[I][CE] Hope Springs Hotel ○ [With New Dynah Sprites!]

[SwagmaWampyr]

It's as I've explained before, we were threading into some very iffy territory with that scene, and I much would have rather overplayed the issue than underplay it. I realize I had to bend Phoenix's character a bit to make it work, but a trend I realized along the way is that I was never writing Phoenix in character to begin with, or at least I never tried to: He would up closer to Hobo Wright than Lawyer Wright, and I liked that interpretation to serve as a bit of a transitioning point between them to show that bits of the mindset were always there, so that's what I ran with.

[discipledoctor]

I've just started up Part 1. I'm liking it so far, I loved Hotel Dusk and I feel like this is going to be Hotel Dusk with Phoenix Wright.

I mean, I did, but then Ace showed up because why not have Ace show up? It's not a visual novel without Ace, after all.

Seriously though, it's good so far, I just didn't know how to express my reaction at seeing Ace so I decided to make a quick post instead.

[AP-Master]

Spoiler : THAT :

Wait...

The Husband = Vincent
The Victim = Scarlet
The King = Masterson?
The Detective = Frost
And there was a 5th one...

So if we assume it was none of them then it has to be one of the leftovers... unless they kill themselves after killing the other 4. Are there even that many more characters. Spark and Powers are both out since they're canon. Oh, there's that snobby student guy and the general.

Spoiler : :

Here I come out of complete nowhere to make a simple comment... Common of me and my lack of social skills . Correct me if I'm wrong, but at the end of Part 4; doesn't someone appear and says that Masterson is dead? That would make him "The Victim"... unless of course we are playing Burial of the Turnabout here (self-explanatory if you have played the case).

[mAc Chaos]

Spoiler : victim :

The thing is there are supposed to be multiple murders coming, so everyone is a victim in that sense. So I figured it was more metaphorical.

[Gumshoe057]

Now I don't mean to be impatient, but...


FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, WHEN IS PART FIVE BEING RELEASED!? I NEED TO KNOW!

[SwagmaWampyr]

Whenever I stop being lazy/actually get days off from work.

And Dangan Ronpa, but I'm almost done with everyone's FTEs anyway...

[Tap]

I've just started up Part 1. I'm liking it so far, I loved Hotel Dusk and I feel like this is going to be Hotel Dusk with Phoenix Wright.

I mean, I did, but then Ace showed up because why not have Ace show up? It's not a visual novel without Ace, after all.

Seriously though, it's good so far, I just didn't know how to express my reaction at seeing Ace so I decided to make a quick post instead.

Glad to hear you're enjoying the case so far! It'd be interesting to hear your thoughts after you finish Part IV. No pressure, though.
And yes, there's nothing like Ace showing up, which is why all of the additional answers during the prompts tend to play on his 999 character.

Spoiler : :

Here I come out of complete nowhere to make a simple comment... Common of me and my lack of social skills . Correct me if I'm wrong, but at the end of Part 4; doesn't someone appear and says that Masterson is dead? That would make him "The Victim"... unless of course we are playing Burial of the Turnabout here (self-explanatory if you have played the case).

Yes, Powers barges in on Hall, Frost and Wright to let them know that Masterson's dead. Although as Wright has yet to inspect the body one might say, in the rhythm of 999 and Virtue's Last Reward, that Masterson is both alive AND dead.

Now I don't mean to be impatient, but...


FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, WHEN IS PART FIVE BEING RELEASED!? I NEED TO KNOW!

We can't promise a release date, but I can tell you a decent amount of Chapter Five has been scripted. We're busy people with a number of projects under our belt, but we won't be leaving you hanging. Hope Springs will be finished.

[DarthWiader]

So how are things going right now? Not trying to sound impatient here, just wondering.

[SwagmaWampyr]

The plan right now is to Finish Memoirs Part 1 and then go from there.

...Working on it, next week will likely be pretty open.

[cesar26100]

I just played the first four chapters,and I am loving the game so far.I am really looking forward to the fifth chapter

Spoiler : chapter4 :

So I guess that five people are going to die,since everything seems to be going according to the letter.But if three of the OC die would not that leave only one suspect?(I seriously doubt a child will die or be a murderer,specially since the former is most likely against AAO rules)So I guess there are either several killers or this is an Alternate universe in which Powers and Brushel either die or are murderers.

[AirePix]

The case....It looks,so good!


The story is amazing,the characters are lively,and,it stars Phoenix.

This greatness was expected from a professional spriter named Tap.

But,my only negative thought is that,when it's time to chose your vital action (e.g. Press her on or Leave her be)i wanted the story going in a different direction,with different sides of he story,so that more time could be played on your case,and it would be packed with variety.

[Tap]

I just played the first four chapters,and I am loving the game so far.I am really looking forward to the fifth chapter

Spoiler : chapter4 :

So I guess that five people are going to die,since everything seems to be going according to the letter.But if three of the OC die would not that leave only one suspect?(I seriously doubt a child will die or be a murderer,specially since the former is most likely against AAO rules)So I guess there are either several killers or this is an Alternate universe in which Powers and Brushel either die or are murderers.

Glad to see new members are still playing Hope Springs Hotel, which is definitely my favourite case I've helped write in terms of the plot, murder mystery and the characters.

Thanks for your nice comments! Chapter 5 and 6 are in an indefinite hiatus for the time being, but they will be both finished eventually. As for your spoiler-tagged comments...

Spoiler : :

Several killers...? An interesting theory, one which hasn't been raised yet... However, I can't confirm anything other than the fact that the case is mostly canon. Having said that, it would still be possible for Brushel or Powers to be the murderers, if you're creative about it...

The case....It looks,so good!

Thank you very much. BB did a fantastic job with the dialogue, and we came up with a smashing plot together.

The story is amazing,the characters are lively,and,it stars Phoenix.

A much more impressive Lawyer!Phoenix, that's for sure. We both don't like Lawyer!Phoenix, which is why he was given the Hyde treatment.

This greatness was expected from a professional spriter named Tap.

Thank you, but the only sprites I worked on are the Scarlet Hall ones. And even then, the original base was designed by AABattery. I commissioned AA, who was responsible for the Masterson and Dynah sprites. Sunny's sprites belong to an inactive C-R artist.

But,my only negative thought is that,when it's time to chose your vital action (e.g. Press her on or Leave her be)i wanted the story going in a different direction,with different sides of he story,so that more time could be played on your case,and it would be packed with variety.

We didn't want to have the case go off in different directions... The point of the vital actions are to keep players on their toes. By having different sides of the story and alternate paths for the player to follow, it kind of defeats the original intention and purpose.

[RiksKing]

I'm really enjoying this case so far! I did the 4 chapters in 1 day and straight after each other, I loved it that much. Some thoughts:

Spoiler : :

I really think having Powers as an 'assistant' is one of the strongest parts in the game, and to be honest, he's written perfectly. I wouldn't mind if they included a Powers written like this in an actual AA game.
That being said, I really hope he doesn't LAST WINDOW SPOILERS turns out to be like Dylan. Even though with Dylan, you could kind of expect it, but Dylan was probably my favourite character of that game until that twist and then I just didn't know what to think of him.

Also, the phone conversation were pretty neat! I've always thought that the phone conversations in Hotel Dusk were pretty boring. But here, you managed to get the atmosphere perfectly. The music made me feel thrilled when the phone rings and to be honest, you pretty much only advance your investigation through the phone so great job from you guys

I also really liked the sudden change of atmosphere, after the first two chapters I didn't feel like I was playing a 'Hotel Dusk' inspired game, but it almost feeled like some kind of 999. The feeling that none of the characters are safe here creates a dark and gloomy tone to the game. And seeing how much I liked Hotel Dusk and 999, this is a positive point for me.

The dialogue is very solid throughout the whole game, even though Phoenix acts OOC sometimes, it kind of suits the game, I couldn't really click with Phoenix the first 2 chapters, (He was kind of a douche^^) but when the game starts getting the darker setting, his character really shines, and you can see this in the irrigation with Ms. Hall, which by the way was in my point of view, the best scene in the game so far, even though it's rather heavy. But all the characters really shine through here (except Powers, that joke when somebody died is kinda grim)

The bad endings are also a very good part of the game. I've got 2 so far (5 and 13) and they both seem to involve Hall. Screw you Hall. Which reminds me, and I believe someone pointed it out already, but how will Game Over's be handled with the owner dead? Granted, in HD, almost all game overs involved the owner and wrong choices. In LW, you get almost all game overs by screwing up in tasks and trusting characters which aren't meant to be trusted.

Also, the custom Frost and Masterson sprites are really, really well done. Masterson now looks intimidating, without looking like a bad guy. Frost now gets an impression of a James Bond character, but I really like it.

That being said, the only thing didn't reeaaallly like was how linear the game is, even though there isn't much you can do about it. Maybe it's an option to always have the number 215 door in the 'Move' tab when you're on the Second Floor hallway? On the other side, it helps you not get drawn out from the story and really get to enjoy the top notch dialogue.

So, I'm really liking the case so far. I can't wait for the last two parts. Really nice job

[Tap]

I'm really enjoying this case so far! I did the 4 chapters in 1 day and straight after each other, I loved it that much. Some thoughts:
Thanks for playing! It's always nice to see that members are still playing Hope Springs, even though the thread isn't bursting with activity. It's also great to read that you loved it and couldn't stop playing. BB and I spent a solid couple of weeks ironing out all of the details, and then I spent the next month and a half working on the detailed overviews which gave a much clearer picture of the case for BB to write the dialogue. Replies to your comments are in red.

Spoiler : :

I really think having Powers as an 'assistant' is one of the strongest parts in the game, and to be honest, he's written perfectly. I wouldn't mind if they included a Powers written like this in an actual AA game.
Powers wasn't our first choice for the assistant, actually. The original 'Hope Springs' started out with Larry, but as the case evolved, BB and I quickly realised that he wasn't the most suitable character. We briefly toyed with the idea of Gumshoe before BB suggested Powers. And his dialogue is spot-on, something I couldn't be happier about. He's definitely one of my surprisingly favourite characters of the case./color]

That being said, I really hope he doesn't LAST WINDOW SPOILERS turns out to be like Dylan. Even though with Dylan, you could kind of expect it, but Dylan was probably my favourite character of that game until that twist and then I just didn't know what to think of him.
I can rule out immediately that he won't be like Dylan. The case is supposed to fit into 'canon', and having an evil!Powers wouldn't make a lot of sense considering Farewell, My Turnabout takes place about six or so months later. However, that doesn't mean that he's an innocent character...

Also, the phone conversation were pretty neat! I've always thought that the phone conversations in Hotel Dusk were pretty boring. But here, you managed to get the atmosphere perfectly. The music made me feel thrilled when the phone rings and to be honest, you pretty much only advance your investigation through the phone so great job from you guys
I'm pretty surprised at how well these phone conversations have been received, actually. The music is actually the same track that plays during the phone conversations in Cing's 'Again', so that might add to it a bit. ^^

I also really liked the sudden change of atmosphere, after the first two chapters I didn't feel like I was playing a 'Hotel Dusk' inspired game, but it almost feeled like some kind of 999. The feeling that none of the characters are safe here creates a dark and gloomy tone to the game. And seeing how much I liked Hotel Dusk and 999, this is a positive point for me.
As much as we both love Hotel Dusk and Last Window, the case ultimately had to involve a present-style murder situation, a la Ace Attorney, although 999 was definitely one of the elements we considered during development.

The dialogue is very solid throughout the whole game, even though Phoenix acts OOC sometimes, it kind of suits the game, I couldn't really click with Phoenix the first 2 chapters, (He was kind of a douche^^) but when the game starts getting the darker setting, his character really shines, and you can see this in the irrigation with Ms. Hall, which by the way was in my point of view, the best scene in the game so far, even though it's rather heavy. But all the characters really shine through here (except Powers, that joke when somebody died is kinda grim)
BB is a fantastic dialogue writer. I couldn't be happier with how well he has written the characters. Phoenix was always going to be a bit OOC because of our mutual dislike for his personality in GS1 through 3. The aim was to add more 'Hobo' to his personality, with a dash of 'Kyle Hyde' thrown in there. As for the 'best scene'... that scene or idea was what really made BB enthusiastic about the project. I'm glad that it has had the same reaction for members playing, but its ultimate success is only because of the fantastic dialogue, so BB deserves full credit here.

The bad endings are also a very good part of the game. I've got 2 so far (5 and 13) and they both seem to involve Hall. Screw you Hall. Which reminds me, and I believe someone pointed it out already, but how will Game Over's be handled with the owner dead? Granted, in HD, almost all game overs involved the owner and wrong choices. In LW, you get almost all game overs by screwing up in tasks and trusting characters which aren't meant to be trusted.
Don't worry, the game overs will still make sense in Parts 5 and 6.

Also, the custom Frost and Masterson sprites are really, really well done. Masterson now looks intimidating, without looking like a bad guy. Frost now gets an impression of a James Bond character, but I really like it.
AABattery/Aeridis is an amazing sprite artist. Masterson's design is actually based on concept art for Shelly de Killer, while Frost, as you guessed, is a James Bond character - Sévérine from Skyfall. I'm glad it works for you. It's a wonderful design, and I couldn't resist copying it.

That being said, the only thing didn't reeaaallly like was how linear the game is, even though there isn't much you can do about it. Maybe it's an option to always have the number 215 door in the 'Move' tab when you're on the Second Floor hallway? On the other side, it helps you not get drawn out from the story and really get to enjoy the top notch dialogue.
Linearity was always going to be an issue. I'll take into consideration your suggestion which does have merit. Thanks!

So, I'm really liking the case so far. I can't wait for the last two parts. Really nice job
Hope Springs is on an indefinite scripting hiatus, so I can't promise a release date, but the game will be finished one way or another. Thanks for playing, and hopefully you'll have the chance to play Parts 5 and 6, which are both amazing, when they're released. Until then...

[SwagmaWampyr]

My computer was wiped, I lost the files for Chapters 5 and 6, and I haven't been able to get a hold of Tap to send them back to me.

The possibility highly exists the files have been lost forever, or that I'll never get them back.

So yeah. That's where we stand as of now.