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The Treasure of Fool's Cove
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Author |
File Description |
Julius999 |
Posted on 10/26/06 @ 08:01 AM
File Details |
Version: |
The Conquerors 1.0c |
Style: |
Role Playing Only |
The Treasure of Fool's Cove
Several centuries ago storms lashed the bay, the feeble rays from the lighthouse lost in the gloom and rain, a ship laden with gold and other treasures floundered on waves higher than cliffs, the mast snapped and with a great crash the hull was ripped open on a cruel rock... the ship and all its crew sank to a watery grave in Davy Jones' Locker. Many years later, two brave men intend to dive to the very bottom of Fool's Cove and retrieve the vast wealth that lies beneath.
A lone horseman rides down the country road towards the town of Taillport, an old friend of his by the name of Bernard lives there, and he wrote some days ago saying he had a proposition that may be of interest. In the brief letter he mentioned the bay, a boat he had recently purchased, and a tale of great treasure lurking beneath the waves... the waves of Fool's Cove...
You are that horseman, riding into Taillport with a jangling purse and seemingly boundless enthusiasm, ready to embark on a treasure hunt.
This is quite a simple scenario, mostly a cutscene with playable elements. In it you must briefly prepare for your journey, explore the seafloor and enter a shipwreck where the ghosts of by-gone sailors protect the lost treasure. Will you succeed where none have before and return laden with the treasure of Fool's Cove?
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Pages: « First « 1 [2] 3 » Last » | Author | Comments & Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
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WizardBoy |
Posted on 11/04/06 @ 09:08 AM
Im somehow impressed. I was never thinking this would ever been done. But after my Underwater Contest people have different thinking. A new spotted campaign is made. Wonderful. I thank you gradually for being so creative and putting the pieces for this very good piece of work.
Its a lot of promising i know. To be honest i havent played it yet, but from the text i've seen here all i can think of is that you tried hard to be one of the least making this wacky world idea.. better known as the underwater world idea. Well its really promising :)
Good job. Looking forward to see more of it!
_-WizardBoy-_ |
Dantares IV |
Posted on 11/14/06 @ 08:21 PM
Great job Julius999. I loved the end of the game. |
Julius999
Official Reviewer
File Author |
Posted on 11/15/06 @ 11:13 AM
Thanks for the comments everyone. |
Mash (id: Mashek)
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 11/15/06 @ 04:39 PM
I haven't quite finished yet, but from what I am seeing it is creative and very mysterious. I just wanna keep exploring to find out what's in the sea bed! :p Good job. |
Lord Basse
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 12/08/06 @ 08:55 AM
The Treasure of Fool's Cove is a unique story, humorous and fascinating. It has some rough edges, but its in fact one of the better new-style games I've played.
The Treasure of Fool's Cove is a must download for anyone what wants new apsects of AoK to play on, and I suggest everyone to have a try at it.
Playability: 4
Playing belowe the water-level is fascinating and the seabottom is full of surprises. If you dont walk slowly and carefully, you'll be eaten by a shark or fall off the edge of the plateau.
However, the story is very short and even if the seabottom is full of surprises, the entire game ends quickly and the whole game is more of a way to show that making an underwater scenario is possible.
The scenario has several sound-effects that make the game funnier to play. For example, there's a sounds of bubbles raising to the surface when you're on the sea-bottom, searching for the treasure.
The sound-effects combined with the outlay of the sea-bottom makes it more realistic and it feels more like being on the bottom of an ocean than it would without the sound-effect.
The playability is really worth a high score, but as the scenario is so short there is very little that can give the scenario scores here. Therefor it gets a 4
Balance: 5
I am not totally sure how I shall put the score on Balance. The review guidelines say that you also need to take the author's original intent into account, giving the author some benefit of the doubt. If the author never intended the player to face a struggle to survive, then there's no reason to knock down the balance score if there isn't any fighting. However, this scenario includes an event that I not really count as a fight. Its inside the shipwreck. When you enter and walk for the treasure, you meat two ghosts from the old ship.
They start to attack you when you get close, but stop to fight them will get you killed. Anyone that knows they'll get killed, and thats pretty obvious as the ghosts have a VERY high attack, would just run past them to the treasure.
Therefor I give Balance a 5, as there is no real fight.
(Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is what I think is the best)
Creativity: 5
This is the absolutely best part of this scenario. The scenario features a totally new aspect of Age of Kings: the first scenario, ever made, that is under the waterline.
Featuring underwater flowers, ugly fishes, sharks, an underwater cave, the inside of a ship (not new, but creative), a sunk forest and a sunk town and a merpeople city, The treasure of Fool's Cove is one of the scenarios that compresses most creativity in the smallest are and shortest time. There are very few scenarios that compress such ammounts of creativity in such a small scenario, and this is one of the best
Map Design: 4
The design of this scenario is verying. The entering scene with the horseman is very detailed and beautiful.
However, as soon as the city appears, you get disappointed. The city is totally flat and houses lay in huge lines. The ground is only Road Broken and Road Fongus mixed a little.
This does not give the scenario a huge decrease of scores however.
The city is not the important part of the scenario, only a part that is neccesary to make it longer and make the story more detailed. The scenario is centred around the main event: the underwater part
Under the surface, the design quality increases greatly. The sea-bottom is filled with sand and seaweed, lots of details, sharks and ugly fishes, even a sunken forest, town and a merpeople-city!
It has an edge of the plateau, lots of rocks and elevations, realisticaly formed terrain. Its simply beaitiful! And combined with the sound-effects, this part is nearly superb.
The reason I dont give it a full score is that the areas before the underwater scenes are too undetailed (this means the cuty). You should have given the city more time and make it better looking. If so, this would absolutely score a 5.
Story/Instructions: 4
The scenario is very short and has little room for story. But the author still succeeds in making a humorous and fascinating story in a game that last for around 25 minutes.
He tells very quickly about the man you play as and the adventure is very simple, until it reaches the sea-bottom.
The instructions about the scenario is also very simple, but they are easy to understand. This scenario deserves a high rating
However, the reason to why I do not give this a 5 is that the story is a little too fastpaced in the beginning. Making it longer and giving the beginning more time would make it even better and funnier to play.
Positive Points:
+ An all new concept
+ Loads of creativity compressed into a very small scenario
+ Humorous
+ Fascinating
+ Simple, yet great
Negative Points
- Too little time given to the places above sea-level
- Very plain city design
- Very short, would be much better if it was longer
Congratulations Julius! You've made a creative scenario, almost in class with Christmas Morning, and you've made me writing my longest review ever! You'd better be proud of yourself ;)[Edited on 12/16/06 @ 04:07 PM]
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Mash (id: Mashek)
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 02/01/07 @ 07:23 AM
‘The Treasure of Fool’s Cove’ is a single scenario, a part cut-scene part RPG composition featuring a perhaps never-before-been-seen design of an underwater setting, of a rolling seabed complete with everything you could expect to find during a scuba dive. The scenario follows the unfortunate tale of two men, two treasure hunters eagre to get their hands on the treasure believed lost at Fool’s Cove several centuries earlier. ‘The Treasure of Fool’s Cove’ is such, that it not only leaves you laughing, but frustrated at two fools and their stupidity, two treasure hunters seemingly cursed with the taint of ‘Fool’s Cove’. You begin to wander how in the first place ‘Fool’s Cove’ got the name that it has.
PLAYABILITY: (4.0)
Primarily, ‘The Treasure of Fool’s Cove’ is a scenario that explores an under water setting, and does exceptionally well in doing this. I found gameplay quite fun, mysterious, and interesting to explore the unknown depths of the sea with my single unit, trying to find the lost treasure of Fool’s Cove sunk in a shipwreck. On my discoveries I was caught unaware by a ‘breathing’ cave, sharks and the ghosts of sailors still present in the shipwreck that they went down with. The scenario is complete with sounds, helping to add that little bit extra of realism and atmosphere in the sea that otherwise would not have been there without them. In all, however I did not find the scenario as fun as what it could have been with some boring moments, waiting for things to happen and with a lot of walking. Though exploring was fairly enjoyable, to observe life under the ocean, I felt that maybe I needed something else to help retain my interest. Nevertheless to my knowledge the scenario is the first of its kind, a new concept for Age of Kings featuring a whole new world under the sea. It goes to show that the possibilities for the map editor are still growing and still very much alive. At less than thirty minutes play, the scenario is humourous with a good twist and which keeps true to the title, “Fool’s Cove”.
BALANCE: (5.0)
The balance in this scenario was more or less subjective as gameplay was suited more alongside that of a cut-scene than a fully interactive scenario, but the scenario did have some playable parts nonetheless. The difficulty encountered consisted not of combat like in normal scenarios, but of events where you must learn to run or stay away, to survive in order to reach your objective. You will encounter a cave that will suck you in if you wander too near, and the ghosts of sailors whom you stand no chance against, and instead, must run to keep distance to stay alive. The situations rest not on combat skill, but on knowing when to keep your distance in order to survive. Concluding from this, it is reasonable to award this category with full marks, as the balance of this scenario is more than well suited for all players.
CREATIVITY: (5.0)
The best part of the scenario! In your travels you will be met with an array of innovative ideas and a setting that has perhaps never before been seen in the Blacksmith. The scenario takes you under the sea and to the view of the seabed where you can find seaweed, sea flowers and a sea canopy made with everything from cacti, bamboo to jungle trees and creeping in between, ugly sea creatures. In addition a Teutonic Knight to represent a man in his slow moving underwater uniform, an oxygen metre, submerged towns, a merpeople city and the ghosts of sailors who protect their loot in the interior of a shipwreck. All this, and a story complete with humour and a great twist.
MAP DESIGN: (4.0) +
The map design was excellent, intention noted, the design presenting an underwater setting as well as the surface featuring a forest road and seaside town. I found, however that the quality of the design overall was not consistent enough throughout the revolving scenes for this category to be awarded full marks. More effort was placed on the seabed with the better part of the surface left relatively bare. But this was the author’s intention, in exploring the new theme that is set under the ocean. Making an underwater scheme is rather difficult due to the limitations of the map editor, but this is pulled off very well with the author manipulating Gaia and terrain alike to bring out the best possible conclusion for his idea. The result pulls off an underwater scheme very well. The design of the seabed, though admittedly ‘bleak’ at first thought, is certainly the best of its kind, perhaps even the first, having realistic underwater proportions with a rolling and vast seafloor, complete with all its exotic fauna of seaweed and plants, conveyed using trees, bamboo, plants and cacti –all of which are placed very nicely and creatively. The cliff formations with rock and stone are realistic too, forming the borders of underwater plateaus and places where water meets land. All of this is such that you actually feel like you are under the ocean, watching as schools of fish float by. The surface of the seaside town looked nice, interesting to explore, with a wharf, a tavern, rows of houses and elevation, but more or less could have done with more detail, more attention to the town itself with a better placement of buildings, and perhaps even more terrain mix to go along with the town roads themselves, because as they were, seemed rather bare. In all I did not sense a very ‘townish’ feel. Nevertheless, the author has presented an innovative approach to the new and surely soon-to-flourish idea of an under water environment.
STORY/ INSTRUCTIONS: (4.0)
The story was very good, with points of humour, twists and creativity. However probably lacking final polishes and the detail it could have had both in game and out to receive full marks in this category. Nevertheless, the scenario, coming with a humourous albeit short story is topped in addition by clear instructions, hints and a scout.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
While the idea has already been brought up before as a competition in the forums, the author extends on this and brings his underwater design for all to see and to ponder on. The idea is a new one, and to my knowledge one not yet seen in the Blacksmith. It is an idea that is certainly worth exploring and continuing on in future times.
In a word – Innovative.
In closing – For those seeking fresh ideas, ‘The Treasure of Fool’s Cove’ is a must download.[Edited on 02/01/07 @ 08:01 AM]
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Julius999
Official Reviewer
File Author |
Posted on 02/01/07 @ 11:04 AM
Thanks both of you for your reviews.
Firstly I see that neither of you figured out how to kill the sailors. I made it possible for those that did want a tiny bit of fighting to actually defeat them, but you are meant to run past them.
I'm actually working (on and off) on another like this that will have more to do and hopefully score better in the playability stakes.
I might also do an update to try and make this better, fix the town design and so on.
I'm glad you liked the story, even if the characters are frustratingly stupid (not to mention irresponsible with their money). I quite like the characters, and might use them elsewhere. |
Mash (id: Mashek)
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 02/01/07 @ 05:38 PM
No problem, Julius. I just hope my review wasn't "too" crap as I practically just skimmed it up.
Yes, I would love to see another version. It would be great.
I love the characters too. They're stupid, but distinguishable as human, not little pixelated characters on a game.[Edited on 02/01/07 @ 05:42 PM]
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Dtribe222 (id: dtribe222) |
Posted on 02/05/07 @ 01:05 AM
Amazing! Now this is something that I've never heard of before. Excellent creativity, although the 'Moses-dividing-the-Red-Sea' part was a bit strange. I guess you just put it in to prevent 'you have been defeated'. A very fascinating scenario, I got stuck a few times but very creative.
Hope to see a sequal to this. |
Colosseum |
Posted on 03/11/07 @ 11:19 AM
Playability: 5
This is great! I haven't had this much fun playing an AoC map in a long time. I guess this really lends itself to the creativity of the scenario, but I thought it was fun.
Balance: 4
Although the only fighting I did was with two ghosts, it forced me to use the elevation bonus, and kept me on my toes.
Creativity: 5
An underwater scenario? Creativity is definitely a 5 on this one, never been done before. And it's a wonderful idea.
Map Design: 4
I realize map design was a bit limited for this, but the trees in the underwater segment were map-copied... sort of spoiled it for me, but I can live with it.
Story/Instructions: 4
The story's great, and the instructions were fairly easy to read.
Additional Comments:
Great scenario. Worthy of a high-up place due to its creativity and entertainment value alone.
[Edited on 12/12/07 @ 05:40 AM]
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Pages: « First « 1 [2] 3 » Last » |
HGDL v0.8.2 |
Rating |
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4.4 | Breakdown |
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Playability | 4.3 | Balance | 4.7 | Creativity | 5.0 | Map Design | 4.0 | Story/Instructions | 4.0 |
Statistics |
Downloads: | 1,640 |
Favorites: [] | 1 |
Size: | 316.85 KB |
Added: | 10/26/06 |
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