Prelude of Identity, [Complete] Options

[Mr Meow Meow Meo...]

Prelude of Identity

The Story

Spoiler:

You take the role of Marianne, a Liberte Knight whose strong sense of justice and liberty sets her apart from her peers. In a corrupt and abusive class system, those with the power can bring about the destruction of the entire nation. Ever since the discovery of a mutagen known as Ether, those who have mutated and taken on a new power are taken at a young age and recruited to be used as knights. The children's memories are wiped and they are trained in a specialized battle art. Their full names are changed to a single first name, and only upon reaching a high rank in the chevalier will they learn their last names. These knights can then be used as super soldiers for any purpose the government wishes, causing tyranny to the lower peasant classes.
In the town of Strasbourg live the old Franco-Germans, which has been known as one of the many epicenters of tension due to the aftermath of World War II. Marianne's initial mission is to escort the Prince of Ferrand back to Lyon from the powder-keg town of Strasbourg. Immediately, something goes wrong...

Meanwhile Sierra, a knight of Lyon, learns of another knight's plan to assassinate the prince and the rest of the crew during the convoy mission. Desperate to find and kill the knight responsible, she barges into the Clermont parliament in search for the knight. However, she arrives too late as they have already left early on at midnight. If the Prince of Lyon were to die, the buildup of tension throughout the years of Ferrand's existence might finally explode into a revolt against the noble population. It is up to Marianne and her crew to stop this from happening at all cost... But will they alone be enough?

The Setting

Spoiler:

The game takes place in a fictional country in Europe, divided into three major provinces based off a class system. We have the Nobles, who live a modern lifestyle most Europeans today live. The Bourgeoisie who are the 2nd highest rank in the system, they make a living off trade and exploration. Finally there are the peasants, who live poorly and do not live with any modern luxuries. However, some peasants aren't that poor, but just aren't that rich either. The three classes are divided into the three provinces, and most blame the nobles for the problems that arise in this split up.

The Class System
Highest rank to lowest

Highest Class
- Prime Minister (PMs are elected by the people, however since nobles and bourgs make up most of the class system, the PM is usually biased)
- Royal Family (The royal family have no real power, they are mere symbols of the country's past)
- Liberte Knights (With the power of a noble, they serve under the Royal Family and PM)
Nobles
Bourgeoisie
Peasants

The World Around
Due to the events in the game, some countries have been altered from the timeline of history and has been offset by historic changes. Of such countries, one of them is France, which is now known as Ferrand. Most countries around the world have developed into modern first world countries, but Ferrand is the only country to be a first world, second world, and third world country all at the same time. Despite this, the European currency is still the Euro, and the United Kingdom is one of the few countries to keep their old currency, although Euros may be used to purchase items from the UK. This game, and games to come will mostly take place in Ferrand, and will never reach farther the the Mediterranean Sea.

The Characters

Spoiler:

Marianne
Age: 16
Sex: Female
Origin: Clermont, Ferrand
Class: Knight of Fire
Occupation: Liberte Knight
The main character of this chapter, she is a Liberte Knight for the capital city of Clermont. Marianne was a name given to her by the Knights Legion, and only she knows her real name. Marianne is usually a calm and cheerful person, she is the type to make things work when it comes to disputes. She also has a strong moral standing against drugs, alcohol, guns, and many other things she finds morally offensive. Despite being such a positive person, she isn't very confident in herself as a woman and her appearance. Marianne can also become quite serious when she needs to be, and this causes her friends who are used to her positive side to become concerned. She is a very observant person, usually saying out loud what she thinks, as if to inform somebody else of what she is observing. In terms of combat, she is a very powerful front line fighter, and a decent Ether user. She can use varying types of blades, from rapiers to two-handed swords.

Sierra
Age: 15
Sex: Female
Origin: Lyon, Ferrand
Class: Knight of the Moon
Occupation: Liberte Knight
Sierra is a knight for the Auxen capital city of Lyon. Her job is to protect members of the royal family, as well as preform other tasks typical of Knights. Being from the province of peasants, her group of knights are also treated as such by the other knights. She easily gets over excited, and over passionate in her endeavors, which usually causes her to fail. Her failures and Marianne's constant successes causes her to become co-dependent on Marianne, as Sierra thinks of her as a superior knight in every way. Despite this, Sierra is the main Ether user of the party, with a wide variety of skills to take advantage of. She is easily one of the most powerful Ether users in the country, as her Ether variation is rare. She also makes a decent melee fighter, since she can duel wield any combination of close range weapons such as sabers and daggers.

Jacque
Age: 22
Sex: Male
Origin: Lyon, Ferrand
Class: Sharpshooter
Occupation: Teacher/Explorer
Jacque is the name of a man whose thirst for adventure ends him up in a lot of trouble. He ends up in a trap during one of his excavations, and would have died there if Marianne and Sierra didn't show up. However, his real profession is not exploring, but it is as a teacher in an orphanage. His exploration of ruins are in the hope that he will one day find something to pay for the children he takes care of. He is a very knowledgeable person and very resourceful when it comes to exploration. Despite this, he still winds up in all the traps and gets the party in a lot of trouble. In combat he stays in the back and shoots with his Ether gun, a gun which uses TP (rechargeable with a skill called reload). He's powerful when he has ammo, and when he doesn't his pistol whip still packs a punch. Using Ether Drives on him can raise his ammo capacity, as he does not gain more TP as he ranks up.

The Details

Spoiler:

Scripts used:
- Lomexi's Battle Theme Adjuster
- Quest Journal V1.1 + Paragraph Formatter, by modern algebra
- Caterpillar, by unknown
- Advanced Lighting, by Kylock
- Simple Sideview Battle System + Backdrop system, by Claimh
- Moghunter Animated Title Screen
- Syvkals Menu Bars
- On Screen Shop + Battle Results, by Worale
- No Battle Entry Message, by Magica
Music used is from the Xenogears OST
Snake Eater by Cynthia Harrell
Aurora by Eri Kamiya
Graphics are mostly RTP, custom sprites from a character generator, Windows Mobile 7 based window skin created by me.
Quests Available (The ones listed in the mission log)
21 total so far.
Total Maps
165 so far
Expected Game Length
Act I: 5 Hours +
Act II: 8 Hours +
Game Size
65mb

Screenshots

Spoiler:

This is all of the country you will ever see in this game. You will never visit any places that are clouded over in this game.
Also note that the province of Toulouse is also not available in the game, and the town of Dover is not on this map.

Download
Full Game
MediaFire - Full Game 1.2 65MB
DropBox - Prelude of Identity 1.5 65MB

Patch
MediaFire - Patch 1.4 8MB
To patch, simply replace existing files with the files located in the patch.

Player Survey
Click Here
If you have completed the game, then feel free to do this survey to tell me what you think, as it will improve future games.

Reviews
PINEDAVX's Review 8.5/10
Senaphos' Review 8/10
Railkune's Video Introduction

Comic

Spoiler:

This post has been edited by Mr Meow Meow Meow Mix: Apr 19 2010, 12:59 AM

[Gingercake]

Since the game is complete, you should at least just copy all of the information from the original thread over here, instead of inconveniencing the reader by making them have to click a link to another site -- of which, if they haven't been to before, they have no clue if its safe or not. I'm sure RMRK is actually a safe website -- I haven't heard other wise and its not exactly a small RM website, however you should still post all of the information here as well, at least out of common courtesy.

I personally would rather know all of the information I can get about the game before I click the "download" button, and without having to go to another site I may or may not know anything about.

Aside from the information here that's missing from the RMRK forums, the game seems rather solid none-the-less. Seeing as how its inspired by real-world history, however, I'm probably not going to play it. Just not my flavor of tea, if you get my meaning.

[Mr Meow Meow Meo...]

Actually the only information that isn't here is the information you don't need. Which is development info and demo links. This thread has more screen shots in it than any other site due to the requirements for it to be moved to a complete project forum. Since this isn't my main RM site (as everyone has different sites they visit the most), I was just telling the reader that questions in this thread may not be answered due to my lack of activity on this forum.
Anyways, I'd just like to say thank you to anyone interested who considered playing the game, I hope you enjoy it as it did receive positive reviews from other sites. Also if you would not like to register at RMRK in order to ask any further questions, you can PM me via this forum and I will receive the email notification.

This post has been edited by MrMoo: Apr 2 2009, 08:59 PM

[Fandaxu]

Thread moved to completed games.

[Pie Helps!]

Hey its weird. How come when i downloaded it, and i play it, there is not text words. Its just empty boxes O.o I think its because there's no Graphics or data?

[Gingercake]

Hey its weird. How come when i downloaded it, and i play it, there is not text words. Its just empty boxes O.o I think its because there's no Graphics or data?

You don't have the right font in your computer that is run in the game. Send MrMoo a personal message so he knows to answer your question.

Seeing as how you just joined a few days ago, I'll run you through how to send him a message:

1) Click his name above his avatar on any of the posts he's made
2) Click "send message"
3) Type a message title, then a body to the message
4) Click Send Message

[Confederacy]

Oh, I like the idea of this game. Downloading now.

[Asymbol]

It has a classic Rpg feel at first glance, and with that said, I hope to see some great things.

[Mr Meow Meow Meo...]

Hey its weird. How come when i downloaded it, and i play it, there is not text words. Its just empty boxes O.o I think its because there's no Graphics or data?

I check up every now and then. Anyways, you'll need to install Calibri, the game font. This font is included in the game, so you'll want to do the following.
1. Open up the game folder to find the game files and Calibri.TTF
2. Go to "C:\WINDOWS\Fonts" on your C: drive. Or simply copy the quoted url into your explorer's address bar.
3. Drag Calibri.TTF into the Fonts folder. This will install the font.

An alternative method can be, that you install any Microsoft Office 2007 software on your computer, as Calibri is the main font for that.

And thanks akshard, Classic is the feel I was aiming for. There are no fancy scripts, no takentei, no complex huds or anything. This is a game for people who enjoy a classic turn based system with a little strategy and difficulty, as well as linear but open world gameplay.

[Mr Meow Meow Meo...]

Update: Fixed a bug where confused characters would cause the game to hang. It is recommended to patch the game or download the new full version, but the older version is still possible to complete.

[PINEDAVX]

I've been having some free time as of lately. I'll be playing this.

How long would it take to beat it?

[ilpomon1]

How I can play it it's rar and I don't understand how to use it

[eternaljadepalad...]

Get a program that unzips .rar files, like WinRAR. When you download it, use WinRar to extract the data. Then when it has been extracted, you will simply click on it to extract the actual program files and send it to your rpgvx folder.

[PINEDAVX]

I have been playing this until the city after the forest part... maybe it's the music but it feels Xenogears-ish in a good way

[yoshi71089]

OH MY GOODNESS THE ENCOUNTER RATE IN THE FIRST CITY AT NIGHT IS EXCRUTIATING.

Just so you know.

I'm really enjoying this game; the storyline is very enjoyable, and I like that the gameplay is different. The mapping feels a bit empty, but the storyline makes up for it.

[OverlordVulcan]

How long would it take to beat it?

Expected Game Length
Act I: 5 Hours +
Act II: 8 Hours +

maybe it's the music but it feels Xenogears-ish

Music used is from the Xenogears OST

[PINEDAVX]

Thanks a lot, but my comment was directed at the game itself, not only the music. I know the game too well to not know the music from it I meant the setting, "Ether", even the puzzles.

That's a good thing, though. I love Xenogears.

I'm in the Explorers thing part right now. The enemies might be a bit too hard if you don't train enough

[OverlordVulcan]

Thanks a lot, but my comment was directed at the game itself, not only the music. I know the game too well to not know the music from it wink.gif I meant the setting, "Ether", even the puzzles.

That's a good thing, though. I love Xenogears.

Ah. I've never played Xenogears before so I wouldn't really know.

Thanks for clearing that up, Pine.

[Mr Meow Meow Meo...]

Thanks a lot, but my comment was directed at the game itself, not only the music. I know the game too well to not know the music from it I meant the setting, "Ether", even the puzzles.

That's a good thing, though. I love Xenogears.

I'm in the Explorers thing part right now. The enemies might be a bit too hard if you don't train enough

I'm quite glad. I love Xenogears and it was a major inspiration. You'll notice I try to emulate many famous Xenogears boss fights, such as the Bart vs Ramses one where you have to use Wild Smile.
Sorry I haven't been able to reply much here, I've been busy with other things, but feel free to ask for help if needed. I was scared the difficulty curve might be a little bit much for casual players, as just like in Xenogears, you might need to grind a bit to get the skills necessary to defeat certain bosses. The first few maps will seem less detailed, but as I was making the game my mapping improved, so you'll only really notice it if you clock a few hours onto it.

Thanks for the comments guys. If there's any problems such as bugs, PM me so I can fix it ASAP.

[PINEDAVX]

I'll be sure to give out LOTS of feedback on this game, trust me. I'm loving it already.

I'm in the Ruins part so far

Spoiler:

Those cubes puzzles reminded me of my failures with Vagrant Story's cube puzzles! ><"
Now that I'm much more ahead I can seriously tell the Xenogears bits of it, after all it's my second favorite RPG ever. Of course it also has its original parts that I enjoy. Bill+Orphans (hehe...) was a good one

The arena is rather useful (dojo) but I disliked the 500G quota for traveling :/