Teen Stages - Do you like them?? (DONE)

[Kitsusagi Staff]

This is something that's been thrown around among the staff a time or two, but no concrete decision was ever made.

As owners, do you guys like having the teen stages? Or should Kitsu be only egg --> kit --> adult?

Another thought is to give breeding winners an option to cut out the teen stage if wanted.

If we do away with the teen stages, those linearts could be adjusted and changed up a bit to introduce either:
Alternate adult stages for their species
OR
Entirely new species adults

Please vote above and post any thoughts here! Thanks!!  

[Ragers]

Keep the teen stage, give people the option to skip it.  

[Melomar]

I like teen stages and actually prefer them to egg stages. But I like people to have options like skipping stages if they want.

There's also the thing about faes, where the teen stage was the last stage for years. People got attached to them. So in a case like that, using "alternate adult" stages is probably an appropriate option. That or make that adult stage another separate but related subspecies.

So my vote is to decide on a case (or subspecies) by case basis.  

[Mau]

Melomar

I like teen stages and actually prefer them to egg stages. But I like people to have options like skipping stages if they want.

There's also the thing about faes, where the teen stage was the last stage for years. People got attached to them. So in a case like that, using "alternate adult" stages is probably an appropriate option. That or make that adult stage another separate but related subspecies.

So my vote is to decide on a case (or subspecies) by case basis.

Fa'e actually weren't supposed to be available through the Gaia shop.. I'm not sure when that changed or who got ahold of the lineart for them...

 

[Melomar]

Mau

Fa'e actually weren't supposed to be available through the Gaia shop.. I'm not sure when that changed or who got ahold of the lineart for them...

I remember seeing them on PonyIsland, but I don't know much else.  

[Manda]

Mau

Fa'e actually weren't supposed to be available through the Gaia shop.. I'm not sure when that changed or who got ahold of the lineart for them...

The fae have been around for as long as I've been working for the shop, which was before 2012. I thought they had been given to the shop when realm and mountain split  

[Whoan]

I think the teens should be alternate art for the adults in my personal opinion. Since it is a bit confusing that some "teen" fae are adults and such why not offer the teens as alt adults for everyone? And that puts less work on the colorists too making it easier to do growths and such.  

[Manda]

My thoughts on this....

1. Some of the teen stage art is... honestly not the best. At the least it could use an overhaul. Many colorists are not fans of working with said art

2. Skipping teen stages would make growths faster - which means new pets sooner. And the ability to breed your Kitsu sooner

3. As of right now, all of the "subspecies" (corgi, tundra, mer, imperial/dragon, uni/kirin) do not have teen stages. Only kit & adult. The uni/kirin actually still needs a kit as well. If we keep teen stages, it should be for all species. This means pulling one or more colorists away from making pets for you guys to draw, line and template 5 new teen stages. It's a lot of work and a lot of time that I feel could be better spent on producing new pets for the shop.

4. Aside from the teen Fae, which a lot of people have considered 'adult' for years, there are several other teen stages that I feel could work very well for alt adults. It would add in some choice and variety for colorists and shop-goers. There are a couple of other teen stages that would make a good base for entirely new species down the road with some tweaks. I think this would also add more variety and some fun to the shop~  

[saedusk]

I like the teen stages and would hate to see them done away with. In the same breath, I'd honestly rather see them removed entirely as opposed to being used as alternate adult stages. I've been around the shop a long time and it's difficult to see them as anything but adolescents.

It's the same sort of conundrum as the fae: we lacked an 'actual' adult stage for years, so it's difficult for me to see the the teen as anything but an adult even after the introduction of an official adult stage.

All in all, I'd like the teen stage to stay. It's definitely more work for colorists, I understand that as someone who used to color here. Still, I don't think the only upside to these pets is their ability to make babies faster. The teen stage has always been a cute, fun addition, in my opinion, and I'd love at least the option to keep them around. Kitsu would not be the only shop in the b/c to have some pets with less stages than others, so I don't personally believe forcing yourself to make teens for every variety is necessary.  

[Kitsusagi Staff]

In order to try and compromise with the different views on teen stages, this is the solution that we have come up with ....

1. Teen stages will stay in the shop in general

2. All breedings will now include the option to skip stages. This includes egg, kit, & teen. You can just get insta-adults if that is what you want!! We do ask that you please not immediately breed insta-adults as soon as they are dropped off. We don't really want to try and keep up with something like "cooldowns" but if we see a lot of people trying to immediately breed like this, we will have to implement something like that to tone it down.

3. All teen stages will now have the option to be considered adults! If you wish to "freeze" at teen stage, your Kitsu will not grow onto the adult lines of that species, but will still be able to breed! This includes breedings that opt to skip stages as above - you can go straight to teen and have that stage be your adults. The only drawback is that they will roll for 1 less egg than the adult of that species would roll. So, if they would normally be rolled for 4 eggs, they will be rolled for 3 eggs instead. It does not matter if one or both parents in a breeding are "frozen teens", it will still only be one less egg - not 2 less.

The "one less egg" rule will not apply to Fae teens that were certed before Thu Sep 22, 2016. Those Fae will still be considered full adults and will be rolled for breedings as such. If you had posted one of these teens for growth but wish to keep the teen stage as the adult because of these changes, that is also fine, just edit your post if it has not been picked up and let us know you are withdrawing your request.

4. A decision will be made among staff regarding the Corgi, Uni/Kirin, Mer, Imperial, & Tundra species on whether they will have teen stages or not.

5. The Normal teen stage is the one that seems the most "off" at the moment - odd posing, head looks too large for the neck/body, it does not appear to match the style of the adult very well, etc. So for the moment there will be no teen stage for Normal Kitsu until we are able to re-draw it. The current Normal teen may be adjusted and used for a new species, it is a mysterryyyyy. After the new Normal teen is finished, we may look at redoing some other teen stages as well, one at a time.