String Zero
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android
String Zero is a linear/kinetic, cyberpunk, and 18+ Furry Visual Novel.
Set in a future century, in another solar system, String Zero will touch on topics typical of the cyberpunk tradition including: dystopian corporatocracy and class, cultural/international politics, and transhumanism/transformation. It will also includes elements of cyberfantasy and broader science fiction.
What you can expect (we hope!):
- a dense narrative exploring more serious, complex ideas
- memorable and nuanced characters
- romantic and adult themes
- deep worldbuilding
- a polished visual experience
- a completely original soundtrack
- a companion podcast
Full disclosure of what is not being included:
- dating/routed options; this is a linear game
- choices/multiple endings (at this time)
- a focus on nsfw (it will exist, but infrequently)
The story follows Ravy, a young adult human in a mixed species society who struggles not only with a powerful ability to shape reality, but also a complicated relationship with his father, Aerran. Together along with their warrior-nun bodyguard Yuraeli, the three manage exile in the city-state of their home's enemy: a technologically-advanced corporatocracy, run entirely by the monolithic Company and its Chairman. Rather than the safety they hoped for, Ravy's family instead finds prejudice, corporate infighting, and dangerous truths, ultimately becoming embroiled in the hunt for ancient Jazz technologies that have both countries on the brink of war.
Join Ravy on a journey of self-discovery, navigating the dangers of both the city and his past while aligning himself with a curious crew of criminal 'runners,' each with their own particular agendas but one collective understanding:
The time of the Company is over.
More information is available on our Patreon.
Note: Our builds trend chunky, despite there not being many. Current word count: ~35,000.
CGs: @graysheartart, @dreff_1
Animation: @Gumdrop_Studios
Music: @Anthemics, @starkeebler, @CivValian, @abisumusic
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Development log
- On Lore / Ch3 Update1 day ago
- Ch. 2 Public Release!44 days ago
- Build 2 / Chapter 2 Beta Update!67 days ago
- Development and Patreon Update89 days ago
- Bringing the Heat Public Release, UpdatesDec 23, 2023
- Bringing the Heat, Companion PodcastNov 26, 2023
- Android and Build 1.5Nov 23, 2023
- Ch. 1 Android Release DelayOct 17, 2023
Comments
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The quality of this Vn is amazing. Especially the animation for Jazz tech. All the characters have these hints of something more that they hide behind outside personalities and it just pulls you in. The loom is a great way to read about the lore of the world and not boggle the reader with forced excessive information dumps.
Thank you so much! We’re glad you enjoyed it.
This is becoming one of my favorite VN's as of late. The general vibe, characters and setting are a treat to read and experience. The music also rocks too👌
I love the complexity of the story. It's like one big puzzle, and once you piece together the info for yourself it really adds a lot to what the characters are saying. It makes the world feel more alive and moving. I also loved the map inclusion in this past update too.
The only small fix I would make it to highlight an important word or phrase the first time it's mentioned. Then once you click on it takes you to the LOOM description immediately. I feel that would help with the flow of the story a little bit.
Otherwise I love everything else, and I can't wait until the next update! This VN is a gem. Keep up the great work 💎
I’m glad you’re enjoying the game and thank you for the feedback!
We’ll probably continue experimenting with the best way to communicate the LOOM information. We’re trying to find some compromise between timely information reveals but not annoying the reader with an abundance of notifications.
What a great flippin' update! 😁 I had a lot of fun reading it. I love the direction and am excited to see where xou guys take it~ 😌 Also, I like the little intro xou added to the beginning, it really helps to set the pace 😋
There's a craaazy amount of info in the LOOM, like, omg 😐 the world building for String Zero is absolutely insane! 😯 I must applaud xou for this
I'm not sure if it was the sheer quantity of information, or maybe a combination of the font and honeycomb background, but I found it difficult to read the right side panel in the LOOM (I have partial dyslexia, so that could be why). Everything is well written and coherent, but it felt like trying to detangle a mess of cables spun by a self taught IT technician 😅
1ne final thing. When the Visor pops up, the VN becomes laggy (enough that the entire background flashes black and only displays the dialogue box and HUD). I don't usually have this problem with animated VNs, so I'm not sure if it's just my resolution (1366x768) or what, but I thought I'd let xa'll know.
I’m glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the feedback! We’ll look into doing an accessibility pass on the LOOM font and review the animation issue.
Kavir stole my heart and i'm not even mad about it X)
Great work, can't wait for the next update !
A Kavir lover, you say. 😁
can't thank you enough for that <3
I loved! I can't wait for the next chapter, I would love it if there were other languages like Portuguese and Spanish.
Thank you! We’ll definitely look into translations once we can find some trusted partners to work with.
I've noticed that this vn is 18+. does this mean NSFW? or just adult elements that'd require an 18+ rating like language and violence?
The short answer is: I’m using 18+ as a general umbrella for anything adult, which may include NSFW. So if anyone wants to avoid NSFW, this game may not be for them.
The longer answer is: I’ve been ambiguous about it intentionally because while I am not presently planning on any specific explicit scenes, I want the freedom to include them if I decide it’s meaningful to do so.
However, if I call the game NSFW, then there’s an expectation for sex scenes, which may upset readers if I ultimately decide not to include them. If I don’t call the game NSFW but then include sex scenes, I’ll potentially upset those who are reading the game to avoid NSFW.
It is a complicated space to exist, so I’m trying to be thoughtful about it.
you could just impliment a show or hide NSFW system? Ive seen some artists do it where if you click SFW, it will take a set of code and the story will run as if meant to be sfw only, while on the flip side, toggling NSFW would use a seperate set of code and the story would then read off the more adult lines as if always ment to be NSFW.
it basically means, writing two seperate sets of text.
this can also, influence the people who tend to be completionists to try both so they can get a unique perspective of each toggle.
up to you, but it may help you. in this context, you could leave the game as labled 18+, and ask the rerader which experience they prefer when they launch the game
I'm not the best at coding, but i have a friend who could help. Im also a decent author myself, and would love to help you with writing that if you desired any
Thanks for your thoughts!
I’ve thought a lot about this and actually wrote a long twitter thread about it, which you can read here. I’ll expand on it somewhat.
In short, I’m fine with implementing some kind of visual censorship, such as blurs or black bars for nudity in CGs, because society has very different opinions about visual vs. literary sex and nudity (and also I don’t want streamers to get in trouble).
It’s important to note that “NSFW” means different things to different people. To some people it means “any kind of sex,” to others it means “explicit, pornographic sex written intentionally to arouse.” These are not the same things because the first could suggest someone thinks a work is NSFW because of a general discomfort with sex or it could be contextual discomfort (such as reading sex in public/at work). Those are both fair and specific concerns that fall under my answer of “this game is 18+ and may have contextually inappropriate content; avoid it if that makes you uncomfortable.”
The second interpretation of NSFW, however, is typically the one that gets all the discourse. I encourage everyone to think hard on why they think about NSFW the way they do. For me, I see the situation like this: An anti-NSFW (or NSFW ambivalent) argument that reads NSFW solely as “explicit, pornographic sex written intentionally to arouse” is problematic because it presumes the author’s intention, and generally presumes it is always the same (“only getting the reader off”) with little nuance. It then proceeds to base an argument of “NSFW is unnecessary fan service” or “NSFW is just porn” from there. Therefore, NSFW is “just something you can hide or remove” because it’s not important. It’s fluff. It’s designed to arouse and nothing more.
I think that is a problematic argument because it presumes sex is always something meaningless, and must always be intentionally pornographic, when sex can be some of the most powerful, vulnerable, revealing moments of a novel. You don’t see literary fiction shying away from sex scenes for example, and those aren’t considered pornographic. Indeed, they often end up on popular and very public best-seller lists.
This is why I personally think censoring words, such as writing two completely separate scenes for NSFW vs SFW is fundamentally inappropriate (unless the scene was literally only written to be porn and has no other purpose—a rarity, in most media). Authors are very particular with their words, and I’m trying to communicate some very specific things when I write. If those specific things require some level of explicit detail, then compromising that detail for the sake of being SFW means I’m not communicating what I intended the way I intended, and am essentially self-censoring.
That’s what I mean when I said earlier “if I feel it’s meaningful.” If the sex is developing characters in a meaningful way, it’s important to include it; if it’s not, then I won’t. If that inclusion makes someone uncomfortable, fair enough! Then this story may not be for them. This is also why I don’t want to promise NSFW: I’m not shy about including sex in my writing, but this isn’t a game about sex, so I don’t want readers to be caught up on a promise of something titillating when that’s not a primary focus of the novel. Again: If sex scenes are appropriate to communicate something, I’ll include them. If not, I won’t.
I hope that helps explain my thoughts!
that does! and I'm in full agreement.
you have definitely made a loyal reader from me. I have no missgivings, no complaints, and definitely no arguments from me. Im not looking for sex in a vn to get me off, if i want sex in it, its because i want to see the bond between characters grow and flourish. I want to grow attatched to the character and truly connect with them.
So please, by all means keep up the amazing work, and thank you for talking about this with me!
Holy. Shit. I read the dev log mentioning that the writing would be toned down and rewritten in future updates, and whilst I understand why, I just want to say, I LOVE IT. My first experience with this game was having it muted whilst I quickly finished an email, coming back to it, unmuting it, and being blasted with the main menu song going unnecessarily hard
with the gorgeous art in the background. The cryptic intro was giving me that amazing feeling of the sublime that I absolutely love, and even more than that, the amount of worldbuilding. Granted, this was one feature that I think actually was a bit distracting, as worldbuilding nerd that I am, I stopped reading every time a notification popped up to get the lore, but maybe just making the notification discreet or even nonexistent would fix that, just by making it so you only read them in longer, more spaced-out bursts, instead of getting the urge to read them every time? idkalso, listening to the soundtrack rn as I write this and UGHHHHHHHH shit FUCKS so hard, I've never gotten such cinematic vibes from a VN before, except maybe soulcreek? but even then, soulcreek has like one song that slaps and the rest is just really good sound design, this vn is one chapter in and there are like, a good six I'd happily put on my playlist. Okay, that's a lie. Maybe eight.
I feel obliged to keep talking about the writing. It's so UGH YES, just MMMM yes. I'M ONE CHAPTER IN Y'ALL and it's serving total cunt at every turn from poetry to cryptic verse to witty banter, and just, it's the small things, like 'LOOM' tying into the motif of threads, or the first time you see the LOOM entry it's corrupted with Kavir(?)'s commentary near the end. The attention to detail is just fucking fabulous.
Also, the premise is yes.
And it's just so original? Like, yes, frostbitten worlds are a trope. But has literal storytelling magic ever been done before? A youtuber I watch (Nakari Speardane) has a somewhat similar idea of magic manifesting what people believe to be the truth into it, but still, that's not even close to the way this interlinks with the post-acopalypse of the world, and IBSIHCBEWLHJCBHIBV
just oh my god. Have I ever been so thoroughly hooked, lined, and sinkered so quickly before? I don't think so. This VN is unique in that way
Tl;Dr please don't change the prose too much I love it so much
Thank you so much for engaging with the work! And never fear: it’s just the introduction that’s getting a rework. My style of prose will otherwise remain.
As the very first thing new readers see, we ultimately decided the poetry of the introduction went a little too hard into literary fiction for mostly indulgent reasons. I think we can keep some of that sublime sense while grounding it in more concrete details that are a bit easier to follow.
In any event, this is all a work in progress, so I’ll definitely be playing with ideas and revisions as we go along, hehe.
(Also a note that if you leave the LOOM notification up, it won’t indicate any new entries. It just stays there. LOOMing. Begging you to read it. But otherwise leaves you alone. So you can exercise restraint, right? 😁)
Wow. Gotta say it's been a pretty good while since a VN has gripped me this hard from the jump. Wonderful soundtrack and polished visuals to boot. This project certainly has my attention; I'll be keeping tabs on it for sure. Thanks for your work.
Great start. The lore drops are fitting since the start of the VN is actually the MC exploring the ruins, and the monologue already tells us he got dad issues, and what to see in his backstory. Characters aren't bland and boring; they have personality and imperfection, and most important -- goals.
I liked that we have an established relationship already which makes I am hoping we'll get context of their intimacy as the casual conversation occurs every time -- granting readers more access how they came to be.
The lore drops are nice to have since we literally started exploring a ruin without context of the world. But I think it's due to have the character expand on the next chapter since we already got plenty of lore drops already surrounding the world. Unless, you want to add more, but I suggest it to be related to the plot like -- more context of why they fled, we only got a general idea, we need an expansion on that area, letting it flow naturally -- my opinion.
The start is: Worldbuilding, introduction and some lore; next chapter would need some polishing on who the characters are as we only got the surface.
Fractured society is a hard plot to play around due to how complex it is, but I Like complex plots a lot -- it can show how well you are committed to the story.
Loom update is nice, but most would probably ignore this but if the readers want an in-depth of the loom update from the casual conversation that occurred beforehand, I'd say it's a good rendition to explore the world as we read and revisit things -- QOL.
Currently, with the lore of Chapter 1, you are between too much that it's overwhelming and too little the world is flat -- you're in just the right space of the amount of lore you are showing to the player as we get context of the place they are currently in and the conflict that is yet to be revealed.
Since this is a cyperpunk theme... and transhumanism is often a staple concept of this sci-fi --- I wonder what upgrades and techs he will get!
Hoping fast updates with consistent quality <3
Kudos!
This is a very strong start and I'm impressed.
The setting is interesting and I'm eager to learn more about the factions, cultures and technologies we hear about. I think the LOOM is a great way to give us information without breaking immersion and I felt it told us enough to get a general idea of the world and characters while still leaving more to be discovered in the main storyline. Ravy's Story Time segment has intriguing implications. I suspect he's directly manipulating the Jazz without using Jazztech. The digital appearance and the way it recreates the ancient Liosian past suggests it has some connection to the cyberspace mentioned in the opening. The 'breathing' hallway and possible connection to Kweythwehnto also left me curious. Overall, the worldbuilding is original and creative so I'm eager to see where you go with it.
The writing had a consistently high quality and the introduction quickly pulled me in. I know some might not like the cryptic opening, but I personally wouldn't change anything. It's an effective way to get us invested in the mystery of what happened to the ancient Liosians, what their technology was like and how the opening narration is connected to the rest of the story. Bonus points for the clue in binary and the initial LOOM screen, I enjoyed these subtle hints. The character interactions and pace of the story were on point and kept me wanting more.
I loved the music and how well each track fit the mood of each scene. I like the sprites for the most part and the CG and background art are gorgeous. The UI was aesthetically pleasing and complements the theme of the game. You've already added image and music galleries which I appreciate.
As for possible improvements, I think there were some missed opportunities for CGs like during the rooftop embrace or the skydiving scene so I'd suggest adding a few more CGs to make the game more immersive. You've made good use of backgrounds for this but for some scenes I think it'd be better to see characters interacting with each other and the environment and for that a CG is better. Speaking of backgrounds, you might want to include them in the gallery alongside the CGs. Another thing, it would be better if the LOOM had an indicator showing which information was updated. I also think the posing of Kavir's hunched sprites looked a bit awkward and uncomfortable but perhaps that's just because they're meant to depict motion instead of being static. Overall, there's not much to improve so you're doing a fantastic job so far.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful feedback! There are some good ideas here we’ll consider for the future.
As for CGs, those are entirely limited by budget at the moment (though you are very correct about the CG placements, and I hope to revisit early chapters for more illustration development should our funding increase).
The game seems interesting thanks to it atmosphere, visual and writing styles, but because the setting is so otherworldly and crypitc the worldbuilding quickly confused me with a lot of information even with the built-in encyclopedia. Over the course of the first hour my mind couldn't be helped but bombarded with all sorts of questions, like:
What is the current state of the world and how high or low an average standard of living; how exactly these factors are influenced by Jazz corp; What role this corporation plays in grand scheme of things in general; why Nu Lios is ruined and why the corp or the government won’t rebuild it to expand their territory and salvage it into something useful; how exactly the clans function; how come protagonist so closely befriended the very boss of such an esteemed organisation like KE&E; What are his worldview, hopes, and dreams besides of simply going independent; what kind of limitation his power have from preventing him from essentially becoming a god;
is this story is going to be as depressing and hopeless as Cyberpunk Edgerunnerswell, you get the idea. I know that some of these questions will be answered later on, but it's kinda weird that instead of introducing at least a vague understanding of the world the story is too busy showing protagonist and his friend parkouring on abondend ruins first hour or so. It would be nice if the setting would answer at least a half of question that I have so I won't be endlessly confused while I'm readini this vn.
Other then that the story is immersive and enjoyable.
Thank you so much for engaging with the work!
You are correct that many of these questions will be touched on over the course of the novel. Unfortunately, there’s a give and take when it comes to exposition and lore-seeding: Some people love it crunchy and dense, others find it obstructive to sift through.
We’ve already received feedback that there’s both too much lore and not enough, so figuring out how to the thread the needle to offer just the right amount of information will continue to be a challenge!
This is why we included the LOOM and also why we are doing the supplemental podcasts: So those folks who really want to dive into the world have that option, but without slowing the pace of the narrative. The important questions we’ll answer over time, the rest we’ll slip in where we can (with revisions as necessary).
Glad you guys listening to criticism. I myself don’t really like extensive exposition, but when your world-building is so complex it can become very overwhelming very fast. Then again, it might have been my personal problem as well as I usually prefer more simple settings.
Your feedback is valuable! I appreciate you taking the time to offer it.
And absolutely–it can definitely become overwhelming. This is me struggling to get it right 😬 hehe
For now. Changes will occur in the story, hints of which are embedded in the title screen. But in short: Yes, the MC is human.
Will there be options to change our race? So each person can choose what they will be?
Because of the linear nature of the narrative, there are presently no plans to allow for player customization of the main character.
(The planned story is very deep, so the added complexity of storing and accounting for player choices is beyond the current scope to keep development moving at a reasonable pace.)
The ladder was a great way to get attention, introduce things, and hit the ground running. The vague statements that were before that scene could be moved, cut, or significantly reduced down to the best parts as they mainly provided unclear bloat that lacked context.
Bonus points for a "magic" system that felt original and dangerous.
That intro is going to be the death of me. 😩 The indulgent desire to poetically foreshadow vs the realities of pacing.
Thank you for the feedback!
The most memorable part of the poetry for me was the imagery of the hand with too many fingers reaching skywards. A very cool way to describe the tall buildings of the city imo.
The foreshadowing isn't a bad idea, but it felt like it overstayed its welcome. The star crossed lovers intro from Romeo and Juliet comes to mind as how much keeps the reader's attention span. At the very least I suggest labeling it as a prolog so people have a clear expectation that what they're reading is directed at them rather then a character in the story.
Chef’s kiss. Love this kind of feedback. Much appreciated!
We’re definitely going to be revisiting it.
Android build 🙏🥰 I can't wait to read this tn, Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
Love kavir
It's okay, I guess
Oh? Did something in particular bother you?
Edit: Ah! I did see your review, and thank you for the feedback. I can say that yes, the Ravy character does have flaws - he is, after all, struggling for independence and self-empowerment after being sheltered for some time. The question is if he’s handling this struggle in the most productive or thoughtful of ways.😉
No doubt his impulsivity and inexperience will lead to conflict. The interesting thing, for me at least, is how he deals with the consequences.
I hope you continue reading to see how he grows!
Also a suggestion, but it's up to you, you might want to take it easy with the info dump on the lore since it would confuse some readers. Again it's up to you.
Yup, there’s definitely an art to efficiently communicating world details in stories like this: Too much and it gets bogged down and is potentially confusing. Too little and the world lacks depth and is even more confusing.
Trying to find that middle line is always the challenge, and I don’t pretend to always get it right. I’m certain we’ll veer back and forth and try to make refinements throughout development.
I love the soundtrack and the story so far. Already, we have hints at three big plots and I find that exciting! I'm invested. Even the art of Ravy and Kavir just looking at the city was gorgeous. Straight up took me to my own memories of gray skies and white winter days.
I love this! <3
I really like that Ravy and Kavir are in an established relationship (or that's what it seems like to me at least) at the start of the game and somewhat intimate at that, a nice change of pace from other vns.
Really interesting world! Hope we get to find out what some of the places are
The immediate world and geography will definitely be expanded on in the story, through the LOOM database, and in some podcasts we have planned.
bump
Waiting android ver :I
It’s done! (Finally, hehe.)
Will this remain linear, or will it have choices in later builds?
It will remain linear.
We considered nonlinear routes, but determined the planned story was too long and too complex. It could as much as triple development time. We know this will disappoint some players, but hope the strength of the story will speak for itself!
Out of my point of view we need more dam great stories like this 🔥
Any chance you plan to make an android version?
Yes, one is in the works. We’ll make a dev post once it’s ready!
Aaaand it’s ready!
What a strong and original concept! :D I absolutely adore the direction of the story, love the well constructed characters, and have become enamoured by the interesting universe~ ^^_
Amazing work. A true masterpiece in the making UwU
Thank you!
Can you add the windows and mac tags to the downloads so people using the itch.io app can download.
Fixed! Thanks for catching that oversight.
please add "bara" to tags 🤩
I wait for Android release :)
Coming soon!
And ready!
Woo! great stuff! I love Kavir!!!
Question, is the MC a human?
He is. For now.
"For now"?... That's literally make or break info for a lot of people.
“For now” meaning changes will occur in the story, hints of which are embedded in the title screen. But in short: Yes, the MC is human.