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Program Announcements / Immortal Guardian 2

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Dr Manette
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Posted: 12th Jan 2008 19:49 Edited at: 19th Jan 2008 03:26
Download: http://www.biofoxgames.com/immortalguardian2.php (v1.02)
Our website: http://www.biofoxgames.com

Immortal Guardian 2, made by BioFox Games, is the second chapter of the series, continuing directly after the events of Immortal Guardian. You play as Professor Conner Albet, the mythology teacher at Stanford, who was hired by the mysterious Employer to retrieve the Holy Grail. But as you arrive at the Employer's mansion to receive your two million dollars, a strange cult steals the Grail, forcing you to chase through 5 levels of the mansion to get it back.

This game plays a lot like Immortal Guardian, as you have to navigate though mazes, flipping switches and gathering keys to open doors. The player is now equipped with a Sigma .22 revolver to fight enemies like the cult member, the ghoul, and the ghost. It also automatically saves after every level, so you can quit playing and come back later. There are two difficulties for the game, easy and hard. On hard, the enemies have more health and better attack damage.

If you find any bugs, please post as much detail as possible so we can fix them quickly. Enjoy the game and leave your comments!

Fixes till v1.03
n/a

Screenshots:






Mr Kohlenstoff
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Posted: 12th Jan 2008 22:42 Edited at: 12th Jan 2008 22:53
Looks nice! Downloading now, will post my feedback later.

Edit: Wow, very cool game.
The dude talking in the first cutscene reminds me of the G-Man.. and I love the textures. The atmosphere is good, but the game seems to be quite hard. I couldn't kill more than 3 enemies and didn't find a way to reload my weapon manually, so I probably did just see a very small part of the game.. however, good work.

Mr Tank
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Posted: 12th Jan 2008 22:51
Cool intro. The game itself was unplayable for me, presumably because of a shader issue. Everyhting in the game (apart from the crosshair) appears to have the same texture. Most of the time what looks like the pistol texture, other times the crosshair texture, and now and again one with red bits on (ammo?). I took some screenies.

It was too dark to see what was in the room. I killed the guy in the second room, but couldn't work out how to get out.



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Dr Manette
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Posted: 12th Jan 2008 23:12
@Mr Tank:
Yea, you must be having problems the shaders. Interesting how different images were used.

@Mr Kohlenstoff:
Yes, the game is challenging, in fact we had to make it easier from the original difficulty. And the gun only reloads when the clip is used.

Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 12th Jan 2008 23:38 Edited at: 12th Jan 2008 23:41
same as Mr Tank for me. shader issues, i guess i ran around hugging the walls and right-clicking, hoping to find a light-switch so i could see what the heck was going on. after about 5-6 switches i gave up (couldn't find anything "new" that the last switch might have triggered).

edit:

i'll add one small gripe. when you reload, the "clip" adds 1 bullet at a time? what kinda clip does that? hehe.

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Benjamin
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Posted: 13th Jan 2008 05:44 Edited at: 13th Jan 2008 08:45
There are a few things things I could mention for you to improve but I think one of the most important things is that you need to work on some decent AI. The enemies seem to just constantly dance in your direction which somehow damages you (I never knew dancing was so dangerous). Some proper AI that requires one to use strategy would add an element of fun to the game.

Another thing I think needs work is the level geometry. All the walls are square, which makes the levels seem a bit dull. I realise the idea is that each level is a maze, but I'm sure something can be done to liven them up a bit. Some lightmapping wouldn't go amiss either.

One thing that concerns me is the amount of time it takes to load the first level, despite the size and quality of it. I'd expect it to load much faster. Perhaps you can use object instancing/cloning to speed this up a bit.

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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 13th Jan 2008 12:18
You're all probably having problems with the shader, because whenever I used to try Evolved's Relief mapping shader I got the same problem - I think it's down to your graphics card's compatibility with such shaders. Perhaps he could use a more compatible shader?

Click to go to seppuku-arts.co.nr
Dr Manette
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Posted: 13th Jan 2008 19:03
@Virtual Nomad:
The switches open doors, but seeing as the shaders were messing you up, you probably couldn't see doors either. The gun is a revolver, which is loaded one bullet at a time.

@Ben:
I totally agree with you on everything. The AI is the weak part of this game, and it doesn't help that it's the first AI I've ever written, ever. The levels were meant to be simple, but this is the last time we're using that engine for our games. It was more so we could focus on other parts of the game (AI, models, shader). I'm going to be trying to fix the load time, but I think it is because of the shaders. While it does load slowly on my computer, my dad's newer computer loads in about five seconds.

@Seppuku Arts:
Yep, it's the shaders. I'm not the one who worked on them though, so I don't know too much about them. Do you have any suggestions for a more compatible shader?

Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 14th Jan 2008 00:09
but i coulda swore it said "clip", which threw me off when it reloaded 1 at a time. and, they do make speed-loaders for revolvers... not an issue worth "solving", i guess. a "small gripe", as stated

Virtual Nomad
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Dr Manette
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Posted: 14th Jan 2008 00:44
haha, yes they do. But Professor Albet uses an old school revolver.

DrewG
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Posted: 14th Jan 2008 03:35
I played through a couple switches, but quit, cos I had 5 health left after 3 enemies... Since they seemed soo hard to kill... Plus I couldn't even see where I was going because of the darkness... Give us some light, okay?

Other than that, great job,

but what did you use for a level maker?


Thanks to BigAdd for the signature!
Dr Manette
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Posted: 16th Jan 2008 00:02 Edited at: 17th Jan 2008 05:47
Haha, we're bringing easy down a couple notches so it's not so hard. We've also fixed the shader problem, but we're waiting for a few other fixes before the new version. Has anyone found anything else to fix? Our site was down for a day, sorry to those of you who tried to download.

@DrewG:
Our level engine is called BioMap, it originally was used in our first game Immortal Guardian as v1.3 and later in Revenge as v1.5. IG2 currently uses v1.6, which takes advantage of shaders and 3d object loading.

PAGAN_old
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Posted: 16th Jan 2008 03:06
this is the the first DBpro game i have seen with pixel shading.

this is just my own opinion but the pixel shading on the walls looks like plastic surface (not hat you can do anything about it) but i still think it looks good, the very short view distance is kinda annoying. Another personal preference is the ability to look all the way up/down. Your fps look angle appears to be limited.

and as some people before said the ai.

these are just my recommendations. Give the enemies some time between every attack like recover time or something. also i couldn't tell but it seemed like the only animation they had is attacking and that repeating animation really does make them look like they are dancing. Make some walking animation

and also make them slower (or at least some of them) because it is very annoying and hard to get good distance between them and you to avoid attacks.

keep up a the great job,

btw this game looks ike the forst level of the award winning elder scrolls 1 Arena, good times!

dont hate people who rip you off,cheat and get away with it, learn from them
Dr Manette
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Posted: 17th Jan 2008 05:47
Thanks, Pagan! Those recommendations are very useful. We're flattered that you're comparing IG2 to Elder Scrolls, too! I'll see what I can do about tweaking the AI...

Just an update on the next version. I've got reloading going twice as fast, enemies only take two shots to kill in easy mode, except for the ghost, which takes 3. We've also resolved the shader compatibility problem by using a different effect. The game doesn't look any different, however, which is a good thing.

I have to confirm this with our graphics programmer, but I'm pretty sure I've figured out why the levels take way too long to load. We had the normal map effect being loaded each time we made an object. Loading it once and using it over made the levels load much faster.

PAGAN_old
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Posted: 18th Jan 2008 06:08 Edited at: 18th Jan 2008 06:14
well the first immortal guardian game looks more like arena because it has no shading. but arena is the only game i played that had mazes like that so thats why i am comparing it to it.

not to make your game look bad by comparing it to arena but if you want to i can try comparing it to... Oblivion?

good use of shaders like in oblivion,... um, there are npcs, that look almost a good as morrowind which look almost as good as oblivion...

the view distance is annoying but it creates good (shadowy)atmosphere, in tes3 morrowind the foggyness is also kinda annoying and if you use infinite view mod, there is no fog and the view is just amazing, but the morrowind atmosphere is not there any more.

oh, one more thing, try to improve your voice acting, (possibly audio software)

also, in the cut scenes (beginning of IG2)it would be cool if you can add better graphics there just because its a cut scene
like that bookshelf could use some bumpmapping

its also an FPS just like crysis

and thats about it...

bet no one compared your game to oblivion yet huh?

dont hate people who rip you off,cheat and get away with it, learn from them
zapakitul
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Posted: 18th Jan 2008 10:13
Nice games but i came across 2 problems:
- Shader(doesen't let me see the textures)
- Low Ammo! Got trought the first 3 levels, and got killed by a ghost

Dr Manette
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Posted: 18th Jan 2008 22:21 Edited at: 18th Jan 2008 22:22
@zapakitul:
The good news is we've fixed both of those problems in version 1.02! Glad you enjoyed our game.

@PAGAN:
Actually, I just meant thanks for relating Elder Scrolls to Immortal Guardian. But it's not the first time our games have been compared to famous mainstream games... Revenge often reminds people of DOOM (which is good since DOOM was our main influence). No Oblivion till now, though!

The voice acting could use some improvement, but I think it's the way we record and not the software. Maintaining the dark atmosphere is also something we're trying to balance without making the game too hard to play. Thanks for all your critiquing!

On a side note, there is one last bug for version 1.02 we need to fix. For some reason, some of the object textures are showing up as just total black. If anyone has any ideas why, we'd be grateful for your help.

Dr Manette
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Posted: 19th Jan 2008 03:24 Edited at: 19th Jan 2008 04:27
Version 1.02 of Immortal Guardian 2, which has fixed the shaders and the difficulty (including the amount of shots to kill the enemies and the reload speed), is now available for downloading. You will also notice a huge increase in the loading time and a slight FPS increase. Enjoy!

http://www.biofoxgames.com/immortalguardian2.php

Mr Z
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Posted: 21st Jan 2008 12:19 Edited at: 21st Jan 2008 12:19
Have tested IG2 two times now (had my sound of for some reason the first time, and figured it out first after I had played the game). Anyway, it was nice but three things would be better to think of to your next game:

1. Better level design.

I entered an door or something at the end of each level, but on the next, there where no sign of where you came from. And I would also recommed you to implement objects like crates that stands on the ground in the large rooms and lamps that lights up around them to make the world more alive and not just an big, flat and quite empty maze. Like tourches that light it up.

2. Harder.

Ok, I do not mean that the enemys should be nearly impossible to kill, rather that they should have better AI and that the puzzles in the game could be made better (not just "find key and open door" or "use this thing to open this door", but rather puzzles that can be hard to solve and that forces the player to really think what they are doing).

3. More animated stuff.

Make more of the stuff you had in the beginning (the intro). Like when you come to the boss, you could talk to her for a short period before hell breaks loose, if you get what I mean.

That´s enough of what could be done better. You have created an game with an good atmosphere. The music and sounds where excellent in combination with the style of the game, and the shaders was really nice. Very well done!

Ohh, and I found an secret room. Who are these two guys?



As an note, there are some other pictures in that room too, so people, try to find it.

Darkness, you haunt me. If I give in, I would be an monster beyond imagining. Light, you guide me. Thanks to you, I see past the nothingness. Life, I choose to live in the light.

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Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 21st Jan 2008 23:53 Edited at: 21st Jan 2008 23:54
well, i'm happy that i can play it now with the shader fix, though i was disappointed that there were so few textures that i was missing. i expected something similar to the cut-scenes, and then some (furniture, etc). my imagination had it fleshed out more when i couldn't see anything. heh. otherwise, it was a decent "dungeon crawl" atmosphere.

i had a performance hit on level 4 for some reason. it was sluggish compared to 1-3. then when i started level 5, suspicions were confirmed as i felt i was racing everywhere. you might want to look at lvl 4 (if there's any difference in the coding, etc, there. didn't see anything except a new beastie, i believe <shrugs> ) for something that could be causing the hit. it wasn't terrible, though; just felt like i was mucking through a shallow bog, without the, well, bog. heh. given my modest system specs (see sig), you and others may not not have noticed it. the other levels played fine.

overall, i'll say "not bad!". the music "worked". the voice-acting "worked". the levels (now that i can see) were challenging-enough without being too difficult (i have about "zero" short-term memory). the submersion factor "worked". of course, i'd wish for more variety and detail in the levels, some variety in the "puzzles", but atleast you didn't offer 50 levels of the "same ol' thing", so that was appreciated. it was over at just about the right time with what's in the game currently.

botom line: you and your team should be commended for putting out a "working FPS with a lot of potential".

thanks for sharing.

Virtual Nomad
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Dr Manette
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Posted: 22nd Jan 2008 00:16
Wow, thanks for the critique, Virtual Nomad! We were definitely going for a good atmosphere, I'm glad we've got that down. In a lot of ways this was testing our skills using shaders, 3d objects (we've never used our own models before), and AI. I agree, the levels could have a lot more to them. The performance hit on level 4 was probably due to it being the largest level. And since level 5 is the smallest, it's clear why you saw a huge difference.

I am extremely proud that we pulled this game off in six months, especially since it's the third game we've made, and the second FPS we've made. If you've played Revenge, you'll see we've made a lot of advances since then, and now I'm very confident we're fit to make FPS's. I'm glad you enjoyed Immortal Guardian.

Mr Z, you make three very good points. Our team has atmosphere down, now we need to work on our AI and level design. While our next game, hopefully to be posted here soon, is not an FPS, you'll see a lot of improvements from all the criticism.

Oh, and those pictures are of friends; the one on the left was an old boss idea for Revenge before it went strictly multiplayer, and the one on the right is steve jobs' picture. A bit of an inside joke.

Mr Z
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Posted: 22nd Jan 2008 08:33
Lol, yeah, I was hoping it was fictures of you guys.

Didn´t redognise Steve Jobs though. Can only remember one picture, and that was quite old if I remember correctly.

Anyway, I strongly suggest other players start looking for that secret room. On the walls behind me in the picture I posted where some other images...

Darkness, you haunt me. If I give in, I would be an monster beyond imagining. Light, you guide me. Thanks to you, I see past the nothingness. Life, I choose to live in the light.
Dr Manette
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Posted: 22nd Jan 2008 23:18
Heh, the five other images represent our previous games, and one that's come back at least three times before being scrapped every time.

If you can name em in order I'd be impressed.

PAGAN_old
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Posted: 23rd Jan 2008 06:36
i got my new laptop w an 8800 gtx, i will finally get to play IG2 on full settings

dont hate people who rip you off,cheat and get away with it, learn from them
Dr Manette
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Posted: 24th Jan 2008 18:11
Now go out and kill those cult members!

nackidno
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Posted: 17th Feb 2008 00:49
It was fun, a little short though. Make an expansion set!

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Darth Vader
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Posted: 17th Feb 2008 08:38
That felt quite completed! Very short though! My bro finished it in 5 minutes!

How did you create those cutscenes?


Dr Manette
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Posted: 19th Feb 2008 18:06 Edited at: 19th Feb 2008 18:08
@nakidno,
Glad you liked the game, unfortunately we're already working on another project that will (hopefully) be on the WIP board soon. But I heard through the grape vine that Immortal Guardian 3 is planned on eventually.

@Darth Vader,
This is definitely our most well rounded game yet. And wow, five minutes... yea, it is a short game. But too much dungeon crawling would get old, I think.

And those cut scenes are all in real time. For example, we made the mansion out of planes and objects modeled in Blender. The Employer is actually a DarkMatter model, I'm still waiting for people to figure out which. And the fact that you can look around during the cutscene reveals the obvious Half-Life influences in the game.

As a side note, we've had about 100 downloads of IG2 since it's release; that's a month and a week with about 3 downloads a day. This game even broke Revenge's record, pretty amazing.

Bizar Guy
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Posted: 24th Feb 2008 01:51
So... when will your site be back up? I wanna play it.


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Dr Manette
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Posted: 24th Feb 2008 05:09
Oh right, the site.

Yes, our site should be back up tomorrow, since we'll be buying hosting and setting it back up. Our server went down a few days ago so we've been fiddling for awhile. Sorry about the inconvenience, you should have IG2 in your hands tomorrow, Monday at the latest.

Dr Manette
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Posted: 27th Feb 2008 03:29
Sorry for the double post...

Just letting everyone who couldn't download last week know that our site is back online. So you can all have your IG2 fix.

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