Adventure Game Studio

The Story:
The Roaring Twenties. The Jazz Age. Prohibition.  For Alfie Banks, a young real estate salesman from New York recently relocated to Miami, it is a time of great opportunity. 

Set against the backdrop of the Florida Land Boom of the 1920s, A Golden Wake is a story of an innocent man's descent into greed and corruption, and his eventual redemption. 

Based on actual events and featuring real life locations and historical figures, you must guide Alfie on his journey to reach the top of the real estate game as he deals with shady salesmen, cutthroat bootleggers, corrupt politicians, and much more, all while swept up in the events surrounding the inception of Coral Gables, The City Beautiful.

Screenshots:
(http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw1.png)
Everyone is out to make a quick buck.

(http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw2.png)
Enjoy a quiet drink behind closed doors with some unsavory characters .

(http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw3.png)
Explore authentic historical locations from 1920s Miami.

(http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw5.png)
Tool around in your very own Model T.

(http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw6.png)
Nobody said real estate was easy.

The game will release on October 9th for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

You can get the demo at the official site (http://www.goldenwake.com) or on Steam (http://store.steampowered.com/app/307570).

If you pre-order before then, you get a free copy of the soundtrack. You can check out the official trailer, order, and grab the demo at the Wadjet Eye site:

http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/games/golden-wake/ (http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/games/golden-wake/)

Awesome idea and sounds great. That last shot really captures the Flordia/Miami architecture. Good luck with it, I can already hear the wonderfully written old-timey conversations. Could be something like L.A. Noire.

Very excited about this.  I've actually been anxious to hear some sort of announcement since you started posting screenshots and notes about development on Twitter.  Will definitely buy this once it's released; I love the Ben Jordan series and I'm sure this will be excellent as well, and more than worth paying for.

Finally! I was anxious to see what all those backgrounds where for. I hope 2014 is a rough estimate, what about March 1013? :) :-D

Everything about this screams awesome. It looks so beautiful! It sounds unique. When can I pre-order?

That looks like a wonderful game-to-come... best of luck with it, and godspeed!

Awesome!
Have you got a team of some sort? Those screenies look great.

Thanks for the feedback!  I'm really excited about this game, and my main concern was that the premise might be a little too "niche," but I'm glad to see there's interest.

Andail: I've gotten a bit of help with programming and naturally will have a musician, but it's just been me so far. Part of the reason I currently have no idea when this will be finished.

Oh there is interest...We've seen 1920s Chicago and Atlantic City, but not much of Miami around that time.  Sounds cool and looks great based on those screens!

And Just when I was thinking
"But what am I gonna do now I played all the BJ series"

Hurrah and good luck, it looks really good

I will play any game you make. I already can't wait :P

WOW! Too 'niche'...? What's not to like about this premise!

I can already smell seedy speakeasies and 'dirty pictures blackmail deals' :tongue:.
(So that's where that screen shot in 'Produce Something 2012' came from, eh? I was wondering.)

Looking awesome, Grundislav!

YAY! What a cool idea!  :cheesy:
This will become an interesting game.
You have already captured the spirit of that time in graphics beautifully.  (http://s1.directupload.net/images/user/120812/xr3xm5wj.gif)

Good luck for this nice project.
        (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/kleeblatt.gif)

Looks fascinating - and the graphical style just seems to suit the era down to the ground!

Look forward to seeing how this one turns out.

Don't worry about it being too "niche", I think it will actually benefit from that.  (If it doesn't... well, you can blame me!!)

Looks great!  Can't wait for the finished product.
All the best Grundy.

Looking great as usual Grundislav, best of luck with the game! :)

Looks great and sound interesting Grundi.

Looks beautiful!
Is that dancing man on your avatar from that game too? :)

Looking great! I really like that it seems to be a proper period piece, and not just your usual stereotypical "gangster era" thing. And I love that there's so many NPCs on some of the screens - it instantly makes the game's world seem inhabited. Hopefully, they'll all have their individual rotoscoped animations as well. :) Definitely looking forward to it, good luck!

Quote from: Grundislav on Mon 25/02/2013 07:30:19
Thanks for the feedback!  I'm really excited about this game, and my main concern was that the premise might be a little too "niche," but I'm glad to see there's interest.

That niche seems really promising, I'd say. A nice change from anything paranormal-investigative-related ;)

Jazz times?!! In the 20s!?!? YAY this DOES look very promising indeed! :)

Crimson Wizard: Yep, the fully rotoscoped Charleston will be in the game, you can bet on it.

Andail: I am very much looking forward to not dealing with paranormal investigating, believe me. :P

Awesome! Consider me excited!

Love it already! When you first started prepologizing (that's a word, yes?) that your game was going to take place in a very specific time and place that may not appeal to many, this is almost exactly what I hoped it would be. You're going to have to try much harder to bore the likes of us.

Hey, cool!

Even though you talked about it and demoed a couple of scenes at Mittens, I'm still a little unclear on how the game will actually play. But I really like the idea of a game about the development of Coral Gables, since it always seemed like an interesting history. (Plus I look forward to seeing the Biltmore in its Johnny Weissmuller heyday!) And I'm always in favor of local color in AGS games, and of creators following their interests and their muse down strange pathways, so I'm very interested in this.

This looks ridiculously good.

Absolutely lovely graphics. Good luck!

Hey, you are that podcast guy, you also make games? WOWWWWWWW!!!! I still don't get what the games is about after reading like 10 times, guess the human brain can't be a fan of your podcast and your games at the same time. The art style and the portraits looks a bit like it was made by the guy that did the Ben Jordan games, I like his motto "I will not go commercial because it will feel like work".

Now a bit more serious, this looks very interesting, is something very different from the Ben Jordan games. I hope if the main character get a beaten, at least he punch back the guy once. I have seen the love and work you put in the Jordan games, so I know this game will worth the money. 2014... huh... I can find enough pennies under the "sofa" by then to buy the game, looking forward to this I know it will worth the while. Buena suerte ese!

So, will this be partly simulator or what? Will you actually buy/sell real estates? In-game economy? Will the puzzles mainly be about placing the right vase in the right corner to achieve maximum home-styling score?

Ha ha no, no real estate sims or micromanaging or in-game economy or anything like that, just a standard point and click adventure.  This game is about real estate in the same way Resonance was about particle physics.

It looks fantastic! With your experience I'm sure it will be top quality adventure. Can't wait!

Will there be...industry-financed leisure trips to Cuba?

I hope it will be real world no paranormal stuff, or not I don't know. Being Miami we need some beach pics. :D

Quote from: Grundislav on Wed 27/02/2013 14:20:19
This game is about real estate in the same way Resonance was about particle physics.

Why, that will require tens of minutes of research! Tens!

FINALLY, an original adventure game setting for once.

Very interesting and most certainly an original concept. Looks beautiful too.

I just realised I hadn't commented on this. It looks great! Me and the missus are also huge fans of the 1920s, so we're looking forward to this!

I've been looking forward to seeing more of this since Mittens!  If you happen to need a 1920's-era gold prospector, you know who to ask ;)

Hey Grundislav, have you thought about using Kickstarter? It won't hurt if you get only about 5 Euro, but maybe you get a lot of money.
(I would be willing to spend some bucks on it.)

Looking incredible!

This will be great game
Keep your spirit!

Looking great! Those screenshots in the first post are giving me a django unchained vibe for some reason..! (I think it's the cart...) Best of luck.

Quote from: Mods on Sun 19/05/2013 21:46:30
Those screenshots in the first post are giving me a django unchained vibe for some reason..!

What a base way of slagging off those beautiful graphics, Mods! (wrong)

About time I chimed in my two bits on this.  And I'm glad this era was chosen for the setting.

We don't have enough adventure games that take place in that era (the Roaring 1920's).  Only two adventure games I could think of taking place in this era are the Laura Bow mysteries... and the one that REALLY gets the 1920's spirit on the head is the second one "Dagger of Amon Ra."

But this is the first one I've heard of that's 1920's FLORIDA, not Chicago (Illinois) or New York, which were more famous for their secretive liquor dealings.  (And the first Laura Bow mystery was in Louisiana, which I'm sure had some Prohibition-defying stuff too in the day).

So I say, carry on.  We look forward to the finished product.

Three brand new screenshots in the first post.

In the last shot the main character has conflicting pixel resolution, AGS does this randomly for some reason. I think it's only in DirectDraw3D maybe, it always bothers me, it's in Gemini Rue too in only one room. Everything else looks great though, maybe the horizon trees in the last shot look a little weird too.

Thought it was time to provide an update to this thread.

The game has hit alpha, meaning it's fully playable from start to finish, but still missing several art assets as well as a few puzzles.

Also, the game has been officially signed with a publisher.  Look for it later this year!

A couple of new screenshots:

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BXo7TUJCUAA8Lqs.png)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bdtr5egCYAAcjEa.png)

Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

wow this game looks amazing

Quote from: KodiakBehr on Tue 04/02/2014 01:25:36
Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

But mystery is fun :D

Looking great - a huge leap indeed from the Anaheim version 8-)

Quote from: Grundislav on Tue 04/02/2014 06:17:24

Quote from: KodiakBehr on Tue 04/02/2014 01:25:36
Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

But mystery is fun :D

Well this looks just fantastic, and your blog has been really educational for me.  Congrats and keep up the great work!

Easily my most anticipated adventure game. Looks like it's going to be a very good year for the genre. :-D How come your images are slightly scaled so it's all blurry?

Looking good, Grundislav, I admire your passion and ambition, basically learning to draw from scratch and putting together all this art for game after game.

Quote from: KodiakBehr on Tue 04/02/2014 01:25:36
Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

hm yeah who can it be...

I must say your graphics have greatly improved since the old Ben Jordan games... Now they're much cleaner, and the colors are more balanced.

Your character sprites are very nice too. By the way I know it's not the place to discuss it, but if I may (and I may not), I'd only recommend paying extra attention to the shadings in the portraits close-ups: your shades have a tendency to be "plain" black, instead of being "tinted" black (i.e. dark brown for the skin shading). I'd suggest using "plain" black only for edges/outlines (it's what cell shading does to a certain extent), and slightly coloring all other dark parts. In the image below you did it right on the bowtie -- do the same thing to the face.

http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw6.png (http://www.grundislavgames.com/_res/images/agoldenwake/agw6.png)

Quote from: Monsieur OUXX on Thu 13/02/2014 17:51:02...but if I may (and I may not)...

Should have stopped there ;)

I'm not going to point out the rules since you announced you knew you shouldn't be offering it, and then did it anyway.

Congrats on alpha and publisher and whatnot!
Couple of questions:
What resolution is this? 320x240?
I assume you're going for a commercial release. Will there be voiceovers?

Everything is looking very good so far. Especially the backgrounds.
I bet you smell good too.

Quote from: StillInThe90s on Thu 13/02/2014 18:48:30
Couple of questions:
What resolution is this? 320x240?
I assume you're going for a commercial release. Will there be voiceovers?

Everything is looking very good so far. Especially the backgrounds.
I bet you smell good too.

The resolution is 320x200, and yes, there will be voiceovers.

Thanks. I've been told I smell like cookies and petunias.

Thank you. That's encouraging.
I thought I was the only one not frowning over 320x200.  :-D

Quote from: Andail on Thu 13/02/2014 16:07:33
Looking good, Grundislav, I admire your passion and ambition, basically learning to draw from scratch and putting together all this art for game after game.

Quote from: KodiakBehr on Tue 04/02/2014 01:25:36
Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

hm yeah who can it be...

Lool I thought this as well. Keeping my eye on this though... looks amazing. Great premise.

Quote from: Grundislav on Tue 04/02/2014 06:17:24

Quote from: KodiakBehr on Tue 04/02/2014 01:25:36
Yay!  Can you give us a hint as to who you've signed with?

But mystery is fun :D

Yes but there's only like 2 or 3 ags game publishers and it sure as heck isn't me :P

Nice one tho. About time :) Good luck Grundy!!

Cat's out of the bag. I'm sure everyone is shocked :grin:

Never really got why it was supposed to be a secret in the first place (once the agreement was fully in place), but good for you both! It's a great concept, and I hope it does well for WEG.

Happy to report that the game is coming along nicely.  I've reached that last 20% and am working on animations and listening to auditions for voice actors.  Today I cast the 3 principal roles and next week begins another round of auditions.  Exciting times all around! 

I expect the game will be ready by this summer.

Here's a few more screenshots:
(http://www.screenshotsaturday.com/images/directlink_BlnyE8mCUAAYg6o.png%3Alarge.png)

(http://www.screenshotsaturday.com/images/directlink_BnUdoJ8CIAECysK.png%3Alarge.png)

Looking really nice, I particularly like the swimmers in the second shot, I'm curious if the water actually animates too.

Now THESE are amazing screenshots! Great work there!

Quote from: Armageddon on Sun 11/05/2014 04:21:58
I'm curious if the water actually animates too.

I'm pretty sure Grundislav won't miss that!

Lovely screenies! Can't wait to play this bad boy.

Quote from: Grundislav on Sun 11/05/2014 03:29:52
(http://www.screenshotsaturday.com/images/directlink_BnUdoJ8CIAECysK.png%3Alarge.png)

guy: Oh my ... gasp... who's there?
shady silhouette: We're here to kiiiiiiiiiiiill you!

pffft, screw professionals, I know you can do the voiceacting yourself... If there will be a special track/setting/option where you do all the voiceacting yourself (like a directors commentary, you know) I'm so sold  :-D

Quote from: Grundislav on Sun 11/05/2014 03:29:52
(http://www.screenshotsaturday.com/images/directlink_BlnyE8mCUAAYg6o.png%3Alarge.png)

Amazing water effect here!!!
It's perfect! Can't wait to see the animation.

Quote from: kaputtnik on Thu 28/02/2013 18:15:21
Will there be...industry-financed leisure trips to Cuba?

(http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/wp-content/uploads/havanabar.png)
Yep!

Really looking forward to this game, looks top class and the story sounds great

Wow!  I wish you the best of luck on the last leg of getting this together.  Let's see it come together soon!

We've been doing voice recording for the past 2 weeks and have just hit the halfway mark.  I'm really happy with the performances. Here is a sneak peek:

Alfie Banks meets Doc Dammers (http://www.grundislavgames.com/alfiemeetsdoc.mp3)

I have to say, that's the most Sierra sounding main character I've ever heard. ;-D

I hope that's GK1 or KQ6 Sierra and not "let's ask all the employees to voice characters" Sierra. :P

Ah, the good ole Turnip truck!


Bt

Joey Mallone is possessing Doc Dammers ^_^

We also have a theme tune. (http://www.grundislavgames.com/AGW_theme.mp3)

Piano bits remind me a lot of the Puzzle Agent music. Sounds nice though.

Neat tune indeed, really sets the mood.

It's very '007'. I guess that's exactly what Puzzle Agent was going for. Nice track though. Look forward to hearing the rest of the soundtrack.

Sounds to me a lot like "Crazy for loving you" or something like that. Very atmospheric though.
This game's gonna be very smooth and fresh.

The game was just officially announced today with a proper press release and everything.

Which means it's time to launch the teaser trailer!

[embed=720,405]http://youtu.be/uCVWUw3k7KE[/embed]

Awesome trailer.

Is this music from the game?

No, it's from pond5.com.

The launch trailer will probably have music from the game in it.

Awesome trailer, I feel teased (but in a good way)!

The music is from the pond5 website (http://www.pond5.com/music/1/playful-jazz-sleuth.html). You have to pay to get it without the audio watermark though.

Wicked trailer.
Colour me teased.;-D

Groovy trailer.

Makes appetite for more!

Looking really awesome, has had some great press coverage too!

MUST

(NO "NOT" MAY BE EDITED IN HERE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES!!!)

HAVE

Quote from: Mandle on Sun 06/07/2014 02:22:55
MUST
NOT
HAVE

Why not, Mandle? The game looks so much fun! ;)

Excellent looking game, as usual, Grundislav and Dave Gilbert! :)

The extremely talented Peter Gresser is on board to do music for the game, and he's done a fantastic job. Here are a few samples of what you can expect to hear:
Music Preview 1 (http://www.grundislavgames.com/agw_musicpreview1.mp3)
Music Preview 2 (http://www.grundislavgames.com/agw_musicpreview2.mp3)
Music Preview 3 (http://www.grundislavgames.com/agw_musicpreview3.mp3)

Sounds retro, in multiple senses of the word!

Just an update to say that the game is 100% complete!

Watch this space for preorder information, release date, launch trailer, and an exciting announcement, all coming very soon.

Awww yeah! Great news!

Looks great! Will it be available on GOG?

Yes it will!

First post updated with release information!

Loving the detail you put into the special effects! Sometimes the "exciting" part is missing from these types of games but you've definitely nailed it in the trailer. 

Very happy to know it will be on GOG.  :grin:

Can't find a price anywhere though.  :confused:

It should be on the pre order page.  In any case, it's $14.99.

Thanks Grundi  :smiley:

Woohoo!

Here, have 14.99 of my monies, sir!

Yep.  Please take my money...I've been waiting impatiently for this one!

There's an interview with Grundislav in indiegames.com (http://indiegames.com/2014/09/the_golden_wake_preview_interv.html).

And the game looks really promising, good luck with the release!

Quote from: SarahLiz on Sat 13/09/2014 06:26:12
Yep.  Please take my money...I've been waiting impatiently for this one!

They already have my money.

Bumping the thread to announce that a demo (http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/games/golden-wake/) is now available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.  Try before you buy!

Played and completed the demo last night. Absolutely loved the selling system and the whole setting and mood of the game. The music, voice acting, background art and writing was also pretty good, but I'm not completely sold on the character sprites.

Some of the characters and their animations did not seem to be quite up to the standard of the rest of the demo (for example, Ms Rogers and her typing animation). And if you don't mind me asking, then what's up with the character sprites in larger outside shots? Mixed resolution?

I was also surprised by the complete lack of settings (no audio sliders, game speed etc.), is that just a demo thing? I do hope the full release is a bit more polished, because, for example, pressing crtl+q brought up a skewed up AGS default quit GUI. (http://i.imgur.com/yFEecUz.png)

Sorry, if I come off as a bit harsh about some stuff, I actually really liked the demo and am looking forward to playing the full game. Keep up the good work!

I just tried the demo.

You've done a nice job on the game.

The animations are great, especially the walk cycles.

Also loving the BG's.

I found the main character's voice to have a lot more reverb than everyone else, but all are acted very well.
I also think you're missing some ambient sound, especially from the street scene.

All in all though, a very nice game.

;-D (nod)

Quote from: Hobo on Fri 03/10/2014 10:41:57
And if you don't mind me asking, then what's up with the character sprites in larger outside shots? Mixed resolution?

This is an AGS thing, a result of running the game with Direct3d, and I hate it. If you change it in the game setup to DirectDraw5, the sprites will scale normally, but it might not be compatible with your machine.

Just one thing. I installed it and then the game auto-started. 8-0
Just cause I installed it, doesn't mean I want to run it right away (or did I miss a check box on the installer?). Besides I want to run it in a window and not full screen. No choice for that from the installer?

Got the demo off Steam, I was on the fence about it but the demo really hooked me, first day buy for sure. Wish I could pre-order it. Putting the hat down was really impressive, and it didn't even show in the character window anymore. Congratulations on the game. :-D

Cassie: Yes you missed a checkbox on the installer. :) Sorry about that.

I played the demo yesterday and it was good fun. I especially loved the sales pitch puzzle. Good stuff Grundy.
If I had one gripe it would be the scaling issue in the hotel bedroom. Alfie visibly shrinks by half as he walks to the bottom of the screen. But that's not exactly deal breaking. Can't wait to play the full game.

Quote from: Armageddon on Sat 04/10/2014 09:11:38
Got the demo off Steam, I was on the fence about it but the demo really hooked me, first day buy for sure. Wish I could pre-order it. Putting the hat down was really impressive, and it didn't even show in the character window anymore. Congratulations on the game. :-D

The hat impressed me, too. It's gone in the sprites out in the world, as well. GK2 had a scene where he put on his jacket every time he left the house in the woods. Didn't mind it the first few times, but as the game progressed, it got tedious. Nice detail, Grundislav!

Quote from: Stupot+ on Sat 04/10/2014 13:49:46
If I had one gripe it would be the scaling issue in the hotel bedroom. Alfie visibly shrinks by half as he walks to the bottom of the screen. But that's not exactly deal breaking. Can't wait to play the full game.

Does he? That's odd, as the walkable area is at 100% scaling. Do you have a screenshot?

Yeah, he's basically the same height as the chest of drawers. At least for me. I'm not at home til later but I'll get you a screenshot soon.

Just finished the Demo woefully all too soon :(

I loved it! Charming 1920's atmosphere and lingo (skeedaddle (laugh)) really immerse you in the setting. One thing that slightly broke the immersion for me was:

Spoiler

nobody passing by the open hotel door when you are in the lobby despite the street being quite crowded with passers-by in the outside shot. I'm guessing it was too hard to animate them at that perspective... Maybe the door should be opened and closed when you come in to prevent spoiling the illusion of a busy street which is achieved so well in the other street scenes? That way you still briefly get to see the street scene outside but nobody passing by will not be so obvious...

[close]

But yeah, wonderful looking game with a lot of lovely period detail to take in. I will be getting this one!

Quote from: Stupot+ on Sun 05/10/2014 02:15:55
Yeah, he's basically the same height as the chest of drawers. At least for me. I'm not at home til later but I'll get you a screenshot soon.

Ah, I know what the issue is: crappy perspective. There's the optical illusion of Alfie being smaller than he should be precisely because he doesn't scale but the dresser is angled the way it is.

Ahh yeah that's what I meant. Not that he was actually scaling down by half but that he appears to shrink because he's not scaling up as he moves down. But anyway, s'not a real problem, just something I noticed. Probably a bit late now, but maybe in a later patch you could just cut some of the walkable area away to lessen the effect :-)

Good job with the demo, there's a few things I hope will get more polished in the end version though. Or is it meant that the portrait shoot has no talk cycle? If so, I see no real advantage to use the portrait.
Also, there's no way to stop the conversation in the first dialog at the train station. You need to run all the options, before the "end conversation" option shows up.

But really nice puzzle with the sales pitch, I found out I'm probably better at selling than I realized, though.(laugh)

The portraits are not animated on purpose, for several reasons. They do change expressions, however.

The first conversation with Doc only requires you to ask about Coral Gables and then George Merrick before you can exit it.

Okay, but my point was, that I wanted to get out and go to the settings to turn out the voice (as my kid was watching cartoons) and I was trapped. Had to close the game and start over with the sound off.
Is there a reason you are forcing the player to ask these questions? I'm sure any good adventurer, won't leave the scene without running all the dialogs anyway.

Because I wanted to make sure the pertinent information was established before being able to leave the conversation. Not every player clicks every single dialogue option, and being able to leave the conversation but not the screen because you hadn't asked about the important information would have been more frustrating, I feel.

In any case, it's one of the only conversations in-game where this occurs (there may be one or two more, but they happen later on.)

Quote from: Cassiebsg on Sun 05/10/2014 20:54:02
Okay, but my point was, that I wanted to get out and go to the settings to turn out the voice (as my kid was watching cartoons) and I was trapped. Had to close the game and start over with the sound off.
Is there a reason you are forcing the player to ask these questions? I'm sure any good adventurer, won't leave the scene without running all the dialogs anyway.

This feels a bit like nitpicking. Surely you could just have lowered the master volume during that first conversation?

Never mind me, I'm a nitpicker. sorry about that.
I'll try to keep from making further comments. Sorry...