A very easy way to improve AE stories

[chuckv3]

I've got the site certificates done. All is 100% working at this point. I'm waiting for policy decision from the homecoming team about whether or not this will step on any toes. I'm hoping they actually like the idea. We'll see. One never knows.

 

But... It works mostly like I've outlined above. I'd love to get a few folks who want to beta test the thing as-is. Please PM me here with your global (which will then become your userid, and what shows up as the byline of the stories, a.k.a. the author) and your personal email address. I'll email you instructions on how to log in to create some content. 

 

I'll be working on a small "integrated" example, where people actually have to go run AE missions to unlock codes to progress. If I get the homecoming team's blessings, or at least permission to continue, I'll be putting the URLs for the enhanced dialogs into the A/E stories too. 

 

I'm also going to write something to allow a white-listed limitation of which HTML tags are allowed in the texts. stuff like B, I, BR and FONT COLOR= will be okay, but probably not much beyond that.

Edited April 24 by chuckv3

[Ankylosaur]

So this is impressive, but a fair amount of additional work for the author and the player. Said another way - it's hard to get people to play these things anyway - getting them to log into another thing may be a bridge too far for many players. The experience might be unique enough some may try it, but in my experience people tend to burn through the stories, not really look for more words (despite my penchant for putting in more. 🙂 )

 

Since the "revealed" arc ids need to be active anyway within AE, meaning it's not like the code actually unlocks an arc you otherwise could not just play, the main advantage here is the dialog - which is a cool addition. (In AE you could just include a branching arc name or ID within the Clue/Souvenir in AE.)

 

One pretty unique thing you could add, that has been requested often, are cutscenes. Each dialog block could have the person you freed/defeated animated and speaking, or it could be a whole scene someone made with multiple characters conversing. Maybe include a way to embed a Youtube video for cut scenes made with demo record in the dialog? (Not something I would personally take the time to do yet, but I am sure some would).

 

Presuming that is not in violation of the terms of course.

Edited April 25 by Ankylosaur

[chuckv3]

Great idea. I think Darmian might have also mentioned cut scenes in one of our ledge conversations.

 

I've seen people do them on youtube by doing various emotes and chats, then having someone else recording from a good camera angle (with UI hidden)

 

With all the work i've already done on this, it would actually be pretty easy to embed a youtube video given a URL. If videos are hosted on youtube (and not my site), it's just a URL. I actually do have a "portrait_url" for the dialog contacts, but the pages do not include those (yet). I left that unfinished for exactly the reasons you mention -- stepping on intellectual property toes. I'd rather have the homecoming team on board with this.

 

If some day they include a basic in-game web page widget that expand/collapses like zone maps, contacts, missions windows... Then this would all integrate nicely, especially if URL's pasted in the team chat automatically open there (for my follow-along idea), and better yet if cut scenes freeze the game like those in other missions. If I'm allowed to keep dreaming, how about special URLs in there to start a specific mission?

 

I'm chomping at the bit here homecoming team! What do you think? Can I at least have text-only tie-ins at this point with "fair use" references to in-game characters and story elements? 

Edited April 25 by chuckv3

[chuckv3]

Maybe they don't care?

 

I'll be trying the "easier to get forgiveness than permisison" strategy if it goes unanswered for too long.

[Ankylosaur]

Demo Record info: https://homecoming.wiki/wiki/Demo_Recording

[chuckv3]

 I tried to post details and that post has been in limbo for 21 hours (pending approval).

 

Let me make my intentions clear here: This is meant to complement, not detract from, Mission Architect. I'd really love if the homecoming team would implement something similar in game. It's all database driven, so it would also be pretty easy to just put the "play" parts in game, and leave the content creation as an external web site. I'll host it as long as somebody is actively using it. From what I can tell, every content creation part of Mission Architect could be done with what I implemented, since it's all just text with limited amounts of HTML allowed. Maybe making a 2.0 version could go in that direction?

 

Can someone from the team call me or set up a meeting if you care? Or if you don't care (yet), then let me post the details here?

 

Thanks team.

Edited Tuesday at 01:52 PM by chuckv3