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Zep's Dreamland Complete!
Derezo
Member #1,666
April 2001
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I take it you're coming over for christmas, 23?
I must prepare everything! I've been waiting for this day since last christmas!!! ;)

Anyway. I came to this thread.. because I am stuck on level 12...........any tips? :P
I thought.. maybe if I block the portal, then go through the other side, it might do something new... but I can't see how that's possible.

"He who controls the stuffing controls the Universe"

Chris Katko
Member #1,881
January 2002
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23: I know cronotrigger music, it's not. He said he did his own. IIRC, in this very thread.

-----sig:
“Programs should be written for people to read, and only incidentally for machines to execute.” - Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs
"Political Correctness is fascism disguised as manners" --George Carlin

Ceniza
Member #2,027
March 2002
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Ultio: Is level 40 supposed to be impossible?

Really, I've been trying a lot of things and cannot find a way to finish it or even get thru the first tunnel/portal.

The big problem is that I didn't save level 40 and there was a brownout so I must start from level 37 again :/

Once again, pretty nice work.

About the "music", I cannot say, I have MIDI off and I've never felt any interest in MIDI "music".

BTW, continue visiting us @ #allegro :)

ReyBrujo
Moderator
January 2001
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Typo in third tutorial: "See? I could not build and Up Block while standing..." (should be an instead of and).
Just wondering... I was trying the tutorial until the third one, then pressed ESC and NEW. The first level brought statistics like Time Spent: 19', blocks created 29, destroyed 14, restart 4... I didn't do it!

Great game. I am now stuck at level 12. A pity I am not good with these kind of games :P But got me thinking in this darn summer heat for some hours. Congrats!

--
RB
光子「あたしただ…奪う側に回ろうと思っただけよ」
Mitsuko's last words, Battle Royale

ImLeftFooted
Member #3,935
October 2003
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Quote:

Known Issues
============

Version 1.0:
- On some systems with specific settings level sets will not show up on the Level Set Selection screen whether or not they are in the appropriate folder or not. I have only encountered this with one single system. If you entounter this on your system, please, make sure to email me with your system specs, including your Operating System, as well as your File System type, along with all other general info (ram, processor, etc).

I got this error when trying to cheat ::). i couldnt beat level 17 so i renamed 17 to 16 and 16 to 17. maybe the one computer that this is happening on did the same thing?

EDIT: tho it isnt much use here, ill say it anyway:

92 RAM, celeron win 98 FE. Im pretty sure its FAT32... if u really wanna kno i can figure out for sure.

EDIT: Puzzle games drive me crazy to the point where i cant stop. One time when i installed knopix on my computer, i found a puzzle game that had a marble thing that you controled with the mouse and had to do crazy puzzles that were insanely hard. I spent about a week straight doing 60 or so really really hard levels. ugh. well as a biproduct im pretty good at them :).

So far its looking like a great game, except that the plot is sort of lost as you go through the levels. maybe just a little thing that shows zep and some text saying "after wandering through dream portals for a few hours, zep finds himself at a large staircase" or something. it would add a lot to the game. bring it from addictive to addictive and ...whats the word... story based, interactive, intresting.... and could also use support for other music types besides just midi. that is a bunch of work tho and maybe u should just leave it the way it is.

But, its still a GREAT game :D:)8-)

Inphernic
Member #1,111
March 2001

Same as Ceniza - level 40 seems impossible. There just doesn't seem to be any way to reach the first portal.

A really nice and polished game. A nice brain exercise for 2-4 hours (the levels aren't that hard and they run out quickly :(). Can't comment on the music because this computer doesn't have speakers. :)

ImLeftFooted
Member #3,935
October 2003
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ok, i finished the game now. Well except for 32, 38, 40, and the credit level. 40 and the credit level are impossible tho.

32 and 38 i just couldnt get :P. just wanna say it one more time, this is definetely a great game:)

EDIT: I'd love to make some levels except the editor is giving me an error saying i need a 15bit graphics card:p. maybe u could provide an editor for us low end users that doesnt need the extra vram?

Kanzure
Member #3,669
July 2003
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Nice game, very addictive..Curse you. I was sleeping last night, and I couldn't get over the fact that I didn't get past level 10...ugh..Worthless addictions.

Nice game, great music. Sequal?

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

Ok. A lot of replies as I was gone for all of yesterday. :) I'm going to try to get to everyone.

Quote:

Surely no-one is so dumb that they need 'move right' and 'move left' to be explained as two separate things? And statements like "Tunnels are pretty simple, really, they are just literally tunnels" - no need.

What about my little 9 year old sister? It would help her. I intended the game to be playable for little children (if there were easy enough levels created). I wanted to explain everything in the tutorials, and moving left and right is considered everything. Tutorials alway seem to be boring and long when you understand half the stuff that's being explained; but when you don't know anything they can be very informative.

Quote:

I also noticed that after doing all 4 sections of the tut and completing level 1, the time/steps/blocks formed screen seemed to include all the tutorial, too (12 minutes to finish level 1?)

That's definitely a bug where the counters from the tutorial levels are just appended onto the main game when you start. Easily fixed. Just need to reset the counters. Thanks for that bit of info. :)

Etwinox said:

What program do you use to compose it? I'm currently using NoteWorthy for MIDIs and Modplug Tracker for modules.

I'm glad you liked the music. Rain, Unda, and Falling Dreams were all written years ago by myself using a freeware midi composition program called Massiva. It is no longer freeware, but it's a good program nonetheless. For some of the other midi's I just composed them using ModPlug Tracker with midi instruments and then outputted into midi format. ;)

And all of the music is original. Stated in this same thread as well as in the readme file. But! If you do wish to hear real Chrono Trigger music, just plop a few midi files in the folder. TaaDaa!

Ceniza said:

Ultio: Is level 40 supposed to be impossible?

Yes, it's beatable. :) They all are. What kind of question is that? :D For level 40, there's a lot of backtracking involved, as well as building "bridges" to allow yourself to actually backtrack. Bridges which then will be destroyed later on so you can get through the tunnels. Something like that. ;D

ReyBrujo said:

Typo in third tutorial: "See? I could not build and Up Block while standing..." (should be an instead of and).

Yep. Definitely a typo. And as for the incorrect level stats, that's due to the tutorial and is addressed earlier in my post.

Dustin Dettmer said:

I got this error when trying to cheat . i couldnt beat level 17 so i renamed 17 to 16 and 16 to 17. maybe the one computer that this is happening on did the same thing?

Renaming the levels has nothing to do with incorrect level sets. Each level contains information inside it as to what level it is and what level comes after it. If you simply change the name of the level, it will load things all wrong and incorrectly. :)

Quote:

I'd love to make some levels except the editor is giving me an error saying i need a 15bit graphics card:p. maybe u could provide an editor for us low end users that doesnt need the extra vram?

I thought this would come up. I'm assuming it won't run because your graphics card doesn't support a 800x600 windowed mode program in that graphics setting. There is hope, though. I anticipated this and made a fullscreen version of the editor (kind of hidden). Simply create a shortcut to the editor and append "-f" to the comman-line that calls it. Then the editor will run in fullscreened mode. :) Hope it works.

Well guys, thanks for all your comments. I'm so glad to see ZD had a nice and positive launch, despite some of the hidden bugs that lurk around in there. Once the bug finding starts to die down I will release a patch which will contain fixes for all of them; as they are pretty easily fixable.

I realize that some people have some issues with things such as the tutorial length, music, etc, but this is something that could really be debated forever. Some people think the tutorial is fine, while others do not. Same for the music, etc etc. I guess it's just one of those, you can't please everybody things. Just remember, you can replace the music with your own; and you aren't required to watch the tutorials. So is it really all that bad? :) I hope not. I'm glad you're all enjoying the game. Some of you have already beat it by now, I'm betting (without cheating). Shame on you. All that work to be defeated in a few measly days. Hehe. Well, that's what the editor is for.

Everyone, feel free to make some levels and let me know about it. I would be glad to put some new level sets up on my site to continue Zep's Journey. And for those of you who HAVE completed the game; what did you think of the ending? Thoughts, comments? Feel free to PM me about if it will contain any kind of spoiler info.

EDIT:

Quote:

Nice game, great music. Sequal?

There may not be a Zep's Dreamland II, but rest assured; you will definitely see Zep in another one of my games in the future. ;D

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

Kanzure
Member #3,669
July 2003
avatar

Quote:

There may not be a Zep's Dreamland II, but rest assured; you will definitely see Zep in another one of my games in the future.

Mmm...I can smell a "Zep vs. Kirby" comming along here...:P

Marcello
Member #1,860
January 2002
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Quote:

What about my little 9 year old sister? It would help her.

My brother beat sonic 2 and 3 at 6~7 without any tutorials, plus numerous other games through emulation... Maybe your "little" sister is really slow? (no offense)

Edit: for that matter, he couldn't read when he started playing all these games. Now that he can read (he's 8) he plays rpg's (pokemon, zelda, some old sega games) and stuff.

Marcello

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

Sonic doesn't need any instructions, you just run to the right. ;) Maybe using my sister was a bad example; but whatever. Instructions should contain everything. That's just how I see it.

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

Inphernic
Member #1,111
March 2001

I still fail to see how to advance in level 40.

Edit: Removed the description and attachment for making it easier to resist the temptation.. ;)

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

I'm going to keep my mouth shut on this one. :) Maybe I'll post more hints, but I want you guys to figure it out without my help. ;)

It IS beatable. Keep trying.

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

Per Larsson
Member #276
April 2000
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Argh.. this is driving me insane.

I agree with Inphernic. Level 40 is unbeatable, unless you are supposed to use some undocumented feature or something. Some kind of hint would be nice! I have an exam tomorrow, and i should study, but I just sit and stare at that last level.>:(

________________________
Guichan!

Ceniza
Member #2,027
March 2002
avatar

Ultio said:

It IS beatable.

Ok, good, you say it IS beatable.

Proposition: Beat it yourself (I suppose you actually know how to do it) and attach a pic of Zep just before leaving the level thru the exit portal/tunnel without cheating. (The pic doesn't need to include all the screen, just enough to know that's the level and you're just at one step of beating it.)

Give us some hope :'(

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

What good would that do you? My betatesters could beat it :) You have to be able to. I can give you a hint but I don't want to spoil it for anyone. PM me if you want it. ;D

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

Kanzure
Member #3,669
July 2003
avatar

Loomsoft.net said:

The lead teammember from this group is currently working on the art for Zep's Dreamland.

No wonder, I thought I noticed some similarity between Zep's Dreamland and Free Lunch Design's games. :) They are all high quality, thats for sure.

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

Yep, that's right. Johan was kind enough to do all of the tileart for the game (minus little Zep). Totally awesome. There's a thread on allegro.cc where it all started. Kind of ironic, I wasn't even looking for an artist at the time. ;)

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

ImLeftFooted
Member #3,935
October 2003
avatar

Quote:

Renaming the levels has nothing to do with incorrect level sets. Each level contains information inside it as to what level it is and what level comes after it. If you simply change the name of the level, it will load things all wrong and incorrectly.

heh, ya i figured that out eventually, or even simplier just change the level in the save file... But anyway, my point was that in your "Known Issues" file you had the error:

Quote:

Known Issues
============

Version 1.0:
- On some systems with specific settings level sets will not show up on the Level Set Selection screen whether or not they are in the appropriate folder or not. I have only encountered this with one single system. If you entounter this on your system, please, make sure to email me with your system specs, including your Operating System, as well as your File System type, along with all other general info (ram, processor, etc).

could the problem just have been the level files were tampered with? or did it happen after reinstalling aswell?

Ultio
Member #1,336
April 2001

The bug doesn't affect the original levels. It only affects additional level sets. If a level set exists, the engine simply will not find it. It has nothing to do with where the game is located because it checks recursively from the game's location downward. It uses no absolute pathing.

---
"It's nice knowing that someday, the software I write will just be pirated by millions of people." :-/
http://loomsoft.net | Zep's Dreamland | Allegro Newbie Tutorials

ImLeftFooted
Member #3,935
October 2003
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gah ok level 40 is really starting to get to me now :P, I see that block... but i just cant get to it!

GameCreator
Member #2,541
July 2002
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I'm on level 33.
Neat game.

23yrold3yrold
Member #1,134
March 2001
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I've only bothered playing as far as Level 15 so far, but my compliments to the chef as far as level design goes 8-) Very professional; someone nominate this bugger for the AAA ...

--
Software Development == Church Development
Step 1. Build it.
Step 2. Pray.

Marcello
Member #1,860
January 2002
avatar

I'll nominate it, but I don't know how.

Marcello



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