(https://i.imgur.com/8JhNPPC.png)
In the future, Humankind has terraformed and colonized many planets...and is continuing to explore up to the far reaches of the galaxy.
[Enter Name] has grown up in the orphanage of Metro City, capital of planet Antoryos, and thus has been given a role to participate in society by becoming a police officer.
with police academy friend Darcy they choose to patrol at night because of the ambient created by the lights of the city.
(https://i.imgur.com/eGbdltJ.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/1bBrY5D.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/JEYdD71.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/Lrd03TQ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Nq83st6.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/gWw5EQd.jpg)
ProgressThis project is in it's very early stages (like Alpha 0.1) at this point as I'm still learning AGS and BLENDER but things are moving forward at their own pace.
My "stronger" skills : Story - Visuals - Audio ambient
My "weaker" skills (still learning) : Coding - Puzzle creation (I could need some inspiration for that when the time comes)
After some weeks wandering around in AGS and BLENDER I can say I'm excited to work on this project :)
I really want to thank all the people that helped me so far on the AGS forums. Thanks to you I now know this modest dream of mine can become reality one day!GAME CREDITS: (as for now)
Spoiler
MUSIC
Synthwave Game Boy by Infraction
80s Synthwave by MOKKA
Electronic by Artur Andreevich
Apollo by MOKKA
Arpy by Dan Henig
3D Models
Rik Vargard
Austin Beaulier
Nours
3DHaupt
Lee Alex Johansson
triplestriker25
Peter Primini
aitortilla01
antoniojmonteiro
tl0615
Gordon Zuchhold
Callum McMorran
Ilona Khovan
Georgia.Perry
BIG THANKS
Crimson Wizard
eriOo
arjOn
Khris
newwaveburritos
heltenjon
Stupot
Ponch
Cassiebsg
Mandle
Slasher
BarbWire
RetroLee
Cassiebsg
Matti
This looks really cool! (nod) You've really got the Neon Jungle down. Best of luck with the project!
Quote from: heltenjon on Mon 07/02/2022 16:47:51
This looks really cool! (nod) You've really got the Neon Jungle down. Best of luck with the project!
Hey thank you very much, heltenjon! :)
I've been told that there was a problem in some cases where my images don't show.
So I uploaded them again, this time on Imgur (thanks eriOo).
I hope evrything is working fine now.
Let me know if there's still a problem!
Cheers
Thank you! I was very curious about how the game looked like after you mentioned blender, but the images were not loading for me before. (wtf)
Now I can see it! It looks gorgeous, very neon! Love it! I am curious how the game works in motion. 8-)
Loving those visuals! ;-D
Thanks for the comments guys! It's so motivating :)
Oh, hey, thanks! And, yes, I agree this looks great. I really dig the nightlife neon vibe.
Quote from: Rik_Vargard on Mon 07/02/2022 16:22:29
My "weaker" skills (still learning) : Coding - Puzzle creation (I could need some inspiration for that when the time comes)
My general advice concerning puzzle creation would be to keep it in mind when you are creating your story. Ask yourself what problems would be natural for your protagonist to meet in your story and try to integrate the puzzles instead of putting them in at a later stage. Also, try to present the problem before the solution...it's okay to look for a key to a door, but may break immersion if you have the key and know that you now need to find a locked door. ;)
Quote from: newwaveburritos on Wed 09/02/2022 21:30:56
Oh, hey, thanks! And, yes, I agree this looks great. I really dig the nightlife neon vibe.
Hey thanks a lot for your comment :)
Quote from: heltenjon on Wed 09/02/2022 22:49:05
Quote from: Rik_Vargard on Mon 07/02/2022 16:22:29
My "weaker" skills (still learning) : Coding - Puzzle creation (I could need some inspiration for that when the time comes)
My general advice concerning puzzle creation would be to keep it in mind when you are creating your story. Ask yourself what problems would be natural for your protagonist to meet in your story and try to integrate the puzzles instead of putting them in at a later stage. Also, try to present the problem before the solution...it's okay to look for a key to a door, but may break immersion if you have the key and know that you now need to find a locked door. ;)
Yeah, I see what you mean there, I also played other people's games to learn. I've played 12 so far and there are very different approaches.
Thank you very much for the advice :)
Quote from: Rik_Vargard on Thu 10/02/2022 16:01:39
Yeah, I see what you mean there, I also played other people's games to learn. I've played 12 so far and there are very different approaches.
Playing other people's games is a great way to learn! (nod) And if you thought out a great solution to a problem that turned out not to be the correct approach, then you already have an idea for something you can use yourself. ;)
Quote from: heltenjon on Thu 10/02/2022 16:58:17
Playing other people's games is a great way to learn! (nod) And if you thought out a great solution to a problem that turned out not to be the correct approach, then you already have an idea for something you can use yourself. ;)
Yeah, what's always fascinating to me in the creative world, like since the beginning of Time, is how people can inspire each other :)
This looks great! Love the cyberpunk theme you got going on here, the 3D voxel art really makes this unique. I'm curious, did you take say a "Donkey Kong Country" approach? (3D Models converted into sprite work?) If so, I've always wanted to try this in a future game, it looks stunning!
Quote from: Stranga on Mon 14/02/2022 05:32:39
This looks great! Love the cyberpunk theme you got going on here, the 3D voxel art really makes this unique. I'm curious, did you take say a "Donkey Kong Country" approach? (3D Models converted into sprite work?) If so, I've always wanted to try this in a future game, it looks stunning!
Ow thank you very much for your motivating comment :)
I had to look for "Donkey Kong Country" and so, technically yeah, I "voxelized" and reworked some free 3d models, others I made from scratch. (nod)
CHAPTER 1 update:
Hello everyone!
I'm at this point where I'm asking myself how I'm doing so far :P
Technically the first part should be finished.
If you are willing and have some time, I'd be honored if you could take a look at it.
DOWNLOAD HERE > https://www.mediafire.com/file/m6taowbxdgggswo/Metro_City_Night_Shift.zip/file
Note: When you arrive at "Chapter 2", nothing really happens after that, but you can now take the AutoCab to visit Sector 2... where nothing happens yet :P
And then there's this question :
From what I've seen from the released games I'm hesitating between releasing each part as a game or releasing the whole game once finished.
What are your thought about that?
Also, here are some new screenshots :
(https://i.imgur.com/Ka9DZK9.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/JQsz0W8.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/tJcpJJD.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/TPaa2rb.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/QuIUFO9.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/NkM6A93.jpg)
Any comments, thought etc. are very welcome!
Thanks a lot!
hello
i was wondering is ags supporting 3d now :confused:
havent played to the end, but i like the 3d look, also the transistion from gameplay to rendered video was nice and the gui is fine imo
it feels a bit static, maybe add some animated stuff to the gameplay, and some ambience sounds
Quote from: chip on Mon 25/07/2022 20:01:23
hello
i was wondering is ags supporting 3d now :confused:
havent played to the end, but i like the 3d look, also the transistion from gameplay to rendered video was nice and the gui is fine imo
it feels a bit static, maybe add some animated stuff to the gameplay, and some ambience sounds
Hey, thank you very much for your feedback. Much appreciated! (nod)
This is looking great. I’ll try and have a play of chapter one tomorrow, if I can carve out a bit of time.
This looks cool, like a modern version of pixels! ;) Nice lighting effects too.
Can't wait to see [Enter Name]'s adventures!
Quote from: Stupot on Thu 28/07/2022 10:17:49
This is looking great. I’ll try and have a play of chapter one tomorrow, if I can carve out a bit of time.
Thank you! (nod) If you have any comment or suggestion don't hesitate.
Quote from: lorenzo on Thu 28/07/2022 13:56:51
This looks cool, like a modern version of pixels! ;) Nice lighting effects too.
Can't wait to see [Enter Name]'s adventures!
Thanks a lot :) Yes, Voxel Art is literally 3D Pixel Art :P
Quote from: chip on Mon 25/07/2022 20:01:23
it feels a bit static, maybe add some animated stuff to the gameplay, and some ambience sounds
Thanks again for that comment, I started animating what I could with the background and objects etc,.. Most doors and elevators are now animated, added some stuff.
All looking better now already.
So much more work but worth it! (laugh)
Ok, so lately I really wanted to find a way to create a big city without having to copy/paste all of the buildings all the time because it takes a lot of energy points from my computer. And me.
After a lot of tutorials (useful and not) I finally found that one tutorial using particles to create my city.
And then the learning curve, but I finally got it:
(https://i.imgur.com/DVLOiG9.jpg) (https://i.imgur.com/WnqfVOg.jpg)
Thus, I got myself a new Intro Screen:
(https://i.imgur.com/oingxYw.jpg)
And also, I've been working a lot on bringing more life into some scenes, creating NPC animations and other animated stuff.
It's hard to take a screenshot from an animated scene, but here's one :
(https://i.imgur.com/KVLX1p8.jpg)
Cheers! :)
This is looking better and better! Looking forward to seeing things move around in this Rik City. (nod)
The download link to the demo doesn't work anymore. It would be cool if you updated it, or if you don't want it there anymore, edit the post with a strikethrough like this to show it's removed. (I hope it's available...)
Quote from: heltenjon on Thu 08/09/2022 08:23:18
This is looking better and better! Looking forward to seeing things move around in this Rik City. (nod)
The download link to the demo doesn't work anymore. It would be cool if you updated it, or if you don't want it there anymore, edit the post with a strikethrough like this to show it's removed. (I hope it's available...)
Hey thanks, Heltenjohn! (nod)
Also thx for letting me know about the Mediafire link, I don't know why it happened, because the file is still there.
Maybe there's a time limit when using the free version? They could give us a warning.
Anyway, here's a new link : https://www.mediafire.com/file/8z5io6eu9ft6vee/Metro_City_Night_Shift_0.1.zip/file
Cheers! :)
I just (finally) played the demo/chapter one. It's been on my to-do-list for a while now.
How to describe the look...It's in the lane of roblox, minecraft or lego. 3d pixel art is about right. I think the city looks beautiful, with very strong Blade Runner vibes. You've also added a lot of animation (after one of the comments, I guess), which all add tons to the atmosphere.
I also liked the story so far, investigating and getting to know a few people. The score system looks interesting, particularly how the player earns relationship points regarding other people, both police and villains. I guess you have a plan for using that later on in the story.
What can get better? I'd say adding more interactive items or hotspots. First off, every possible interaction should get a reply. It's a good idea to make a standard reply if the player tries to do something you haven't made a custom reply for. Like "I only talk to people and bots" or "I see nothing special". It's even better to actually have custom replies, of course. As this is an investigative game, I think the potential crime scenes would benefit from having several hotspots to examine, including some not relevant to the case. Basically, the more the merrier. It's a bit laborious, I know.
Even without added hotspots, I recommend people to give this demo a go. It would be worth it just for the neon city and the fluid flying animations alone. I didn't think of the similarities of Rik Vargard and Rick Deckard until now, but I enjoyed the chance of being a cop in a Blade Runner-inspired city. Good stuff!
Hey heltenjon, thank you so much for taking the time to test and give me this precious feedback, it means a lot! (nod)
I guess the "too little hotspots" comment is there because of "Sector2"? I just wanted people who tested this at this point to have access to it just for the ambience because "sector 2" is a WIP where nothing really happens right now...?
In reality, players will only gain access after finishing the first mission. :P
And I'm really glad you liked the overall ambient, visuals and story (so far). :)
Cheers!
Quote from: Rik Vargard on Thu 08/12/2022 19:34:35I guess the "too little hotspots" comment is there because of "Sector2"?
No, I was thinking about the apartment where the first case is. Mind you, there is nothing wrong with the apartment, I'm simply thinking about how to improve even further. I believe that in an investigative game, the immersion will be higher if the player can look at lots of stuff in a room that doesn't turn out to be essential. Say you have a room where the player is supposed to find something in a drawer. If that's the only hotspot, I'll find it and move on quickly. But if I can look at all the furniture, under it, check behind the books on a shelf, peek under a rug, behind the curtains, look behind the picture on the wall etc, I will feel more like a detective doing a proper search, even if all that turns out nothing, and I've really only needed to find the item in the drawer.
Anyway, the normal advice is to make the game playable first, and then add such non-vital stuff later on. Feel free to follow or disregard this, I'm on board anyhow. :-D
Hi Rik,
That's a good start.
Radom thoughts in no particular order:
Great effort on the presentation. The FMV clips are a very cool and I like seeing NPCs walk around.
Some unnecessary manipulations with the ID card. As long as I have it, I would like to open a door or take a taxi with just 1 click. I prefer the simpler BASS template (left click=action, right click= look) over the clumsy Sierra interface.
Layouts and directions could be improved.
Spoiler
- at the beginning, you can take a taxi to Section 2. You have absolutely nothing to do there at this point. The cab is more visible than the police station so players are likely to try it first.
- in the house, the access to the bedroom is located opposite to the entrance (makes no sense).
- The game tells me that I need a code for the safe when it's actually a sentence / password.
- I thought I had to use every painting title to form a sentence but some words are left out. I can think of other sentences with these words : « they will not take peace. » « they will not be strong » and so on...
- I cannot open Alex's car with his ID.
Foreshadowing felt a little cheap :
Spoiler
Guy in the street (in a nutshell) : « Hello, I came here to tell you that I'll have a message for you later. »
Me : « Why didn't you wait until you have it before coming? »
Some hotspots give no answer (a « hotspot 17 » in the kitchen, the safe after you've opened it....).
I had to reload because of a bug: the hotspot of the safe stopped working before I opened it.
I like the incorporated help system and the conversations with my colleagues.
Keep up the good work.
Quote from: heltenjon on Fri 09/12/2022 03:39:58No, I was thinking about the apartment ....
Ah yes. I thought about that a while ago and then I forgot; like you said here, that would be part of the final tuning.
Thank you for the reminder! :)
Quote from: eliasdiaz on Fri 09/12/2022 07:53:15When will this game be released? :Grin:
Not anytime soon I'm afraid... still a lot of work to be done :P
Hello Creamy,
Thank you very much for taking the time for this feedback! (nod)
I put my replies as spoiler because it does contain real spoilers! (laugh)
Spoiler
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23Some unnecessary manipulations with the ID card. As long as I have it, I would like to open a door or take a taxi with just 1 click. I prefer the simpler BASS template (left click=action, right click= look) over the clumsy Sierra interface.
The keycard : Good point.! Just having it should be enough.
The interface : That's how I learned based on the tutorials. So yeah, that's how it is in my game.
I've seen games with the BASS template after that but wasn't sure it would give the same liberty.
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23at the beginning, you can take a taxi to Section 2.
Yeah, since this was just to find out what people thought about it so far, I wanted them to discover what I did.
In the game, the player won't be able to go to Sector 2 until after the first mission is complete.
Like "No time I need to go to the police station"... or something like that.
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23- in the house, the access to the bedroom is located opposite to the entrance (makes no sense).
I thought about this and I think that what you say makes sense from a "map" point of view where I see it from the "character" point of view where, when he climbs the stairs, the door is on his right. That's me and my head tho (but even there I will have to redo the graphics).
So good point.
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23- The game tells me that I need a code for the safe when it's actually a sentence / password
The player does say "Is it a number? A word? Or a phrase?" and to me everything leads to the fact that it is a phrase, even talking to the inspector.
Or maybe I'm doing it wrong? Might be my and English... but at the end you did find it, right?
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23- I thought I had to use every painting title to form a sentence but some words are left out. I can think of other sentences with these words : « they will not take peace. » « they will not be strong » and so on.
Yeah, that was part of the puzzle... testing combinations :P
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23- I cannot open Alex's car with his ID.
Ah, you're not supposed to, but you're right, having the player say something about that is a good idea.
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23Guy in the street (in a nutshell) : « Hello, I came here to tell you that I'll have a message for you later. »
Me : « Why didn't you wait until you have it before coming? »
Yeah very good point. Still thinking about this one because it has implications.
I will have to find a reason for that.
Quote from: Creamy on Sun 11/12/2022 17:00:23I had to reload because of a bug: the hotspot of the safe stopped working before I opened it.
That one I don't understand. When you enter the right password, you should automatically walk to the safe and take the items.
After that there's no more interaction possible with the safe.
I also fixed HotSpot 7 in the kitchen which I completely forgot, thanks!
And again, thank you so much for taking the time to do all this.
It's amazing and I am truly honored.
Cheers!! (nod)
Quote from: Rik Vargard on Mon 12/12/2022 20:15:53Quote from: heltenjon on Fri 09/12/2022 03:39:58No, I was thinking about the apartment ....
Ah yes. I thought about that a while ago and then I forgot; like you said here, that would be part of the final tuning.
Thank you for the reminder! :)
But then I read what Shadow1000, fellow AGS-er whose opinions I value a lot, wrote about
Highland Spirit, a game he clearly loves:
Quote from: Shadow1000 on Wed 07/12/2022 22:07:26My only criticism is that there were some puzzles that you had to literally click every item out of a few dozen till you came across the one you are looking for. This is not unheard of in traditional point and click adventures (in fact, most of the time that you encounter a bookcase, you can expect to have to click all the wrong titles till you find that book you're looking for) but still a bit tedious.
So I guess we're a divided lot. He's critical to the very thing I tell you I want in your game. :-D In the end, you'll have to do what feels right to you. There's a fine line somewhere between engrossing and tedious, you just have to find it.
Quote from: heltenjon on Tue 13/12/2022 01:04:03But then I read what Shadow1000, fellow AGS-er whose opinions I value a lot, wrote about Highland Spirit, a game he clearly loves:Quote from: Shadow1000 on Wed 07/12/2022 22:07:26My only criticism is that there were some puzzles that you had to literally click every item out of a few dozen till you came across the one you are looking for. This is not unheard of in traditional point and click adventures (in fact, most of the time that you encounter a bookcase, you can expect to have to click all the wrong titles till you find that book you're looking for) but still a bit tedious.
So I guess we're a divided lot. He's critical to the very thing I tell you I want in your game. :-D In the end, you'll have to do what feels right to you. There's a fine line somewhere between engrossing and tedious, you just have to find it.
Hey, thanks for the shout-out. As far as a divided lot, you're 100% right. There's no such thing as a game that will cater to everyone with every puzzle. I know that (as you pointed out) I can really enjoy a great game even though some of the puzzles aren't my speed, and someone will like the same game for the puzzles that I didn't care for and not like the puzzles I enjoyed. The key is to vary up the types of puzzles and test it on a broad enough group that there's a consensus of people who enjoy it.
Cheers
Hello heltenjon and Shadow1000,
Thank you both for sharing your point of view about puzzles. :)
It's a tricky one, isn't it? There are so many parameters.
I've watched a lot of videos and read a lot about creating puzzles in adventure games.
( I didn't get any better at it, it still takes me forever to create one. (laugh) )
And I think that the most important thing that I learned is that it has to make some sense based on the world of your game.
And there will always be people who like and who don't.
And also have fun (nod)
Cheers!
So! Lately I've been working on an aspect that I wanted in my game:
- Some kind of Hacking Mini Tiny Game thingy to unlock stuff.
- And also a simple battle system.
It was a first and a quite epic ride but well worth it.
So I'm happy to have been able to make those, at my level, and show you some screenshots:
(https://i.imgur.com/5bEJ2Po.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/EzlNVsT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/XjmSc3s.jpg)
In other news, because of this, I kind of leveled up like 2/100 and started to simplify or rewrite some coding all over the rooms.
I also made some changes to the game based on the latest feedback that I got; thanks a lot(!) for those! (nod)
Cheers!
Damn it how do I delete this message?
Sorry for that ... news coming very soon (nod)
(https://i.imgur.com/Nu5rkr7.jpg)
The finish line is in sight!
Things have been epic, lately, with tons and tons of bugs and technical problems. 99% of those have been solved right now.
As I approach the end of my first game here, I will of course have to learn how to create a nice itch.io page.
So if some of you have experience with that and want to share, I'd be grateful :)I can now present to you: the cast!
Some are important characters, some are just passing by, creating the ambient.(https://i.imgur.com/WQGSqK1.png)
I can't wait to be on that "Completed Games" part of the forums. 8-0
And I know I say it a lot, but I don't say it enough:
Thanks a lot to everyone who supported me, the people at the technical forums, those who tested my game, you all inspired me to make that game, that at my level, I didn't thought I could make. (nod)
It will still be at my level, tho (laugh)
Cheers and see you soon for more news!
METRO CITY:Night Shift has been released!
Click here to go to the forum page. (https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/completed-game-announcements/metro-city-night-shift-61186/new/#new)
(https://i.imgur.com/Jrja1XT.jpg)
See you at the "Completed Games" part of AGS!
(nod)