MAYAK: lost way game about true polish life: Radio Maryja, Kaczyński, PiS

[TS]

It is short game about young man (Poland) who must solve his normal, everyday problem. During the game you find all true about polish (not only politacl) life: you meet leader of Polish Ultra Catholics Father DictatorÃ,  Tadeusz Rydzyk, his army of Moherowe Berety and other polish (sometimes secret) trues. Try play:
http://www.gramayak.prv.pl

[The Book]

The game lacks both polish and sense of closure, not to mention that most of the people here are not familiar with the political context and will most propably fail in comprehending all the thinly-veiled allusions to current political situation in Poland contained within. Other than that - being a Pole myself I found all the references to what's happening in the country quite amusing. The puzzles were so-so, but logical enough to easily figure them out. In my opinion - good for a first attempt, despite all its shortcomings.

PS. The sound rocked. 

[Steel Drummer]

I played it, and I just don't get it. It's so annoying.

[deadsuperhero]

I played it, and I just don't get it. It's so annoying.

That's the thing, though, you don't know the history or culture of Poland.
I played the game, it was pretty good. 

[adam100]

Haha, good first attempt, I encourage you to continue your efforts though you made one major mistake, that is to say, you took it for granted that terms such as Moherowe Berety PiS and Kaczyński are one of the hottest topics of discussion on the other side of the sea and even around the Europe. This is a game for Poles and for Poles only, and being one myself, I aprecciate your efforts though to be honest, I entertain very little notion of Poland's politics and have even less desire to fill that gap, Poland being a sad little forsaken country which, to the highest degree, I desire to leave at the earliest convenience. Anyway, all things aside, heed my advice: try to stay away from country-specific issues(especially politics) which few people know about and even fewer desire to know and try to focus on the more general problems such as human affairs, love, conflicts etc. On the other hand, should you think it neccessary to continue your Polish propaganda(no harm intended, truly) then if I may be so bold, I would like to suggest providing the gamer with some insight on the specific phenomena the game touches so that even the most ignorant Poles will be able to orient themselves in the game's plot. You might, furthermore, try to describe some widely known and international issues, yet one's that are also common in Poland, for instance you might make a game about the conflict of sexual orientations(as in homosexuals versus heterosexuals parandes and the governments input in these affairs). Suma summarum- the path to perfection is a path of trial and error and I bid you stay on that very path and continue your game design endavour.

[m0ds]

I want to appreciate your game. Please post screenshots

[Steel Drummer]

I played it, and I just don't get it. It's so annoying.

That's the thing, though, you don't know the history or culture of Poland.
I played the game, it was pretty good.Ã, 

I'm not criticizing the storyline or Poland for that matter, but from what I've seen, this game needs some work. I thought it would be some deep, involving story about conspiracies and the like. What do I get? I game about a guy trying to get his keys.

[R4L]

Yoda, you act like this was supposed to be THEE best game of all time.

Well, I played it, not bad, but I don't get it. Just never learned about Polish culture. I learned a little of it in Night Elie Wiesel.

[sergiocornaga]

I'm not criticizing the storyline or Poland for that matter, but from what I've seen, this game needs some work. I thought it would be some deep, involving story about conspiracies and the like. What do I get? I game about a guy trying to get his keys.

If it were deep and full of conspiracies, as opposed to mundane, it wouldn't really be about "true Polish life", would it?

[InCreator]

I'm sorry to say this, but... the game is quite awful!
I believe that it's your first try and you're very proud about finishing it, but some (noted) crits would only help:

* I have no clue what's going on. Why are people on the street? Who's people on posters? Wtf?
If you want to make a game that shows people "true polish life", DESCRIBE the happenings. Like, what's going on, who's who and what-for-fighting. That's what the "look" icon is for.

It's pointless to watch football match if you never know who's playing.

* Don't mix graphics! Atleast until you learn to do it properly.
Photos? Weird 3D? MSPaint? All in one? That simply looks terrible.

* Try to understand what are icons/cursormodes for!
Look - using it on ANYTHING should ALWAYS result some text that describes what are you looking at.
Always. This is what player always uses to find out what to do and what is particular thing good for.
Interact/use - This is for entering apartments, opening doors and picking up stuff. If it's not possible, HINT player. Like, when door is locked, player character should SAY that. And if neighbor is home, player should mention this too, because nobody tries to open door with his teeth (by talking to it, etc)!
Others you know. But these two were very badly mixed up

* Icons/cursormodes are to help,
not just to finish the game. I mean that even if you only have to use something, people will always try also looking at it and even talking to it. So, add things that are NOT needed to finish game to each hotspot aswell, possibly even aiding player, like giving hints.
Example:

You have to open door. USE DOOR. To finish the game properly
But you CAN look at door. Which gives player a message, something like "i should use the door" or "wonder what's behind the door?" or "the door is open", etc.

In your game, you couldn't do almost anything that wasn't neccessary to progress the game. To be honest, I didn't care to finish the game, since it feels like a big mess. And I explained why.

Maybe you should think this over and make a new version.

[Steel Drummer]

I'm not criticizing the storyline or Poland for that matter, but from what I've seen, this game needs some work. I thought it would be some deep, involving story about conspiracies and the like. What do I get? I game about a guy trying to get his keys.

If it were deep and full of conspiracies, as opposed to mundane, it wouldn't really be about "true Polish life", would it?

I meant it in the way that there was a deep storyline and everything. I played it, and it won't let me leave the first room. I click on a poster of some guy, and this annoying sound effect starts playing. Out of pure annoyance, I quit.

[m0ds]

The plot seems to be a little embellished but for a first attempt at a game there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. I think some of the comments here are a bit harsh, "its awful", etc. Sure it's no LEC product - and yes there are a lot of flaws that make it seem less like a game, but the author has at least tried.

Though the art doesn't bug me - I understand that people will go to any length to make a room look like they intended, the art in this game isn't THAT bad. Some effort has been clearly made, at least.

InCreator, you gave some good advice, bar this:

* Don't mix graphics! Atleast until you learn to do it properly.
Photos? Weird 3D? MSPaint? All in one? That simply looks terrible.

Perhaps you could give a little advice on how he can improve? Or suggest other ways that someone who is clearly not an artist can achieve something you'd be happy to stare at.

Personally, I don't quite get what the game is trying to achieve. Sure, I know what the quest is because your character keeps on telling me. Thats about the only thing that annoyed me. Your character kept reminding me he's in a game, that I'm playing a game, that he needs to get in his door but obviously can't because this is a game. That's not so good. You should try and give your players clues as to what they're supposed to be doing, not just tell them straight out. But then, as the game is a bit confusing perhaps telling us the quest IS the best idea!

Like Yoda, I clicked that poster and some crazy birdie song played. I clicked it about 80 times and the song played 80 times at once! :p

My main advice is - what you have here could be very good, but it's not working with your English format. I'd suggest you make a completely Polish version . So far I haven't found anything in the game to teach me about Poland - other than...Polish people keep losing their keys?

"Try play" is a good statement, because it is a little hard to understand.

So well done if this is your first game, but I get the impression you've hardly played any adventure games prior to making it.

[R4L]

I agree with m0ds when he says this:

The plot seems to be a little embellished but for a first attempt at a game there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. I think some of the comments here are a bit harsh, "its awful", etc. Sure it's no LEC product - and yes there are a lot of flaws that make it seem less like a game, but the author has at least tried.

[skw]

Hey, there are lots of things more interesting in Poland than politics and religion, which are rather clichéd.

Sorry, but it`s a shitty game. I can`t play it more than five minutes. If your life is like that, I feel sorry for you.

[m0ds]

It's funny how when Lassi Quest was released people would still praise it, even though its plot was meaningless, its puzzles extremely weak and what not.

Yet nowadays people have the attitude to just call a game that doesn't suit their needs shit.

That isn't what this community is about - give this dude some helpful critique.

[skw]

It's funny how when Lassi Quest was released people would still praise it, even though its plot was meaningless, its puzzles extremely weak and what not.

Yet nowadays people have the attitude to just call a game that doesn't suit their needs shit.

That isn't what this community is about - give this dude some helpful critique.

I know what you have on mind, but I won`t critique a game which isn`t even a bit funny (and probably which might to be) and makes me think I live in a country completely fall from grace. I don`t think anyone is interested in what`s going on inside my poor, little Poland and so be it. Kaczyński, PiS and Radio Maryja are, of course, good themes to make fun of, but they`re understandable only for Polish people and, as I said before, they`re clichéd as hell.

I don`t like both extreme nationalism (LPR, Młodzież Wszechpolska) and exaggerated contempt for the nation. Amor patriae nostra lex?

Nevermind.

[adam100]

Skurwy- quite frankly I don't see why I shouldn't contempt my nation, seeing as it is in a very poor state and has even poorer prospects of achieving something in the following decade. It is extremely conservative, has very poor politics and its government is irrational, impetuous and insensible in almost every particular. There are of course exceptions from the rule but the country as a whole poses no prospects for a better future and I must mark that I am against patriotism and my dream is that all the countries in the world join to form one great unity which will support each other whenever possible and work as one giant country, with the greatest power possible. There is no sensible explenation for patriotism and as such it should be banned for it is not only irrational but also contributes to the world's continuous decline. We must not think as narrowly as to care only about our own country or nation, we must work to further the welfare of humanity, not one nation. Nationalism was partly the reason for Hitler's madness and this is the best proof available to warrant my belief. In a word, Poland will never achieve success on its own and as such it should either join some other prosperous country( which should join an even more prosperous country) or be forsaken and looked down upon with utmost spite as a parasite rather than an ally of humanity. It is in our own business to see this way as the sole way of our progression for Nature did not give us intellect and reason and the utmost place on the food chain for us to fight each other instead of furthering our own comfort through means of unity. To finally conclude, why fight earnestly for our own destruction while we may peacefully attain deliverance by joining in a huge unity and from that point and only then should we think about next steps to further our own and the world's comfort.

[Nikolas]

Communism seems to be alive everywhere...

Let's discuss it

About the game:

Sureal. I actually liked very much the graphics, the same way that I loved the music. You can kill me if you want, but mixing 2-3 different tracks at the same time, + radio polish announcments, simply sounds great! Honestly it does! The same goes with the graphics. Mayak + Poster+ ladder to the roof + crowd + mspainted boulder + I don;'t remember what else.

IF the creator feels like making a proper game I dearly hope that he knows that this is the way to go. This is not a proper game.

But I enjoyed eveyr single minute of my 10 minutes playing with it.

[skw]

Communism. How an empty word as for someone who live far from it`s source. This is all the blame, 45 years of the great political stagnation, under the CCCP`s sickle and hammer (серп и молот). The history of Poland is sad, you can`t disagree, and, unfortunately, it`s still going to be like that.

adam100. Someone has called your dream Utopia and, as you should know, Utopia isn`t possible to make. History likes to repeat itself. You are mixing up two different meanings: patriotism (+) and nationalism (-). Your mentality scares me.

Poland is really FAR from ideal and there are lots of things I don`t like, but at last it`s MY country and it deserves my... if not love, just respect. Country isn`t a government.

---
Okay, I`m shutting up. Not because I have nothing more to say, but I have an eerie feeling it`s not a correct place to discuss our political views.

[adam100]

Skurwy- first and foremost indeed we should stop discussing politics here but seeing as there is some misunderstanging I believe I should straighten things up. I mentioned nationalism and I meant it as such. You see, patriotism is pure madness for it lacks any reasonable explanation as a foundation and patriotism should be described not as an attribute but rather a certain behaviour. Now, nationalism is simply a desperate attempt to warrant patriotism and conjure its non-existent values. I want to ask you one question- by saying that your country deserves some love and respect do you refer to some abstract inanimate entity or do you mean the people living within the country? You probably mean the people so bear with me for a moment, all these people are poor and by continuing their eternal matyrdom they continue their suffering and their fellow men. Therefore, if you truly want the best for your people you should encourage them to leave the country or join it to a better country so as to share its goods. Again I underline that I know what nationalism is and I used it intentionally. In our situation it is best to let go of our roots and nation and convert, that is what most people do and you cannot deny it.

PS. Indeed Utopia is not achievable in life yet I consider unification but a single, though important, step in the greater scheme of improvement and by no means do I except such a world to be anywhere close to perfect. It will be quite perfect in a larger scale but if you look closer people still will fight and argue and microscopic conflicts will not cease but the likelihood of a large scale war emmergin will greatly decrease. Last but not least, such a dream, even if not througoughly achievable should be pursued and you say that it is best to leave it as it is, with no hope, not a single attempt? Well if so then you aren't that "patriotic" as you state.

[skw]

Check your PM tommorow.

[/offtopic?]

[InCreator]

What I did mean about graphics was that if he drew something with black cartoony outlines, he'd better stick to them on backgrounds also. Or find some other way of achieving harmony between styles.

The theme sounds interesting to maybe polish people only, yes, because it absolutely fails to introduce/explain it to outsiders.

If I'm ever gonna make a game about Estonian history (I actually dreamed about making historical one, about crusades of 13th century here), I'll give my absolute best to make the theme interesting and educational. I even imagine that this cannot be done without long intro sequence with Eastern-European map showing how Teutonic Order progressed in occupying the Baltics and long texts to tell the tale.

Ace Quest? No. The pioneer AGS games lacked quality yes, but they were simply better games. Recently, new games just fail to do that. Last as awful first-game-attempt I remember was game named Framed, by zooomer1990. The graphics was at same amateur level, the music and puzzles were as random. The text... well, it was even worse. But the game! I loved it. Simply because hard trying was seen everywhere and atmosphere thing was only thing that worked at maximum. Atmosphere. That did whole trick. So, common thinking that without superb storywriting, art and sound -- a good game is impossible to make -- is purely wrong.

[TS]

Thanks for all who played our game. Now I know that it is vevy bad adventure game, especialy for non Polen - maybe in future we will make better product .
I and my two friend started make it 5-6 years ago (in other software for game making) but we didnt finish it than. Now, in last time, when I knew AGS and found a little free time Idecided and finished this game (with some changes - curent political context.
Thank you for many posts

[Obi]

I'm sure my Dad lost his keys in warsaw once, luckily he found them. But it wasn't very adventure gamery, as for this game. It's... interresting.

[vict0r]

The game lacks polish.

It lacks polish?
I think it had too much polish.