Adventure Game Studio

Riel must embark on a dangerous quest to save her sister, who is on the brink of death, by stealing a magic stone with healing powers from an evil enchanter.  After infiltrating the enchanter's castle, you must survive sinister traps, talking gargoyles, quite nearly logical puzzles, terrible puns, and finally the enchanter himself in order to get the stone and save your sister.



Game Features:

Really cool heroine.  Meaning your player character.
Programmed responses for clicking just about anything just about anywhere.
Multiple solutions to over half of the puzzles!
Auto-updating in-game hint system that is accessed when you talk to yourself.
Hotspot identifier: all objects that are clickable have their names appear alongside the mouse.  No more looking at the top or bottom of the screen to figure out what's in the middle!
Tongue-in-cheek references to the best adventure games, including some from AGS!
Sweet, sweet animation.
Pretty darn sweet backgrounds.
Gorgeous orchestral music.
Retro sound effects.
A whole lotta love.

Version 1.1 (Released Oct. 7, 2011) has a bunch of enhancements, from improved animations, to new music, to an additional way to end the game!  Enjoy!

Click here (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/games.php?action=detail&id=1462) for the main page and access to the free download.

Awesome news to see this *gem* has been released. Gratz Morgan (and Sorina)!!  ;)
It was such pleasure testing this.

Quote from: antipus on Fri 19/08/2011 08:43:45
Tongue-in-cheek references to the best adventure games, including some from AGS!

Which makes your game even more funny.

EDIT:
Lovely intro b.t.w.
Now I need to play through again to see the new ending  :)

Great, I've been looking forward to this one.  ;D

I've played it and it was a great experience. There is one part where I was stuck

Spoiler

I couldn't find the fake beard, but after like 20 minutes of searching I found it.

[close]

and one more things I don't understand...

Spoiler

this guy that is a doctor, isn't a doctor. he is an enchanter or something too?

[close]

But I guess that is a thing that makes this game mysterious. :D
I was trying to say it is a really good game, and fun, and not hard(but not easy either).

Great to see this has been released.  Well done Antipus.   ;D

I loved playtesting it.   :D

And love the new intro, btw.   ;D

Quote from: Bogdan on Fri 19/08/2011 11:23:53
and one more things I don't understand...

Spoiler

this guy that is a doctor, isn't a doctor. he is an enchanter or something too?

[close]

But I guess that is a thing that makes this game mysterious. :D

An explanation:

Spoiler

If you mean the guy in the intro, he is the doctor of Arden.
This doctor knowns a person who has a certain object in his possession that is needed to cure Riel's sister.
This person lives in a protected castle and is the enchanter.
It's up to Riel to get inside that castle, obtain this mysterious object and get back to her sister with that object in order to heal her.

[close]

@Arj0n:

Spoiler

Yeah, I know that, I played the game. I meant to say at the end of the game the doctor takes of his ring and changes his appearance. So he is not a doctor.

[close]

Quote from: Bogdan on Fri 19/08/2011 12:18:37
@Arj0n:

Spoiler

Yeah, I know that, I played the game. I meant to say at the end of the game the doctor takes of his ring and changes his appearance. So he is not a doctor.

[close]

Ah OK. Sorry. I haven't seen the new ending yet...

EDIT:
Now I have seen it. And indeed, that doctor

Spoiler

seems not to be a normal person too. Not sure what he is exactly though...no intro or in-game clues are given concerning this guy.... Maybe it's the enchanters brother?

[close]

Awesome, download it now

 :o :o Excellent work!!!, I love it, congratulations  ;D

The intro and the ending are really really beautifull and wrap the game very well, amazing work  ;D

regards

FInished it. It was quite fun and easy. In a good way. It's not frustrating, and yet challenging.

Just wanted to say, though, that I think the Intro and ending didn't quite fit the tone of the game. :l

Spoiler

The beard was the easiest part for me.  ::) I don't know.

[close]

and about the ending:

Spoiler

And I didn't quite get the ending too, but I assumed he just wanted the rock for some personal reasons and used Riel to get it.

[close]

Good game. Congratulations, Antipus.

Oh, is the ending:

Spoiler

that doctor who was on the portrait, the duke?

[close]

Btw doctor kind of feels weird in a fantasy game, doesn't he, he's also dressed diffrently, sort of "modern". Okay, so the intro didn't really wow me into the style of the game, but the humor anatmosphere did the trick and I enjoyed it. On the other hand the puzzle

Spoiler

with the cabinet locked

[close]

just...I really just didn't get it, I read the explanation, but I really didn't get why something was happening when I pressed something...then again, I'm pretty slow today so that might be it (still you made it playable even for dopes such as myself, so thank you).

Nice game.

P.S. not to forget, the deaths were very fun and I really liked that you basically had to wish to die to find out how it looks instead of instakills

@Anian: about the ending, that could be it indeed...

@pmartin: about that puzzle, did you also try

Spoiler

the other way to solve it? there are 2 ways to solve this puzzle...

[close]

antipus very good work done ...
the intro is very well done...
the hole environment  and the characters are very nice work done

i started playing it and it is very enjoyable .....

i was always a big Kings Quest fan....

i hope you continue making   more games in the future

i was  waiting for Kings Quest 4 vga remake by Magic Mirror Games
but i think is is abandoned 

congratulations again !

Quote from: hansolo1970 on Fri 19/08/2011 14:01:58
i was  waiting for Kings Quest 4 vga remake by Magic Mirror Games
but i think is is abandoned

It's not abandoned (but progress goes very slow)...

Thanks to all who have played the game so far!  Glad you've enjoyed it!

There have been a few comments about the mysterious doctor, so here's half an explanation:

Spoiler

In the introduction, the doctor is playing "two truths and a lie"  He knows what's wrong with Jayra, and he knows what it'll take to cure her.

[close]

If anyone gets fifty points, they'll have gotten the other half of the explanation.

That doesn't explain the rest of the story, but I'll post that after more people have a chance to play the game.  ;)

Oh my oh my oh my oh my! I did not see released! I will download and play ASAP!

Arj0n just let me know that I'd had the wrong link up on the main post.  I mean it worked but it went to the other site.  If you've finished the game, click here (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/games.php?action=detail&id=1462) to vote on it.

The previous link didn't have access to the voting stuff.  :: slaps forehead ::  Sorry.  :P  Anyway, it's fixed now.

Stuck:

Spoiler

I have to take hat, and spectacles for disguise , but thread is too short ???

[close]

I almost missed this  ...   (http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z147/Pagn93/Smileys/th4531_eusa_doh.gif)

- downloading now -  ;D


EDIT:
Well, that was really a nice little game, well drawn and animated and the puzzles were quite right, also had fun with the dialogs.

                      (http://smilies-smilies.de/smilies/schilderII_smilies/schild44.gif)

So congratulations for coming up with such a good one and thank you for offering it to us.

                                                 (http://www.web-smilie.de/smilies/schilder_smilies/00000681.gif)

Twice I was in a bit of trouble:

Spoiler

First time at the door-lock in the castle and second time while going back towards the guard.
The first one is because I am not clever enough to make it by the given level, but it was clever to give people like me the choice to make it easier.
Second one was because I searched for the thrown away disguise and thought it was taken away (It needed some death's until I found it, where I never expected it)

[close]

Quote from: sauyadav on Sat 20/08/2011 08:15:11
Stuck:

Spoiler

I have to take hat, and spectacles for disguise , but thread is too short ???

[close]

First off, there are two completely different ways to solve this puzzle.  The following hints are for the way you're thinking of.

Little hint:

Spoiler

You need to attach something to the string.

[close]

Big hint:

Spoiler

Pretend you're going fishing.

[close]

If you want to try the other way, think a little further outside the box.  ;)

For those of you who have played already, what was your favorite easter egg or in-game gag?  Was there anything that made you chuckle?  ::)

Personally, I made myself laugh when I put in what happens when you talk to the curtains on the enchanter's bed.

Quote from: antipus on Sat 20/08/2011 18:30:29
For those of you who have played already, what was your favorite easter egg or in-game gag?  Was there anything that made you chuckle?  ::)

Personally, I made myself laugh when I put in what happens when you talk to the enchanter's bed.

My favorite gag was when I talk to spectacles  ;D

I have slightly bigger problem now

Spoiler

I made my disguise using tassles for beard, floppy cap for cap and bent wire for spectacles. I used it to fool the gargoyle who opened the gate to treasury. I went in there and when I pick the stone from cabinet, the guard starts shouting. Now when I tried to hide in the tapestry in the corridor, enchanter immedietely sees me and I die. In this death there is a hint that I shouldn't hide in plain sight from someone with 20/20 eyesight. So I thought why not, either try to break his spectacles, or put glass shard in his slipper (which will delay him). So I crossed the gate again wearing the disguise, and entered in the enchanter's room. I tried both of above plans, but none of them worked. I saved here and I am not using multiple saves. Now when I try to go outside the room, gargoyle alerts the enchanter because I am not wearing the disguise, but Riel refuse to put it on inside the enchanter's room. Now is there any solution which will help me here or I am stuck for good?

[close]

You are way too mean for this game, sauyadav, why don't you blind the poor old man while you're at it.

But here's a slight help:

Spoiler

everything you need, after you trip the alarm, is in the treasury room

[close]

Quote from: anian on Sat 20/08/2011 18:43:31
You are way too mean for this game, sauyadav, why don't you blind the poor old man while you're at it.

But here's a slight help:

Spoiler

everything you need, after you trip the alarm, is in the treasury room

[close]

I can't go back now  :(,

Spoiler

gargoyle won't let me. I usually use one save file, which is saved in the enchanter's room.

[close]

Quote from: sauyadav on Sat 20/08/2011 18:46:52
I can't go back now  :(,

Spoiler

gargoyle won't let me. I usually use one save file, which is saved in the enchanter's room.

[close]

I'm so sorry about that!  I'm pretty sure that's the only dead-end in the game, unless you save right before you run out of time during the end-game.

That dead end is there...

Spoiler

because I didn't want to reanimate getting turned to stone while wearing the disguise.

[close]

Obviously I should have just manned up and done the extra work.  :P

Quote from: antipus on Sat 20/08/2011 18:54:57

Quote from: sauyadav on Sat 20/08/2011 18:46:52
I can't go back now  :(,

Spoiler

gargoyle won't let me. I usually use one save file, which is saved in the enchanter's room.

[close]

I'm so sorry about that!  I'm pretty sure that's the only dead-end in the game, unless you save right before you run out of time during the end-game.

That dead end is there...

Spoiler

because I didn't want to reanimate getting turned to stone while wearing the disguise.

[close]

Obviously I should have just manned up and done the extra work.  :P

Please add putting shard in his slippers option in future updates, and option to break his spectacles too := . I will restart, I guess.

Quote from: sauyadav on Sat 20/08/2011 18:58:59
Please add putting shard in his slippers option in future updates, and option to break his spectacles too := . I will restart, I guess.

I really tried to put in all the logical things people would try...

Spoiler

like blindfolding the first gargoyle, for instance

[close]

I've got to say those never even crossed my mind.  You should have been a tester. :)

Quote from: antipus on Sat 20/08/2011 18:30:29
For those of you who have played already, what was your favorite easter egg or in-game gag?  Was there anything that made you chuckle?  ::)

I giggled about Edgar Alan Poe's Raven singing his Nevermore, but also have had a lot of fun with most of the other well done dialogs.  ;D

Hi, just wanted to say i enjoyed your game.  :)

Slight graphics glitch:

Spoiler

There is a baseline glitch if you go outside the castle through the door after breaking in through the window.

[close]

Treasure Room:

Spoiler

Got a bit confused and died a couple of times in the treasure-room because i didn't realize i could walk out to the hallway again after triggering the alarm. (Riel says something about being locked in, so i thought that meant i couldn't leave the room)

[close]

And I really didn't get how the puzzle worked.. at all... even on "Wimpy" difficulty.. very happy i could cheat through it.

This was a very nice game! The great amount of in-jokes and references more than made up for its brevity and I also liked the soft, artsy look of the intro and outro. Excellent job!

Finally completed, still got only 42 points.

Spoiler

I had a feeling there was something more with doctor.

[close]

That is one clever game you made  :=

Considering this game features two of my pet peeves (silly fantasy character names & Myst-style 'figure out this machine' puzzles), I wasn't expecting much but this turned out to be hugely enjoyable from start to finish  ;D

The retro feel worked, the writing was funny without being too smug or knowing and the interface was very polished (despite using the stock Sierra GUI options, it made for a very fluid game - compared to the likes of KQ5).

There were a few puzzle solutions I was sad to see missing:

Spoiler

I thought the best way to get protected from the glass cutting the heroine's hand would be to use one of the gauntlets from the armour but that didn't seem to be an option.  Then I tried using the glass on the rug as that would be thicker material, which didn't work but produced my favourite 'wrong answer' response of the game :)

[close]

I only have two minor criticisms and they both concern the story:

Spoiler

a) The tone-shift is crazy extreme.  It starts with an incredibly po-faced earnest heroine vowing to save her sister, then shifts into goofy wisecracking mode as soon as she gets to the dangerous fortress.  As the real game story was just "get this Macguffin", it was pretty jarring.
b) You don't learn anything about the story beyond the intro/ending - you get told everything you need to know in the opening scene and that's that.  None of the books tell you anything about the land, nothing in the enchanter's possessions gives you any idea about his motivations etc  - you don't even get to confront him at the end, which is a bit anti-climactic.  

[close]

Still very keen to play any future games (or a sequel) as I know they'll be quality works!

Great game, it's a pity it's that short. Now i'm waiting for someone to write a full walkthrough so i can get the last 3 points that keep me from understanding the whole thing

Quote from: Cleanic on Mon 22/08/2011 22:39:14
Great game, it's a pity it's that short. Now i'm waiting for someone to write a full walkthrough so i can get the last 3 points that keep me from understanding the whole thing

I'm curious myself if anyone has found the last three points yet.  For your information, the lock puzzle gives you a different amount of points depending on the difficulty level, with the maximum being 5 points on the hardest setting, then 3, 2, 1, or 0 if you cheat. So if you cheat, an otherwise perfect score would be 45.

Quote from: FrancoFranchi on Sun 21/08/2011 12:00:32
Considering this game features two of my pet peeves (silly fantasy character names & Myst-style 'figure out this machine' puzzles), I wasn't expecting much but this turned out to be hugely enjoyable from start to finish  ;D

That's about the best compliment I've gotten about the game.  I realize that you can't please everyone, and everyone has pet peeves that usually turn them off right away.

For me, I always hated the pockets of unlimited size and the accidental solving of puzzles by clicking enough random items in enough places.  I decided to never give Riel an item she couldn't fit in the satchel, and made all sorts of puzzle adjustments to prevent accidental solving.

Quote from: FrancoFranchi on Sun 21/08/2011 12:00:32
I only have two minor criticisms and they both concern the story:

Spoiler

a) The tone-shift is crazy extreme.  It starts with an incredibly po-faced earnest heroine vowing to save her sister, then shifts into goofy wisecracking mode as soon as she gets to the dangerous fortress.  As the real game story was just "get this Macguffin", it was pretty jarring.
b) You don't learn anything about the story beyond the intro/ending - you get told everything you need to know in the opening scene and that's that.  None of the books tell you anything about the land, nothing in the enchanter's possessions gives you any idea about his motivations etc  - you don't even get to confront him at the end, which is a bit anti-climactic.  

[close]

Those criticisms are completely valid, and I wish I'd had the ability to build a richer environment with deeper characters.  Part of the problem is that this is only part of a much larger story I initially wanted to tell, but realized I'd never be able to finish if I tried to make the whole game.

For those who want a bit more the full story, here are a few nudges in the right direction:

Spoiler

How does the doctor know so much about the enchanter and what is in his possession?

The doctor told a lie in the introduction.  What did he lie about? (The 50 point question...)

Duke Silvius is the Duke of Brynthe. Why would the enchanter have his portrait?

Why does the enchanter have a model of Arden's Vale in his bedroom?

When you escaped the castle, why didn't the enchanter chase you?

If you watch carefully, there is no ring in the introduction.  What does that mean?

[close]

For added cheesiness, try talking to your reflection. ;D

Really nice game, the little comments your character makes when you try to do things were very good in particular.

Not sure if anyone's noticed, I think I found a bug:

Spoiler

After you've picked up the piece of cloth from the window, you can still see it, at least from inside

[close]

Also there appear to be no interactions for the stool the enchanter's glasses are on.


Niggles aside though, a lovely little game.  :D

hello. i run into a peculiar bug playing the game and cannot finish it:

Spoiler

So after i left the treasure room with the stone and i escaped the wizard hanging on the tapistry...i go into his room,so i hide in the scenery,leaving a reflection of me on the mirror and wait for the wizard to hop in and fall for the old baba-yaga trick, but the game crashes every time and i have this message: in "room5.asc" , line 141 Error: Character.loop: invalid loop number for this view"

[close]

Quote from: srnickolas on Wed 24/08/2011 12:51:08
hello. i run into a peculiar bug playing the game and cannot finish it:

Spoiler

So after i left the treasure room with the stone and i escaped the wizard hanging on the tapistry...i go into his room,so i hide in the scenery,leaving a reflection of me on the mirror and wait for the wizard to hop in and fall for the old baba-yaga trick, but the game crashes every time and i have this message: in "room5.asc" , line 141 Error: Character.loop: invalid loop number for this view"

[close]

srnikolas,

Someone else reported the bug, too, and I'm working on it.  I never thought of going to that particular place at that particular time, but you've got really clever reasoning.  You can still finish the game, though.  In two ways, actually.  The easiest is:

Spoiler

Don't go back in the enchanter's room; find another place to hide instead.

[close]

Additionally, there's a very different route...

Quote from: antipus on Wed 24/08/2011 13:01:14

Additionally, there's a very different route...

I've tried everything i could think of at that point, that route is the one that gives 3 extra points right? PM me or something please!

Ok thanks for the hint,finished the game with 42/50:

Spoiler

I hided in the tapestry

[close]

Pretty cool game actually,it reminded me old sierra games especially the king's and hero's quest series.Hope you make more of these,i could be addicted :)

Solid game! Good work!

Quote from: Corby on Sun 28/08/2011 11:18:28
Solid game! Good work!

Thanks!  Glad you liked it!


Calling all bugs!  I'd like to release a v 1.1 (or something like that) with all bugs and crashes fixed in the next few weeks.  If you've found anything goofy with the game, please PM me or post here.  I'm already working out the one crash I know about...

Spoiler

If you stand in front of the mirror in the enchanter's room when he zaps you.

[close]

Anything else? I'll even take suggestions and gags to slip in! Did you ever click something somewhere and wish it had a cool joke instead?  Like when you talk to the reflection of yourself, for instance?

If you ever wish that Arden's Vale had speech, Skullkid3 posted a YouTube video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4VpVHMaAiw) of his first playthrough, including some really hilarious comments and truly "spot-on voice acting."

It really made me laugh and was kind of gratifying to watch somebody play through it.  Enjoy!

I'm almost done with v1.1 including all sorts of little tweaks and additions.

A few people have mentioned a walk-behind bug...

Spoiler

after opening the castle door from the inside,

[close]

but I can't seem to reproduce it.  Can anyone be more specific as to where this occurs or send me a screenshot?

Thanks again to all who have played so far!

just wanted to add that this is a really beautiful game, and i love all the extra little animations.
still playing, and enjoying!

Thanks to everyone who's played the game so far!  But now it's even better!

All known bugs, including the one fatal crash, were fixed.  And then some of the graphics were improved.  And then a new piece of music was added.  And then a new way to end the game was put in.  And then there was some additional tweaking.  And then it was called v1.1 and made available for download.

Enjoy the new version! ;D

I just played through  the new ending!!!Excellent!!! Thank you for taking into account my comment!I am really happy i contributed making an already excellent game cooler 8)!I am looking forward for the sequel!

Spoiler

One hundred codes for the inside of a fireplace.

[close]

I lol'd.

First of all: really nice game, I liked the graphics, the faithful Sierra feel, and both intro and 3d-ish corridor are artistically and scriptfully remarkable. Humour could be more frequent and sometimes funnier, but it's more than enough to make the game very enjoyable. Story is too obscure though, and even if I like how the unexplained bits make my mind work and twist, this is not a wise choice as it gives the game some sort of amateur touch.

What I maybe liked most is the different approach to puzzles, and the wide spectrum of possibilities you took in consideration.

I've spotted this 2 issues though:

Puzzle-flaw:

Spoiler

As you reach the castle walls, you can go back and take the large rock even before you have tried the small one to break the window, thus making pointless the fact you couldn't take it immediately.

[close]

Bug:

Spoiler

In the treasure room, with the stone in my grasp, I thought I could fool Gary Gygax by leaving the disguise (made by wire, paper hat and cut tapestry, if you need to know) on the square carpet, but got this bug:
(http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/719/bugja.jpg) (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/847/bugja.jpg/)

[close]

Oh, and damn... the max score I've been able to get is 43, having solved the dumbest version of the puzzle. Now I'll cheat all the time until I score 45 and then I'll try to solve the puzzle at the hardest difficulty setting.

My two cents worth on the story:

Spoiler

The Doctor knows too much about the stone, the castle, the wizard... I suppose he's the Duke, probably blood related to the mage, and one of those thieves who tried to stole from him. The wizard then created the barrier to prevent him to go back to the castle, and so the Duke has set up the perfect plan to obtain the item that will allow him inside the barrier: a stone that counteracts enchantments. But he needs Riel to get it from him, so he casts a spell to make her sister ill. I've got a fervid imagination, haven't I? :D

[close]

The game has been jayisgamesed (http://jayisgames.com/archives/2011/10/weekend_download_207.php)!

loved it!! the amount of interaction with objects was great.. you did an awesome job antipus! are you planning on a sequel?

Quote from: Abisso on Sat 15/10/2011 01:36:11
What I maybe liked most is the different approach to puzzles, and the wide spectrum of possibilities you took in consideration.

Quote from: Puddleglum on Sun 16/10/2011 04:31:27
loved it!! the amount of interaction with objects was great.. you did an awesome job antipus! are you planning on a sequel?

Thanks so much for the comments!  I had been working on having every inventory object have a response for every hotspot in the game, but ended up cheating towards the end of production. ;D Hopefully they were all on silly enough interactions that nothing you did on purpose had a non-response.

Right now I'm working on a smaller, but hopefully equally enjoyable project.  If I do expand Arden's Vale, it probably won't begin in earnest until next summer...  And then who knows how long that will take.  ::)

Quote from: Ascovel on Sat 15/10/2011 22:43:34
The game has been jayisgamesed (http://jayisgames.com/archives/2011/10/weekend_download_207.php)!

Sweet!  Thanks for the head's up!

Playing it now, and puzzle-wise it's really good. I'm relishing it.

I have found one flaw, though I guess it's more a flaw with 'me' than with the game.

I'm colorblind and can't tell the difference between the red/green they are so close to the same shade.
The only way I knew the difference was from the animation.

If you could make it where the mouse-over displayed the gem type, 'fire gem' 'earth gem' water gem' 'air gem' that would help so much.
And when you click on the center gem, if it could say something to let me know which element goes where?!

You can deduce by the swirl that water's south, air's east, but I can't tell the other two. Fire West/Earth north?

Quote from: charlescreations on Sun 16/10/2011 11:56:16
If you could make it where the mouse-over displayed the gem type, 'fire gem' 'earth gem' water gem' 'air gem' that would help so much.

Done and done!

Thanks to Charles, I'll be working on a version 1.2 over the next few months, including a new and improved lock puzzle.  Any other suggestions from players would be awesome!

Does the game need more music tracks, non-retro sound effects, language translation, speech, additional responses, backstory, etc?  What would best enhance the game?

Just finished this and it was unexpectedly wonderful! I mean, I expected it to be very good, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. :)

All the little animations, portraits, interface elements, different reactions to most of the interactions and the general amazing attention to detail make it a real joy to play! Congratulations and thanks for releasing such a lovely, polished game done with such thoroughness and care. Really looking forward to your next games, best of luck!

Some thoughts on Arden's Vale at Zombie Apocalypse: http://blog.zombieapocalypsetoday.com/2011/11/11/getting-back-to-adventure.aspx

Also, don't kill me but I still haven't played it for some strange reason, so can't share any of my own impressions atm.

I beat the game yesterday!

Done the two path. Had to use a guide to figure how to do the sneaky part. The game is so awesome! I loved the graphics, the polished interface, the absolutely logical puzzles, the animations and the story! I really can't wait to see more games from you! I would definitely play a sequel.  ;D

I insist. I LOVED YOUR GAME. XD

I finally got around to playing this, and was also really impressed with how good it is. The writing is funny, the puzzles are well-balanced, and the interaction density is very satisfying. The graphics have a classic Sierra-esque style (with some Kyrandian influences), and although they are "simple", they are appealing, balancing cartoony and realistic really well.

What impressed me the most, though, was the coding of things like the UI (that little hotspot indicator gliding around was very fancy), and the 3D parallax. How did you do those side walls in the corridor? Raw-draw them yourself based on 3D calculations, or what?

Spoiler

I think I have too suspicious a mind. I knew something was up with that doctor even in the intro. Not quite sure what was really going on, but maybe you'll continue the story in another game?

[close]

Quote from: Bombermans on Sun 27/11/2011 00:47:08
I insist. I LOVED YOUR GAME. XD

Quote from: Ilyich on Tue 25/10/2011 01:56:31
Just finished this and it was unexpectedly wonderful! I mean, I expected it to be very good, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. :)

It may seem self-indulgent, but I honestly can never get over how many really very kind and positive remarks Arden's Vale has gotten. I really appreciate every one. Thank you so much for playing!

Quote from: Snarky on Sun 08/01/2012 16:30:00
What impressed me the most, though, was the coding of things like the UI (that little hotspot indicator gliding around was very fancy), and the 3D parallax. How did you do those side walls in the corridor? Raw-draw them yourself based on 3D calculations, or what?

Thanks! Arden's Vale is my first game, and in every room I made, I wanted to do something that really messed with my programming skills, which also led to the sliding menu bar, the mobile hotspot labels, multiple simultaneous animations, etc.

The hallway was definitely the clincher, though.  I tried half a dozen major approaches, but ended up calculating and drawing each frame "by hand", with and without the door. It still takes a lot of in-game calculation, since, as the character moves, the door (and the pathway down) actually have to slide further left than the screen does to complete the illusion.

I just read yesterday that Arden's Vale was voted Best Short Game for 2011! Yay!

I've got to say that I was surprised and gratified that so many voted for it, especially considering how awesome Chance of the Dead and Draculator II are. I still haven't played Submerged or The Unfolding Spider, but I'm sure that they are equally impressive labors of love.

Thanks to all! It made my day!