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[JAN 30 2014: Musician: I'm interested in someone who can compose/perform an AGS hip-hop song for a bridge sequence. I'd do the lyrics, or at least collaborate on them if you've got ideas. Approximate length of the sequence in the game would be 30 seconds, but we could do a full length song just for kicks and giggles if you're interested. Actual hip-hop skill is less important to me than enthusiasm for the endeavour. Post or PM me if interested/intrigued.]

Greetings AGSers,
       This board is deader than last week's roadkill, but I'll pitch the ball and see who's still batting.
       I've got this game, see.  It's kinda for this secret thing that I used to not be able to talk about, and now I'm just not sure, but anyway it's this upcoming thing that will be raising money for this AGS thing and my game will be part of this thing, and I want it to be the whole nine yards, with voice acting and music and sounds and no bugs -kind of like a cadillac, only you can play it and its resale value will be negligible.  So I'm interested in recruiting some talent or at least folks with a pulse and a vocal cord.
       But I'm getting ahead of myself.  The game in three sentences or less:
             1)Three AGSers form their own adventure game business called Blue Lobe Inc. in a parent's basement.
             2)They need to get the game demo out to raise funds from Kickstarter, or the fledgeling business will go bankrupt.
             3)Hilarity ensues.
       It's meant to be kind of an interactive web-comic, with (mostly) greyscale graphics and speech bubbles and jokes about AGS and adventure games.  Here's an in-progress screenie:



Actual Positions Required (with current status):

1) I need voice actors with, in addition to a decent mic, the following voice qualities:
    Jan 30, 2014: All voice work is completed!

2) I need beta testers with a proven record of discretion and the ability to communicate where and how they encountered a bug.  2-3 minimum.  Workload will probably run you 2ish hours to try everything twice, plus reporting time.
    Jan 30, 2014: All testing completed!

3) JAN 30 2014: Musician: I'm interested in someone who can compose/perform an AGS hip-hop song for a bridge sequence.  I'd do the lyrics, or at least collaborate on them if you've got ideas.  Approximate length of the sequence in the game would be 30 seconds, but we could do a full length song just for kicks and giggles if you're interested.  Actual hip-hop skill is less important to me than enthusiasm for the endeavour.  Post or PM me if interested/intrigued.  The rest of the soundtrack has already been completed!

4) Object donors.  I want to decorate the walls and coffee tables of my backgrounds with AGS-related paraphernalia.  If you have a logo that can be adapted to the greyscale environment I'd like to include it (from your band, your indie movie studio, your blog, your craft-beer brewery, your small business, your web-comic, whatever).  I will put a "look" and "use" interaction with your item, so send along any brief messages you want as a kind of advertisement.  Funny anecdotes would be best, but I can play it straight up if you want.

TIMELINES: As of January 30, 2014 this project is pretty much done: I'm just adding extra features at this point.  The last I heard the Bake Sale 2 will now be going public in early April.  Stay tuned!

Anyway, let me know in this thread if you are interested.  Or PM me if your shy.  Why not?
   

I like writing out scripts/design documents.  I don't always stick to them very closely because I get better ideas as I go along, but it sure is nice to fall back on those old ideas if I can't think of anything else.  Probably better than actually writing out a plan is to just keep a journal of all your good ideas -sometimes they only come once!

310 to Yukon?

Congrats to the winners!

Ponch is just pretending to single you winners out -I just received personalized congratulations from him via PM for my triumphal 4th place finish

Good writing people, and well deserved victories!  I look forward to reading you all next time.

There should totally be a dead tree somewhere, evoking both the title and an atmosphere of decline and desolation.  And cowboys holding hands, just to challenge stereotypes.

[Character:]

Character: Chef! & kconan.  I liked Hodo.  At first I thought he was just a Lenny Small, but his will was not so easily bent, and I liked that about him.  I also liked Leo Padrone, for his carefree musings.  I guess I'm just a sucker for the big simpletons....
Plot: WHAM.  With each entry the actual story became more and more clear -very clever.  I would have voted kconan, who wrote a really good plot, but I can't call it "well organized and coherent" due to what seem like minor mistakes (the blind man never says "Nico" before everyone freaks out, there seemed to be some accidental cut & paste repetition, how'd the old blind man get so close to Leo without him realising it?)
Atmosphere: kconan.  The intensity of the situation was well-conveyed.
Background World: Chef! & WHAM.  Chef! for invoking a sense of wonder at an as yet undiscovered world, where your wildest dreams might well come true just over the horizon.  WHAM for giving glimpses of a world gone insane (the Lord of the Flies remake was good).
Word Choice/Style: WHAM.  The observant descriptions like "thin fog of breath before their eyes" and "living shadows in the night" combine with authentic sounding police-speak and journalism.
Topic: WHAM & kconan.  WHAM for the use of multiple media to tell the story (interview, narrative, newspaper), kconan for keeping me guessing where the story was going through the use of such divergent perspectives.

Sigh. I'm out. I just couldn't find any time to work on it over the weekend. Good luck to all the participants!

Well, at least Ponch won't be turning our voting system on its head this time around. 

The Mark of Glory

   Chrysaor the sword fidgeted inside his sheath, his sharp edges itching with hungry anticipation.  He shifted his hilt in the wind, sniffing.  Yes, there it was.  Wafting like perfume off a thousand sweating bodies: the smell of battle.  Soon the sunlight would dance down his steel flank, blinding his opponents before cleaving them to death.  He could almost taste their hot blood splashing down his naked sides!  He squirmed uncomfortably within the confines of the sheath.  Soon.  Soon....

   Svalinn the shield nestled closer to her wielder, sheltering him from the fell wind that carried the wretched cries of the battlefield.  She squeezed his shield-arm reassuringly.  He squeezed back uncertainly, and she saw his lip quiver.  He needed not fear: whatever might come to pass, she would be there to protect him.  As long as they stuck together, she would bring him safe through any horror.  She wrapped herself around him soothingly in a gentle embrace.  There was no need to fear.  Now was the time to be calm, to be at peace.

   Pendalynne the pennon fluttered idly in the breeze, flaunting herself before the greedy leers of the enemy.  Oh, how they coveted her, symbol of the regiment's pride and honour.  They yearned to seize her, to have their way with her, to make her theirs.  She flapped coyly; teasing them, daring them.  Her bearer lifted her higher, and her men cheered their unflinching loyalty.  They would all of them sacrifice their lives to preserve her honour, which was as it should be.  She coldly surveyed the approaching chaos, then danced whimsically to show her disdain for it.  Anything that distracted the men from their unflinching devotion to her was beneath her dignity to suffer attentively. 

   Guthrech the codpiece jostled along in the stuffy, airless confines between his wearer's thighs.  His was not a glorious job, but keeping the plumbing in good order was an honest living.  In the heat of the charge the clammy sweat down here churned up like butter, and the little curly hairs scratched like steel wool until the walls of his workstation glowed with an oily rash.  Still, better safe than sorry.

   Chrysaor flashed a deadly grin as he towered briefly above the melee, then he plunged into the fray.  Parry, cut, lunge, parry!  Gah, what was with all the parrying!  That's what shields were for, the mopy lumps.  He was built for thrusting, and penetrating!  Oh, how he chafed to plunge into the inviting warmth of man-flesh!  He threw himself forward, heedless of the danger.  His tip smashed painfully against a metallic flange of armour, but he was undeterred.  Persistence was his motto: eventually they would yield to his lascivious advances.  He smashed his tip again, and reeled dizzily at the impact.  Oh, he liked it when they played hard-to-get.  He shook off the ringing and plunged forward once more.

   Svalinn flinched painfully at the impact, but she tried not to let it show.  All was serenity in the sheltered bubble beneath her.  She shed a deadly rain of arrows like a mother-bird's wing, then deflected another axe blow.  All is calmness.  I am sea of tranquillity in an ocean of storms.  Nothing can -ah!  She recoiled in shock at the little moustachioed dwarf who was crawling forward with an outstretched dagger.  She instinctively stomped downward like a blunt guillotine, denting his helmet.  She HATED dwarves.  They were like the rats of the primate order.  Composure!  She had to regain her composure.  Fine, fine, everything's fine.  Deflect, redirect, absorb.  A graceful tree in a silent grove.  A bed of emerald moss.  Calm.  Calm.  Oh shit, the midget is still twitching!  She crushed down again.

   Pendalynne floated haughtily above the fray.  Everyone was so intent on their little battle that no one was paying attention to her at all!  She fluttered gaily, trying to entice the gaze of someone, anyone.  Hello!  Pretty pennon floating in the wind up here!  Doesn't anyone want to idolize me?!?  Oh, wait, there's someone.  A little stunted man with a twirly moustache -ooo!  Well, he's probably not getting back up after that.  *Sigh*.  She flapped left, then right, bored.  Maybe it was -oh my god!  I've got a tatter!  I've got a tatter!  She looked around to see if anyone was looking, then quickly plucked it out.  Breathe.  It was going to be ok.  All she had to do was -ah!  Her bearer lurched backward alarmingly, sending her swinging through the air.  Watch out, you bumbling twit!  You almost dropped me!

   Guthrech furrowed his rim and tried to stay focused on his job.  The pressure down here was getting pretty intense: if he'd had ears, they would probably be bleeding by now.  The sweat pooled in him like a pond, and the briny smell of the seaside melded with the brawny musk of a wild boar's crotch to make the stale air unbearably heavy.  It was hotter than a furnace down here, so much so that his charge sagged against him like an overripe fruit.  Then, just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, a steel-shod hoof came up and gave him a punt right square in the face.

   Chrysaor was beginning to weary.  His edge was blunted and riddled with nicks and divots.  Once, in a particular fit of eagerness he had tried to pierce the breastplate of an especially juicy looking bit of meat, only to break his tip.  Now he flailed about more than fought, lashing haplessly to and fro, ringing from the impacts of steel on steel.  But through the fog of splattered mud and blood he could see that others were no better off than he.  Everyone was getting a little tired, and a little sloppy.  Another sword popped out of nowhere and took a knock at him, hard, but at an awkward angle, so that it swung onward due to the momentum.  It was then that he saw the opening, saw the sword wielder turn unwillingly to follow the dead weight of the runaway sword, exposing an unprotected length of neck.  He fixated on that opening, barely daring to believe it, watching it grow.  He went for it, wobbling forward while slicing downward.  He could almost taste the blood when his guiding arm was blindsided by an axe, the force of which sent them both flying.

   Svanlinn sagged lower to the ground, sometimes resting gently on the helmet of the unconscious dwarf to save the effort of rolling back and forth.  Her face felt like the back end of a stubborn mule after being flogged for twelve hours.  She had three, no four arrow-piercings now, a gaping axe hole on her lower flank, and a couple of gouges out of her flange.  But she was hanging in there, still shielding her wielder against the enemy.  The sapling bends, but does not break.  But then suddenly she slouched forward, released as her wielder doubled over to smother the dwarf.  For an instant she balanced there, seeing the friendly-fire arrow sticking out of his shoulder.  Probably not fatal on its own, but it would be if anyone bothered to finish the job.  Quickly she tipped over him, determined to continue her duty as a fortified roof over her charge.

   Guthrech screamed in agony: the impact of the hoof had cracked the integrity of his cup and had swollen his ward grotesquely, so that it quickly filled him entirely.  Now, with each passing moment, the swelling increased, slowly forcing him apart at the fissure.  It was like being on the notorious rack of torture, only in reverse, for he was being split apart from the inside.  Except on the rack there was no massively swollen sweaty scrotum.  Wait till the medieval torture masters got wind of this....

   Pendalynne swayed back and forth as if performing a gymnastic ribbon routine.  Why couldn't her lackey's just keep her straight?!  It was so hard to find good help these days.  That bloody axe kept hacking away at everyone who tried to steady her.  Ew!  Blood splatter!  Well, at least she would be carried off and ravished by the strongest and fiercest warrior on the whole battlefield.  She resigned herself to be his trophy, his mark of savage glory.  He'd probably get a knighthood for the deed, and she'd be displayed prominently in his new castle.  Well, there were worse fates.  And then the axe for once missed its mark and sliced through her staff, sending her crashing into the mud.  It was cold, and crawling with filth.  And then a bloody tooth landed on top of her.  Ahhh!  Get it off!  Get it off!  A shrill scream followed by a cracking sound so loud that it carried above the din of battle brought her back to her senses. What was THAT?!?  But she had no time to wonder further, for just then -oh, the indignity! - a grubby midget hand reached out from under a shield-covered corpse and reeled her in.




   

Nice!  I just got my inspiration, but was wondering if I'd have the time to flesh it out.  I'll have something up by Monday.

I like Ticket to Ride, but the folks I play with are way too serious.  They play online ...one of them claimed to be ranked #17 in the world at one point.  The missus and I play Monopoly sometimes, and we often play Dutch Blitz and Quiddler (card games).  Also we play Pigs and Tens (both kind of dice games, in a very loose interpretation of the word) and my all-time favourite: Bananagrams!  I used to play a lot of Diplomacy when I lived with my brothers, but fortunately I don't surround myself with such ruthless and backstabbing people these days.   

I wanted to be a famous flamenco dancer.... but in the end I settled for adventure games.  Flamenco was exciting and passionate, but adventure games were a reliable fall-back: the safe option.  Better to play second fiddle than not be in the band at all, I always say.  But ....shhhhh!  Don't tell anyone, but I've got a secret plan to parlay my adventure gaming skills into a new flamenco dance that I plan to choreograph!  In military terms it'd be called a flanking manoeuver: if she slams the front door in your face, get her in the back door, I always say!  Yeah, I know what you're thinking.  Why does Adventure Gaming put up with my two-timing ass?  'Cause she's a desperate bottom-feeder, that's why!  She'll put up with anything I throw at her, because she's terrified of dying alone.  Yeah, that's right.  You were all thinking it, but I said it out loud.  Shut up baby, I love you!  Now go rustle up some inventory for me and my boys, 'cause we gotta go out for the evening.  No, you wouldn't like it.  I don't know!  You could get some vacuuming done.  Well don't ask me then!  Don't be like that!  Maybe if you'd clean yourself up a bit!  Fine!  Oh, that's ok baby, I forgive you.  Now you have a good time cleaning up around here and I'll bring your back some sugar when I come home.  Yeah, that's right baby.  No, can't talk now baby, gotta run.  See ya!   

Hey Wyz,
      No, nothing like any of that happened.  It was as I described above: I just edited a character in the properties window of a room after I had just used the same window to remove that character from the room.  I am convinced that's what led to the corruption -I did nothing else that wasn't routine. 
      Anyway, I went back to my backup and had got myself caught up in less than 3 hours -it helped that I could still see all the code in the corrupt version, but it was still a pain to redo it all.  Anyway, that's all behind us now... I just hope no one else has to go through the hassle.  Version 3.2.1 has been very stable for me otherwise.

       Thanks for everyone's help!

Yeah, no luck with "Rebuilding All Files", nor with just deleting the offending room (I'm still getting the memory error in other rooms).  So, I guess it's back to the backup time....  .  Fortunately I was able to salvage all the script contents that I've worked on since the last backup, so that should cut my redoing time by more than half.  Still, I'm not looking forward to the tedium. 

Is this a known bug?  Is it possible to save someone else this headache? 

Yeah, I'm on board.  It's an interesting challenge in a short story context.  Just to be clear, as long as the event is described twice from different perspectives, it doesn't necessarily have to be two distinct tellings, right?  I was toying with the idea of two narrators concurrently telling two versions of the same event -would that be allowed?

Also, for other comps (i.e. MAGS) we can team up.  Would that be allowed?  Not that I'm directly considering it at the moment, but I think it'd be fun and would work well for this theme.

Yeah, I figured as much....  Still, that'd probably take less than an hour, so it's probably the best case scenario.  Is deleting the .crm best-practice, or is there a way to do it through the editor?

EDIT: I've done some experimenting and I'm still getting the memory error (but not the on-screen craziness with sprites) in other rooms as well.  Is this a game breaking contagion, or will surgically removing the original offending room suffice to cure my baby?

So, this happened while testing the latest build of my game:



I'm pretty sure what I did.  In the editor I had moved the main character's starting room to the current room I was working on, and then changed his view to something room-appropriate.  Then, from the room editor in character-mode, I switched the character back to his original room using the frame at the bottom right.  Still in the same room, still using the window at bottom right in character-mode, I changed his view back to normal.  But by that time he wasn't in that room -I think that confused AGS.
   
Anyway, current symptoms are whenever that room is run, random character frames keep popping up, two or three times at once, all over the place until the game crashes with the error posted above.  I have had no success fixing this by retracing my steps and expect I will have to rebuild the room or, sigh, start over again from my last backup (maybe 10 hours of work ago).  Unless... unless someone's got an idea of how to fix this?

Blast!  Fixed.

Also, thanks for hosting, Baron. I could have stolen the election if it weren't for your devilishly complicated apparatus of democracy!

Ponch is a little sore about not being able to implement his arm-wrestling idea.   But he's right in one respect: now is probably a good time to discuss voting. we've tried a few different methods lately -what do people think?  I mean, the only reason I can see to have the one vote per person method is to keep it simple to attract more of an electorate.  But since that simplicity doesn't seem to attract many (any?) extra voters, my personal preference would be a method that makes the voting a little more exciting and gives a little more feedback to the writers.  But now I step back from the brink of tyranny and throw the question to the people: what kind of vote would you like to see in the future?

[Sinitrena]

The voting system for this competition gets progressively more complecated

Baron AKA Writing Comp Kommandant

The voting system in the writing competition has become much too complicated. If I win, I'm doing away with voting altogether and winners shall be determined by reading tea leaves (or by arm wrestling contests, where possible).

Good, good....  Feedback is always good.  I can feel us becoming better voters already.

Good voting system Baron.

That's the spirit!

All right, on to the results.  As I count the valid votes (nice try Ponch), the results are as follows:

Sinitrena: 9 votes
kconan: 6 votes
Ponch: 6 votes
Adeel: 5 votes
Chef!: 4 votes

Thus, our clear winner is: Sinitrena!  She wins the golden cuh : (Any resemblance to a biblical idol is entirely unintended).  I have to admit I was a little intimidated by the length of your entry, but the words raced by in an exciting and well-written mystery.  I was especially impressed with the catchy and realistic dialogue, and of course the captivating background world, which was explained just enough to make the story make sense and keep the reader interested.  Very well done!  At 7000 words you've created a very tight and well constructed story.  Have you considered pushing a bit further and making a novel out of this?  Also, does Castle DAB have anything to do with some liquid inspiration?

Second place must be shared by kconan and Ponch.  They must split the silver cuh solomonically down the middle: .  For kconan, I thought the setting and set-up of your piece was brilliant.  The characters were weirdly interesting, and although it was sometimes awkward I was very impressed with your creative ability to adapt Burns' words into your own context.  As for Ponch, I thought your story was very clever in a crazy cerebral kind of way.  Your wit and dialogue were as always superb, and like many others I was impressed by your uncanny ability to get into the arch-german character's head.  Special marks for the "home-made sweater of genius and deceit," my favourite line this comp.

Third place goes to Adeel.  He gets the bronze cuh all to himself: .  I think I've heard something resembling the grandmother's story before, but I thought making the sage old woman into a "cool-granny" was clever, and of course the lesson was unmistakeable.

And well... Chef!  I've got nothing for you buddy, but you were right in the running with the rest of them.  For me poetry is a tough sell, but I thought the back half especially was profound.  It's true the rhyme wasn't perfect, but orally it could work.

Well, that's it that's all, as they say.  I look forward to doing this again sometime (the writing bit, not the torture by democratic novelty... well, that too  ).  It's now Sinitrena's turn to start the process all over again.

See you all next time, for the next exciting instalment of...

...The Fortnightly Writing Competition!

[Sinitrena:]

Well Lady and Gentlemen, I'm afraid the hour is nigh and I must close the competition.  Now is the time to nestle in with a couple of extra printer ink-cartridges and enjoy the sweet fruits of our labour.  The following is the roster of contenders for the caber toss writing competition:

Sinitrena: The Social, Friendly Honest Man
kconan: Lay the Proud Usurpers Low
Chef!: If There is Another World He Lives in Bliss, If There's None, He Made the Most of This
Ponch: UNTITLED: Disqualified for not conforming to the competition rule Light From Heaven
Adeel S. Ahmed: If Nobody Cares for Me, I'll Care for Nobody

VOTING PROCEDURE

We're going to try something a little different this time around.  I'm a big fan of the Six-Point Apportionment Method (6PAM) we've been using lately, but I think besides merely determining a winner our dedicated voters have the ability and opportunity to give a little more thorough feedback, which would help us all improve as writers.  The background competition is a good example of this: contestants receive votes based on numerous criteria, with the understanding that art can be appreciated from many different angles.  So this time we're going to try what I call the Criteria-Based Meritorious Mention Method (CBMMM).  I ask you to declare which work or works stood out, resonated, or otherwise seemed above the other submissions in the following categories:

Character: You find one or several characters really believable/captivating/magnetic/unique, etc.
Plot: The story arc was well-organized, coherent, and well-executed with appropriate pacing
Atmosphere: This is all about feeling: did the story evoke strong feelings due to excitement/humour/intrigue/wonder/emotional intensity?
Background World: The best setting or milieu for a story; a place brought to life.
Word Choice/Style: The technical art of combining words in clever or gripping ways
Message: Deep thoughts, philosophical insights or lessons conveyed.  Did you learn something?  Did the author communicate anything memorable?

You are encouraged to name two authors for each category, but anywhere from 1-3 is acceptable provided you feel the author has earned mention.  Each mention garners that author one point, regardless of order mentioned, and the author with the most points will win (if there is a tie, I will cast the deciding ballot).  So for example:

Character: Whedon, Lee
Plot: Disney
Atmosphere: Spielburg, King
Background World: Eddings, Williams, Robinson
Word Choice: Shakespeare, Wilde, Tolkien
Message: Aesop, Robinson

So in this case Robinson would be ahead with 2 points, and everyone else would be tied with one.

I hope I've explained the CBMMM to everyone's satisfaction.  If you have any questions or complaints just PM Ponch and vent. 

VOTING RUNS UNTIL MIDNIGHT AUGUST 8.  Good luck to all entrants!

Three entries so far, four if you count Sinitrena twice....   Not bad, not bad....  But we've got two-ish more days to round out the field.  Looking forward to more entries!