Stephen Rimmer's Alpha Adventure [Completed] - LAST UPDATE 17TH May

[cook]

This is really embarrassing but I can't figure out what to do on the second map. I found the malfunctioning lever of course, some tinderboxes and a note - but that's it. No key for the door, no insight into the lever mechanism. What am i missing?

Spoiler below!

In the hall leading to the area where there's a blocked path(by rocks), you'll see a hatch on the ceiling.

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ACTUALLY, idea:

This post contains spoilers for the entire map, if you're stuck you can just refer here since there are no let's plays(which is what I use if I'm stuck):

Level 1:

Spoiler below!

The lever to open the bookcase on the first map is at the opposite end of the library room as you enter - up against the corner, check both.

Level 2:

Spoiler below!

The lever in the Gallery is hidden behind the first painting you remove from the wall, it is linked to a hatch in the hall leading to the area blocked by rocks, tap the hatch then return to the lever to lower the ladder.

The key needed for the next area is hidden behind paintings in the area past the attic.

Level 3:

Spoiler below!

The pass needed for the lever puzzle in the 3rd map is 9 up, 5 down

Level 4:

Spoiler below!

The 4th map has an acid vat and a hammer and chisel in the locked room, you need to go to the storage to get items needed to make use of these

Level 5:

Spoiler below!

The keys to the storage are in the room with the dead body, the room at the start of the storage that is unlocked using the key from the dead body room

Level 6:

Spoiler below!

The 6th level has a key hidden in a bedroom upstairs on the table

Level 7:

Spoiler below!

The 7th level has a key hidden near the pile of bodies with a fire - a monster patrols, be careful.

Level 8:

Spoiler below!

The 8th level has a key in the office, you need to stack boxes to get past the slanted rooms, then platform accross

Level 9:

Spoiler below!

The 9th level requires you simply to run

[Anxt]

The hammer and chipper do not combine properly, which results in the gate being impassable.

[cook]

The hammer and chipper do not combine properly, which results in the gate being impassable.

This doesn't seem to effect everyone and it certainly doesn't effect me, I'll start searching for causes and if needs be re-write the script myself.

[Anxt]

Actually, as odd as it may be, it could be on my end. My own combine script wasn't working either, but if it is still working for other people, then perhaps there is something wrong with mine. I will look into it.

[bobbo]

Spoiler below!

In the hall leading to the area where there's a blocked path(by rocks), you'll see a hatch on the ceiling.

Spoiler below!

That's what I get for always searching each inch of a room for tinderboxes but never looking at the ceiling.

Thanks for the spoilers, the thread can be used entirely for feedback this way.

[cook]

EDIT: Frictional script is exactly the same, going to try using the main games callback and just renaming my stuff as another option.

[bobbo]

I just completed it and I really liked it! I had made notes about the maps to give feedback to each one but somehow I must have messed up the order after the hammer/chisel part because they don't match your spoiler-list anymore. I'll try to sort them somewhat reasonable anyways:

Spoiler below!

I liked that it didn't begin with monsters right on the first map! In my opinion, some custom stories ruin the immersion by throwing monsters and scary moments at you right in the beginning.

I liked the note saying "it might become real" combined with the hallucination first and then the real painting monster right afterwards. Escaping the creature was indeed not too hard, but it was a great scare.

I dropped down to the water lurker absolutely unprepared, great idea! When I came there a second time, I could clearly see the hole - was there a trick that covered the hole the first time? A downside on this map was that a lot of doors didn't open all the way. They opened enough to get through of course, but I could only open them to a certain degree while the doors on all other maps opened all the way.

In the cellar map, that door to the pig room that doesn't open because it hits a grunt was nice. When I found the key down there in a room with a locked door in it, I thought: Oh, no, now I have to go all the way back, open the locked door in the beginning only to find a key that opens this locked door here - instead, you provided a nice chase there, great moment!

The statues moving in on the player were just great, superb idea. Unfortunately, the chase got screwed a little when I stepped aside in front of one door and turned around. Iirc there spawned a statue in front of the not yet opened door and there was a scripted bang on the door. I then opened the door could walk off relaxed. I have no clue how the level designer works - but maybe the statue chase could be combined with the damage from the real game's "shadow"? This way, the player would be forced to escape the statues and would die if he tries to outsmart them.

The foggy garden setting was just great (btw, I think this fog would be great to replace the rain in that custom story The Village to improve the FPS), it used the outdoor stuff provided by the editor without making it look unreal at all, great job. I only had a problem with the monster there. Obviously the trees don't work like solid walls because Daniel went insane from looking into the general direction of the monster while I couldn't see it. I didn't escape this one because I wanted to see if it is real. After I died the monster wasn't there anymore, even if I loaded a save game prior to my first encounter, so I couldn't try again.

The same happened with the ceiling monster that killed me on my first try, it just wouldn't spawn again, so I can't say how hard it is to escape from it. Anyways, I think a special note about this creature would be nice. Maybe something like: Alfred (or whoever) always had a passion for climbing... Just something that prepares the player to be on guard for something special.

At that crooked/upside-down-room passage I found some problems. On my first try, there was no hallucination coming from the room next to the crooked room, on my second try there was one. I don't know why I didn't trigger it the first time. In the room the hallucination came from there's a big see-through part on the wall that let me have a look on the upside down room. Is that intended or a bug? The crate stacking in the crooked room was a pain in the neck, but eventually I managed to do it.
On my first try in the upside-down-room there was no banging on the doors left and right, on my second try there was. Again, I dont know why it didn't trigger before.
On my first try on the way back through the upside-down-room I fell down. I landed on the floor and couldn't find a way out so I had to load a savegame. Maybe you could add checkpoints before and after the jumping passage and lower the floor so that the player dies and respawns if he falls down?

The final map gave the old chase a very nice new twist. However, after maybe two stairs I could look back down to see the monsters weren't that near anymore. Maybe this could be made even more terrifying by giving them a little extra speed?

After so much positive feedback I hope you don't mind this negative part: I really think you should get rid of that picture (of you?) on the loading screens. I guess I'm supposed to be in some old castle there escaping from monsters and when I passed a bit I see this picture from the real world which breaks the immersion. Also, I don't understand what the "maze of haters" and "mafia, alphamail" stuff has to do with the story. What's that about?

So all in all a lot of great ideas in it, looking forward to see more of this, keep up the good work!

edit: Hammer and chipper added up without a problem for me.

[skypeskype]

Wheres the download link ?

[bobbo]

Wheres the download link ?

Check the opening post, the third line.

[cook]

Yes, excuse the picture, it's not me - this map was originally just designed for some friends with tonnes of in-jokes etc, this was an artefact of that - on which note, if you can think of a good name for this map I'd be happy to hear it - I may incorporate it in my next map with more of a storyline which already has a placeholder name of the servant's trials. I'll remove it - and I don't know how to make the brutes faster - they are already set to run at full speed constantly, and I have 300 nodes placed each per step to follow but they always seem to get caught - some people have suggested making the brute ignore the player and just follow the nodes until hes at close range whilst running which I think I will try eventually.

It's good to have feedback on being prepared for the attic monster, I can't tell myself since I'm always prepared but I'll add a note and put some falling dust / fog from that hole so you can see it's there, I may add more holes just to keep a slight element of suprise in that you don't know which one he's going to drop from.

Spoiler below!

This needs to be applied to the painting monster too since in earlier versions he chased you directly to the ladder, which was far far scarier(personally), I will also be changing it so the monster is spawned closer to painting, thus making him slam the painting out of the doorway when you touch it instantly.

Spoiler below!

The idea with the staircase was that you knew there were 3 brutes - but you could only see 2, one opposite going up the stairs a long way away, the other next to you - and the other presumably right behind you, so you know what's chasing you without having to use backwards run, I thought it would act as a deterrent to turning full 180, which makes things worse if you don't know if there's one right behind you imo.

The water lurker part has a carpet covering up the hole, when you step on it the carpet disappears(I don't know how to make it fall), I'm thinking of replacing this with breakable wood since it's easier to do.

The plan with the statues was to have you go insane if you turned around(looked at them), and take damage if you touch them during the chase, I didn't put enough effort in sadly.

The upside down room should be killing you when you fall into the darkness, I'll investigate, I'll be changing those doors too(the original plan was to have actual monsters, then I found they can't be glued to the ceiling.)

Thanks for the feedback. It inspires me to work more.