2002 Archive
December 31st, 2002 - Today I'm posting the first submitted graphics for
the Zelda3C Graphics Contest. Special thanks goes to Az wazere for
contributing an orc version of the cyclops bomber, Hinox! Az will
likely get his monster in the game, making him one of the contest
winners. [Edit: A more original monster has since replaced the orc.]
December 3rd, 2002 - I've been making time lately, whether I have
it or not, to work on this game regularly. I just finished moving to a
new apartment, but I've still been able to get more done. Most of this
has been continued preparation, so that when I start announcing
completed outdoors and dungeons, they won't be delayed by unforseen
difficutlies. I will know where I'm going as I design each planned
area, and the world of Calatia will be built at a steady pace.
What can I describe that's not a spoiler?? LOL.. Well, most of the time has been spent playing with the ROM and with Hyrule Magic, learning how even more things work in both. For example, I didn't know that the huge wall that slides west in the Desert Palace is actually an object I can put anywhere -- I thought it was hardcoded and had to stay right where it is! I'm also getting deep into understanding the different doors available. A lot of them look the same, but they really are different!
A few weeks ago, I wrote a program that puts in all the markup tags in the game's monologue for me, so all I have to do is write what people should say, push a button, and then copy the formatted text back into Hyrule Magic. When you're working with a game this big (in comparison to Zelda 1, hehe), you have to automate all you can!
I know even more about how I can shape the story, in terms of events that occur and items collected. I'm doing all I can to break the mold on the old game's timeline & itinerary.
Overall, I've continued studying the ROM, and I've found even more ways to surprise people. My plans are much more organized now -- I now have a series of Excel files and folders that make up a design document, including a notebook full of drawings that (obviously) couldn't be typed up. It's linked to my planning files for quick reference and includes puzzles, graphics artwork, overworld layouts, room layouts, mazes, and more. Everything's coming together so well, I get giddy just thinking about it!
November 11th, 2002 - Special announcement!
You can help create graphics for Zelda3C!
Check out the Graphics Contest for rules and regulations!
[Edit: Contest has ended, but follow the link if you'd like to help.]
October 23rd, 2002 - What about July, August, and September?? That's
correct, it's been four months since I've done anything significant with
Zelda 3 Challenge. With such a lapse, you would think the project is
dead, wouldn't you? Well, it is. I don't like Zelda games anymore.
HA! Just kidding!!! Zelda 3 is still my absolute favorite SNES game of
all time! The project may have been postponed, but it's still very
much alive.
Here's where I went astray...
June 24th, 2002 - Every last block, EA7 of EA7, is registered now. It
took a long time to get familiar with 3751 blocks!! Now I can find the
blocks I need with ease; creating the overworld will be fast and easy
now. Expect to see screen shots of the first town soon. My other area
of focus will be on overworld graphics and sprite graphics -- a new look
to match a new world...
June 10th, 2002 - All blocks from Skull Forest, Dark Death Mountain, and
screens immediately west of the Dark World's graveyard are registered.
I'm currently at block 9B4 of EA7. That's 2484 out of 3751.
June 8th, 2002 - I have registered all Light World blocks as well as
most Skull Forest blocks. I now have over half of the blocks registered
into the system.
June 2nd, 2002 - Recently, I have been documenting all of the 16x16
overworld blocks which construct the 32x32 building blocks of Hyrule.
By doing so, I will be able to use my own 16x16 search engine to list
elements to search for in Hyrule Magic's 32x32 search engine. This will
greatly speed up the process of designing the brand new overworld of
Calatia. Once this huge task is completed, I'll start creating new
areas and posting new screen shots!
Questions? Ideas? Suggestions?
Write to me!
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