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Topics - GameDevChris

#1
Listed below are some common issues that you may encounter while playing Mage's Initiation. If you follow the suggested solutions, in most cases you should be able to resolve the problem.

Please consult the guide below before posting any issues on our technical forum, as a solution may already be available for the problem that you're experiencing.

Q) Where are the save-game files and configuration files located for Mage's Initiation?

A) The default save-game directories are:

Windows: c:/Users/USERNAME/Saved Games/Mage's Initiation (Where USERNAME is the name of your Windows account)
Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Mage's Initiation/
Linux: ~/.local/share/ags/Mage's Initiation/

Q) When I run the game, I get an error message saying that my display resolution is not supported.

A) This could happen for a number of reasons. If your video card is an older model (or if you are running the game on a netbook or laptop), your system may not support a particular graphics driver. In this case, you will need to run the settings program and change it to use one of the other options. For example, if OpenGL doesn't work, try the DirectDraw driver instead and vice versa. You may also need to change the "Fullscreen scale", "Windowed Scale", and/or "Scaling method" settings if your system doesn't support specific resolutions. Most users who experience these types of issues are able to get it working after experimenting with different combinations. If all else fails, you can try clicking the "Start in windowed mode" checkbox to run the game in a window if nothing else helps.

Q) I can't see the cutscene movies. I just get a black screen or a static video frame.

A) If you run an older system or a netbook or low-end laptop, your system may be too slow to play high-resolution Ogg Theora movies. Running the game with the OpenGL driver may help.

Q) The game doesn't stretch to fill my entire screen.

A) This may happen if your desktop display resolution is set very high. You can run the settings program and change the "Fullscreen/Windowed scale" setting to "Stretch, preserving aspect ratio." This should allow your system to pick the closest maximum game screen size that is compatible with your current desktop resolution. You can also try the "Fill whole screen" and "Max round multiplier" settings

Q) The game automatically changes to letterboxed mode and displays black bars at the top and bottom of the screen. How can I run the game stretched to fill the entire screen?

A) The game has been optimized to fit 16:10 wide-screen monitors. On older 4:3 monitors, the game will intentionally put black bars at the top and bottom of the screen to keep the wide-screen effect.

Q) When I run the game in full-screen mode, the game screen appears in a 640x400-sized rectangular window in the very center of the monitor. The outer edges are completely black.

A) On rare occasions some video cards will draw the game window like this. You can usually overcome the issue by running the winsetup.exe program and changing "Fullscreen/Windowed scale" setting to "Stretch, preserving aspect ratio." This should allow your system to pick the closest maximum game screen size that is compatible with your current desktop resolution. You can also try the "Fill whole screen" and "Max round multiplier" settings. You may need to experiment with a combination of settings (including the "Scaling method" field) to find something that works.

Q) When I load the game, the screen constantly flickers on and off every few seconds. I have tried using all different resolutions and checking the checkbox option for CRT monitors and then un-checking it but nothing seems to work.

A) There are a number of suggestions to help resolve this issue:

  1. Close all other applications before you run the game.
  2. Select the "Stretch, preserving aspect ratio" option in the setup program.
  3. Try running the game in windowed mode.
  4. If all of the above fails, try downloading the latest drivers for your video card,
     downloading the latest DirectX, and lowering your video card's refresh rate.


Q) I receive the following error message when I try to load the game:

"WARNING: Please run the setup program and ensure that valid 'Digital Sound' and 'MIDI Music' options are selected. These options must be enabled for the game to run. Individual music settings may be adjusted, enabled, or disabled from within the game."

A) The audio.vox and speech.vox files must be present in the game directory for the game to work. If you have deleted these, the game will refuse to run. Ensure that these two files exist in your game directory and then run the winsetup.exe program, making certain that the "Use speech pack if available" box is checked.

Q) The game crashes on start-up with an audio error message pertaining to room300.asc.

A) This crash occasionally happens when the system doesn't have any sound drivers installed. Ensure that your sound card is using the latest drivers and try launching the game again.


Q) I'm having trouble with the digital sound feature (i.e. sound effects), as the game says it failed to initialize.

A) You need to select an option other than "No Digital Sound". The audio.vox file must be available for the game to run. Individual sound settings can be adjusted from within the game.


Q) I selected "Disable music" as my "Music" setting in the winsetup.exe program and now the game will not run.

A) You need to select an option other than "Disable music". The audio.vox file must be available for the game to run. Individual music settings can be adjusted from within the game.


Q) I can hear a lot of static in the sound effects or digital music.

A) Some sound cards appear to have trouble with the "Default WaveOut Device" setting for digital sound effects. If you hear static, try running the winsetup.exe program and changing the "Digital Sound" setting to "Default DirectSound Device" instead. Note that sometimes the reverse situation may be the case.


Q) When I run the game, my screen is misaligned.

A) Your monitor's settings may not have been previously calibrated to the game's video mode. The first time you run a game in a resolution that your monitor hasn't encountered before, you may need to adjust the monitor's horizontal and vertical settings to accommodate that specific resolution. Making this adjustment should not affect your Windows desktop resolution settings, and the monitor should remember these adjustments subsequent times you run this game in the same resolution.

Q) The game has frozen or locked up and I can't quit back to the desktop.

A) If, for some reason, the game freezes irrevocably, you can press ALT+X at any time to close the program and return to your desktop.


Q) D'arc seems to have gotten stuck and cannot walk or run anywhere.

A) There are two possible solutions to this problem:
 
  1. Try pressing the Z + U keys together to unfreeze the game if it gets stuck.
  2. Press CTRL + P to bring up the debug parser. Type .unstuck (including the dot) and press Enter.


Q) I'm playing on Linux and the game won't start up. I just get a black screen.

A) This is a known issue that affects Linux systems with a dual-monitor setup.

To bypass this problem, dual-monitor Linux users can run the game in Windowed mode.

If you would prefer to play in full-screen mode, you can try temporarily setting your desktop to "Single Display" mode in the Screen Display properties of Settings while you play the game.

Q) I changed my save-game folder to a custom one and all my game settings have reset to the default values. I have also lost all of my earned achievements when I press F2 and view the Achievements menu.

A) To resolve this issue, you will need to copy all the .dat and .cfg files from your old save-game folder over to the new one. When you next launch the game, your settings and achievements should be successfully restored.


Q) On Linux, my mouse cursor movement is jerky and/or slow.

A) If you're experiencing jerky or slow mouse cursor movement and you're using a high DPI mouse, this can be corrected by adding a line to ~/.local/share/ags/Mage's Initiation/acsetup.cfg using a text editor. (Make sure you're editing the acsetup.cfg file in the save-games folder and not the game's root folder).

In the [mouse] section, add the line: control=never

This should eliminate the mouse lag. It causes AGS to use the system input directly to control the mouse position instead of passing it through a library.

If that doesn't fix it, you'll either have to use a non-high-DPI mouse (or reduce the mouse's polling rate to around 125 and disable acceleration).

One other thing might be worth trying would be to change the speed=1 value in the [mouse] section from 1 to 2.

If experiencing this issue on Windows, you might also try running winsetup.exe and altering the mouse speed settings there.

Q) I'm playing on MacOS and the F-Keys (E.g. F1, F2, F5, etc.) don't work.

A) On MacOS you need to press the function (Fn) key while simultaneously pressing the F-key in question.


Q) How do I enter full-screen mode on MacOS?

A) You can enter full-screen mode using the View menu: View -> Enter Full Screen


Q) There's no setup program for the game in Linux. How can I change the game's configuration options?

A) The acsetup.cfg (configuration) file can be found in the following folder on Linux. It can be edited with a text editor:

   ~/.local/share/ags/Mage's Initiation/acsetup.cfg


Q) There's no setup program for the game in MacOS. How can I change the game's configuration options?

A) The acsetup.cfg (configuration) file can be found in the following folder on MacOS. It can be edited with a text editor:

   ~/Library/Application Support/Mage's Initiation/acsetup.cfg

Q) I'm running Windows and I keep getting a crash with the following error message when launching the game:

  Loading game failed with error: Script link failed: Runtime error: unresolved import
  'AGS2Client::SetAchievementAchieved^1'.
  The game files may be incomplete, corrupt or from an unsupported version of AGS.

  How do I fix it?


A) The Steam and GOG versions of the game have a .dll dependency that's tied to in-game achievements. Sometimes, this causes the above crash to appear on some systems. There are a few solutions you can try to resolve the issue:

Download Microsoft Visual Studio C++ Redistributable packages for 32bit intel architecture (Microsoft puts x86 in the file name for those). You will need two versions: one for 2010 and one more for 2012. You can pick whatever language suits you.

2010: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5555
2012: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30679

Both of these files have the same file name (vcredist_x86.exe) so don't let that confuse you.

Open the Windows Control Panel, go to the Programs and Features, and Uninstall both versions (if you already have them installed). Again make sure to remove only the 32bit versions (with x86 in the name). This may stop some software from launching so please make sure to download the two files listed above FIRST. After removing them, install both packages you downloaded.

The game will launch now.

After installing these Redistributable packages, you may want to run Windows update. In Advanced Settings make sure to enable updates for "other Microsoft products" - this will allow Windows to update any outdated versions of the runtime and fix any security issues discovered since these versions were released. This should be the definitive solution to this start-up crash on Steam and GOG. However, if, for some reason, it doesn't work, you may also try the suggestions below.

-You may need to download or update Visual C++ Redistributable for Visual Studio 2015 - this is a small one-time download, see details here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=48145  Install it and then try launching the game again.

-If the game is complaining about other .dll files (msvcr110.dll and msvcp110.dll) missing, go to your C:/Windows/System32 directory. You should see two .dll files called msvcr110.dll and msvcp110.dll Try copying and pasting both of them both into your Mage's Initiation game folder and then launching it.

-Sometimes certain anti-virus software can cause the issue. Try temporarily disabling your anti-virus software before launching the game. If it works then, you may need to add the game and winsetup .exe files to your whitelist.

If none of the above works, please post a report on our technical forum or e-mail support@himalayastudios.com and we will assist you further.

Q) I was able to play the game earlier, but now I'm getting a start-up crash, which says "Error: File read back in wrong order". What can I do?

A) Go to the save-game folder, depending on your OS:

Windows: c:/Users/USERNAME/Saved Games/Mage's Initiation (Where USERNAME is the name of your Windows account)
Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Mage's Initiation/
Linux: ~/.local/share/ags/Mage's Initiation/

Look for the file called options.dat and delete it from the save-games folder, then try launching the game again. If you're still experiencing the crash, open the game's root folder and locate the options.dat file there. Copy and paste it into your save-games folder. Be sure to overwrite any existing file with the same filename so that it bears the exact filename: options.dat

Try launching the game again and now it should work. However, please note that this will reset all your custom settings back to their default state. You will likely want to go to the in-game Options menu and change your interface style and other settings back to how you prefer them.

Q) I'm getting a start-up crash when launching the game, which says "in SaveLoad.asc, line xxx Error: File. ReadStringBack: file was not written by WriteString". How can I resolve this?

A) Go to the save-game folder, depending on your OS:

Windows: c:/Users/USERNAME/Saved Games/Mage's Initiation (Where USERNAME is the name of your Windows account)
Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Mage's Initiation/
Linux: ~/.local/share/ags/Mage's Initiation/

Look for the file called tme.dat and delete it from the save-games folder, then try launching the game again. If you're still experiencing the crash, open the game's root folder and locate the tme.dat file there. Copy and paste it into your save-games folder. Be sure to overwrite any existing file with the same filename so that it bears the exact filename: tme.dat

Try launching the game again and now it should work. However, please note that the most recent in-game timestamp of your autosave file will be inaccurate. This will automatically resolve itself the next time the game autosaves.

Q) How can I change the save-game folder on MacOs or Linux?

A) In Windows, you can do this directly from the winsetupexe program. But on MacOs and Linux, you'll need to take a few precautions and follow these steps:

1) First, manually create the new savegame folder you want and name it something appropriate, like "MagesSaves".

2)  Go to your current (default) savegame folder and open acsetup.cfg in a text editor. At the bottom of the [misc] section, add the following line containing the absolute path to your new savegame folder. For example, in Windows it would look like this:

user_data_dir=C:\MagesSaves

Tip: On MacOs, you can easily copy long pathnames by selecting the desired file or folder (in this case the Save Game folder that you created), and using Cmd+Opt+C to copy the full pathname. Paste this (using Cmd+V) into the the game's acsetup.cfg file as indicated above.

Note: For MacOS Steam installations, the Mage's Initiation acsetup.cfg file is typically found here: ~/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/common/Mages Initiation/Mage's Initiation.app/Contents/Resources/acsetup.cfg


Save the acsetup.cfg file and close it.

3) While still in the current (default) savegame folder, copy and paste all files ending in .dat into your new savegames folder (don't move or cut them - just copy and paste). This is important if you want to retain your achievements and in-game settings.

4) Now when you run the game, it should start up and look in the new savegames folder you created (which should be empty, so your in-game savegames list will also appear empty).

5) Repeat the above process for every new savegames folder you wish to create.

6) If you ever want to switch back to an older savegame folder, you'll need to open acsetup.cfg in your original (default) savegames folder and edit the user_data_dir= line to point to the folder where your desired savegames are stored. Then save the acsetup.cfg file and close it. This needs to be done prior to running the game.

(Note: at this point you should copy & paste (overwrite) all .dat files from your most recent savegames folder into the savegames folder you're switching over to, if you want to retain your most up-to date achievements.)

To go back to using the default savegames folder, simply delete the user_data_dir= line from acsetup.cfg all together and save it.

It's a bit fiddly, but there's currently no GUI set-up program for non-Windows AGS games.
#2
News / Mage's Initiation v.1.1 Update Released
February 21, 2019, 06:44:49 AM
A new build of Mage's Initiation has been rolled out.

Version 1.1 addresses the majority of bugs and issues that have been reported since launch. This build won't break your existing save-games and will allow you to continue playing from where you left off. However, to get the optimal experience, starting a new game is recommended.

The main feature addition to this patch is the inclusion of a "no combat" mode, which allows you to disable random combat encounters (in the forest and wastelands) completely. Only boss battles will be mandatory, but they, too will be much easier. This feature is intended to allow people to play through the game more like a pure adventure game if they don't want to deal heavily with the combat or RPG elements.

To use "no combat" mode, simply drag the Combat Difficulty slider all the way to the left. You'll see a textual indication saying that combat is disabled in the lower text window.

Some experimental code has also been added, which attempts to unhook the player, should they get stuck on scenery objects (i.e. bushes, rocks, trees, logs etc.) and unable to run during combat. A full list of further additions and bug-fixes is listed below.

The new v.1.1 build is now available on Steam, GOG, and the Humble Store for Windows, Linux, and MacOs. Steam and GOG Galaxy clients should download and update the game automatically. However, people who purchased the game via Humble will need to uninstall v1.0 and then install v1.1 (Save-game files and other settings will not be lost when uninstalling).

Buy it Here.
#3
News / Mage's Initiation is Out Now!
January 30, 2019, 12:58:05 PM
At long last, Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Through February 5 you can get it for $13.49 USD (10% off the usual price) on Steam, GOG, and the Humble Store.

Check out our new launch trailer!




Learn more about Mage's Initiation.
#4
News / Mages is coming to GOG and Humble Bundle
January 17, 2019, 12:44:13 PM
You asked for it and we're happy to deliver! Yes, we're pleased to announce that Mage's Initiation will be launching on both GOG.com and the Humble store on January 30th.

You can now add it to your GOG wishlists here.
And to your Humble wishlists here.
#5
News / Mage's Initiation To Be Released January 30th 2019
November 28, 2018, 01:46:08 PM
After a decade of hard work, Mage's Initiation finally has a release date!
Set your calendars for January 30th, 2019.

We also have a new preview teaser video to whet your appetite for what's to come.




The game now has a page on Steam and you can start wish-listing it. So be sure to do that and help us spread the word!
We're also in talks with GOG.com about releasing on their platform.

Last but not least, we are currently working on native Mac OSX and Linux ports and hope to have them ready for release day. Fingers crossed.

Thanks to everyone for your patience. The long wait is almost over!
#6
News / Happy 10th Anniversary Al Emmo!
September 05, 2016, 12:16:38 PM


Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine was first released on September 5th 2006! To celebrate the 10-Year-Anniversary, the game is 90% off (that's 99 cents) for the next week on Steam!

You can also get both a DRM-Free version and a Steam key from the Humble Widget at the Himalaya Store.

So what are you waiting for? Strap on those boots, pack on those pounds, and head off on a fantastic journey filled with sun, surf, and sand. (Well, two out of three ain't bad.)


#8
News / Al Emmo now available on the App Store!
July 09, 2015, 10:42:12 AM
After a very long process spanning 3 years and several setbacks, Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine has finally been ported to iPad, iPhone, and iPad touch, and is now available in the App Store! The iOS version features a new verb-coin style interface with large icons for touch-screen devices, and is optimized for single finger taps. Text size has also been increased for easier readability on smaller screens.

The game is available at the discounted price of $3.99 USD until the 22nd of July.

As this is our first title on the App Store, reviews, likes, and ratings would be greatly appreciated.

We'd also like to say thanks to Janet Gilbert for her extensive work on making the AGS port compatible with iOS8, and to Tiny Red Studio for their assistance with porting the game and helping with its release.

Thanks, everyone, and we hope you enjoy having Al Emmo in your pocket (or handbag, backpack, and wherever else you can fit him.)

-The Himalaya Team

Please note that Apple doesn't permit us to distribute free game copies to existing owners of the PC version. You would need to purchase it again if you wish to play the iOS version.
#9
News / Steam Summer Sale 2015
June 12, 2015, 04:34:53 AM
The Steam Summer Sale is happening for the next two weeks (June 11th - 21st, 2015). There, you can get both Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine and Postcards from Anozira for 60% off!

You can even pick up the Al Emmo Double Pack which includes both Al Emmo games for just $5.19 USD. Giddy-up and get your western fix!

#10
News / Postcards from Anozira now on Steam
June 04, 2015, 12:37:53 PM
Al Emmo's Postcards from Anozira is released and available to buy on Steam.

Click to View on Steam

You can also purchase the Al Emmo Double Pack, which includes both Al Emmo & the Lost Dutchman's Mine and Postcards from Anozira for a discount deal!
#11
Please help us get "Postcards from Anozira" greenlit on Steam by voting "Yes". If you have Steam installed, clicking the first link below will open the vote page directly in your Steam client for your convenience, allowing you to bypass the web login & Steamguard. Thanks!

Vote in Steam Client

Vote in Web Browser
#12
News / Steam Summer Sale - Al Emmo 60% Off
June 20, 2014, 12:39:08 PM
The Steam Summer Sale has commenced and will run until July 1st, 2014.

For the next two weeks, you can get Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine 60% off. That's 9 full Acts of Wild Western adventure few only a few bucks! Check it out on Steam here.
#13
News / Al Emmo now available on Steam
May 10, 2014, 07:43:19 AM
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine is now available for purchase on Steam.

Thanks to everybody who voted on Greenlight! We're running a 10% off discount for the next week.
#14
News / Al Emmo comes to Groupees
January 23, 2014, 09:07:45 AM
Al Emmo is currently strutting his stuff on the Groupees Retro bundle 2. Pay what you want for Al and 7 other games! Plus, get the Al Emmo Soundtrack once 2,500 bundles get sold.

All purchasers will get a Steam key once the game is Greenlit.

Retro 2 Groupees Bundle
#15
Update: November 26th, 2013



Price: $9.99 USD

Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine version 4.0 has been released! This new version has several major improvements based on player feedback we've received over the years. If you've never played the game before, now is the perfect opportunity to give this enhanced edition a try!

SCREENSHOTS


KEY FEATURES
* A new Al Emmo (protagonist) voice actor
* Improved 2D Cutscene movies
* Scoring system with 500 points
* Achievement system with 20 achievements
* Tooltip bar that shows mouse-over hotspots
* Much more! (See full list at bottom of post)

WHERE TO BUY THE GAME
Himalaya Store - Unlockable trial version (Free 60 Minute Trial)
Buy from Desura
(More to come.)

AVAILABILITY ON STEAM
The game is still in Greenlight, but is moving up. If you have a Steam account, we'd really appreciate your "Yes" vote. And if you leave a comment too, you'll automatically go into our prize draw to win some free Steam games once greenlit! Also, all owners of the game will get a Steam key.


UPGRADING TO v4.0
Upgrading to version 4.0 is free for customers who purchased the game directly from Himalaya Studios. If you purchased the Digital Download version, simply uninstall your old version, then re-install version 4.0. The same serial key number you were allocated will work.

If you bought the game from another portal/webstore, the new version will be rolled out sometime in December.

CHANGES TO VERSION 4.0
A full list of additions, features, improvements, and bug fixes is below.
WARNING: GAME SPOILERS AHEAD
[spoiler=Full Changelog]- Added: New voice actor for Al Emmo
- Added: New voice actor for Everette the Exterminator
- Added: Improved 2D, hand-animated cutscenes to replace older 3D versions
- Added: New Himalaya Studios logo animation
- Added: New scoring system with a total of 500 points
- Added: Achievements system with 20 achievements to unlock
- Added: Tooltip GUI which shows mouse-over hotspot names
- Added: The [ and ] keys will cycle backwards and forwards through inventory items
- Added: Back-end functionality for touch-screen devices
- Added: Some newly recorded speech for Rita
- Added: Animated light glints to several small, obtainable objects to make them more visible
- Added: Max Nearest Neighbour filter to the setup program
- Fixed: Music and audio stuttering bug
- Fixed: Pressing Enter on Quit & Restart GUIs now acts like clicking the "yes" button
- Fixed: Esc key will now cancel the map of Anozira
- Fixed: Esc will no longer skip the entire tequila sequence in the saloon
- Fixed: Al can now run inside Koko's store
- Fixed: Improved Al's mule dismounting animation at Rita's house
- Fixed: Improved Bubba's flag animation
- Fixed: Updated the PDF manual with the latest graphics and information
- Fixed: Koko's greeting to Al in Act 6 if Al already visited him since the raid
- Fixed: Made it so you must talk to Everette before you can give him the termites
- Fixed: More legible font is used in the journals
- Fixed: Moved the mine cart's starting position further right on the tracks
- Fixed: Bug where the same desert music could play twice in succession
- Fixed: Bug where the top left and right menus would not animate in the mine cliff screen
- Fixed: Bug where you could burn the gallows ropes with the matchbook more than once
- Fixed: several minor spelling/grammar errors
- Fixed: other small glitches and bugs
- Changed: Interface improvements (such as tweening GUIs)
- Changed: Made many items and objects easier to click on to reduce pixel-hunting
- Changed: Rita's speaking portrait
- Changed: Rita's song cutscene has been replaced with a new in-game scene
- Changed: Increased the odds of seeing the fishing Easter Eggs at the oasis
- Changed: Improved the visual appearance of Kevin's fire extinguisher spray
- Changed: Retouched several characters' dialog portraits
- Changed: The half-map rubbing inventory item now includes a piece of charcoal
- Changed: Al now looks at the half-map rubbing after acquiring it (close-up)
- Changed: Made it easier to walk off the screen edges when leaving a room
- Changed: Various dialogue and text tweaks
- Changed: Tweaked the way save/replace game GUIs are handled[/spoiler]
#16
Win a $450 Prize Pack: Simply Upvote & Comment!

We're running a giveaway to help promote Mage's Initiation on Greenlight!

For the chance to win a huge bundle of collectible items valued at over $450 USD, just follow these simple steps:

1) Visit the Mage's Initiation Greenlight page and click the "Yes" button to upvote the game.

2) Click the "Favorite" and "Follow" buttons (under the screenshots).

3) Leave a comment (This step is necessary so that we can choose winners from the list of usernames assigned to the comments).


And that's it! Three entries will be randomly chosen when Mage's Initiation gets greenlit and this contest will remain open until that time. Comments/votes that existed before the contest was announced will also be eligible to win.

Second Prize: Two runners-up will each be gifted one game of their choice (of any value) to their Steam account.

First Prize: One lucky winner will receive all if the items below:





       
  • 4 Game boxes (Fire, Earth, Air, and Water) containing game and soundtrack CDs
  • 1 Standard DVD Case/copy of the "Mages Initiation" game
  • 4 D'arc Polyresin figures - Fire, Earth, Air, and Water (4" x 3" x 3")
  • 3 Digital Copies of the "Mage's Initiation" game
  • 1 Digital Copy of the "Al Emmo & the Lost Dutchman's Mine" game
  • 1 Digital "Al Emmo & the Lost Dutchman's Mine" soundtrack (53 Tracks)
  • 1 "Mage's Initiation" Poster (18" x 24")
  • 1 "Mage's Initiation" 50-page Hardcover Art book
  • 2 Bronze "Severed Circle" Pendants
  • 3 Complete sets of character trading cards (15 foil packs, 120 cards total)
  • 1 Art Lithograph, Signed by JP Selwood (8.5" x 11")
  • 2 Cloth Maps of the Land of Iginor (11" x 17")
  • 2 T-shirts (Mens or Ladies sizes)
#17
News / Mage's Initiation Kickstarter a Huge Success!
March 23, 2013, 12:51:49 AM
It is with great joy that we announce our Kickstarter campaign for Mage's Initiation was a monumental success! We blew past our goal and ended with a resounding 192%; over $125,000. We are beyond amazed by the incredible outpouring of support from our fans, both old and new, and can't wait to give back an epic game and top-notch collectibles in return!

We have also received over $2,600 in PayPal pledges at the time of writing, a big thank you to our PayPal backers as well! While PayPal pledgers couldn't participate in the comment section, you'll still be able to participate in both our public forums, and the private backer forums coming soon!

We're thrilled to say that we blazed past most of our stretch goals, and we'll get to greatly expand the game with class-specific side-quests and open up a new explorable wasteland area, plus add additional 2D cutscenes and old school "close up" artwork to punctuate key game scenes, both of which will greatly flesh out the rich narrative. We'll also be adding some new monsters to Iginor's forests for all your target practice needs!

Once again, from the bottom of our hearts: THANK YOU. The past month has been an incredible journey! And if you missed the Kickstarter, we're currently running a "slacker backer" campaign via PayPal here, to see if we can meet the rest of our stretch goals!
#18
News / PayPal Pledges Now Accepted!
March 09, 2013, 09:39:59 PM
Excellent news for folks who wanted to back our project but had issues with Amazon Payments on Kickstarter: now that we have blitzed past our initial goal, we are able to take pledges through PayPal. If you fall into this group, simply click the PayPal logo below and it will take you to the PayPal Plegdes page:

#19
News / Kickstarter Goal Reached - Stretch Goals!
March 09, 2013, 09:35:43 PM
WE DID IT! Thanks to our wonderful magi, sorceresses, elementalists, and all those in between, Mage's Initiation has been fully funded. You've made our dream come true, and we can't wait to reward you with a monumentally epic game true to the old school adventure spirit, *and* with top-notch collectibles that we'll be sending your way!

We now hope to hit many of our stretch goals. Should we do so, there will be more areas to explore and additional quests for each class so that the game gets even bigger and more epic! Better yet, each stretch goal level unlocks extra rewards for our current $100+ backers! Take at our Kickstarter page to see the grand stretch goals that await!
#20
News / Mage's Initiation Kickstarter is Live!
February 19, 2013, 05:55:57 PM
We have some exciting news. The team has been working hard on our latest Adventure / RPG game!

Today, we're excited to announce that we have launched a Kickstarter campaign for Mage's Initiation.

Here you can reserve a copy of the game, as well as other cool collectible items such as posters, cloth maps, T-shirts, pendants, and even a polyresin figure of D'arc himself (the protagonist)!

For more details please click here




#21
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine Technical FAQ

Summary of Questions and Answers

1) Running at 640x400 changes to 640x480 (letterboxed) mode with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen.
2) When I load the game, the screen constantly flickers on and off every few seconds.
3) Running at 640x400 in full-screen mode, the game appears in a centered 640x400 window with black outer borders.
4) I receive an error message regarding screen resolution when I try to load the game.
5) I receive an error message regarding the speech and/or music pack when I try to load the game.
6) I'm having trouble with the digital sound feature (i.e. sound effects), and the game says it failed to initialize.
7) Selecting "Disable music" as the "Music" setting in the winsetup.exe program won't allow the game to run.
8) I can hear a lot of static in the sound effects or digital music.
9) When I run the game, my screen is misaligned.
10) At start-up. the game freezes on a black screen. Or the cutscene movies freeze shortly after they begin playing.
11) The game keeps asking me to enter my license key every time I play it.

---------------------------------------


1) Problem:
I'm running the game at 640x400 resolution but it automatically changes to 640x480 (letterboxed) mode with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen. How can I run the game at full screen mode?


Solution: If you are unable to run the game properly in 640x400 mode, you may select the "2x nearest-neighbour" graphics filter from the drop-down box in the winsetup.exe program. However, be warned that the graphics filter option *will* slow the game down, so it's not recommended unless you have a high-end system capable of handling it.

2) Problem:
When I load the game, the screen constantly flickers on and off every few seconds. I have tried using all the different resolutions and both checking and unchecking the option for CRT, but nothing works.


Solution: There are a number of suggestions to help resolve this issue:

1. Close all other applications before you run the game.

2. Click the "Letterbox resolution" option in the setup program.

3. If all else fails, try downloading the latest drivers for your video card, downloading the latest version of DirectX, and/or lowering your video card's refresh rate.

3) Problem:
When I run the game in 640x400 resolution at full screen mode, the game screen appears in a 640x400-sized rectangular window in the very middle of the monitor. The outer edges are completely black.


Solution: On rare occasions, some video cards will exhibit this symptom. You can bypass it by running the winsetup.exe program and changing the resolution to 640x480 mode by clicking the 'Force alternate letterbox resolution' checkbox.

4) Problem:
I receive the following error message when I try to load the game:

"WARNING: This game must be run at a minimum screen resolution of 640x400 in 32-bit colour. Please run the setup program and select either 640x400 or 640x480 mode. Also make sure that the 'Downgrade 32-bit graphics to 16-bit' option is not checked before playing."


Solution: Al Emmo must be run at 640x400 resolution or higher. If you do not have the "2x nearest-neighbour" graphics filter enabled, you will need to ensure that the winsetup.exe program is set to 640x400. If the "2x nearest-neighbour" graphics filter is enabled, you will need to set it to 1280x800 resolution instead. Furthermore, your graphics card *must* be capable of displaying 32-bit colour in order to play the game.

5) Problem:
I receive the following error message when I try to load the game:

"WARNING: Please run the setup program and check the 'Use digital music pack' and 'Use speech pack' options before playing. These files must be available for the game to run. Individual music and speech settings may be adjusted or enabled/disabled from within the game."


Solution: The music.vox and speech.vox files must be present in the game directory for the game to work. If you have deleted these, the game will refuse to run. Ensure that these two files exist in your game directory and then run the winsetup.exe program, making certain that both the "Use digital music pack if available" and "Use speech pack if available" boxes are checked. Also, please make sure that you do not have the "No Sound" setting selected as your "Digital Sound" option.

Note: You may adjust the volume level for (or disable) voices and music from within the game.

6) Problem:
I'm having trouble with the digital sound feature (i.e. sound effects), since the game says it failed to initialize.


Solution: Try running the winsetup.exe program and selecting a different option for "Digital Sound".

7) Problem:
I selected "Disable music" as my "Music" setting in the winsetup.exe program and now the game will not run.


Solution: Please select an option other than "Disable music".

8) Problem:
I can hear a lot of static in the sound effects or digital music. What's wrong?


Solution: Some sound cards appear to have trouble with the "Default WaveOut Device" setting for digital sound effects. If you hear static, try running the winsetup.exe program again and changing the "Digital Sound" setting to "Default DirectSound Device" instead. Note that sometimes the reverse situation may be the case.

9) Problem:
When I run the game my screen is misaligned.


Solution: Your monitor's settings may not be correctly calibrated for a 640x400 resolution. The first time you run a game, such as this game, you may need to adjust your monitor settings to fit its specific resolution. This should not affect your Windows monitor settings, and the game should remember your monitor adjustments the next time you run it.

10) Problem:
I run the game and the screen freezes at a black screen and doesn't go any further (sometimes automatically exiting back to the desktop without giving an error message). Or I run the game and the cutscene movies freeze up shortly after they begin playing.


Solution: This was very likely to be an issue that DirectShow has with the user's system attempting to render the cutscene's video stream using the FFDShow filters. The issue has been resolved in the latest version of the game which replaces the MPEG-1 format videos with Ogg Theora videos instead.

If you do experience video playback issues, you can try running the winsetup.exe program and selecting to run the game in windowed mode. This may also solve playback issues with the cutscene movies.

11) Problem:
The game keeps asking me to enter my license key every time I play it.


Solution: If you are running Al Emmo under Windows 7 64-bit edition, the game will not remember your license key after you enter it, unless you take the following steps:

1) Go to the directory where the game files were installed (usually C:\Program Files\Himalaya Studios\Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine).

2) Right-click on the Al_Emmo.exe file and click "Run as Administrator". Then simply load the game as normal and enter your license key. Windows 7 should now remember it from this point onward.
#22
Here, we will post solutions and work-arounds to a number of common issues people have had with the game. We'll keep the list updated as any new issues and solutions come to our attention:



1) I keep getting an error when running the game or 60-minute demo trial. It says:  "There was a problem initializing graphics mode 1280 x 960 (32 bit)."

By default, Al Emmo uses a "2x Nearest Neighbor" graphics filter to run the game with higher detail. Most video cards support the resolution (1280x960 or 1280x920), but some do not.  Many new video cards have drivers/software that allow you to add a custom resolution if a specific one doesn't already exist. Most new Nvidia cards have this feature. If you search your video card's model number alongside "custom resolution" in Google, it should tell you whether it's possible or not (and how to it).  If so, then try creating a custom resolution of 1280 x 960 for your video card and then running the game again to see if it fixes the problem and allows it to run cleanly.

If this is not achievable, it's also possible to run the game at a lower resolution of 640x480 or 640x400. However, it won't look as detailed.  Some computers also use video card hardware that doesn't support Direct3D, which is the video driver that Al Emmo uses by default.

You should be able to get the game running by loading the game's setup program and changing a few settings.

To run the setup program, click the Windows "Start" button at the bottom left corner of your screen. Then go to "Programs". Look for the "Himalaya Studios>Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine" group. In there, you should see an option called "Settings Menu". (You can alternatively run winsetup.exe directly from the game folder)  Click on this and the game's settings program will appear. This allows you to change several game options in order to get the game to run. Follow these steps:


1) Where it says "Graphics Filter", change it from '2x nearest-neighbour filter' to ' None'.

2) Click the "Save" button at the bottom left to save the new settings and close the program.

3) Run Al Emmo in the usual way, and it should work now.

If you still receive an error, try the additional step below:

4)  Run the settings program again. Where is says "Graphics Driver", change it from Direct3D 9 to DirectDraw 5. And un-check the box that says "Force Alternate Letterbox resolution" Save the settings and run the game.
#23
News / Giveaway: Win Three Steam Games
November 16, 2012, 01:52:32 PM
WIN THREE FREE STEAM GAMES!

We've decided to run a giveaway to help promote the enhanced version of Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine.

For the chance to win ANY three (3) Steam games of your choice, follow these simple steps:

1) Visit the Al Emmo Greenlight page. Log in to your Steam account and click the "Yes" button to up-vote the game.

2)
Click the "Favorite" button (located just above the "Yes" button, under the screenshots).

3)
Leave a comment relevant to the Enhanced Edition of Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine. (This step is necessary so that we can choose a winner from the list of usernames assigned to the comments).

Three (3) entries will be randomly chosen when Al Emmo gets greenlit. The contest will stay open until that time. Comments/votes that existed before this announcement will also be eligible.

First Prize: Any three (3) games (of any value), chosen by the winner, will be gifted to the their Steam account.

Second Prize: Two runners-up will be gifted one (1) game of their choice (of any value) to their Steam account.

Note: Entrants must have a valid Steam account to enter. Prizes are not redeemable for cash.

Enter Now: Visit Al Emmo on Greenlight
#24
News / Al Emmo (Enhanced Edition) on Steam Greenlight
September 08, 2012, 06:02:36 PM
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine (Enhanced Edition v4.0) has been added on Steam Greenlight.

Click here to see Al Emmo v4.0 on Greenlight

This is an upcoming enhanced edition of Al Emmo. The major changes will be completely new Al Emmo character vocals  (by new voice actor) and 2D animated cutscenes to replace the original 3D ones. There are also a plethora of other tweaks and improvements! :)

The way Greenlight works, is that the community votes for games they would like to see on Valve's Steam platform. This removes the sole decision-making from their shoulders and provides a more accurate representation of which titles the gaming community at large wants to see on Steam.

So, we could use your help! If you have a Steam account, please log-in and vote "Yes" to help us get the upcoming Al Emmo build onto the Steam platform.

Thank you!

If Al Emmo gets onto Steam, current owners of the game will be given a free Steam code for the Enhanced Edition.
#25
News / New Mage's Initiation Site Goes Live
March 27, 2012, 05:11:28 AM
The new "Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements" website is now live! Thanks to Eriq Chang and Martin Kool for the exceptional web design work.

Click here to go to the new Mage's Initiation site
#26
News / New Point & Click Adventure - Jolly Rover
February 24, 2012, 03:28:56 AM
The fantastic piratey-dog-themed adventure game "Jolly Rover" is now available on the Himalaya store.

Check it out here
#27
News / Retrospective Review
February 22, 2012, 12:57:53 PM
Adventure Classic Gaming likes Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine quite a bit, apparently. In fact, they like it so much their review has been 6 years in the making. Take a look!

http://www.adventureclassicgaming.com/index.php/site/reviews/629/
#28
News / New Development Team Members
January 27, 2012, 01:03:19 AM
Applications for the programming positions have now closed. Thanks to everyone who applied! We are pleased to welcome Steve Poulton and Jason Mearls to the Mage's Initiation development team. They will assist in scripting the game's remaining puzzles and refining the underlying framework.

We're also thrilled to bring the talented Jessica Beebe on board as our 2D cut-scene animator. Her Disney-esque skills will be put to good use in creating the intermissions scenes for the game.
#29
News / We're looking for an AGS Programmer
January 05, 2012, 07:51:10 AM
We're looking for an AGS scripter to expedite progress on our upcoming game, Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements. The person will also help with programming Hidden Object Games created with the AGS engine. Applicants must have the following qualities:

1) Self-motivated.

2) Experienced with AGS scripting.

3) Passion for RPG/Adventure games and very familiar with how both genres work. (Bonus points: clever puzzle design ideas & creative solutions)

If interested, please send an e-mail to contact@himalayastudios.com with the subject line "AGS Programmer" and let us know your skills, what AGS games you've worked on, and what you think you can bring to this project. Thanks!

Please note that this is a commercial paid project. A contract will be arranged with the successful applicant. If you think you fit the bill, please send an application/resume.
#30
News / End of Year Sale - 50% Off
December 27, 2011, 01:27:09 PM
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine and Al Emmo's Postcards from Anozira are both 50% off until the 1st of January 2012.

Click here to get 'em cheap!
#31
News / An Interview With Diehard Gamefan
December 16, 2011, 01:18:59 PM
We've been interviewed about Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements by DiehardGamefan.

Click here to read the article.
#32
We are very pleased to announce our newest project, Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements.

The game will be an Adventure/RPG hybrid game, similar in style to Sierra's Quest for Glory series. It is currently in the early development stages and is projected for a late 2012 release. More information about the game can be read here.

Visit the Mage's Initiation promo page
#33
News / Al Emmo Sale Ends
January 01, 2011, 12:00:00 AM
The Al Emmo v3.0 Christmas sale is now over. Thanks to all who purchased!
#34
News / Christmas Sale - Al Emmo 50% Off! Only $4.99
December 21, 2010, 09:42:00 AM
To celebrate the holiday season, Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine version 3.0 has been reduced to $4.99 USD for the next 2 weeks!

Now is the perfect time to experience this classic Sierra-style, point & click Wild Western adventure at an all-time low price. The offer is available until January 1st, 2011. Click here to buy it now!

Click for game details
#35
News / Al Emmo v3.0 Released
December 07, 2010, 04:44:00 AM
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine version 3.0 has been released, offering support for hi-res modes plus many of other features! A full list of changes is listed here.

Click for more details
#36
News / New game: Postcards from Anozira
August 02, 2010, 11:28:00 AM
For a change of pace, we developed a Hidden Object Game with the AGS engine, based on Al Emmo. Postcards from Anozira features 5 Playable characters, 29 levels, and 145 postcards to collect in total! Help the mayor drive tourists to the town as you explore the desert land and use your Hidden Object finding skills!

Click for more details on "Postcards from Anozira"
#37
News / Happy Holidays 2009
December 28, 2009, 12:06:00 PM
Happy Holidays from the Himalaya Studios Team. Two new development features have been added to the Al Emmo website!

Click Here to Visit
#38
News / Going, going, gone!
September 28, 2009, 05:31:00 AM
We'd like to mention a special offer. Receive two FREE games, simply for Signing up for a free My Games Space Account at Big Fish Games! With a new game released every day and all titles being inexpensive, this is excellent value.

By doing so, you'll also be helping Himalaya Studios to develop bigger and better adventure games for you in the future!

Click here to get started and download your 2 free games.

Also, just a quick update to mention that the last of the free Quest for Glory II posters have been shipped and we're now out of stock. Congratulations to everybody who obtained one of these rare Limited Edition Collector's Items!
#39
News / Himalaya Studios Has Re-opened for Business!
September 20, 2009, 08:37:00 AM
Our new website has been launched! We've added a new Games Store with a selection of hand-picked, classic-style adventure games for your entertainment, while you wait for our upcoming project. Be sure to check back regularly for newly added titles.

We are also offering "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine" at an all-time low price ($9.99 USD for the Digital Download/Standard Edition and, $14.99 USD for the Collector's Edition). There has never been a better time to get lost in the Wild-Wild West.
#40
News / Current Adventures & Project
September 18, 2009, 08:00:00 AM
We're embarking on the development of an exciting new adventure game project. But to start, you may be wondering what we've been up to over the past few years. And to end, you'll probably want to know more about this project in development!

Well, I actually was hired by the Phoenix Police Department and attended the Police Academy, "Police Quest" style. But after the release of "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine", we were approached by publishers, and I left to reunite with the team to concentrate further on adventure game development.




Also, as many of you may know, we spent considerable time making good on our promise over at AGDInteractive.com. We released the highly anticipated remake of "Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire" on August 24th, and released updated versions of our first two titles, "King's Quest I" and "King's Quest II". If you don't have the newest versions, be sure to download them-the visual enhancements, thanks to the Selwood's and Johan Botes, are worth the download alone!

http://www.AGDinteractive.com

I even had the chance to go on an incredible real life adventure, riding my bicycle from my front doorstep in Phoenix, Arizona all the way down to Panama City, Panama. This involved being an honorary firefighter in Arizona; riding through the drug cartel territory of Mexico and going on a ride along with the Federali; being invited by the Mayor of Tequila to celebrate the last night of their annual festival; visiting the Mayan pyramids; living with a family in Guatemala; eating papusas in El Salvador; braving the scorching deserts of Honduras; white water rafting and nearly dying in a kayak accident off the coast of the Bay Islands; cycling by steaming volcanoes in Nicaragua; battling the stalwart winds and rains of Costa Rica and meeting our first three-toed sloth; watching enormous cargo ships squeeze through the Panama Canal; sleeping in hammocks on deserted Caribbean Islands, and snorkling by shipwrecks in the azul waters, while sailing in a Spanish sailboat to South America; galloping on trusty steeds through the Colombian coffee country; being interviewed by the news in the home city of Pablo Escobar; visiting Cartagena of "Romancing the Stones" fame; swimming with seals, penguins and hammerhead sharks off the coast of the Galapaos Islands; visiting the piranha infested waters of the Amazon River Basin and the towering Andes of Ecuador. We even learned Spanish. The six month adventure was as grand as the Sierra classics that we remember so fondly, and was even entitled "Hero's Quest" after the beloved "Quest for Glory" series. If you're interested in learning more, feel free to check out our blog detailing the journey (which includes pictures for those with short attention spans):


   
     

Bicycle Adventure Blog

While adventuring about South America, I began reading a design proposal from our talented game designer, Daniel Stacey. I realized, it was time to return home and start our next adventure-a classic style adventure game that NEEDED to be made.

It just so happened, merely a day after returning back to the States, Chris would have a stopover flight in Los Angeles on his way back to Australia from Canada. He would have precisely 12 hours before boarding a plane home. Being merely 6 hours away by car, and clearly seeing the stars were aligned in our favor, I made my way out to the LAX airport to pick Chris up and take him to a very special place. I arrived at the curb, straight from Phoenix, right as Chris was walking out of the airport - perfect timing as usual!

Battling Los Angeles traffic, we made our way to the most pivotal location in Himalaya Studios history... Disneyland. It was there that I had made the decision years earlier to follow my dream: start Himalaya Studios and move to Australia to work side by side with Chris on our first original game: "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine". This would be Chris' first trip to the park, and it was here, at the statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse, that Chris and I recommitted to adventure game development and the future of Himalaya Studios.

Following our plan, a few months later, Chris made a proper return visit from Australia. We were approached by the Department of Homeland Security in regards to a computer game development contract, and were asked to present our ideas - but our sights were still set on our original game idea. It was past its incubation period and HAD to be born. It was time to return to our passion of classic style adventure game development!




We pondered what we could do to provide inspiration for this next project, and decided a road-trip across America would do the trick... and perhaps even a meet-up with a Sierra design legend on the opposite end of the country.

In 11 days, we managed to go on a whirlwind tour of America, visiting no less than 23 States. This adventure started in the Wild West of Arizona-in fact, the Anoziran setting of our first title, "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine".

Little did we know when commencing this journey, our adventure would include a jaunt up the Rocky Balboa stairs in Philly and a tour (which we had no tickets for) of Independence Hall; a romp through the fields behind Abe Lincoln's childhood home in the backwoods of Kentucky, as well as a visit to an authentic Kentucky Fried Chicken; a stopover at the White House on 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.; an outing to Bill Clinton's home in Hope, Arkansas; a visit to the Jack Daniel's distillery in the boondocks of Tennessee to obtain an inventory item requested from a friend; a perusal of the lighthouses of Maine, which ended in a very Carmen Sandiego-esque search for toothpicks; indulgence in a Spaghettio dinner at the creepiest Walmart (ever) in Rhode Island; a tour of the Big Apple (in which we got lost, much like Kevin McCallister from "Home Alone: Lost in New York") and more.



     

But of course, the highlight of our trip was visiting one Josh Mandel, legendary Sierra designer who has worked on such games as "Freddy Pharkus Frontier Pharmacist", "King's Quest", "Leisure Suit Larry", "Space Quest"...(you get the idea-a game developing God)... at his home in upstate New York.

We were on several days without sleep, as we had a LOT of ground to cover in far too few days, and wondered if it would be wise to visit a design legend in such a weary state. But it HAD to be done. Phone contact was made, and King Graham of "King's Quest" fame answered. I pondered how I could be so obtuse as to ask, "is this Josh?"-of course it was him! After all, how often does King Graham answer the phone?



Merely minutes later, we were making in-person greetings and entering the home of the hospitable Josh and his wife, Laura. What a joy it was! Josh was an eloquent speaker, and told us tales of the glory days working at Sierra, and provided updates on the lives of all of our favorite game developers of yesteryear. We sipped piping hot black tea as we listened with great enchantment. At one point, we were even offered the opportunity to extensively examine the annals of authentic Sierra art and design work! We sifted through dozens of detailed pieces of artwork, from character portraits to backgrounds, from the "Freddy Pharkus" game. It was quite spellbinding observing the sheer perfection and amount of detail in each piece.


   

In addition to being a talented game developer, Josh is also a gifted chef, and we had the opportunity to sample such delicacies as homemade blueberry muffins and ice cream. Josh's adoreable daughter was quite scared of the guests (us), but warmed up quickly, declaring her love for the "man with the funny accent" (Chris).

As the night wore on, we realized we'd need to find accommodation soon. Yet literally unable to drive to a hotel due to exhaustion caused by a lack of sleep and overabundance of adventure (as well as a busted headlight and our fear of Motel 6's after being accosted by an unusual and forceful character, smelling strongly of booze, by the name of Oliver C. Byrd, who claimed himself to be a Secret Agent and "a little too black, a little too white, a little too white collar, a little too blue collar, with no membership", days before in Philadelphia), we requested we be able to sleep in our vehicle parked in the driveway. Josh and Laura would have no such thing-like accommodating Kattas from the Katta Tail Inn, we were subsequently invited to sleep in their very home, upon the most comfortable mattress and couch Chris and I have ever had the joy of experiencing (although after sleeping in a car for most of the week, or not sleeping at all, just about anything would feel overwhelmingly comfortable!).

We were very careful to return all artwork before retiring for the night, lest a piece go missing, and Josh think we took it as a souvenir and never be invited back again.

The following morning, we awoke well rested, and realized we perhaps had JUST enough time to drive straight to Arizona and arrive at the airport to get Chris on a 20 hour flight back home. And drive we did! We accidentally ended up in line to enter Canada at one point, and made a stop over at Niagra Falls. From there, it was a race across Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. The states became larger and larger the farther west we went, and it seemed we would NEVER make it in time! Friends and family chomped at their fingernails in anxious anticipation, as if watching an episode of "The Amazing Race", wondering if we'd ever make it in time. But true to form, we met our goal and arrived at the airport-straight from Albany to Phoenix--exactly one hour before Chris' domestic departure to California, and ultimately a flight back to Victoria, Australia.

 

Previous game development promises met; several inspiring real life adventures under our belt; a visit with a renowned Sierra designer; we are now excited to embark on our next great journey-the development of our most exciting project to date. We will keep you updated every step of the way. Join us! Return often. Be part of our next great adventure.
#41
Hello, everyone! We've set up a PayPal "donate" button for Himalaya Studios, so that anyone who wishes to make a financial contribution (of any amount) to help offset our commercial development costs (as well as potential licensing fees) is able to do so.

A few caveats:

1) We'll be unable to return or refund any donated money to donors, regardless of whether a game project in development is released, canceled, or remains indefinitely unfinished. This is also the case if the company is dissolved or otherwise ceases to exist in the future, for some reason. If you're uncomfortable with this prospect, but still wish to help us financially, please purchase a copy of Al Emmo, Postcards from Anozira, or another games on the Himalaya Studios site instead, so that you'll be getting something tangible for your contribution.

2) Donations are considered an act of good will. They're not treated the same way as a purchase. Please understand that donating money to us won't entitle the donor to receive a copy of any commercial Himalaya Studios game (or anything else tangible).

3) All donation funds will be put towards Himalaya Studios' company maintenance and commercial game development costs. We also promise not to spend the cash on a new yacht.

4) Donors won't be treated like company shareholders. Donating won't allow contributors any leverage over how a particular game is designed or how the company is run.

Having said that, any donations received will be gladly welcomed and put to very good use. They'll allow us better negotiating abilities; will offer us the chance to hire more workers; and ultimately will allow us to finish developing games faster. So, without further ado...



Thank you for any amount of support!
#42
Hello, everyone!

This forum is where discussion of our newly announced game, "Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements" will take place.

First, a bit of information about the upcoming title. Based on the poll we conducted in the General Forum some years ago, as well as general fan feedback, we're taking this game in much more of a classic Sierra-style direction, but with higher resolution backgrounds and detailed pixel-art characters. Mage's Initiation will maintain the same charm that made the classic Sierra adventure games memorable, but without all the frustrating parts, such as dead-ends and over-reliance on trial and error, eliminated.

It's going to be a Point & Click adventure game which includes Role-Playing and character-building elements. It will be very similar in style to Sierra's Quest for Glory series with a series of unique spells for each character class, and a complete battle system. The background artwork of locations you can travel to are very reminiscent of King's Quest games of the 90's, as well..

D'Arc is sixteen years old. He has trained extensively in the elemental arts for the past decade of his young life, under the discerning eyes of the Mage Masters of Iginor. Confined to an existence of academics and magical mastery in their towering hall, the inquisitive initiate often wonders what it would be like to set foot outside in the world that he has been secluded from; a world that his Masters deeply shun.

As with all young Mages in training, D'Arc's moment of initiation arrives and he is summoned to the Hallowed Hall, where the four Mage Masters put him to the test. D'Arc is tasked with completing three quests which will test his magical and mental strength to full capacity.  He must return to the Mage's Hall bearing a symbol of proof that he has conquered each task:  a lock of hair from banished priestess, the unspoiled shell of griffon's egg, and the horn of a trihorn.

Join D'Arc on a perilous journey across the medieval land of Igninor. Brave the perilous forest where redcap goblins stalk. Trek across a barren and lawless desert wastelands. Navigate over vast bodies of water where evil masquerades as beauty. And ascend beyond the lofty mountain peaks where the hostile race of Flyterians dwell.  It is time for D'arc to prove himself. Succeed and he shall be initiated as a fully-fledged Mage, gaining the respect of his Masters and peers. Fail and nobody shall remember his name. Do you have what it takes to become a Mage?

The game allows you to play as one of four Mage character classes, based on the elements (Water, Air, Fire, and Earth). Each Mage class has a range of different spells at his disposal and a unique personality to aid in negotiating puzzles and overcoming adversities. However, rather than selecting a class at the beginning of the game, your element will choose you, in-game, depending on your decisions and behaviour.

Mages Initiation: Reign of the Elements will be a full-length title with a beginning, a middle, and an end. We are also reintroducing death scenes (something largely omitted in Al Emmo) and we have some gruesome and creative ones!

We are currently anticipating that the game will be released in late 2012.

As a special offer, we are reserving pre-orders for Limited Edition copies of "Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements". The Limited Edition is an exclusive collector's item that contains high-quality packaging, an artistically designed game disc, a printed map of the land of Iginor, an archaic spell book page, 3 character trading cards, a Mage's Initiation poster, and a bonus FREE KQ3 Redux poster!

The Limited Edition packaging and bonuses will no longer be available after the promotional period ends. Absolutely no advance payment is required to reserve a pre-order of Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements. Notification to make payment will be announced only when the game is nearing its release date.

Please note that pricing is To Be Announced. (We request that only customers who genuinely intend to pre-order the Limited Edition put their name on this list. For general information on the game, please join the Himalaya Newsletter instead).

To learn more about "Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements" and this special announcement offer, visit The Mages Promo page.
#43
We've released a new game based on Al Emmo and set in the land of Anozira. It's called "Postcards from Anozira".









The game is a "straight" Hidden Object Game (meaning, it's not an Interactive HOG with adventure-game elements), which we started developing mainly as an experiment to see how efficiently the Adventure Game Studio engine could handle this type of game. (As far as I'm aware, this is the very first HOG ever developed in AGS?)

The game costs $9.99 USD. It's exclusive to Big Fish Games. Be sure to check it out!

You can read more detail and view some screenshots at the links below:

1 Hour Free Trial (98 MB)


Al Emmo's Postcards from Anozira Information

Try It & Buy Game links
#44
Hey, all,

I'm curious about the general consensus on what type/style/genre of game, fans would like to see next from Himalaya Studios.

Feedback on the game resolution and interface etc. would also be appreciated.  Do YOU prefer games rich in dialogue with narrator speech that include descriptions for everything? Or do you prefer the more simplified interfaces of newer adventure games like Syberia?  Please do let us know!