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Jones Blond and The Sacred Ring
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Author |
File Description |
Lord Basse |
Posted on 08/13/07 @ 10:37 AM (updated 08/22/07)
File Details |
Version: |
The Conquerors 1.0c |
Style: |
Role Playing Strategy |
Screenshot:
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Jones Blond
and the Sacred Ring
This scenario is made on a 25x25 map, and was in the beginning supposed to be my entry to the Minigame Competition. I later got out of ideas and abandoned the project, and became judge of the competition, and let the scenarrio gather dust in the archives. One day I picked it up again and decided to make it a birthdaypresent to my design team, StormWind Studios, whose birthday is today - the 13th of August. Happy birthday SWS!
S T O R Y
The Sacred Ring, a ring that is given only to the Emperor of Valcabimba when he is crowned, has been stolen by a mysterious person. Since all other agents - even the ultimate disaster Johnny - are on duty on various locations, the Agency is forced to send their black sheep to Valcabimba - Jones Blond.
Tall, handsome, a gentleman. That's how most people would describe him - Jones Blond, Agent 003, the greatest agent of all times... At least, that's how he wants people to describe him. In reality, Jones isn't as he described himself. He's got long, messy dark hair, he's everything but a gentleman, although he's not mean, and he's not handsome. Despite the name, Jones Blond, he's all but blonde. His last name was Blonde when he was born, but he changed it when he became older. He hates misspellings of his name just as much as he hates to fix up his hair.
Jones was taken in as the third agent in the agency. His scores where third best. His brother came on seventh place. A total of fifteen agents where taken into the agency, out of 500 contestants. But ever since then, Jones's career has crashed into pieces. He has had only a few missions around the world while all other agents has had lots of missions. His brother became the most famous agent of all times. His name is not neccesary to mention here.
G A M E P L A Y
This is an RPG scenario, with the end made as a mini-FF. the style is basically the same as in my Sven's Quest, but the theme and idea is different.
You play with one unit - Jones - throughout most of the scenario. You can pick any difficulty you like, but they will only make differense in the end.
This is only the first scenario about Jones Blond and his adventures. I can tell already that there will be at least one more scenario with Jones as a main character, and one where he takes part in one of five scenarios.
I N S T A L L A T I O N
Since I'm too lazy to make a ReadMe file, this is the way to install (the ordinary way, but for those who dont know it it might be helpful)
.cpx goes to 'Campaign' folder
.mp3 goes to 'SOUND\scenario' folder
The folders are located at:
Your Harddrive\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Age of Empires II\
Also, in case the soundfile "JB - wrong answer" crashes your game, as it did with Tanneur (not with mine though), there is a special zip file included, adding an alternative sound that should work. If you dont get the crash, stick to the original one.
C R E D I T S
HANS ZIMMER - soundtrack from 'The Lion King'
SOLDOUT SOFTWARE - sound effects from 'Robin Hood - the Legend of Sherwood'
INGO VAN THIEL - sound effect from 'Ulio'
SOUNDDOGS.com - sound effect
JAMES BOND - soundtrack, as well as inspiration and parodied names
MADAGASCAR - soundtrack
S_M_T - sound effect from 'Brelda the Hun'
JULIUS999 - some light playtesting
Oh well, enough with the text. Download and have fun. Any comment or/and review is warmly welcomed! |
Author | Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
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Mash (id: Mashek)
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 09/07/07 @ 05:50 PM
‘Jones Blond and the Sacred Ring’ is a single scenario with RPG and FF elements. The scenario uses the 25 x 25 size map, and can be finished in less than twenty minutes. The story tells of a sacred ring, with the user granted the ability to have great power, which went missing from a remote Aztec city, ruled by Emperor Grenoc Hatlatl. An 003 agent, Jones Blond, is sent on the scene to investigate – a tall, handsome, mean, agent or, at least that is who he would like to be...
PLAYABILITY: (4.0)
I quite enjoyed this little scenario; it was humourous, witty and like a Hollywood blockbuster with cheap dialogue, story and cliché characters. I liked the detective side of the scenario, asking questions, getting answers, and the continuous stream of humour cascaded into it; as well as this the continuously changing plot to move the story along was great. The satirical element of ‘James Bond’ in the scenario was implemented well with many laugh out loud scenes. The length of the scenario allowed for a well laid-back and relaxing play, and together with humourous sounds and music, my enjoyment was made nearly absolute.
BALANCE: (5.0)
Beginning on moderate difficulty, the balance was for me perfect. For the first half of the scenario, gameplay was built around detective work, walking around and asking questions and getting answers. The second half, however, was what we would come to expect from such a humourous scenario with an explosive climactic ending. The duel with the villain was a nice element, defeating him first try by quick thinking, using various elevation alignments, which offers tactical gameplay, with the last battle with the villain’s henchmen forcing a couple of reloads, but nonetheless winnable by strategy and thought.
CREATIVITY: (5.0)
For such a small scenario it is surprising how creative it is. The scenario primarily relies on small tricks to set the mark, but they are all so very well implemented that they are at times so subtle that one will hardly ever notice them. I spotted a cobra car placed as an Aston Martin DB5, a sacred lantern with flames, renamed units, a sportsman and joggers singing ‘Move It’, a European Missionary, an Aztec Emperor and creative quests such as helping a man stuck on the road because of a broken wheel. Sending villagers into a house to return as soldiers, the tiny map size, the duel with the villain, and the climactic battle thereafter with his lackeys, was more than just humour and cheap story telling, but creative in many ways too, with strategic gameplay and awesome complimentary sounds and music. Finally, the implication and use of the tiny map size with its many creative elements and the scenario set during the modern era, for an AOK scenario, is very creative.
MAP DESIGN: (5.0)
The map design, however small, was both beautiful and realistic. The atmosphere, enhanced by sounds, gave the impression of lush, fertile forests and the jungle bushes in the countryside looked like hedging. The small city was excellently designed with damaged walls, well placed building structures, and a small sea with a dock complimented the rest of the design well. Overall the look and feel of the design, enhanced beautifully with complimentary sounds, elevation and Gaia, makes for a perfect score.
STORY/ INSTRUCTIONS: (4.0) +
The scenario features a good, enjoyable story, which offers the player laughs and smiles all the way. The instructions were also plentiful, and the bitmap excellent. There were a fair few spelling mistakes and lack of grammar in some areas, but the author’s mother language is not English, and so there is no deduction here.
CONCLUSION: The author once again amuses us with another of his witty scenarios, and use of the 25 x 25 size map. The character, Jones Blond, and style of gameplay set in the modern world with humourous music and sounds, and short game time, looks promising as a new style of gameplay – at least for those willing to experiment with different aspects of designing. Still one thing is for sure, I’d be more than happy to see a sequel.
In a word – Humourous
In closing – A recommended download.[Edited on 09/07/07 @ 06:31 PM]
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HGDL v0.8.2 |
Rating |
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4.6 | Breakdown |
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Playability | 4.0 | Balance | 5.0 | Creativity | 5.0 | Map Design | 5.0 | Story/Instructions | 4.0 |
Statistics |
Downloads: | 1,850 |
Favorites: [] | 2 |
Size: | 3.53 MB |
Added: | 08/13/07 |
Updated: | 08/22/07 |
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