lol this fm is MAD!respect to the author for making something different.
update here: http://http://www.thief-thecircle.com/download.asp?fid=1434
Last edited by ASHASSIN; 8th Jan 2009 at 16:27.
It's... a bit weird. And creepy. But to be honest I didn't enjoy it very much. Not much gameplay and those undead - how to fight them? How to avoid them? Is it possible at all? Did I overlooked a barrel of holy water somewhere there?
And what does it mean that Garrett is dead for 10 years? I don't get it...
Anyway thanks for the author for this quite uncommon FM.
This mission has cardia1 written all over it. And speaking just for me, personally, that's not necessarily a good thing.Originally Posted by ghost_in_the_shell
I played one of cardia1's missions before which wasn't so weird as this oneBut in fact I'm not a FM expert, so probably you are right. I couldn't even guess because I don't play many FMs. But I think that some people will like it much more than I do, It's just a matter of gaming preferences...
Note to players: don't frob the manhole cover on your left when you start the mission, since this will take you right to the end.
Also, I don't quite get it, but I am way behind in popular culture. Catchy J-pop tune, though.
I'm going wtf when the music turned on..i can't climb the ladder and I'm stuck with haunts and zombies everywhere. I'm confused
Last edited by Lawviz; 3rd Dec 2008 at 21:15.
Just started this mission and when read thread was surprised to hear about undead. For first, found music very nice but too loud, it's annoying too much
just wait until after you get the gem
Sorry, I just hid that part of my post, it shouldn't be shown just like that from the beginning.
Little bit crazy mission anyway, even it was not suppose to be "crap" and it doesn't look like crap, I have strong feeling that author expected somebody call this mission "crap"Those problems with no sound from AI after I took gem - assuming it is design part not bug?
What the....! I frobbed the sewer hatch at the very beginning ad a camvator sequence started. At the end of it my computer froze while a crazy music was playing. I had to reboot my pc.
edit
I read the post by Melan just now.....
Well, finished!This mission made me mad at the beginning, since I HATE being forced to ghost. I also hate being killed of course, but in the end it was even amusing...LOL sometimes you have to take it with humor.
I don't think it's by cardia. In his FMs you have to fight and here you don't even have a blackjack, not that it could have been useful.
I think that it's by some crazy taffer...maybe Sluggs?
I found it quite annoying personally, being forced to ghost sucks...
You never knew where they were going to go next, I saved it once and moved, heard the maid coming so I duck into a room dont you know she followed me, reloaded tried a different move and the maid went there too
third time was the trick thankfully.
The mission was well done just not my cup of tea
PS: The ten years reference is for Thief itself I believe. Like it died 10 years ago and we still keep it going here but its still dead.
Last edited by Thelvyn; 4th Dec 2008 at 04:05. Reason: Ten year questions
The author of this mission sent me this response to post in this thread:
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorry about the MANHOLE cover thing, just don't frob it till the end.
The pop culture ref is from the 2004 anime Rozen Maiden, if you've seen the DESU~ meme that's where it's from.
It just happen to be something I watched recently, and thought the creepy doll and music (Kinjirareta asobi - by Ali Project) fit the Victorian era.
Ghosting should be pretty easy(on Normal), the maids and the other AI use the same patrol routes. The maids hearing and vision are also set to "below average".
A quick run-through on Normal can be done in under 3 minutes.
The other AI are not meant to make any sound.
The Music level sounds normal (75% ambient setting in my thief audio control panel), just turn yours down, sorry.
10 years- a ref to the Thief and the contest.
The being dead thing: as far as the story goes, Garrett died when he first picked up the gem, and has been in limbo replaying the last moments of his life over and over.
On a real level: it has to do with quickloads, and redoing a situation over and over to get it just right. but you can make your own reason if you want(please do).
Being forced to ghost and crappy J-pop music turned me off on this one. Although, with me personally - I dont play any mission that forces you to ghost on the lowest difficulty setting. Played through this one to accurately score it when submitting contest scores.
I liked the story twist at the end, but thats about it. That being said - hopefully whomever made this applies their skills with story and setup to a better suited mission.
I was not sure I liked this mission at first but by the time I had finished it I really liked it. I don't have a problem with being forced to ghost and having no weapons so that did not detract from the mission for me. It was a very creative venture in my opinion and the ending explained why the author made the choices he/she did. I was a bit put off by Garrett (my hero) being dead but the post by the author explaining the reference to Thief's 10 year anniversary mollified me somewhat.Though I would venture to say that Thief is anything but dead...just look at this contest (not to mention this community).
Oh, and I liked both music selections very much!
Last edited by Tannar; 5th Dec 2008 at 14:00.
Here's what I thought when I saw the ending: Actually, I was laughing so hard when I heard your deadpan voiceover, I didn't think there was a logical thought behind it at all. I thought you were just trying to mess with our heads.
That was...well, yep, it sure was.
I enjoyed this one, it has an original story and gameplay
Looking foward for more
I can put up with ghosting if it is done correctly. What appear to be dark areas in this mission don't hide Garrett. What turns me off in Ghosting is seeing a way to ghost only to find out you can't go that way because of poorly made shadow areas. The TAC missions have an overabundance of ghosting missions for some reason. The majority of them are well made but not fun.
i also disliked the ghosting, and find metahumor and self reference a bit of an immersion breaker, but the design was overall clean and well built, everything worked. on a design note, the basement wasted a huge amount of space, it could have been a labyrinth of rooms instead of a giant space, and there were no proper shadows (i suspect the lights all had radius 0 which is infinite, and were set to be fairly bright)
I suspect that the author made it on purpose. The way it's meant to go is a final crazy rush to safety. (in my opinion, of course) That's why the obligation to ghost is no more valid. At least, I played it that way.
Too bad that on the first part I was so apprehensive that I didn't dare to entirely explore the house, so I didn't even know of the existance of the basement.....
That was brilliant. I think most of the things you guys see as faults were done that way on purpose for the sake of irony, and any of them that weren't can be easily overlooked for the sheer novelty value of this mission. I started laughing almost as soon as I entered the building. Such a simple heist (just a couple of maids!), such a typical thief setting, such calm, classical music. And despite all this, the first part of the mission was surprisingly difficult and made me nervous for exactly the reasons that make most thief missions so easy: the whole building was well-lit (instead of convenient pockets of shadow everywhere), the AIs simply walked around and looked in the places you needed to be (instead of patrolling right past you as you stand in a corner), and you actually needed to avoid being seen by them (as opposed to easily flashbombing, blackjacking, or killing them if you're spotted, with no real consequence.) Oh, how simple it is to subvert the things with which we long-time thief-players have become complacent, all the little unrealistic details we overlook so that sneaking around unseen in someone else's house seems like no big deal. Most of the time, I'm not into self-aware meta-humor either, but once in a while it's funny - I've played so many 'straight' thief missions, an occasional slap in the face is refreshing.
The second part of the mission was great too. The ridiculous J-pop and the quick flash of a dead body on the floor at the beginning let you know something is 'not quite right', something above and beyond all the other, obviously not right things you run into later. This makes the frantic chase through the maze-ified house all the more surreal and freaky. I admire the FM author's ability to invoke a sense of 'this isn't really happening!', but inside the game. This is a different feeling of 'this isn't really happening!', different than your preexisting knowledge that this isn't really happening because it's a game, a suspension of disbelief inside your suspension of disbelief. The final revelation that it's all going on in Garrett's dead head mirrors the fact that Garrett's entire life is all going on in your own head (and computer). The voice at the end chastising Garrett for indulging in another escape fantasy mirrored the nagging voice in my own head, reminding me I'm indulging in another escape fantasy into Garrett's world even as I try to immerse myself in it. Yes, this author broke the fourth wall, but he/she did it with style.
Definitely wins the award for best WTF moment in an FM this year!
As a stand-alone mission, of course it's pretty weak. But as a bit of fun rolled into a 13-part contest, I thought it was a nice change of pace. The music was a fantastic selection for the kind of crazy-mad dash you had to make to get out. For all the mood and creepiness of some other really great FMs, this one REALLY had my heart racing, as if I'd been CAUGHT after being so carefull to get upstairs undetected! Making my way to the door and seeing that haunt in front of it freaked me out as well!
People who expect their free games to be consistently above average will not like this level. People who can take a joke will love it! I love it!
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