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Fight Against Fate - Prologue
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Author |
File Description |
Andanu T |
Posted on 06/14/07 @ 08:03 AM (updated 06/20/07)
File Details |
Version: |
The Conquerors 1.0c |
This was supposed to be the prologue of my upcoming campaign, Fight Against Fate.
However, it's very unlikely that I'm going to continue this project. I'm planning to abandon it. I was beginning to dislike the whole story and the cutscene that is in my view, a bit messy. So, I had decided start over. But the campaign is submitted anyway, 'cause I don't want my hard work on finishing the campaign go to waste. I'm currently working on another project though, still on AOK:TC, with a whole different story.
I know that submitting a prologue of a campaign that's never going to be finished has been a trend for some people, these days. But perhaps if I get some good reviews and good responds from the community, I'll think about continuing the work in the future.
Here, you'll find:
- >500 triggers
- Many scenes
- Long (might be boring) dialogues
- About 30 minutes (more or less) long scenario
- Quite a large amount of units
- Poor English (I'm an Indonesian, so English is my second knowledge, and I don't really devote myself learning it well)
You're going to waste a good amount of time watching it, so I won't blame you if you get tired of it (I was, myself, having to playtest the whole scenario numerous times). Try getting some popcorns or turn on your favorite music while watching it to avoid boredom.
For more info about the campaign and myself (the author), please go to the link below:
http://aok.heavengames.com/cgi-bin/aokcgi/display.cgi?action=st&fn=4&tn=37208&f=4,,,all&st=0
Send an email to trisatya88(at)yahoo(dot) com or post a message in the thread above for questions or feedbacks.
Sorry for the grammar.
- Andanu Trisatya (forum name: Andanu T) |
Author | Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
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Whackalicious |
Posted on 06/19/07 @ 11:08 AM
Playability: 5
This excellent prologue to an abandoned campaign has absolutely no glitches whatsoever. Plus, It is very enjoyable. I found that it was not boring at all.
Balance: 5
You fulfilled what you intended to do perfectly in this cut-scene. Because you never intended to include any fighting, you shouldn't get docked down for a lack of player controlled fighting.
Creativity: 4
You used many good trigger tricks and special effects. But what really brings this up is the story. The story was sheer awesomeness.
Map Design: 5
The map design also, was heavily detailed. From the seas during the sea battles to the valley where the final battle took place, everything was perfectly detailed.
Story/Instructions: 5
Quote from Angel Spineman:
"and if the story is really good, the rating can be a 5."
You score a five for this awesome piece of work.
Additional Comments:
It's a real shame that you won't be continuing this campaign. All that work to waste... It would make my day if you decided to continue this after finishing your current project.
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Lord Basse
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 06/23/07 @ 12:55 PM
This might not be a very long review, but I think I summed it up in quite few sentenses.
PLAYABILITY: 5
This 53 minutes long cut-scene is the longest one I've ever seen! Starting off with a scene that has nothing to do with the rest of the cut-scene (although one can guess where it enters the picture), and continuing with a long, exciting story, the prologue to Fight Against Fate is a masterpiece.
I enjoyed this cut-scene a lot. 53 minutes of action, epic adventure and great nature, now that's what I call quality. The only thing that stops me from giving this a 5+ is the bug that appears from time to time, in the scene where the village prepares itself for Zegrevia's attack. Apart from this, there are no bugs or anything stopping this from getting a 5.
BALANCE: 5
Since this is a plain cut-scene, i.e. a cut-scene with no playable elements and no places where you can lose, the review guidelines say that this - and all other cut-scenes of same manor - gets an automatic 5.
CREATIVITY: 5
I dont quite agree with the previous reviewer, Whackalicious. Yes, the story is the best part of this cut-scene, but I still found it very creative, both as a whole and in closing. First off, the theme is new to my knowledge. Magic and epic wars and struggle isn't, but the way it's used in this cut-scene is unique. The authour also uses a good way to display the dialogue by adding new text to the previous lines of text, making it easy to know what to read and also that it doesn't give the player huge ammounts of text in one piece.
As said, the authour uses many good trigger tricks to make this cut-scene great. I dont see any reason to deduct points here, really. So a 5.
MAP DESIGN: 5-
The map design was, in one word, awesome. The cut-scene mixes scenes with snowy landscapes, isles and valleys, cities, villages, and even indoors scenes. The terrain is well mixed and it really looks marvelous when you watch it. The only thing that I can point out to be less good is the cave scene. I dont really get why the whole cave has been covered in road. Apart from that, which is a very short part of this cut-scene, the map design is marvelous. So a 5- describes it best.
STORY & INSTRUCTIONS: 5
For instructions, there are very few, but there is no real need for instructions, apart from the settings you're supposed to have, since it's simply a cut-scene that you just watch and never touch the mouse.
For the story, well what can I say? Whackalicious had a simple way of putting it, and I think I'd do best in doing it the same way, since I dont want to tell the reader all too much about the story! The story is awesome, one of the most unique experienses I've had. And since the review guidelines say that if a story is simply awesome, it can or should get a 5, then why wouldn't I give it? A clear 5 is my score here, and the overall score is the same. |
Mash (id: Mashek)
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 07/03/07 @ 04:13 AM
'Fight Against Fate' is an epic cut-scene running for fifty-two minutes, and introduces a compelling yet ultimately unfinished tale. The story is fiction and captures the night a grandpa tells his grandchildren a sad tale of the Elemental Domination. It was a time not two hundred years before his time when two powerful rulers vied for unchallenged hegemony across the Archipelago lands.
PLAYABILITY: For a scenario where you're not expected to do much else other than to sit back and watch, 'Fight Against Fate' was for me personally a purely enjoyable experience. If you enjoy good story-telling and of course have no short amount of patience then this is definitely for you. The cut-scene features a strong storyline backed by complex themes and characters. You were left wanting to know what happened next when it was all finally over. No detail was spared, and we were never left with questions needlessly unanswered, but still with a few to keep the story pondering. The music used for the cut-scene was quite another thing. It flowed so well with the story line and the dialogue that I found myself caring for the small pixelated characters on-screen. This is an epic tale, and I believe a must watch. 5+
PACING: The overall flow of this cut-scene was very well-balanced, and each scene progressed as intended, without fault or hindrance to my experience. 5
CREATIVITY: While the epic tale might be interpreted as cliche to some, it is however very well implemented on-sceen. The nature of a war fought by use of magic was new to me as fire erupted through the ranks of battle lines. Units attacking air also gave the impression of casting spells. The story is certainly the most interesting feature here, and backed by the excellent choice of music and creative trigger work, I feel there is enough done to warrant a perfect rating. 5
MAP DESIGN: The map design was overall very good, with above average use of terrain mixing, elevation and Gaia. I liked the change of scenery: forests, underground caverns, palace interiors, villages and battlefields, complimented by the stunning use of music. The interior of Zegrevia's palace was unique with statues, rugs and fortified walls acting as building walls, but perhaps a little too unrealistic with a pavilion replacing a throne. There were a few other aspects of the map design which weren't quite right, and others such as the underground corridor were bland and required more attention to detail. 4
STORY/INSTRUCTIONS: The most prominent feature of the cut-scene. This is an epic, in-depth story with nearly an hour's viewing time. There were some spelling inconsistencies and some unrealistic dialogue, but in general nothing that detracted from my experience. 5-
CONCLUSION: A few final polishes would benefit the cut-scene a lot, but the author has nonetheless created a stunningly-detailed cut-scene. 'Fight Against Fate' looks set to be another epic to hit the Blacksmith, that is providing the author continues with it. The characters are complex and interesting, and the story is so well told that it has a genuine feel to it. After fifty minutes of rare story telling I am left hungering for more.
In a sentence - An epic in every sense of the word.
In closing - A must download![Edited on 07/27/20 @ 04:37 PM]
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Ilmarinen (id: Cilibinarii) |
Posted on 05/21/08 @ 01:01 PM
Playability: 5
This cutscene is one of the best I have ever seen. All the 53 minutes were almost perfect, with a gripping story, epic battles to see and good background music.
Balance: 5
Scenarios without fighting get a 5 here.
Creativity: 5
There is no number that indicates how much creativity, new ideas and original tricks were stuffed into this cutscene. Spell-casting mages, epic wars, everything was in there.
Map Design: 5
The map design was very realistic with excellent eye-candy and perfect terrain mixing. Andanu T masters lots of eyecandy-tricks and certainly is one of the best map-designers on AoK Heaven, but not the best.
Story/Instructions: 5
The story was perfect. It tells about the fight between two kingdoms who are equals in might. They both conquer small lands and both get destroyed in the end. A lot of small side-things , e.g the actual story is told by an old man to his grandchildren.
Additional Comments:
A must download. Just click that button! It's worth your time. Probably one of the best cutscenes in the Blacksmith.[Edited on 06/05/08 @ 01:12 PM]
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panel
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 10/11/11 @ 02:15 PM
Before starting my review, I have to state that this is my favorite AOK cutscene ever, and one of the reasons why I started designing in AOK in the first place. I will be trying to leave that aside however, in order to make this review as objective as possible.
"Fight against Fate - Prologue" is quite possibly the best blacksmith debut ever. I don't think there are many designers on here that have a first submission of this quality. It is an epic one-hour cutscene scenario featuring a very engaging story, good map design and a lot of impressively creative moments.
Playability: 4+
I would normally not enjoy a cutscene this long, but the story is much too intriguing and well told to even think of quitting or even pausing the game once you start playing it. The music accompanying it is also great, and very fitting (up to the point where if you hear the song in the real world you will automatically associate it with this scenario), but the looping of the track makes it get old by the end of the 52 minutes, as by that point the player has already heard it at least 3 times. However, this does not interfere too much with the enjoyment of the cutscene. All scenes added up to the story and the plot, but in all fairness some of them could be shortened, some dialogues' duration especially, in order to increase the playability of the file.
Balance: 5
As this is a cutscene scenario, the balance category should judge the general flow and technical aspects of the cutscene, which in this case are top-notch. There were no weird or awkward moments that sometimes occur during this kind of scenarios, and taking into account its duration, that is quite an achievement. Most of the time you will just forget you are playing Age of kings, you will mostly feel like watching a movie with an immersing plot. Popcorn is indeed a welcome presence.
Creativity: 5
The creative elements used are not necessarily unique, but what makes them really stand out is the great ways in which they are used, so in tune with the story itself. The wizards' spells and the sinking island are only the first two examples that come to mind, and that add so much to the storytelling. There are a lot of other "little things", such as the pikeman opening the gate for his queen. However, the most creative aspect is the story itself, which skillfully evades the clichees of the genre, while keeping at the same time the feeling of something we've heard before, a great myth from ages past.
Map Design: 5-
Even though the map was designed some 4 years ago, and its designer has obviously improved his skills since then, this design still comes off as beautiful and well detailed, adding a whole new layer to the epic atmosphere set up by the story. The only part of it that I'm not particularly a fan of and that I think would be worth improving a little is the dungeon in the beginning, which was not poorly designed, but still a little basic.
Story/Instructions: 5
This is by far the best part of the cutscene. The story is very well set-up, and the whole idea of having a story inside a story (the grandfather telling the tale to his grandsons) makes it all the more enjoyable, making the watcher feel as though he is part of the world in which the events of the game are happening. And the story itself is very, very well crafted. Haven't seen many blacksmith submissions with so much care and inspiration put into the story, as a matter of fact I haven't really come across any surpassing it, which is why, even though it is not complete and only a prologue at this point, i feel that it fully deserves the 5 rating for this category. Also, there were no real language or spelling problems to talk about, which for a non-native speaker and for a cinematic of this duration, is a very good and uncommon thing.
Additional Comments:
How about turning this into a campaign, Andan? I know you were planning it and I sincerely hope it happens, because I know it would be one of the best things on here. My personal suggestion (which you can of course brush aside if you want) is not to focus too much on improving this cutscene, which is already very good, and focusing on the rest of the project, which I very much look forward to.
This is a MUST download for anyone who enjoys AOK cutscenes. It doesn't really get much better than this.
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HGDL v0.8.2 |
Rating |
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4.9 | Breakdown |
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Playability | 4.8 | Pacing | 5.0 | Creativity | 4.8 | Map Design | 4.8 | Story/Instructions | 5.0 |
Statistics |
Downloads: | 1,007 |
Favorites: [] | 3 |
Size: | 2.63 MB |
Added: | 06/14/07 |
Updated: | 06/20/07 |
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