The Keys of Krodacia: Revision Discussion

[GameBird]

Hmm, yeah, that does make sense.

Alright, I decree that henceforth my songs for Keen 7 shall be known as "Sad 'Shrooms" and "Monastery of Mystery"

[Syllypryde]

I think those are good names. Is there somewhere we can hear these songs?

[GameBird]

Yeah: I'll upload both the .imf and quicktime versions again.

"Sad 'Shrooms"
http://www.host-a.net/u/overflow/mushroom6.imf
http://www.host-a.net/u/overflow/mushroom.mov

"Monastery of Mystery"
http://www.host-a.net/u/overflow/k7kok2.2.imf
http://www.host-a.net/u/overflow/k7kok2.mov

The .mov versions are just recordings of my computer playing the .imf versions, so they sound identical.

[Grimson]

For some reason, I'm unable to play them on loop as the .mov file keeps playing a blank sequence long after the actual song has ended

[GameBird]

Oh, that's weird. Are you able to hear it at all?

Quicktime is fussy. I'll convert them into MP3s later today and replace the .mov files with them

[Grimson]

Yes, but I was able to loop it by playing it with a different program.

[zdude]

If I may, I would like to add in some suggestions for this revision:

-SLOW DOWN THE OGOBOGO!!! Sorry for yelling there, but I just feel that the turtle swims too fast. I can hardly escape it when I try to get past one.

-I read somewhere in this thread that someone said to have the Rotten Radishes move constantly. I like this idea.

-Another person mentioned adding a Krodacian Kid. Now while I like this idea, making it unstunnable makes it no different than that of the adult Krodacians. If it's possible, make it permanently stunned after 2 shots. Since all the enemies in Secret of the Oracle are either unstunnable or stunned after one shot, I don't know if this would work.

-When the game does the Star Wars story scrolling thing, Mortimer's base looks like it was done in MSPaint. It could use some more detailing to make it look less....... flat.

These are some things i think would make the game better. It's your call about what goes in or not.

[Cuetlachtli]

I really like The Keys of Krodacia, so for me there isn't much to complain. However there are couple of things.

First of all: please, eliminate this annoying peace of music which appears in the Private Manor and few other levels (here you can hear it on the beginning of the video, after a 2 seconds, when the guy finishes talking).
Sorry if I am offending the author of it but it is really annoying and I hate not being honest. I remember that it appears in more than one level and every time I played one of this levels I just had to turn off the music...

2. The sound of picking gun is just too loud compared to other sounds. As in original Keen 4. But since in Keen 6 for example this sound is changed to normal volume I assume that in Keen 4 there is a slightly error with that. So why not fix it in the mod and lower the volume of this sound to fit other sounds?

3. I really like the enemies of this mod but Magifly really needs a new graphics or at least a new carpet because the present one isn't nice.

4. Change graphic of the Swim Coin. It's really awful.

5. The graphics of all natural stuff, stone blocks etc. are great, but these red and stuff with other bright color aren't so good. They could use some improvement. They look like riped off from Keen 5 (I don't really know if they are in fact - I'm just pointing out that they look like). So they don't really fit to the rest of the game theme.

6. Eliminate the posters representing enemies from Keen 5, Keen 3 etc. They don't compose with Keys of Krodacia and don't look good. In place of it put some mystical or natural motives.

7. The background with stars, used for example in level 1, needs improvement. There are too many white dots - it doesn't feel really natural or imaginary. Use some stars like you did in Keen 9. With various sizes and not so crowdly.

8. For love of the Ometeotl, do not copy the Bean-with-Bacon Megarocket level from Keen 4... You can use it as a whole new, normal level full of enemies, points, secrets etc. Can't you?


And last, that I assume have no chances to be accepted (and please, don't kill me for that - it's just my opinion): Eliminate the water levels and replace them with normal levels. You can use the same graphics but don't use it as a water levels.
The same with water enemies - change them to normal enemies. For example I don't like Ogobogo, I would really love to see it disappear and in place of it appear some nice enemy which fits to the game and walks / flies (whatever) but not swims. For example another type of Krodacian would be nice!

The reason I am proposing it is that water levels suck and there is nothing you can do to make them interesting. The gameplay over there is just horrible and not Keen at all... Honestly I really love Keen 4, it is even my favorite and first episode of all Keens, but I just never could agree with that Well of Wishes. It doesn't fit to the rest of the game and you can't do much over there - just picking up the points and running from big fishes... Xolopiyotl.

[Ceilick]

First, just an FYI to everyone: I don't plan on starting the revision right away. I thought I would after finishing Keen 9 awhile back, but I have other plans now.

That said, I would like to eventually.

@Zdude: these are all possibilities, the first two and last being likely.

@Cuetlachtli:
-the music will be updated.
-I'll probably use the same sound from Keen 9 for keen 7 ammo pickup.
-Graphics, including enemy animations, will be 'improved' on, although in most cases I hope this won't amount to a complete change.
-I'm hesitant to remove the pictures of previous enemies; as much as I agree they're kind of out of place, they're also a fundamental piece of what the mod was/is.
-I'll consider updating the Bean-with-Bacon level, however, I would like to keep it in the same style as Keen 4 and 6.
-I'd prefer to keep the water levels, however, I will be looking into ways to improve the underwater gameplay.

[Eros]

ooh, can you make the point pickups change into the rest of the galaxy form?

i mean, it looks a little like this currently:

Keys
of
Krodacia

i think it would be better like this:

Keys
of
Krodacia

...okay, didn't work out as well as i thought, but you got the idea, right?

[StupidBunny]

I agree, it looks slick with the metallic effect that adding a white band across the number creates.

[Deltamatic]

Idea for making the enemies portraits fit in more with the rest of the mod: put the portraits of enemies on the same planet together in rows. Change the graphics so that they're not a bunch of portraits of different enemies but a few murals of different planets. The Mars mural has Yorps and Gargs on red sand with two moons behind them, the Fribbilous Xax mural has Fribbilous Xax aliens in front of a Fribbilous Xax tree, etc.

[Scilicet]

I think many people have addressed most of my concerns. The ones that remain for me are mostly grammar, usage, and punctuation. Yes, I am one of those people, but I think polishing the three abovementioned areas would help make a more professional-looking mod.
First, all instances of "canon'' should be "cannon."
Second, the ending sequence could be improved.
On page five, where Mortimer first addresses Keen, he says, "...The doors have closed behind you and their is no escape." That's the wrong form of the word. It should be "there."
On page six, Mortimer says, "This isn't really a Universal Toaster Canon, what a stupid idea." It should be, "This isn't really a Universal Toaster Cannon; what a stupid idea." Avoid comma splices.
On page seven, there should be a comma after "forever."
On page eight, there should be a comma after "time."
Whenever Keen finds a key, he says, "Alright! This is a key to Mort's base!" "Alright" is not a standard word and should be written out as two words.
One of the key-find texts displays this: "I wonder where the rest of the keys are?" That is an indirect question, and indirect questions do not require a question mark.
There are some errors in the help file, but I’ll put them up later when I run my copy of “The Keys of Krodaciaâ€￾ the next time.

[Levellass]

Indeed, if Mortimer found himself speaking in such c manner he'd be mortified. He is surely a man (kid) for whom grammar and syntax are of paramount importance. Only clowns would mistake there and their.

[The Keen Commander]

Indeed, if Mortimer found himself speaking in such c manner he'd be mortified. He is surely a man (kid) for whom grammar and syntax are of paramount importance. Only clowns would mistake there and their.

Although, assuming he's speaking out loud, both words sound the same, so isn't it kind of neither here nor "their"?