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Messages - GameDevChris

#141
Just to clarify a few things:

-The splash screen at the beginning of the demo does mention that you can use the WASD and arrow keys for movement, as well as toggle left and right clicking.

-Raising your stats in the demo doesn't actually have any affect on your spells. However, in the final game, your spells will aim more accurately if you have a higher Intelligence stat, as DrJones mentioned.

-In the demo, the 4th wave goblin pack pretty much swarm you all at the same time. But there are actual formations the enemies can use (which are already programmed) where some of them will evade you or wait on the sidelines while only one or two attack. Perhaps a difficulty slider could simply alter the number of simultaneous attackers? That is, if the "difficulty" slider bar is on the easiest setting, there will only ever be one main attacker. But if it's on the hardest setting then it will be an all-out, white-knuckled brouhaha where it's every opponent for himself. That means that the kind of combat seen in the demo would represent the absolute hardest setting in the game.

-We're gathering all crash reports and working on them. If you run across any more, keep them coming!
#142
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: Mage's Initiation Demo
March 17, 2013, 05:47:30 AM
Thanks for the comments and feedback. Glad you enjoyed the retro-ness!

Sliders: Yup, we're aware of this. There was actually a bug we found in the music/sound system at the last moment and we couldn't track it down. So we just locked the audio sliders instead. Will definitely be fixed for the final game.

Attribute mouse-overs: Yes, this will also be in the final game. We ran out of time to add it in the demo, but a description of each stat will appear in the box at the bottom of the screen when the mouse is hovered over the stats.

We'll also be tweaking the combat system based on the feedback we've received thus far. Stay tuned and thanks for playing!

#143
Thanks for the bug report!

With the combat, there are certain strategies to learn with the monsters and spells. It's entirely possible to finish the battle without wasting much mana and without having to evade the enemies for too long. It just requires a bit of experimentation with the spells to see how they work and which ones are more powerful. Also, enemies will sometimes drop healing and mana potions which you can use to restore your energy. You can bring up the inventory menu and drink the potions from there by clicking the hand icon on them, which pauses the battle.

Additionally, with the demo, there are some limitations that won't be in the final game, such as being confined to one forest screen. In the final game, you'll be able to run away from enemies if you're losing, or lure them into an adjacent screen where you have more room to fight.

Thanks for the feedback, too. It's awesome to hear you liked the demo and cheers in advance for your forthcoming Kickstarter pledge! ;)
#144
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: Thoughts on the demo
March 15, 2013, 03:05:31 PM
Hey, thanks for the feedback!

Yeah, the stats will all have mouse-over text in the final game. It will appear in that box down the bottom of the spellbook GUI. Actually, it was going to be programmed in for the demo but we ran out of time. No worries, it'll be in the final game, though! ;)

As for the stat buttons, in the final game, you won't get that many points to assign at once. Perhaps only 1 or 2 every time you level up. We wanted to emphasize the point that players should think carefully about where to place them. But even if you mess up and place one in the wrong area, it's not the end of the world as your 4 stats will max out at a certain value. After that point, you'll have no other option but to add them to the stats that are lower. And with the addition of being able to equip gems to boost stats that you're lacking in, it all kind of evens out.
#145
Ha! Sadly no.

But I was reading that very thread just the other day myself, and it gave me a good chuckle. ;)
#146
Thanks for the crash report. Will look into that.

Just a note about the Fire Bomb, you need to aim it precisely. It requires a bit of "lead time" so that the goblins will walk into it as it explodes. Also, you currently need to cast it so that explodes just beneath where their feet are. All of this is adjustable, however, and it might make sense to make the blast radius a bit more sensitive. :)
#147
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:

#148
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!
#149
News / Re: Mage's Initiation Kickstarter is Live!
March 05, 2013, 05:25:38 AM
Hey, thanks for spreading the word! And yeah, Corey's cool!  8)
#150
Thanks, Balinaeri! And we're equally as excited to get it to you. :D
#151
Thanks  guys! We're going to try and raise as much possible through the kickstarter  so that we can include all the  things both fans and ourselves want to see in the game.

There still the better part of a month on our side and we're already off to a promising start, but of course, we can always  use more exposure, so please feel free to spread the word about the game and the kickstarter.  The game is going to be awesome and with a large enough funding  margin above our 65k  minimum,  it's going to make it easier and faster to do all the things we hope to do!

Thanks again for the words of support!
#152
Hey RogerXY,

Glad to see it went without any hitches! Sure, we have a few avatars, logos and pieces of artwork here that you can use:

http://www.himalayastudios.com/Avatars/

Hope it helps!
#153
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




#154
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: Himalaya Kickstarter?
February 02, 2013, 02:39:50 PM
Thanks for the reminder! We're gonna look into this and possibly make a mobile exclusive version of the Mages Initiation site which will bypass the errors associated with loading the current site on a smartphone.
#155
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.
#156
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: Game failing to start
January 04, 2013, 07:46:43 PM
Excellent!  Thanks for letting me know. :D
#157
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: Game failing to start
January 03, 2013, 06:32:42 PM
That sounds really strange. At a guess, it sounds like the DRM software is interfering with the game's start-up process. Though, we've never had any reports of this before. Please check your e-mail. I have sent you a possible solution.
#158
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: Game failing to start
January 01, 2013, 08:37:22 PM
By default, the game uses a "2x Nearest Neighbor" graphics filter to run in higher detail. Most video cards support the resolution (1280x960 or 1280x920), but some do not.  Many new video cards have drivers/software that allows you to add a custom resolution if a specific one doesn't already exist. I'm not sure what make and model your video card is, but I know that 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.  If so, then try creating a custom resolution and then running the game again to see if it fixes the problem and lets the game start up 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. To do this, go to the game directory (usually C:/Program Files/Himalaya Studios/Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine) and run winsetup.exe. Change the 'graphics filter' option to "none" and make sure "use alternate letterbox mode" is checked. Then click Save and close. Run the game again and it should work this time. (And if you get an error message about unsupported resolution, run winsetup.exe again and uncheck "use alternate letterbox mode".)

If that still doesn't work,  try changing between the Direct3D and DirectDraw 5 drivers in winsetup.exe.

Let me know how that goes.
#159
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: Any Updates?
December 02, 2012, 07:02:37 AM
Hero-U looks like it'll be a great game, and probably a bit heavier on RPG elements than Mage's Initiation.

Mages will be more like QFG-lite where mainly the magical combat side of the game is stats-based (think Diablo) but the actual story, plot, quests etc. are all traditional Point & Click adventure fare.
#160
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.
#161
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.
#162
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
#163
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: Any Updates?
October 31, 2012, 05:27:40 AM
The game is pretty deep into development, but there's still a fair bit of work left to do. 90% of the backgrounds have been completed and now we're focused on tying up the loose ends with the remaining character sprites and animations. We had to spend a long while determining exactly how the character stats system and combat balance would work. How those things would tie-in with the adventure game puzzles, as we didn't want to make it seem like a direct clone of the Quest for Glory system. I think we've devised something that's kind of unique now.

We're hoping to release Mage's Initiation at some point in 2013, and are currently weighing the decision on whether to launch a Kickstarter campaign to help complete the game faster and add some additional quests that were scrapped due to budget constraints.
#164
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: iPhone/iPad?
October 31, 2012, 05:21:42 AM
There's a port of AGS in the works for iPad/iPhone. I don't actually own any hardware starting with a lower-case 'i' though, so I haven't been able to test Mage's out on it yet. It's working great on Android devices, though!

We do intend to release the game on both Android and iPhone/iPad and we're taking certain design aspects into consideration right now to accommodate the touch-screen interface.  Much will depend on the progress of AGS and when the ports being worked on are finalized, however.
#165
For anybody who reads this thread, Al Emmo has since been submitted to Steam Greenlight. Please upvote it "yes" if you'd like to see the game come to the Steam platform!

More information is available in this forum thread

Or you can visit the Al Emmo page directly on Steam Greenlight at the following link:

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=94874423
#166
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.
#167
You need to try and distract the skeleton before you can reach the lever safely. If you can get him a bit closer to Antonio, that would buy you some time...
#168
News / Re: Al Emmo v3.0 Released
July 16, 2012, 12:30:04 PM
Could you post your questions about this issue in the following thread only? It'll be easier to keep track of things. Thanks.

http://www.himalayastudios.com/forum/index.php?topic=526.0
#169
Could you post your questions about this issue in the following thread only? It'll be easier to keep track of things. Thanks.

http://www.himalayastudios.com/forum/index.php?topic=526.0
#170
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: illegal exception
July 16, 2012, 12:27:57 PM
I can't find any record of you having purchased the game via the Himalaya Studios store when searching the records by name or e-mail address.

Additionally, version 2.0 has not been available directly from the Himalaya Studios store since early 2009. Are you sure you didn't purchase it elsewhere?  It is possible that some third party sites are still selling digital download versions of version 2.0.

Can you please privately forward the sales receipt email you received to support@himalayastudios.com ?

Cheers.
#171
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: illegal exception
July 16, 2012, 06:24:28 AM
To get version 3.0, just go to the Al Emmo page on the Himalaya Studios site here:

http://www.himalayastudios.com/alemmo.html

Uninstall your old 2.0 version of the game and then install the new trial version by clicking on the "Download Demo" button on the above page. Install it and then run the game.

On the Splash screen that appears, click the "Enter Key" button and then copy and paste the key that you were e-mailed when you bought the game from the Himalaya Store.

If you don't have that, please e-mail your full name and the same e-mail address you purchased the game with to replacements@himalayastudios.com with the subject line "Al Emmo v3.0 Upgrade".

Thanks!
#172
Technical & Bugs forum / Re: illegal exception
July 15, 2012, 03:34:29 PM
What version of the game are you running and which site did you download it from? (assuming you didn't buy the CD).

You can find the game version by looking at the top of the readme.txt file or by loading the game and going to the "Settings" menu (drag the mouse to the top-left screen corner) and then clicking the "?" button.
#173
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: Beta Testing?
May 22, 2012, 08:42:22 AM
Hey Pat, we're not really anywhere close to beta testing the game yet. But when that time comes, we'll be putting out announcements via the usual places (i.e. Himalaya newsletter, Twitter, Facebook), so just be sure you're following us at all those places and you can't miss it!
#174
News / Re: New Mage's Initiation Site Goes Live
May 04, 2012, 07:34:31 AM
Check this thread here for more information about the removal of the posters:

http://www.himalayastudios.com/forum/index.php?topic=807.0
#175
Mage's Initiation Forum / Re: The preorder
April 23, 2012, 10:19:03 PM
We actually decided to remove them, as it's a legal grey area and we didn't want anything to adversely affect future dealings.

I believe Eriq may be planning to give them away as prizes or promo items alongside the "Art of Sierra" book at some point in the future, though.