RMVXA Linus: The Forgotten Days

[GIJhen]

Are you going to release a demo so we can see how you made this cool thing?

I like how the game style looks and I would love to see how this game is put together and then play it =)

 

[blueperiod]

^Of course I'll release a demo (at some point!), but it'll be encrypted. There's plenty of tutorials out there for you to learn how to use RM like I do.

 

[blueperiod]

Just a quick update!

I'm going to start putting up some character profiles periodically. To start off, here are Linus and Ari, two characters who's relationship will be central to the plot.


***

Linus Milhaven

Son of Lord Teign and Emily, Linus is a bright and charming 12-year old boy with a wide spectrum of interests and opinions about the world. Wise beyond his years, Linus was born during a time of peace in the empire and unlike other members of his family, who have historically been brought up to become great knights and generals, the boy has decided to walk an entirely different path.

Although very young, Linus considers himself an intellectual who possesses an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Though he is studious and prone to get lost in his own head at times, Linus is no wilting wallflower. He is a sociable and charming boy who delights in meeting new people while using his razor-sharp wit to talk his way out of most bad situations he finds himself in. Indeed, it is said that there is no one who Linus hasn't met that he can't succeed in befriending.

Due to the events that led to Lord Teign's current comatose condition, Linus and his brother Ari have been left without a father. Seeing Lord Teign, a once heralded soldier now confined to a bed who can no loner speak, hear, or see, Linus abhors the concept of war and how it ruins the lives of those it touches. Owing to this, Linus has somewhat naively vowed to never raise up arms against another human being. A childhood spent reading and internalizing anti-war propaganda has only added to Linus' strict pacifist stance.

Linus possesses a deep interest in foreign cultures and plans on going on a grand odyssey throughout the world some day with his brother Ari when the two are older. He has already begun to learn several foreign languages in anticipation of this great journey.

Ari Milhaven

Ari, Linus' twin brother, is a 12-year old boy with an unconquerable spirit. Brave and heedless to danger, Ari is a quiet and somber boy who refuses to allow the hand life has dealt him affect his dreams and goals.

Born at death's doorstep due to a mysterious illness that almost claimed him in the womb, Ari has always been a frail and sickly boy. The disease that sleeps in his blood severely weakens his immune system, thus Ari must suffer every scrape and scratch sustained while playing in the dirt as though they were mortal wounds, for his blood does not clot as it should and he is more prone to sickness and injury than other children.

Ari has had a procession of doctors treat him throughout the years, yet none have found a cure for his illness. Despite this, there burns a fierce determination in Ari that has allowed him to endure his sickness with a brave face. When it comes to his personality, Ari is the polar opposite of his twin brother Linus. He is often quiet and reserved, and must be convinced by Linus to participate in their activities. While Linus is generally cheerful and quick to laugh, Ari is often moody and angry, a trait which Linus pokes fun of by way of giving Ari the nickname 'Lord Grumpy'. Still, despite the differences in their temperaments and the fact that they can rarely agree on anything, Ari loves his brother and would defend Linus from anyone who would ever dare hurt him.

Unlike his brother, Ari finds an enduring inspiration from the tales that the manor guards tell of his father's unrivaled fighting skills and of Lord Teign's exploits during the war. A childhood spent being enraptured by these tales has led to Ari adopting a seemingly impossible dream-- to become a knight as renowned and skilled as his lord father.

Ari has a deep obsession with horror fiction, and has an unabashed love for stories about zombies, demons, and vampires.
 

***

 

[PixelLuchi]

Ah, so Ari suffers from hemophilia, hey? That condition was quite common amongst some members British royal family. I see a bit of Patrick in him as well. =) Love these bios, keep them coming.

 

[blueperiod]

Hey everyone.
 
I just wanted to take this moment to announce that Avarius has joined the LINUS team as a character artist. He will be creating concept art as well as final portrait busts for the characters of the game, and thus far, I've been incredibly impressed with his output. 
 
Here are a few preliminary pieces, showing off the newly designed concepts for Eugene, Vinz, and Andre-- the three Aternellan conscripts the player takes control of during the prologue of the game.
 
We've decided to go with a gritty yet stylized art-style reminiscent of Valkyrie Profile, which I think fits the dark fairytale aesthetic of LINUS quite well.
 
 
 

***​

 
 
Eugene Hildebrand:

 
The leader of the conscript trio, Eugene is a former history professor with anti-royal political leanings. Now a drafted front-line scout, Eugene is haunted by the dark things he has witnessed on the war-front. Though he is no warrior, Eugene is one of the few people in the world capable of using destructive magic, a power that the peaceful Eugene has vowed to never take advantage of.
 
 
Vinz Delacroix

 
A former street hooligan, Vinz drank away any potential he had a long time ago. With piss and vinegar running through his veins, he is the muscle of the group and the only one of the three who can adequately hold himself in a fight.
 
 
Andre Pinon

 
Owner of an apothecary in the capital, Andre is a solemn old man who follows Eugene without scruple. As the "mother hen" of the group, Andre makes sure to keep his companions in top shape through his medical expertise. Don't let his status as the group medic fool you however, as the old apothecary is known to stare down any young fool brave enough to test his patience.
 
 
 
***
 
 
 
 That's about it for now. These are of course just preliminary concepts, and the final versions will look even better.

 

[blueperiod]

Hey everyone, I thought it'd be a good time for a development update. The first 2  hours of the game are completed, besides a few small battle/presentation bugs. It's been a pretty crazy time, as I'm a bit of a perfectionist and tend to spend a lot of time on individual parts of the game when I should in fact be trying to develop the project at a faster clip. In any case, I've finally gotten the prologue of this new version of LINUS up to a standard I'm comfortable with.

So, I'm going to start the 'second wave' of testing soon (within a few days), so if anyone is interested in testing out the game, let me know! For the first testing phase, I only chose about 3 people from this forum, but I'll most likely be choosing more this time around.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Jesse - PVGames]

You know me, I looooove Linus. Have loved it from the start. I'd happily test out the newest version for ya.

 

[PhantomLimb]

Good grief -- this is a blast from the past.

Did you once, long ago, release a demo?

I distinctly recall playing/eagerly awaiting this back in the fruitful year of 20(09, or 10?). 

Either way, can't wait for a demo!

 

[PixelLuchi]

Still looking for a tester, bp? You know I've been wanting to test this game for ages now. =)

 

[blueperiod]

^I'd be so happy if you tested it Luchi, since you have an amazing grasp on exploration and pacing and I'd be eager to hear your thoughts, but the file-size is a bit large (parallax mapping's the culprit) and I recall you mentioning that you had some strict data caps to deal with. So yeah, I'm not sure if you'd be okay with downloading such a big file.

 

[PixelLuchi]

Nah, I got some extra data today ( 1.5GB ) so it should be all right. =)

 

[Hirei]

I would be interested in testing it Linus has been one of my favorite RM games in terms of storytelling and atmosphere. It's great to see it evolving and improving.

 

[blueperiod]

^Awesome! And thanks for the kind words, Hirei. I'm also a huge fan of yours and have really admired your art.

So, for those of you who expressed interested in testing the demo, I'm going to be sending the download link out on the 20th. I'm really looking forward to hearing what you guys think of the game and seeing what can be improved.

 

[AK47]

Damn, am I too late?

Seems you have enough testers already, but I would love to test this.

Really liking the new portraits by the way, especially their attire.

 

[blueperiod]

It is definitely still not too late to test the game, AK, I'll send you a download link as well. I'm actually really eager to read what you took from the game in particular, as I've always been a great admirer of yours when it comes to graphics, music, and atmosphere. You happen to be a big inspiration.

And thanks for the kind words about the portraits. Avarius has done some great work so far. Unfortunately his artwork won't be seen in this build, as they aren't done yet. Hopefully for the proper release I'll be able to include them.

 

[blueperiod]

Hey everyone. 

I just wanted to give a quick update on the game's progress. Not long ago I sent out the current build of the demo to a few RMN folks as well as some people from RMW. The response I got was more positive than I expected, all things considered, and many people told me they thought the current build would make for a good "teaser demo" of sorts. I've taken this feedback to heart and have decided to release a short teaser demo (which will be about 3 or so hours long) in the near future after I've added on a bit more content. 'Near future' meaning anywhere from next month to a few months from now. You guys know how slow I work.  

That's about it as far as the progress report goes. Thanks for reading!

Also, here are a few new screenshots.

 

[Ever]

This is all so brilliantly laid out in terms of your vision. It is interesting to watch the progress from its inception and initial application evolve into where it is at now. Being that this is only my first month of actually working on the development of a project of my own, I hope to scratch the surface of what you've done here. I would love to and can't wait to play another demo of this as well, seeing as I have only played through the prologue thus far.

 

[blueperiod]

^Thanks for the kind words! The project has had probably the longest 'pre-production' phase of any RM game I know of, which can be a double-edged sword. It's definitely helpful to have a cohesive vision for the game but it's also good to have a game out at some point . In any case, thanks again, and good luck with your own project!


Btw, I really love your sig!

 

[Zefreonzack]

Demo pwease! XD

 

[lianderson]

Looking good... now get a demo already.