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The Pirate Mermaid is so gorgeously made. If this question isn't too personal, how much money would it take to make a visual novel like this? Sorry if this sounded like a nosy question ^^;
Aw thanks, glad you thought so! I’d say making a visual novel often tends to cost more than people might think. Another dev has put together a video here that breaks down the common costs in more detail. As explained in the video, the budget may go up to thousands of dollars - or even tens of thousands of dollars! - depending on the types of assets you need.
If you have the right skill set, you can reduce the budget by doing some work yourself, rather than hiring other people to do it. But even if this doesn’t cost you actual money, it does cost you your own time, which you shouldn’t undervalue. Even if you love working on your game, you probably only have so much free time outside of your job, school, etc. So you might not be able to finish as much work or work as quickly when you don’t have other people to help you. You could even get burned out over time if you don’t take any breaks.
So, in the end, nothing can truly come for free, because you either pay in money or time. I hope that doesn’t sound discouraging though! I think game dev is a super fun hobby, and the costs are worthwhile when you enjoy it. ;)