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ONGOING COMIC COMPETITION

Welcome to the ONGOING COMIC COMPETITION, where multiple artists will advance a comic book story one frame at a time. The rules are as follows:

RULES SO FAR:

Ã,  Ã, ---No going non-sequitur (off topic) unless it progresses the story in a logical manner.
Ã,  Ã, ---Make your work exist in a 640 X 480 frame. If you need to show action, you can use multiple frames, but they all must fit within a 640X480 space.
Ã,  Ã, ---If you want the next frame, post a space holding message. Once the frame has been drawn, edit the post to reflect the newly drawn frame. After twelve hours have passed with the person who claimed the space not posting anything, someone else can take the post.
Ã,  Ã, ---In a fourteen-point Comic Sans font in the bottom left hand corner of the frame, insert a sequential frame number (the first being 1).
Ã,  Ã, ---To keep with ease of reading, uniformity, and legibility, use Comic Sans font at any legible point size that befits your frame. For "Bangs" and "Booms" and such things, feel free to draw it yourself, but only if style calls for it (that type of thing wouldn't be found in, for example, a survival horror type of comic, but would abound in a superhero story).
Ã,  Ã, ---You must wait at least 5 frames before posting a new frame, to ensure that everyone gets a chance to participate.
Ã,  Ã, ---The story will be indefinite. This does not mean that certain storylines will not end, but the main story should be kept going.
Ã,  Ã, ---Stay uniform. As nice as nonconformity is, it makes it difficult for readers to enjoy our work. If in one scene the main character is wearing a red shirt, do not change him into a blue shirt randomly in the middle of that scene in which said clothing change would be completely illogical. While we all may have different art styles, it does not mean that just because it is part of our "style" we should feel free to give the main character spiky anime hair and an eyepatch when he has never had these in prior frames...
Ã,  Ã, ---Have fun!!!

The selected topic is going to be simple: ___<insert random number here>___ guys are on a trip around the world. The purpose of this trip, and even the world in question, is entirely up to the authors and artists who contribute. If the opening scene turns out to be in a medieval world, it very concievably could turn out just to be part of a movie the characters are making to finance their trip, or they could be travelling through time as well! Anything goes, as long as you stay in the boundaries of the rules. If at one point in time you want to have everything that has happened so far be a dream, go for it, as long as you can do so and still have everything that has happened up to that point be pertinent.

The first place is being held for Eggie, but he was volunteered, so if he doesn't post within twelve hours, anyone can feel free to take the first frame. Just follow the placeholding rules mentioned above!

Who's on board as of now: Esper, Tuomas, Eggie, Pablo, Zor, Mozesh, Gilbot, Guybrush Peepwood, YakSpit, and maybe ScummBuddy (he never actually SAID if he was on or not, just gave a foundational idea...). Anyone else is free to join in as long as they follow the rules posted.

How's this: Let's just give it this mini-plot that YakSpit suggested (a couple of guy's journey around the world) a go, but not impose any other rules on it except the above posted ones. The original artist/author will then set the mode. Without purposely trying to give away the entire plot/setting in his one allotted frame, he can introduce a character and where they are at the time. The next artist or next couple artists can spend time developing the story from there. Thus, if the initial artist shows the character in a midieval world, a future artist could possibly show him travelling to a futuristic world using some kind of device and conceivably stay entirely on-topic. The initial artist could have him dressed in armor, but later we find this is just so he'll blend in with the people he's around and that he's really from the eighties (Marty McFly?) He might not even have been the main character, but simply a supporting character who was scouting for the main character. This way, the few of us coming up with these ideas or the first couple of artists won't be completely responsible for the entire story of the comic, thus making it everyone's baby.

I think we should be ready to go. If everyone's okay with this, then someone post in this thread that you want the first frame, and I'll set up the new thread in the competition forum with the rules and your placeholder...

Next: A creative way to cross the border...

Okay, it looks like there's only one thing stopping this from getting started: we need a genre... I think it should be serious, since the best art and ideas will come out of it, but if I get outvoted on something cartoony and humorous I'll still go along with it. Would it be futuristic or modern, fantasy, science fiction, or horror? Would the main characters be superheroes, adventurers, or ordinary joes (or joettes)? As soon as we get some ideas to get a start on it, I'll draft up thread rules and, if someone wants to volunteer to lay down the first frame, that would be cool too...

Ã,  Ã, DRAFT OF RULES SO FAR:

Ã,  Ã, No going non-sequitur (off topic) unless it progresses the story in a logical manner.
Ã,  Ã, Make your work exist in a 640 X 480 frame. If you need to show action, you can use multiple frames, but they all must fit within a 640X480 space.
Ã,  Ã, If you want the next frame, post a space holding message. Once the frame has been drawn, edit the post to reflect the newly drawn frame. After twelve hours, someone else can take the post.
Ã,  Ã, In a fourteen-point Comic Sans font in the bottom left hand corner of the frame, insert a sequential frame number (the first being 1).
Ã,  Ã, To keep with ease of reading, uniformity, and legibility, use between a 10 and 16 point Comic Sans font. For "Bangs" amd "Booms" and such things, feel free to draw it yourself, but only if style calls for it (that type of thing wouldn't be found in, for example, a survival horror type of comic, but would abound in a superhero story).
Ã,  Ã, You must wait at least 5 frames before posting a new frame, to ensure that everyone gets a chance to participate.
Ã,  Ã, The story will be indefinite. This does not mean that certain storylines will not end, but the main story should be kept going.
Ã,  Ã, Stay uniform. As nice as nonconformity is, it makes it difficult for readers to enjoy our work. If in one scene the main character is wearing a red shirt, do not change him into a blue shirt randomly in the middle of a scene in which said clothing change would be completely illogical. While we all may have different art styles, it does not mean that just because it is part of our "style" we should feel free to give the main character spiky anime hair and an eyepatch when he has never had these in prior frames...
Ã,  Ã, Have fun!!!

Ã,  Ã, Let me know how this looks so we can get it started!!!

I reckon then in this case you would just make a big view that covers the whole screen? And I've noticed that about the talking text in all the modes except Sierra. It's like CJ wanted it shadowed, but made it illegible in the process...

Well, if you don't know what it is, you obviously don't know how to do it... 

anyway, Quest for Glory IV had full screen pictures of the person you were talking to. There's an option under "Speech styles" but it just comes up fully black. There must be a way to direct it towards certain graphics or animations to use, but I don't know exactly how to perform said redirection...

Hey, I think ESPER, the game, might greatly profit from a more atmospheric sort of dialog, a-la QFG4, but the manual is not very clear on how it works. Any help would be appreciated.

Hey! I'd like to offer my services doing almost anything. I'm especially good with writing and storylines, as I'm a published author. I've noticed that alot of people are from other countries and English may not be their primary language... I can make your game say what you want it to say! I'm not a translator, but if you have even the crappiest English skills I can figure out what you want to say and fix it up. I'm also pretty good at doing standard art, just not animations (I'm actually looking for an animator...) so if anyone wants, I can apply my freshly-purchased graphics tablet to good use...
   No music, definitely no animations or translations... Everything else is fair game.

I'm almost completely in shock that no one has mentioned the self-proclaimed Mother of All Games, "Scorched Earth!" It's lucky I have it though, because I can't find it anywhere anymore... Hence the no-link...

gotcha. Frame numbers then. However, that might take up much-needed space in the post. Do you think it might be better to have it in the text of the post itself, or do you believe its absolutely necessary to be in the frame itself?

Oh, and btw, since some people have illegible handwriting, and even worse mousewriting, I propose a standard font... Something like comic sans serif, since that is the type they use in most comics... If for no other reason than for ease of reading and because everybody has that font...

1) Agreed. However, there might need to be an "end" to a set storyline... The comic will be indefinite, but there can be a conclusion to a "chapter" of it.

2) Also agreed, but as we found when we did this type of thing in colege, it is very difficult to show action in only one frame. As such, there should be a set frame size limitation (say, for instance, 640X480) in which the artist can do what they need to get their story progression to have logical flow. It would be ridiculous if, for example, you wanted to show someone hitting someone with a shovel, and it took four seperate artists four frames to do it. Also, I believe frame number is unnecessary.

3) Also agreed, based on how many people take part.

also, I'd like to throw in 4) Let's try to keep this on topic as much as possible. If it is a comedy, fine, but if we decide on some kind of survival horror thing lets not have somebody post something like this:


...Ready... Set...

Oh, sure, just because I can't spell...

... So, where are the mods? Take notice, forum gods! Thus is crafted a new competition!!!

I think Scummbuddy had the idea. When you see a frame you want to follow up with, just post something like "Mine! No touchy!" and then come back later with your frame and modify your post to show it. The rules for what you can draw would be up to three interrelated frames following up with the past posts. No "non-sequiturs" (going off topic) unless you are showing something related going on elsewhere. All we need is a genre and we're good to go.

It's a Manhattan Graphics tablet, 6X8, and I got it for 70 dollars after shipping on Ebay.

Thanks. I noticed those and was going to fix them, but I'm notorious for not backing my stuff up and in a little mixup I trashed the entire program... So, unless there's a way to break down AGS files into their constituent parts, ESPER will have to stay the way it is. I know, I know... I suck... However, to make up for the never-again-to-be-bugfixed first ESPER game, I'm developing a sequel.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Holy Crap, dude! Praise you! How did you find that? They really made crappy comics back then, didn't they...

Except Ghost Rider...

Now that I know what it's called I can totally ebay it.

I'd thought aboot that. It might be difficult indeed, but I'm sure someone, in the combined semiinfinite wisdom of the AGS forums, can come up with a way to make it work. I was noticing that doesn't happen very frequently in things like the MSPaint competition, although it DOES hapen every now and then... I guess it could be like a mini competition in that case, and the next person in line picks the direction he wants to go (like a choose your own adventure)...

While it has already been said, I think this idea would be doomed to failure. However, I think it would be doomed to mad excellent success if you would just take the obvious step of forgetting the entire "real" portion of "real venture" and just work completely on the internet. Alot of people do it. I understand the whole "motivational" thing to having an office, but wht on earth would you want to detract from your final income on the project with rent ANYWAY??? Why would you pay someone to walk into a building, sit down and write or draw or compose music for a little while and then get up and skiddle-dee-doo? Possibly, one might need to drop a deuce at some point during the day, and the much-necessary lunch break, after which may follow more dropping of deuces...  Really, having a physical place to work is no big deal, and since you might be missing out entirely on some awesome opportunities to have some really good artists and musicians and writers work for you (I'm sure Anarcho and grundislav, who in my opinion have made some of the best AGS games ever) are going to up and move across the country... or, if it were me... to an entirely different country, just so they can make games in an office...

I think this idea could be 157% successful if you just got together a core group of people who wanted to seriously make games. Instead of one feeb gong into the "Help me make a friggin' game" thread and saying "Hllo I is teh r0xx0rz h3lp m3 make a gayme about a DoggE that needs 2 find fud" get a group of people together who will commit to make not one game together but to make games together until they decide it sucks or becomes very popular and they all go on to work for Sierra... IMHO, much success would be had in such a scenario... And I would definitely lend my assistance, as this is something I've always wanted to do...

Dammit!!! I'm sorry guys, I posted this in the competitions forum without reading the rules... Even though they are posted largely directly there in front of your face when you try to start a new thread... Anyway, here's my idea, which then hopefully can be used to replace the ugly eyesore that I made in the stupid comp forum... How about an ongoing comic (as the name implies)... We used to do this in college when we had a boring professor as an alternative to sleeping.... One person will make a frame or a series of connected frames, and the next person will continue the story... We would just need to figure out what type of a comic it would be... comedy, adventure, superhero, an AGS fanfic (Larry Vales and Ben Jordan face off against Emily Enough and her minion, Earwig, as they try to take over RoN) Tell me what you think... And sorry for posting in the competition section prematurely...

Thx.
For some reason, I couldn't get the light to come through the windows. I made a couple bright dark blue lights outside shining down at an angle, and a red light behind the stained glass window. The red light came through, but the blue did not. I had to makea purple light outside the boat, too, to simulate moonlight, but it only came through the bulkhead and not the portholes.

You should try Truespace. They have one of their older versions for free download on their site (www.caligari.com) and then give you a wicked discount of the newest version. Just make sure you make a temp email address to get your registration code, because then they spam you endlessly.

I liked Starscream, for whatever reason... His voice was the most annoying of all. Shockwave was cool, too, but I never knew WHAT the hell he was saying...

Anyway, does anyone remember this... They were (I think) from a TV show that only lasted a quarter of an episode... There were three (to the best of my knowledge) really big mutant monsters... One looked like the Rancor from Star Wars, one was like Toxie from the toxic crusaders only more like a t-rex, and then there was this really foul muhfuggah that looked like a zombie version of Barney the dinosaur... His name was D'Compose, or D'Spayre, or something like that. I've been looking on Ebay for them but they are nowhere to be found.