RMMV The Last Chronomancer (OFFICIAL CHAPTER 1 RELEASED)

[kimo]

@Guld
I have no problem offering constructive observations. The problem is getting me to stop.
This game will obviously go retail because of its quality so far; excellent mapping and well balanced.

Here are some of my initial observations.

Spoiler

I would suggest that you advise buyers about some of the visual darkness for those who have vision issues. The cave leading to the first blue stone was dark, but I found it navigable and certainly better than using a flashlight or torch effect. Since the enemies are also dark in the dark cave...
But, don't change it. Just advise people would be my suggestion.

There are also people who will have issues with their dexterity and the QTE skills and they should be exposed to that during the demo in case it is too hard for them to steal. I like the idea that you put the keystrokes in the description before implementing the skill.

Also, this game should have a battle/game mechanics section in a free manual ( I really don't like in-game tutorials) for people like me who have never played this battle style with row changes possible during battle. I do like the UI for shops and equipment.

Icons also need some explanation in my opinion. Other than the baddie guarding the blue gem was weak to the weapons found, I have no idea what that dark swirl represents. The magic user also has that icon.

I don't know if you have "fixed" this in the full game, but there is no speed penalty for heavy armor when compared to medium armor (head gear). Other than the extra 50 coins, why would someone who could wear the better armor not want the equipment that gives an additional +1 DEF.

 

[Reinarc]

Just dropping by to say kudos to you! You've devoted so much time to polishing up this game, and it looks outstanding. Keep it up! I watched a bit of D's stream.

 

[Archduke]

@kimo It sounds like SB pointed you in the correct direction, you do in fact need to swap rows in between attacks.

Just my personal opinion, but if it was necessary that something like that an explanation was sought outside of the game (especially to the extent that it stopped a user from progressing altogether), it may not have been very well explained in-game and should likely be revisited and clarified.

 

[Guld]

Just my personal opinion, but if it was necessary that something like that an explanation was sought outside of the game (especially to the extent that it stopped a user from progressing altogether), it may not have been very well explained in-game and should likely be revisited and clarified.

The game currently has the player do a "Trial run" of the fight using a single character (you cannot win the fight at that point, but it shows you the basic layout/mechanic/consequence of the enemy and their skills).

A pop up happens every round telling the player which Row the monster will be attacking.

When the main party goes through the fight they have a dialogue window that says something along the lines of "It's about to hit the front row, we should move to the back row and use our ranged weapons/spells".

I will not be adding any additional tutorials/hints as I believe that is more than enough for a player to figure out how to defeat the boss.

@Guld
I have no problem offering constructive observations. The problem is getting me to stop.
This game will obviously go retail because of its quality so far; excellent mapping and well balanced.

Here are some of my initial observations.

Spoiler

I would suggest that you advise buyers about some of the visual darkness for those who have vision issues. The cave leading to the first blue stone was dark, but I found it navigable and certainly better than using a flashlight or torch effect. Since the enemies are also dark in the dark cave...
But, don't change it. Just advise people would be my suggestion.

There are also people who will have issues with their dexterity and the QTE skills and they should be exposed to that during the demo in case it is too hard for them to steal. I like the idea that you put the keystrokes in the description before implementing the skill.

Also, this game should have a battle/game mechanics section in a free manual ( I really don't like in-game tutorials) for people like me who have never played this battle style with row changes possible during battle. I do like the UI for shops and equipment.

Icons also need some explanation in my opinion. Other than the baddie guarding the blue gem was weak to the weapons found, I have no idea what that dark swirl represents. The magic user also has that icon.

I don't know if you have "fixed" this in the full game, but there is no speed penalty for heavy armor when compared to medium armor (head gear). Other than the extra 50 coins, why would someone who could wear the better armor not want the equipment that gives an additional +1 DEF.

I'll consider a vision issue advisory, as well as an audible sensory warning. Some of the sound effects are high pitched and that can bother some players as well.

Re: QTE, there is one "mandatory" fight that requires them, so maybe I'll find a way to provide an alternative means of bypassing that.

A free manual is a great idea. I'll definitely include one with the final game.

Just dropping by to say kudos to you! You've devoted so much time to polishing up this game, and it looks outstanding. Keep it up! I watched a bit of D's stream.

Thank you very much. I appreciate the kind words!

 

[kimo]

@Guld
Yes, reserve members are earning EXP in some ratio. Just escaped the prison and the use of the final lever makes me wonder what happens if you don't use it properly. Next play through? The only feature I really don't like (or understand the purpose of) is the use of short timed actions. I've stopped using those characters entirely. Who knows, maybe I'll use them later. But in the meantime, I just don't understand tying skills to a dexterity task by the gamer. I just don't care for QTEs.

Do you want info re: misspellings? This game is so excellent, that perfection seems required. I know a person who will find every spelling/grammar error superhumanly possible if she decides to try this game.

EDIT:
I have a question about the many mini battles after being recruited by the guy representing the Queen.

Spoiler

There is a comment about dispatching the enemies quickly and I did see a clock-like icon briefly in the upper right corner. There was a enemy counter, and I now understand why. But I never got the feeling that this was a timed event (in a way) which I abhor.

Of course, I failed because I didn't understand it was being timed. But my party woke up and was helped by that other character in the game. I eventually suceeded ... BUT is it possible to fail this by losing the fight against the enemy leader?

And, is there another outcome if the 13 enemies are defeated within the given time frame? In other words, is it worth replaying that segment of the game. I have a save, but don't like wasting time.

 

[Guld]

@Guld
Yes, reserve members are earning EXP in some ratio. Just escaped the prison and the use of the final lever makes me wonder what happens if you don't use it properly. Next play through? The only feature I really don't like (or understand the purpose of) is the use of short timed actions. I've stopped using those characters entirely. Who knows, maybe I'll use them later. But in the meantime, I just don't understand tying skills to a dexterity task by the gamer. I just don't care for QTEs.

Do you want info re: misspellings? This game is so excellent, that perfection seems required. I know a person who will find every spelling/grammar error superhumanly possible if she decides to try this game.

EDIT:
I have a question about the many mini battles after being recruited by the guy representing the Queen.

Spoiler

There is a comment about dispatching the enemies quickly and I did see a clock-like icon briefly in the upper right corner. There was a enemy counter, and I now understand why. But I never got the feeling that this was a timed event (in a way) which I abhor.

Of course, I failed because I didn't understand it was being timed. But my party woke up and was helped by that other character in the game. I eventually suceeded ... BUT is it possible to fail this by losing the fight against the enemy leader?

And, is there another outcome if the 13 enemies are defeated within the given time frame? In other words, is it worth replaying that segment of the game. I have a save, but don't like wasting time.

Re: Misspellings, Sure! Maybe send them in a DM to avoid spamming up this page haha. But yes, please do send them along, I appreciate it very much.

Re: Lumbermill...

Spoiler

I provided a giant clock picture that moves up towards an hourglass. I think that's intuitive enough. Especially as you see the hourglass start to fill up.

Regardless if you make it in time or not, that Boss fight will still happen the same way. That's the only fight that REQUIRES QTE, so like I said, maybe I'll find a way to make it beatable even if you are not good at reflex/inputs.

If you make it in time you can fight an additional boss (on the left side of the lumbermill) for extra weapons/drops.

You are almost done the Demo, so congrats on making it to the end! haha

 

[kimo]

@Guld
Wow! What a battle sequence. It took a few minutes for my adrenaline to get back to normal. Certainly cannot afford to dawdle.

Spoiler

You do give always give subtle hints and I can read, but I did not notice the hourglass next to the "enemy remaining" number until you mentioned it. Did this battle approach come from previous games you played (which I obviously did not)?

I had to attempt the battle twice until I got it. Very challenging, but not impossible with a strong heart.

During the first instance of this battle after I failed to defeat all those enemy troops, I immediately stole from the boss because of the character's comment about the armor. But, since I only got a helmet I chose to not steal during my second playthrough. I was wondering why 0 dmg was being dealt until I remembered taking his helmet before. It seems that a player could lose this battle and have to repeat the whole thing again (arrrghh!) but I'm not willing to test this hypothesis. I didn't think about whether I could go back out for a save before engaging the main boss. I had an adrenaline rush and I was going to use it!

I don't think the QTE aspect of this battle is as important for this battle as is understanding how this fight progresses. Personally, I don't have dexterity issues. And when the sequences are short when randomized and fixed for longer sequences and presented in the skill description it seems to work fine even if it's not my preference. It's just after reading comments for many years about other players' inability to finish otherwise good games, that I feel the responsibility to share those comments. And more so when I find an excellent game that I will be buying at some point in the future because it has great replayability.

Just don't use color-based puzzles because I have a strange type of colorblindness when dealing with shades of red and green and the world will be okay.

I read your comments for Chap. 2 on that other site. If you need playtesters, please count me in.

 

[Guld]

As per your feedback @kimo , I've added the following change to the Lumbermill fight...
-Save point added in Dromo's room
-Dromo now is no longer "invincible" with his Armor, but does have a significant advantage with it on.
Stealing the armor is by far the best tactic to win this fight, but it can be done without doing so.

Thanks again for all the input/feedback!

 

[Lady_JJ]

Played the demo starting with Daery's timeline. I very seldom put the sound on when I play rpg's, but the volume was on when I started and I'm glad it was. I love the tick-tock suspense and it kept getting better. Gotta say, it was very Alfred Hitchcock-ish, the subtlety made it all the more compelling. I'm glad I read some of the comments before engaging in battle. But, I would agree with you in that the hints for how to be successful in battle were right there in front of me.

I'll probably check out at least one more timeline. I'm favoring Raven right now. I found astonishingly few typos/misspellings. For what it's worth...

Spoiler

Shea, standing at the Crossroads of Time. "The six Heroes Timestream's before me."

If this means "The Timestreams of the six Heroes before me." then should be 'Timestreams'
If this means the "The six Heroes Timestreams is before me." then maybe 'is' should be 'are?' In any event, better not to use the 's contraction.

Pentam-First dialogue with Raven
"...I can't make out what your saying..."
should be you're

Goldmill
Tale of the Lovers
"They were seperated,"
should be separated

At scene with queen in Goldmill, answer to question "What happened to the scorpion?"
Raven says "I'm so happy for Scorpo!"
Should that be Scorpio? Maybe I'm misremembering what Raven called the scorpion?

Same scene
"What becomes of Jett?"
"... agent of one Commander's Death. Commander Jacques has claimed..."
That period should be a comma

 

[kimo]

@Lady_JJ
Glad to see you here. I started with the timeline for the far left character (Daery, I think) and the others joined the party in a short while. Let me know what you find. I never went back and tried to start with the others since Daery worked out so well. Just an FYI, Chapter 1 plays for about 6 hours.

Yep, I found very few typos too. I saved very often just in case.

@Guld
Is the newest version of Chapter 1 available for download?

 

[Guld]

Played the demo starting with Daery's timeline. I very seldom put the sound on when I play rpg's, but the volume was on when I started and I'm glad it was. I love the tick-tock suspense and it kept getting better. Gotta say, it was very Alfred Hitchcock-ish, the subtlety made it all the more compelling. I'm glad I read some of the comments before engaging in battle. But, I would agree with you in that the hints for how to be successful in battle were right there in front of me.

I'll probably check out at least one more timeline. I'm favoring Raven right now. I found astonishingly few typos/misspellings. For what it's worth...

Spoiler

Shea, standing at the Crossroads of Time. "The six Heroes Timestream's before me."

If this means "The Timestreams of the six Heroes before me." then should be 'Timestreams'
If this means the "The six Heroes Timestreams is before me." then maybe 'is' should be 'are?' In any event, better not to use the 's contraction.

Pentam-First dialogue with Raven
"...I can't make out what your saying..."
should be you're

Goldmill
Tale of the Lovers
"They were seperated,"
should be separated

At scene with queen in Goldmill, answer to question "What happened to the scorpion?"
Raven says "I'm so happy for Scorpo!"
Should that be Scorpio? Maybe I'm misremembering what Raven called the scorpion?

Same scene
"What becomes of Jett?"
"... agent of one Commander's Death. Commander Jacques has claimed..."
That period should be a comma

Thank you very much for taking the time to play, and thank you even more for the feedback/corrections!

"Scorpo" was intentional, but all the others are not haha.

I'm mostly surprised that the Raven line got missed by myself (and so many others).

All corrections are now implemented. EDIT: I changed that one to "The 'Timestreams' for each of the six Heroes are before me."

Thanks again! and I'm glad you enjoyed it enough to play it to the end.

@kimo I haven't uploaded an updated Chapter 1 Demo since November. I was trying to focus all of my attention on getting the whole game complete. With that being said, if I do released an updated version I'll definitely make sure that I get the word out.

 

[Lady_JJ]

I finished the demo, so I went back to see Raven's timestream. It doesn't take a lot of time, so I'll probably peek in on all of them, just to see what their starting relics are. One thing I forgot to mention in my first post, along with the ticking music, was that I love the grandfather clocks! Finding these just ties in so well with the theme of the game. Barrels and pots are one thing, but those grandfather clocks are a can't miss! Also, I am SOOOO jealous of the quality of those maps.

@kimo Thanks for steering me here.

 

[Guld]

I finished the demo, so I went back to see Raven's timestream. It doesn't take a lot of time, so I'll probably peek in on all of them, just to see what their starting relics are. One thing I forgot to mention in my first post, along with the ticking music, was that I love the grandfather clocks! Finding these just ties in so well with the theme of the game. Barrels and pots are one thing, but those grandfather clocks are a can't miss! Also, I am SOOOO jealous of the quality of those maps.

@kimo Thanks for steering me here.

Thank you very much. Those Grandfather clocks were custom made, so I'm glad they are appreciated.
In addition to the "Intros" being different, there is also different content depending on which hero you choose.
For instance, the team splits up when they get to Goldmill. So depending on which hero you choose, it determines which side adventure you explore.
Talsa has a private scene with Jacques that you can only witness if you choose her.
And Jett obviously leaves the party for a period of time etc.

Thanks for the compliment on the maps.
Speaking of which, your comments inspired me to update the Crossroads (now with actual flowing "Timestreams" in each direction).

 

[Lady_JJ]

Oh, that actually looks even nicer than the blue torches. So I finished all 6 timelines. Not the full demo playthrough, just to get each starting story. @kimo , if you have an extra 20-30 min, play Johan's timeline. If you only have time to do one, then Johan is definitely that one. It's a little dark and also hysterically funny. You get the idea that Johan is a bit of a con artist as well as a ladies' man in the other scenarios, but you really get a good look at his character in his own intro.

The idea of each one bringing his/her own unique relic into his/her own game is nice (meaning only 1 relic is brought into the game, not all 6). I had thought that if I were going to do another playthrough with a different timeline, I'd choose Jett just for his relic, but the prospect of seeing more of Johan's antics is just proving to be too much of a temptation to resist.

And, I didn't come across any typos/misspellings anywhere.

 

[kimo]

@Lady_JJ
You're welcome. You have pointed me towards a few great games in development here, so I'm glad I could repay the favor. I agree about those clocks. This game certainly rewards exploration. I will explore Johan's timestream when I get a chance. But only 30 minutes? @Guld mentioned story branches and I am also really curious what happens to Jett while he is absent from the party.

@Guld
I asked about a chapter 1 update being available because we are offering observations based upon an older version of your game. I assume there will be a chapter 3 (maybe 4?). I certainly don't want to waste your time, because I will definitely be playing Chapter 1 several times. This is where I think replayability of your game excels.

But like I previously offered I am available for playtesting and it sounds like @Lady_JJ would be up for helping you too.

 

[Lady_JJ]

Going to Options and then exiting out (no changes made) gives me this error


It happens from the initial title screen as well as accessing options from the menu midgame. I suppose it could be my anti-virus, but maybe somebody else could check?

 

[Guld]

Oh, that actually looks even nicer than the blue torches. So I finished all 6 timelines. Not the full demo playthrough, just to get each starting story. @kimo , if you have an extra 20-30 min, play Johan's timeline. If you only have time to do one, then Johan is definitely that one. It's a little dark and also hysterically funny. You get the idea that Johan is a bit of a con artist as well as a ladies' man in the other scenarios, but you really get a good look at his character in his own intro.

The idea of each one bringing his/her own unique relic into his/her own game is nice (meaning only 1 relic is brought into the game, not all 6). I had thought that if I were going to do another playthrough with a different timeline, I'd choose Jett just for his relic, but the prospect of seeing more of Johan's antics is just proving to be too much of a temptation to resist.

And, I didn't come across any typos/misspellings anywhere.

Johan is definitely a unique character. Some love him, others hate him haha.

@Lady_JJ
You're welcome. You have pointed me towards a few great games in development here, so I'm glad I could repay the favor. I agree about those clocks. This game certainly rewards exploration. I will explore Johan's timestream when I get a chance. But only 30 minutes? @Guld mentioned story branches and I am also really curious what happens to Jett while he is absent from the party.

@Guld
I asked about a chapter 1 update being available because we are offering observations based upon an older version of your game. I assume there will be a chapter 3 (maybe 4?). I certainly don't want to waste your time, because I will definitely be playing Chapter 1 several times. This is where I think replayability of your game excels.

But like I previously offered I am available for playtesting and it sounds like @Lady_JJ would be up for helping you too.

Jett definitely has the most unique storyline overall, as he doesn't go with the rest of the party to the Lumbermill, and goes solo (kinda) on his split journey when they first arrive in Goldmill.
If I require some playtesters I will definitely keep both of you in mind!

Going to Options and then exiting out (no changes made) gives me this error
View attachment 181262

It happens from the initial title screen as well as accessing options from the menu midgame. I suppose it could be my anti-virus, but maybe somebody else could check?

I tried a fresh download of the game, and put it on a new drive as well. I can't replicate that error. You said you just opened "Options" and then exited out by hitting "Cancel"? Did you move the location of your save file directory? I guess there is a chance your virus scanner could be blocking it?

 

[Lady_JJ]

<snip>
I tried a fresh download of the game, and put it on a new drive as well. I can't replicate that error. You said you just opened "Options" and then exited out by hitting "Cancel"? Did you move the location of your save file directory? I guess there is a chance your virus scanner could be blocking it?

The save file directory hasn't been moved. It's still happening. I would say that if it's just happening to me and no one else can replicate, then it must be the virus scanner or a Chrome setting maybe. It's late right now, but tomorrow I'll copy the folder to a different computer and see what happens. I can't tell you if it's happened since the first install since I think this was the first time I accessed options.

 

[kimo]

The save file directory hasn't been moved. It's still happening. I would say that if it's just happening to me and no one else can replicate, then it must be the virus scanner or a Chrome setting maybe. It's late right now, but tomorrow I'll copy the folder to a different computer and see what happens. I can't tell you if it's happened since the first install since I think this was the first time I accessed options.

I cannot replicate this error. However, I did open this Options file early in the game to check out available fonts and other options. It is possible I triggered something you did not. I certainly caused the file to write over what was there.

I also use Firefox, not Chrome, and my AV software is Norton 360 if it makes any difference.

 

[Lady_JJ]

Looks like it's Norton 360. Same thing happened on a fresh unzip, but this time I caught the culprit (the message only shows up the first time which is how I missed it)



So it's definitely on my end. I like Norton, but it can absolutely be quite obtrusive at times. <sigh> Now I'll need to check Norton's history log and see how to mark it safe.

On another note, I'm playing Jett's timeline and I'm at the point where they've just been poisoned at the Rose and Chain. Everytime I try a new character, I become smitten with that character. But, I do believe Jett's story has me hooked now and this is the one I'm going to use going forward. I love the replayability this game has!