reserved character picks a higher up and less popular spot, while someone rowdy sits the the big center bath but still in one specific spot. I’m loving your content and I know I’ll be getting this game when it releases!

[@puusch5332]

I love the changes. Good for you for being open to change and to grow with your game. It's hard to do sometimes especially when you put so much time into something initially. The pumps look amazing - as a game consumer I so appreciate all of the details you are putting in. It definitely doesn't go unnoticed :) I backed your kickstarter and can't wait to play the game

[@PixelArchitect]

Thanks a lot for backing us! Tbh there's hundreds of things I want to fix and improve, and some things bug me every day hehe. It's mostly a matter of time. May need to delay the game a bit to get an extra layer of polish and general gameplay improvement

[@puusch5332]

@@PixelArchitect no doubt, as the one developing it I'm sure you could tweak it forever! And I suppose you could if its kept in beta even after the release. But game delays are a good thing because i means its being improved :)