About this project
Arthur never had much taste for physical intimacy. Harold’s craving for affection led him to an abusive relationship he needs to get out of.
Two men, with two polar opposite relationships with their bodies, meet and strike up one impossible romance.
It Will Be Hard is a 70-page erotic interactive comic created by comic artist Hien Pham and game developer John Kane (Mallow Drops, Killing Time at Lightspeed). Using light choose-your-own adventure mechanics, YOU choose the nuances in the characters’ actions you wish to see in the story!
Focusing on respect, boundaries, and sweet, smutty cuddling, It Will Be Hard is a sex-positive story about wanting and feeling wanted for who you are. Arthur and Harold must navigate their own sexuality and desires to create a mutually fulfilling relationship.
+18 content warning:
This comic explores the characters’ relationships with their bodies, and depicts male frontal nudity and sexual intimacy.
It Will Be Hard is a queer romance in which the men are allowed to be vulnerable, gentle, yet passionate and understanding - something we both want to see more of in games and comics. We showcased the first 28 interactive pages as part of Blushbox’s XXXhibiton at SK Bar Melbourne last June and were overwhelmed by the positive reception!
This really gave us the fire we needed to push the project further and bring it to Kickstarter, where it could reach more people who might need stories like Arthur's and Harold's in their lives.
The playable demo shows a moment in time where our protagonists have already established their relationship. With your support, the funds raised here will go toward creating art, story and coding for the prequel chapter where Arthur and Harold first met!
It Will Be Hard comes packaged as an interactive comic / choose-your-own adventure game. Each panel fades in to give the comic a slow, gentle pace, and each story option you pick can be re-chosen at will. The story stays linear, but the nuance in the way Arthur and Harold act can differ!
The demo is very slightly NSFW! If you are unable to play the demo, some of its pages can be seen in the Art Sample section below.
Windows | Mac | Linux32 | Linux64 (run nw.exe)
The digital edition of It Will Be Hard will released for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android using HTMLE - A free set of tools for making and publishing HTML based games.
Development Blog & Our Love (AUD $1+)
Thank you for your support! We'll keep you in the loop throughout It Will Be Hard's development.
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard! All 70 fully-coloured pages of queer romance packaged into one interactive comic.
Deluxe Digital Copy (AUD $15)
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard DELUXE! This version includes Hien's personal notes on the story and characters as well as behind-the-scene pages in pencil, flats, and final colours without dialogues!
Your Name in the Credits (AUD $25)
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard DELUXE and your name credited at the end of the comic as recognition for your wonderful support!
Mini Portrait in the Credits (AUD $40)
Limited to 20 backers only!
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard DELUXE and a mini portrait next to your name in the credits! Let Hien immortalize you as a special thank you for your generous support. You'll also get all of the add-ons!
Part of the Special Credits Illustration (AUD $80)
Limited to 5 backers only!
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard DELUXE and yourself drawn in a special credits illustration! Hang out in picture form with Arthur and Harold alongside Hien and John! You'll also get all of the add-ons!
Part of the Comic Itself (AUD $100)
Limited to 6 backers only!
One digital copy of It Will Be Hard DELUXE and yourself drawn as a character in the comic! Become an exciting NPC in Arthur and Harold's adventures. You'll also get all of the add-ons!
Add-on Specials (AUD +$10)
Get a copy of Killing Time at Lightspeed Enhanced Edition from John and two 8-page minis - Expiration Date and Date Druid - from Hien! Click here to read more about them.
Backers should expect the comic and their rewards delivered mid to late January 2018!
Game Engine Release - REACHED!
Would you like to assemble your own light choose-your-own adventure? John will put together and release It Will Be Hard's game engine: It Will Be Clickable! More info to come in a future update!
Harold Pin-up + More Pages - REACHED!
HOT and HI-RES - ALL of our wonderful backers will receive a special Harold pin-up illustration AND It Will Be Hard will receive additional content! These new pages will be available in all editions of the comic.
Arthur Pin-up + More Pages - REACHED!
One extra sweet Arthur pin-up will go out to ALL of our generous backers! It Will Be Hard will once again grow in page size, and so will our hearts and appreciation for you all <3
Two-in-one Pin-up + More Pages - REACHED!
What's better than the last two pin-ups? A TWO-IN-ONE deal featuring our protagonists together! We'll be able to bring more pages to the comic as well!
Bonus Mini
Hien will pen an extra special bonus mini-comic for every single one of our wonderful backers! Promise to be sweet and lovely with a nice helping of steam on the side <3
Hien Pham
Born in 1994, Hien is a digital artist specializing in gentle and happy queer comics. After growing up in Vietnam on his parents' war stories, he moved to Perth, Western Australia, in September 2011. He hasn't stopped pursuing some semblance of a career in indie comics ever since.
Hien's work revolves around being caring and loving and being loved and cared for in a world that finds the opposite to be more noteworthy.
John Kane
John Kane is a game designer and programmer working in web development for the last ten years, and releasing games for the past five years under the name Gritfish.
Gritfish is best known for the sci-fi narrative Killing Time at Lightspeed and cute puzzle game Mallow Drops.
Risks and challenges
The most important challenge would be to finish and deliver the comic within the deadline we've set. Mid to late January 2018 is a decently generous timeline for us, but there is always potential for disaster and other problems popping up.
This is our first Kickstarter, and there will be mistakes made along the way. We will try our best to take precautions and put our fires as they come! Please let us know if you have any concern or questions you'd like us to address!
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Funding period
- (30 days)