Dead Content Dark Era: Elements Of Life

[ChaosMaxima]

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... ght/GB.png[/img]

Download Link: Download it here! Fixed link, with less bugs.
Estimated Length: 30 minutes - 2 hours, depending on your ability to solve puzzles.
Game's official site/forum: Dark Era's Forum

Additional IMPORTANT side-notes:

This game requires the RTP to run! The game WILL NOT WORK without the RTP!! The RTP can be downloaded here

PS: If you don't see any text, install the fonts provided in a folder named "Fonts". Instructions have been provided in a text file named "!!!PLEASE READ THIS!!!" (I didn't have any other choice but to name it that, maybe because I got 46 emails on one day telling me "OMGGG WHY R D WINDOS EMPTY!!!!??1111").

==========================

Hello all.
Yes, this is the next game I have started to make, and this time, it's going to probably be very good, because of the simple fact that, this game has been in pre-planning for 4 months now.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... ntro-1.png[/img]
Well, my friend and I are working on two different games of the same series, "Dark Era". My friend is making the first version, and I'm working on the second. Thus, since it seems pretty interesting, we wish to release Episode 1 and 2 at the same time (approximately) so that we don't have to keep the gamers waiting eagerly for more Episodes.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... tory-1.png[/img]
Long time ago, around 500 years, the humans had a huge war against the Shadow Spawns. A very powerful Devil, created 6 different Elements and handed them to the Shadow Spawns. The power of these Elements was super-powerful and could not be possibly be beaten. Thus, a smart mage, managed to seal all of the Elements into a Box.

500 years later, a boy named Alex, wakes up in the morning after seeing a strange dream of a young priestess being killed. When he goes out of his house, he sees terrible destruction, everyone in his village is dead. He later spots a Shadow Spawn who quickly disappears on sight.

Then a mage named Murdaar meets up with him, and after a small conversation joins the party. They together cross the Path Of Life, and reach the Elemental Paradise. Over there, the priest tells them that if a Shadow Spawn was what they saw, then the state of their village is just a illusion. A shadow Spawn can convert people into an abnormal state of Coma. A state in which the soul of the person is pushed out of the body and is unable to return.

He tells them to go to the Cave Of Life, where they must retrieve the Box to break the curse. However, over here they encounter the Shadow Spawn again, who opens the box and frees all the elements.

The only way to retrieve the Elements is to now go to all the continents through portals and get them. But it's not so easy. Between each portal, there is a land called Arcadia, which is filled with dangers.

Now they must go to each continents, stop the elements and fight the evil dangers of Arcadia...

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... ures-1.png[/img]

• Side-View battle system, with a lot of custom stuff added.
• Unique Picture Based CBS
• Day/Night/Dusk/Dawn
  
• Auras
  Every weapon has its own Aura(s) and an individual level. As you use the weapon in battle, it will learn its specified Aura(s). Also, there are Aura Levels, so say you learn "Spiral Cutter", which is A1 (level skill), then, when you continue to level up the weapon, you'd learn "Hurricane Slash" which is an A2 Skill. If you remove the weapon you learned the Aura with, you'll also forget the Aura, but if you equip it back again, you'll re-learn any Aura which you learned with the weapon (So you don't have to learn the Aura all over again).
  
  Spoiler

  http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/AuraSystem.png[/img]
  
  
• Weapon Classes
  Every weapon also has a class. For example, the "Flame Blade", belongs to the "Elemental" class. Therefore, Aura Levels are carried on from all weapons with classes. Therefore, if you learned the A1 Aura of the Flame Blade, and THEN equipped the "Hydro Elisier", you'd automatically learn the A1 Aura(Water 1) and start gaining Aura Points (AP) for the A2 Aura(Water 2).
  
• Aura Fury
  Now, let's say you are in a very difficult battle, and you haven't learned any Auras. You're NOT doomed! There's a bar, called the Aura Fury bar which fills as you get attacked by your enemy.
  Now, what does this bar do? Every Aura your weapon has (whether you've learned it or not) can be used beforehand, if the required amount of Aura Fury is present. Say, "Spiral Cutter" takes up 20% of the gauge, if you have 20% or more filled, you can use the Aura, but then the 20% will be removed from the Gauge.
  
  Spoiler

  http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/AFBar.png[/img]
  
  Also in the screen, you can see that there is a ">>" next to the "Auras" option, on the extreme right. This means, if you press the "Right" button, a new choice will show up.
  
  Spoiler

  http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/AFChoice.png[/img]
  
  And after this, simple select it and :
  
  Spoiler

  http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/AFWindow.png[/img]
  
  And that's about all there is to the systems!! (actually there's more, but I don't wish to confuse you any further.)
  
  Also, you even got to see my new side-view battle system!!

-- Lots more! (Though I can't think of any more at the moment, you'll see lots!)



http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... hots-1.png[/img]
Something you've been waiting for, eh?

The Title Screen:

Spoiler

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/TitleScreen.png[/img]

An In-Game Screen:

Spoiler

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/IngameScreen.png[/img]

Some Battle Screens:

Spoiler

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/BattleScreen3.png[/img]
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... creen2.png[/img]
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... creen1.png[/img]

And last, but not the least, the menu!!:

Spoiler

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/krypton-knight/MenuScreen.png[/img]

More screens will be up soon.
PS: There are currently 35 screens up.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... ters-1.png[/img]

Alex
He's the care-free, happy-go-lucky sort of person. With a mild sense of sarcastic humor, people tend to like him as much as hate him. He has an ability to grasp new things quickly, and is always willing to help, however big the task at hand may be. He's an excellent user of any type of weapon, whether he has used it before or not. You can say, he's got that skill in his blood. He never gives up. Even in the worst situations, you wouldn't find him frowning.

Murdaar
The serious and quiet type of person. Murdaar is cheerful, but if there is a important task at hand, he won't allow the slightest bit of fun. He is a super-powerful mage, but however, he doesn't EVER use his powers to his full capacity unless extremely terrible circumstances call for it. Not the main character, but he's obviously the leader of the group. He never speaks about his past, except when he believes he needs to. (which doesn't happen often)

More character sketches will be up in a while.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... Team-1.png[/img]
Thanks to the whole of Alpha Makers Q Productions for being, and are still a great help to this game!

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... dits-1.png[/img]
-Ccoa
-KGC
-SephirothSpawn
-Trickster
-Moghunter (For some graphics, none of his scripts have been used).
-Blizzard, for the base of the Soulrage system, but since it's HEAVILY edited by me, he gets only a quarter of the credit.
-Momomomo
-Paradog.
-Charlie.lee.
-Shibuya/Kiralim.

The battle system, and most the complex scripts have been coded by me.

Apart from this, a hearty thanks to TheInquisitor for his great tileset!

And lastly, hope you like the game!!
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/ ... wnload.png[/img]
The first beta is out. Or wait... I wouldn't even call it a beta. It's more like a pre-development demo, to show my skill. It will deliver a lot of puzzles, a climax sort of story, a lot of interesting scripts, and confusing quests. You should be able to play the demo for around an hour. (depending on your ability to solve puzzles.).

Download it here!

This game requires the RTP to run! The game WILL NOT WORK without the RTP!! The RTP can be downloaded here

PS: If you don't see any text, install the fonts provided in a folder named "Fonts". Instructions have been provided in a text file named "!!!PLEASE READ THIS!!!" (I had not other choice but to name it that.)


Hope you like it!

 

[Reives]

Those battlers look quite nice, I've never seen them before. o: The mapping's decent overall, though there are a few blocky places. There are also some interesting mechanics in here, good stuff. :>

 

[Rare]

I dislike your use of 1000 PS filters.

Other than that, it's pretty decent.

 

[Sic Semper Tyranosaurus]

I would suggest fewer gradients in the graphics, but it looks quite interesting that aside. Love the battlers.

 

[Ratty524]

I've seen those battlers before, but I never knew where to get them.

Looks nice indeed.

 

[ChaosMaxima]

@ Reives: I'll see what I can do about the blocky mapping. Thanks 

@Elias: 1000 PS Filters? What do you mean? Sorry, I didn't quite get that. I'm happy to be getting "It's decent" from many people, since this is my first game. ^__^

@Ratty: Woah, I should be really proud that it's coming from you. Thanks for the comment.

(Now I still have to get passed Lummy's test)

So, any more suggestions, I'm pretty open to them. Also, I just realized that my story is terribly cliched... but please excuse it, since this is my first game. Anyway, it will have a lot of twists, so please don't get any bad first impressions.

Thanks everybody.

 

[Branden]

Hey ChaosMaxima. I love your game, but I would suggest using animated battlers. And yeah, fewer gradiants like that other person said, but they are just friendly tips. Keep up the good work.

 

[Luminier]

I'm downloading it right now. I'll give you my impressions in a little while.

I can't help but notice that in the credits section of this thread, you failed to credit Mack, for those battlers. that's a big no-no.

 

[Impreza]

...And that title screen DOES look's like Quintessence's title screen...no offense though.

On topic: Love the Battlesystems layout and looks. Are they animated? And for a first game, it looks decent already then maybe you could produce something better. Great!

 

[ChaosMaxima]

=O

I made my title screen lot before I even played Quintessence. I agree though, it DOES look a lot like that.

Thanks for the comments on the battle system, but perhaps you haven't played the game so I'll post the new updated version (which is in the demo) in a while.

 

[Meness]

...and where is my credit for making that Murdaar battler?

EDIT: NVM, he put my other name, Shibuya.

 

[Luminier]

Oogh. Get ready for some harsh criticism.

the title screen is way too much like Quintessence's to be a coincidence. Seriously.

The first thing that bothered me, was the number of times Alex said the word 'dream' in the intro. Ever heard of synonyms? That was the start of my hate/hate relationship with your dialogue. The dialogues are stiff, unnatural, boring, and riddled with spelling mistakes, and grammar problems. The worst part is that I have to sit through it, while the text scrolls in so damned slow.

When I gained control, I, as I always do, checked out the menu. I checked out my stats, and such, but when I selected the "equipped techinques", or whatever, option, I saw another name. I was like "Murdaar? That guy's not with me!". So, I selected it, and got this error:
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/ ... keraor.jpg[/img]
Not cool.
Another thing about the menu: Why do you have to press the action key(space bar, enter, etc.) to go to the next batch of options? I hadn't realized this until a while later, so I didn't know that I could save anywhere. Boo. Oh, yeah, and the menu's pretty damn ugly, too.

I don't like the ugly HUD that you have. I mean, does this game use an ABS? No. Then what's the point? It doesn't have anything other than one, extremely ugly HP bar. Bleh.

Onto the battle(s): I only fought one battle. It was in the cave. The battlers were all positioned on the walls, and it was weird. Why does an archer's arrow have a slash animation? In fact, why does an archer have a sword equipped, when he clearly is holding a crossbow?! Did you even playtest this crap?!

Next is the story:Eyuck.
Why does Alex decide to go with some random guy, to some random temple, for absolutely no reason? Right after his parents were killed?! Does he even give them, or any of the other villagers a burial? No. What an Asshole! "Burial? Nope, I'll just leave 'em for the buzzards, 'cause I'm Alex!".

Oh, a couple of technical things: When Murdaar joins your party, he just walks away, turns into a dead body, and disappears. What the fuck?! Also, why do Alex's parents look barely any older than him? What, did they have him when they were in diapers? His grandparents must've been pretty inattentive, for their babies to get out, do the nasty, and have babies of their own.

How can Murdaar explain who Alex is, to the priest, when he clearly just met him. Wait, I don't even know who Alex is, and I'm supposed to be playing as him! Ugh.

Why, I repeat, why, did you switch from Inq's tileset, to the RTP? It looks bad, and they don't mesh well. At all.

The slow-as-molasses movement frequency makes it a chore to do anything. It also discourages exploration, which is bad.

There are so many things wrong with this game. It's not even funny. I can't play anymore(I quit after I spoke with the priest.). Well, I couldn't, even if I wanted to. You left the direction fix on, after the conversation with the priest. After that, all you can do is moonwalk. ;_;

Wait, I have more:
Have you played a game made with RM2k3, called 'Ara Fell'? Wait, of course you have, I can tell, because you ripped off a hell of a lot of stuff from it.
Floating island? Check.
Waterfalls obscuring parts of bridges, in a cool way? Check.
Dangerous forest, that no one will go in? Check.
Ability to cross water, by entering at glowing blue sparkle, at the water's edge? Check.
Same music while in the water, as Ara Fell? Check... check? What the fuck?!

It's one thing to take inspiration from something. it's a whole other thing when you blatantly rip off that something.

One last thing: What, pray tell, is this?!:

Spoiler

http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/Super_Mog/Whatthefuck.jpg[/img]

Kupo?! Guwagh.

 

[ChaosMaxima]

So I didn't get passed Lum's test...

The first thing that bothered me, was the number of times Alex said the word 'dream' in the intro. Ever heard of synonyms? That was the start of my hate/hate relationship with your dialogue. The dialogues are stiff, unnatural, boring, and riddled with spelling mistakes, and grammar problems. The worst part is that I have to sit through it, while the text scrolls in so damned slow.

Grammar problems? Alright, sorry, but can you please point some out. Since this my first game, I do apologize. Thanks.

When I gained control, I, as I always do, checked out the menu. I checked out my stats, and such, but when I selected the "equipped techinques", or whatever, option, I saw another name. I was like "Murdaar? That guy's not with me!". So, I selected it, and got this error:

Completely agree. Gotta fix that bug, sorry.

I don't like the ugly HUD that you have. I mean, does this game use an ABS? No. Then what's the point? It doesn't have anything other than one, extremely ugly HP bar. Bleh.

About the HUD, I put it there so that the player can see his/her HP without having to keep going the menu, clicking the "more" option, then going to the status, and THEN seeing the HP.

Onto the battle(s): I only fought one battle. It was in the cave. The battlers were all positioned on the walls, and it was weird. Why does an archer's arrow have a slash animation? In fact, why does an archer have a sword equipped, when he clearly is holding a crossbow?! Did you even playtest this crap?!

Playtested it, and I did come across this, and I decided to fix it... but I guess I just forgot about it after I was done playtesting. Alright, I'll look into that.

Next is the story:Eyuck.
Why does Alex decide to go with some random guy, to some random temple, for absolutely no reason? Right after his parents were killed?! Does he even give them, or any of the other villagers a burial? No. What an Asshole! "Burial? Nope, I'll just leave 'em for the buzzards, 'cause I'm Alex!".

What other choice does Alex have? His village is dead (well not dead, but at least nobody out there can help him), and when somebody comes along saying that he knows a way to help him, what do you expect him to do? Also, about the burial part, Murdaar tells Alex that he can help him, so why would Alex want to bury them when there's a chance of resurrecting them?

Oh, a couple of technical things: When Murdaar joins your party, he just walks away, turns into a dead body, and disappears. What the fuck?! Also, why do Alex's parents look barely any older than him? What, did they have him when they were in diapers? His grandparents must've been pretty inattentive, for their babies to get out, do the nasty, and have babies of their own.

I thought he walks into you, so as to show what happens in a classical RPG, where a person joins your party.

The slow-as-molasses movement frequency makes it a chore to do anything. It also discourages exploration, which is bad.

The Shift button is for dashing, oh wait, I forgot the mention that, sorry.  :'(

About the music, yes I apologize, but until I don't find some better music, I'll use this.
And, yep, it's a lot like Ara Fell, though I didn't have it in mind while making this. Of course, I DID copy a lot from Ara Fell, which will be changed.

One last thing: What, pray tell, is this?!:

Oh god... I can't believe I left that there...  :'(
Gotta delete it right away. It was originally a problem with the SDK, which was making the messages repeat themselves in the cave, so I put that there to test it. I COMPLETELY forgot that I had to delete it.

There are so many things wrong with this game. It's not even funny. I can't play anymore(I quit after I spoke with the priest.). Well, I couldn't, even if I wanted to. You left the direction fix on, after the conversation with the priest. After that, all you can do is moonwalk. ;_;

Now that's a strange problem, because while I was beta testing, I didn't seem to have that problem. Anyway, I'll look into it right away.

Also, I got one thing to say to you, Lum: As much as I am irritated, and hurt by what you have said, I am equally as grateful to you. I mean, you've probably pointed out all the errors in this small demo, so now I'll be able to work on these points, and make it a better game. Thanks Lum.

EDIT: This was right at the bottom of the post, and I just read it:

Kupo?! Guwagh.

... and I lol'd. Lol'd hard at that. :D
Really, that's what made me not go crazy at your comments. I was laughing my ass off when I read this. :D

 

[Reives]

About the title screen: I just checked it out. Cliff scenes are pretty commonly used, especially scrolling up on them, so that's no biggie. I kinda chuckled at the sphere-ish thing though, heheh. But I think it's just a coincidence, as a lot of other photoshop filters seem to be used in this game, and the sphere is easily made with one of those, so it seems consistent (I googled a common sphere making tutorial for mine, so. :p) Besides, it wouldn't make sense for someone to knowingly use an idea from the same place that they then post in anyway, heheh. Probably a funny coincidence if ya ask me, as they do happen.

 

[Luminier]

I'm glad you took my comments with a grain of salt, Crobat.

Grammar problems? Alright, sorry, but can you please point some out. Since this my first game, I do apologize. Thanks.

I would, but they are so numerous, that it would be a big pain. Just check it out for yourself, and you should see them. If Cygnea were here, she'd point out all of 'em. :D

About the HUD, I put it there so that the player can see his/her HP without having to keep going the menu, clicking the "more" option, then going to the status, and THEN seeing the HP.

This could be remedied by a better menu system. Because, seriously, the one you are using right now is ugly, and the interface sucks.

What other choice does Alex have? His village is dead (well not dead, but at least nobody out there can help him), and when somebody comes along saying that he knows a way to help him, what do you expect him to do?

Grieve. That's the realistic thing that someone would do. Unless, of course, he has no emotions. Which it seems is true. What does he do? Grieve? No. Go into a berserker rage? No. Become emotionally scarred? No. He doesn't even say anything.

Also, about the burial part, Murdaar tells Alex that he can help him, so why would Alex want to bury them when there's a chance of resurrecting them?

That sounds like a bull shit excuse, that you made up on the spot, to cover your ass. So, like, if it's so easy to resurrect dead people in this world, that Alex would think of that as a distinct possibility, then why does he even give a fuck that his village was massacred?!)

The Shift button is for dashing, oh wait, I forgot the mention that, sorry.  :'(

Y'see, that's another problem with your game: You don't explain shit!
Did you explain how to use the skill system? Not at the point that I played up to. It might've gotten my interest if you had, y'know.
You didn't explain how to navigate the crappy menus.
Did you say how to run? Nope.

You can't just expect people to know how to do stuff like that, when you don't tell them.

I actually have a couple of other gripes: Where are all of the treasures? I didn't see a single chest, or item-container the entire time I played. I happen to like picking up as many potions as I can, you know. 

There are quite a few priority errors, as well. Did you have beta-testers for this? If not, then you have to work double-hard, next time you release something. When you beta-test, yourself, you have to check everything. And I mean everything. It's kinda painfully obvious that you didn't check everything. In fact, I can tell that you didn't test this very thoroughly at all! If you had, then you would've noticed some of the more glaring errors.

Oh, and one last thing: Oh, and "Murdaar" is a stupid name. It just sounds like a cheesy pun on 'murder'.

 

[Sic Semper Tyranosaurus]

Good great gravy. They live in a tent that's partially hanging off a cliff. A tent with window, two stories, and a huge, omnipotent beam of light. On a floating island. Or is that intentional? I see some blocky spots in the outdoor mapping, but I'll save shots for later. The discovery of the slaughter seems a little overwrought and... overlong. The SHWOOP you provided for Alex rushing over to his father's corpse made it a little too comical. Some of the trees extend off into nowhere.

Look at me when we're carrying on a conversation, stupid NPC! The palace-looking building? Oh, thanks for undermining Alex's intelligence. Jerk. Don't you turn into a dead person at me! 

Interacting with the father's corpse does nothing. Did they not have a good relationship?

Good googly moogly. Somebody let Photoshop loose on the menu, and Photoshop just beat the shit right out of it. Tragic.

Gotta love how one of these outdoor staircases leads to a dead end and a waterfall.

OH GOD I TOUCHED THAT SPARKLE AND IT TURNED ME INTO A BOAT

HOLY BAJESUS. A rat! Never fought a shitton of those in a fantasy game before.

Hi, Arshes! ...No, I guess you shouldn't. It's eer - OH GOD ANOTHER RAT. God, it must be a pain to go out to the grocery every week in this village. Gotta fight all those rats.

Wow, just lemme walk straight into this mountain until my head sticks out. That's enough for me. Yikes.

EDIT

The Shift button is for dashing, oh wait, I forgot the mention that, sorry.  :'(

Jesus Christ, I can run?! THANK YOU.

 

[Luminier]

That was awesome, Sic! :D

I forgot to take issue with the "village", myself.

It's not so much a 'village', as it is 'three tents'. Guwha?!?

I didn't even see any signs of civilization, other than the tents.

What's wrong with houses?

 

[ChaosMaxima]

So you're STILL calling me Crobat >_>.

Anyway, chests? Yeah, I'll get them in.

That sounds like a bull shit excuse, that you made up on the spot, to cover your ass. So, like, if it's so easy to resurrect dead people in this world, that Alex would think of that as a distinct possibility, then why does he even give a fuck that his village was massacred?!)

Alright, let me explain a bit more. Alex DOES NOT know that resurrecting people is a possibility, but when Murdaar tells him that he can help do so, what do you think Alex will do? Waste his time burying everybody in his village, or rushing as fast as he can to help resurrect them?

This could be remedied by a better menu system. Because, seriously, the one you are using right now is ugly, and the interface sucks.

I was only trying to make my menu unique, but if you insist... I'll change it  :'(

Oh, and one last thing: Oh, and "Murdaar" is a stupid name. It just sounds like a cheesy pun on 'murder'.

Too late, dude. I'm not exactly in a mood to go through ALL the dialogs, and change his name =)


Y'know what... You check games really well. I think I'll make you beta tester or something for the next version, if you agree, that is. 



 

 

[Luminier]

So you're STILL calling me Crobat >_>.

Yes, I will call you that forever. Even if you change your avatar. It's a term of endearment, if you think about it.

Alright, let me explain a bit more. Alex DOES NOT know that resurrecting people is a possibility, but when Murdaar tells him that he can help do so, what do you think Alex will do? Waste his time burying everybody in his village, or rushing as fast as he can to help resurrect them?

You kind of messed up your answer, there. If Alex doesn't know that bringing them back is a viable option, then why would he rush off as fats as he can to help bring them back? Make sense? 

Too late, dude. I'm not exactly in a mood to go through ALL the dialogs, and change his name =)

Okay... Would you play my game, if it was mediocre, and starred a guy named Bollocks McTestisniff?

Y'know what... You check games really well. I think I'll make you beta tester or something for the next version, if you agree, that is. 

Uh, really? That came outta left field. I guess I could, if you want me to. Do I get a custom userbar? *puppy eyes*

 

[ChaosMaxima]

You kind of messed up your answer, there. If Alex doesn't know that bringing them back is a viable option, then why would he rush off as fats as he can to help bring them back? Make sense?

Because Murdaar told him that it's possible... (and he happens to trust him, because he doesn't have another choice).

Okay... Would you play my game, if it was mediocre, and starred a guy named Bollocks McTestisniff?

Alright, you have a point there. Guess I DO have to go through all the dialogs changing that stuff, then...

Uh, really? That came outta left field. I guess I could, if you want me to. Do I get a custom userbar? *puppy eyes*

Alright, now I'm not too sure about a Custom Userbar, because I completely suck at making them. However, I do know people who can make them, so yes, you'll probably get one. By the way, you have MSN or something, because I need a lot of your suggestions.

You see, a game that's good in your eyes, means that it's a really good game, so I could do with a lot of your suggestions.