I set up The Perils of Bianca as a visual novel in which choices matter (see Postmortem #2 on that). What I did not realize when I began working on the game is that this design interferes with storytelling more than I like.

I think the storytelling of my first adult visual novel, Sinderella, is pretty good. It mostly involves around the interactions of the protagonist, Ella, with Prince Henri and Princess Adelaide, both of which she has several long scenes with, which determine their attitude to each other and lead into the final resolution of the story.

My idea for The Perils of Bianca was to achieve something similar with the interactions that Bianca has with the four fairy tale heroines. Thus, after setting up the story in the Prologue and Acts I to III, in Acts IV to VIII Bianca spends time with each of the heroines, leading to a resolution of the story in Act IX and the Epilogue.

However, Acts IV to VIII are set up as acts that revolve around the solving of problems. And, even worse, the acts are also designed in such a way that Bianca does not need a heroine to be there. Consequently, while there is some interaction with the heroines, it is mostly in an attempt to solve a problem without much interaction between Bianca and the heroines, and where there is interaction it is not to further personal relationships.

I also think that I simply tried to cram too much in the game. Each of the fairy tale missions could be short games by themselves. These tales would have worked better if there was more meat on their bones. They also differ in quality. I personally think that Blanchette's tale is the best, and it could have been expanded to be its own, stand-alone game.

So I am not happy with the way I dealt with storytelling in Acts IV to VIII. There is storytelling there, but it hardly contributes to the overall story of the game. It is not as if these acts aren't fun, it is just that the fun is not primarily in the storytelling.

That doesn't mean, of course, that The Perils of Bianca is a worse game than Sinderella. In fact, in many ways it is the better game. But I personally think that the storytelling of Sinderella is better than the storytelling of The Perils of Bianca. Basically, in Sinderella storytelling is the focus of the game from start to finish, while in The Perils of Bianca focus shifts away from storytelling in the mid-game, only to pick up again in the endgame.

If I create another visual novel, I will keep a sharp eye on the storytelling, will define from the start two or three characters who are core to the story, and will make sure that interactions with these characters progress throughout the game.