From the development notebook. These entries discuss story details and describe the game at the time of writing.
October 18, 2026: bringing the new Danny into the game
I labored on the models because, to be honest, Danny is just too important. I can't give much of it
away here, but in real life, getting him right is central. He has to be done justice.
With Haley moving in Blender, I want to try the same image-to-3D route for the
others. I asked for each target PNG to show only one full body. The new inputs
put Danny, Gabby, Jack, Braden and Jillian in clear A-poses, with Haley's solo
reference beside them. Danny's cloak can come later as a separate garment. I
still need to judge each generated model before treating it as a game asset.
Mixamo accepted Haley far enough to let me place the joint markers, but it still
failed when generating motion. I decided to move the rigging into Blender. The
first local body rig now lets us test her arms, legs, torso and head while keeping
the detailed face, outfit and textures. This is the next foundation I wanted:
something I can judge in motion. Facial expressions, fingers, optimized game
geometry and the Unreal integration are still ahead of us.
Danny's latest hair finally felt much closer to what I wanted. I was ready to move forward, whether that meant more characters or more game development. The next step brings this version of Danny into the reunion itself, so I can judge him beside Gabby and in the story instead of only in a model gallery.
His purchased rig differs from the earlier prototype, so the integration needs matching motion and a new sword grip. He now gestures during his own lines, listens when the others speak, and holds his purple sword for the lesson about control. The earlier model and original downloads are preserved.
I still want an expressive face and better cloth movement. Those are real remaining tasks: the new face has no animation controls, and the cloak follows his torso. This milestone gives us a stronger Danny to test in context before we adapt the next family member.
I also added another Haley model during this pass. This file contains one complete character, with the face and outdoor outfit carried into the 3D model. The duplicate portrait problem is gone. It still needs a lighter deformation mesh, a skeleton and animation controls, so it becomes the next rigging candidate while the current playable Haley remains available.
I followed up with an FBX ZIP for inspection. It imports with its textures, but it is still a static character. This version has more geometry and many thin hair strands; the next useful test is a lighter working copy with a body rig, so we can judge how it bends rather than judge it only from a still image.