HEROTOME [Super Demo] by Wudgeous

Glory or Ruin?

[ G x ALL ]

✦  Where Villains Lurk, Heroes Must Rise  ✦ #

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(Whenever you see a triangular arrow and red underlined text like the example below, you can CLICK to expand the text.)

**Welcome to the city of Rhineway: **
a merciless metropolis where gentrification spreads like cold sores. Its wear and tear has been pushed to its outskirts, and the crime rate is higher than ever. Meanwhile, the government-enforced superhero program draws mixed reactions among the populace.
Are superheroes the new boys in blue—or just the newest entertainment in a world where everything is designed to serve a market?

Not that it matters much to you. 
As an unregistered citizen dwelling on the fringes of Rhineway’s slums, these societal shifts have hardly touched your daily existence—until now.

Amidst the flames of a job fair gone horribly wrong, armed only with your overdue rent, a hungry cat, and healing powers best suited for tending to minor scrapes and brises, you’ve been recruited to join a prestigious superhero agency. 

The salary is good. Beyond good. Too good to turn down.
 If only your powers weren’t waning by the day.

✦ Five Engaging, Optional Romances ✦ #

Note: 
✦ Dart and Jade are intended to be late game routes 
that aren't immediately available.

The city of Rhineway will show you no mercy, but amidst the world’s chaos, your new team stands firm. They are ready to offer you their support at a moment’s notice… but only if you’re willing to take it.

✦  What Else Awaits You, Hero?  ✦ #

• A cat who loves you!****
• 50,000  words of content that includes 180+ dialogue choice trees –  give or take.
• A glimpse of burgeoning, optional romance****s. (Herotome is aroace-friendly; flirting with a character does not lock you into a romantic or sexual relationship.)
• And more, including…

✦  Gorgeous and Dynamic Art ✦ #

for every action, an appropriate reaction #

Embolden and encourage your teammates or cut them down as you please, stirring the pot to manifest misunderstandings and chaos until everything falls apart. 
Witness the immediate effects of your choices as the characters visibly react with dynamic sprites and CGs.
(Note: CG expressions are all set for this demo! Sprite expressions are in active development.  )

✦  Create Your Own Protagonist ✦ #

five unique portraits and more to come #

Psst: want to upload your own protagonist image to use in-game?

Experience an urban fantasy visual novel where action and romance intertwine.  

With a nameable protagonist and five unique portraits to choose from (and more to come), step into the role of Rhineway’s newest superhero recruit: the **sensible and expressive Heroine. **

She will follow your every command… well, almost every command. If you insist on making her do stupid things, you might just find yourself in an argument over the reins.

✦  Impactful Roleplaying Choices ✦ #

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carve a path towards glory? or is it ruin that calls your name? #

Along your journey, you will encounter a rich world, dynamic characters, and face pivotal choices that will shape your destiny. 
From life-saving decisions to delightfully absurd ones, there are many choices with which to express yourself and ensure a one-of-a-kind experience every playthrough:

•  Kiss a dangerous, clammy stranger (or punch her in the face!)
• Beg your landlord to repair your water heater (or tell him he’ll never amount to anything!)
• Accuse your superhero mentor of stalking you (or ask him what the ‘D‘ stands for!) 
• Squeeze your sweet Katie-kins’ tumtums (or scold her for jumping on the couch!)

✦  Two Difficulty Modes ✦ #

for the shameless flirts among us #

Choose between a clearly-labelled CASUAL experience or a more challenging HEROIC mode to help you further personalize your playstyle. 

The world is your oyster, and the story is yours to shape!

✦ What to Expect from Future Updates ✦ #

• … More romantic tension, more scenes. More sprite expressions, more art. All packaged into higher wordcount.
• A reputation point system, which rises and falls based on your choices.
• Idk man, I’ll let you know later. I’m exhausted!

Please note: While the promotional video features a voiced character, plans for in-game voice acting will be implemented at a much later stage. ❤

Herotome is in active development! Please consider supporting the game, or follow along with our development progress in the following locations:

I post weekly devlog updates to tumblr, 
and Ko-Fi is the best way to support Herotome directly <3

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Shoutout to These Talented Individuals #

without whom Herotome would not exist in this form #

…and me, Wudgeous, who funds the project out of project and does most everything else: direction, writing, code, design, additional art, social media management, GIF-making, furniture assembly, plumbing…
Additional credits are listed in-game.

(old prologue demo Credits)

No animals were harmed during the making of this game, and our fictitious animals can always be saved. Likewise, any misgendering is always and immediately corrected.

Additionally, there are brief effects such as screen shaking and flashes of light that may potentially trigger motion sickness or seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy.
For more detailed context warnings, please see below.****

General Narration

• Depictions of anxiety and impulsive thoughts

• Food

• Visual and written depictions of pizza, sushi, tacos, salad, and toast

• Misgendering (unintentional and, again, immediately corrected)

• Violence

  • Visual and written depictions of burn injuries
  • Visual depictions of a head wound

Choice-Dependent

• Abduction
• Animal death (but not your cat Katie – she’s fine!)

By making certain choices, these can be avoided in your playthrough.

Content warnings will be updated with each new release.

Itch Page Chibis by: 1shimaru 
Itch Page Design by: Notafish (and you should play Notafish’s gorgeous cozy games  here on itch at Studio Ghost Legs!)