What is this?????

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What is this?????

Post by CatsAreFuclingEpic »

Hello everyone, i recently found these two images somewhere in my files. I remember finding them back in 2013, and i wanted to know where they are from. Looks like some sort of fangame or whatev, but google refuses to tell me what it is. Neither filename nor reverse image search helped. does anyone here know the origin of these images?? <3 thanks!!

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Image

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Ceilick
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Ceilick »

I can't remember the author, I think their name started with an R, and I know they aren't around the forums anymore, but these images were posted here about a mod that they were developing. It was never released. I'm afraid that's all the info I have.
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Benvolio »

They look fantastic whatever they are! Are you sure it's not your own handiwork?

Do the slopey surface angles suggest it to be a V2 project??

Well anyway I took a brief look at all the PCKF members whose names begin with R but didn't find it!
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Nospike
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Nospike »

That lava level looks amazing, wow. I would suspect usage of V2 and obviously the palette patch.
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proYorp
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Re: What is this?????

Post by proYorp »

Ooh a mystery. I'll see what I can do. I recommend scrolling through the forum index and glance over all the threads that were created before/during 2013 (in the appropriate categories) and see if anything sounds like it could be it.

Have you checked keenmodding.org?
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proYorp
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Re: What is this?????

Post by proYorp »

No luck so far. Looked over the topics in Unofficial Keen Games and Other Keen Stuff around 2013 and didn't find anything related. Entirely possible I missed something though.

Though I did find another very interesting mockup. What do you say about this, Benvolio? viewtopic.php?t=2838 I did not think for a second this was EGA until I read a reply saying it was. :O

Trying to narrow the search... V2 patch was created in 2009, palette patch specifically for it was 2012. So it wouldn't be before that if it is V2. However, it might not be and perhaps the sloped stone edges are just foreground.

Were these images brand new when you found them, or had you been looking through old things, do you remember?

Is it possible you downloaded this from a site other than pckf.com, like the old forum or the IRC or something? Are the image names (Keen_Color_1.png and Keen_Color_2.png) the original filenames?
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Quillax
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Quillax »

I'm thinking that the stone slopes are just foreground; they seem too curved in to be V2 slopes. Keen would look like he's standing on air if he were to stop on the middle of each slope tile, since I'm sure V2 slopes can only be straight diagonal lines, without curves. I know the palette patch has been around at least since 2004 if not earlier (just look at Benvolio's debut mod trilogy), if that helps at all.

I gotta mention; the graphics are pretty good. That lava level in particular looks so cool! :)
proYorp wrote: Tue Nov 29, 2022 10:04 Though I did find another very interesting mockup. What do you say about this, Benvolio? viewtopic.php?t=2838 I did not think for a second this was EGA until I read a reply saying it was. :O
Benvolio talked about this in a somewhat-recent thread he made:
Benvolio wrote: Fri Mar 11, 2022 6:12 In my case you may or may not recall a user called Azura making a couple of posts in 2013 showcasing excellent pixel art - this was in fact a nice chap I befriended in the Netherlands when I was over there. The high quality Keen1 mod never materialised sadly as we shortly thereafter made our ways back to our home countries in different hemispheres. But it's amusing to look back at posts on this forum which actually come from someone I've known in "real life".
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Benvolio »

Thank you Quillax for doing the needful background reading!

Another location of Keen activity, one which we never speak of and which may not exist, is the German Language Keen forum. That was definitely a thing back in the day. I don't know if much modding content ever emerged via that forum.
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Re: What is this?????

Post by CatsAreFuclingEpic »

Oh god, thanks for all the replies! I have to say, due to my relatively you g age i don't know about the origin of these images. Back in 2013 all i did with PCs was playing Commander Keen on my dad's old PC and watch my parents work with them. However, i was quite keen (oh god the pun) on hanging printed out pictures of Keen levels to the walls. I am very sure my mother saved these images, and that's all I know. I asked her before and she doesn't know, even though she actually remembers saving the images, and that's I know. I don't know about the "Keen color 1/2.png" names, but I do know that most of the files my mother renamed were named in German (except for the level maps from the Keen wiki). That's why I'd assume the filename is most likely as it was before. I really like the images, and due to the fact they are in the perfect resolution, I am thinking about taking the tiles and creating a similar/recreated tileset with them. I don't know much about modding, but maybe someone would like to partner up with me and recreate this? It would definetly have some potential!
Again, thanks for what all of you did to help me, I'm looking forward to your replies.
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CatsAreFuclingEpic
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Re: What is this?????

Post by CatsAreFuclingEpic »

Oh damn, I forgot the dopefish!! :dopefish
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proYorp
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Re: What is this?????

Post by proYorp »

Quillax wrote: Tue Nov 29, 2022 17:54
proYorp wrote: Tue Nov 29, 2022 10:04 Though I did find another very interesting mockup. What do you say about this, Benvolio? viewtopic.php?t=2838 I did not think for a second this was EGA until I read a reply saying it was. :O
Benvolio talked about this in a somewhat-recent thread he made
Sorry, I guess I didn't notice that when I read that before. :dopekeen Or I forgot because there wasn't a screenshot. I blame life distractions. Anyway thanks Quillax.



"Commander Keen Fan Site Celle" is/was the name of the German forum I believe. I think Grandy02 might know something about it? Actually maybe he'd also know what this mod is so I will ping him.
Grandy02 wrote:
Oh man there's still a forum but it's in a terrible state of decay.
https://ckfsc.webnwork.com/forum/

In other news I scrolled through all posts by usernames starting with "R" that had more than 0 posts and less than several hundred. Didn't see it. Refreshing my knowledge of PCKF lore is always interesting but I'm at a loss where else to look...


CatsAreFuclingEpic wrote: Tue Dec 06, 2022 14:10 I really like the images, and due to the fact they are in the perfect resolution, I am thinking about taking the tiles and creating a similar/recreated tileset with them. I don't know much about modding, but maybe someone would like to partner up with me and recreate this? It would definetly have some potential!
Not sure what the current community consensus is on ripped/borrowed graphics. I know back in the day almost every mod seemed to borrow graphics from other mods of good artistic caliber, but recently I've seen some aversion to it. Personally I'd feel required to ask permission first, but of course that still leaves the question of who do we even ask...
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Ceilick
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Ceilick »

I'm afraid I lead us down a false trail with the "R" username; I remembered the user I was thinking of, Retadon8, but I can't find any evidence this person was responsible for the screenshots (or even on the forum when the screenshots were posted). Sorry, guys!
Quillax wrote:I'm thinking that the stone slopes are just foreground; they seem too curved in to be V2 slopes.
I believe this is correct and these screenshots came out well before V2. I'd guess they were originally posted between 2003 and 2005?
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Re: What is this?????

Post by KeenRush »

Oh man, haven't seen these screens in a long time. This was one mod I always wanted to drop but it never did. Too bad. :( I'm fairly sure it was in the early phase of Keen modding and it really stood out.

I'm sure it was Retadon8 but I wouldn't have been able to write the name without seeing it. But I'm sure it's that user. I believe the shots were posted in Keen:Modding and long before the V2 slopes; I think the sloping things are either background tiles or masked foreground tiles like in XkyKeen3.

Damn it's a good looking mod...
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proYorp
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Re: What is this?????

Post by proYorp »

YOOOO HI KEENRUSH

and also I FOUND IT


Retodon8 has only 10 posts on Keen:Modding so it was easy to sift through. None of them were the discussion of this mod, but it was directly linked to from one of their posts on Keen:Modding (a question about the tileset: https://keenmodding.org/viewtopic.php?t=814). It's a dead link that goes to the old ezboard, however, currently the Wayback Machine archives are alive and well. The page has the same images saved, with the same filenames!

Here it is! "Unnamed Keen mod" by Retodon8, June 7 2005.
https://web.archive.org/web/20060614125 ... 1121.topic

In case that link stops functioning, this thread is still online on the old forum (though the images are dead).
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/publicc ... -t583.html


Makes me wonder how your mother got all the way over there. Is she a Keen fan? :dopekeen
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Re: What is this?????

Post by Benvolio »

Amazing work! And hello KR!

I can't open that web.archive link... I'm starting to think they're blocked in my network/country.

Ceilick was on the right track with "R", so well remembered too!

And now OP's images are down so I can't see any imagery. Someone pls make a keenwiki page!
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