Quite Incurable

Not that I don't have anything better to do right now (for example: sleeping, it's almost 1am), but I've uploaded a new version of Poizoned Mind that runs under Windows Vista without Aero switching off. Note that the URL to the old version (hosted on Willhostforfood) still works - and still points to the old version.

I may release a similar fix for Space Shot during my next bout of insomnia.

One thing I keep toying with is the idea of releasing a "Gold Edition" for Poizoned Mind, with the option to turn on proper line wrapping. But then I always feel a chill breeze, and an electric blue George Lucas materialises over my shoulder, giving me an encouraging nod, and suddenly I feel like maybe I should leave things as they are.

B-Game Competition Ends

Poizoned Mind places 9th out of 29 entries with 15 votes. I was telling myself, "I'll be happy if I get higher than 20th place!" Mission successful. Outside the competition, PM has also acquired some vocal fans here and here - even appearing on indygamer.blogspot.com courtesy of that last writer.

Now let me just link back to the Poizoned Mind page and my monstrous B-game mosaic, before discussing my own favourite entries - all of which you can find in the competition thread. First up, here's the three games I voted for:

Cottage of Doom (1st Place)


B-movie inspiration, B-game implementation, Cottage of Doom is certainly unbalanced and buggy, but it's also enormously fun. Re-enact the end of Night of the Living Dead as you barricade windows and doors in a vain attempt to keep out an endless stream of zombies. This absolutely deserved to place first in the competition - it's the only entry I just can't stop playing.

Hickbilly Bride (5th Place)


A retro-style offering with pixellated graphics and a low frame-rate. You control a gun-toting redneck out to stop his sister marrying his cousin, facing rabid possums and chomping crocodiles en route. Weirdly, Hickbilly Bride turns out to be a puzzle game of sorts, where it's never immediately apparent what you need to do to reach the other side of the screen, but always fun to find out.

Dump Jumper (Joint 17th Place)


A game which in many respects can be considered pretty much broken, it's also got a strong, provocative concept and lots of neat little touches that show the author was really interested in fully developing the idea of pooping on things. To me, that's what this competition was all about (big ideas roughly developed, not pooping - although there was plenty of that too).

---

I was pretty sure that I'd be voting for Cottage of Doom and Hickbilly Bride, but picking out that third game to vote for was really hard. In the end I chose Dump Jumper for its pure B-gameyness. But here were the other games I almost voted for instead:

Betasuppe (8th place)


A platform game controlled by text. A brilliant idea, implemented with a lot of character; it manages to be relentlessly cheerful even when the main character is dying over and over again. There are only about three puzzles to solve, though, even if they did seem to give some people trouble.

Toadzilla (Joint 17th place)


A mutant toad is destroying the city, throwing people into the air, eating them, demolishing their homes... You are that toad! Great fun, well done, but in the end, not quite my cup of tea.

Mario Inna Space (Joint 13th place)


The only fan-game of the competition, this is also strangely the most beautiful. Or perhaps that should be 'the most strangely beautiful'. Iconic video game character Mario is on the moon. Unfortunately this means that his incredible jumping ability is now an enormous handicap, and he spends almost all of his time off the ground, floating through space and (apparently) listening to "Across the Universe" by Fiona Apple.

The combination of music (especially the way it reacts to your actions) and visuals (including a lovely NASA image of Earth) is, well, strangely beautiful, as I said. The incongruently typical Mario-style game over is the icing on the cake. Still, it's almost more a screensaver than a game, and completing it would require hours of trial and error.

---

Once again, you can find all these games here, and my own entry here.

Mosaic-o-Game

So I've finally had a go at each of the 29 entries to the TIGSource B-Game competition - including a 'pirate kart' compilation of 100 mini-games. I've been planning to highlight some of my favourite games in the competition, but I can't shake the impression that this might be a bit unfair on the rest of the games (not that my opinion holds any clout or anything, but I do have a game in the competition myself), so I decided to adopt a more egalitarian approach and create this monstrous B-game mosaic.

In order to preserve the bright colours and pixelly goodness, I've had to upload this as a whopping PNG image, for which I apologise to my narrow-band readers.

The games appear vaguely in alphabetical order, as they do in the official voting thread here. (The bottom right square is of the competition logo, before you go looking for a game about a bespectacled joystick terrorising people.)

NB: I accept no responsibility for what may happen to your sanity if you actually decide to play any of these games.

Poizoned Mind: Release-a-Go-Go

In short: Poizoned Mind is a sort-of text adventure that's a bit silly and a bit philosophical. It was created for the TIGSource B-Game competition. Read all my blog posts on it by clicking here. Download link below.

Ladies and gentlemen. Prepare yourselves for the one game to dare to simulate the futility and meaninglessness of life. Prepare yourselves to discover that you have a...

Poizoned Mind
A B-Game by Pacian

Version 1.02 - Windows - 2.4Mb
Download here!


Be the first to play the game the critics are already calling 'That's fucking awesome.' and 'I can't wait to play this already!'

Features include:

● 8 unlockable Non-Player Characters or 'NPCs' – discover the world as it's seen by a transsexual beauty, an angry punk, a drugged-up biochemist, an Elvis impersonator, a cat, and even Death himself.
● 32 unlockable conversation options.
● A grand total of 8x32=256 dialogue events - some as long as 291 characters in length!
● 17 unique actions to perform – many of which result in random death!
● 5 different items to examine and give away.
● Original score* by Ludwig van Beethoven.
● Small file size (~2.5Mb zipped) ensures sufficient space remains on your hard drive for family photos and love letters.
● A few options to make completely exploring the game a little more forgiving for the WIMPS among you.
● Interact with the environment using the 'z' key, just like a Japanese shoot-em-up.
● Unparalleled lyneWrap™ technology allows text to span several lines.
● Unprecedented player choice, none of which affects the outcome of the game.
● 1 easily accessible ending.

Can you answer the greatest questions facing humanity?

The answer is: no.

*Score not actually original.

NB. Please comment and let me know if you experience any problems.

Update: Poizoned Mind was developed/tested under Windows XP and has so far also successfully been run on Windows 98 and Wine.

Update x2: Version 1.01: Very minor change: thought to include items in the score output.

Update x3: Version 1.02: Now runs under Windows Vista without Aero switching off.

Huh

It seems I've created a complete computer game. Hooray for me! Here is the free Readme that will be included with it:

POIZONED MIND: A TEXTY B-GAME FOR THE THINKING MAN PERSON

by C.E.J. Pacian

--INSTRUCTIONS--

1. Double click on the "Poizoned Mind" icon to run the game.
2. Move the cursor (>) with the arrow keys.
3. Select an option by pressing the 'Z' key.
4. To quit the game or exit a menu, press escape.

--CONTENTS--

In addition to this complimentary readme, the game folder should include the following:

Poizoned Mind.exe
graphics.dat
music.dat
alleg42.dll

All four of these files must be in the same (not zipped) directory for the game to work.

--Admission of Guilt--

Okay, although I promised a score by Ludwig van Beethoven, one of the tunes in this game is actually by J.F.F. Burgmuller, who was a contemporary of Beethoven (maybe), but not actually the same man (probably). I don't need to tell you which tune is his, of course!

--About--

In case you don't already know, Poizoned Mind was created for the TIGSource B-Game Competition or the "low budget, humorous, offbeat, and passionately made games competition" as the organiser has also referred to it. Poizoned Mind is billed as: "The first game to dare to simulate the futility and meaninglessness of life." In other words, you can't 'win' or otherwise achieve anything, but maybe you'll have a little fun along the way. There are literally hundreds of different things to do and see (due to some mild combinatorial explosion), so trying to experience everything the game has to offer is one possible goal to bring to it.

--Version History--

-1.0: Initial, possibly only release. No known bugs, but plenty of room for inane additions. Closing the window during cut-scenes currently doesn't work (very well, anyway) - this is due to laziness.

I've tested the game on my old Windows 98 computer, and it seems to work, but I may release it before the deadline (which is like Wednesday) just to see if anyone else finds a problem with it.

A Mac and even Linux Version of the game is theoretically possible, but would probably involve me having to find a Mac allegro programmer and getting them to compile my source code, which I'm not too keen on. Not least because they'd see all my messy, uncommented code.

Now I am very tired, so please excuse me as I seek refuge from the harsh glare of the thinking box.

Like sands through the hourglass...

Well, the B-Game competition closes next week, so I intend to get Poizoned Mind finished this weekend. Beta testing? Pah! My incomparable artistic vision defies your beta testing!

I've also picked up the DVD-ROM of the first six episodes of the new Sam and Max, so that'll probably eat up my time as well.

And of all the Lovecraft stories published by Penguin Modern Classics, I have one remaining: Through the Gates of the Silver Key . (A 'legal as far as I can tell' version of this story exists online here.) After that, just a heap of comics. All the other books I want to read (numbering five) are still in hardback, so I'm not sure what I'll do. Never mind the extra cost, I don't have the space! Maybe I should just read this bloated David Copperfield book I picked up for 99p ages ago...

Anyway, see you Monday, or better still, Sunday, when I will happily proclaim my B-Game completed!

PS. To my American readers: Sirs and madams, I blow my nose at you.

Even Getting There-er

I would say that most of Poisoned Poizoned Mind is now there. It's like I have a load of fish and a load of rope, and I just need to catch some more fish and then tie it all up into a load of fish in a net. And also write a large number of death scenes.

Getting There

Click to enlarge.

Join Elvis on the Mothership

I'm having too many ideas at once at the moment, I can't focus on any of them.

I'm writing a story, presently meandering to a close. The Sunday Scribblings prompt of 'Goosebumps' a few weeks back encouraged me to try and write a spooky story, but it's easier said than done.

My B-Game - entitled Poizoned Minds, although I have difficult (mis)spelling it - is coming along. There are only two or three features left to add, and then comes the long slog of actually implementing the veritable combinatorial explosion of options that I have planned. (One of those options will be, "Join Elvis on the mothership.")

I've also got a pile of books and comics to read. I'm currently reading Lovecraft's Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath which is hard going enough (for me) that it's taking ages, but compelling enough that I feel guilty if I read anything else.

And then there's everything else that I'm supposed to be doing.

B-Games

TIGSource are holding a 'B-Game' competition, looking for games so bad they're good. I couldn't resist, and neither could about a million other people. My idea for a fundamentally flawed concept was to try and come up with the computer game equivalent of The Seventh Seal. After a lot of head scratching I decided that what that actually meant was that the aim of the game must be to come to terms with the fact that you can't really 'win' or solve the mystery or anything.

To that end, I'm writing a mostly text-based game with hundreds of different options, all of which either (i) uncover more options (ii) kill you or (iii) do nothing helpful at all.

The competition closes on September 13th.