A Nightmare in Sunnydale, California [progress thread]

[Yeaster]

First off all, it's been YEARS since I've posted here, so forgive me if I'm breaking any rules.

Anyways, I'm not sure how popular VX is on this site. I bought my version a few months ago and despite the limitations concerning tilesets, this is probably my favorite maker yet. Or maybe I just love making/playing through this game. =D


I guess I should provide a little backstory about myself for the oldies before I get into the game...

-- WARNING! HUGE BLOCK OF TEXT COMING UP! SKIP IF NECESSARY! --


When I was in the 7th grade, my friend told me about RPG Maker and suggested that I should buy it. I did and I was immediately hooked. I found the Pavilion a year later and released two games: Eternal Blaze and Black Ribbon. They were both beyond awful, and I was an irritating, foolish noob and after a few years of BS'ing -- I disappeared into oblivion.

But I never stopped using RPG Maker. I abandoned the playstation series and eventually found out about RPG Maker 2000/03 and downloaded them instead, thinking they were simply free programs and not illegal (I was still a moron). Once I found out, I felt guilty, but the damage had already been done, so.....yeah.

Anyway, my first (and only) RPG Maker 2000 game was ONYX, released in 2006. It was a slow-burner at least, and didn't find an audience until almost a year later. The reception was quite positive. The graphics drew out much-deserved criticism, but the game was praised for its storyline and character development (read a review here: http://uirpg.com/articles.php?act=vi...eef3a0f176637b). Since uploading the game to MediaFire, the total download count for the game is just shy of 10,000 -- not including the various websites that added it to their own servers. Not particularly a smash-hit in comparison to some RM games, but much larger than I expected. It had a sequel, ONYX 2, released a year later. It wasn't AS successful as Onyx 1, and some reviewers felt Onyx 1 was better (which I don't agree with) but it wasn't a flop either.

In between Onyx I and II, was TOTAL CHAOS, also released in 2007, and was my first project using RPGM2k3. It was a dark comedy featuring deliberately mix-matched graphics, inspired by my favorite RM game "Take Down Legacy," but needless to say, RPGMaker-users didn't really "get it" although reception on other freeware websites (generally) have been decent. After Onyx, this is my second highest-downloaded game, with 9,500 downloads and counting (according to MediaFire).

Total Chaos has a sequel called COMPLETE CHAOS, first released in winter 2010. Despite many good comments from players, Complete Chaos' first actual negative comment was written in a mediocre review. I freaked out and re-released the game a month ago, fixing up many of the issues version 1 had while also adding in several new content. So far, I haven't read any new reviews, but I've gotten comments from players who loved the game. The "Special Edition" of Complete so far has about 620 total downloads. The original release had 1020 downloads.

I also created two demos using RPGM2k3: VANITY (2008) and MYSTERY MAN ZERO (2009). Both received good feedback, especially MMZ (read a review here: http://rpgmaker.net/games/923/reviews/328/), and I'm still working on both. Release dates are unknown, but they'll get there eventually...


Now, on to my latest project....

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NAME: A Nightmare in Sunnydale, California
CREATOR: Yeaster
CLASSIFICATION: RPG
MAKER: RPG Maker VX
GENRE: Dark comedy, horror
LOGLINE: Buffy Anne Summers, a 20 year old college sophomore, sacrificed herself to save the world from evil. Little did she know, the world she would soon wake up in is worse than the one she died to save.

PLOT SYNOPSIS: A desperate goddess attempts to change the outcome of her future by erasing a key moment in her life. Overestimating her own powers, this spell causes a dimensional "rip," shattering the walls separating individual realities and the world of the living from the world of the dead...forming a place far worse than one she could ever imagine...

Among those affected is former college student Buffy Summers. A fierce warrior and protector in her original world, she has lost all memory of who she is and what her life was like before the incident. Teaming up with Dean Winchester, Buffy is determined to escape this nightmarish world and return home...however, a dangerous force from hell has escaped due to this incident, and he will do everything in his power to stop them and claim this growing world as his personal playground.
FEATURES: - A cast of twelve playable characters, that can be swapped in and out of battle at will
- A "sandbox" gameplay -- in which you choose the order (or how much) of the story you wish to see, as well as who to recruit
- Semi-customize your characters by designating them to the weapon (or weapons) of your choice. Some characters can have up to 30-40 skills bare minimum, while others can have close to a hundred
- A fast-paced dark yet comedic storyline
- Multiple endings
SCREENSHOTS:



VIDEO:




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And that's all for now. This game is literally an idea that hit me in the shower and I just felt like doing something fun.

[Big Rick Cook]

Let's positive thinking!

That's what I think of when I think of you.

Aside from that, welcome back.

<----- Big Rick Cook

[Yeaster]

To this day, Eternal Punishment remains my favorite RPG ever.


So you can imagine the excitement I felt when I was finally able to play innocent Sin in English.

Another vid:



Also, is there a way to make VX games completely stand-alone (as in, you won't need the program to play this game)?

[Gustaff 13]

There sure seems to be a lot of Silent Hill music in your Buffy/Supernatural crossover game.

(this is not a condemnation, just an observation)

[Yeaster]

The Silent Hill music was exactly what I needed for this game's atmosphere. It was almost a perfect fit.


I borrowed from several other soundtracks too, although you'd think the songs all came from the same game.