Keen 3 mod: Episode -

Showcase your completed mod here!
xtraverse
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..

Post by xtraverse »

Wow.

I just started playing it, and this is amazing spectacular. I'm currently at level 14, which is quite a beast. This is the first mod in a while that I haven't become bored with halfway through playing.

adurdin, how'd you get it to work in DOSBox? Most mods I try to play don't work for some-odd reason. CKPatch just closes immediately.
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adurdin
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Post by adurdin »

I didn't do anything special that I remember. I mighthave fiddled with the memory emulation settings, but I'm not sure.
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XkyRauh
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re: ckxpatch

Post by XkyRauh »

Works fine for me with all the default settings... :-\ Maybe you tweaked something.

--Xky *who needs a new video card to be able to antialias at more than 1 frame/sec*
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Post by KeenRush »

Works fine for me with all the default settings... :-\ Maybe you tweaked something.
Yeah, this mod works just normally for me as well (as every other mod I've tried with DosBOX. I bet you have done some tweakin' three, xtra. :p
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ckguy
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Post by ckguy »

*eyes pop*

a few seconds later

*eyes pop*

Excellent work yet again, xky!
xtraverse
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Post by xtraverse »

gah!

I just did a clean install and no luck :/
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Post by Ilsoap »

Alright, I give up. Anyone figure out the secret of the Spadling nests, yet?

Oh, and I've found my first gripe about the mod. The Easy mode seems to change nothing except for the length of time that Keen's affected by the watches. Although it would have been a lot of extra work, it would make sense for the easy mode to also have fewer enemies... usually it's not the timer that kills me, the enemies manage to do it first.
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Post by KeenRush »

I haven't found any nest either. :\
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levellord
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Post by levellord »

Actually, once you make a batch file, making fewer enemies is a breze. You can just take your levels on hard, remove a few enemies, and get the batch file to run them.

An option that doesn't create multimegabyte mods is to make the enemies slightly bigger in easy so that some fall through the floor into solid blocks or off the screen.
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adurdin
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Post by adurdin »

I noticed a couple of errors: the egg-shaped tiles and another boulder tile can't be walked past (they block Keen on the sides), but Keen would fall through them...
Also, the notice in the story about the Spadling nests and their placement in the level suggests that they should've been deadly, but they're not.
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Post by CaptainKeen »

wow it's great! challenging levels, great graphics. The timer is also very cool it's funny I have though about the same thing before but then by making the background kill. but that would stop enemies from killing you so it's better to use a patch.
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XkyRauh
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re: Spadlings' nests

Post by XkyRauh »

In the most recent release, the secret to the Spadlings' nests has everything to do with LEVEL05.ck3. It's a poorly worded message... :-) Sorry about that.

There really wasn't a way I could make the Spadlings' nests appear to be made out of viney-green stuff without them appearing deadly. I figured by making one that you HAD to go past to complete the level (LEVEL03) the player would learn to not fear them so much. I originally tried making the nests yellow, like a chicken's nest, and it just came out looking like someone sneezed on the side of the rocks. It's kinda funny how brainwashed we are into thinking that green squiggly lines = deadly obstacle!

When I was having Grelphy playtest the first incarnation of the mod, the player started each level with only 10 seconds instead of 20... the time limit was supposed to be extraordinarily threatening. Grelphy complained about it, so I raised the bar to 20 seconds, and he said that was a better balance--and my playtesters liked it too. Everyone who tested it for me in person ran out of time enough for me to think things were balanced correctly (including CheesyDave)... But to be honest, when I built the first half of the game, I was doing it all with the 10-second-start in mind.

You're correct that Easy mode "just" gives you more time... as I said above, originally the time limits were supposed to be heavily dampening, and the extra time was supposed to be more of a relief. Also in Easy mode, the point values are slightly reduced to compensate for so much extra time, and the stunner pickup gives extra ammo. It was tempting to make 3 different folders and have completely different levels for the difficulties, but like LevelLord indicated, I wanted to avoid multi-megabyte downloads. Live and learn, I guess. :-)

The rocks block on the sides, and not on the top--this was done to stop the Spadlings' shots from "leaking" out into the open air, and to give Keen a bit of a safe spot when dealing with them. If the engine had the capability to do half-block solids, I'd have done that... I figured the top-in method was an acceptable workaround.

Finally, in the story when I said to look out for Spadling nests, again it's my own wording that killed it... There's a difference between a nest of sparrows and a sparrow's nest. Oops. I intended that to indicate that you should be cautious of large groups of Spadlings, or Spadling nests / herds / crowds. The nests themselves are just collections of viney-green-things that they sleep in! :-)

I'm glad XkyKeen3's got more negative feedback than XkyKeen2...

--Xky
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Arg // Woog; Mixed Reaction

Post by CommanderSpleen »

I wasn't too fond of the style. The artwork is awesome, as always, and the levels are well constructed and flow nicely. However, I despise the timer. Maybe it's just infuriating because I normally spend so much time trying to explore every last detail in a level and get every point I can possibly scrounge. "It's not you, it's me."

That very tendency is probably why I haven't finished many mods for a while. I play through the same level over and over, death after death, trying to empty out the level. Then I end up bored and infuriated and finally end up quitting. The same thing is what's held me back from modding of late. It's probably the very reason I haven't found playing Keen, or alot of games, quite as fun as usual. XK3 is a perfectionist's nightmare--just what I needed.

I skipped the levels after about 7 or 8 and sprinted to the last level, which I found surprisingly easy (though it did take me perhaps ten tries to get it right). The ending sequence is classy, I must say.

Good concept, brilliant execution, but it didn't resonate too well with me. One day I'll undoubtedly get stuck back into it and play through the levels I missed. For now, it's reminded me to spend less time aiming for perfection and just get on with it.

>Commander Spleen
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XkyRauh
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re: timer

Post by XkyRauh »

Yeah, I knew I'd get a boatload of mixed reactions for the timer--which is why I went for a controversial style of art, too... Keen3 has always been in my mind a 'throwaway' episode of Keen, and because I'm a completionist, I wanted to get XkyKeen3 out of the way before starting on XkyKeen4.

Ironically enough, because I got so used to playing levels with a "omg faster" mindset, whenever a new mod came out (like Benvolio's trilogy, ShadowKeen2, Essence of Mayhem beta, etc.) I found myself dying trying to rush through every level as fast as possible. It's a fundamental playstyle difference between us, I think--I don't care about the exploration so much as the time trial aspect of it (which explains why I'm a slave to F-Zero GX)...

Either way, I'm glad I could at least stir the pot a little bit and find out what you guys do and don't like. Now I just have to find the time, patience, and creativity to do something better for Keen4.

Anybody find the secrets in level05 yet?

--Xky
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Post by Ilsoap »

Found one of the Level05 secrets.

Keep in mind, Xky, that this is all constructive criticism. The art style was a huge success, in my opinion, and the timer (while it would have been nice to see the timer on screen at all times if that were possible) was a welcome change from anything we've ever seen in Keen, except for the RKP series (sorta).
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