Author Topic: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn  (Read 218868 times)

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Offline Ransom

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I adore the passion of this thing. You've reminded me why I love the FreeSpace modding scene. What most impressed me was the robustness of your original races - you've got, what, six here? And you've managed to make not just their identities distinct but also their gameplay. It's really cool.

Some inventive mission design, too. Loved the race through the asteroids.

I have to admit that the story wasn't to my taste. It was all too easy, for one thing - dramatically, I mean. The Hertak never struck me as a credible threat. It didn't help that I found myself ambivalent toward the characters, who for the most part seemed to blend together into a blob of cutesy wisecracks. The playful tone was a nice change of pace, mind you. I just thought the cast was rather forgettable for all the screen time they had.

I was impressed by the execution of the anime aesthetic, but ultimately that didn't agree with me either; not because it was styled after anime but because it played with elements of the form I'm really not fond of.

Not quite my cup of tea, then, but effortlessly likable and damn, damn fun. It's a mod of incredible ambition and charisma. I'm very eager to see what you come up with next.

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Thanks and good to hear Archaic&Ransom  :)
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline Pred the Penguin

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Just gotta say I really love the intro, I never skip it when I play WoD. Hope you make something similar for WoD2. :yes:

 

Offline Jeff Vader

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Yeah so I've recently been playing WoD (sorry it took so long). I'm bad at reviews 'n such but simply put, WoD has been... fun. Maybe it's the change in universe (no more 'shoot dem shivans'), maybe it's the characters, but it's always been fun to start up FSO and continue playing the campaign. Haven't finished yet, just recently got past
Spoiler:
saving the Cordi queen
, but will attempt to finish it as quickly as life allows.

Anyways, thank you for this great mod, and all the work you certainly had to pour into it. You rock, man.
23:40 < achillion > EveningTea: ass
23:40 < achillion > wait no
23:40 < achillion > evilbagel: ass
23:40 < EveningTea > ?
23:40 < achillion > 2-letter tab complete failure

14:08 < achillion > there's too much talk of butts and dongs in here
14:08 < achillion > the level of discourse has really plummeted
14:08 < achillion > Let's talk about politics instead
14:08 <@The_E > butts and dongs are part of #hard-light's brand now
14:08 <@The_E > well
14:08 <@The_E > EvilBagel's brand, at least

01:06 < T-Rog > welp
01:07 < T-Rog > I've got to take some very strong antibiotics
01:07 < achillion > penis infection?
01:08 < T-Rog > Chlamydia
01:08 < achillion > O.o
01:09 < achillion > well
01:09 < achillion > I guess that happens
01:09 < T-Rog > at least it's curable
01:09 < achillion > yeah
01:10 < T-Rog > I take it you weren't actually expecting it to be a penis infection
01:10 < achillion > I was not

14:04 < achillion > Sometimes the way to simplify is to just have a habit and not think about it too much
14:05 < achillion > until stuff explodes
14:05 < achillion > then you start thinking about it

22:16 < T-Rog > I don't know how my gf would feel about Jewish conspiracy porn

15:41 <-INFO > EveningTea [[email protected]] has joined #hard-light
15:47 < EvilBagel> butt
15:51 < Achillion> yes
15:53 <-INFO > EveningTea [[email protected]] has quit [Quit: http://www.mibbit.com ajax IRC Client]

18:53 < Achillion> Dicks are fun

21:41 < MatthTheGeek> you can't spell assassin without two asses

20:05 < sigtau> i'm mining titcoins from now on

00:31 < oldlaptop> Drunken antisocial educated freezing hicks with good Internet == Finland stereotype

11:46 <-INFO > Kobrar [[email protected]] has joined #hard-light
11:50 < achtung> Surely you've heard of DVDA
11:50 < achtung> Double Vaginal Double ANal
11:51 < Kobrar> ...
11:51 <-INFO > Kobrar [[email protected]] has left #hard-light []

 

Offline Rodo

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
You played the asteroids mission right? you did?, best mission evaRRR.
el hombre vicio...

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Great to hear  :D
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline FSW

  • 27
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I just finished Wings of Dawn. I loved it! There's just so much content; it's incredible, especially considering that it's mostly the work of one person! I really had a lot of fun.

Here is a short review (with minor spoilers).

Gameplay

This mod has the distinction of having the most significant advancement to the core gameplay of Freespace. There is such a wide range of weapon types, armour types, and specific vulnerabilities that there is some strategy involved in ship and armament selection. Energy management also seems more important here than in Freespace.

The player-controlled ships and weapons are fun and satisfying to use. I don't like the anti-engine missile, though; it loses aspect lock if the target's engine isn't facing the shooter! The Prometheus Frame is fun, but it's good that it is used sparingly.

The enemy ships are a break from the Freespace norm, requiring different tactics to defeat, and are quite threatening in numbers. The difficulty is inconsistent: often, it is challenging without feeling unfair (on Hard), given that the hardest parts are optional secondary objectives. However, there are frustrating moments; in the mission with the Fur'angle jump inhibiter, whether enough wingmen survive to protect the friendly bombers seems more a matter of chance than of player input.

The mission design is very varied and imaginative; with some really special set pieces. My personal favourite mission was one where the player must flee from an overwhelming force of pursuers, using asteroids as cover. So intense!

Unfortunately, there appears to be a bug that kills save files... I had to do the last few missions from the tech room simulator.

Ships

The range of ship types is amazing. There are so many factions, each with their own distinctive style, both visually and functionally. This really made WoD's universe its own. Unfortunately, I found that the presence of a few FS2 ships broke my immersion somewhat. I'd have loved to see more of Spoon's ship designs as the science vessel and freighters.

The models are low-detailed, but in most cases the art style makes up for it. However, in the cases of the ships the player has to navigate inside, the lack of detail (and poor lighting) is disorienting and adversely affects gameplay. The reflective armour on the LSF ships is particularly cool; as are the translucent Furangle ships. The weapon effects are really, really cool. The capital ship battles are a visual and auditory treat!

There seem to be some graphical issues with the Adasya's shields; the shield impact effect doesn't always appear in the same location as the weapon impact.

Story and characters

I really like the setting of WoD, and would like to see more of this universe!

Spoon clearly loves his work, and has crafted a very cool sci-fi world. The campaign's plot isn't particularly sophisticated, but it is certainly engaging. The tone is often upbeat and adventurous, which is refreshing for this kind of game. The music and the quirky characters definitely contribute; it's just a fun universe to be in. Some main characters seemed flat and one-dimensional, but their interactions were endearing, and they did grow on me; besides, there's only so much you can do in a game about spaceships. I like the hand-drawn art!

I absolutely love the music; it's always fitting, often exciting, and at times sweeping and epic (ABriefing4 is my favourite!).
« Last Edit: February 01, 2011, 03:22:35 pm by FSW »

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Awesome, thanks for the review!
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline Jeff Vader

  • The Back of the Hero!
  • 212
  • Bwahaha
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I win!

Funfun, moar plz ^^
23:40 < achillion > EveningTea: ass
23:40 < achillion > wait no
23:40 < achillion > evilbagel: ass
23:40 < EveningTea > ?
23:40 < achillion > 2-letter tab complete failure

14:08 < achillion > there's too much talk of butts and dongs in here
14:08 < achillion > the level of discourse has really plummeted
14:08 < achillion > Let's talk about politics instead
14:08 <@The_E > butts and dongs are part of #hard-light's brand now
14:08 <@The_E > well
14:08 <@The_E > EvilBagel's brand, at least

01:06 < T-Rog > welp
01:07 < T-Rog > I've got to take some very strong antibiotics
01:07 < achillion > penis infection?
01:08 < T-Rog > Chlamydia
01:08 < achillion > O.o
01:09 < achillion > well
01:09 < achillion > I guess that happens
01:09 < T-Rog > at least it's curable
01:09 < achillion > yeah
01:10 < T-Rog > I take it you weren't actually expecting it to be a penis infection
01:10 < achillion > I was not

14:04 < achillion > Sometimes the way to simplify is to just have a habit and not think about it too much
14:05 < achillion > until stuff explodes
14:05 < achillion > then you start thinking about it

22:16 < T-Rog > I don't know how my gf would feel about Jewish conspiracy porn

15:41 <-INFO > EveningTea [[email protected]] has joined #hard-light
15:47 < EvilBagel> butt
15:51 < Achillion> yes
15:53 <-INFO > EveningTea [[email protected]] has quit [Quit: http://www.mibbit.com ajax IRC Client]

18:53 < Achillion> Dicks are fun

21:41 < MatthTheGeek> you can't spell assassin without two asses

20:05 < sigtau> i'm mining titcoins from now on

00:31 < oldlaptop> Drunken antisocial educated freezing hicks with good Internet == Finland stereotype

11:46 <-INFO > Kobrar [[email protected]] has joined #hard-light
11:50 < achtung> Surely you've heard of DVDA
11:50 < achtung> Double Vaginal Double ANal
11:51 < Kobrar> ...
11:51 <-INFO > Kobrar [[email protected]] has left #hard-light []

 

Offline Nabla

  • 24
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Super review. I think exactly the same of this game. Another think that impressed me in this game is the immersion for example for the begining of the last mission you feel the excitation of combat with shooting everywere in the cutscene.

For the music a love it. It's a one point that i thing that i recognise WoD music in the anime Element Hunter but after comparaison of all the music folder i was wrong.

I personaly sugest playing wing of dawn to all my friend.

 

Offline Ypoknons

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I absolutely love the music; it's always fitting, often exciting, and at times sweeping and epic (ABriefing4 is my favourite!).
That reminds me... Gundam Unicorn episode 3 is almost out!!! GOTTA GET THE LIMITED EDITION FROM JAPAN!!!! AHH!!! SOMEONE STOP ME!!!!
Long time ago, you see, there was this thing called the VBB and... oh, nevermind.

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I absolutely love the music; it's always fitting, often exciting, and at times sweeping and epic (ABriefing4 is my favourite!).
That reminds me... Gundam Unicorn episode 3 is almost out!!! GOTTA GET THE LIMITED EDITION FROM JAPAN!!!! AHH!!! SOMEONE STOP ME!!!!
I can't stop you man, I just can't.
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline Buzog

  • 20
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Could not load in 2_CommandBrief-mb!
<no module>! KiFastSystemCallRet
<no module>! WaitForSingleObject + 18 bytes
<no module>! <no symbol>
<no module>! <no symbol>

got this error just before second mission's briefing and couldn't find anything from earlier posts or links in here. ideas would be awesome..

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
A debug log would help: http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php?topic=56279.0  tells you how to generate one.
Based on previous similar errors, I'm going to take a guess and say that the mediavp's are not correctly installed or something along those lines. but a debug log will tell us more.
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline Mobius

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Nice review, FSW. Spoon truly deserved those compliments!
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Offline Deadly in a Shadow

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I was wondering from where the ambient5 theme was. Now I know it's from Star Control 2 (like other themes in WoD).
But it is slower than the WoD version.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6uPw35j-Ok&feature=related
"Ka-BOOOOOOOOM!!!!"
"Uh, Sir we can hear the explosion."
"No you can't, there is no air in space. Sound can't travel through a vacuum!"

 

Offline -Norbert-

  • 211
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I guess this is as good a place as any to ask my little question:

I'm currently playing through Final Fantasy 3 and there I came across an enemy by the name of Kunoichi (guarding the Masamune to be exact).
Was this by any chance the inspiration for the WoD pilot by the same name?

 

Offline Spoon

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
I guess this is as good a place as any to ask my little question:

I'm currently playing through Final Fantasy 3 and there I came across an enemy by the name of Kunoichi (guarding the Masamune to be exact).
Was this by any chance the inspiration for the WoD pilot by the same name?
Alas no. Never played FF3. Kunoichi is just the japanese name for a female ninja. That's all there is to it. (:
Urutorahappī!!

[02:42] <@Axem> spoon somethings wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> critically wrong
[02:42] <@Axem> im happy with these missions now
[02:44] <@Axem> well
[02:44] <@Axem> with 2 of them

 

Offline -Norbert-

  • 211
Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
Not that it matters anymore, but I just noticed that I forgot to mention that this rather nasty boss was also a Ninja, that's why I got the idea.

 

Offline NGTM-1R

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Re: RELEASE - Wings of Dawn
So I went back to play again and discovered a Sweeper with all its subsystems disabled can apparently still fire its gun banks. I'm not sure if that's a bug, but it sure looks buggy.
"Load sabot. Target Zaku, direct front!"

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