If you’re into lewd games, then I’m pretty sure that you have heard (or played) some of Sierra Lee’s lewd titles? If not, then you should check out her games as soon as possible, because they are actually really good (each game contains a lot of awesome lewd content and gameplay value).
Anyways, just recently I sent an interview request to Lee. Well, guess what? Lee agreed to do an interview with us =) So we talk about everything from adult game development, lewd games, censorship to Lee’s plans for the future. So without further ado, please enjoy our interview with Sierra Lee 😉
Robin TGG
Right off the bat, thank you very much for taking your time doing this interview =) So with that said, would you be so kind and introduce yourself to our readers?
Lee
Hi, I’m Sierra Lee! I create a variety of different kinds of adult games.
Robin TGG
If I’m not wrong now, you have developed and released four lewd game titles so far, and those are as follows:
Desecration Of Wings
Crimson Gray
Ouroboros
The Last Sovereign
So, what has it been like creating those games? What challenges did you face? And which title are you most proud of?
Lee
I was also half of the team that made Noxian Nights. Creating the games has in overall been a lot of fun, of course – I like almost every part of the creative process! Adult devs face many of the same problems other indies do, compounded by the additional obstacles set up in the way of adult content. Though I’m proud of all my titles, The Last Sovereign is the project where I aimed highest.
Robin TGG
I don’t know if it’s just me, or is there a rise of lewd horror and Yandere games on the market right now? Because I have never seen as many games of that kind as I do now. So, do you have any plans on making more horror and Yandere-based lewd games in the future?
Lee
Hard to say if it’s a trend, but I think it’s forming a solid niche. I have another yandere game coming out later this year (https://store.steampowered.com/app/894460/Crimson_Gray_Dusk_and_Dawn/) and I definitely have some ideas for horror games that I might explore in the future.
Robin TGG
What’s your take on Yuri/lesbian games in general? And is it a genre that you would like to explore more? On a personal level, I would like to see more games of that kind.
Lee
Though I’ve included some content along these lines in all of my games, I haven’t made one that focuses on it yet. However, so far, I’ve been able to do different things with each game, so I might be able to explore that in the future!
Robin TGG
How have things gone with your games so far? (sales, reviews and so on) And are you happy with how publishers such as Steam, Nutaku and jastusa have treated you?
Lee
I’m incredibly grateful that I’ve been able to make this my career! Though I’m not the biggest creator out there, I feel as though I fill a niche that’s appreciated, and that’s a good feeling. My experience with publishers has overall been mixed, unfortunately. Steam, in particular, doesn’t treat all adult games the same, and it’s unclear why. Fingers crossed that it will change when they change their policies.
Robin TGG
In your opinion, what is it that makes the difference from a great lewd game and a bad lewd game? (which ingredients are needed in-order to create an epic lewd game experience?)
Lee
I think there’s more than one answer to that question and more than one set of ingredients, because what players want isn’t the same. Right now, we all stick together because we’re not allowed into many places, but if the genre experiences healthy growth, one day we’ll be able to differentiate more.
For me, the most important ingredients are characters with substance, gameplay that’s satisfying aside from the adult content, and a story that ties those together. I can’t say that I completely succeed, but that is my goal!
Robin TGG
I would love to hear what you think about censorship in games and in particular, censorship in lewd games? (the Steam drama)
Lee
Obviously, I’m against censorship as a general principle. It’s particularly frustrating when it comes to the major platforms, as it makes life harder for both me and players. It’s difficult to try to hit a moving target, plus separating the game into two versions and a patch isn’t fun on my end. And due to some of the hoops I’ve been required to jump through, it’s more difficult for me to continue updating my games on Steam than it should be.
Robin TGG
Do you have any limits at all when it comes to how lewd your games will be? Or do you go by an “anything” goes kind of mindset?
Lee
Some fetishes get treated differently even by adult payment processors, but I don’t have much personal interest in those, so it’s not much of a restriction. While I don’t set any limits on myself, I usually begin from the perspective of deciding what type of content is appropriate to the game and story I have in mind, not trying to see how much I can include.
Robin TGG
To my knowledge, you have mainly released your games for PC. So I’m curious to know if you got any plans to release your titles to other formats in the future? (people poke me all the time to ask lewd game devs why they don’t release more of their games to console, for example).
Lee
I would guess that consoles have more restrictions on content, though I don’t know that for sure. It also generally requires porting, which isn’t cheap. I do get requests for more mobile support, and I’ll be trying to do a little more of that in the future, though most of my work is more suited for PC games.
Robin TGG
Do you consider hentai and lewd games as art? (I sure do).
Lee
Sure! There’s no point in trying to gatekeep the term “art” in my opinion.
Robin TGG
I don’t know if you’re into VR, but lewd VR games are on the rise with no doubt (so much so that there are even tons of adult VR toys and whatnot that you can buy). So I would like to ask if you got any thoughts at all trying your luck at making a lewd VR game in the future?
Lee
It’s certainly an interesting field, but I think we’re at the stage where the technology is being explored, not yet at the stage where a wide library of content will be developed. So it’s a high risk, high reward sort of thing for now.
Robin TGG
If you could put together an all-star lewd game team with the best of the best in the world (no offense meant to your current team), and have an unlimited budget. Then which people would you pick to work with? And what would be your game project of choice?
Lee
I usually think pretty practically about what I can do now and what I’ll be able to do next, so this question is quite a change of pace! I guess given that hypothetical, I’d make a huge adult RPG with CD Projekt Red. It would take years to come out, but it would be crazy.
Robin TGG
What’s your plans, hopes and expectations for the rest of this year? And is there anything else that you would like to say to our readers?
Lee
I’ll be releasing the sequel to Crimson Gray on Steam later this year, and I hope to show everyone the public demo of another side project. Something smaller for fun, but also trying to take my work up a step. Furthermore, I also hope to get some significant work done on some projects I might be able to show in 2019. Thanks for your interest in my work!
Robin “V-Act” Ek
Editor in chief
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround
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Tags: Censorship, Crimson Gray, Indie games, Lewd games, Ouroboros, Sierra Lee, The Last Sovereign