Comments on "Progress Reports"

[BigRob]

*Hrm* Yes, for a fee, gladiators can be hired for command performances, or for private... parties. *hrm*

 

Thank you, everyone, for that enthusiastic burst of encouragement.

 

I'll hopefully have a new chunk of progress to report in the next few days as some recompense for those sore throats.

 

 

As long as you've bee working on this mod is it ever going to be a reality? I mean after all I've seen post as much as 3 or so years ago

 

DragonMaster

 

Considering BigRob's been working on the project for three years and it still hasn't died, I'd say that spoke to some commitment to getting it done, wouldn't you?

Tarayani has it right, I will be finishing Aklon, but writing a large mod does take a long time. I am, however nearing the end of major writing, with only (some) banters, interjects and quests left to go. There will be some time for editing of old dialogues and coding, but then the SoA portion will be complete.

[Guest Guest]

I realize I'm late for the party, but...RAWR!!

[Noctalys]

Ye gods, my own ineptitude pains me sometimes.

 

The above post was me.

[Riviera]

Rah, rah, sis boom bah! *waves pompoms*

 

I also second the rawr.

[irishwhiskey]

I suppose my rawr is in order...so...um...*RAWR*

 

keep it up BigRob! I know all of us are impatient and anxious, but i'm sure everyone would rather you take a little extra time to make it that much better.

[Elduin]

I'm hope I'm not to late to add my own enthusiastic RAWR!

[BigRob]

"Rawr"s are never too late.

 

Thank you second wave rawrers and the cheer squad.

 

 

And a small update for everyone's trouble: Progress has not been as spectacular as I'd hoped this week, due to some serious incoming things at work, but I'm still inching forwards. I'm hoping to have Anomen's conflict complete within the next couple of days and move onto the friendlier chats between him and Aklon.

Edited June 27, 2007 by BigRob

[RavenBlack]

RAWR!!!!

Edited June 28, 2007 by RavenBlack

[Vestrael]

"Rawr"s are never too late.

 

Thank you second wave rawrers and the cheer squad.

 

 

And a small update for everyone's trouble: Progress has not been as spectacular as I'd hoped this week, due to some serious incoming things at work, but I'm still inching forwards. I'm hoping to have Anomen's conflict complete within the next couple of days and move onto the friendlier chats between him and Aklon.

so does this mean that aklon and anomen (a+a! sorry, i notice stupid things like that), anyway, does this mean they'll be becoming friends...ish after the whole fiasco with the PC is done? sorry if you've already been over this...

[BigRob]

RAWR!!!!

Cor, that was a loud one.

 

 

 

 

so does this mean that aklon and anomen (a+a! sorry, i notice stupid things like that), anyway, does this mean they'll be becoming friends...ish after the whole fiasco with the PC is done? sorry if you've already been over this...

 

Yep, the possiblity exists that Aklon and Anomen can become something like friends. Once the extra aggravation of competition over the hand of <CHARNAME> is out of the way, they will have a chance to close the rift through their mutual respect for one another as warriors. <CHARNAME> will have some input into the process, and it will depend on the outcome of Anomen's quest, but things won't be getting any worse between them.

[Freedan the Eternal]

I'm late to the party too, but this mod looks great so far.

 

I'm not sure if you've answered this elsewhere, what is the average content rating of Aklon? I've become spoiled by some of Domi's work (Coran Romance, IWD2 NPC Project) and have a difficult time playing through the near bleach-clean PG-13 Bioware romances anymore because they seem so dull.

 

Hoping for something geared toward us older players, but I'll still have to try Aklon out even if he is kid friendly.

[Kulyok]

I would not agree with older people -> mature rating, but you might like NPC Flirt Packs and Romantic Encounters.

Edited July 2, 2007 by Kulyok

[Freedan the Eternal]

Maybe I should rephrase that. I didn't exactly mean for mature content to sound like it was just sex and swearing, though now that I think about it, perhaps those particular works from Domi weren't the best examples.

 

Let's take the Bioware romances as an example here.

 

We'll look at Aerie first. With an excellent concept of a painful past and the idea of a weaker character who needs support, it's the presentation of her romance that loses the idea of maturity. Just because a character is weaker than the others, personality-wise, that doesn't mean she needs to act like a child most of the time, especially considering she's likely older than most of the human party members, including Keldorn. Honestly, her romance makes me think of those cheap animated "romance" movies aimed primarily at girls age 6-11.

 

Viconia, on the other hand, struck me as one who was likely to be a strong woman and far from Aerie in her manner. I was right, in a way. I traded a girl who wanted to cling to me for support all the time for one who apparently wanted to kick me in the teeth and then lie about it. Viccy loses all sense of being a strong woman by just being an abusive one. Honestly, she reminds me of a girl I dated back in high school. Insults and abuse always strike me as immature, and as much as I love Viccy, I can't stand her romance.

 

Jaheira, however, is my favorite of the Bioware romances, mainly because she acts like an adult. She's also the strong woman I was hoping to find in Viccy, because she's not afraid to say what she's thinking. She also attempts to deal with the death of her husband herself, without whining constantly about it, but at the same time won't refuse when the PC offers a shoulder to cry on. I'd say she is the most mature of the Bioware romances, to be honest.

 

Aerie and Viconia both improved in leaps and bounds in their ToB segments, but it's sad that it took that long for both of them to grow up.

 

As for Anomen... ugh... let's just steer clear of that little detail. I've yet to finish his romance, and that's likely how things will stay.

 

To find another example among mod characters, let's look at Kivan, also by Domi unless my memory is failing. His is probably one of the most "grown-up" romances I've ever seen without resorting to sex and explicit language. Of all the Bioware NPCs, he likely has the most painful past of any of them. He does not force himself or his problems on the PC, however, and it is usually the PC that brings them up when they talk.

 

So, looking over Aklon's description, he has a lot of potential, without going for an Adults Only ESRB rating. His enslavement for one thing. Slavery is very serious subject matter, and to certain types of people, particularly good or freedom loving people, it is an absolute atrocity. But at the same time, should the PC free him, he needs to be able to move on, not clinging to it in the manner Aerie does her problem.

 

He's been under works for a long time, and I certainly appreciate mods of this caliber as much as anyone, but I'm afraid that if he's not going to act like an adult, I'm not likely to play with him much. And while I would appreciate more "adult" content in the standard definition just for myself and my own preferences, it won't really matter if I can connect with Aklon and really understand what he's going through like I did with Kivan.

 

I do appreciate the links, though, Kulyok. I've used the NPC Flirt Packs, but I hadn't seen the Romantic Encounters before. I'll have to try it soon.

[Vestrael]

aklon seems pretty mature to me, from what i've seen in BigRob's samples. that is, if maturity is what you're getting at when you say "an adult romance without sex or explicit language." (sorry, i can be a bit slow sometimes. )

[Freedan the Eternal]

I actually thing my last post still doesn't sound exactly right. I'm having a hard time finding the right wording for what I'm after, but I think simple maturity of character is as close to describing it as I'll actually get.

 

I mean, by the standards I was expressing above, someone would possibly assume that I hate characters like Minsc and Tiax because of their behavior, when they are actually two of my favorite characters.

 

I'm giving myself a headache. I'll just shut up now.