Adventure Game Studio

Hey, everyone!  I'm new here, and have just finished my first game.  It's more or less an experiment I put together as I tried getting a feel for AGS, but I'm quite proud of how it turned out so I thought I'd share.

In "Lance the Penguin" you assume the role of Lance, a blue-footed boobie who decides he needs to get out of the house.  Unfortunately, a large beast makes that difficult!

(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs673.snc4/61324_454645712320_559797320_5846431_6154411_n.jpg)

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(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs348.ash2/62837_454645697320_559797320_5846430_5709403_n.jpg)

Download Link: http://www.mediafire.com/file/v05850bd4x77avp/LanceThePenguin.zip
Mirror: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=PRR96VS0

Please, let me know what you think, and if you have any suggestions I'd greatly appreciate it.  Me and some friends are planning to use AGS to put together a full-length adventure game soon (with a better artist than myself, haha) so any input is greatly appreciated.

I don't know why, but I have difficulty downloading the game from Megaupload. It always cancels the file transfer after only a few kilobytes. :-/

Tried to download but the link does not work! Reupload it please ( in some cool place like www.shutupload.com )

edit: someone arrived before me

I'm not sure why it's not working, but here's a new link that should work: http://www.mediafire.com/file/v05850bd4x77avp/LanceThePenguin.zip

Quote from: theroachyjay on Tue 28/09/2010 18:00:13
I'm not sure why it's not working, but here's a new link that should work: http://www.mediafire.com/file/v05850bd4x77avp/LanceThePenguin.zip

Very good, now it works. It's nice to play (voice acting is remarkably high quality) and has an interesting main character.

now then:

Spoiler

I've got plank, nail, light. It seems I need batteries of some sort, any hint?

[close]

I thought the game was about "lancing" penguins....  But then I live in a place where clubbing seals is considered normal.  :-\

I'm just as stuck as bicilotti. Since there's not much to interact with, I'm not sure how to progress. The boulder on the monster screen is very prominently placed, but there's no way to interact with it. On the other hand, some commands don't provoke any response, which makes it even more unclear what a hotspot is and what not.
I understand why the graphics are as crappy as they are and I think nothing needs to be said more about them, but the interface is, maybe as a side effect, just as terrible. The mouse cursor icons are huge and therefore very imprecise. You can't see what the centre of the icon is that triggers the detection of the hotspot. They also don't have outlines, so it happened that the "use" icon got invisible when I pointed it over the cave entrance.
When I tried to talk to the monster again I realized that the conversation state was reset, like it was before I talked to him the first time, which made the game feel more mechanical.

Okay, I criticized the game a lot now, but I actually liked it so far! The voice acting is wonderful, the comments and dialogues amusing and well written, the music atmospheric. That there was absolutely no intro was a great choice, too. Just throwing the player into the game without any prior introduction, I love that. Overlong intro and tuturial sequences are the things that put me off sometimes from trying out new games.
I'd love to play "Lance the Penguin" further, if I'd find a way!

Thanks for the insight, Ozzie, I'll definitely take that into account as I work on "Lance 2"! 

Thanks for the comments about my voice acting!  I'd be more than willing to provide voices for anyone else's games if needed.

Those of you looking for a hint:

Spoiler

Perhaps there's another way around the beast without going into the cave?

[close]

Quote from: theroachyjay on Tue 28/09/2010 22:20:11
Those of you looking for a hint:

Spoiler

Perhaps there's another way around the beast without going into the cave?

[close]

I... I am still puzzled. I need more informations. :P

Quote from: bicilotti on Wed 29/09/2010 11:28:04

Quote from: theroachyjay on Tue 28/09/2010 22:20:11
Those of you looking for a hint:

Spoiler

Perhaps there's another way around the beast without going into the cave?

[close]

I... I am still puzzled. I need more informations. :P

Spoiler

Are there any items in your inventory that fit together?

[close]

Quote from: theroachyjay on Wed 29/09/2010 12:40:42

Spoiler

Are there any items in your inventory that fit together?

[close]

Oh, now I get it! But

Spoiler

using the plank on the nail works, while using the nail on the plank gives me no action/feedback.
A bug, I s'pose

[close]

edit: so I've finished it. As ozzie said, there are some flaws in the game but the dialogue, setting, character and voice acting make up for them. It was a nice and short experience, I hope to see more of this penguin.

Quote from: bicilotti on Wed 29/09/2010 12:49:47

Quote from: theroachyjay on Wed 29/09/2010 12:40:42

Spoiler

Are there any items in your inventory that fit together?

[close]

Oh, now I get it! But

Spoiler

using the plank on the nail works, while using the nail on the plank gives me no action/feedback.
A bug, I s'pose

[close]

Spoiler

I coded it so it SHOULD work both ways, I'm not sure why it doesn't.  Hmm.  I'll see if I can figure it out.  Thanks!

[close]