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This discussion reminds me that my generation will live through all major science fiction dates. I've already seen 1984, (Space) 1999, and 2001 (A Space Odyssey).

We're living in the future, STILL without flying cars or space-babies.

What Johnson says, however, is that studies have shown that average results for problem-solving skills, abstract reasoning, pattern recognition and spaital logic have all increased.

I won't argue that we've advanced in these areas. You acknowledge that there are areas of the mental process that these studies haven't engaged with.

I'm not aware of such a thing as a savoir-faire test, nor do I have people's attention spans on record for the last century. Forgive me if Johnson deals with this issue, but without assessing these areas surely it is impossible to identify progress overall rather than isolated change.

[ildu:]

Thanks for the feedback guys, it's been very useful. I hoped that the image would look like the early 20th century with hints of a fairy tale environment. From your responses this may be more a fairy tale world with hints of the early 20th century, but I'm reasonably happy.

ildu: I hadn't noticed that the woman blended in, in fact it was my express intention to have her stand out from her surroundings. Thanks for pointing that out to me! I'll also try to make the book in the foreground a little more blue-gray.

Elric: Many thanks for your suggestions, but I want to keep the colours I use to a minimum - so green's not an option. Instead I'll up the saturation and contrast on the figure and lower that of the walls. I'll also tint the walls a little more blue to dim them a little. The values on the mirror-girl actually are lower, but I may make them a little lower still. I'm not sure whether I mind my focus darting between the girl and her reflection.

Steve McCrea:Thanks for noticing the art deco touch. I actually had art nouveau in mind to begin with, but it went a lot more geometric and angular. I didn't mean her to look so sad though! Perhaps some firm eyebrows would make her look a little less of a victim.

MashPotato:
1) Ach! I know, it's a total cheat and completely wrong. I haven't yet decided whether I mind too much, but I probably should show a little more of her hair.

2) Ach! I know! I was hoping to get away with it, because I couldn't be bothered to get it right. Shamed am I, I'll see what I can do. This is what I meant by 'sloppy'.

gypsysnail: I'm afraid there won't be a finished piece as such, but there may be more rough sketches like this. Hopefully that will satisfy you!

By comparing the machine-gun pace and disjonted themes of The Goon Show with the langurous pace and domestic scope of Everybody Loves Raymond, I could make the case that media output is becoming easier to follow.

Of course, The Goon Show is exceptional. It doubt it represents the majority of 1940/50s radio comedy, but it still makes it difficult to establish a trend from the simple towards the complex in the last half decade.

More significantly, I'm doubtful of this notion of MTV taking more brainpower to process. I'll agree that it takes a degree of mental agility to follow MTV, but I'd question to what degree MTV viewers actually process information.

I suggest that the capacity to patiently dwell upon and consider a subject should be considered a valuable skill, after a fashion.

I think it would be a mistake to celebrate the exchange of this skill for the mental agility of MTV viewers. If there is a trend towards the complex in the mass media, it does not necessarily represent progress, nor an increase in the sophistication of our minds.

This isn't game related, so I hope it's okay to post it here. I'd really like some feedback on this sketch. It's supposed to be quite loose and I know it's pretty sloppy. What I'd most appreciate would be people's thoughts on how the image strikes them in terms of environment/period and character.

But following the logic of your post, are you saying that The Maltese Falcon has an atmospheric story and something like say The Sopranos or 24 doesn't? If you really do think this, I'll lend you my shovel so you can dig your head out of the ground.

I agree that both 24 and the Maltese Falcon are atmospheric. The former establishes an atmosphere with an frenetic and intense interweaving of images and narratives, the latter with an understated lugubrious pace. You're right that for multi-track narratives to work they don't sacrifice good plotting, they demand good plotting.

Frenetic pacing, fractured storytelling and layered narratives can be very effective, as in the examples you gave. They are not, in and of themselves, the marks of intelligent and effective drama. They can also be observed in the best and the worst modern films and the most and least imaginative television.

I'm not arguing that we've lost anything since the Maltese Falcon, I'm simply not convinced that we've enhanced our cognitive abilities. I don't believe that MTV or xXx are making people cleverer simply because they are fractured, frenetic and follow multiple threads.

In other words, people need enhanced cognitive ability to process the shows more so than people of 50 years ago. Try getting your 65 year old grandpa to follow what's happening in The Sopranos. I guaran-fucking-tee you he'll prefer Matlock.

If the ability to follow a complex, fractured narrative has brought with it impatience and a diminished attention span then I don't think it should be considered an enchancement, particularly is thoughtless acceptance is riding alongside. The question should not be whether my Grandpa likes the Sopranos. We ought to be asking if our grandchildren will be prepared to watch The Big Combo or The Maltese Falcon. If their attunement to fast-paced mutli-threaded narratives blinds them to the value of a measured, atmospheric story then it will be a terrific shame.

I was sloppy to use the word 'good' in my earlier post. I should have said 'progressive'. I dispute the notion that the format of modern popular culture represents a significant progression.

I agree Davros, and I didn't mean for this to be a Dreamfall hate thread. I really enjoyed TLJ and the latest offering.

I suggest you play Dreamfall though, you'll be surprised at how little there is to do. I don't think it 'fails' as a game, I just think it's far closer to an interactive (but not a challenging) story. Adventure games have always bordered on interactive storytelling, but Dreamfall goes a step further than anything I've played.

[3rd:]

Thanks for the entries! My choices are:

3rd: Clip

2nd: Tocsik

1st: eddie hitler

WINNER:


Sorry, I've been too busy to make trophies. Feel free to make your own from the foil from chocolate bars.

-Ali

Thanks for the swift feedback guys. I don't have time to do an edit right now. When I dropped the Ravi character infront of the ticket window I felt that  it was about right scale wise.

You're right about a sign - my original sketch had one and I don't know what happened to it.

The posters on the right are too prominent, Evil. But I was planning to add shading along the lines you've suggested - I just haven't got round to it. thanks, that looks much nicer.

I'm re-thinking the shadows from the awning. As it is the awning is supposed to cover the wide doorway.

Thanks again. I'll post an update soon.

I've re-worked the composition a little:


It's still unfinished, but I think it's a little easier on the eyes. I also replaced the city on the horizon with a poster of the city - which is the player character's destination. I also made a few changes to make the colours less flat. I'm not happy with the highlight on the ticket booth, though.

Please let me know if this is an improvement.

i can already see a 3d rendered toon-shaded train arriving at the station.

I was thinking along very similar lines!

I refuse to read that, jet, seeing as comic books cause brain rot and delinquency.

Actually the words are too small.

But u1bd2005, who does it belong to?

I don't totally wholly disagree with what you're saying, but I must dispute a few things.

Viewers have to cling to the TV to catch what just happened in 24, or go online to read fansites, or rewind on their Tivo,Ã,  Ã, or ultimately buy the DVD and search through the bonus features.

I watched the first series of 24 without rewinding, or reading fan-sites. I also followed the story without remaining clinging to the TV (that is to say, I spent a good few minutes making fun of Jack's whispery voice during each episode). More significantly, Twin Peaks gave us a layered, fractured narrative in very much the same way, before fan websites, DVDs and Tivo.

It s not the case that TV execs avoided complex, violent, scandalous shows in the seventies because our moral standards were higher back then.Ã,  Ã,  Ã, Its that mass audiences could not keep up with those stories because of a lack in technology and therefore:Ã,  a certain kind of intelligence.Ã,  Ã, 

I can think of a number of violent, 'scandalous' and complex films from the 1970s, perhaps fewer TV programmes. I won't dispute the notion that a modern viewer is more attuned to fast, dynamic editing and fractured narrative structure, but I don't think that's necessarily a good thing, nor do I think it's been driven primarily by technology.

To my mind its greatest failing is the role cutscenes play in the game. A dramatic, well animated cutscene is a lovely thing to watch. It should be a reward, something a player earns by solving a puzzle.

Dreamfall treats the player like a spoilt child, you get visually rich cutscene for as little as walking from one room to another.

This means that the game's narrative is dramatised effectively, but there is no drama in the gameplay. You lose your sense of being an active protagonist, and are more like the characters' chauffeur.

Nonetheless, I will play the third game if/when it appears. If they can marry storytelling with a challenging and well developed series of puzzles it ought to be extraordinary.

Also would have been nice if you could pause during the movie sequences that practically are the entire game...

I believe you actually can save during some of the cutscenes at least. A similar thing happened to me!

I'm behind historical materialism, but I'm not sure socialism works as a modern political movement in the context of western capitalism. How can you define a 'worker's party' in an society whose proletariat are being relocated to free trade zones?

*Tugs forelock*

Begging your pardon Mr SSH, master of the pocket borough that is the AGS Awards, I wonder if I might ask a question...

*Nervously mangles flat-cap*

What's the earliest date that a game can be released NEXT year to qualify for the 2007 contest? Would it be after January the 10th?

*Walks out backwards, hoping SSH takes this cap-doffing nonsense in good humour...*

I'm thrilled!

(Though slightly less thrilled than I was for the brief moment when I thought I was in Completed Games.)

Huzzah, all the same!

I'd appreciate your thoughts on this unfinished backdrop, particularly with regard to composition. I'd like to know if the interior/exterior thing works or if it just looks like an awkward split-screen.

This is the station in the background of the last backdrop I posted. It hasn't been detailed, shaded or textured yet - so don't worry about it looking flatter than the others in the thread.

I think this artwork is absolutely great! Different styles make the same result when they're good = a joy for the eyes and for the mind!

Here's a tutorial that might interest you, alimpo83:
http://www.americangirlscouts.org/snarkywiki/index.php/General_Sprite_Tutorial

I've just finished playing 'Dreamfall'. It was extremely enjoyable and I was very involved with the characters and plot. It was, however, the easiest game I've ever played by a long way. I've never completed such a lengthy game in such a short space of time.

For all but a few puzzles, the solution is simply obvious. For many, you're explicitly told what you need to do. I can think of only two instances of not knowing exactly what to do to solve my current predicament.

Most unusually, during the middle portion of the game I felt I was simply stringing together a series of (quite entertaining) cutscenes. There's a sequence which lasts about 30 minutes where all the player has to do is move from room to room watching cutscenes. Plus you're usually following someone, so there's no danger of you not going to the right place!

I'd be interested to know how other people feel about this game's ressurection of 'interactive movie' experience.