Before I get started with this month’s edition of testgame.exe: Making the Adventure, I would like to explain my newfound philosophy. The way I see it, if I do a lot of work over the course of the month on the game, then I shouldn’t have to write a lengthy article! More creativity in the game means that less creativity is needed in my writing (most months it’s the other way around, so I can feel like I’m making up for my usual lack of progress). This makes perfect sense to me.
To make a long story short, just take a look at the list of new stuff this month. Take that, doubters! My brilliant plan of working nearly every day on testgame has paid off! Of course, don’t get too used to it—someday, I might actually have a job, and I won’t have the luxury of such freedom.
Actually, before I stop writing to let you play the game (play it!), I’ll just talk about some of the other things that are brewing in testgame land. One of the most exciting things this month (in addition to the long list of stuff that’s now in the game) is the huge amount of planning that got done. As of right now, the whole petition puzzle is completely planned out, not to mention more details about Paul’s future exploits. That means the second quarter of the game (holy good lord, we’re not even halfway through?) is almost completely fleshed out—in my head, anyway.
OK, game time! Play from the included saved game if you want, but don’t forget there’s new stuff near the beginning of the game too. I love productivity. 🙂
(no extra programs needed to run this file)
Things to do/new features of note:
- New character! You’ve seen him before in the crowd during the ventriloquist’s show, but now he exists in the screen afterward, too.
- New dialogue with the new character!
- Three new items, including the ability to look at each one (multiple times).
- New music! Now Omar has background music.
- Ability to use the petition with the little vine, Hans, the guard outside the castle, and the guard captain (his response may make you think that there’s something more going on here, and there is, but you’ll just have to wait to find out what it is).
- Some more things to look at/interact with in the background of the castle courtyard.
- New room! There’s a grand total of nothing to do here yet, but someday there will be (walk into the upper left hand corner of the castle courtyard screen to get there).
- Some changes to the cutscene outside of Paul’s bedroom door near the beginning of the game, including Paul looking around in a different manner (this was bothering me before), one less line from Paul (as real-life-Paul pointed out, we don’t really need to hear game-Paul say how strange the forest is, so that’s gone), more dialogue between Lily and Thurston, and ANIMATED FIGHTING!!
- Background work: front of castle, castle courtyard, vine screen.
- Fixed the glitch in which some of Artie’s old dialogue reappeared along with him during the second part of the game.
- Tweaked Artie’s dialogue during the first part of the game so that it’s a little smoother (some of the dialogue relied on Paul having asked for details on Lord Paul the First, which the player could have avoided doing, but it should make more sense now).
- Some tidying up with the code. You won’t notice this (or at least you shouldn’t, if I did it right.…).
All the graphics and design are by Lizo. The dialogue was written by Lizo, with significant input by Paul. The background music is by Lizo. “Let’s Go Skateboard” is written and performed by The Word Problems. Adventure Game Studio (the program used to create this game) can be downloaded at http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/
