[XP]The Insanity: Mind of the Condemned [Complete]

Started by tSwitch, June 20, 2008, 08:17:08 pm

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Starrodkirby86

I tried to play it yesterday NAMK on my computer (Not this one), and it froze thanks to Blizzard's Tons. It looks like Blizzard really wants to win this race...What it was was a Bitmap Failure somewhere right after the beginning, when the old coot starts blabbing out stuff if I remember it's an old man...is it one? You know, the owner of the office? *sigh* I'll try and settle it down here then.

What's osu!? It's a rhythm game. Thought I should have a signature with a working rank. ;P It's now clickable!
Still Aqua's biggest fan (Or am I?).




tSwitch

Quote from: Starrodkirby86 on June 22, 2008, 11:34:56 am
I tried to play it yesterday NAMK on my computer (Not this one), and it froze thanks to Blizzard's Tons. It looks like Blizzard really wants to win this race...What it was was a Bitmap Failure somewhere right after the beginning, when the old coot starts blabbing out stuff if I remember it's an old man...is it one? You know, the owner of the office? *sigh* I'll try and settle it down here then.


I have never had anyone tell me that the game did that to them.
in fact, I couldn't even think of how it would be fixed. :(

Quote from: Blizzard on June 22, 2008, 07:29:28 am
How did I miss the [Complete] tag?! O_O *downloads* I'll play it as soon as I find some time.


sweet, ty blizz, hope you like it.


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Starrodkirby86

June 25, 2008, 01:45:21 pm #22 Last Edit: August 03, 2008, 10:34:37 am by Starrodkirby86
This review has been obsoleted by Version 2.06 . Please go later in this thread to read that instead.

Review of The Insanity: A cold and bitter diagnosis: ShowHide

The Insanity: A cold and bitter diagnosis
By: Temperance Studios (NAMKCOR)
Review by Starrodkirby86


   It's always been arduous and difficult to start off something, even when it comes to writing a review. For the exact reason, I have taken the time to use the phrases here as a filler for the Introduction. There isn't exactly much else to state, unless someone in the psychiatry business, then, we might as well ramble on. Why am I even mentioning psychiatry anyway? Ah, it's to intertwine one into the next subject, which obviously as the Header speaks for itself, is about The Insanity: A cold and bitter diagnosis, a game that chronicles a session of a patient within an asylum, leading onto his life story (It is psychiatry after all).

   As a game that clearly is short in length, the story needs to entangle the player pretty early in order to get their attention span to remain focused into the game. The player takes the role of Leon, who has many troubles throughout his life. I can't retort many of these episodes considering they probably contain spoilers. Suspense usually makes a story successful, and this is no exception. The storyline does urge to reader to go on, to unravel the mystery of Leon, from having a normal cheery life to something...more dark. Character development shows, but rather only for Leon, where the other characters simply have minor roles or their screen time is extremely small. As the game is divided into three chapters, the real characters that only appear in every single of the three would be Dave (The psychiatrist) and Leon. The rest of the people only appear exclusively for that chapter. It's such a shame, as the story should have done more for them, but wasn't exactly any new task that could have been done in the first place.

   More of Leon's past gets revealed, but the player will never truly know how Leon got his sorry bottom into the Asylum. This is because the game ends only after one session with Leon and Dave, giving such a disappointing cliffhanger. There's room for a sequel that may reveal more of his past (And the fate now), along with the continual involvement of the other characters. After all, there are no small parts, just small actors. On another subject in relation to the story, there are opportunities where it is perfect for the player to interact in. NAMKCOR takes advantage of every one of them, and as the chapters go along, the player will realize s/he will get more involved with Leon's activities. The interactivity also gets more intricate as the chapters drop like a rock, from hide-and-seek to avoiding the spikes on a Chess Board.

   The Gameplay works well within Insanity, but the main problem with it is the Tactical Battle System. It is not excruciatingly bad, no, and in cases it makes sense to do it for a game such as this. However, the trouble is within the script writing itself. Occasionally, an error may appear known as the "Pathfinding Error". Attain that error during an enemy's turn, the only possible route is to restart the battle. This brings an element of luck on the AI's side, after all your hard work, you finally get the tides turned against the foe, but the enemy's trump card forces you to fight them YET AGAIN FOR THE UMPTEENTH time.

   Not only does the enemy have a higher chance of winning, the game does give you a difficult moment to survive in. Leon and his sidekick Aaron are to simply put it compared to the other enemies, plain wimps. In order to win the game in the most painless (I use painless as a pun) way possible, you have to abuse two actions--Painkillers and Skills. Painkillers are the game's potions, and they're the only ticket of survival. Enemies will take such a beating on Leon and Aaron, opposed to the other side where their HP is drastically high, the best strategy is to play a game of cat-and-mouse; run and heal, fight back, get beaten up, and repeat. Skills power up the player, and they are also the Painkillers' best friend, since the more skills the player uses strategically, the less Painkillers s/he need to use overall. Do this for almost every battle you face, and the game has turned a little bit easier (A little bit of luck is still needed to win the battle, a Critical Hit on Leon or Aaron for example can ruin a whole plan).

   The graphics work well with the eye and cooperates with the storyline. NAMKCOR can map the locations with a high level of skill. If he wants a secret underground Fight Club, he can definitely map it. If he wants a dreamy forest of pure ecstasy with touch of magic and mystics, he can definitely map it. The battle animations and character battlers are also very creative as well, as he uses the popular Gaia Online game to create graphics for his heroes (Rather, an avatar generator for Gaia Online). It is the first time I have seen someone use it, and in such a way that it does not get annoying or unpleasing to the eye (A graphical inconsistency for example). The highest drawback when it comes to the aesthetics would be the passability of the tiles. While this issue does not affect the game in any way, it may seem quite strange that Leon is able to do a little dance on the registration machine and not get kicked out of the Arena.

   Music is generally a small category and is not taken upon with a high priority. Alas, I will still mention the audio and sound anyway. All songs do fit well for the atmosphere it tries to portray, and the music contains a continuity that reverts the player back into another state of mind when this song plays. There is nothing sub-par about it, along with any clichés known for an RPG Maker to insert with music. However, the battle music does get loud in some cases and can scare any unwary fool. But that's obvious, since the battle music uses an Electric Guitar most of the time.

   Overall, Insanity is a great play at such a small length. The player may retry quite a lot, when it's the battle or when it's the endgame puzzles. The continued attempts remind me of the way-too common deaths in the game Shadowgate, and may be a frustration among people. However, as it is beatable in quite some time (Maybe a little hint would get the player all the way), the issue is minor. The length of the game actually helps it out; the player can remember nearly every event from the beginning to the end, and still talk about it well enough, unless their memory is too dry to recite out. In my words, I would definitely say to play the game, enjoy the "bitter" tea, and dream a little more insane tonight.

Point Values: ShowHide
POINTS GRADE:
STORYLINE: 9.5/10
Pros:
~Is not the standard RPG flair of stories
~Philosophical content used in a nice way
~Story isn't choppy despite the chapter dividing
~Attachment to Leon is there
~Suspense
~Small length of game makes remembrance of all events
Cons:
~Little to no character development for the other characters
~Cliffhanger results in no resolution
~Player will never truly know how Leon got into the Asylum
~Minor spelling errors (Surprizing, isn't that surprising?)
~Small length of game gets the player to urge for more!!!

GAMEPLAY: 8.5/10
Pros:
~Tactical Battle System works most of the part
~A lot of the puzzles are clever
~Interactivity is used at its most
~Actual use of Skills and Items, no negligence on that
Cons:
~Minor eventing errors (Especially Chapter 2; Are you ready to fight Fredrich? Yes. Okay, go right ahead. Are you ready to fight Fredrich? No. Tell me when you're ready. *Goes into arena*)
~Some puzzles are annoying
~Pathfinding Error
~Painkiller Abuse

GRAPHICS: 9.0/10
Pros:
~Great mapping
~Creative use of Battle Animations and Battlers
~Beautiful Title Screen, Game Over, and Logo
Cons:
~Tile Passability Errors
~Some areas can use for more cosmetics

AUDIO/SOUND: 8.5/10
Pros:
~Songs are in the right place
~Sound used in right areas
~Continuity
Cons:
~Not everything is custom (Not that major)
~Guitar Solos may be out of usual

Personal Score: 9.5/10

AVERAGED: 9.0/10

Ending with a quote: "You're suicidal." :D

This insane review is 1415 words and 7988 characters long.



--------

Here you go NAMK, a review I concocted. ^^

What's osu!? It's a rhythm game. Thought I should have a signature with a working rank. ;P It's now clickable!
Still Aqua's biggest fan (Or am I?).




tSwitch

sweet, glad you loved it so much :D
the passibility bugs were fixed in v1.05, and I'll look into that eventing error.

ANNOUNCEMENT:
First off, due to popular demand, there WILL be a sequel; details will be released at a later date.  The sequel will be much longer than this one, and will feature a FULLY CUSTOM BATTLE SYSTEM.  As far as the CBS goes, all I'll tell you is this, STRATEGY IS KEY!
(perhaps even a romp around Barkham ;) )

Second, Version 2.05 will feature either ZTBS or GTBS for purposes of destroying the pathfinding bug once and for all, as well as making enemies fight with actual strategy as opposed to swarm tactics.  I am implementing this now, and it should be released by the end of the night, if I work at it hard.


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Lost_Hope

hey, there is a problem. When I got to the first fight in the little battle arena that you go to, the guy tried to move backwards and it froze the game up.

tSwitch

as has been posted, there are pathfinding bugs with Nick's TBS
fortunately, I am currently switching the game over to Zenith TBS, which has no such bugs.

v2.05 will be released tonight, and the TBS experience will be much better.


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Lost_Hope

so far I like it. DOn't tell me but I wonder if he is ever diagnosed with insanity

tSwitch

UPDATE

v2.05 released, featuring Zenith TBS, and a few other changes, as well as recalibration of the battle learning curve.


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Follow my project: MBlok | Find me on: tSwitch.us | Twitter | Tumblr

tSwitch



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Follow my project: MBlok | Find me on: tSwitch.us | Twitter | Tumblr

Blizzard

Check out Daygames and our games:

King of Booze 2      King of Booze: Never Ever
Drinking Game for Android      Never have I ever for Android
Drinking Game for iOS      Never have I ever for iOS


Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

Fantasist

I dunno if I missed something, I can't move the player in the first nonfight scene with ANY of the keys. The menu and everything works fine though.
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tSwitch

Quote from: Fantasist on July 08, 2008, 11:54:16 am
I dunno if I missed something, I can't move the player in the first nonfight scene with ANY of the keys. The menu and everything works fine though.


erm...'first nonfight scene'
in which chapter?

if it's chapter two,THAT SHOULD WORK I NEED TO FIX IT AGAIN GODDAMNIT


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Blizzard

I downloaded the new version and haven't tried yet. D: Please fix it so I can download the fixed one before I am stuck with limited bandwidth again.
Check out Daygames and our games:

King of Booze 2      King of Booze: Never Ever
Drinking Game for Android      Never have I ever for Android
Drinking Game for iOS      Never have I ever for iOS


Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

tSwitch

I'm so goddamned pissed right now...it SHOULD FUCKING WORK.
if I find out it's a problem with ZTBS and I have to switch it out with ANOTHER TBS -AGAIN- I'm going to flip.

it's not doing this ANYWHERE except right in the beginning of the game.
I've skipped ahead and tested all the rest, it ALL FUCKING WORKS.

omfg what is wrong with RMXP...


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Fantasist

Yeah in-case you want the exact location, it's right after the first fight when Leon tells Dave the 'other interesting story', where they were headed out to a hangout. The map which has a blue crystal in the left.

Try doing that map again instead of fixing it.
Do you like ambient/electronic music? Then you should promote a talented artist! Help out here. (I'm serious. Just listen to his work at least!)


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Blizzard

Ever tried using "p [stuff you need to debug or suspect to cause the bug].inspect" in the middle of your code? I highly suggest it to track the call stack (the order in which the methods are called).
Check out Daygames and our games:

King of Booze 2      King of Booze: Never Ever
Drinking Game for Android      Never have I ever for Android
Drinking Game for iOS      Never have I ever for iOS


Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

tSwitch

BUMP FOR GREAT JUSTICE
IT FUCKING WORKS NOW

The problem was Tons' Caterpillar script (which I wasn't even using, WTF?!) screwing with Scene_Map or something.

Anyway, it works now.
PLEY IT?!


FCF3a A+ C- D H- M P+ R T W- Z- Sf RLCT a cmn+++ d++ e++ f h+++ iw+++ j+ p sf+
Follow my project: MBlok | Find me on: tSwitch.us | Twitter | Tumblr

Blizzard

Yeah, I remember somebody telling me that the caterpillar was messing up something. Are you using v6.4? *downloads new version <3*
Check out Daygames and our games:

King of Booze 2      King of Booze: Never Ever
Drinking Game for Android      Never have I ever for Android
Drinking Game for iOS      Never have I ever for iOS


Quote from: winkioI do not speak to bricks, either as individuals or in wall form.

Quote from: Barney StinsonWhen I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.

Fantasist

I just started and it's top-notch mate! You come up with awesome themes and presentation! I really liked your last game too :D
Do you like ambient/electronic music? Then you should promote a talented artist! Help out here. (I'm serious. Just listen to his work at least!)


The best of freeware reviews: Gizmo's Freeware Reviews




tSwitch

Quote from: Blizzard on July 11, 2008, 06:19:46 am
Yeah, I remember somebody telling me that the caterpillar was messing up something. Are you using v6.4? *downloads new version <3*


the caterpillar has ALWAYS caused me errors, resulting in my having to remove it, or put it above everything :/


FCF3a A+ C- D H- M P+ R T W- Z- Sf RLCT a cmn+++ d++ e++ f h+++ iw+++ j+ p sf+
Follow my project: MBlok | Find me on: tSwitch.us | Twitter | Tumblr