Epoch de Valeria: Transcendent Wings! [Version 1.3i] [Soundtrack Demo Available!]

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Indev Version Update 1.0.3

Looks like it has been an entire month since my last update... dang. Well, progress is going swimmingly as usual anyway. I have implemented the new menu style, which can be viewed in the spoiler below. I personally think it looks a lot cleaner and less bulky than the old one. I'll end up changing the icons eventually, but since it's late and I'm lazy, it's going to get done tomorrow.

Spoiler

I have also finished creating the crafting system, which currently allows for the creation and refinement of all non-unique weaponry up to tier 10, and all non-unique armors up to tier 5, providing you have the materials. There are currently over 70 different weapons and armors to date that can be crafted and refined, with an ever-expanding list. You can also craft a number of different rings, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings as well as outfit them with many different gems that house different abilities. Additionally, if you have both a piece of equipment that has been refined to its maximum level and a magic medallion, you can further increase its abilities by taking it to the enchantment tome and choosing from a selection of different enchantments that are unique for each piece of equipment, such as bound skills, elemental proficiencies and resistances, specific stat boosts, and more, allowing for different variations of the same weapon or armor piece. However, accessories operate a little differently and can be enchanted without refining them first. I think this system will really add to the overall equipment customization available in the game, since you can gear up the same equipment for use with many different strategies.

Spoiler

Other than that, I've been busy writing quests with what free time I have had lately. Also, I'm starting conceptualization of some kind of monster ranch where you can store caught monsters, take them with you, teach them skills, and level them up like any other character. Should be neat to see the first usable pet in action. I'm personally looking forward to working on this system in the near future.

That's all for now, but as always, stay tuned for more updates and I'll be seeing you guys around!

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Just a brief update... I've uploaded the first five songs featured on the game's official "Magic of Sound" OST for your listening pleasure, which you can have a listen to below!

Track 1 - Winter at the Castle

Track 2 - Can You Hear Their Voices

Track 3 - Three Moons

Track 4 - Watercolor Woods

Track 5 - Morph Mansion

Also, I finished that bit of concept art mentioned in my update log... because it's fun to pretend.

Anyway, I'll be taking a break for a few days and getting back to project development sometime next week. Hopefully, that graphical artist I have on commission will respond earlier than later... in any case, see you all again sometime in the near future.

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Hey, guys. I'm back with another update, though it's more of a news post rather than an update. I just want to let you guys know that I am still working on the RPG, though with all the social events and Christmas-y stuff that has gone on, I haven't had much time to actually work on the game as of late. In fact, I haven't even had much time to sleep since I've flown cross-country to visit some relatives and we've been having a blast 18/7, lol.


Anyway, even without any physical work, I have been doing a lot of thinking about my future and what I wish to do for a living, and have settled on game development as one of the more choice options available to me. I will be flying back home tonight to work on some organization and planning for the future of this project. Currently, my efforts are going towards assembling an official development team and making some sort of small company out of it since I recently came in to some money that will actually allow me to do that, and I've always wanted to start a gaming company since games have been with me for all but the first two years of my life, and I feel that I have considerable experience in this field because of that. Eventually, once I really get things rolling and the game is finished, I may or may not take the game out of RPG Maker VX and re-make it with tools that, to some, might ring as more flexible, mainstream, and less "indie". I have pondered, studied, analyzed, and researched what people want in games, what they actually enjoy in them, why certain people play certain games, as well as other things that will help make this game the best it can be within its genre. I am confident that this information will help me succeed in my endeavors as long as I keep doing my best, in turn, and continue to do so.


Now, the topic brings us to something else I would like to discuss. Right now, this project is extremely bare-bones in my eyes and has a lot of placeholder content that has yet to be replaced(though I have edited those things quite heavily). Because of this, there is still a lot of work to be done, since eventually, absolutely everything will be custom-made by either myself or someone I've hired. I plan on creating a finished product that will really wow its players, and I've put too much time and effort in to this project to half-ass it now. I can do it on my own, but in all honesty, for what I have imagined, it's going to take WAY too long to finish the game by myself. The v1.0 demo is planned to be released for February, and there is still a lot to be done even after a couple years of working tirelessly(seriously, I've done weeks at a time of waking up, immediately turning on my computer and droning away on it the entire day and half the night until I pass out from exhaustion) on it. I love making this game, but because of this crazy workload, I have decided that I need any assistance I can get for this project, and am asking any and all community members here to pass the word on to anyone you may know that would be interested in helping to develop this game in to something grand. This offer extends to yourself as well.


Seriously, if you are interested in being part of the official development team or you know someone who is interested, don't hesitate to send me a message! I won't bite!


Currently, I need the following on my team. If you are any of these, please contact me and we will work out some arrangements. I will do my best to be fair and compensate you with what funds I have available at the moment. I don't have loads of cash, but I'm not strapped for it either. We will work out specific arrangements when you contact me. You may do so by either sending me a private message here, an e-mail at "professor_insano@hotmail.com", or by replying to this thread.


______


Now Hiring


An imaginative, skilled orchestral composer capable of visualizing their music. Experience with FL Studio and Reason is a plus.


Creative mappers that are capable of replicating map "blueprints". Having good, third-person spatial recognition coupled with a very visual imagination and an aptitude for hiding things is a definite plus. Architectural sense is also a plus.


Coders that have good knowledge of Ruby programming language and can create their own scripts. Knowledge of other programming languages like C++, Java, and Python is a plus.


Tileset artists that can make scenery tiles of all kinds. A sense for color balancing and knowing what looks good with certain tiles and particular atmospheres is a plus.


______


Anyway, that's all for now. My plane leaves in a couple hours, so I have to go and get ready. I will post an appropriate topic in the recruitment section as well, once I get back home. Thanks for your consideration, support, and hopefully I'll hear back from you guys!

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Another brief update... we now have a Facebook page! Be sure to check it out and like it if you support the game. I will be posting regular updates there, especially from now until March.

Vaelli Studios Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/VaelliStudios

The team will be working on a nice, new, 1080p HD game trailer soon. I have already managed to get a voice actor for Zahe Kuroi, and will continue to look for others to join our little crew as time passes. I will be setting up an office space as well, for developers who are local to this spot. We are located in Vancouver, BC. The offer above this post is still open, if anybody would like to join up. Also, feedback is still very much encouraged here. I have also found a web developer, and have started conceptualization of an official site for Vaelli Studios. I will be working things over with him tomorrow night, so it shouldn't take any longer than a week to brainstorm, fully conceptualize a site, and get some draft work done. Stay tuned... things are getting exciting! Expect some contests and rewards in the near future as well.

For the record... I really, honestly, do want the community here involved in this project because the community makes the game what it is in the end. I can't do it if I'm the only one replying to my own thread. Compliments are nice, but I really need to know who is interested in this project and what they would like to see in an open world, SNES-style role-playing game. I can't make it great without your input, so please, toss some text my way, okay? Once I have some data, I have a higher chance of making this project a success and can offer more content to you, faster, and with more efficiency. Even if you don't really have anything to say, if you think the game -at least looks- interesting enough to play, or if you see potential in it, a simple topic subscribe or a reply that says "I am interested." would at least tell me there is enough of an audience for this game to make it worth the effort. I, as well as the entire team at Vaelli Studios, would greatly appreciate this gesture of support. We thank you in advance for any feedback you may give us, and take it very seriously when working on developing this project.

On that note, I'll ask... what kind of contests would you, personally, be interested in? What sort of rewards would you like to see for those contests? What would motivate you to take an active part in a gaming community? Be sure to let me know so I can start planning for these things, get them out there, and make the wait more interesting and entertaining for you guys.

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

All right! We have some concept wallpapers with the game's main character, Zahe Kuroi, available for your viewing and using pleasure, courtesy of one of our digital artists, Eric Garcia. We hope you enjoy them!

Spoiler

Wallpapers have been removed.

We will have our own company office space by February, which will be nice. When we get the workstations all set up, development will happen faster, and our team can work locally, with greater ease. I am still looking for people to fill positions within the company. Please head over to the Project Recruitment forum and see the listings there for Vaelli Studios, if you are interested in becoming a part of our team.

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Uploaded a demo version of Epoch de Valeria: Transcendent Wings! Let me know how you like it!

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

First update in a while... I'm still tinkering away at the game bit by bit. I took a long break for a while but now I am somewhat back. The demo has been removed, as, admittedly, it was never really a demo but rather more an alpha for what I had so far. In the unreleased version I have now, there is about 1-2 hours of gameplay already depending on how much you explore the maps, bother to find chests, discover optional events, secrets, etc., as well as afterdemo content like a couple boss fights and a few new areas to explore. Most of the game-breaking and other annoying bugs have been fixed as well, so the game moves along a lot smoother now and you don't have to worry too much about getting caught off-guard by stray code and other unsavories.

Still balancing levels, class points, GP, items, enemies and their drops. Seems like quite a sensitive process with this engine. Also trying to fix a critical hit bug where a character's attack or skill will perform a critical hit, dealing double damage, but there's no indication that you have scored one. Shop script also needs updating, as some text is out of order. All in all, things are progressing slowly and I should have a debugged demo/alpha/indev version of the game back up for download soon.

Until then, here's a screenshot of one of the new areas that will be available in the game for afterdemo gameplay - Gem Fields! Lots of rare and valuable goodies can be found here. Check it out once it's released!

 

 

[taistelusopuli]

I've checked out the thread a couple of times. Things look pretty good! I must commend you for sticking to the long game and not giving up the production even when there has not been any reaction from the community! It seems you have a pretty clear vision of what you are making. You have the story all finished already?

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

I've checked out the thread a couple of times. Things look pretty good! I must commend you for sticking to the long game and not giving up the production even when there has not been any reaction from the community! It seems you have a pretty clear vision of what you are making. You have the story all finished already?

The story is always in development. Eventually, I want the game to be updateable on the same save so that new content can be released and coincide with the same file, changing the towns and content with each passing year, adding to an ever-changing timeline. I feel that this will provide more immersion to the story and will make you feel as if the time passing in Valerion is the time passing in real life, with the exception of certain technological elements and things inherent to the story. But, for the meanwhile, the main things I have been working on are gameplay and graphics. I like to think I'm pretty good at storytelling, so I have been putting off the main story past the demo until I can come up with new things to entertain and catch the player's interest while they are inbetween bits of the tale. Be confident, though, that I have many, many good ideas that I would like to add to the story and general game. Stay tuned for the next update!

Wow ! very nice ! Cute charas and nice places. Even if sometime the fog is too strong..

I'll keep the fog in mind while continuing development on the Misty Marshes. Thanks for letting me know.

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Here with another update. I have vastly rebalanced and debugged the game from the last downloadable version. I've added the Gem Fields and more content to the Misty Marshes for afterdemo content. Trade or keep some treasure you find in the Marsh for some valuable equipment, or collect ores for blacksmithing over at the Gem Fields and fight through two bosses for their priceless, renewable stashes. The choice is yours.

Here is the updated version of the game. Please let me know if you find any bugs.

http://www.mediafire.com/download/jx1a0fq1r6qvd3f/EDV_v1.3.6_Demo.rar

Right now, I'm working on adding in more overworld areas and I might begin working on the armor workshop once I can remember how the refining system works. I'll also spend some time beefing up the game's enemy AI and begin to work on the next chapter of the game. Expect to see more customization, too, in the future. I haven't added changeable classes yet in the game because I felt it would interrupt the flow of the game for the first couple bosses, but as soon as it will not unbalance the gameplay, I will add them in. Technically, they are already in the game. They're just not "plugged in" yet, like a lot of stuff. Don't worry, though. Leveling one class is work enough, but provides enough bonus to start dishing out some power at lower levels. Anyway, all I can say is that for battles and extra ways you can influence battle, don't be afraid to stock up on potions and battle items at the shops or inn before heading out somewhere dangerous. Most monsters in the demo are pretty easy, but sometimes one of them can catch you off-guard.

There's about 2-3 hours of gameplay in the demo. Some light grinding, if you want to make the harder boss stash easier to re-collect so you can upgrade, buy and smith new equipment with the gold you obtain. Try it out. I'm sure you'll like it.

Some known bugs that are still persisting in this updated version are listed here:

Spoiler

1. Shop text isn't displaying correctly and sometimes it disables selection for weapons and armor you are trying to sell. This can be fixed sometimes by reloading the shop screen.

2. Critical hits aren't displaying correctly when one is scored. Sometimes it displays, but other times it does not. This can make for some seemingly random damage.

3. Battle aftermath drop screen isn't working right for some reason.

4. There is an enemy NPC in Misty Marshes at the beginning that does not erase itself after battling it. To pass it without fighting, simply go right next to it on the left of it and jump over the bit of water there.

I'll get back to you guys once I've gotten more done on the game. In the meantime, enjoy the updated demo.

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Uploaded a minor distraction of sorts while I continue work on the game. I present to you track six of the game's original soundtrack, Anticipation, by Blamchowder.





Also, keep an eye out for a shiny new trailer for the game. I'm thinking about releasing it sometime this month or the next, depending on when I can find the time to create it. Also wondering about a "let's play" video, demonstrating the amount of content in the current demo. Which one would you guys like to see more? Let me know. In the meantime, enjoy the music!

 

[Arlic von Vaelli]

Hey, everyone. I'm back with an exciting update, as I have found the time(commence fanfare) to create a trailer for the game! Took me about 10 hours to record, edit and sequence the whole thing and I am quite proud of the result. Hopefully, this trailer will work to catch more interest as well as provide more insight in to the game's mechanics and features. Check it out.