Okay guys, just finished a new video update. Hope you guys like it alright. I'm still getting used to Vegas. =/

Holy crap dude.

I'm all for progress updates; I love 'em. But when they span 25 minutes, that's a huge time sink.

in response to your vid, i think part of the problem i am having is that my town dungeons are housed on a single map. each room is spaced so you cant see it and i know i could of saved some space by putting them in their own dungeon field but i choose not to. i have made 300 dungeons so far and ive tried to use the presets sparingly and pimped them out when i did. some of my dongeons are quite large and take up plenty of space in that manor, but i like the way they look and the level of detail ive put on them so i dont regret the choice ive made.

perhaps the issue is not that we are eating up different levels of sys data but that your eating up considerably more scen data then i am. you are doing huge amounts of backtracking which means you have less space for new stuff. this means you need to change scen data far more often then i need to. also i see your game is very heavy on the story text and this eats space so perhaps that also means your scen data is drying up like a desert. it could also mean that perhaps im not fully maximizing my space as well as i could be.

even still the larger picture is that i am content to get 3 scen datas out of a single sys data as i dont intend to do much backtracking. i find that i need the new sys card to add new sprites to spruce up my game and supplement some of the missing futuristic sprites. also ive found that returning to old areas doesnt yield anything new and return visits are generally boring. instead i push for new stuff and this works for my game. we have two different schools of thought but both work separately for us and we both use similar methods of space conservation.


i am looking forward to playing your game. ive used it as fuel to keep my game going forward knowing that i have a story to tell. once finished we can both look back and appreciate the journey and work it took to get there.

Gotta say, I think we'll be able to "look back on the journey it took to get here" and appreciate the work during many sessions of game creation, the last time we made up a town just a few weeks ago being one of them, ... but dammit, there were some not-so-appreciable times, too.

For instance, that time we lost almost all of scenario 1 just when we were about to do some SOE work at my grandparents' house in Chattanooga? Because we hadn't quite yet discovered the saving grace of the dex drive? Not very fun.

Or that time the game froze right in the middle of saving three hours' worth of text and I had to do it all over again? Not fun, either.


... Since I am in the midst of being nostalgic right now, though; I tell you now, Lantis, one of our best hang-out times was the very first time we created Kalinka in the original SOE almost eight years ago. It was very close to Christmas, too, and Kalinka is a town with a wintery setting. ... 'Just seemed appropriate.

Sorry it's been a while since the last update. So to hold you over, here's a poster I made using Lamar's work.



I also updated the media thread to reflect all the images we've posted as of late.

So, I've been playing MKR on the Saturn, and I'm curious....just how much inspiration was MKR to SoE? Were you and your gang all big fans of the show?

Well, yeah, quite a bit. I'm not sure about Lantis, but MKR instantly became pretty much my favorite anime series of all time the moment I first saw it over a decade ago (although because it is anime, that's not saying THAT much, might I add), so in terms of how inspired this remake of SOE is by Rayearth, on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being not at all and 10 meaning that the game is an obvious direct ripoff of Rayearth, I would give it a 7.

... There's no princess to rescue at the same time as saving the world in SOE, however.

Yeah, MKR heavily influenced the game. But the story and how it unfolds is all original.

I just finished watching the latest video update and things are looking damn good. I really like the tracks running thrugh the dungeon the way they do. It's crazy to see such a huge project like this nearing completion. I can't wait for the chance to sit down and play it. Keep up the good work.

Minor update. SK has given me all that's left in scenario 14. I've gone a good ways into it and should finish it up this week. Out of the 10 chapters in our game, we are working on chapter 9, so we are slowly encroaching on getting this 100% done.

Assuming I have the data left, I'm working on a mini-game for learning a new skill. I want to kind of emulate inputting directional combinations like you would in a fighter. Though there's no real way to make a time limit to put in said combination... so you could just slowly do it. We'll see though.

But with this, Scenario 14 will be complete. Which just leaves one more scenario (two at most) left for the entire game.

experiment with invisible events with the move close to party movement. as i was reading you conundrum i thought that it could be possible to have it so the event comes down and activates something different by touching the party. with an arrow selection game like this you have a d-pad off to the side controlled by the party as a 5 square on unmovable tiles. the moving events would need to walk on tiles so there will be some issues with the party moving in a direction which would make the screen funny before youd send the char back. this way you could simulate lost time through an interaction with this feature.

good to see your still making progress on your game.

Actually, I already have a game in place. It still needs some work, but I think what's there will work. The person instructing you preforms an action (which is just spinning one direction, attacking, spinning the other, and attacking again) which you need to emulate with the D-pad and X. And everything works as intended too. The only problem is that the method in which you input the command is really really picky. If you linger on any direction more than a super split second, it thinks you pushed that direction twice... which results in you failing the input. I'm going to experiment with waits in between the button presses to try and match the natural speed someone would rotate the D-pad. It's still possible right now, but you have to sit there and take your time and press each individual direction as quickly as possible. And I kind of thought of something like you suggested, but I think I'd rather have it LOOK good without strange screen movements. And besides, if anyone plays this and isn't well versed in RM1, they won't know there is not time limit anyways.

Anyways, I've finished up all the rest of the work for Scenario 14. There's a few minor things I need to go back and tweak (like in the previous paragraph) but for the most part, we're ready to move on to 15.

Another option is doing something similar to how I did the ghost-fighting mini-game I showed off at MacCon '09.

that was a really neet trick you did for that one. so a few different options out there. amazing how out of the box we all are.

Well, guys. I've got some good news and some bad news.

The good news is that we've finally figured out exactly how many scenario cards total the game will be as we're close enough know to know for sure. There will be 17 total scenario cards. 15 will be the build-up for the end of the game with the final few dungeons left in the game. 16 will be the optional dungeon(s) and final dungeon. And 17 will be the final fight and end of the game. Because of the layout, by the end of 16, you will be prompted with that whole, "This is it. There's no turning back now" bit so we'll have to suggest making a different save file if you ever want to go back.

The bad news is related to the limitations of RPG Maker 1 (I'm sure to no one's surprise). Because we had such a hard time squeezing in everything we did in every scenario, we weren't able to allow full control of 8 party members till Scenario 15 and on. The final of the 8 characters don't join you till the very very end of 14. I realize how kind of crappy it is you don't have control of your party until so late in the game, but SK and I tried everything we could to fit the story and memory constraints. Around Scenario 13 we really start making the game a bit linear. As more and more towns were being made, we had less and less room for plot line progression each new scenario card. So we had to block off going back at times so we could delete a down to make room for storyline. And I'm genuinely concerned that it hurts the game overall having to do this. But through a lot of careful planning and a lot of talking, SK and I were able to make it where the world opens up at 15 and allows you to back track anywhere you want AND allow for full control of your 8 party members. Again, I know it's really late in the game for this, but it's the best we could do. *insert sad face emoticon*

Well that tears it: I'm not gonna play this game.

Considering how late into the game the quest takes a linear turn, I don't think it'll be an issue.

Likewise both Final Fantasy 8 and 9 prevented you from being able to truly backtrack anywhere once you hit the final disk, so I don't see an issue with being unable to backtrack at that point. Heck, as long as you're prompted at that "no turning back now" point whether you want to proceed or head back, it'd be better than what FF8 and 9 did.

My only question is: does that final party member get any character development prior to joining the party?

Absolutely. This character is by no means new when he/she joins you.

Then there's no issue. After all, we all understand the limitations that RPGM1 forces upon you. The fact that you guys were able to create a game of this scope in the first place is impressive enough.