MAGS January “Break Some Rules” (VOTING)

Started by Stupot, Wed 01/01/2025 14:20:40

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What is your favourite game of MAGS January?

Bière Américaine (MAGS) by Ponch
Skrexeval's Quest (MAGS) by Emma Gundersen
Artifact by Kara Jo Kalinowski and pell
One Million Years Dungeon by Falsely

Voting closes: Thu 27/02/2025 08:00:58

Stupot

2025 - THE YEAR OF MAGS!


THEME: BREAK SOME RULES
Theme set by Babar and jfrisby



Voting is open.
Please vote for your favourite entry using the poll above

Bière Américaine
by Ponch
Skrexeval's Quest
by Emma Gundersen
Artifact
by Kara Jo Kalinowski and pell
One Million Years Dungeon
by Falsely



Break one (or several) of the various rules/axioms/taboos of adventure gaming.

Through the years many have written about 'what not to do' when making an adventure game. All those supposed 'rules' and conventions have robbed us of who-knows-how-many cat hair moustaches, mazes, and delicious softlocks. I say those rules are flexible... or asking to be broken! :D

Backwards puzzles? sure!
Pixel hunts? yes please!
Obtuse puzzles? Moon logic? I like the moon!
Unfair deaths? Kill me now!
Missable clues? Softlocks? Just start over!
Mazes? Amazing!
A cat hair mustache? it could work!
Sliding tiles..... well, lets not get crazy... or maybe?


Many more examples:
https://grumpygamer.com/why_adventure_games_suck

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/Bill_of_Adventure_Gamers'_Rights

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/adventure-related-talk-chat/checklist-of-adventure-game-ideals/?all

https://www.oldmanmurray.com/features/77.html
https://www.pcgamer.com/the-10-worst-and-most-wtf-puzzles-in-adventure-gaming/







What is MAGS?
Started in 2001, MAGS is a competition for all AGS users. The idea is to create a game in under a month, following the guidelines set by the previous winner. It aims to help you work to a deadline, improve your skills, and provide a kick-start into making adventure games and more. Regardless of skill, MAGS is for everyone. Voting is based on "favourite" games, and not the most artistic, or the best coded. If you want to improve you art skills, use it as a chance to do some graphic work. If you're sub-standard at coding, use it as a chance to give scripting a go. Ultimately, people will vote for the most enjoyable entry.

Rules
Entering MAGS is simple. First, conceptualize your game following the month's criteria (see above). Second, create your game, fuelled only by coffee. Finally, post your game in this thread, including:

* A working download link
* The title of your game
* A suitable in-game screenshot

At the end of the month, voting will begin, and the winner chooses the next month's theme.

Remember that this is a challenge to see what you can do in a month, so any tinkering you do after that, including fixing minor glitches, is against the spirit of the competition. The exception to this is that you may go in and fix major, game-breaking bugs only during voting. We want you to have a game that voters can actually play and that runs on their machines.

So to reiterate, during the voting period fixing major, game-breaking bugs is okay, fixing minor glitches or making cosmetic changes is cheating.

Tips
Here are some ways to make sure you have a game to submit at the end of the month:
* Make a tiny game. Plan small, then cut it in half. Find shortcuts (e.g. if making walk-cycles is time-consuming, make the characters static or have it in the first person).
* Plan to have your game playable and submittable with a week to spare. This way you have a week to fix bugs, add some flourishes and maybe even get someone to test it.
* Plan to submit it a day or so early. This way, if there are any technical issues with uploading, they can be sorted out in time.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Need a little help with graphics? Perhaps The AGS Trove has something you can use.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Need a bit of help with music?  Check out Eric Matyas' huge stock of free music resources.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Don't want to go it alone? Try the Recruitment board.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Stupot

Any early interest? Let's see if we can start the year off with a bang.

Ponch

Am I in? Yes!
Will i finish? Maybe!  :=

Kara Jo Kalinowski

This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

pell

Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sun 05/01/2025 18:04:42This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

I didn't plan on participating by myself this month, but I'm willing to handle the art side if you or someone else wants to collaborate.

Falsely

Well, this is delightfully evil.

I just finished playing Return to Zork, so I've had dumb deaths and mazes on the brain for a while...  :-D

heltenjon

Quote from: pell on Sun 05/01/2025 22:12:52
Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sun 05/01/2025 18:04:42This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

I didn't plan on participating by myself this month, but I'm willing to handle the art side if you or someone else wants to collaborate.
I don't have much time for coding either, but I'm sure I could cook up some backwards puzzles or a stupid plot, if needed.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Quote from: pell on Sun 05/01/2025 22:12:52
Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sun 05/01/2025 18:04:42This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

I didn't plan on participating by myself this month, but I'm willing to handle the art side if you or someone else wants to collaborate.

Definitely interested in collaborating to make a game, do you have Discord?

VampireWombat

I had no plans of making a game, but I've had ideas come to me after watching Doom Patrol the last few days. And after waking up I had more ideas which flesh things out more.

pell

Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Mon 06/01/2025 06:00:09
Quote from: pell on Sun 05/01/2025 22:12:52
Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sun 05/01/2025 18:04:42This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

I didn't plan on participating by myself this month, but I'm willing to handle the art side if you or someone else wants to collaborate.

Definitely interested in collaborating to make a game, do you have Discord?

I sent you a private message.

pell

Quote from: heltenjon on Sun 05/01/2025 23:07:24
Quote from: pell on Sun 05/01/2025 22:12:52
Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sun 05/01/2025 18:04:42This is really interesting and would be fun, but I usually give up when making these because I don't have time for all the art. But maybe..

I didn't plan on participating by myself this month, but I'm willing to handle the art side if you or someone else wants to collaborate.
I don't have much time for coding either, but I'm sure I could cook up some backwards puzzles or a stupid plot, if needed.

We'll have to do another one sometime. I'm hoping there's another "finish your MAGS game" topic so we can finish our last one.

Radiant

Needs more Monkey Wrench!  :grin:

Also, nice to hear that it's the Year Of MAGS. I wonder what that entails, is something special going to happen this year?

heltenjon

#12
Okay, so I threw together a shortish break-the-rules puzzle flow, which I will post in spoiler tags.
If anyone wants to participate, and need the puzzles, feel free to use this (or parts of it). I won't have the time to make it myself, but I don't think any of the puzzles here should be difficult to implement - it's fairly beginner level stuff.

Be advised, though, that in any other context than this MAGS, this will be horrible design. If someone makes the game, it will likely score zero or one cup. But I'm fine with that.  :-D

In case you're a player, don't read the puzzle flow until after we see if someone uses it. Otherwise, this is up for grabs for anyone.

The puzzle flow:
Spoiler
Puzzle flow proposal for the MAGS "Break some rules"

Room 1
There should be several items available (on the floor?), with no rhyme or reason to them. Most of them are going to be red herrings. Among the items are BLUE PAINT and YELLOW PAINT. There is a WALL to the left which is a huge hotspot. It is possible to use the paints on this to change the colour, and if both are used, the result is a green wall. Nothing of that yields any results, but makes the player lose the paint (walking dead).

Another item is a COWBOY HAT.

There is a MOUSE sitting on the floor. The mouse will disappear, and if it is not caught by using the COWBOY HAT, it disappears forever. This can be done with a timer, or by triggering an animation of the MOUSE running away either when a certain item is picked up, or when the player comes too close.

To the right, there is a door. When the player walks through this door, an anvil posed on top of the door in the next room kills him. Restart. The player has to USE one of the seemingly useless items on the door to trigger the trap. This should not be an obvious choice for throwing, but rather random, like a BANANA. The BANANA is now lost, crushed by the anvil. The trap can also be triggered by one of the PAINTS, resulting in losing the PAINT (walking dead).

The player can now walk through the door.

ROOM 2
Again, the obvious exit is to the right, where there is a white door. In front of it, there is a CAT. Amazingly, the player cannot pass the cat and is stopped by it. No explanation is given for this. The solution is to USE MOUSE on CAT. The CAT takes the MOUSE and runs away with it. The COWBOY HAT also disappears in this move, possibly destroyed by the cat, or maybe worn by it, depending on how much animation one wants to make.

A BLUE KEY has appeared where the CAT was. Apparently it was lying on top of it.
The player will try the WHITE DOOR. It is locked. Using the BLUE KEY does not work. The player has to USE BLUE PAINT on the WHITE DOOR, making BLUE DOOR. Then USE BLUE KEY on BLUE DOOR, which of course unlocks it. The player can progress through the door to room 3.

ROOM 3
In this room we see the BLUE DOOR to the left, a GREEN TABLE in the middle, and a WALL to the right.  The point here is that the GREEN TABLE is covered in green glue. Every item used on the GREEN TABLE will stick there and turn green.

If the player clicks on the BLUE DOOR, expecting to return to the previous room, he will instead tear the door from its hinges. The KEY will fall to the ground, now inexplicably turned grey. BLUE DOOR will be added to the player's inventory. The exit to the left collapses, and there is no way back.

The player must now USE KEY with the GREEN TABLE, resulting in a GREEN KEY that is glued to the table surface. Then he has to USE YELLOW PAINT with the BLUE DOOR, getting a GREEN DOOR.

Now, the GREEN DOOR or the BLUE DOOR (before it turns green) may be used with the WALL. In true Bugs Bunny logic, it fastens and becomes a regular door that can be opened...except that it is locked. The only way to unlock it, is to USE GREEN DOOR on the GREEN KEY that is stuck to the table.

After putting up the GREEN DOOR that is unlocked on the WALL, the player can walk through it into Room 4.

Room 4
This contains a DOCUMENT which can be read. The DOCUMENT says that in the first room, there is a small hotspot on the WALL and a description of where to search for it.
There is no way for the player to return to Room 1, so he's stuck in a walking dead position.

However, he can now RESTART, and in ROOM 1, he can now search the WALL on the left for a small hotspot a few pixels wide. This can be labelled WIN GAME or something misleading, like "Hotspot1", depending on preference.

Clicking WIN GAME will give a small message of congratulations and end the game.
[close]

Ponch

Holy cats, i finished a MAGS game!  :shocked:

Bière Américaine


Rules broken:
* Sliding tile puzzle
* Unskippable maze
* Limited game play

The end result: Unskippable sliding tile limited game play maze puzzle!  :=

DOWNLOAD IF YOU DARE

Kara Jo Kalinowski

We're still working on ours...not sure if we will need an extension or not, but I needed to come online to get the assets and there was a site upgrade being done..... and the next time I was part of the mass false spam ban :) But regardless we do plan on submitting a game

Falsely

Still chipping away at mine. Things definitely got away from me, but I should have something semi-playable by the deadline. Will it be good? Bad? Who knows!  (laugh)


Radiant

I'm also working on something, and I'm going to Break Some Rules by releasing it after the deadline! So there  :grin:

(seriously though, is it ok to ask for an extension until this Sunday?)

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Quote from: Radiant on Wed 29/01/2025 14:49:29I'm also working on something, and I'm going to Break Some Rules by releasing it after the deadline! So there  :grin:

(seriously though, is it ok to ask for an extension until this Sunday?)

That would be better for me too. I have family stuff on Friday. And the art will probably be done around then.

Falsely

Thirded on the request for an extension. I'll have something done before then, but the extra time would let me finish at a more sensible pace.

jfrisby

Quote from: Ponch on Sun 26/01/2025 23:26:01Holy cats, i finished a MAGS game!  :shocked:

Bière Américaine


 (laugh)  (laugh)  (laugh)
I've wasted like 20 minutes on this tile puzzle, its so evil.. well done! :D

Ponch

Quote from: jfrisby on Thu 30/01/2025 02:15:04(laugh)  (laugh)  (laugh)
I've wasted like 20 minutes on this tile puzzle, its so evil.. well done! :D
:cheesy:
Exactly as I intended!

EmmaGundersen




Hello! Finished this one in just the last week. The whole game is designed with the theme in mind, from UI to puzzle design.

Story: You are Skrexeval of Banmarist,  a yeoman of the (space) middle ages who dreams of the chance to become a knight and kiss a maiden fair. Luckily, the King has announced a tourney in which any one who can prove himself will have the chance to ascend to knighthood!

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/play/game/2824/

(I'm still waiting for some final playtesting feedback but since I'm not sure if I'll have time to work more on it before the deadline I'm posting it now.)

VampireWombat

Since everyone else seems to have put thought and effort into their games, I'm not bothering with trying to finish my game which would end up being mostly a maze where you collect ingredients to achieve the infamous cat hair moustache puzzle.
Congratulations to everyone who has finished their game already and good luck to those who are still working.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Haven't heard from Stupot, but I guess since a few of us are wanting an extension it's safe to assume that it'll be okay?

Ponch

#24
Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Fri 31/01/2025 17:21:38Haven't heard from Stupot, but I guess since a few of us are wanting an extension it's safe to assume that it'll be okay?
I don't think you need permission. Breaking the rules is encouraged, I think.  :wink:

Kara Jo Kalinowski

pell wanted me to get in a submission by midnight local time just in case an extention wasn't granted, and if the extension is fine, I will be adding the rest of the game at that point.

This game is technically able to be completed as it is now, though it's missing a majority of the content.

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/play/game/2825/

Artifact - by Kara Jo Kalinowski and pell



You are Cole, an adventurer from a family of treasure hunters, and you arrive to find a note - which takes you to explore the mysterious catacombs in search for an artifact. Prepare yourself, then head out for adventure.

pell

#26
That download link isn't working, so I have it here:

https://itch.io/game/edit/3292230

Edit for correct link:
https://gamesbypell.itch.io/mags-january2025

Kara Jo Kalinowski

#27
I don't know how to delete the post, sorry, but that link wasn't working at the time of the post. Meant to PM

pell

Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sat 01/02/2025 06:12:09I don't know how to delete the post, sorry, but that link isn't working. Meant to PM

It should be working now. I hadn't set the project to be publicly accessible.

Stupot

Quote from: Radiant on Wed 29/01/2025 14:49:29I'm also working on something, and I'm going to Break Some Rules by releasing it after the deadline! So there  :grin:

(seriously though, is it ok to ask for an extension until this Sunday?)
The rules are there ain't no rules... Well, that's technically a rule, of sorts. But yes, another day or so is fine with me.

Falsely

#30
ONE MILLION YEARS DUNGEON
- An Exercise In Frustration -
Google Drive (because itch wasn't cooperating)


The friendly ghosts of Quoris have gone missing, and all trails lead to the local dungeon. Seize control over the poor adventurers who keep wandering in there and see if you can escort them to answers - and then back out alive.

You probably wont. Good thing the townsfolk have people to spare, eh?

Rules broken: Cheap deaths, mazes (bring a pen and paper!), copy protection puzzles, a jokey pixel hunt, puzzles that don't really make sense and if you want to understand the backstory you're gonna have to do some homework.

Other notes: No audio, rough art, and an incomplete story because I ran out of steam. There's like 80 rooms in this thing. Send help.

Save often because even after vigorous playtesting I'm not sure everything works. (There aren't supposed to be any walking deads but the game loves to prove me wrong.) Anywho, hopefully you get a laugh or two out of it!

The camera is a bit funny sometimes. If your screen turns green, press S or the Down arrow key to put it back to normal.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

#31
Quote from: Stupot on Sun 02/02/2025 05:14:39
Quote from: Radiant on Wed 29/01/2025 14:49:29I'm also working on something, and I'm going to Break Some Rules by releasing it after the deadline! So there  :grin:

(seriously though, is it ok to ask for an extension until this Sunday?)
The rules are there ain't no rules... Well, that's technically a rule, of sorts. But yes, another day or so is fine with me.

I'll plan to resubmit what I have finished by the end of today... it's 9 AM for me now. Or possibly a bit after midnight if needed.

Edit: As of 2 PM, I have completed all inventory/room interactions that were intended in the starting room and the final room. It is actually a "finished game" now proper with puzzles. A big part of the game is intended to be the catacombs/labyrinth segment in between, which I still plan to add. Whether I finish that part or not, I will still be uploading a finalized version tonight.

heltenjon

@Falsely - The download on itch gives "invalid game" error message.

Radiant

I had less time this weekend than I hoped, so please don't wait for me any further.

jfrisby

Each game more inscrutable than the last... looking forward to playing all of these! :D

Falsely

Quote from: heltenjon on Sun 02/02/2025 16:20:10@Falsely - The download on itch gives "invalid game" error message.

Bah. One of these days I'll submit a MAGS entry properly on my first attempt.
Swapped it out for a Google Drive link that should work and should hopefully be the right build. Thank you!

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Our game is now finished.

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/completed-game-announcements/artifact-mags/

Artifact - Created by Kara Jo Kalinowski and pell

You are Cole, an adventurer from a family of treasure hunters, and you arrive to find a note - which takes you to explore the mysterious catacombs in search for an artifact. Prepare yourself, then head out for adventure.

https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/play/game/2825/

https://kara-jo-kalinowski.itch.io/artifact





WHAM

I'm planning to do my usual MAGS Twitch stream this Thursday at around 17:00 UTC, playing all the games released to see if I can beat them. So if you'd like to come see me fumble my way through your contest entry live, feel free to join up! Videos of each game will be put up on Youtube as well and linked here later.

https://www.twitch.tv/whamtheman
Wrongthinker and anticitizen one. Utterly untrustworthy. Pending removal to memory hole.

Ponch

Quote from: WHAM on Mon 03/02/2025 19:17:10I'm planning to do my usual MAGS Twitch stream this Thursday at around 17:00 UTC, playing all the games released to see if I can beat them.
I apologize in advance.  :=

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Quote from: Ponch on Tue 04/02/2025 00:02:51
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 03/02/2025 19:17:10I'm planning to do my usual MAGS Twitch stream this Thursday at around 17:00 UTC, playing all the games released to see if I can beat them.
I apologize in advance.  :=
I think most of us are that way lol. I could have made my game a lot worse..

jfrisby

#40
Quote from: Falsely on Sun 02/02/2025 21:24:49Bah. One of these days I'll submit a MAGS entry properly on my first attempt.

Been having a fantastic time with One Million Years Dungeon, hoping you can give me a nudge...

Spoiler
I have mapped the dungeon. 
I have all the orbs.

-SNIP SNIP THE ORB SOLUTION HERE-

I'm not sure what the white thing on the floor of the Head pedestal room is...  any help appreciated :D
[close]

Falsely

#41
Quote from: jfrisby on Tue 04/02/2025 03:27:46Been having a fantastic time with One Million Years Dungeon, hoping you can give me a nudge...

Spoiler
I have mapped the dungeon. 
I have all the orbs.
I've tied vines to get back to the entrance.

I've been swapping orbs based off all the hints I can find, but can't seem to get the eastern door open.

-snip-

I'm not sure what the white thing on the floor of the Head pedestal room is...  any help appreciated :D
[close]

Wow, I wasn't expecting anyone to enjoy the game. Sure!

Spoiler
Those colours are correct! Shame some idiot printed the manual in black and white. There's no "solid" hint for the sea, other than process of elimination.

When you've got everything in the right place, return to the tablet and place your hand on it. It won't unlock the door in the damp room, but it should help you get going again. (There IS a way to unlock it, but since you haven't mentioned certain things yet I'm going to err on the side of caution.)

The white thing on the floor is a badly-drawn puddle. You don't need to do anything with it.

Also, condolences on already having the vines set up. I see you've met the mimic.  (laugh)
[close]

edit: Ugh, just noticed an obnoxious glitch relating to the eastern door. It's not game-breaking, but I'll write it here just in case.
Spoiler
Attempting to push an item through the crack in the wall will cause it to drop onto the floor of the current room, not the other side. You can retrieve the items from the floor by leaving and returning.

There's still a way to get items past the door, so I don't know if it'd be acceptable per MAGS rules for me to patch it out. But it does make the next section a bit harder.
[close]

jfrisby

#42
Quote from: Falsely on Tue 04/02/2025 04:16:35
Spoiler
There's still a way to get items past the door, so I don't know if it'd be acceptable per MAGS rules for me to patch it out. But it does make the next section a bit harder.
[close]

Spoiler
This has just been fantastic, I think I'm at 3-4 hours, but enjoyed it a ton... 
.. I am also stuck again and wanted to confirm this isn't a bug.

I've brought Quintus back, and he 'retired' me and sent me to open the door from the other side...
It felt like the goal here was to return to the crack and talk to him and he'd tell me what to do.. but I can't talk to him through the crack. :D

I have the key, I have the lost and found tree (I'm assuming this is the only way to pass items over right now?). I don't think I can lost and found the translation spell over?  Am I just trying to open the door on my own?  Please tell me I don't have to rearrange orbs :D
[close]

Falsely

#43
Quote from: jfrisby on Wed 05/02/2025 03:43:52
Spoiler
This has just been fantastic, I think I'm at 3-4 hours, but enjoyed it a ton... 
.. I am also stuck again and wanted to confirm this isn't a bug.

I've brought Quintus back, and he 'retired' me and sent me to open the door from the other side...
It felt like the goal here was to return to the crack and talk to him and he'd tell me what to do.. but I can't talk to him through the crack. :D

I have the key, I have the lost and found tree (I'm assuming this is the only way to pass items over right now?). I don't think I can lost and found the translation spell over?  Am I just trying to open the door on my own?  Please tell me I don't have to rearrange orbs :D
[close]

Nope, not a bug! You've hit the point where the puzzles get really mean. Partly because of the theme, and partly because I ran out of time to put in proper hints. (Fair point about not being able to talk to him through the crack. I hadn't thought of that! I'll see if I can add that in a post-jam release.)

Some hints, if you want to try and puzzle it out on your own:
Spoiler
  • The Lost and Found Box and Tree can't be used to sneak items into other parts of the dungeon. They'll only respawn items that belong in the East and West respectively. (It'll also bring back 'personal' items, i.e. the adventurer's weapon.) If it doesn't bring an item back to you, then rest assured it's either fulfilled its purpose or is a junk item.
  • Don't worry, you're done with the orbs. They were a one time thing.  :-D
  • The key is a red herring. There are no keyholes in the Dungeon.
  • You'll need Godere for this. If you haven't experimented with it much, it will teleport you exactly one room in the direction you're currently facing. And I mean ANY direction you're facing. ...So long as there's space for a person.
  • Is there a direction you're forgetting?
  • What might suggest there's a room behind all that brick?
[close]

And if you're truly stuck, here's the solution:
Spoiler
When you're in the water room, look up. There's a crack in the ceiling that's leaking. Cast Godere on the ceiling and you should find yourself up a floor and very damp. (Your screen might turn green while doing this - that's a cosmetic bug. press Down to fix it.)

You can undo the lock from there. Then, hop back down and open the door.
[close]

I will say I'm a bit worried about the next puzzle in particular. I was very tired when implementing it and the dialog surrounding it. Sorry in advance. P:

jfrisby

#44
Quote from: Falsely on Wed 05/02/2025 04:46:45I will say I'm a bit worried about the next puzzle in particular. I was very tired when implementing it and the dialog surrounding it. Sorry in advance. P:

Spoiler
I made it!!
I'll try to be vague to not spoil others that might be tempted to look.. and I'm going to go back and delete that orb post to foil them :P

I swear I had thought about teleporting up there, but thought it was an ocean or something above me. (I'd used the knife up there and the animation from that made me think it was water coming down).

That last puzzle is great, that only took 15 minutes or so to figure out :D  I thought that might come into play, but hadn't tried to mess around with it :D
(the text in the l+f room made me think I had to take/leave certain things for a bit).

I still only have a vague idea what the Dark Servant was, or what happened, but it all worked well with some 'calm adventure and exploration' youtube music.. Love the interplay between the manual and game - I've been trying to think of a copy protection that worked as well... Please make more!
[close]

Falsely

Quote from: jfrisby on Wed 05/02/2025 06:03:48
Spoiler
I made it!!
I'll try to be vague to not spoil others that might be tempted to look.. and I'm going to go back and delete that orb post to foil them :P

I swear I had thought about teleporting up there, but thought it was an ocean or something above me. (I'd used the knife up there and the animation from that made me think it was water coming down).

That last puzzle is great, that only took 15 minutes or so to figure out :D  I thought that might come into play, but hadn't tried to mess around with it :D
(the text in the l+f room made me think I had to take/leave certain things for a bit).

I still only have a vague idea what the Dark Servant was, or what happened, but it all worked well with some 'calm adventure and exploration' youtube music.. Love the interplay between the manual and game - I've been trying to think of a copy protection that worked as well... Please make more!
[close]

Congratulations on finishing, and thank you very much for the kind words! I've gone ahead and edited some of my own hints down too. :P

(Big ol' spoilers in this comment. This turned into a bit of a postmortem, oops.)

Spoiler
Good instincts RE: the ocean. It was originally going to be completely flooded, resulting in a timed puzzle to unlock the door and escape before you drowned. But I struggled to think of anything that wasn't a carbon copy of Return to Zork, so I focused my efforts elsewhere.

Glad the final puzzle was easy enough to intuit! I wanted to capture the ridiculousness of a "you mean I have to start AGAIN?" puzzle without actually forcing a reset.

And, yeah, sadly there's a lot of cut/wonky story content due to time crunch.

The way I picture it: once upon a time there was a single afterlife, but it got blown up in some cosmic disaster. The main god of death died, and the "Servants" that worked for it (guardian angels, I suppose?) rescued the ghosts and moved them to other safe places.

Quoris's Servant was injured and never really recovered, so it accidentally let the ghosts that were in its care loose in the world. Hence why they were able to haunt the town freely. Centuries pass, most people forget the incident. The Servant grows sicker and sicker, and I guess at some point it half-remembers what it's supposed to be doing and forces all the ghosts underground to protect them from a threat that's long since passed.

It's not hostile, just very unwell.

I kinda visualize its effect on the dead like a ghost magnet. If a ghost in the area isn't grabbing onto something (like the player possessing an adventurer, or Qintus haunting his own skeleton), they get sucked into some deep, dark part of the dungeon they can't escape from.

Naturally, very little of that made it into the game or manual. Gamejams! (laugh)

I blame the vagueness on me writing the bulk of Qintus's dialog at one in the morning. If/when I come back to the project the pacing's gonna get a lot of reworks. ...Prrrrrobably also a third section to the dungeon, too, so I can fit in some of those spells and mechanics I scrapped at the last second.

Regardless, I'm pretty happy with what I accomplished in a month. And I'd certainly like to do more games in this style! It's a shame feelies only exist in collectors editions these days, because they have so much potential.

OMYD's manual is sort of a mish-mash between the manual for The Lurking Horror and Bivotar's journal from Zork Nemesis. The latter is well worth a read if you like this style of game. While not actually copy protection, it works hints into its story in a very elegant way.
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Stupot

#46
IT'S VOTIN' TIME!
Please vote for your favourite entry using the poll above



Bière Américaine
by Ponch
Skrexeval's Quest
by Emma Gundersen
Artifact
by Kara Jo Kalinowski and pell
One Million Years Dungeon
by Falsely

As always, please let me know if I've missed anything.

WHAM

Here we go again! I played all four games, even managed to beat one of them within my self-imposed one hour time limit, and now you can find the videos of my attempts below. While I'll always recommend you play the games yourself, if you just can't find the time then this might be an option for you:

Artifact
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCGtbyj0rJ4

Bière Américaine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BXCzkagPP0

One Million Years Dungeon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjTvmo2pnhI

Skrexeval's Quest
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW01BZC-X9Q


All in all I found it funny that 'breaking the rules' was mostly interpreted here as just going back to how games used to be back in the olden days, before design evolved to be more kind, gentle and accommodating towards the player. In many ways these games were a fun romp back to the good old days for me and I struggled to really find many ways in which any real design rules might have been broken! If anything, these games could all have been much more mean and creative with how they violate the player's expectations. Because of this I'm kind of struggling to decide how to vote on these. Do I vote for the game I feel is genuinely the best designed entry, or the one that breaks the most rules of game design? Hmmmm...
Wrongthinker and anticitizen one. Utterly untrustworthy. Pending removal to memory hole.

EmmaGundersen

Skrexeval's Quest has a few reported glitches: mainly a bug that lets you get infinite money and another one that crashes the game if you right click on your inventory items. Avoid doing those.

I'll patch/update after the vote has closed.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

I didn't post a walkthrough for my game, but if you need a hint somewhere feel free to ask.

cat

I'm a bit torn regarding this MAGS. Initially, I wanted to continue my last year's strike of playing every MAGS game. But this topic makes me think that all the games will include stuff that I do not enjoy. So I think I will pause for a month and continue playing the February games.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Quote from: cat on Fri 07/02/2025 20:09:30I'm a bit torn regarding this MAGS. Initially, I wanted to continue my last year's strike of playing every MAGS game. But this topic makes me think that all the games will include stuff that I do not enjoy. So I think I will pause for a month and continue playing the February games.

I tried not to be *too* terrible with mine, but I definitely kept the theme in mind :P

Falsely

Meanwhile I wanted to see if I could take bad or generally shunned mechanics and somehow make them enjoyable. Definitely interesting seeing all the different approaches to the prompt!  :-D

Not sure if I'll be able to complete any of the other entries on my own but I'm gonna try before I go asking for hints.

Ponch

#53
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 07/02/2025 13:40:47I'm kind of struggling to decide how to vote on these. Do I vote for the game I feel is genuinely the best designed entry, or the one that breaks the most rules of game design? Hmmmm...
As I see it, you have several crucial criteria to consider...

Spoiler
1) You could vote for the person who finished their game first (whoever that may be).
2) You could vote for the person whose game you were actually able to finish (whoever that may be).
3) You could vote vote for the person who was clearly farming for votes in a desperate bid to win (whoever that may be).
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:=
Once again, thanks for playing the MAGS games on your channel. And thanks for once again finding a game-crashing bug in one of my MAGS games while the world was watching.  :embarrassed:

UPDATE: Just uploaded a new version of the game that fixes the bug WHAM found.  Whoops!

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Quote from: Ponch on Fri 07/02/2025 23:49:23
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 07/02/2025 13:40:47I'm kind of struggling to decide how to vote on these. Do I vote for the game I feel is genuinely the best designed entry, or the one that breaks the most rules of game design? Hmmmm...
As I see it, you have several crucial criteria to consider...

Spoiler
1) You could vote for the person who finished their game first (whoever that may be).
2) You could vote for the person whose game you were actually able to finish (whoever that may be).
3) You could vote vote for the person who was clearly farming for votes in a desperate bid to win (whoever that may be).
[close]
:=
Once again, thanks for playing the MAGS games on your channel. And thanks for once again finding a game-crashing bug in one of my MAGS games while the world was watching.  :embarrassed:

UPDATE: Just uploaded a new version of the game that fixes the bug WHAM found.  Whoops!

Don't forget

Spoiler
1) You could vote for the person who has the least amount of completed adventure games before this one
2) You could vote for the game with the best adventurer's hats :)
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(And actual spoiler)

Spoiler
3) You could vote for the game with no in-game voting plugs  (laugh)
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I've completed the sliding puzzle game myself and have barely scratched the surface of the other two, though I'm trying. So far I am enjoying them but I get the feeling that after a while I won't  (laugh)

WHAM

Hmm, there are some very good arguments being put forward on what to vote by. Tough call, tough call...
Wrongthinker and anticitizen one. Utterly untrustworthy. Pending removal to memory hole.

Kara Jo Kalinowski

I've just beat Skrexeval and it definitely had that king's quest feel to it, as well as the sliding puzzle :)

I'll leave thoughts about all three when I manage to beat the last one - going to need to properly map that one, I can already tell.

Ponch

Quote from: Kara Jo Kalinowski on Sat 08/02/2025 04:58:23
Spoiler
3) You could vote for the game with no in-game voting plugs  (laugh)
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But hustling for votes breaks the unwritten rules of good manners. It's thematically appropriate!  :=

Kara Jo Kalinowski

Spoilers about my progress in One Million Years dungeon:

Spoiler
Me realizing that "No Soul Left Behind" could possibly mean that if I ever die, therefore adding an extra name to the wall, if I can't save my previous souls I may not be able to beat the game. And not sure if I want to play it out anyways to see what happens or just restart since I'm not very far into the game :P
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I got the impression that this game is going to be so much longer than the other games, at least it seems that way, so I saved it for last.

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