so im playing through black ribbon

[Valkysas]

Hell, that could be fixed just by adjusting the base stats.

[Yeaster]

Hmmm, tempting offer, but I'm going to be honest with you. This game is so old, I just don't care about it anymore. If I do decide to go back and edit it, I'll probably just give every monster 1 HP, heh.

But all jokes aside, Black Ribbon did what I needed it to do at the time that I made it. If it weren't for BR, I wouldn't be making the projects that I'm making now, so I'm thankful for the learning experience it provided.

Besides, the unholy gameplay aside, the game still has other issues. For starters, it's WAY too long and the dialogue reads like it was written by a fourteen year old.

[orius]

Originally Posted by Yeaster

Or... the creator was just an idiot.

I would say inexperienced.

Originally Posted by Yeaster

For starters, it's WAY too long and the dialogue reads like it was written by a fourteen year old.

I thought you just said it was written by a 14 year old....

And too long, I've commented on this before. I think some players have made games that were too long because we all got the game and wanted to make a big sprawling game like something in the Final Fantasy series. Unfortunately, this game is designed to be more in line with an old Dragon Quest game. So some games get loaded with filler to make this big sprawling epic, and it drags on. I did that myself, as well as make a game that I made up as I went along, so it doesn't look that good.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

fair enough i suppose.

the bigger problem with making epic length games is that it takes an ungodly amount of time to produce a quality one. anyone can turn out a 10 card monstrosity, but its a polished well made game that takes time. the level of polish you need for these kinds of games is extraordinarily high. you let one thing lag and player gives up without finishing. innovation at every bend, interaction sprinkled throughout, engaging story lines, believable characters, polished maps - all of this contributes to a successful epic.

very few games live up to this, most of which are smaller games build with a simple concept. this is why reviewing every game is important, to let the community know which games live up to the hype and which games they should avoid. the less time they waste on unsuccessful games means the more time they can be inspired by epic ones.

[Draygone]

Also a good reason to do video commentaries on them... >_>

Originally Posted by Karr Lord of Chaos

dont change or touch anything other then the battles.

I'd also hope that the game-breaking glitches would be fixed.

Originally Posted by Yeaster

Besides, the unholy gameplay aside, the game still has other issues. For starters, it's WAY too long and the dialogue reads like it was written by a fourteen year old.

So? The Spiteful Dead is really long, and was written by a 15-year-old, and yet it became my favorite RPGM game.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

the game breaking glitches can be avoided because you dont need to go back to that area again and it hasnt effected anything other then you suddenly get a char you shouldnt of gotten. id be satisfied if he fixed the battles and i could carry on. as he himself says he wont bother ill not play it further myself and move on to something else.

[Yeaster]

Originally Posted by Draygone

So? The Spiteful Dead is really long, and was written by a 15-year-old, and yet it became my favorite RPGM game.

Wonderful. But what does that have to do with me, though?

I am not trying to make excuses for BR's suckitude. However, I do believe that 90% of its problems came from my age and lack of experience with the program at that time.

Creatively-speaking (at least from my experience), a year's time of practice/life & work experience to can do wonders for your level of talent. I enjoy writing screenplays on the side, but I believe that my writing ability is currently the strongest its ever been -- much stronger than it was in 2009. My writing ability in (just) 2008, however....................is probably best unmentioned. Even if I'm not amazing and brilliant yet, I am still proud of my growth and I know I will get there soon.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

writing maturity is very different from age maturity. the longer you polish and practice your writing the better it gets, but it takes time to develop good diction, complex story weaving, and interesting dialog. im satisfied with the writing in BR, its everything else that sucks.

ive been writing a book since 2003, and though ill never release it, what i learned from writing it ive applied to a few other projects including my game. my level of writing is a lot higher then when i started crystal shores back when i was far younger.

[Yeaster]

Okay, so, I caved and went back over the game this morning and changed the base stats of every monster, particularly focusing on their HP, attack power and speed.

Furthermore, I changed the stats of all of the mages. They still gain low HP, but to compensate, they're incredibly fast, and I increased a few extra stats for them as well.

Download link is here: http://www.mediafire.com/file/gnel3cumxp6wdxu/Black Ribbon.zip

[Draygone]

That was a fast update. I can only assume you'll simply guessed at better stats and are hoping for the best.

[Yeaster]

Well, I didn't have time to test play it again.


But I looked through the guide, particularly at the "recommended levels" parts, and adjusted the demons' stats accordingly. I used Leon's base stats as my model, since they were perfectly average. Keep in mind, I didn't take into consideration the new equipment you'd purchase along the way, so if anything, the game may become too easy after a certain point. But the random encounters should be less frustrating, at least.

Heck, BE GLAD I DID ANYTHING AT ALL!

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

can you do me one final favor and provide a passcode so i can pop into your game and fix something should i come across a too difficult point or a critical error. if you dont want to release it unpassworded then ill take it by pm.

i should start playing it this weekend.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

so i picked up the game again and restarted with the changes. i must say that the difficult has dropped significantly, making the game very playable and acceptable.

the first area was ultra easy with everything dieing in a single hit which was nice. the second team was a bit more of a challenge as magic is still scary and enough to level your team in a single turn.

having my mages go first was a big help as i could reliably heal. i needed to use this tactic for further battles as they where not one hittable but still balanced. the only issue i had was with my alan and quilla party trying to get back to my base. that single path had some nasty magic uses that i was nearly unable to damage and really hurt.

i just got some kind of car. looks like a floating box or something. in that dungeon i just got mass raped by a roogoo or something. magic one shot my ass.

im 6 hours in and im a lot farther then i was before. this is a much better use of my time. i wish the game was more visually appealing and that id of spend less time in old dungeons. the plot is really the best aspect of this game.

[Yeaster]

having my mages go first was a big help as i could reliably heal. i needed to use this tactic for further battles as they where not one hittable but still balanced. the only issue i had was with my alan and quilla party trying to get back to my base. that single path had some nasty magic uses that i was nearly unable to damage and really hurt.

*cringes* I completely remember what you're talking about. Those enemies were meant to be faced later, so I thought I took them out during the first trip to Temple. I guess I didn't... *goes back to edit*

Yeah, the graphics in this game are pretty week (and I'm being kind), but some locations I really did try to make look...decent.

Nonetheless, I'm glad the changes have helped out a lot. And the Rogloo battle was an optional fight (if I'm correct) and was meant to be crazy difficult. Sounds like you're almost done with the first scenario.

For curiousity's sake, what do you think of characters so far?

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

i understand this game lacks the quality and polish of many games and has in all probability been totally overlooked by everyone for its past difficulties. yet even still i believe someone should see your story, that it should be heard. hopefully i will not be disappointed, and this extra effort will reward me with an interesting conclusion.

i already see some twists and turns which is more then i can say for much else out there. this game should serve a strong warning to every designer out there: be mindful of your audience; if you create a strong story then do everything in your power to see that others can see it too. you can build a game for yourself, but the real reward comes when others partake in your victory and enjoy it for themselves.

a writers greatest wish is that many others can enjoy as much as himself the fruits of his labor.

edit: i think there is much work to be done to polish them, but overall they are alright. the amount of them all at once is a bit much. id like to see a backstory or get to know them better before i get tons more.

[Draygone]

*reads that the game is now playable*

*puts back on the "might LP someday" list*

Beware: I actually go out of my way to find every little glitch in the games I play. :P

[Yeaster]

That's fine by me, haha.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

better get a few pens, there is a lot of them if your going to intentionally try to find them. after i realized how many there would be i stopped and just played the game as intended.

yea, once i play through it you can release it as perminate for both sites (will give you time to correct major issues if i come across any).

[Yeaster]

Something I want to add:

This game, in no way, represents the quality of the projects I work on today.


Just wanted to make that clear. =P

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

even with battles becoming relatively safe to plow through, this game is outragously hard. i didnt think it was even posible to create a game with two distint difficulties but this is it. you have easy battles and then you have outragously harsh one turn your dead battles. magic is so scarry that your entire party can die in a single sweep. i had the boss where you get that party member who died back kill the dead member in one stroke effectively eliminating the bonu she was going to give me. even still i managed to beat this boss and tackled the next set and was wiped of the face of the earth. subsiquent retrys resulting in the first boss destroying me without contest. owch.

some errors i found where simple. the ring of monks disapear awkwardly after your confrontation, and mooble vanishes after the new member joins you only to flash back to let you know hes leaving.

lots of stuff still has way too much hp and i cringe at the possibility that i would of had to do these battles with old stats effectively making every boss battle the most epic challange of the gaming world. im going to have to crack open the case and tone down some of the magic of these baddies if i want to keep my sanity, or reduce some hp's.

im gona take a break from this for a bit. i have a week off and wont be in a possition to spend much time on any game.