Messages

Oh dear. Sorry about that, I think I know where I messed up. But I'll leave it for the post-MAGS version as correcting it now would be cheating
Thanks very much for reporting!

That's down to personal preference, I guess. Ideally I should make a GUI for switching between skipping modes so that everyone can pick whatever option they are most comfortable with. Point taken!

Sure, I'll reupload to google drive as soon as I get home. Sorry about that.
Actually, the filedropper link is still working, it "only" requires you to click the correct one out of one million different "Download file" buttons.

Below is the same file re-uploaded to a less vile host:
Link updated to remove restore game bug & the rope bug


Stupot, would you mind swapping the links or adding the above as an alternative?

[Mandle]

I have updated my previous post with a new link. I have corrected some issues, updated the music, tweaked the ending a little and reviewed one of the puzzles because the descriptions were unintentionally misleading.

@Mandle:
Glad you enjoyed the game so far! As for the specific things you pointed out:

Spoiler

The main character's walkcycle is a little dainty though. I think maybe if you slowed down the animation speed and turned up the walkspeed he wouldn't mince quite so much.

"A little dainty"? Wow, you're being kind. It's horrible This is a placeholder walkcycle I would normally update later in the development, but didn't manage before the deadline. But I tweaked the speed as per your advice and it seems to have helped. Thanks!

I'm not sure if the music suits the mood for me. I think I would have prefered something a little more mysterious and ominous. The music used seems a bit generic.

That was the best I could pick within half an hour or so I had left. I have picked something else for v2, but I'm hoping I'll be able to find someone to write a dedicated piece of music for the post-MAGS release.

Spoiler

I've gotten a bit stuck after making the 100% useable mallet.

[close]

Well yeah. There was no bug, but like I said earlier, I realized I had made one of the puzzles a bit unfair to the player. I have redesigned it slightly in the updated version so that it doesn't have to be solved by "using everything on everything".

Spoiler

There are a few glitches: The message when I try to pick up second piece of broken glass tells me I can't because my gloves are ripped, but they aren't. Also I can still get a second piece of wire even when I'm down on the ground. I can also pick up multiple Shards of glass as long as I cover the previous one in goo from the moss.

[close]

Fixed, and fixed, and fixed. Thank you! In fact, I considered crediting you as a playtester in the end credits, but I'd rather put the game through more thorough testing first because I wouldn't want you to look like a lousy tester if it turned out there were more bugs hidden somewhere!

Great game though! Are you a rescue guy in RL?! You seem to know a lot about the equipment!

That would be cool but no   I just enjoy reading about lots of random stuff, from amoebas to makeshift welding machines.
But thank you! I was actually worried it might be obvious that I have no clue.

[close]

I'm still en route but should hopefully be able to post an updated version as soon as my wife stops messing with my laptop...

Mandle, if you don't mind replaying the part you have progressed through (should be a fast replay) then the issues you found should be solved in the updated version.

Great, I'll be updating mine too then.

Thanks for the extensive feedback Mandle! I'll edit this post in the evening when I get back home and reply in detail, but for now to spare you some frustration - there is no bug. Though I *might* have unintentionally created a somewhat misleading puzzle, ironically in an attempt to make it easier More to come later!

Thanks VampireWombat, good to know. If the file downloaded ok then it should be fine, my only issue was that I had to upload using my phone and wasn't sure if I had set google drive permissions right.

I have managed to finish mine. The biggest challenge in the end turned out to be uploading the game, because I'm on holiday and my laptop's not picking up wi-fi...
Please let me know if the download link below doesn't work. I'll try to update later with a screenshot.

The Shaft



DOWNLOAD LINK

Sgt. Reed has been tasked with descending into an abandoned underground facility, activating the power generator and opening the main entrance. But things did not exactly work as planned...

Edit: Updated with bugfixes and couple more tweaks (thanks Mandle!)
Edit 2: Updated with critical bug fix upon Stupot's approval (save/load game issue)

I might have something too. I was working on an entry since early July, but didn't want to announce until I was relatively sure I have a chance to finish it.

It's still missing intro and credits, it could use a few extra animations and the walkcycles are abysmal, but the playable part is done.

I won't be releasing anything close to a playable game but at least the theme of "Ice" turned my mind To The Mountains Of Madness.

Ohh yes please! I always thought this one would make an awesome adventure game.

So did I... it's been way too long since the last time I really used the editor so a customized GUI defeated me this month. It was a good exercise, though.

In an attempt to make myself useful I stuffed some graphics down CaptainD's throat instead.

[Concept]

Concept: Pinback - Love the outworldly dystopian feel. regularryan as a close second, this background looks just like a lonesome, slightly creepy roadside should.
Playability: Cassiebsg - Very nicely detailed, I can easily imagine playing a rat in this location and interacting with the bars, the straw, the water dispenser, the cage door etc. Would love some additional details hinting what kind of a room the cages are in (a pet shop? a lab? a home rat farm?).
Artistic execution: VampireWombat - If lightened up a little so you could actually see what is in the picture, it is an enchanting and slightly melancholic view. This would work beautifully as a background for an abstract, fairytale-ish game.

And I second what Pling! said, it was a great theme lorenzo and I'm glad it ended with an equally great turnout.

That pit immediately gave me prince of persia chills

Hey you're right! It never occurred to me, but these pits must still linger somewhere in the long forgotten scars that nightmarish game left on my elementary schooler's psyche :>

selmiak, I love what you did with Pinback's (already awesome indeed) background. This is an absolutely AMAZING effect.

And here's my entry:

[imgzoom]https://s31.postimg.cc/e0wu90ud7/nighttime.png[/imgzoom]
Nighttime sounded like a good excuse to try out a limited palette

That's a great idea, thanks for taking the initiative to collect these contributions.
I have some stuff I can donate - glad they'll have a chance to actually be used for something instead of collecting dust.

Perhaps it might be a good idea to encourage people who use these resources for their games to link the AGS Trove thread in their completed game announcements so that more people can find it?


(Awesome logo btw )

[* Feb 18 | pick genre, setting and location from predefined lists and include a pet with an extraordinary gift | 4 entries]

On the subject of theme choice... Not sure if it will help anyone or not but here's a brief summary of themes and turnout for the last 30 competitions:

Spoiler

* Mar 18 | make three playable characters and differentiate the gameplay between them | 2 entries
* Feb 18 | pick genre, setting and location from predefined lists and include a pet with an extraordinary gift | 4 entries
* Jan 18 | hidden and misinterpreted true motives | 3 entries
* Dec 17 | invisibility | 1 entry
* Nov 17 | contest/competition | 4 entries
* Oct 17 | fears/phobia, + 1 room requirement | 5 entries
* Sept 17 | past and future mixed up | 3 entries
* Aug 17 | the Bible | 3 entries
* Jul 17 | same place frequented by character 3 times as key element of the plot | 3 entries
* Jun 17 | rescue | 8 entries
* May 17 | fate | 2 entries
* Apr 17 | misinterpretation/mistaken identity | 1 entry
* Mar 17 | difference in size | 2 entries
* Feb 17 | same location at multiple time periods | 2 entries
* Jan 17 | transformation/metamorphosis | 3 entries
* Dec 16 | pickpocketing | 2 entries
* Nov 16 | afterlife | 3 entries
* Oct 16 | remake an existing game into a different genre | 2 entries
* Sept 16 | pure evil | 5 entries
* Aug 16 | must include monkeys, poor quality vehicle, giant banana | 5 entries
* July 16 | extinction | 4 entries
* Jun 16 | non-cliche historical setting + real personnas (optional) | 3 entries
* May 16 | must include gas, "It's all right now" quote, someone named Jack + Jack jumps and toothless bearded hag (optional) | 4 entries
* Apr 16 | natural disaster | 2 entries
* Mar 16 | changing seasons | 1 entry
* Feb 16 | RoN | 2 entries
* Jan 16 | Black Death | 6 entries
* Dec 15 | depleted/running out | 3 entries
* Nov 15 | monsters + must include rhyming | 6 entries
* Sept 15 | Stephen King, must include 2 rooms and 2 characters exactly | 2 entries

[close]

What I feel the most popular themes have in common is that they are flexible and not too ambitious, in a good way. Basically, when I think say "monsters" or "contest" or "rescue", a bunch of simple short game scenarios immediately springs to mind and whilst none of these games would probably be very original or imaginative, they could be quickly and effortlessly planned out. Coming up with a working MAGS game plan shouldn't really take any of the precious little time we have to actually create the game.

Also, not all themes that scored 4+ entries are vaguely defined - some in fact use detailed requirements, see the monkey theme from Aug 16 or Jack theme from May 16 for example. Personally I'm not a big fan of these "include x, y, z and your game must be f" subjects because (admittedly more as a player than a creator - I rarely participate) I feel the competition is more captivating when the entries are themed rather than connected by randomly chosen elements. But it does seem to stir creativity if the combination turns out to be flexible enough.

As for the use of pre-existing open source graphical assets, it feels like something that could improve the turnout but I'm not convinced if using RON resources for this purpose is a very good idea unless the MAGS entry is an actual RON game. It is a free to use library, but a library dedicated to a specific series so using it for random MAGS games *kind of* defeats the purpose to me. But then again I'm hardly an expert on RON policy, someone better versed in the subject might want to comment should this option ever be seriously considered.

Not a problem at all, all it would take is a few clicks to swap the layers

Thanks again for the opinions guys, it seems that version 3 is everyone's favourite so let's go ahead with this one as the base. We'll see if the highlighted variants are even needed as the buttons will fade out until hovered over.

Gurok, that's an excellent suggestion. I'll put the base empty button and a short step by step guide somewhere once done with the work.

Every vote counts Dan! It's even better if I get consistent feedback from everyone, it just makes me more confident this is the step in the right direction.

The main post is now updated with the reworked set of buttons. I think I have covered all the suggestions (poke me if I missed something, though)... thanks everyone!
The uncropped versions and the high contrast are definitely going away, and I suppose we will pick something for the default and the highlighted (when hovering over) version out of these four.

Further comments and suggestions always appreciated