I’m sorry for the extended absence. I had been working on 0.6b until I heard the
news out of Cleveland with Castro keeping those poor women as slaves in his
house and it was deeply disturbing to me on a personal level.
Harem is a fantasy game.
But fantasy is just that.
Thoughts that may excite you but that you know rationally can’t be. Things you enjoy thinking about but know should never actually be done. Slavery is a horrible practice and the world
will be a better place when it’s finally purged. Having fantasies of control and domination
may be exciting but they must only be explored consensually.
If you think that your mate might enjoy a bit of bondage and
rough sex, talk about it before trying anything. Be a bit rough and she how she responds. Indulge in her fantasies and let her indulge
in hers. BDSM play can be exciting, but
no means no and always have a safeword.
A simple no is far better than ending up in a prison cell
somewhere. And bedroom play is just
that, it belongs in the bedroom and never to the point where anyone could be
hurt.
Respect your mate.
Love them as it’s the greatest thing in the world. Enjoy their company and let them enjoy
yours. Don’t force anything on another
person.
It’s taken me a while to even be comfortable writing again
but I firmly believe that everyone that plays Harem knows the difference
between right and wrong and that if you do almost anything that happens in the
game you are wrong and will end up in jail. If you ever play the game and disagree, please stop. Uninstall Harem and go and seek professional help. It would be just as bad as if you bring any FPS into real life.
As to what’s going on with the game I can’t say that I’m
completely sure. Maybe I’ll pick it up
again but maybe not. I will try. For simplicities
sake I’m just going to say that it’s on hiatus.
If that changes I’ll let you know.
Thank you for your patience and all the warm wishes. I wish I could have spoken sooner but I need
to work through this first.
And one last note, I hope Castro suffers for the rest of his
life for what he did and that the creator makes a special place in hell for
him.
Reading about that story on the news gave me nightmares, seriously messed up.
ReplyDeleteAside from the difference between reality and fiction, there is only a passing similarity between that case and the dark side path in the game. While the light path has nothing at all in common with it.
Thank you.
DeleteTake as long as you need to work through this. Rape fantasies are something that are really difficult to reconcile with the real act. I remember that early on, bdsm artwork really fascinated me, and since I was young, my (fundamentally Christian) parents found out about it, they flipped out and beat me. It's still hard for me to really feel comfortable with my tastes since I still feel shameful about them sometimes.
ReplyDeleteI'm saddened to hear you may be feeling a similar kind of discomfort over something that many people are naturally drawn to, but I understand how disturbing this kind of thing can be, and how much of a cognitive dissonance it can produce.
You don't need to feel guilty; when it comes to deep and personal carnal desires and tendencies, no one has the right to work through them except for you. They're yours.
Hopefully I'm not projecting too much on you, but I've always thought your game is well designed and has had an incredible amount of effort put into it, so when I see people like you being able to put your imaginations to create these things for other people to enjoy, I really appreciate it. I think you're amazing and I just want to let you remind you that you're not alone on this because it saddens me to think you will be shutting off a creative and motivated part of your output because of guilt that you maybe shouldn't even feel.
Don't worry about the game, you have people who love what you've done already.
I don't know if guilt is the right word, but thanks for the support!
DeleteI just want you to know that I am one of the many thousands of people who has enjoyed your work, and let me tell you something.
ReplyDeleteThere has never been a human being who truly killed someone because of violence in video games. They've done it because they were violent, horrible, individuals.
All the same, when people consume your work they are consuming it as a fantasy. Yes, I think the idea of domination and rape is hot, and you know what so does my girlfriend. In fact, we enjoyed playing your game together one time.
Stories have a power to make people smile and to include wonderful things. Yours is one filled with little moments of humanity, and as it has gone on, the people in your story have become increasingly complex and human.
Don't despair because one fucked up individual couldn;t understand between right or wrong. No person who makes fantasies should blame themselves for that. Only the parents who fucked up in the first place.
If this is the end, I want to say I've enjoyed your game, and enjoyed your work. If you don't plan on continue, at least put up the development files and your most recent build of the game so that way it doesn't have to die.
If this isn't the end, and I really hope that's the case,I just want to say thank you for the hard work you've put in up until now. And I hope to see what you've got next.
Thank you.
DeleteSadly I do not watch TV or read the paper so I did not hear about that though it is a sad thing to know it happens in real life.. Eh i agree with the saying "The world is going to hell in a hay basket"(Some how i know i just spelt that wrong..)
ReplyDeleteAny way don't blame you for not being able to write more to the game's story after that, Even I wouldn't be able to and I am the type to easterly ignore that stuff and move on.
Sad to hear that, but I can't help but respect your reasons, for they are sound and honest.
ReplyDeleteI'm personally very good at differentiating between the worlds, so despite the several times something similar surfaced in Europe in the past years, that hadn't stopped me from enjoying the game, or similar games.
I suppose making one, especially if the likes happens relatively close to you, might be a different matter.
It isn't a concern about me personally but rather what people may take from the game.
Deleteyou are damn right ker. some people can't understand the difference between fantasy and reality. and those type of news only made by psychopath. they are mentally ill people. so don't take it heart. only 1 people in thousand have that type of problem. you shouldn't think about them. even without your game they will do it. i was planning to start my game again and waiting for your updates too. having problem without some rgss experts.
ReplyDeleteYa but my concern is that 0.6a.3 was downloaded at least 20k times. And if one and a thousand people have that kind of issue, that's 20 people which may take this as an influence.
Deleteya that could be a problem. but think about this, those kind of people don't waste their time on playing RPG. their mind is full of crap. we are just playing this rpg as we are the lover of Sekirei type anime. these sick minded people don't have time for anime. otherwise they can do it. nobody wanna be orochimaru, rather they wanna be Naruto or suske.
DeleteReally?
ReplyDeleteTHAT'S what's giving you writers' block now?
Whatever, take your time.
When did I mention writers block in the post? That was not the issue.
DeleteI think he meant your willingness to develop this fantasy game further.
DeleteCompletely understandable. That story shook me up, too. Take as much time as you need, be it months or forever. Your game is quite enjoyable already, and in my eyes it's fine if development is cut. I don't think that any reasonable person could begrudge you for your decision, and the only person with the right to make that decision is you.
ReplyDeleteI forgot to say: Don't apologize for this. Don't ever.
DeleteDon't misunderstand. I am in no way apologizing for creating the game. Rather I was apologizing for doing nothing related to it for four months while I worked through this in my head.
DeleteSo would you be willing to give away the game's source if you decide on not continuing this work anymore ?
ReplyDeleteYou mean the horribly complex, completely undocumented mess that is the event/script coding behind Harem. That probably has more unused and redundant code in it than actual code. You might be better extracting the text and images and then starting the code from scratch.
DeleteBut to answer your question, the first question will be answered when the second one is.
I understand the reasoning on an empathetic level, and came by to say that I sincerely hope that you don't stop making this brilliant game. In that same ideal, it is just a game, and nobody takes such vile action as murder or rape from a game. People do such things due to being who they are, as inherently horrible as it may be. No artist should blame their work, on any level, for the negative actions that some few evil people in the world are doing.
ReplyDeleteIt's still up in the air. I've written a pair of scenes since posting this and started four variations of another but we'll have to see if it sticks. Although it was two rewrites in honesty. I've rewritten both of Donna's dark scenes to start with and then rewrote a scene that was in 0.6b which was too dark and violent for me even before all the events which caused the hiatus.
DeleteThe second "Anonymous" comment above rings true with me as well. In the end, we have to just remember that we're the guys who keep stuff like this in the "fun fantasy" realm and don't visit horror on anybody else. If it makes you feel any better, the light path the protagonist can take clearly shows that you're not a monster. :)
ReplyDeleteHope you feel up to working on this again someday--but even if you don't, I bet you've inspired somebody to make a pretty cool h-game of their own. Cheers!
The concern was never about who I am but rather how it may influence other people. I'm fine with having a dark side and put self-control as being profoundly important to me.
DeleteAnd yes, I've a few other developers have told me that I was their inspiration which is pretty cool.
While I'm sorry to hear about the hiatus, the truth is I understand COMPLETELY what you're going through. What happened is horrible, I won't sugar coat that. And you have every right to re evaluate what it is you're doing. If you choose to continue down he road, great, I'll be there. If not, then at least let me say thank you for the content you've given us, and good luck in everything you do!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the support.
DeleteDeath is too good for that bastard. Instead of a US prison, they should stick him in a third-world prison, where prisoners don't have access to things like books and tv, and there's 30 people to a cell with only one toilet, etc...
ReplyDeleteYeah I was horrified by that guy too. But fantasy's fantasy and reality's reality. I can enjoy my loli h-manga, but doing what I see in the manga to a real little girl would be disgusting.
Either way, glad to see you're still around. I hope you will return to the game, since I feel it'd be a shame to abandon such a great story. But take all the time you need. Fans will wait.
Talking about it has been helping tremendously as well as all of your thanks. I've actually been doing quite a bit of writing the last few days and enjoyed it.
DeleteThe status is still 'hiatus' though.
One other potential view on the game is that it might actually *positively* influence people.
ReplyDeleteTo be perfectly honest, I enjoy playing the dark paths of many a game, including and especially of this kind.
But it's always kinda hard doing it, and I kinda feel bad about it afterwards. Or all the way through.
Some people with those inclinations might actually be moved to not ever do that in real life, seeing how their fascination, while providing short term satisfaction, doesn't actually improve their spirits.
It might make people think, and that always goes both ways.
In any case, thank you.
Thank you for this. I am a firm believer that finding a safe avenue for dark desires can be both enjoyable and positive by giving them a safe release. I think I had forgotten that the more that I read the news.
DeleteKer,
ReplyDeleteI think at this point I need to thank you for your game. I had to deal with some shit as a young kid that left me bitter and depressed for about a decade before I started coming out of it. When I did, the pain that I was still feeling (still do) had me wanting to lash out at people. I was raised to be a good person, and so I choked it down as best I could. There was a period where I was consistently fighting back the thought of actually acting on most of the darker urges-and I believe I was actually losing.
Two games that gave me a means of letting that out safely that stand out in my mind are Harem and Elysium. I can't say for sure that I would have snapped and acted on those urges, but I also am far from sure that I wouldn't have.
I want to say thank you for the game that you have provided because it helped get me past that by playing the dark route when I was really feeling, well, dark, and the light route when I was a little more at peace. I understand your concern with the recent events, but I ask you to remember that the opposite of what you fear is also possible.
Either way, whether you continue this or not, thank you for what you provided and the aid it gave me in finding some peace with my darker desires.
And I'll post this as Anonymous because I'm not willing to put a name on that.
Ditto to you on the safe avenue from Jan's comment. And on the anonymous thing, my name obviously isn't ker :)
DeleteOh and a nod to Elysium as well. That game is fantastic.
DeleteHey ker. Sorry to hear about this, though it's entirely understandable.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I'd love to see Harem finished, I'm not going to try to convince you to get back to it - I can see how news like this could really mess with somebody's head when it comes to actually writing something like Harem.
With that said, I'd like to offer a suggestion: If you ever find yourself with the time and motivation, you might consider continuing Harem's light side. I suggest this for a reason - you can conceivably continue Harem's light side without the need to include any extremely dark content, but if you like, you can write into the game an evil, Castro-like character - that the protagonist can deliver some justice to (vigilante or otherwise). If you're anything like me, you might find writing a scene like that to be cathartic.
I'd never push you to continue making the game, of course! It's just something to consider.
Thanks for the amazing work you put into the game, whether or not you find yourself able to finish it!
this applies to your concerns too, ker.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS1Ys7lNXYY
I know that it's strange making fantasy about things which happen in horrible ways, but I believe that the way you're looking at it is wrong. You know that doing it in real life is wrong. You have a fanbase which listens to you. Instead of throwing in the towel, I implore you to make the game with *gasp* a message. I know that that's something very strange to find in an h-game, but you could do it. You could just leave at your current level of influence and hope that your quitting shows people that it's wrong, or you could continue to develop and expand and make an even larger difference by reaching out to more people with an even better game. Aside from that, some people are beyond help. For those people, whether or not you continue to develop your game most likely won't make a difference in their lives aside from perhaps distracting them from their destructive behaviors temporarily to play the game. The bottom line is: I can't see you continuing to make the game your way having a negative impact on the world. You already have followers and you can use them for good.
ReplyDeleteSo what you saying is that enslaving my mother is wrong... what if she's okay with it?
ReplyDeleteSo you're saying that you've enslaved your own mother? You lucky bastard, thats one of my deepest and probably darkest desires right there *insert insane, evil laugh here*
DeleteI totally agree with you, Ker... Enslaving people is really bad and evil. Everyone should ask themselves: "Would you like if you would be enslaved and forced to something against your wishes?"
ReplyDeleteFantasy and Reality are two different worlds and should be kept SEPARATED!!!
On a different and more happier note, I would say that your game is the best hentai game I've ever played with good storyline and your hard work visible in the game. I have no problem even if you would take 6 more months to release the game, because I know you would make a fantastic game out of that time period.
Also, I would be very glad to help you if you are having any problems in building the game, like map-making or scripts.
At the current moment I don't need either (not that I'm sure have either atm, just we're not in that phase). If it comes up I'll let you know.
DeleteBut thanks!
He killed himself http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/04/justice/ariel-castro-cleveland-kidnapper-death/index.html?hpt=hp_c2
ReplyDeleteOddly enough that doesn't seem to matter too much to me. Not exactly sure why.
DeleteI could probably tell you this to your face when you're on later, but I wanted to say it as a voice in the crowd. You don't have to doubt yourself, Ker. Not now, and you never will. Everyone who's posted clearly understands the hesitation you're going through, and we all agree with your way of thinking. Castro was a scumbag to his very rotten core, and what he did was absolutely inexcusable. But at the same time, it was his choice. They've all got the numbers and dates and such on the news articles, but the fact remains that this guy chose to carry out these acts long before Harem was ever an idea in your mind, and you should not in any way have to feel responsible for something he decided to do, or what anyone else might decide to do afterwards. Feel disgusted, sure. Question yourself, go right ahead. But always know that what he was and what you are as Harem's creator are two entirely different people altogether. It's okay to feel yourself stumble when something like this happens, but you know that you're far better than someone who would choose in real life to commit those kinds of crimes.
ReplyDeleteHarem's just a game. A good game, and a potentially dark as shit one, but just a game. Anyone who would blur those lines in their mind had problems long before they picked it up.
We're all here to support you every step of the way. One in a thousand might be deranged enough to rape someone, but the other nine hundred and ninety-nine of us would break his fucking kneecaps if we found out about it, because we understand the difference. Don't think of it as the possibility of influencing that one asshole, just think of it as making a game that us nine-nine-niners enjoy.
We're here to back you up if you need it. All of us.
Hey Ker,
ReplyDeleteto start with i love your game both good and evil pathways :) There was a lot writting regarding support and the fact that ppl see the difference and those troubled individuals who dont they will just take inspiration in anything other (there is a lot of bdsm porn movies for example or they just play counterstrike or any other war game).
What I am thinking about is that you could try to focus on good pathway which i think is not very dark and should not be influential even for any ill psychopats out there (if there are any and can be influenced which probably noone knows) and return to dark pathway later (or never).
In any case you did great game and whatever is your decision I can understand it and even agree to it :) Thank you for your work.
This is the first time I am actually moved enough to leaving a message so forgive me if say something weird. I have read most of the comments and just like them, I sympathize. That event was near where I am and i was disgusted seeing that someone could do something like that in real life. I understand this event made you think about how much a negative impact this game has on people or even maybe how many people. But that is just one side, think about how many people this as a positive impact on. Going based that of one out of a thousand people and that around 20k people have downloaded this. Sure that maybe 20 people are mentally unstable and need help but that is 20 out 19,080 people. And honestly even those more likely would never dream of doing anything like him. But that is my personal opinion since I am not one of them.
ReplyDeleteI was moved and inspired by this game. I would love to see it continuing but understand if you do not want to. I am trying to save enough money to make my own game right now simply because how moved I am by this game. I once thought hentai or even any kind of dark fantasy was just wrong and should just be purged. I did not think you could make an artpiece like this using these fantasies. I have been opened up to a whole new world that I love thanks to this game. And i want to be able to the do same for other people so i am gathering money and trying to make my own game right now. If you are still dwelling on whether you should continue or not when I make my game, I hope I can inspire you to continue like you inspired me to make a game.
Hello again. As I'm sure you heard, Ariel Castro was found dead in his cell, of an apparent suicide. I'm not one to celebrate someone's death, but I can't help but feel that the world is better off without a monster like him. And at the very least, I hope that gives you some peace.
ReplyDeleteI would rather have had him lived in a black hole for the rest of is sorry life . Never to see another human being , only him and is conscience , that would have been right .
DeleteBy black hole I mean a cell .
DeleteI have not read any news or watched news on TV for a while now so i have no idea of what have happend.. I have search a little on google but probably search for wrong things because I did not find anything that could be this.. Can you post a link to where i can read more about this?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, your game is one of the best hentai games i have ever played. I like sex games with a good story, and i only know two games that have a good story; this and monster girl quest.
If anyone knows more sex games with a good story, please tell me :)
Dont take Castro's story too personally, he was just a soulless SOB. The idea that someone could be influenced by your, or similar, games in committing that kind of actions is identical to someone going on a rampage after being influenced by some violent movie or games: even when there was actually influence, in the end it was the person itself that was seriously fucked up. You may be a bit more sensitive as harem is an expression of a smaller comunity (where violence as entertainment is widespread) but the bottom line reasoning does not change.
ReplyDeleteI suppose the incident would turn anyone off of making a hentai game makes sense. Take as much time as you need man.
ReplyDeleteI can see where your concern is coming from, I can only hope that you will continue to work on Harem, it's a wonderful game that I really enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteBy the way your game is more on the safe side, in comparison to other dark themed hentai games and while no one can guarantee it it's unlikely that someone will use it as an inspiration for slavery.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYou're not human if that Monster didn't disturb you. I also watched him in court claim a "Pornography Addiction", and frankly it's BS. Scumbags try to blame their atrocities on outside and societal influences all the time. He was a sick bastard, end of story.
ReplyDeleteThat said, as it's been touched on already, I have participated in the BDSM community for decades. That creature was NOT a part of it. Said community has only 3 absolutes: Consent, Consent, and Consent.
I have also played many computer games centering around non-consensual sexual themes. I have never mistaken them for feasible or really desirable in the real world. You have to follow your own conscience, however I would like to say it would be a shame if that *Thing* influenced you to abandon what is a masterpiece, and better than many games available in the Marketplace right now. I believe that is a result of it being a labor of love on your part and I sincerely hope that at some point in the future when you've come to terms with your own emotional state that the game is eventually finished.
However it eventually settles out, Thank You for what has been an excellent and enjoyable game so far. I hope I get to see a conclusion worthy of the material so far at some point.
As an addendum, I'll also not that I enjoy the hell out of Skyrim and I know damn well there aren't any Dragons flying around out there. Fantasy is fantasy, and if you can't tell it from reality you need to be institutionalized for your safety and that of the general public.
DeleteKer the reason people play these kinds of games is because they can't do these things in reality. These kinds of games let you live out your fantasy's, to a certain extent, with no permanent consequences. You can kill, rape, loot, rob and even own slaves. Whether you hear about it or not there will always be people committing real crimes. The kinds of people that commit these crimes either cant distinguish between reality and fantasy, or they just don’t care about the consequences. If you think your game is dangerous, don't, you can do more good by keeping it going rather than stopping it. All desires are like a beach ball, and repressing them is like trying to hold it underwater. You can only do that for so long before it comes bursting through the surface with more force than had you just let it be. Games like yours actually provide a safe outlet for all these illegal/unsafe behaviors. You can think of it like a decoy because it has the same effect, redirecting the dangerous desires of many so no one is harmed.
ReplyDeleteSezgesh, you picture the game as if it was a safe haven for criminals to fool around instead of making their fantasies real... I can't agree with that, my friend! :-D
DeleteI think you're trying to say that the game is harmless, but your wording is a little unfortunate. Of course IMHO. ;-)
Anyway, happy to see another fan.
Ker, just my two cents...
ReplyDeleteI'm a heavy consumer of rape fantasy and rough sex pornography. And when I say heavy, I mean HEAVY. I even fantasized about how could be to have my own harem of kidnapped girls at a basement and use them as I please.
But having said that, I can also say that I'm a guy who tried to have his first sex experience with a hooker and I couldn't come because I realized how exploited that woman was and how little was enjoying the act with me, so I didn't even had a hard on at that time. Moreover, when I do it with my girlfriend now, if she's not too enthusiastic about it, I simply can't come either because I can't stand the thought that she's enduring it only for my benefit.
So, of course those fantasies that I've described earlier are simply out of question for me. I LOVE girls so I could only make love to them, and only if they love me back.
So... what I want to say is that your game don't have the power to change minds!
In fact, if you think about it, it has the merit of make us think about our true selves. And I can tell you that I'm happy about myself, even being a rape fantasy pervert.
Ker, rapists don't "lose" time playing games. They commit crimes because don't give a shit about other people's lives. End of the story.
Oh, and happy to see you. ;-D
Hello I just wanted to say I enjoy this game, the story line and game play are top notch and it would be a shame for you to deep six this fine game because of what some low life fuck head did in real life.
ReplyDeleteI have just created a homebrewed H-game blog and if it's not a issue you with you I would like to do up a review of your game as well as post a link to this blog.
I hope you are feeling better, take care and I'll try to keep in touch.
Kargan3033
Heyo Ker! Saika from FP here, don't think I've talked to you much outside of commenting that I like the game, but looked today to see if there was an update and...well, saw this. I hope you can bring yourself to continue the game sometime, it's the best RPGmaker game I've played yet, but if you can't I'll understand. Hope you feel up to creating again, and I look forward to whatever it is you do work on, even if it's not Harem, since even ignoring the sexy parts, the gameplay and characters in your work are too much fun to let that kind of ability go to waste!
ReplyDeleteTake care of yourself~
I wish I could say I wasn't sad to see this great piece end up at the graveyard of entertainment and imagination, however I fully understand and sympathize with your reasoning and accept the situation for what it is.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck, and I hope you can rediscover your drive for working on Harem at some point in the future.
I'm a fellow H-Game developer, and my game has a similar theme. Namely mind control.
ReplyDeleteWhat that man did is vile and disgusting, and people SHOULD hate him. But making a game like this is a fantasy. It does not and should not have anything to do with something like that. Pixels and code cannot feel pain. They are not real people.
Plus, a game doesn't have to be realistic! You do a good job with your game. It isn't evil, it isn't creepy and sadistic. It's a sexual fantasy and a fun game. Don't let it get you down.
I get the feeling that those psycopaths were more 'inspired' by slave maker 3 rather than yours. Thats just me.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree, fantasizing is one thing, doing it is another, the do and don't should be clear, some guys are just screwed in their head, so pay them no heed.
I do hope you contiune this game, it was great, let someone have a happy harem for themselves in the virtual world.
Okay, long story short, anyone playing your game is more likely to be a critic, or an video game addicted,(both, in my case),
ReplyDeletenot unrepentent killers.
P.s, the slaves in your (well written) game, the ones working for ralph, are more likely treated like ancient greek slaves than colonial american slaves.(either work as a slave for steady meals, versus the lousy,(and usually less frequent) food that the 80% poor would eat.)