Ideal Word Count

[LfkCn]

I'm currently working on a new story, just to see where it goes. I've literally only written two scenes so far, and it's already at 600 words, just dialogue. I didn't even include any filler conversations; I only wrote what was necessary for the story and kept it pretty short. I checked similar topics on this forum, and the usual recommendation for a chapter is between 2.5-5k words. But at this rate, a chapter in my story could end up being 15-20k words. Do you think this would bore the players? Should I keep the word count as short as possible? Since I'm planning to make a visual novel, I'll be measuring the playtime by the word count. According to the internet, the average reading speed is 250 words per minute. So, by that logic, 15k words would be roughly an hour. Do you think this number is ideal? Is it too little or too much? I know these kinds of questions vary from person to person, but I want to get as many opinions as possible.

 

[Brosewood]

Just do what's best for the story you want to tell.

People are going to complain no matter what they do. 99% of the complainers are people who won't give you a dime so fuck 'em.

 

[Count Morado]

TL;DR - I agree with Brosewood.

80%+ of the people on here have never posted a single message. Of those that do, 80+% of these haven't posted more than 3 times. Of the 10,000 or so who have posted more than 3 times, many posts in the general discussion forum are by the same 250 or so people who are opinionated (including myself).

However we are not a representative sample of your intended audience. So take all advice with a grain of salt. There is a good number who will strictly be focused on what gets them off, rather than the best interest for the game.

Also, this is a site where just like 80% never post.... Even more have never and will never subscribe to help support any game found here. Start creating, release, and then start having convos with your supporters.

But in the end, you're creating a game that you want to see made, right? A game that is one you would want to play, I hope. Put what you want in the game that would make you happy... There will be others who share your vision.

There is a market for nearly any game created, the hardest part for developers is to find their people.

 

[tanstaafl]

Gonna have to kinda disagree with "just do what's best for the story" advice from previous. I say only kinda because I think you may be falling into the trap of not letting the images help with the story. You will have images right? You don't have to describe facial expressions or movements or where characters are in a scene. You don't have to explain how one person looks at another, or that they nervously swallow, or if they notice something on a desk, etc. One of the best lines of advice for making any kind of story in a visual medium is "show, don't tell." The advantage of this is that even when you have people madly clicking past all the dialogue to get through it faster, they still pick up more of the story if they are paying attention to the images.

 

[♍VoidTraveler]

Do you think this would bore the players?

Hard to say.
The coomers are there just to coom, and will be unlikely to read anything at all, they'll just go straight for the pics/videos/animations.
The more intelligent audience will likely read, but if what you wrote in there bores them they will also skip.
'Tis not about word count, vn's are all about an interesting narrative and solid visuals.

 

[kytee]

Don't get into Mr. Dots level word salad. Also, the whole "I only wrote what is necessary", depending on the type of person you are, what you deem necessary could still be way too much dialogue and information. Hell, all the people I know in real life who needs to learn to shut the fuck up every once in a while don't think they're talking too much.

 

[Dryme]

are going to complain no matter what they do. 99% of the complainers are people who won't give you a dime so fuck 'em.

 

[Erosoft]

Test early and test often. On your audience via alpha releases. They will tell you if it is too short or too long. Use the F95 poll feature.

Ultimately, is your game enjoyable to play? That alone is enough.

 

[Cosy Creator]

It all depends on if you are going more for the story audience or the porn audience. If it's the former, a higher word count is better, on the condition that you're using it in a way that is interesting and engaging, simply because more words is more content. Personally, I've come to the conclusion that updates should never be less than 15k words, and that an initial release should be 30k+ if you want to get people engaged - but other devs may have different experiences. Aditionally, regarding visual storytelling: absolutely, it's very important. But emphasising important points through dialogue or narration is equally important. You don't have to do one or the other, and in fact, a combination of both is best imo.

 

[Living In A Lewd World]

Without reading, what you have written, I can hardly say anything about if it's too much or if it's too few. Best is just to post it to get some feedback.

 

[anne O'nymous]

I'm currently working on a new story, just to see where it goes. I've literally only written two scenes so far, and it's already at 600 words, just dialogue.

it's a low count for two scenes.
What you wrote is the equivalent of 2-2.5 pages for a book, while on average, a short novel, as the ones published on one go in magazines, is around 3,000 words. And due to their nature, adult games should have scenes that goes around a third of those shot novels, so around 1,000 words.

Adult games rely mostly on the player empathy, because feeling is the core of the story.
Unlike books, you provide pictures that goes with the words, what mean that you can't rely on his imagination to feel the blank. The characters will not looks like a fantasy for the player, but like you decided they'll looks, what mean that the feelings have to come from their personality.
And, unlike movies, adult games are relatively static, what mean that the personality can not pass by their way to move or their facial expression, but by their words. Reason why the word count need to be higher.

Do you think this would bore the players?

Around half of them will be bored the instant they've read more than ten words since the last sex scene, but does it really matters ?

Do the game the way you want, with the words count you want. Unless you're very lucky, you'll not make much money with your game, whatever how you design it, so, go for what please you. With a potential player base over 7 millions, you'll find people who like to play your game, whatever it is.

 

[LfkCn]

it's a low count for two scenes.

It depends on the content of the scene. in my case there were 2 different couples in 2 different places saying a few sentences to each other. So I think it's too much.

 

[Dryme]

If there is no incest, rape, blackmail, or treason in your game, then it is not worth attention.

 

[LfkCn]

Update: I haven’t finished the first chapter yet, and I’ve already reached 20,000 words. MC is moving to a new city for university, so naturally, he meets a lot of people (both at school and in the neighborhood where he lives). I’m not keeping these introduction scenes too short because I want to properly introduce my characters to people. Of course, you don’t hear their entire life stories right from the first meeting, but I also don’t want it to be as simplistic as “Hi, I’m the MC. Hi, I’m X. Let’s f*ck.” So, I’ve made the scenes a bit longer. Still, I don’t feel like there’s anything unnecessary in there. So far, there’s only one sex scene, and I’m not sure if I’ll add another before the first chapter ends. At least, my story doesn’t demand it yet. There’s still more to write before the first chapter is finished, but I’m getting close to the end. Still, I can say the first chapter will be around 25,000 words. The fears I had when I wrote this post are still present. I’m still afraid people will get bored with my game. Many say the length of the story isn’t important, but rather its content. However, this is just the first chapter, and even just introducing the characters took a long time. (And no, I didn’t cram all the characters into the first chapter—just the ones necessary for now.)

Do you think I should delete some scenes? I believe that all the scenes I have added so far are necessary for the story, but if people get bored with the game and don't continue, there is no point.

 

[LfkCn]

If there is no incest, rape, blackmail, or treason in your game, then it is not worth attention.

well, I'm not sure about incest and rape but there will be blackmail and treason. (it's gonna be the mc who gets blackmailed.)

 

[Qahlz]

Do you think I should delete some scenes? I believe that all the scenes I have added so far are necessary for the story, but if people get bored with the game and don't continue, there is no point.

Hard to say without seeing the scenes in question. Get some alpha-testers and run it by them.

 

[Elo91]

Just wanted to chime in and say I'm with Brose too.

I have ADD and can't stand most wordy VN's nvm kinetic novels with their zero interactivity at all. But that's just me. It's your game, you need to make it in a way you're happy with! If it's good, the people who like it will like it. And besides I always find it's easier to go back and prune after the whole thing is done anyway so I wouldn't get stuck on it yet. Ofc I have no experience making games so just voicing my pointless views here!

 

[simarimas]

Update: I haven’t finished the first chapter yet, and I’ve already reached 20,000 words. MC is moving to a new city for university, so naturally, he meets a lot of people (both at school and in the neighborhood where he lives). I’m not keeping these introduction scenes too short because I want to properly introduce my characters to people. Of course, you don’t hear their entire life stories right from the first meeting, but I also don’t want it to be as simplistic as “Hi, I’m the MC. Hi, I’m X. Let’s f*ck.” So, I’ve made the scenes a bit longer. Still, I don’t feel like there’s anything unnecessary in there. So far, there’s only one sex scene, and I’m not sure if I’ll add another before the first chapter ends. At least, my story doesn’t demand it yet. There’s still more to write before the first chapter is finished, but I’m getting close to the end. Still, I can say the first chapter will be around 25,000 words. The fears I had when I wrote this post are still present. I’m still afraid people will get bored with my game. Many say the length of the story isn’t important, but rather its content. However, this is just the first chapter, and even just introducing the characters took a long time. (And no, I didn’t cram all the characters into the first chapter—just the ones necessary for now.)

Do you think I should delete some scenes? I believe that all the scenes I have added so far are necessary for the story, but if people get bored with the game and don't continue, there is no point.

If the scenes are necessary, then do not remove them. And a long first chapter is a good thing, not a bad thing. The more content you have, the happier most people will be.

That being said, if there isn't any 'sexy' in the first chapter then that changes things. Doesn't have to be sex, but there should be hints of what is to come sex wise. Teasing, flirting, etc. Don't throw in a sex scene that doesn't fit or make sense to your story (I am talking dream sex, fantasy, etc. Just no). Make it something the player has to look forward to and anticipate.

Good luck!

 

[orellion]

Do what makes sense for your game, but also consider your talent areas. If you are a great creative writer, it would be a waste not to use it. If you are great with renders, likewise. You're going to be alienating audiences either way and it can't be avoided.