Story
You play as Martin, a struggling sculptor. One evening he finds in his mail a strange white envelope, unmarked except for the number "1011" written in the top right corner. Inside is a photograph of a room with ropes hanging from the ceiling. He has barely registered that fact when he is struck unconscious, and later wakes to find himself in completely unfamiliar surroundings, with only a house nearby to offer any hope of help...
Screenshots (click to view larger versions)
(http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr01_thumb.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr01.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr02_thumb.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr02.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr03_thumb.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr03.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr04_thumb.jpg) (http://themarionette.game-host.org/gallery/images/scr04.jpg)
Download the game: (89.9MB .rar or 95.7MB .zip)
http://themarionette.game-host.org/downloads.php
Finally ;D.
Downloading! ^^
Excellent. Congrats on finishing this ambitious project! Already downloading.
While talking to the man on the chair the game suddently just paused... and kept itself paused...
Dont remember in what order I did the dialog... But the last thing said was the deadly serious part I think!
Yay! But
Spoiler
I found a bug: after you've exited the bathroom/bedroom and talk again with Giuseppe, select the "whare are we" dialogue -> stuck
Quote from: Peder Johnsen on Mon 09/11/2009 00:29:18
While talking to the man on the chair the game suddently just paused... and kept itself paused...
Dont remember in what order I did the dialog... But the last thing said was the deadly serious part I think!
I have exactly the same problem. The game just hanged with the clock cursor not turning off.
Quote from: Peder Johnsen on Mon 09/11/2009 00:29:18
While talking to the man on the chair the game suddently just paused... and kept itself paused...
Dont remember in what order I did the dialog... But the last thing said was the deadly serious part I think!
I know there are some strange bugs in the game that seem to be a problem with AGS2.72 itself. We've looked through the code but everything seemed ok and it was only one tester that got problems like yours. We concluded it must be something on the computer interfering with AGS. :( I'm trying to reproduce the problem on my version but everything just works the way it's supposed to.
We're working on an AGS3.0 version now. Hopefully it'll solve the problems you mentioned.
edit: Just to make sure though - if any of you is able to reproduce this bug, can you post what you did here exactly?
I just asked Giuseppe about "Who brought me here?". But I don't seem able to reproduce the bug now. It hangs when there is a longer pause between what Giuseppe said and the hero commenting that he must accept staying in the house for the time being.
Didn't have that problem either.
Great game so far. Good amtosphere and music!
Awesome. Downloading. 8)
The game is totally awesome and definitely can touch some sensitive chords. At least a certain scene with Martin caught mine. The graphics are mind blowing, and the quality is definitely professional, way to go Auriond!!!!
Wow, big congratulations on finishing such a long-in-development project! I will play, but probably not for a while! Argh! Too busy! :'(
Really happy to see The Marionette make it to the finish line. An original idea, executed with style.
Great work, Auriond. :)
Hey, I can't believe I missed it last night! Downloading now! I've really waited for this, you know:)
Bug
Spoiler
When the two talks after the Bayer party. "I've been thinking about us too..." and the game then freezes.
It is such a shame, since the first time the game didn't lock and I now have got what would probably get me the good ending.
And congrats/many thanks for this nice game!
i need help with the combination for the cell door,i tried the picture-2307 but it was wrong,i need help bad,thanks.
Quote from: mdyoung40 on Mon 09/11/2009 21:07:08
i need help with the combination for the cell door,i tried the picture-2307 but it was wrong,i need help bad,thanks.
mdyoung40
Spoiler
maybe another code is needed. Try looking closely at something that is in your inventory from the very beginning
solution
Spoiler
Examine the envelope the photograph came in. On it's back you'll find a number. Use it to unlock the door.
Also, this is porbably not the best palce to ask for help! Try the hints & tips forum next time, you'll sure get a fast answer.
Seems I encountered the same bug as bicilotti. Damn! I'll try to re-install it and see if it works.
Thanks everyone. I'm wondering if upgrading to AGS 3.0 might solve these odd game-stopping bugs. Seriously they're stressing me out, especially since only one person got them during beta testing and she could never recreate them. Now everyone and their little brother seem to be encountering them. :/
Well, on to 3.0 I guess. Also, voice-acting. Work doesn't stop here, unfortunately!
to bicilotti,thanks a million for the combination to the cell,your a life saver,i thank you very much.
During the dialog with Guiseppe at the beginning, no matter in what order I pick the dialog options, once he gets to the "I'm deadly serious" part I get the same bug as the gentlemen above me. I re-loaded a save several times just to test that.
I'll skip the dialog and move on now. :)
The bug has been fixed and I'm uploading the new versions now.
That game crashing bug is simply incredible; I hadn't crashed the game in any of the last betas, no matter what I did. Glad you had time to fix it, auriond, and great that it has finally been released!
I know! It completely floored me too. I was so sure it was an AGS problem. Well, hopefully it's all fixed. Fingers crossed :)
The uploads are complete so bicilotti and nihilyst, let me know if you still encounter the bugs.
I get the same problem as the other guys except it freezes at "ive been thinking about us alot too" on the balcony.
???
Okay, back to the old drawing board...
The game froze on me each time there was a little pause between two lines in the dialog. That includes the scene on the balcony, and the closing topic in each dialog with Giuseppe. The new version fixed that for me.
I've finished the game now. It feels like an interactive movie more than adventure game given that the puzzles are pretty straightforward. I'm not complaining though. The art is absolutely gorgeous and the music is quite good as well.
Thanks Lufia. If you thought it wasn't interactive enough, you might be interested to know that there are four endings and one easter egg to discover. But I agree that the rest of the game is pretty linear.
Using Vista I have also freezing problem in conversation between Martin and Giuseppe
Lines something like: blah....blah...from here there is no way back and stuck
Great! This was one of the games I was really looking forward to! Currently downloading and I'll try it immedeately even if I don't have a lot of time for playing right now.
Just to check: those of you still encountering the bugwith the new version - you're not using the old save games are you? You'll have to start from beginning again if you are.
Okay, don't encounter the bug anymore. Thanks.
EDIT: Finished it.
It was a great experience. I love the amount of effort that went into all the backgrounds and the sequences, although some of the bgs were too washed out for my taste. The music was good, and the story well written. It must have really been a lot of work to make this game, but it was all worth it.
Wow - this is an incredible game. Great graphics and music, good puzzles, strong writing and amazing storyline.
The bug is dead.
I'm really enjoying the game. I'm half-way through now (looking at the GB walkthrough).
The one serious gripe I had is that having the ability to face locations from different angles often doesn't come of as intuitive - partially because the hotspots that switch the angles are hard to find.
Thanks for the positive comments guys. :)
Ascovel: the controls is a constant gripe I've faced about this game. But I first implemented it three years ago and towards the end it just got too big to overhaul. Next time I make a game it definitely won't have controls like this.
Hey, just finished it. Once, anyway. I'll edit this tonight after a few more playthroughs, but overall, super enjoyable. And, to me at least, the controls got pretty manageable after the second location or so, so no big gripe from me on that.
I really liked the graphic styles, though not a few backgrounds (a little too unfocused at times), and the story was really gripping. I don't usually get so into first person adventures, but I couldn't stop playing. And great music. I loved the mood it set.
Thanks!
Finished it, and I just can't wait to share my experience... :)
Story
The story seems familiar enough to understand what's going on soon enough. There are a few surprises, but twists are not the strong part of the game, nor they should.
Martin, an artist, finds himself suddently in a weird place where nothing is *exactly* right. Different scenes overtake one another and a strange character is there to help you but he's full of puzzles himself...
Graphics
The graphics are one of the very strong points of the game. There are very few animations, but the first person view, along with the excellent artwork of Auriond make up for evyrhting. The drawing style is rather personal, I'd say and it's not what one would expect from an AGS game, heck from any game! Every BG, every scene gives a feeling of a separate piece of artwork and this IS stuninng!
Martin is drawn to perfection and the main female character is also very beautiful!
Sound
Sound effects are limited to a handful. This, along with the lack of animation and moving characters gives a very claustraphobic feeling, which is quite difficult to get away from (was playing in a windowed mode, but even so it did capture me). The very limited sfx work extremely well, since they provide the essense of a scene in a single sfx!
Music is very good, the overall quality is way above average! Almost all loops work fabulously, even though each track is quite small (with the exception of the big dialogue ending, where the loop seems to not be working as well as the others). The music style serves its purpose in a great extent and provides a big helpding hand to setting the mood for the game! The music themes work great in each scene, and the stylistic choices are always on spot and very coherent with the rest and the whole game!
Gameplay
The gameplay feels quite natural. I didn't mind the 1st person view. Didn't mind the 'foot' icon when I had to change view. In fact I found it quite normal, and there was large enough hotspots for each corner, each place to visit. The exits were always quite visible.
The icon based GUI also feels quite good. It's a normal GUI which served tons of adventures before, so there's not much to be told.
Each item and most dialogues have extensive choices, and this brings more life to the game. It's not that you get a scissors and go "This is a scissors, duh". Very few items have an actual use in the game, in order to advance, but most provide great assistance to the mood of the game and the setting of the story. It's a story driven game, and the way it's been setup supports this notion.
There are a few puzzles, and me the little ignorant got stuck a couple of times! There are a few inventory based puzzles, a few code based ones, a few dialogue based, but it does feel that the puzzles are somewhat limited and this is an interactive novel, rather than a game. I won't agree to that extent, but I do agree that the puzzles are on the easy side really.
The 'cinematic' cutscenes in the game also work great and do not stop the flow of playing at all! English language is perfect, at least to my knowledge!
Finally it should be noted that the 4 different endings are vastly different, and although based largely on what you do in the last minute, and thus do not provide great replayability, they still give the sense of choice to a player who knows what they'd like to do.
overall
One of my most anticipated games, the work here is highly polished. Didn't encounter any bug (the tw bugs mentioned never happened to me).
The level of attention in this game is quite high, and if the cinematics and music (a composer... what did you expect?) were more impressive (<-notice the word impressive here), I would gladly have paid some money for this game! Dispite of it's rather short size! (If you know what you're doing you can probably finish it in less than 30 minutes (although I didn't time myself)).
A great game, and since this is my ever first review in the AGS boards, I'd say that I think it's worth it!
Since we're talking reviews...
I've just posted my review of The Marionette - http://captaind-pc-gaming.blogspot.com/2009/11/freeware-adventure-game-review.html (http://captaind-pc-gaming.blogspot.com/2009/11/freeware-adventure-game-review.html)
Sorry if the formatting of that review looks a little strange - it'll be odd in lower screen resolutions. I blame Blogger! ;D
Seriously, this was a fantastic game, one of the best AGS games I've played this year - or, come to think of it, ever (and I don't even like the genre you chose to make a game about!)
Found 3 endings btw - are there any more?
I'm very honoured that Nikolas has decided that TM is worthy of him posting his first full review on the AGS forums here :D Although in the interest of full disclosure, he gave advice and helped out in sound design and editing. ;)
CaptainD: thanks for the review! There are 4 endings, so you're missing one.
Hi, first of all, congrats on releasing this game.. :)
I've played and completed it.. :D
Nice graphics and story, and I really like the cinematic cut scenes.. all the cut scenes.. ;D
Anyway, I would like to comment on the GUI on top of the screen. Personally I feel that its too 'merged' with the game screen, which gave me perception that actually the GUI can be hidden (as in the traditional adventure game GUI). In fact, I found myself keep clicking the exit button for the first few screen, but it's totally okay after I get used to it.. it doesn't hurt the gameplay at all. Anyway, it might happen to me only.. :P
Overall, it's a great game, very well polished, so.. Well done!! ;D
Hey, I'm loving the game so far. Haven't had much time to get properly stuck in yet but I have what I think is a small bug to report.
Spoiler
In the hotel room, I'm assuming you're supposed to go around looking at short cut-scenes for each of the objects in the 4 photos (hairbrush, handbag, dress, lipstick) in order to unlock the door. But infact the player can just leave the room and miss that whole hotel room sequence out because the door is never locked to begin with.
Thanks for the feedback, mintymint and Stupot. I guess it's a little late to change the GUI now but if it didn't affect the gameplay too much, then that's fine. :)
Stupot:
Spoiler
Seriously, how the hell did that bug get past me, one scriptor and 4 beta testers!? :o I swear I tested that multiple times. Oh well. Chalk one up to experience.
I don`t want to repeat everything others already said. But I want to affirm it. This is an absolutely great game! :)
Quote from: FireOrange on Wed 18/11/2009 17:08:08
I don`t want to repeat everything others already said. But I want to affirm it. This is an absolutely great game! :)
This game;s so great, that well, you feel like screaming it, but since other have already, you feel bad about it! :D
I really enjoyed this game, was very impressed indeed! :D Haven't completed it yet but that's because I got so far, found a bug and, upon downloading the updated version haven't had time to replay from beginning again! But yeah, great game! :)
You got reviewed on the AV Club (http://www.avclub.com/articles/november-23-2009,35645/), and they really liked it. That feature doesn't usually cover many adventure games, either (although this installment seems to be an exception).
That's an honour! Thanks Snarky. I'm quite bemused by the comparisons to SH2 because it never crossed my mind at all. SH4 yes - the whole demon child thing - but not SH2. But I suppose to most people SH2 is the definitive Silent Hill, and that's a real compliment.
Thanks Gledster and FireOrange. I'm also beginning to repeat myself (thank you, thank you, thank YOU) because seriously, how do you respond to that kind of high praise?
Is the large file size due to digitized speech?
No, there's no voice acting in this version, though I'm working on one with voices. The large file size is due to graphics and music, I think.
OH MY GO--! IT'S OUT?!!!
Why didn't I get a notification e-mail from the site?!
Downloading NOW!
o_o I sent out the emails, but it seems not everyone got them. Sorry about that!
finished the game and LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVED it!
I replayed it like 4-5 times trying to get all endings (ended up mouthing the words to the last part without realizing it...until I bit my tongue :P)
It was very touching
here is the review of the marionette in Czech language
http://www.hrej.cz/clanky/indie-koktejl-vesmir-loutky-a-tak-vubec-2938/
Ranking: 8/10
The Marionette is featured in the 14 Jan issue of WebUser Magazine:
(http://themarionette.game-host.org/misc/webuser_magazine_issue231.jpg)
Well done Auriond!!! Success has a sweet taste, doesn't it?:)
I need to get back to Marionette actually... I have to admit that the game-crashing bug has stopped me in my tracks... but I loved what I have played so far and definitely want to finish it!:) It has this surreal aura about it...
Thanks Grim. :) Hope the game doesn't offer any more frustration for you (although I know at least one part where I have still not fixed a certain bug... but it's not game-crashing).
Quote from: auriond on Fri 15/01/2010 15:46:30
Thanks Grim. :) Hope the game doesn't offer any more frustration for you (although I know at least one part where I have still not fixed a certain bug... but it's not game-crashing).
I wouldn't call it frustration... I should know how easy it is to miss a big when making a game 'cos I've done it myself:) But I believe a good game can be forgiven for it and always deserves a second chance. And Marionette is a brilliant game:)
There's a full page review of The Marionette in the UK edition of PC Zone (or PC Gamer, I forget which).
I'll try and upload a scan soon. :)
That would be great, LimpingFish. Thank you :D
Which issue is it? I might see if I can get my brother in the UK to buy a copy. A full page review in a print publication has got to be a first for us.
It's the February issue of PC Zone. The March issue is out this coming Wednesday, so the Feb issue should still be in stores until then.
Thanks so much for the scan! A very kind review it is, too. :) Made my day.
We've had full pages on AGS in general before, but not a single game iirc.
Congrats on that! I guess the secret to making a successful game is in consistency of art and a LOT of work.
Well done Auriond!
Wow!...
I finally downloaded it and played it to the end today. Have been looking forward to it for a while but never got to it until now.
This is a brilliant game! The atmosphere, the story, the characters etc...
I am really impressed with the whole thing in general. Made me feel rather uncomfortable at times and that I highly praise. Not many games these days have managed to do that for me. A thought provoking experience.
Quote from: Cryxo on Sat 16/01/2010 14:07:31
This is a brilliant game! The atmosphere, the story, the characters etc...
I am really impressed with the whole thing in general. Made me feel rather uncomfortable at times and that I highly praise. Not many games these days have managed to do that for me. A thought provoking experience.
I'm probably turning into an idiot for posting so many times, but I can't help it! Seconded Cryxo's opinion. The game short of gets you to thinking your whole life. And all the things you do. I find the dialogue to be excellent!! And damn, I'm repeating myself.. but hell, it's one of the few games that got me so provoked. I'm really looking forward to your new game!! I'm glad to have helped with this!
Thank you, Cryxo and Dual. I'm glad it really made people think :) I do hope the new game will live up to such high expectations though...
Chicky: are you serious?? :o Surely one of the other greater AGS titles has made a full page before. If not then this is really a first, not just for us but for AGS! :=
Congrats on the full page article, that's awesome!!
Only a handful of other AGS games ever saw a full page review in either PC Zone or PC Gamer (UK editions).
A Tale of Two Kingdoms and Charlie Foxtrot and the Galaxy of Tomorrow spring to mind. The Blackwell Legacy and Linus Bruckman both technically also had a single page, but the actual review only took up half the space, the rest being filled by advertisements (or other unrelated guff).
Still...it remains an elite club with few members. :)
EDIT: Also, the scan has now expired. Sorry if you missed it. When I (finally!) get around to updating the AGScene (http://agscene.blogspot.com/) blog, I'll find it a more permanent home. :)
I loved the game, thought it was really cool.
There's a magazine I am involved in, when the time comes I can definitely get a page in it for Marionette. And I totally will. :)
Played and completed it. Absolutely...CHILLING. The artwork is so beautiful and really suits the whole dream-like atmosphere of the story.
Absolutely fantastic, I can't say any more than that!
Marionette 2?
I don't think there's any room for a Marionette 2, unfortunately. The storyline's all wrapped up. I'd like to move on to slightly more cheerful things as well myself :P
A little bump to say thank you to the AGS community - for making TM possible, for voting it in the AGS Awards, for everything you've done for the game. So for a short period of one week, I'm making the soundtrack available especially for you. I usually hand it out to reviewers, as a token of thanks, but who deserves thanks more than this community?
The soundtrack includes full versions of many of the tunes found in the game. My brother tended to write pieces of music with a proper beginning and not much of an ending, so I would usually have to chop out bits of it to loop (hence the problem with looping). Still, you get to hear the bits that I didn't include in the game. As a bonus, the full version of the snippets of music used in the dance scene is included as well. That was actually an old piece, and the only one not recorded exclusively for the game. The only piece of music I didn't include in the soundtrack was the vocal song, Cue the Music, used in the dance scene, as it's not mine to give away.
Anyway, enough rambling, hope you enjoy it!
[edit: link expired - see more here (http://themarionette.game-host.org/soundtrack.html) ]
Thanks for that, downloading it now.
Thank you so much for providing the soundtrack! :)
In combination with the wonderful graphics you have created one of the most atmospheric games I ever played.
I'd like to say a big Thank You to auriond, from all the vgmdb staff, and an even bigger Thank You from me ;)
That's just awesome.
You're welcome :) It would be very interesting to know what the VGMdb staff, and you, think of the soundtrack!
Surprise! I was just wearing my exclusive The Marionette (TM) shirt and walking around like a zombie marionette when my girlfriend took a picture of unsuspecting me! I thought I'd share that, haha.
(http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/1756/sgood.th.jpg) (http://img153.imageshack.us/i/sgood.jpg/)
If you take a close look at the room and draw the conclusion that I distorted time and space while doing this: No. I had just climbed a ladder, which is a terribly difficult thing for a zombie to do.
Hey hey! Looking good, kaputtnik. :D
Nice pic! It would be nice to have pics of you guys so I feel like I know who I'm talking to when I post...doubt anyone would start THAT thread though...
If anyone's still wondering about the status of the voice project of The Marionette, here's a preview (possible spoilers if you haven't already played the game):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPNw3ksbcqY
Featuring the inimitable Calin as Martin, kconan as Giuseppe, and vertigoaddict as Charisse (Alice's mum).
I really like the female voices.
Calin is good too, but I can't stop thinking McCarthy when I hear him in other roles.
seconded ;D
Great female voices! Especially Eshana's voice is excellent. And Steve's voice fits really well. ;)
sounds good!
the voices seem to match the characters in tone.
is it only me hearing white noise, though?
It took me a while to get used to Calin as Martin, too.
Eshana is voiced by the same actress who voiced Veronica in McCarthy. Charisse is voiced by a guy!
And yes, there's probably some background hiss, but I couldn't do much about that. They've already been edited to remove as much noise as possible.
*Tabitha
Vertiggoaddict is also doing Trillian, so trust me I'm not under surprise. I can imagine the rest of the forum is. ;)
I've said it before, but this is my favorite AGS game. I just hope voice acting doesn't somehow change that. I thought it was artistic and powerful without voices, but I trust your direction.
Oh, Tabitha! Yes. Sorry, it's been a while since I played McCarthy.
The voices will be uploaded as an optional pack, so the player can choose to play with or without them. I personally felt the voices add a lot of dimension, especially in the later scenes.
Quote from: auriond on Sat 18/09/2010 03:44:23
I personally felt the voices add a lot of dimension, especially in the later scenes.
Yes, that's the part where i missed the voices the most in this very nice game.
(Somehow i lack the ability to emulate female voices in my head whilst reading ;D)