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[2nd of April]

You have until the 2nd of April to get your entries in.

This is very generous of you.

Wordle 329 3/6*

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I got lucky with my 2nd guess. After that, I don’t think there was any other possible answer with the information I had.

Spoiler

SCOPE
MEANT (following cat’s earlier comment about non-infinitive verbs.)
METAL

[close]

It’s been a mixed bag for me. I’ve stopped keeping track of my overall average but it’s well over 4. I’ve had way too many 5s and 6s in the last few weeks.

I was happy with today’s (#328) result though: 3 guesses.

Wordle 328 3/6*

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My Awesome Bumb had dynamic rim lights, too.

"Just maybe, we can...

I love the idea of a found-footage movie where you’re just watching some shit someone filmed and nothing really happens. It’s like the Coney Island bit from Cloverfield, but 90 minutes if it and nothing even falls into the water, except maybe someone’s hat.

[The Cue]

The Cue

Mum kicked Dad out when I was 7. For a while he came to visit on weekends, or take me out for the day - a local castle or a round of mini-golf by the sea - but after a while he stopped. He wrote letters but they eventually stopped too. I would later learn that Mum had slapped a restraining order on him and he was legally forbidden from contacting me.

Nobody asked me for my opinion.

On my 8th birthday, he broke the order to leave me a present - a snooker cue, signed by Jimmy White himself. Dad and I had enjoyed many an evening watching snooker on the BBC. And this was a time when Jimmy "The Whirlwind" White was at the top of his game. I don’t know how Dad got the man to sign the cue, but it immediately became my prized possession.

And it was my prized possession for all of about five minutes, because Mum swiftly threw it into the communal recycling bin across the street and called the police.

Nobody asked me for my opinion.

On my 9th birthday, I received a card, hand-posted, from Greg Thompson, a school friend. It featured a cartoon cat playing a piano, with black musical notes dotting the card.


Happy Birthday  Danny.
                     ^
I hope your day is full of fun and the happiness doesn’t stop.

Greg Thompson


There were a number of strange things about this card. For a start, I had no school friends named Greg Thompson. So I studied the card in more detail.  On closer inspection, the words ‘full’ and ‘stop’ seemed to be subtly underlined and a very faint arrow was pointing between the words ‘birthday’ and ‘Danny’.

Then I realised if I squinted hard enough both of the ’n’s in ‘Danny’ had been written over a pair of musical notes. With a bit of imagination these quavers could be read as ‘d’s.

It wasn’t “Happy birthday Danny.” It was “Happy birthday. Daddy.”

I quickly put the card on the mantle piece with my other cards, so as not to draw undue attention to it.

Then something else fell out of the envelope. Without even looking at it I quickly pocketed the item and ran upstairs to my room to check it in private.

It was a curved piece of wood, fashioned into a key ring, and on it was Jimmy White’s autograph. It had been made from the very same snooker cue Mum had thrown out.

I looked out of the window to the communal recycling bin across the street, where Mum had thrown it away one whole year ago. There, I saw my dad. He didn’t wave or draw any attention to himself, lest he be spotted by a nosy neighbour. But once he had seen me and was happy that I’d seen him too, he nodded, smiled, turned around and walked away.

That was the closest I ever got to saying goodbye to him.

I enjoy found footage too. I’m not going to be able to provide any obscure gems you don’t already know about but instead I’ll just say that my favourite found-footage film is [•REC]. That film was so well done and scared the crap out of me. I still love watching it today.

I also loved Cloverfield. That’s another film I can rewatch any time. It’s not so scary, but hella fun. It can be a bit too self-knowingly clever but that’s Bad Robot for you.

And of course there’s the Blair Witch Project. It’s been a while since I last saw that film but for me it’s still one of the best found footage films I’ve seen.

Why do so-called "sing-along" or karaoke videos on YouTube only ever display each line at the point the line begins in the song? This renders it impossible to even try to "sing-along" to the song unless you already know it. But if you already know it, you don't need to see the lyrics in the first place?

Would it hurt them to bring up the next line just a few milliseconds early to give people a chance? Even just the first word of the next line would make a world of difference.

It’s great to see some early interest. I look forward to your updates :-)

I've never done MAGS before (not even back in the day, I don't think), and things have probably changed in a decade. Are there any unstated rules or things that people just don't like seeing in MAGS entries? I don't want to contribute negatively to the community you all have established here already!

Hi incobalt,
There are no real rules other than it should somehow fit the theme. Of course, how you interpret the theme is entirely up to you. There used to be a rule against using any pre-made assets, but we abolished that rule to encourage more entrants who want to just whip up a game using whatever they can without worrying about whether they suck at art, etc.

Of course, the project itself should be brand new. You can’t just dust off an existing game and change a few bits of dialogue to fit the theme, but you can reuse bits of existing art, sprites, music, code, etc to help you on your way. There’s even a link in the first post to the AGS Trove, a collection of bits and bobs anyone can use. Also, look around for Eric Matyas’s archive of free-to-use textures and music.

Right guys, it’s officially May.

I rather hoped having a three-day head-start might excite a few people but that didn’t happen.

If ever there was a theme suitable for MAGS, this is the one. Come on, everybody.

[Unlicensed to Kill]

Thanks for all the entries guys. Unfortunately there can only be one winner. It was a tough choice but….. (drumroll)….

Well done ddavey1983. Your game Unlicensed to Kill is the winner.

(It was the only entry but still looks like a lot of fun to play. Thanks for participating, mate.)


Now everyone, head on over to MAGS May where the there theme is Museums

I’ve not played brilliantly since my last post but I did manage to get “heist” in 2 shots.

When I get a chance I need to work out my overall average, combining my pre- and post-cache-reset scores.

Well done for getting below 4, Snarky.

Any more for any more.

[Museums]

Topic: Museums
Chosen by: Elvis Tanner

Voting is now underway.
Please vote using the poll above.

	Another Museum by glurex
	The Museum by ddavey1983

There are a lot of different museums and a lot of things can happen in a museum. A schoolboy can try to sneak in without paying, the custodian of the museum can try hard not to fall asleep during his shift at night, Dinosaurs can come to life, a mummy can start killing people, thieves can steal a painting and Professor Langdon can find clues on the Mona Lisa.





What is MAGS?
Started in 2001, MAGS is a competition for amateur adventure game makers. The idea is to create a game in under a month, following the guidelines set by the previous winner. It aims to help you work to a deadline, improve your skills, and provide a kick-start into making adventure games. Regardless of skill, MAGS is for everyone. Voting is based on "favourite" games, and not the most artistic, or the best coded. If you have bad art skills, use it as a chance to do some graphic work. If you're sub-standard at coding, use it as a chance to give scripting a go. Ultimately, people will vote for the most enjoyable entry.

Rules
Entering MAGS is simple. First, conceptualize your game following the month's criteria (see above). Second, create your game fuelled only by coffee. Finally, post your game in this thread, including:

* A working download link
* The title of your game
* A suitable in-game screenshot

At the end of the month, voting will begin, usually lasting for fourteen days, and the winner chooses the next month's theme.

Remember that this is a challenge to see what you can do in a month, so any tinkering you do after that, including fixing minor glitches, is against the spirit of the competition. The exception to this is that you may go in and fix major, game-breaking bugs only during voting. We want you to have a game that voters can actually play and that runs on their machines.

So to reiterate, during the voting period fixing major, game-breaking bugs is okay, fixing minor glitches or making cosmetic changes is cheating.

Tips
Here are some ways to make sure you have a game to submit at the end of the month:
* Make a tiny game. Plan small, then cut it in half. Find shortcuts (e.g. if making walkcycles is time-consuming, make the characters static or have it in the first person).
* Plan to have your game playable and submittable with a week to spare. This way you have a week to fix bugs, add some flourishes and maybe even get someone to test it.
* Plan to submit it a day or so early. This way, if there are any technical issues with uploading, they can be sorted out in time.

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Need a little help with graphics? Perhaps The AGS Trove has something you can use.
Don't want to go it alone? Try the Recruitment board.
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Looking great, Grundi. You’re in the final stretch. All the best.

Haha. I really was hoping to enter butt but…

I’m sorry everyone, but I haven’t managed to find the time to write much and will not be able to finish my story.

I quite like the idea though, quite X-Filesy, so I’ll finish it in my own time and share the story at a later date.

It's done!


https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=59894.0

This looks like a lot of fun. Thanks for entering.

Is anyone else working on anything? Davey’s game was made in just over a week, so it’s not too late to enter.

Ahh unlucky cat.

I got #304 in 4, but I also got #303 in 2.

It’s almost midnight in Japan, so I’ll be able to play #305 shortly.

[Update: #305 - 4 tries]