RMVXA Crystal of Abyssal Dreams v.02 [In-development]

[Orihime00sama]

Game Synopsis: Allen Anderson has always lived a peaceful life in his town and despite being unchanging, he never felt unhappy about it. However, one day he goes to see his friend Mary and finds her in a weird room next to a weird machine that causes him to black out. As soon as he wakes up, the machine is long gone and so is the world he is used to. A man called Pierce steps in and takes them to a safe house, explaining them that a machine called Relic of Time, or ROT, brought them to another world. Dreamland, the land of dreams. With nothing but their dreams to protect themselves, Allen and Mary must find a way to go home.

“Would you prefer a perfect illusion or a flawed reality?”

Characters

Spoiler

Allen Anderson
*Age: 19
*Cheerful, friendly and forgetful.
*Relatives: Parents are travellers. Currently not home.
*Occupation: Full-timer at Sheldon's Wood.
*Has deep knowledge of wild life, especially plants.

Mary Smith
*Age: 19
*Stoic, honest and literal-minded.
*Relatives: Parents were scientists. Deceased.
*Job: Part-time waitress at Mandy’s Meals. Freelancer.
*Has knowledge in puppetry and doll-making.

Current Features:

Spoiler

- sideview, turn based battle system

- original character busts, portraits and cutscenes

- world map

- time and weather cycles

- side quests

- there are inns (restore HP and MP), clinics (restore HP, MP and remove all status effects expect K.O) and churches (remove K.O status)

Version 0.2

Updates (06/05/17)

- Slight progress in the plot

- NPCs are now named (except for innkeepers and store sellers)

- Re-designed/improved the following maps:

· Transitory Town and every map within. Added two new buildings.

· Penait; added maps for three houses and a separate map for another region of Penait (although this one is still incomplete)

- Added reflections to every mirror surface

- Gave Mary one initial skill

- Added descriptions to objects

- Added a default theme for churches

- Added sunlight effects to some maps

Spoiler: Game Development

Art

• Cutscenes: 1%
• Character busts: 100% (may change)
• Battlers: 2%
• Maps: 10%

Events

• NPCs: 8%
• Object description: 10%
• Optional character events: 5%

Story

• Planning: 90%
• Main story available: 5%
• Side quests available: 1%
• *Multiple endings factors: 0%

System

• Time Cycle: 100%
• Weather Cycle: 70%
• Region Effects: 70%
• Sunlight Effects: 10%

*The final game will have two main endings, the True Ending and the Bad Ending. The factors that influence the endings are: ROT Corruption Percentage, character choices and some side quests.

The ROT Corruption Percentage is the most important factor and it is the one that ultimately decides whether the player will have the True or the Bad Ending regardless of the other factors. The Bad Ending will differ depending on how high this percentage is.

Character choices and side quests mostly affect how good the True Ending will be.

Certain character choices will affect future events and battles, including the recruitment of an optional party member.

Side quests will mostly expand character interaction and unlock some bonus bosses except for a single side quest that can improve the outcome of the True Ending.

Screenshots

Spoiler: Coloured version of World Map

Spoiler: Other version of world map

Spoiler

Download
http://www.mediafire.com/file/n1smi2i4yxg7mvv/Crystal_of_Dreams.exeThank you for your patience!

Credits
Included in the game.

 

[Pluto Pluto]

looks great! Nice dramatic opening, dialogue and mapping.

 

[Orihime00sama]

looks great! Nice dramatic opening, dialogue and mapping.

Thank you very much! I'm glad to please and I hope that as the game progresses, it will get better.

 

[Guiguimu]

As far I can tell, the story seems really interesting. There is some minor bugs or accidents, but that's okay, since it's with mistakes we learn. Don't be nervous about releasing this, everyone has to start somewhere and you can learn a lot from others.
Okay, for what I can tell, there is this little weird thing that happens every time we enter or leave a building in Transitory Town, the music restarts in a weird way and the lightning effect changes very quick. Making this smother would be nice.
Then when I go shopping in the weapon store, it opens the shop menu twice. Maybe you inserted two times the option to open the store?
The artwork is indeed original and creative.

Spoiler

I'm in the arena part right now, so I haven't done much yet. But it seems pretty cool so far!

I hope this helps you!

Edit: Ok...npc3 file is missing...

Spoiler

Just when I was starting the battle in the arena, the game crashed because there was missing files...

Other than that everything is great!

 

[Orihime00sama]

Edit: Ok...npc3 file is missing...

Spoiler

Just when I was starting the battle in the arena, the game crashed because there was missing files...

Really? I see. I'll fix this as soon as possible. Thanks for informing me.
I'm glad that it looks interesting. I hope it will continue that way.

Thank you very much for commenting!

 

[Gonor]

I agree with the others, the story is intriguing and has quite the potential
I've tried your game and must admit that there are a few things bugging me. Now, I know it is still in an early development stage but I believe it's best to get some criticism early on rather than at a point where it would be an immense effort to rework stuff.
I know, there's some things I criticise but I also try to give a hint or two.
Again, I like the concept of your game.
There are some bugs or things that need tweaking in it, which is fine as it is still in development and probably hasn't been thoroughly beta-tested.

1. Mapping / Visuals
I admit, I'm not the best mapper either but your maps feel empty somehow. They lack detail and atmosphere.
Maybe you could try to add some clutter here and there or try to do parallax mapping.
If that's not your thing, try editing the tilesets by putting some clutter together and then just map it in.
You know, what I mean? I know it sometimes isn't easy to make diverse maps with RTP assets. Still, it can be done.
And using the RTP is not as bad as some people might be trying to make you believe.
At some points the transitions from a darker to a lighter map were a bit bumpy. Try to use the fade out event command instead of the fading effect of the map transfer. You can adjust the map tint during the faded out part of the transition.

Back to using the RTP for your project. I like the style of your faces. But I don't think they go too well with the RTP. I don't have a real solution for this but generally it is best to stick to one style of graphics (although, as always, there are rare exceptions to this).

2. Progression
I didn't finish the game yet but it feels a bit "jumpy".
It jumps from one scene to another rather quickly and sometimes lacks context.

Spoiler

For Instance, you start out at your place and go look for Mary. Then, suddenly school's out and you've got to go to work.
And suddenly, they're done working.
I was repeatedly wondering, why am I going to work after school? Do I need money because my famiy is poor? Do I want to build a career at the company when I finish school? What am I doing at work? Do I enjoy it?
As a player I want to know why the character (or characters in this case) are doing the things they do.
If you were to elaborate on that I believe the player could bond with Allen more easily. Right now, he seems a bit flat. Which doesn't mean you should give away all information within the first few minutes after introducing a character.

3. Dialogue
This is similar to 2. Progression. In some dialogues you quickly jump to either conclusions or the character(s) just give away information.

Spoiler

Pierce, for example is (in my opinion) a bit to "generous" with information about Dreamland. Especially when he's saying that he rather would not talk about the situation but does it anyway.
Here, you could create a dialogue where Allen and Mary try to convince him to give up the information.

4. Characters
There's not much I know or learn about the characters. Which is fine IF they are mysterious or have an interesting personality. Unfortunately (except Mary who is described as someone with little to no social competence) they are not and don't have. Try to work them out more.

Spoiler

Pierce is a prime example. The moment he first appeared, I felt he was a mysterious figure out of nowhere.
But just a few moments later that mysterious flair was gone. Try to grab it and hold it for as long as you can. Interesting characters are a (if not THE) cornerstone of a good game.

I hope my comments help you in any way. I'm not saying your game is bad. I just wanted to give you some hints as to what you could improve. Again, I believe it does have quite some potential to become a good game.

Best,
Gonor

 

[Orihime00sama]

Thank you for commenting and writing such a detailed critique.

Spoiler

1. Mapping / Visuals
I admit, I'm not the best mapper either but your maps feel empty somehow. They lack detail and atmosphere.
Maybe you could try to add some clutter here and there or try to do parallax mapping.
If that's not your thing, try editing the tilesets by putting some clutter together and then just map it in.
You know, what I mean? I know it sometimes isn't easy to make diverse maps with RTP assets. Still, it can be done.
And using the RTP is not as bad as some people might be trying to make you believe.
At some points the transitions from a darker to a lighter map were a bit bumpy. Try to use the fade out event command instead of the fading effect of the map transfer. You can adjust the map tint during the faded out part of the transition.

Back to using the RTP for your project. I like the style of your faces. But I don't think they go too well with the RTP. I don't have a real solution for this but generally it is best to stick to one style of graphics (although, as always, there are rare exceptions to this).[/SPOLIER]

I see. I'll work on this.

3. Dialogue
This is similar to 2. Progression. In some dialogues you quickly jump to either conclusions or the character(s) just give away information.

Spoiler

Pierce, for example is (in my opinion) a bit to "generous" with information about Dreamland. Especially when he's saying that he rather would not talk about the situation but does it anyway.
Here, you could create a dialogue where Allen and Mary try to convince him to give up the information.

I really agree with you on this one. I've been stressing over this detail for a while. I don't want Pierce to info dump them but I also don't want him to omit important information that could cause unnecessary plot points because of lack of communication. I'll work on this too.

I hope my comments help you in any way. I'm not saying your game is bad. I just wanted to give you some hints as to what you could improve. Again, I believe it does have quite some potential to become a good game.

Don't worry. Your comments are greatly appreciated.
Thank you for taking the time to write all this!
I hope I can live up to your expectations.

 

[Abdulla Al-Farsi]

It sounds interesting. I think you need to improve your mapping skills. I suggest to you to make small rooms. Then, you can fill it with the objects so easily.

Here some examples:-

http://i29.tinypic.com/yzebd.jpg

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/HeMNalInTls/hqdefault.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/jcclHw2.png



Look how the maps are made and try to make something similar.

Good luck...

 

[Orihime00sama]

It sounds interesting. I think you need to improve your mapping skills. I suggest to you to make small rooms. Then, you can fill it with the objects so easily.

Here some examples:-

http://i29.tinypic.com/yzebd.jpg

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/HeMNalInTls/hqdefault.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/jcclHw2.png



Look how the maps are made and try to make something similar.

Good luck...

Thank you!
I'm currently going over the maps.

 

[Gonor]

Don't worry. Your comments are greatly appreciated.
Thank you for taking the time to write all this!
I hope I can live up to your expectations.

I'm glad to help.
But you don't have to live up to my expectations. It's your expectations your game should live up to.
I've been using RPG Maker for quite a while now and have finished a few projects.
Still, I've only released one. Not, because people were not satisfied with them but because I wasn't.
Maybe they would've liked playing them but I always felt like something was missing or overdone.

So, don't try to please everyone else, although this is important too, of course because noone will play it if they don't like it.
Try to make the game you are comfortable with. It doesn't have to be perfect but if there are things bugging you about it, then wait and try to find these things. If you can "fix" them, great! If you can't, put the game aside. Then, after a while, get back to it and try to fix the things again.
If you still can't you learned something about game making and can move on.

That's my approach at least.
(Of course it is best if you find your own way of dealing with these things. )

 

[Orihime00sama]

That's my approach at least.
(Of course it is best if you find your own way of dealing with these things. )

I understand. That had been bugging me for long time.
Thank you for the advice!

 

[Orihime00sama]

Hello guys. The game.exe file was flagged as a virus by Google Drive for some reason. You can use a game.exe from any other RPGM game while I fix this problem.
I apologize for this problem.

 

[Orihime00sama]

I changed the download host to MediaFire.
The download is now running well.

 

[Orihime00sama]

Someone commented that it would be better if Allen and Mary could use skills from the beginning of the game.
I personally think that since they never fought before, they would only learn their first skills as they leveled up.
So, I've made a pool to see what everyone else thinks.

You can also see it here:
https://goo.gl/tkvWco

 

[An Additional Pylon]

Well, for a "world of dreams" these locations sure don't look a whole lot like something you'd expect to see in a dream world.

Judging by the description you've provided, the premise sounds quite interesting, though. At least it's not the same usual BS about a guy avenging his parents or whatever. I'd imagine it would be awesome if Mary was already an inhabitant of this dream world Allen gets placed in, trying to get out of it, instead of them both being sucked inside it at the same time, but that's just my idea.

 

[Orihime00sama]

Well, for a "world of dreams" these locations sure don't look a whole lot like something you'd expect to see in a dream world.

Thank you for the comment!

Don't worry, the lack of 'dreamlike' locations is an actual plot point

 

[Vox Novus]

Someone commented that it would be better if Allen and Mary could use skills from the beginning of the game.
I personally think that since they never fought before, they would only learn their first skills as they leveled up.
So, I've made a pool to see what everyone else thinks.

Completely agree with these other people, absolutely no skills in the beginning of the game is just not fun. Try and incorporate a couple skills in the beginning. Something simple goes along way, some buffing moves or an inexpensive healing move. Perhaps a basic attack skill that provides some benefit like guarding for allies or gets a first strike on an enemy (so they can deliver a quick killing blow to finish off the foe).

One thing I wanted to say and this aspect may be more personal preference than anything but I think the title is a little wordy. Just Dreamland Battles or Crystal of Dreams seems just as sufficient in getting the point across of what you want to say.

 

[Guiguimu]

In my honest opinion, they should not have skills from start. They came from "The Real World", and only started now to learn how to fight. Having skills from start would steal away that idea a little. If they are just learning how to use a sword or a puppet now, how can they already know how to use abilities like buffs or heals? A little idea I just had XD maybe if the player had read a certain book in the real world (it could talk about the power of the brain or the healing of the body, something human), that would give an ability to the player to use when he got to the dream world. This way, the player would have abilities from start, but well earned, since they had to learn about it if they want that unconscious knowledge stuck in the character head.
Again, only my opinion XD

 

[Vox Novus]

@Guiguimu But a skill can be anything. It doesn't have to be a crazy sword technique. It can be anything from cheering on your buddy to boost his attack, guarding for a friend or applying simple first aid with bandages. There's really no reason not to have skills when you apply concepts like that.

 

[Guiguimu]

If this was the typical rpg where the character lives in a magical world, having skills from start would not be a problem, since they had already lived in that magic world since ever.
It can be done, if well done and that is why I suggested the books. What you learn when you are awake has impact on your dreams. If the player looks for the books and learns about the natural healing power of our body, he could learn an healing skill. Or, keeping the healing theme, if he read a book about first aid he would learn that skill with bandages you suggested. If he reads that the brain is a powerful tool and can helps us get stronger(for example) he would learn a buff. If the player did not look for those books, the character would have no knowledge, thus not having any skill. This way would satisfy my opinion and yours XD
Again, this is only my opinion. I respect yours. I mean, if we all would think the same way, the world would be boring.