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[Alan Saves Christmas]

I finally finished a MAGS competition! Third time lucky and all that...

OneDollar Productions proudly present, OneDollar's first ever (completed) AGS game...

Alan Saves Christmas

Story
When the Ministry of Holidays receive a letter from Santa Claus cancelling his toy delivery for Christmas, they send an accountant named Alan to find out what is going on...

Features
*Full 800x600 graphics
*14 screens
*Comedic storyline
*Original hero
*Several puzzles of different difficulties
*Large and small download versions

Website: http://onedollarproductions.googlepages.com/alansaveschristmas

AGS game page: http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/games.php?action=detail&id=971

Completed game thread: http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=33256.0

[Alan Saves Christmas]

Alan Saves Christmas

Story
When the Ministry of Holidays receive a letter from Santa Claus cancelling his toy delivery for Christmas, they send an accountant named Alan to find out what is going on...

Features
*Full 800x600 graphics
*14 screens
*Comedic storyline
*Original hero
*Several puzzles of different difficulties
*Large and small download versions

About
This is a Christmas themed entry for the December 2007 MAGS competition

Website: http://onedollarproductions.googlepages.com/alansaveschristmas
AGS games page: http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/games.php?action=detail&id=971

Yes, sorry. I don't endorse the link in anyway, I just happened to click it shortly after reading this topic and it saved searching for another example

I just had exactly the same issue, after following this link. The issue here is the language YouTube is trying to display in, with the suffix tw. being Taiwanese or something I guess. Are you on the American (or British or whatever) version of YouTube, or another language?

Brilliant. Why wasn't 'infidel' one of Guybrush's replies?

Unfortunately Googlepages doesn't support FTP upload, so playing with FileZilla will have to wait for me to buy some webspace. Anyway, FileFront seems to be handling to upload.

Back (more or less) on topic, I split the game into a music file (the one I was having trouble with) and the .exe files, manuals etc. These were about 37MB but compressed down to a 2.5MB .zip file. Compression is definitely the way to go.

This might be a little off topic, but I've been having trouble uploading a 18MB file to my googlepages website, with the upload repeatedly failing. I then tried putting it on my aged freewebs site *shudder* but it just gave me an error after a while. Is this a result of my slow upload speed, the file handling of these two websites or what? Do you think it would work better uploading to something like FileFront? Eventually I had to split the file into 5MB chunks with WinRAR, but that's far from an ideal solution

When you compile your game (either through Build EXE or rebuild all files) it only seems to compile the music.vox file the first time. The next time you compile the file is not deleted, but its not overwritten with a new version either. I've tried adding new music files, changing whether a piece of music is used, saved, run, compiled, deleted the compiled files, but the only way to get a new music.vox file seems to be restarting the editor, then compiling again. Obviously this is misleading as you'd expect the files in the compiled folder to be the latest versions if you've just run the Build EXE option.

I think this is a problem with AGS, but I am using the Audio Manager editor plug in

[Surveillance]

Surveillance
In a similar way to Uplink you start by using a program to hack into low level security systems at a science lab. After observing the labs for a while you discover something is afoot and someone is trying to destroy a part of the lab and the scientists in it. Using the systems under your control you have to guide the scientists out of danger.

The focus is very much to immerse the player, and make the scenario seem as real as possible. The scientists gradually become aware that someone is watching them, and will react accordingly when you help or hinder. Continue to help them and you will gain their trust and they will start looking to you and asking you for advice. Fail to do anything for a while and the scientists will get increasingly worried. Failure to help, or giving bad advice will result in scientists narrowly avoiding injury, getting hurt or even killed, and the other scientists will react accordingly and start mistrusting you.

As the game progresses you would get opportunities to hack into deeper level systems to aid the scientists further. Also  you'll be monitored and traced, and will have to pay attention to stop being kicked off the system

Thanks Tuomas, that's really useful. I'm almost tempted to redraw her for a 640x480 resolution... anyway I'll think about it and play around with some of the ideas people have suggested

Thanks, those are some useful tips. Sprite drawing and animation are something I need to practise, but unfortunately I don't have a lot of time at the moment. I will have a go at animating her at some point, and probably find that it is difficult with lots of colours... we'll see.

Depends completely on your game, how it will play, how it will feel and especially what the rest of the artwork looks like.

The main thing I notice about version 1 is the white, which just feels like you're missing a background. Maybe you could try adding some kind of shading, gradient or texture in there, keeping the simple look but with a bit more interest for the eye. Alternatively make the logo more complicated and interesting, for example look at Final Fantasy-type title screens.

The thing that sticks out on Version 2 is the large black area behind the menu options. Maybe I just have a thing for large blocks of colour, but it seems to make either itself, or the picture appear tacked on. I think it needs to be made part of the picture, either by making it into a pillar or something in the foreground, or getting rid of the black area and continuing the background behind the menu options (but keep the protagonist where (he?) is - the composition is pretty well balanced)

I have to say I'd pick the second one over the first - it seems more professional, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try developing the first version a bit more if it fits the game better. I hope I don't come across as too harsh, I actually really like both versions.

Thanks for those, especially liking what you did with her hair Sparky. Both sets of edits will be useful for shading too (something I need a bit more practice at). I'm starting work on my third attempt at a MAGS competition, so I'm gonna put her on hold for a bit, and see what I think when I come back.

[PS : how do I put the images side by side ?]

Its as simple as writing all the image embedding code on one line

[Dissolution]

I've read a fair number of detective stories, recently Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse series: usually fun and a (fairly) easy read, with clever plots. But the most interesting detective novels I've read recently are

Dissolution and Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom, the first two books in the Matthew Shardlake series. The main character's a hunchbacked lawyer working for Thomas Cromwell in Tudor England. Its been very well researched and is pretty historically accurate, yet also well written with very interesting plots. Definitely a good read whether you're into mysteries, history or whatever.

I'll also 4th (5th, 6th?) The Hitch-hikers Guide To The Galaxy series, both intelligent and funny.

I also keep going back to certain books that I read when I was younger. They're not really recommendations (unless you know, or secretly are a 12 year old), but I have to admit I still enjoy them
Alex Rider series (and any other books) by Antony Horowitz - teenage spy books, but actually believable
The Edge Chronicles by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell - fantasy series with an expansive world and wonderful line art illustrations

My advise is to do sport, something mild and healthy, maybe 1 hour of walk, or 20 minutes of running (Maybe you so something simillar and I am assuming too much, excuse me if so)

Sport, working out, general physical activity is a good way to tire yourself out, but make sure you stop at least an hour before you want to go to bed. If you try to go to sleep straight after you've still got all the adrenaline pumping around and you just won't be able to.

As for staying awake, regular sleep patterns are very useful. Don't sleep too long either, that just makes you more tired when you wake up. But you don't want to listen to me, I'm virtually asleep in all my lectures...

It's shite.

Nobody say it...

The "Jenkem" entry actually goes on to attribute the drug's alleged popularity in the United States to -- and I quote -- "the success of 'Chocolate Rain' [last summer's runaway YouTube hit by Internet phenom Tay Zonday] whose lyrics implicitly refer to the practice and social effects of Jenkem abuse."

According to Zonday, the song is about racism.

Bet he's thrilled.

15 days in prison and deportation, she seems to be being very calm about it. Did anyone read the bottom of this article http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7123517.stm, where it was suggested that the protests were planned?

Common sense.

Of course.

Thank, though I've just spotted a small problem I'll get around to a side view or two at some point and then... *shudder* ...walkcycles. In the mean time any other thoughts are appreciated.