So, I am making an AGS game...

[Dave216]

I thought I'd share a bit on what I've been working on for the last 2 months. After working with 16 colors for a bit, I've wanted to try my hand at drawing scenes and animations in full color and decided to work on an adventure game. Adventure games, for better or worse, are now a niche subject, and while I've enjoyed them, I can't say I've been a fan of all of their designs. So, I wanted to give it a shot at making a slow-paced sci-fi comedy adventure game. Especially since I enjoy more story- and character-driven games. I am interested in whether this looks appealing and something that anyone would have any interest in playing. I find joy in making this, so my motto has always been, 'Do what you enjoy, and people will come to like it too'. Still, I can't say I wouldn't welcome a second opinion, so here I am posting this...

I am well aware this would be more fitting to post on an AGS forum, but I just find it more comfortable to share it with you guys

Story would be like a spiritual succecor to my modding trilogy, so some characters and places would reappear, but most of them wouldn't be exactly connected to their previous established plots and character traits.

Summary of the plot so far would be: 'Craig and his partner Myah Gazeley are now slightly unhinged bounty hunters and are on their way to discover the secrets of the universe.' Plot and the style of writing, unlike LucasArts games, are definitely more written for adult audiences.

Unlike my mods, this is entirely a solo project, so I am learning some coding in the process, which is really cool having full control of the project despite the fact I am spending more time reading the manual of the AGS than I care to admit. I've also managed to implement an 'Affinity' status, which would be affected by how you interact with your partner, and a database of characters that gets updated as you meet them.

Also, the fact that I am not bound to use IMF format for the music and effects is pretty cool, too!

I currently have finished only the first chapter, but I am having so much fun every step of the way.

Still, I wanted to share this, especially since DoomJedi made some interesting points about my style of graphics in a other post, and I can't thank him enough for suggesting some alternate software, which I was too stubborn to learn. Now, I don't want to think about how much better and faster I would have animated some enemies in my mods had I used Piskel, but you live and learn, and all that.

I know a few screenshots don't show as much as playing the game, but here are some if anyone is interested:

[Nospike]

Man these graphics are breathtaking. I'm getting heavy SCUMM vibes, Monkey Island, Sam & Max. Probably because of the liberal use of the Star Wars font and the connection with LucasArts.

[dark]

You are extremely talented. Those graphics are gorgeous.

Would this be an adventure game in the style of a point and click Sierra or Lucas arts adventure game of the 90s, or do you have a different style in mind?

What is the target screen resolution you are drawing to?

[Dave216]

Man these graphics are breathtaking. I'm getting heavy SCUMM vibes, Monkey Island, Sam & Max. Probably because of the liberal use of the Star Wars font and the connection with LucasArts.

Thanks a lot I've very much enjoyed Monkey Island games, and their artwork is still amazing to this very day. Especially the Return to Monkey Island, which has amazing art direction and feels like an interactive cartoon, more than a video game.

You are extremely talented. Those graphics are gorgeous.

Would this be an adventure game in the style of a point and click Sierra or Lucas arts adventure game of the 90s, or do you have a different style in mind? What is the target screen resolution you are drawing to?

Thanks dark! I appreciate it! I am making a classic click-and-point adventure game. This will definitely be more in the style of LucasArts, which I've always preferred. Well, the default preset I am working with is based on Beneath the Steel Sky, so there is only the 'interact' and 'examine' mouse click handler, which I feel is more easy to work with and is better than having multiple actions available that barely ever get used. I am also trying to avoid making "moon logic" puzzles and death scenarios that feel cheap and unjustified.

I am working in 320x200 resolution. While I would prefer to make the game look crispier, I realized everything would take twice as much work to do. Animations, backgrounds, and character designs would take too much of my spare time. I would probably get easily burned out and tired from working on a single room for so long without making a lot of progress. 

[Benvolio]

Oh wow this looks astounding. Like Dark said, what incredible talent and ability.

I think high colour (or similar) but 320x200 is absolutely the right choice, considering your abilities. I understand that the low res might sacrifice some theoretical appeal for modern gamers. But garg those guys, there's enough of an audience for something low-res if it's done well enough. And my goodness the way you use swathes of pleasurable colour will win anyone over.

I am highly curious about what the gameplay will be like. I never played much of that genre of game but from a creator as good as you I would be delighted to. I have high hopes for your storytelling abilities given what we saw in your mods so far!

[dark]

Lower resolution is great. I think it's underappreciated, the artistic skill and judgement calls that go into implying complex detail with very limited pixels, such as a characters facial expressions if you're limited to a very tiny space like 6x6 or 8x8 pixels for the face. The same is true for a complex landscape like a city skyline or starry galaxy image that needs to fit into small resolution.

You are skilled at that and I love to see that on display!

[K1n9_Duk3]

Looks great! Definitely something I'd like to play at some point.

[Snortimer]

This looks really neat! Serendipitously, I just played "Loom" again last week (my favourite adventure game), through ScummVM on my Miyoo Mini.
There's something about these games that you just don't get with other genres - the artistry, the more natural "flow" of action, but at the same time there are long stretches of frustration where you're just walking from place to place, or waiting for long conversations to finish, that other genres don't have. Although "Loom" has less of these frustrations than most.
I'm not entirely sure what the answer is - but I can see why some people swear by the genre, and also why it has lost popularity. It is a very different experience, but it is no less a "game", subject to the same rules about not frustrating your players more than necessary.

[Dave216]

I'm not entirely sure what the answer is - but I can see why some people swear by the genre, and also why it has lost popularity. It is a very different experience, but it is no less a "game", subject to the same rules about not frustrating your players more than necessary.

Yes, it's definitely an acquired taste. As a kid, I loved watching my sister play through Dark Seed, but after trying it for myself years later, it quickly became really obvious that it's designed to hard-lock your progress on a blind playthrough, and it's not fun to play through without a guide. That being said, my favorite games of the genre is the Black Mirror trilogy (it has nothing to do with the show sharing the same name), somewhat more modern AG than previously mentioned titles." The last game in the trilogy is somewhat lackluster compared to the first two and has some unintentional funny writing. But the atmosphere and the soundtrack of the first game are really unique, and it's neatly designed, so you can't hardlock your progress. And deaths are done quite well, too. Definitely an easy recommend for anyone interested in the genre.

I was thinking of sharing a demo of my game with anyone interested. It's about 30-45 minutes long, depending on how much you want to read through every text in the game. I still would need to polish some things and check some coding before I could send a compiled demo. My sister enjoyed it, but I am hoping to get more objective pointers on the project and what I should improve on while working on it. It has some unique mechanics, I think, and a story that's tailored by your actions and dialog choices. If anyone is willing to give it a try, please let me know, and I will PM you with the compiled demo in the future.

[dark]

I'd be happy to try it out!

[Dave216]

I've still been busy with my project, so here are some screenshots or updates, whatever you wish to call it, if anyone is still interested. Most of these are animated as well.

City of Neon from Canmore's Redemption


Back streets from Canmore's Redemption; reimagination


Diner


Grotto

[Benvolio]

I am consistently blown away by your artistic output!

May I ask, is this game development entirely solo or are others working on code, script etc?

[Nospike]

Animated?!
Man this is absolutely breathtaking. This is wallpaper-grade, nay, framed-picture-grade art. I'd ask how long it took you to draw these screens but perhaps that's best left a trade secret. Amazing job.

[Dave216]

I am consistently blown away by your artistic output!

May I ask, is this game development entirely solo or are others working on code, script etc?

Thanks, Benvolio! I am currently working on this on my own. I have a friend who doesn't neccesarily work on this but gives me some advice on some graphics and dialogs. Since I, who never tried coding beyond messing around in Game Maker, was able to actually do the coding for the time being, my understanding is that this isn't complex if someone on my level figured it out

Animated?!
Man this is absolutely breathtaking. This is wallpaper-grade, nay, framed-picture-grade art. I'd ask how long it took you to draw these screens but perhaps that's best left a trade secret. Amazing job.

Thanks, Nospike! I usually finish one background, move to another, and as I continue to do this, I improve in some way or another, so my older backgrounds need updating as I learn new shading techniques. These take a lot of time but are well worth the effort. I just keep working at them until I feel they are good enough. Which, again, sometimes feels like they never will be

[dark]

The graphics look professional. You should make a big box for it when it's done