LANCELOT'S HANGOVER: A whole life to find the Holy Grail. One alco, Indie, funny and vintage point and click in developement Opzioni

[declerfayt]

LANCELOT'S HANGOVER

A whole life to find the Holy Grail
One alcohol-filled night to lose it









Lancelot's first beta is available!

Free! 20-minute-long!
Including knights in underwear!



http://www.lancelotshangover.com/point-and...o-game/download

This first beta shows you what will be the humour, the dialogs, the main characters and the graphical style of the game. A later beta, scheduled for October 2014, will introduce you the funny puzzles and the point-and-click gameplay.

Don't be shy, mate: click on the screenshots to see them bigger!

Hi everyone

First of all, sorry for not speaking Italian. I'm from Belgium and I'm designing a funny and old-school point and click adventure game for PC and Mac.

Here's the pitch:
After a 10-year quest, Lancelot and his fellow Gawain have found the Holy Grail! Immediately informed, King Arthur runs to meet the most valiant knights of the Round Table. While their king brings them fortune and fame, Lancelot and Gawain celebrate their victory over a few beers. The next morning, Lancelot wakes up in his underwear in a gay bar. The keeper tells him that he has lost the Holy Grail playing cards and Gawain has been kidnapped by environmental activists. If he does not want to be killed by Arthur, Lancelot has to get back the Grail and his companion in arms before the king of Britain discovers what happened.

I've started this thread on this forum to introduce you the game's developpement. I will be extremely glad to get your comments, advices and suggestions. My goal is to provide you the funniest point and click I can.

If you have questions about the sorywriting, the making of the artworks, the code stuff, the list of all psychoactive drugs consumed to craft the puzzles and the 'creative' businness plan behind the game financing (and yes, all the rumours about the offshore accounts and the ties with the Russian mafia you read on the Internet are true!), feel from to drop me a comment. I'll make my best to reply the most sincerely I can.


If you want to test the game, a beta is coming very soon. I'll give a download link on this forum. Or if it's handier for you, I'll tweet the link on @Lancelot_game

Thanks

Jean-Baptiste

Very Important (although boring) Legal Stuff

The European Commercial Court of Justice (ECCJ), held on 8th February 2014 in Brussels (Belgium), stated that:

• The author of the video game called "Lancelot's Hangover" is no more allowed to include in his playful-oriented computer program any puzzles that can be solved in a logical manner. The player, to progress through the game, must always use, one by one, all the objects in the inventory on all the different objects and characters within the game (and if possible, several times). In addition, only websites in Serbo-Croatian language will be willing to publish a text walkthrough (which must first be encrypted using the SHA-512 algorithm).
• The author of the video game "Lancelot's Hangover" will also break any contacts with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un by 23th June 2014 and will provide a urine sample, every Tuesday morning, at The European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) until 1st January 2017 inclusive.

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 6 Aug 2014, 19:00

[AprilSkies]

Hi Jean-B,
So happy to saw your game here.
I hope some italian gamer/developer wants to join your team in beta-testing.
Post here when the beta version is ready.

And thanx for sharing your developing pictures.

Ragazzi, idea super divertente!

Messaggio modificato da AprilSkies il 29 May 2014, 15:38

[Ragfox]

This is a very nice project.
I really like the graphic style (it reminds me of Terry Gilliam's work).

I see you used Bernard in the youtube splashscreen; I would advise you to remove it. You don't need to use things like that (not-so-subtle references to other adventure games, I mean): they reek of "amateurish".
You already have a very strong visual style without resorting to tricks like that. The Carebears are ok, as they are a "pop" reference not tied to the point and click genre.

Keep us posted.

[declerfayt]

Thanks AprilSkies for your support and advice

Thanks also Ragfox! Terry Gilliam, WOW! you hit my heart I understand what you mean with Bernard. I'm gonna think of another splashscreen. Thanks for the advice!

[AprilSkies]

Let's talk about features in your game.
How the iterface will be? How long it will be? Will it have voice lines? and so on...
I'll translate ur answers.

Ragazzi ho chiesto di spiegarci un po' le caratteristiche del gioco; interfaccia, longevità prevista, se ci saranno doppiaggi, ecc. ecc.

[declerfayt]

• The interface will be quite simple. All actions will be contextual (no SCUMM-like interface). Just a one-button click to talk with the character and watch/pick up objects. An inventory section with drag and drop interface. A conversation tree when Lancelot talks with characters.
• I plan the whole game to provide 4 to 6 hours of gameplay, but I'll probably split it in several chapters. Depending how fast goes the production (I do all by myself, so it takes loooooooooots of time
• No voices. It's partly because I don't have the budget to hire good actors, but it's mostly because I prefer the old-school way. Reading text lines (instead of earing actor's voices) gives players freedom to imagine character's voices (like when you read a novel or a comics). I missed this aspect in point and clicks released after the mid-90's.
• I plan the first beta to be release before July.

Thanks for the questions AprilSkies and for the translation

[AprilSkies]

Thanx declerfayt, I'll translate to italian fellows.
(about voice lines I know. Low budget is a problem. I have the same problem in my games... and I like old-school-way too.)
(And I also understand you talking about develop time 'cause I do the same. I do all by myself)

L'interfaccia sarà semplicissima. Nessuna interfaccia stile SCUMM o stile sierra. Ci sarà un semplice click del mouse per camminare, interagire e parlare. L'inventario sarà drag and drop. Quando Lancillotto parla con i personaggi saranno visualizzate le opzioni di dialogo.

Come ha in mente, il gioco si attesterà sulle 4-6 ore di gioco, probabilmente diviso in capitoli. Il tutto dipenderà da quanto sarà veloce lo sviluppo. Fa tutto da solo quindi potrebbe servirgli molto tempo.

Al momento non sono previsti doppiaggi, causa budget (ovviamente) ma anche perché gli piacciono le cose old-school: potere all'immaginazione. Quando si leggono solo i testi, senza sentire le voci si è liberi di immaginare. questa cosa si è persa nei giochi post-anni-90.

La prima Beta è prevista per luglio.

Messaggio modificato da AprilSkies il 31 May 2014, 16:48

[Gamanek]

I'm lurking with intense thoughts about if all this will be full of that silly humor of the opening post I like it somewhat

[declerfayt]

Thanks a lot Gamanek

AprilSkies: about voices, bad acting can ruin a game, litteraly. I don't know about the Italian version, but French voices of Simon The Sorcerer 2 were awfull, although the game was brillant! (back in the mid-90's, when CD-ROM came out, there were tons of ruined games because of the voices) Plus, now in 2014, gamers are used to perfect acting in games, so amateur acting will be even more destructive. So it's way better (and safer) to keep silent text lines

[AprilSkies]

Good point actually. Thanx for giving me something to think about.

I'm going to translate that:

Dice, in merito al doppiaggio, che un cattivo doppiaggio può letteralmente rovinarti il gioco. Non sa la versione Italiana, ma ad esempio quella Francese di Simon the Sorcerer 2 era scandaloa, per quanto il gioco fosse geniale. negli anni 90 quando iniziarono ad uscire le versioni CD-ROM, tonnellate di giochi furono rovinati dai doppiaggi. Inoltre oggi, in cui i giocatori sono abituati a doppiaggi professionalissimi, un doppiaggio "amatoriale" può risultare ancor più distruttivo.
Quindi è meglio e più "sicuro" lasciare i testi "silenti".

Come dargli torto!

Che ne pensate?

[LargoLagrande]

Che ne pensate?

Hmmm...penso che sia meglio contattare traduttori professionali, preferibilmente giovani (non importa se non hanno moltissima esperienza)
e magari appassionati di videogiochi, ci sono moltissimi esperti linguistici che non chiedono cifre elevate (abbordabili
anche per un progetto indie) , altri che si mettono a disposizione quasi gratuitamente perchè condividono
la bontà di un progetto. Per non parlare dei giovani disoccupati che si dedicherebbero volentieri.
Insomma io credo che cercare di curare ogni particolare sia la strada giusta .
Anche perchè sono convinto che ciò che renda meraviglioso l'universo indie sia la capacità di unire tante professionalità di giovani e meno giovani ,
che a volte non riescono ad incanalare le loro competenze elevate e il loro entusiasmo, la loro passione in progetti adeguati,
gente che spesso ha difficoltà a trovare sbocchi professionali all'altezza delle loro capacità.

Dopo aver conosciuto abbastanza la scena indie italiana e molti autori, posso dire senza timore di esagerare che, soprattutto in Italia,
l'indie è un'ottima vetrina, un modo di mostrare cosa si è capaci di fare, per chi spesso rimane nell'ombra, non ha un lavoro nel campo
desiderato (a volte non ha proprio un lavoro), per chi sogna di trasformare un giorno una grande passione in una professione.
In pochi ci riusciranno, poco ma sicuro, ma si tratta comunque di un percorso di crescita personale che spesso ti insegna tanto in termini di autodisciplina,
disponibilità a lavorare in gruppo, sacrificio, elasticità mentale, inventiva, capacità di adattamento e tanto altro.

L'indie può dunque essere anche un modo per esaltare qualsiasi capacità e professionalità non sfruttate a dovere
(dal traduttore al disegnatore, passando per il programmatore o il musicista)
un modo per crescere. Esperienze forse non remunerative dal punto di vista economico ma sicuramente formative, in un
modo o nell'altro.

[Gamanek]

Mh, I actually would try the way of amateur dub like also LArgo suggests, jean... I mean, you could always try to do some casting on youtube and/or on dub forums... maybe if you find someone, he/she will ask a sum, but that's worth trying nonetheless, imho. There are many interested and interesting guys/girls on AND around the dub scene who just need/want to be known.

That's my opinion anyway, a silent game isn't a bad game

P.S. in italiano: in sostanza, perché non prova la strada del dubbing amatoriale? (molto spicciola messa così in effetti ) Largo non ha tutti i torti a dire che comunque chiedono anche piccole cifre. Chi non vorrebbe avere un po' di curriculum?

Messaggio modificato da Gamanek il 1 Jun 2014, 15:53

[AprilSkies]

JB Largo wrote a lot of interesting things... I'll translate asap :-)

[declerfayt]

I've Google Translate Largo's very interresting post, and I think get the main idea. I didn't really think about it, but indeed being a part of a indie video game developement can be interresting for young actors/dubbers. It could provide them a useful experience.

One reflection though, about voices in point and click games: I think Full Throttle made sort of a breakthrough in the genre. Before this game, point and click was one of the most popular genre in the computer game scene. The bugdets growed a lot (one million dollar for King Quest 6!), as well as the technology (CD-ROM and Pentium providing more multimedia content). With Full Throttle (although it's a good game!), adventure game became more cinema-oriented (more cinematics, deeper characters and stories, voices), but the success of adventure game decreased. Weirdly the more money developer puts in games, the less they succeed (think of all those FMV craps ;)). I think it's because with the higher professionalism of point and clicks, gamers compared those games to films - and although I love Full Throttle, I don't think the story was good enough to make a good commercial Hollywood film. The charm of the golden age of adventure games (Indy 3 and 4, Monkey 1 and 2, DOTT, Simon The Sorcerer) came from their technical limitations. They were rather more like comics books than films. I had a more personnal link with those early games, because while playing it, I litterly felt the developper used very same sort of silly jokes and humour I made with my friends, and not high-polished-Hollywood-style production. With Lancelot's Hangover, I don't want to make players think they watch a commercial film. I rather prefer they feel like we're in a bar together, and we just make silly jokes between friends Good Amateurism is a great tool, I think, to create those kind of personnal link between a developper and his players.

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 2 Jun 2014, 11:45

[The Ancient One]

Hi, delerfayt, and welcome to OldGamesItalia!

Your game looks great! I'll undoubtly play it as soon as you'll release it.
And I really love the graphic style.

Your last post is very interesting, too.
I also think that adventure game from the golden age were wonderful and that the technical limitations of that years were what made those games so damn good!
No real actor will ever be able to act a smile like that of zak McKraken! And it was just a few pixel...

Please, let us know about the progress of your game!

[declerfayt]

No real actor will ever be able to act a smile like that of zak McKraken! And it was just a few pixel...

You said it right amigo!

Thanks for your compliments The Ancient One I'll keep you posted when the beta is available!

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 2 Jun 2014, 17:05

[LargoLagrande]

The charm of the golden age of adventure games (Indy 3 and 4, Monkey 1 and 2, DOTT, Simon The Sorcerer) came from their technical limitations. They were rather more like comics books than films.

I totally agree with you declerfayt. I think that the "golden age" of adventure games was really a time of true passion, talent and risk taking. Most of the games you were talking about were written and developed by people who were experimenting and were supported by farsighted investors. Great gameplays, great story-writing, great humour. Playing an adventure game of 80s and early 90s was a unique experience. That just went away almost completely, today adventure games are just a product of small productions excessively market oriented, I mean we can't blame them , they need those few bucks to survive. Big publishers will never go back to adventure games. Only indie game-makers have the freedom to do games as they wish and by doing this they are the only one capturing the spirit of traditional adventure gaming.

[declerfayt]

Most of the games you were talking about were written and developed by people who were experimenting and were supported by farsighted investors.

I totaly agree with you Largo!

• Farsighted investors: George Lucas founded Lucasfilm Games in 1982. Regular investors would take no risk, and make games around Star Wars. For the first decade, Lucasfilms Games didn't make any Star Wars games, but this studio took risks and create one of the most popular computer game genre of the late-80's and early-90's: point and click adventure game.
  
• Experimenting: there's a very cool (and funny) video of Ron Gilbert talking about that. The whole video is an amazing and inspiring must-see, but this bit of the video is gold!

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 3 Jun 2014, 20:19

[declerfayt]

Lancelot's first beta is available!

Free! 20-minute-long!
Including knights in underwear!



http://www.lancelotshangover.com/point-and...o-game/download

The very first playable beta of Lancelot's Hangover is available! It's 32.7 megabytes and 20 minutes of medieval fun, including 256-color VGA graphics in 1080p for later-than-1995-Pentium users! And it's free!

This first beta shows you what will be the humour, the dialogs, the main characters and the graphical style of the game. A later beta, scheduled for October 2014, will introduce you the funny puzzles and the point-and-click gameplay.

All bug reports, suggestions, comments are welome! Don't be shy! I will be glad to hear from you!

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 6 Aug 2014, 19:01

[The Ancient One]

Wow! Wonderful!

I'll try it out in the next few days!

[AprilSkies]

Hi declerfayt,
It's wonderful. Great artwork and really funny.

As I wrote on AGS official forum, the only point could be missing interactions. Atm the Demo only consists in a prologue with some dialogues here and there.
So, my advice is: as far as I see it would be a commercial game, so I think that the best idea would be to rename it into "Prologue". If players read "Demo" they expect a full game experience... And this way they could think the game consists only in dialogues. You can go on, and make a Demo later, showing more about game mechanics (such as intracting with objects, rooms, characters... using invetory.. and so on).

But still terrific work.

Messaggio modificato da AprilSkies il 8 Aug 2014, 16:19

[declerfayt]

Thanks guys for the support!

Prologue is a brilliant idea, AprilSkies! Thanks !!!!! I've just updated Lancelot's downloading page!!!

The Ancient One: look forward to get your feedback!

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 10 Aug 2014, 18:18

[declerfayt]

The whole storyboard of Lancelot's Hangover is finally finished!

Everthing is on the walls: the puzzles, the story, the cutscenes, the characters. All I need to do now is finishing all the drawings, wire the whole thing in the game engine, make a bit of code - and the game is done!



As a bonus, here's some brand new drawings from the game!

Click to enlarge the pics

[declerfayt]

Greenlight !!! Yes !!!

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/file...s/?id=340704190

[declerfayt]

New free beta!

Hi everyone It's been a long time!

Just a quick post to announce Lancelot's new free beta! Thanks to all your suggestions, advice and feedback, the game had changed a lot! No more prologue, you go straight into action! More gameplay! More puzzles! But still the very same humour and political incorrectness

Watch the new 50-sec trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UzO3Sy73kw

If you're curious, the download (120 Mb) stands here: www.lancelotshangover.com

Of course, all your suggestions, advice and feedback (good or bad) are again warmly welcomed and, as you can notice, I do use them a lot to improve the game's experience!

All the best!

Jean-Baptiste (Belgium)

Messaggio modificato da declerfayt il 12 Mar 2015, 22:54