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Post by centaurofattn on Dec 16, 2016 16:34:42 GMT -5
So I kicked off this long form DIY puzzle story thing for my best friend that I thought would be cool and also allowed me to do just enough work this month to kick the project off, but give myself enough time to make some cooler more intensive projects (a diary for example) over next year. I'm hoping to do one mailing a month. I will include the introduction letter as well but the basic kick off is this: I went to an alternative medicine fair (they happen a lot around where I live haha) and I was getting my tarot cards read when the psychic said she had been waiting for me and that I needed to deliver something to my friend but with little instruction other than that. Not sure if the pictures will load large enough to read, but that was the cliffnotes version. Not picture below are a magnifying glass, a small glass vial with a note in it that is morse translated to "Journey is the key. Always," the box that most of the stuff fit in, and the newspaper articles shown were cut up and aged a little to look older. Other details I will mention below. Also not featured is a bookmark thing hidden in the picture frame with holes punched out for a puzzle. It should be noted that I have no idea what my friend's level of puzzling is so I went pretty easy with the exception of the cipher so she doesn't lose interest. This is more about the story than the puzzles. Annnddd turns out I can't embed photos very well so her i just a google drive access link: drive.google.com/open?id=0ByJiFrFAyylQNkxGRmdrRjUwVzAThose are the components so far. As I update the project I will post stuff there. Note: The news articles contain things like her husband and her name as the middle names of the couple, they were married where she lives now, there are some inside jokes in the ads, our nickname for each other is "Aurora" and "Boy From Dallas," and the Pepsi add has a tiny note of "Don't Follow Me" written on it. Just for context  Last edit I hope: If you are interested in any of the documents or curios, let me know and I can probably supply the template or just send you the file to update yourself. The curios were either by Tim Holtz (my favorite craft supplier) or I made them by hand. I'd be happy to share any of those techniques too! |
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 5, 2017 23:17:25 GMT -5
Anyone want to help beta test an interactive fiction I created for one of the future mailings? If you play, make note of any verbs that the game doesn't like but that you wanted to use and any glaring grammatical errors. You can PM me or post here. Here is the game: textadventures.co.uk/games/view/rzxgmtifekwe4e78jqymhw/welcome-to-the-paris-hotelYou can probably play around and figure out certain things, but two pieces of information my friend will already have that you would not. The person we are looking for is Marilyn Copeland. It's mentioned in the description but never again. The other is this note contained in a mailing: drive.google.com/open?id=0ByJiFrFAyylQbkhFSE5lcHZXa2M |
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Post by Geodus on Jan 6, 2017 3:15:49 GMT -5
Just a couple of random notes while playing: - Is that a picture of your friend when I examine me?
- Rather than simply relying on "You can go north, south, east or west", it would be nice for the location descriptions to indicate what is in each direction, e.g., "To the north you see an entrance to a casino. On the south, doors exit to a taxi drop", etc.
- I couldn't talk to or examine the attendant in the gift shop.
- "play slots" wasn't accepted
- "blackjack" is one word
- The flavor text is fun, but it would be nice if the tile description were more specific.
- The grate appears to be welded down, but I can open and close it.
- search is not a recognized verb
- "put tile in mural", "put tile in space", "use tile with mural"... Nada. Felt like I was second guessing the game designer with this one.
- I could not "steal" nor "shoplift" in the gift shop
- when talking to the attendant, he did not acknowledge me with "marilyn" or "copeland" at all. Ideally he'd say something like "FULL name?"
- > take bible
Error running script: No verb response defined
- The message decoding took long enough that I thought it was broken.
- "my cover has been blown and I am not in danger". Should this be "*now* in danger"?
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 6, 2017 10:08:35 GMT -5
Geodus Thank you! Exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for! To respond to the questions/notes: - Is that a picture of your friend when I examine me? Yep! Just a cheesy touch of personalization since the game isn't meant to be consumed by the masses.
- Rather than simply relying on "You can go north, south, east or west", it would be nice for the location descriptions to indicate what is in each direction, e.g., "To the north you see an entrance to a casino. On the south, doors exit to a taxi drop", etc. I had started out by having more descriptive directions, but then decided against it because I wanted her to discover the rooms, and also wanted to avoid needing to create exit codes for things like "go to lobby"/"lobby" etc.
- I couldn't talk to or examine the attendant in the gift shop. I can definitely add some interactions to the gift shop clerk. Especially since they're sort of a comedic character.
- "play slots" wasn't accepted "play slots" should be able to be a verb, I'll try that out. I should be able to connect the verb so it asks "which slots" and then lists the three options in case she doesn't use the lever.
- "blackjack" is one word Thanks!
- The flavor text is fun, but it would be nice if the tile description were more specific. Noted! Also, yes, this a direct rip off puzzle haha, but it fit in well with an inside joke we have about misspelling "crepe"
- The grate appears to be welded down, but I can open and close it. That's weird... probably one of the properties of it being a "container" I can add some text that says it doesn't open, even though it technically does in the code. It won't allow you to get the ID early, but having it not be possible is helpful.
- search is not a recognized verb I assume you mean in place of something like "look" or "examine." I can add that as an extra verb choice for the same effect.
- "put tile in mural", "put tile in space", "use tile with mural"... Nada. Felt like I was second guessing the game designer with this one. Bah, I may need to be more explicit on the verbs like I did with the redemption hub. The interface for the game design is specific with a requirement of "use ITEM on ITEM" in order to make something unlock, but my game is packed with work around code, so anything is possible haha
- I could not "steal" nor "shoplift" in the gift shop You hoodlum. I will add those verbs in addition to "take"
 - I wish there were a better "you can't do that" catch all on this interface. It defaults to the error message of no verb response or whatever unless you specifically code it otherwise. I might be able to go in and add an "if not VERB/then" that does that.
- when talking to the attendant, he did not acknowledge me with "marilyn" or "copeland" at all. Ideally he'd say something like "FULL name?" Ah, good idea!
> take bible
Error running script: No verb response defined ugh, the struggle bus of verbs... oddly enough, you can check a box that says if it's take-able or not. It's unchecked so it should have just said you can't take it. Strange, but not surprising. The hardest coding was the elevator, the nightstands (had to ditch any use of "drawer"), and the bibles... tragic
The message decoding took long enough that I thought it was broken. Would it have been more obvious that it WOULD take long if I bolded or caps "patiently?" She's not a super sleuth like many folks in here so really big nudges are not cheapening the experience for her haha
"my cover has been blown and I am not in danger". Should this be "*now* in danger" Yep. 2 AM storytelling. Fixable!
Again, thank you so much for taking the time to help out. Looks like version 1.1 will be created this weekend!
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 14, 2017 19:16:00 GMT -5
For anyone still hoping to help out, a new version has been created. The only thing I'm aware of with this version is that at some point a "wrapper" appears in your inventory for no real reason but it's important for a ton of other code to work that I didn't want to rework. I got lazy. It's true. Thanks again for everyone helping out! I have decided to try and design this in a way that it can be reproducible and customizable in the future, so the game is a little extra personalized right now, but I would edit that part out later on for future players of the game. Here is the new link (might be the same): Welcome to the Paris Hotel! |
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Post by Geodus on Jan 16, 2017 3:32:58 GMT -5
More feedback: - After taking the tile at the Crepe Stand, the description for the area still includes: "There is a tile on the floor you could look at."
- I'm confused as to what happens when I go east from the mall. It reads "You are closer to the mural", but if I LOOK, my location hasn't changed.
- At the mall, I typed "put tile in space
" and got "Error running script: No verb response defined" - After "USE TILE ON SPACE" at the mural, the player gets the description of the mural rotating, but the description of the mall doesn't change. It seems a bit confusing the way it is implemented. I wonder if the system you are using allows you to have different room descriptions based on a flag.
- I'm not sure what the purpose of the box office is. I tend to assume everything and every place has a purpose (Chekov's gun)
- "take bible
": "Error running script: No verb response defined
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 16, 2017 9:04:15 GMT -5
More feedback: - After taking the tile at the Crepe Stand, the description for the area still includes: "There is a tile on the floor you could look at."
- I'm confused as to what happens when I go east from the mall. It reads "You are closer to the mural", but if I LOOK, my location hasn't changed.
- At the mall, I typed "put tile in space
" and got "Error running script: No verb response defined" - After "USE TILE ON SPACE" at the mural, the player gets the description of the mural rotating, but the description of the mall doesn't change. It seems a bit confusing the way it is implemented. I wonder if the system you are using allows you to have different room descriptions based on a flag.
- I'm not sure what the purpose of the box office is. I tend to assume everything and every place has a purpose (Chekov's gun)
- "take bible
": "Error running script: No verb response defined
Thank you again! Man these dang verbs are killing me. I think there should be a way I can do some If/Then flags for the descriptors, I just need to figure out what that flag will be. I can't seem to have a "if this has happened then" flag. For example, the gum only sticks to the button if you have chewed it - but the sticking only happens because you now have a wrapper in your inventory, even though the gum is not actually wrapped to begin with. I may be able to make "gum" disappear and change "wrapper" to "gum" but with a different description showing fewer pieces. |
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Post by Geodus on Jan 17, 2017 15:58:17 GMT -5
Couldn't you replace the gum object with another object when you chew it, and then only allow sticking that new object onto the button?
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 17, 2017 16:53:31 GMT -5
Sort of? I just want to avoid requiring the player to then use "chewed gum" instead of just "gum." But when it's chewed it can be replaced with another object with the alias "gum" that has a different behind the scenes name. Which might have been what you were hinting at.
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Post by Geodus on Jan 17, 2017 18:51:58 GMT -5
BTW, I have no idea how the system you are using is implemented; I'm just applying my experience as a programmer to how I would solve the problem using some assumptions about the way their system works. My assumptions could be completely wrong and my suggestion not applicable.
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Post by lucasscooter on Jan 17, 2017 19:48:28 GMT -5
- When I first go into the lobby, the description for the Eiffel Tower has a bit of an excessive number of "and"s. But that's my inner editing Nazi.
 And "smoky" is spelled wrong. - It might be better to put the same message that appears when you try to activate the slot machine on the blackjack and keno tables, to stop silly people from repeatedly trying different verbs on one table for five minutes straight. Not that I did that or anything...
- I have no clue what verb I must use to play John Mayer slots. I need some clarity, but, until then, I'll just wait on the world to change. **EDIT 18 MINUTES LATER** Perhaps "play john mayer" or "look at john mayer slot machine" should be some other options? If that's too hard, I did eventually figure out it was "look at john mayer". I'm starting to realize how silly it is to test this for you with a bad headache. I feel stupid sometimes.
- Unless you're British, Canadian, etc., it's "theater". If you don't care about silly spelling errors, please let me know. I hate coming across like that dude.
- I'll be honest. I am horrible at text-based games. So maybe it's that, but I can't peek through the theater door to see all those delicious secrets. **EDIT 3 MINUTES LATER** I tried every variety of peek, look, search, and glance I could think of. Heh. I realize I just needed to go north. Disregard everything.
- When you look at yourself, you need to change it to "though you're in Las Vegas". But, once again, I'm being that guy.
- "There is a tile on the floor you could look at. You can also see a a tile." This is by the crepe stand. I also can't "eat crepe".
 - For the security guard's dialogue, I would change it to "Sorry, you cannot go up." Firmer, scarier, and more final. But that's just personal preference. Feel free to ignore me. I also can't "poke guard".
- When you go to the security guard, you go east. But when you go west to leave, you're in a buffet. When you go east again, it's back to the gambling floor. Playing around with it, it seems this is a bug.
- I first used "use tile on mural". It took me two seconds to realize it should be "use tile on space", but you still might want to add that possibility.
- I would love more description of the secret room. But, once again, personal preference.
- In guest services, remove the "you" before "eventually".
- "I'm sorry* I cannot help you without your proof of identification." This sentence needs a comma or a period (where asterisk is).
- In the gift shop, ellipses do not have a comma after them. But that's me really being that guy. **Also, in the dialogue with the gift shop clerk. And if I steal the gum (that was an amazing idea, Geodus!). And when I lower the button to the gum.**
- *lavender soap
- The flavor text for the soap should have a comma after "mmm". And "rip off" is either one word (ripoff) or hyphenated (rip-off), depending on preference.
- I would love if the clerk had a new dialogue option after you stole.
- No need for an ellipse when you buy the gum. The clerk is not trailing off, and a period would suffice.
- This isn't a "critique", but the flavor text when you chew the gum is amazing.
- When presenting the ID, there should be a comma after "thank you very much" and "ah".
- "It's full of...bad stuff," would be better.
- Room 1989 does not have a party going on. I could go into Room 1988 even though my key was for Room 1987?
- When you look at the wardrobe in Room 1987 (*and Room 1988*), you actually do not need an ellipsis. Just make a new sentence for the hangers.
- Could not take Bible (like above), but the error response was immediate for me. **Also, could not take paper, with the same results.**
- When you look at the Bible, it should be "between the pages of 2 Kings".
- "You recognize this handwriting! But it's written in a code. Thankfully, you've seen National Treasure, and so you summon the powers of Nicholas Cage and you PATIENTLY decode the message." Add green, delete red. Plus, more hilarity points to you.
 - Copying the note to my clipboard made the continue hyperlink disappear. I hope it wasn't important.
- "I do not know who may find this, but please know that I am okay. Please get word to my husband that I have fled. Tell him that the key to finding where I am heading is with the photo of the place I love and miss very much. Do not try to find me. As you may have deduced, I am working for a special forces sector of the FBI and. I fear my cover has been blown and I am now in danger. Yes, I am a spy for the US government. **Why would she put this in a "public" letter? Plus, she already said she's FBI.** You do not need to tell Edward. He's very clever and I'm sure he will work it out for himself, but I also intend to tell him in my own way. It's important that it not be communicated directly as I fear the house is under watch as well. Yes, indeed I am on the run not only for my own safety, but for the safety of my dear husband. And the safety of our child. It pains me deeply that I have not told Edward him yet, but yes, I am with child. I have possessed such a mix of excitement and fear in my life. **Either delete the yellow or change "have possessed" to "possess".** I must evade the enemy, alert my superiors, and help to bring down this Russian terrorist organization from Russia. When I was assigned to this force, I thought the General **not capitalized unless it's a name** was crazy. Russian spies? What would they want here? But in my code breaking while Edward was at work, I found that it was true, and that there are codes they want - . codes that I have. When I was set to get married, I left the force and had hoped to live a simple life in Savannah with Edward and the rugs. ToBuild our dream like true Americans. But then **kill one** late one night I got the call. And I had to run. Do forgive me. I love my husband and couldn't bear to be the reason he got hurt. He couldn't cannot be involved. But he must know I'm okay. And not to worry. And please, please, do not come for me, Edward. I will be with you soon. - Marilyn
Hope I helped! |
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Post by centaurofattn on Jan 17, 2017 20:12:57 GMT -5
Oh goodness, thank you both! Looks like I have some work to do haha. This client that I'm using to build the game is so interesting. I have to play through it over and over again to see where it inserts punctuation, auto adds objects/scenery into the text, when verbs are synonyms and when they are errors, etc. The further I work on this the more I appreciate other well-built games haha.
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- I wish there were a better "you can't do that" catch all on this interface. It defaults to the error message of no verb response or whatever unless you specifically code it otherwise. I might be able to go in and add an "if not VERB/then" that does that.
And "smoky" is spelled wrong.
