Introduction cutscene

[stuh505]

I know...I posted the intro screen...and now the cutscene...don't worry I'm not going to show you guys everything about the game, I just want to make sure that the introduction is quality because that's the most important part.

So, just look over the narrator speech here, and tell me if it sounds ok.  I have a feeling it sounds a bit dry and uninteresting.

[hard drive breathes a sigh of relief as, after over an hour, the animation for the last line of this cutscene has finally completed being rendered...yey!]

ALSO....once I am satisfied with this, would anyone who thinks they have a good narrator voice volunteer to do a voice recording of it?

[fade from black to view of map of Frealand]

"The people of Frealand were as wide and varied as their country was vast."

"Between the mountains to the west, and the cold sea cost to the north and east, they lived in relative harmony without threat of war."

[cut to view of statues of the warrior kings, King Eichnar and King Caroth, each riding standing horses sharing a pedestal in the center of Aldor]

"They had gone without war since the ancient reign of King Caroth nearly 200 years ago."

"Frealand was safe.  At least, for most people."

"But there was a secret war being waged..."

"...one that had endured the passage of time..."

[cut to closeup of Aldor on map]

"Here, in Aldor, the majority of Frealand lived.  But that is not where out story begins."

"No, our story begins far to the east, in a less travelled region."

[scroll map to left until centered on mountain village of Glessing]

"Here dwelled the small mountain town of Glessing, which was barely large enough to justify the small Bedaic church in it's hills."

[cut to scenic view of Glessing]

"From this town, a hero emerged."

"Wistan was his name, but he was not born here."

"He was born to the south in Garnier.  His father, Leodwald, was a poor farmer.  His mother, unknown."

"So when Wistan was given the opportunity to live at the church as a scribe, his father knew it would be best for him...even if it did make farm life hard."

"There were not many in Frealand educated as well as the Bedaic priests and scribes."

"But where his teachers achieved in knowledge, they lacked in tenderness."

"As a child Wistan was shown little remorse, and when he grew old enough he was put to work for long hours."

[cut to view of Wistan (now in his early 20's) toiling away in the monastery hand-writing books by the window]

[pause]

"But Wistan didn't mind the toilsome work.  In fact, he rather enjoyed the opportunity to read so much."

[longer pause]

[bird flies in the window]

Wistan: "Ahh!  Bloody hell!"

[bird flies around in circles in the room and then lands on the sill]

Wistan: "Be gone, stupid bird!"

Wistan: "What, are ye just inclined to sit there?"

Wistan: "Do thy not quiver in fear before the human?"

Wistan: "Ah well...who does..."

Wistan: "Ho there, what is that tied about your ankle?  A note, no less?"

[Wistan pushes back his chair and gets up.  Player gains control of character]

[mätzyboy]

Nice intro story! My only comment: "mother unknown"? Seems odd, wouldn't the father know who the mother was? After all she carried little Wistan for nine months before handing him over in the fathers lone care. They should have had time to get to know eachother, even if they didn't during the actual making of the kiddo. To not know who the mother was after meeting at least twice, at least once under pretty intimite circumstances, seems strange. A more plausible cause of unknown mother would be if the father was unknown aswell! Maybe Leowald woke up one morning, went out to fetch some water in the well, and found Wistan lying in a basket on his frontstep?

Maybe going a bit too far with the mother story, but it was the only thing bugging me. An unknown mother seemed odd... No need to do anything about it if you don't want to...