Dearly Beloved, AKA The game I keep talking about

This isn't going to be a traditional Game and Demo topic by any means, but since the question keeps coming up of what the SUPER DUPER SECRET GAME I'm working on is, I'll put all the information I'm willing to give at this point here. Feel free to discuss it (my ego will likely enjoy it), but for the most part I'm keeping details to a minimum.

If the game gets to a demo stage then I will go ahead and release it. I'll likely need help on certain aspects of it eventually, so at that point I'll may tell certain people more or less about the game. I don't want to say this to suggest that I just want to use people, it's just that I'd only want to make a request of something when I know exactly what I want, and I'm certainly not expecting anyone to generously expend their creative resources to my cause. With that said, do not suggest that you can help, because I want to do as much as I possibly can as far as the game's creation.

With all that said, let me continue this topic in a fun-fact style:

- The game will be called Dearly Beloved. I know that's what I've been calling all the In My Heart She Remains games, but it's really just the title for this. As I've said before and as you could probably guess from the previous sentence, the plotline is very heavily based on what I had come up with for IMHSR, as well as RPGM2KBRPG!. With that said, almost everything has been rebuilt from the ground up, so the majority of the content will be unfamiliar to anyone who played the previous games. I will confirm that the game features Rod (not Rodpop, just Rod), Adrielle, Cain, and Carrie, but don't expect any of these characters to be who they were in the previous games.

- This is a collaborative effort between REDDAP and myself. Though I will be the one doing all the actual designing, he's been a huge part of the story making process and has offered invaluable input on other aspects as well. He also will be doing the entire soundtrack, and I can safely say that his work for the game already trumps any of his music for anything else ever by a long shot.

- Unless something happens before the game starts to take definitive form in RPG Maker (which may not be for a while, as I'm spending a lot of time outlining and prewriting scenes), it will be in VX. The current plan is to use the RM2K RTP and RM2K style character sets, which is a little unfortunate to be honest. It does work in the sense of being a homage to classic RPG Maker games which I liked at first, but if anyone happens to have suggestions for an alternative graphical style then I'm all ears. I'm more or less concerned about the tileset, as the charactersets are actually preferred to anything higher resolution.

- There will be, at the very least, one playable character from RPGM2KBRPG! in this game, not including my own creations. I know what a lot of you will probably think about this claim as far as what it means, so all I'll say is that it may not exactly be what you think.
DISREGARD THAT I SUCK COCKS

- As of now, there are eight playable characters. Each one is more or less prominently featured than the others.

- This game features no otherworldly internet like RPGM2KBRPG!. This alone should indicate some of the huge changes made to the plot.

I may add more to this since I likely forgot things I'd like to reveal, but this should clear up any doubt about why RPGM2KBRPG! will never be finished under any circumstances, as well as whether or not I'm still doing Game Making beyond silly game hacks here and there. I know this sounds like a hype thread, but I don't want it to be, because as I said I'm making no promises as to when I'll release anything.

I'll conclude by saying that, as stupid as this will sound, this story has and still does mean a lot to me, and I really want to do this right. It's not some stupid metaphor about me and what I feel in life, but it's just something I want to make. I also understand that I likely sound absurdly arrogant (I probably am), so I will once again state that I don't promise how good it will be or anything like that; I'm only promising that I am working on it at my own pace.

And now you know.

This post has been edited by REDDAP on Sep 17 2009, 03:47 AM

It's probably the best RPGblaH! character.

Mukmaster.

Does this mean no Mukmaster?

Anyway, sounds interesting.

And knowing is half the battle.

And srsly OMGWTFBBQ NEW GAME OMGWTFSHOCK!1111!!!!11!11!!11!1

And... actually seriously, I'm pretty excited for this game providing it gets done, and I won't reveal anything else that Rodpop has said except that perhaps this game really takes the basic premise of RPGM2KBRPG! and more specifically, Rod's character and stuff from Cry Of Emotion, and takes it into darker and edgier territory, yet is definitely a VERY good thing.

I'd also like to just emphasize the fact that neither of us have any idea whether or not this will be finished, so don't be too expecting, but at the same time it's always good to have hope, and yes, SRS, you may actually find out what's up with Rod.

And knowing is half the... Battle... Goddammit REDDAP.

Also, from my lurking in the chat way back like 5 months ago I knew that Dearly Beloved was something that was in planning, but it's cool to see that it's actually going somewhere. Or at least trying to go somewhere.

So is it going to be like, a re-imagining of IMHSR? Because it's going to rely heavily on the original story, unless I read wrong. And that'd be cool, since IMHSR was lacking in some areas but all around a good story. Also lolwtf VX.

Re-imagining is a light way to put it. It's the basic plot of IMHSR with a ton more things fleshed out added, and then directly connected from there into a more expanded version of what Cry Of Emotion was going to be. Except everything is made like over 9000 times better.

Wow, awesome. I never imagined I'd actually get excited for an RPG Maker game again.

Will it be playable without RTP like RPGM2KBRPG? Just wondering if I should download VX.

Also, does this mean there's not an RPGM2KBRPG character or that we weren't supposed to know there was? >.>

Chances are, it will require the RTP. As mentioned, I'm not 100% sure of what I'll do for presentation, but at the very least I'll probably be using RTP for sound effects. However, this is not set in stone and could change, but that's where I'd place my bets.

EDIT: However, on second thought, I probably will want to release stand alone versions of the game as well, but I also don't know what I'd want to do for a demo schedule. With that said, it's your call really.

Any chance you'll let the rest of the Faptastic Four in on this? Because you know I'm always on hand for graphics, even if it's not 100% likely I'd actually finish them *cough*

But given your own work habits, I'm sure I'd have plenty of time to get around to it before final release.

You may have addressed this before and I forgot, but will this actually have gameplay, or will it be more like the interactive-movie type deals it's sorta-based on?

I kind of addressed the first part in the second paragraph of my original post. I can just about say for certain that I'll need your help in terms of sprite edits, so by that merit I'll make sure you know what the hell you'd be working on as well as the context. I may also run by some gameplay systems occasionally with you and Owen since I value your opinion. More so than all the other jerks on this forum mirite lol just kidding guys.

I did go over the second part with you before, but it does deserve mentioning. Although the way the game progresses may or may not be unconventional (I won't comment on this unless/until I'm ready), it will be a standard RPG for the most part. In other words, definitely not a movie, and definitely not 20 minute cutscenes for every 5 minutes of gameplay.

Just to entice you guys with what the soundtrack will be like a bit...


DEARLY BELOVED TITLE THEME, NOW WITH 100% LESS GUITAR SOLOS

[22:38] ♡♤♧♢ (demonicchocobo): I don't like this as much as his other stuff for some reason. Well, at least not the first minute. After that it gets better. I think it has more to do with my personal preference though.

[22:41] ♡♤♧♢ (demonicchocobo): Yeah, now that I've listened to the whole thing, the first minute feels kind of sloppy, but everything after that is really good.

GOD. FINALLY.

Looking forward to this, really.


...Yes that really IS all I have to say about it.

Of course, a title theme not getting good until a minute in isn't really a good thing, because you're generally only going to spend a few seconds on the title screen at a time. >_>

The irony is that Rodpop and I actually thought the slower first minute would be better since otherwise it just jumps right into the main thing.

WE WERE WRONG! AAAAAAAAAAH!