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...And you want to be bopping his upper body up and down as he walks.

here's a more finalised version of my pic:

Whereas it's true that a natural ability to draw is a must, I've never been so good at painting. I've just never been able to blend colours very well without turning the whole picture into brown  But it's an absolute dream in Painter!

Well, I took the plunge and bought myself a Wacom Graphire 4 XL (A5 size) last tuesday. I'm loving it! I can't believe I've drawn on the computer for years without one. Here's a picture I did today:

sorry everyone about the lack of updates lately but a nasty worm virus had corrupted all my game data. Luckily, I had back-ups. Not so luckily, I had done a lot of work since my last back-up!! It disheartened me for a while and my thirst for game making died down...But my love for programming got the better of me, and I'm back ready to tackle Valis once again. I have been making slow progress lately and largely boring behind the scene stuff (especially regarding my revitalised battle sequences...But that's still Hush-hush  ) and this post is mainly to let everyone know that Valis is still going, and I will finish this, dammit! 

Thanks for the crit, Kinoko. And don't feel bad, a well-intentioned critique is far more useful than a half-hearted compliment  I was going to try and give the screen more of an oriental feel because right now it is a bit jarring compared to the rest of the game, so a new font in that kind of style could be the way to go.

Okay folks, my weekly update is on. Firstly: the demo is down for a while. I was using Microtech but unfortunately they have shut down temporarily, they have this system starting soon but it's not ready yet. I figured that rather than attempt to find another place to upload it to, I would just create a brand-spanking new demo. So much has been added to the mechanics of the game that I need people's opinion on the direction things are taking. So hopefully that will be out in a couple of weeks. In other news, I have yet again updated my battle system  . I had a brain-storm after some comments I've received about the turn-based engine and I have come up with something that while it keeps that classic FF feel, more strategy is now involved in the process. I won't say too much, people can make up their mind about it when they play the demo  .

And just to tide everyone over, here's a sneak peek at my new title screen:

Hmm Microtech is where my files were uploaded and it doesn't seem to be working right now. I don't have the demo file handy so I will have to upload it somewhere else in the next couple of days. Sorry about that. As for your comments, I happen to like the turn-based Final-Fantasy style battle system  As for the sketchy style, it was only temporary but I've had so many positive comments about it and so many requests to keep it that way that it's now here to stay. When you play, I think it works really quite well because every hotspot changes into a colour version when the mouse hovers over it and that gives Valis its unique style. 

Hey all!
Sorry about the lack of updates lately, I have been busy with real life and things  : Valis is still on track but progressing a tad slower. I have been working on monster art a lot. I've had this sudden burst of macabre inspiration which is concretely turning into cool monsters.
I also played a lot of Galaxy Of Fantabulous Wonderment (which I highly recommend) to see how similar both games were. Thankfully, they are very different. Isn't it always the same, wish for a RPG "stroke" adventure to come out and two show up at once 
Story-wise, I have been reading a lot about the Ying and Yang philosophies and sooo many ideas are forming in my head... Maybe I'll wait till episode 2 to implement them... The real trick in game-making is knowing when to stop 

It's this time of the week again: Weekly update time. Firstly, my dad has provided with more music which greatly enhances the overall atmosphere. Graphically, I have added 3 more rooms, new characters to talk to and introduced brand new monsters.
I have now fully plotted episode 1, and I can now roughly estimate my progress of the story at about 30% done. Apart from some major dialogue scripting, my other major piece of work is still the Chakra spells :p ...I will get round to implement them soon. I'm hoping to get a second demo out once the spells are ready just so I can get players' feedback on the overall feel of the battles. It is a very important part of the gameplay and I feel that my success in that area could make or break the game. Thank you to everyone for their positive comments. I can't stress hard enough how much they've helped me plough through this 

I was creating an RPG first in C++ using DirectX, then using blitz basic 3D but while I was making good progress, graphically it left a lot to be desired. So I looked for a good 2D engine (because Blitz sucks in 2D) and when I found AGS, I just couldn't believe how easy and flexible it was. It just opened my eyes in terms of functionality versus ease of use.  Now I'm hard at work on Valis and I haven't looked back. 

Is this being made using AGS? I thought I read in another forum that they were using Wintermute?  Not that I'm trying to be awkward o anything coz it sure does look good  and I can't wait to get my hands on it

I know exactly what you mean. When I was developing my game Valis, I was torn at first as to how I would introduce the setting, how to relay the right mood. In the end, I kinda settled in between full-blown narrator and character speech. I have a character writing a letter explaining the situation to someone else.

It looks fantastic! Reminds me og the Beetlejuice cartoons...Only nicer 

Thanks jay for the compliments. As for the voices, it might be something to consider at a later time in the project. With so much to do, I am concentrating first on making it a polished and fun game. Anything superfluous (no matter how tempting  ) will have to wait.... Even though it is really tempting considering my dad has his own personal mini recording studio 

[ANNA]

ANNA

NOTE: I didn't finish this game yet.

+ I though I would have scripted a lot in AGS, but the three-dimensionality of this game made me wonder how it was done...
+ Good dialogues...

- I first thought it was in first-perspective throughout the dialogue...
- It seems a little clueless right after the start. There's not a lot you can do and you have no idea what you could do really...

that's what the game is about. You have to use your head....big time. Persevere and you will be pleasantly impressed. Some of the best puzzles I've seen in a long time. Anyway, back to playing the rest of the entries :p

I think the arm thing is just a style and I like it, but I agree about the skirt. One the side view, there should be more blue than white.

okay, weekly update:

For those of you who have played the demo, there have been chnages to the world map. After (extensively) testing the new absorption ability, I have come to the conclusion that the map monsters need to be defined by their chakra types. So now, they are all the same generic spirit sprite but colour-coded so you can strategise which monster to go for.
Overall, I am very pleased with that new system, it has opened a world of potential. As far as everything else is concerned, more missions have been added, more characters to speak to in towns and this week I will be concentrating on new, different chakra powers. (In all honesty, I say that every week but I keep on putting it off  I'm lazy like that  ).

Well, best get back to it, then.

Okay, first: Is it first-person?
- And if it is, how is it implemented? (eg, does a new room load when you click the space bar?)

and second: What do you mean by your character being visible? Do you mean when the characters are not facing away from each other or when and object is in the way?

If you mean a windows-style menu with buttons then a simple Visual Basic application will do the trick. (link the buttons to the game's executables)