For Ambergris [Linear][SuNoFes][Fantasy]

[paradigmshifty]

A short linear fantasy visual novel.

Approx 20mins. 1080x720. Age Rating 16+ for strong language.

After work one day Jamie recieves a request for photography services from a mysterious character.
The proposition is rather odd seeing as Jamie is a warehouse operative working a zero-hour contract and by no means a professional photographer.

Download:


http://sleepyagents.itch.io/for-ambergris

<3 Please select the Accessible Build (v1.9) from the itch.io page if you'd like to use the Ren'Py self-voicing feature (or the auto advance feature). <3

Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... rambergris

---

Music:
The intro track is by me, Paradigm Shifty and the other 5 tracks are by Urban Fox. (urbanfox.bandcamp.com)

Screenshots:


Install instructions
First unzip and then run "For Ambergris.exe"

You may need to look at the 'more' or 'advanced' options if your operating system or anti-virus filter prevent you from saving or running the files.
The game was coded by myself using the ren'py engine, so I know there are no viruses etc.

---

Made in Ren'Py VN engine for SuNoFes game jam in about 5 weeks.

Android version out now! https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... rambergris

I greatly appreciate any feedback
What areas do you feel would benefit from improvement?
If you played my first game 'New Pisces' do you think this was a better game?
Would you play another game set in the same universe as For Ambergris?

[Laiska]

Congrats on the release!! Definitely gonna give this a try as soon as the jam is over!

[paradigmshifty]

Thanks Laiska (I'm looking forward to your games release!)

Just to let everyone know - if you want to play on android you can now!

The play store link is: https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... rambergris

All feedback is greatly appreciated

[epistellar]

This was really lovely! Haunting and atmospheric, and now I have all sorts of questions about

Cassidy and their family. I feel like this story planted the seeds for epic adventures.

I especially want to know what life was like between Cassidy and Jamie when Jamie was Cassidy's dire wolf, and I want to see them travel to all sorts of dimensions, and there's just loads of potential here.

Also, I've never seen dragon mythos interpreted the way you did, and I really enjoyed that. The time candle was a nice touch, too.

Is this a universe you think you'll return to for future projects? Either way, good job!

[paradigmshifty]

Thank you very much epistellar!

I had in mind when writing this that it could be Issue #0 (or #1...) of an ongoing series of games. The reasons I didn't explicitly state this are because I didn't want to put people off thinking "Oh, so I'm not going to get any closure at the end." and also because I haven't got a master plan for where the story finishes or how many games that would take to do!

The things you mention like Cassidy's family and the 'early years' are things I would like to explore, probably not in my next game though.

It is certainly a possibility that more games I make will be in this universe, yes!

I do have a rough outline for my possible next game, which as it stands is quite different in tone to this one. A different protagonist and all-ages-appropriate dialogue. Same universe though.

(Question to people who've played For Ambergris: Would that be off-putting and you'd much prefer to see something with the same tone/protagonist?)

[Laiska]

(Question to people who've played For Ambergris: Would that be off-putting and you'd much prefer to see something with the same tone/protagonist?)

I think I wouldn't mind seeing some different characters in the same universe, so long as there's some clear (if perhaps indirect) tie to the first game! So that players can learn more about the unanswered questions from the first game, or at least extrapolate those answers.

[epistellar]

@paradigm

(Question to people who've played For Ambergris: Would that be off-putting and you'd much prefer to see something with the same tone/protagonist?)

Not at all! I think as long as it's clear that the universe/world is all connected and being pulled together throughout the story, I think a new protagonist could be quite a nice addition to this canon. Again, really good stuff! Of course, do get around to this universe again whenever you feel ready to, but I'll definitely look forward to more stories whenever they come!

[YossarianIII]

[Played this a while back and meant to comment earlier... oops.]

Having played New Pisces (which I enjoyed), I thought that the central music-manipulating concept of New Pisces was a more intriguing initial "hook", but that overall For Ambergris was stronger.

I thought that the shift to a more tradition, linear story allowed for some interesting visual storytelling techniques. In particular, I liked the way the beginning was handled -- with images flashing on and off the screen, it made the exposition feel dynamic instead of just being an info dump. Great stuff!

I also liked the music production/curation. It fit well with an urban English setting.

As for an area of improvement:

I felt like maybe there were so many plot threads introduced by the end that there wasn't time for some of them to pay off. I think the idea of episodic games set in a the same universe with different tones is awesome (and I kind of wish I'd done it first), but I think maybe the next episode could benefit from a stronger sense of theme or plot arc or something to tie all the different ideas together.

Looking forward to future stories!

[paradigmshifty]

Thank you so much Laiska, epistellar and YossarianIII for the feedback

I may return to this universe for NaNoRenO - but I haven't decided yet - I have a few months to figure out what I want to do for NaNo!