The guys at AMSTRAD CLASSIC GAMING AND DEMOS FB GROUP are putting together a one off 2016 games mag kickstarter project.
A draft has been completed and a visit to the local printers has been arranged to discuss all the ins and outs of artwork, layouts, pages, costs, the time it will take to complete etc etc etc.
Any CPC'ers / members who want to be part of / in the mag then please send here or on the FB group page what your fav games of 2016 were and why please try to limit it to 250 words.
If no one ends up putting anything forward then please DON'T COMPLAIN when the mag is completed because you have been asked ;)
fb link is here https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10155175424351336&set=gm.1557670380924975&type=3
also if you coded a CPC game in 2016 and would like to be interviewed please write back and i will include it in the mag many thanks :)
Just had meeting with the printers. The graphic designer going to weave her Magica on it so i guess we wait and see and then it will be a process of ticking things off page by page till its finished hopefully doesn't drag on for too long. If anyone wants to send me their fav games of 2016 then please send them through cheers ;)
My two pence:
A fine pair of games impressed me last year, those being Doomsday Lost Echoes by Doomsday Productions and Golden Tail by Reidrac.
Golden Tail took an interesting mechanic and wrapped it in a good looking, well balanced game with a difficulty level just right for rubbish gamers such as myself. Yes, I died a lot but it never felt unfair and I never lost motivation to keep trying. It took me back to the days, not just of CPC games of yore, but to NES classics such as Castlevania and Metroid. It also goes to show that you don't have to go around blasting enemies to have a good time, avoidance can be equally satisfying.
Doomsday Lost Echoes helped me rediscover a genre (the text adventure) that I'd not touched in more than 20 years. Dark and atmospheric, it helped elicit the feelings of watching your favourite sci-fi movies for the very first time. I must admit, I was even a little scared at points. The effort that went in to this grandiose production is clear, from the descriptive narrative to the beautifully detailed Mode 1 pixel art. A sizable adventure with some clever puzzles, if this had been released 30 years earlier I'm sure that it would be hailed as one of the all-time classics of the genre.
QuoteDoomsday Lost Echoes helped me rediscover a genre (the text adventure) that I'd not touched in more than 20 years. Dark and atmospheric, it helped elicit the feelings of watching your favourite sci-fi movies for the very first time. I must admit, I was even a little scared at points. The effort that went in to this grandiose production is clear, from the descriptive narrative to the beautifully detailed Mode 1 pixel art. A sizable adventure with some clever puzzles, if this had been released 30 years earlier I'm sure that it would be hailed as one of the all-time classics of the genre.
Jesus, Jesus! I am really glad you liked the game so much but I even feel embarrassed! :D :-[
I really like the project and the idea, so I will try to make my small contribution too as soon as I have time! :D
Good luck with project, this is the sort of stuff that keeps the CPC alive . Along with all the decent games that show the machines capability.
There were really awesome productions in 2016 and it is very difficult to pick just a few among them. If I had to choose, I think that I would go for:
Imperial Mahjong. It has some new amazing graphic modes, digi-drums, samples when the game loads, half an hour of music, endless possibilities when it comes to generate new arrangements of the tiles... it looks like an Atari ST game and I think that it is truly awesome.
Vector Vaults. Extremely smooth vector graphics at constant 25 fps, multi directional pixel precise scroll with variable speed, very nicely tuned physics and great gameplay. The ship responds without any delay and, although it is a challenging arcade, I feel that the difficulty level is really well balanced. I also love the plot of the game and the fact that it will have continuity in the future.
Dragon Attack and Chibi Akuma. The first bullet hells for the CPC, both very brave, cleverly programmed and really well done. I deeply enjoyed the two despite my incompetence trying to avoid the projectiles.
As you see, I am mentioning the programs that impressed me the most from a technical point of view, but I liked many others too: Golden Tail, Magica, Hire Hare, Defence...
Quote from: cpc4eva on 07:19, 07 March 17
Any CPC'ers / members who want to be part of / in the mag then please send here or on the FB group page what your fav games of 2016 were and why please try to limit it to 250 words.
I can try to write an article this weekend. What is the deadline? Does the entire article have to be a maximum of 250 words, or is it 250 words per game?
No deadline as yet.
it doesn't have to be exactly 250 words i just thought that may help as a guide so there wouldn't be massive essays and a small amount of writing i thought wouldn't discourage people as they would more likely write something smaller than labour over the keyboard writing a massive chunk of words :)
what people have written here so far looks pretty good.
if you want to write more than 250 words thats fine try not to go overboard like 1000+ words
if you want to write approx 250 words on your favs thats fine too maybe limit it to 5 - 6 games then for that approach
do u guys think i should put your pic with your comments or just your name ????
so today i have been working pretty good and solid on the mag
today i have put together
* coder interviews received so far from coders of games - chibi akumas, golden tail / magica and outlaws
many thanks to Juan, keith and Jose A Martin thanks alot :)
* cpc community favs of 2016 that i have been sent theres about 5 of you that have sent me your favs atm thanks to those who have sent me your 2016 favs :)
please send through your coder interviews or fav games of 2016 while there is no time limit set as yet i am working towards getting the mag done and ready for a kickstarter release as soon as i can.
cheers :)
An UPDATE
the mag will now have the following
* A CPC community section - cpc'ers favs of 2016 many thanks to the ones i have received so far - anyone else who wants to put down their 2016 favs with a few sentences etc would love to see them.
* A pokes / cheat section - many thanks Nich i tried the Oulaws ones worked well.
* A coders section - interviews with coders for games such as Magica, Outlaws, possibly Imperial Mahjong and one or two others at this stage. i am in two minds to have the interviews as a separate section or merged in with the game review. What are peoples thoughts on this ?
* CPC retrodev 2016 section
* A Demo section although not many GFX demo's being made these days.
* All the games from 2016
I am in discussion with Bob Wakelin for a cover design of the mag fingers crossed it happens would be an honour if he could do the front cover page design.
For info on Bob's design history check this link http://www.boxequalsart.com/bob%20wakelin%20artist%20profile%20page.html
I would love to get some A3 posters printed to go with the mag i have asked a few coders for permission to use their 2016 games and waiting to hear back.
I recently posted a comp on freelancer to design a cover they were all pretty poor so if anyone wants to put a cover design forward please feel free id love to see it :)
i have some time off over Easter so hopefully i can get it on Kickstarter around then.
cheers :)
guys / gals i have set a deadline for April 13.
if you could please list or write about your fav games of 2016 in here or pm me by April 13 that would be fantastic.
also coders / developers of 2016 games could you please have your game info / interviews in to me by April 13
if anyone wants to put forward a cover design please feel free to do so the deadline is also April 13
here is a mock cover design this will not be the one used for the mag.
Reminds me of the first time I found the original 1st Amstrad Action in my local newsagent. Man I was so stoked when I bought that first adition , so many games reviewed in it . Happy Days.
Quote from: Puresox on 18:26, 26 March 17
Reminds me of the first time I found the original 1st Amstrad Action in my local newsagent. Man I was so stoked when I bought that first adition , so many games reviewed in it . Happy Days.
Many thanks
i hope i can replicate some of those awesome memories Puresox.
Another reminder to everyone the deadline day is April 13.
If anyone wants to be in the mag please send me your 2016 fav games list / comments :)
Any coders of 2016 CPC games who want to be in the mag please contact me :)
Some more info / updates on the mag -
* Have received info from Shinning oh his game Defence with some helpful playing tips.
* In discussion with the guys who coded Imperial Mahjong for an article / interview on their game
* In discussion with the Oliver Twins interview re their 2016 CPC gaming experiences at CPC RETRODEV
* In discussion with CPCRETRODEV organiser Francisco José Gallego re an article on the CPC Spanish scene
member Dirtybb has asked me to find out more on the Vektor Vaults game for the mag.
if anyone knows the coder Alberto Rodriguez MARTINEZ could you please contact me.
many thanks
:)
Quote from: cpc4eva on 22:24, 05 April 17
member Dirtybb has asked me to find out more on the Vektor Vaults game for the mag.
if anyone knows the coder Alberto Rodriguez MARTINEZ could you please contact me.
Alberto's web site is https://albertoven.com/ (https://albertoven.com/) .
@cpc4eva (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=178): did you receive my PM?
yes many thanks just replied - had been away from the pc all weekend as i have been too stressed out in personal life to look at fb and emails this weekend...........
now i have to catch up
:o
Quote from: Targhan on 21:51, 07 April 17
@cpc4eva (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=178): did you receive my PM?
many thanks Nich :)
Greetings everyone :)
just want to give all of you reading this an UPDATE ON THE 2016 CPC MAG.
firstly i want to thank anyone who has contributed in any way such as interviews, pokes, fav game thoughts of 2016 and any other content etc etc
so off the top of my head i would like to thank the coders / developers who have done interviews -
Shining
Egotrip
Juan
Keith
Targhan & Super Sylvestre
Krusty Benediction
The Oliver Twins
Professor Francisco
I hope i didn't forget anyone and have spelled peoples names correctly
to the people who contributed by putting their fav games and anything else thanks to -
Neil Reive
Neil Simpson
Neil Duckworth
Nich
Gryzor
Mark Latham Hall
Jose Miguel Campigna
John Kavanagh
Skunkfish
||C|-|E||
so where am i at with the cpc 2016 mag exactly ?
I pretty much have all the content written up but if anyone else wants to ADD ANYTHING THEN NOW IS THE TIME TO DO SO :) either n this thread or personal message me.
If there are any Spanish people out there who grew up with the CPC in Spain or coded games for the CPC in Spain back in the day 1980's / 1990's id love to hear from you :) feel i need a bit more info on that area.
any of these guys -
Javier Garcia Navarro
Juan J. Martinez
Raúl Simarro
Jon Cortazar
Victor Ruiz
Raul Ortega Palacios
Alberto Gonzalez (Joe McAlby)
Cesar Astudillo (Gominolas)
Jose Vicente Pons
Fernando San Gregorio
Jose Antonio Martin
Pablo Ariza
Juan Gimenez
Alfonso Azpiri
Andres Samudio
Luis Rodriguez Soler
the sections i will be covering off the top of my head once again i just got home from a very hard day at work so hopefully i haven't left anything out -
* ALL THE 2016 GAMES
* ALL THE DEMOS
* CODERS CORNER - CODER INTERVIEWS
* #CPCRETRODEV 2016 RESULTS
* #CPCRETRODEV 2016 OLIVER TWINS INTERVIEW
* NICH'S POKERS PARADISE
* A FEW OTHER BITS N PIECES
* PROFESSOR FRANCISCO INFO ON CPC IN SPAIN
I have a new COVER PAGE i am working on see attached i think i will be going with something like this.
I have found a graphic designer close to home who i am meeting on Wednesday hopefully we can get a draft of a review laid out and tweak the cover page a bit and then i will post it on kickstarter. From there i will try to get it laid out as quick as i can.
just want to inform everyone i dont stand to make a profit from this, i am doing this for fun and enjoyment and in my own time around very long working hours and a difficult family life, making it difficult to spend more time on it, so i just hope it comes out looking good when its finished.
I would like to do another one off mag for 2017 next year but we see how we go with this one.
many thanks to everyone and as i mentioned a few paragraphs up if you want to add anything or contribute now is the time do so.
Cheers
work on the cpc mag 2016 is progressing slowly i only get to work on the layout with the designer for about 30mins each week due to everyday life getting in the way. Here are a few teaser screens of how its looking atm gives everyone an idea of what it will look like......
Want any article submissions for the magazine? I've done a load of interviews fo a Dizzy book that never got used/finished..
Quote from: zeropolis79 on 12:27, 17 May 17
Want any article submissions for the magazine? I've done a load of interviews fo a Dizzy book that never got used/finished..
many thanks for the offer, the mag is only about CPC games and demos in 2016 though. i recall on fb you mentioned that you had not played any of the 2016 CPC games and were not offering any content for that reason.
cheers
Yeap, I'm yet to play any of them.. As soon as I can, I aim to try them
**** AN UPDATE ****
NOTE I AM LOOKING FOR ANYONE TO WRITE REVIEWS FOR THE ADVENTURE SECTION of the mag please send me a PM or respond here thanks if you would like to write adventure reviews. The adventure games are as follows:
4 mile island
CIA adventure
Elf
Green Falls
Guss's Death an Exercise In Interactive Fiction
Magic Mirror
Miser
Neptunes Caverns
Sceptre Quest
Survival
The Melarkian
Night Of The Vampire Bunnies
Crystal of Nebumeth
Treasure of McDoobys Mansion
The Wizards Castle
The Tower of Despair
Venture Max
Zombie Terror Unloaded
i think i have listed all of them i may have missed a few though.
As for the MAG - been working on CPC MAG 2016 and the progress remains very very slow due to real life always in the way :(
Attached is a previews draft page without the words to give you an idea of whats been happening and how its coming together -
updated progress pics of CPC MAG 2016. As you can see its starting to take shape. Its all just a draft at this point but its getting there real life stuff always getting in my way - I could really do with some help on the adventure game reviews section especially with the non english speaking cpc games
cheers :-* :-*
Looks great, I'm looking forward to this.
Quote from: Skunkfish on 19:28, 01 July 17
Looks great, I'm looking forward to this.
Skunkfish can you send me a pic of yourself and i will put it with your comments in the cpc community fav games section
cheers
progress report: my mum fell ill and i had to rush her to hospital so i have not done anything on the mag since last post. Hopefully my mum will be out of hospital next week, we see what happens.
:(
**** CPC MAG 2016 UPDATE **** My mum spent a week in hospital and is now home feeling much better, fingers crossed she wont be going to hospital again for a while. I am determined to get the mag completed as soon as i possibly can. I have been working away in the little spare time i have on the mag, i have almost completed all the content there are some pics and words etc that i need to focus on but thats nothing too major i hope. I finally have all the adventure game reviews many thanks to those who helped me out and wrote some of them, it is much appreciated (ICE & Keith in particular). The content is now with the graphic designer who will be putting it into each section - hopefully the right sections of the mag and i don't have to get them to make too many revisions or changes - as the graphic designer is working full time i was informed i may receive something in 2 weeks time where i will check over it and provide the pictures for each section / article / review etc. As soon as i get a file or screenshot of whats been done then i will make a new update post with them - so fingers crossed in 2 weeks i will have something to report.
Glad you bumped this thread , I had totally forgotten about it. Put me down for a copy .
I know you've been putting a lot of work into this, so it's great to hear how it's progressing!
Keep up the good work!
CPC MAG 2016 is still going ahead and there's been some progress made. Content has been included in the first couple of sections see the pics. Over the next week, fingers crossed the rest of the content will be included. The week after that i hope to get the photos added into each section / each article.
I have all the photos and all the content for just about all sections now so its all up to the time the graphic designer has available to put it all together. It is a slow process, the graphic designer putting it together for me is juggling their full time higher paying workload with doing the CPC MAG this has been the most cost effective arrangement for me. I got many quotes long ago from many designers who could have had the mag done much sooner but it was going to cost me a fortune, so this is more cost effective and explains why its taking so long.
pictures attached - they aren't clear as i cant reveal too much of the content. When its all finished and ready to go i will have a short video and much clearer pics of the mag for everyone to see.
i also want to make sure that the project / mag is completed before going to any kickstarter / crowd funding campaign. I don't want people passing over their money and waiting for ever before they receive a copy.
I already have a full time job earning me enough money so i am not in this for the money, i dont expect to make any profit or any sort of great numbers of pledges. I just love the CPC and love seeing new games being developed for it.
As Keith writes above i have spent alot of time on this project in very limited spare time. I have had help from many others which i mention in the mag - thanks to all of you.
hopefully i can have the mag finished soon i think it will be a good read - the Spain article is quite in depth, the Oliver Twins interview is a cool read as are the coder interviews that i was able to get, there's heaps of game reviews and a cool cheat mode. So hopefully when the pics are put in it will be close to the finish.
cheers
Great to hear another update on how the magazine is progressing,
it looks excellent, I really looking forward to seeing the finished product.
CPC MAG 2016 progress update at at 22 August 2017:
All content and pics finalized of that currently 80% of the content and 5% of pics has been put into magazine format (see picture example below yes i know the it should be a cpc plus / gx and not a cpc464). The page count currently stands at 132 but this will increase substantially when the remaining sections content is included as well as any of the specific graphic artwork and all of the pictures for each section - there is alot of them!!!!.
I am in discussion with poly play for posters of Chibi Akuma, Golden Tail, Doomsday Lost Echoes and Magica to be included in the Kick Starter.
I am also exploring possibility of having t shirts made up as part of the Kick Starter.
There is still much to sort out regarding the look and feel of the mag - many thanks to Neil Reive who is helping out with a few of the sections giving them a more CPC feel.
Ohhh a poster! What a great giveaway!!!
Thanks for your update, and your continued hard work on this project!
ok so its been a long while since the last update -
the previous time i wrote i was looking forward to completion sooner rather than later but as its turned out it has been delay after delay after delay after more delays!
i went to see the graphic artist putting it all together today and frankly i not really happy atm quite depressed to be honest as not much has been done and i had to pay for it aswell. just so frustrated right now and not in a happy mood.
only the first part like sections 1 -4 of the mag are 99% done i had expected alot more - i mean a whole lot more.
in fairness i must take some blame as i did make some changes / revisions - but come on seriously all this time and thats all thats been completed thats not what i had hoped for at all.
The changes i made were minor really, nothing major just some things to give it a more video game look and a more cpc feel by changing the fonts and including more pics to show comparisons etc but seriously nothing that would take that long :(
The mag should be almost completed by now but its far from it.
so feeling pretty gutted right now.
also i had teed up a comic artist to draw up a comic strip i paid a deposit he told me last week he was doing a draft and now today he told me he cant do it. He said he would return my money but will he, i have my doubts.
so anyway just to recap.
i have completed everything from my end - all content is finished / written up. all pics have been sourced and saved to files. all text and images to go with articles such as comparisons have been done. any images such as icons etc have been done. The graphic artist has done all the layout and spaced out most sections.
currently there is about 130+ pages but that should increase.
all i am waiting for now is the graphic artist to put it all together. so far sections 1-4 are 99% complete some minor corrections needed there. whats next is the reviews sections - putting words and pics together. As to when this will be completed i was given no clues by the graphic artist today even though i asked several times for a time that this would be completed by.
**** I JUST WANT TO THANK AGAIN EVERYONE WHO HAS SENT ME INFOS TO GO IN THE MAG - I WILL DO MY BEST TO GET IT ALL DONE AND FINISHED ****
As some members of here and on FB and twitter know ive had a pretty tough time of it recently at work and at home so i will get this out as to when i don't know.
>:( >:( :picard:
Cheers
Once again, thanks for your herculean effort on this one! I'm sure your effort will result in the final magazine being something really amazing, and I look forward to seeing it!
Quote from: cpc4eva on 11:05, 11 October 17
ok so its been a long while since the last update -
the previous time i wrote i was looking forward to completion sooner rather than later but as its turned out it has been delay after delay after delay after more delays!
i went to see the graphic artist putting it all together today and frankly i not really happy atm quite depressed to be honest as not much has been done and i had to pay for it aswell. just so frustrated right now and not in a happy mood.
only the first part like sections 1 -4 of the mag are 99% done i had expected alot more - i mean a whole lot more.
in fairness i must take some blame as i did make some changes / revisions - but come on seriously all this time and thats all thats been completed thats not what i had hoped for at all.
The changes i made were minor really, nothing major just some things to give it a more video game look and a more cpc feel by changing the fonts and including more pics to show comparisons etc but seriously nothing that would take that long :(
The mag should be almost completed by now but its far from it.
so feeling pretty gutted right now.
also i had teed up a comic artist to draw up a comic strip i paid a deposit he told me last week he was doing a draft and now today he told me he cant do it. He said he would return my money but will he, i have my doubts.
so anyway just to recap.
i have completed everything from my end - all content is finished / written up. all pics have been sourced and saved to files. all text and images to go with articles such as comparisons have been done. any images such as icons etc have been done. The graphic artist has done all the layout and spaced out most sections.
currently there is about 130+ pages but that should increase.
all i am waiting for now is the graphic artist to put it all together. so far sections 1-4 are 99% complete some minor corrections needed there. whats next is the reviews sections - putting words and pics together. As to when this will be completed i was given no clues by the graphic artist today even though i asked several times for a time that this would be completed by.
**** I JUST WANT TO THANK AGAIN EVERYONE WHO HAS SENT ME INFOS TO GO IN THE MAG - I WILL DO MY BEST TO GET IT ALL DONE AND FINISHED ****
As some members of here and on FB and twitter know ive had a pretty tough time of it recently at work and at home so i will get this out as to when i don't know.
>:( >:( :picard:
Cheers
Hello sorry about the question but where is the link to see your work? Im looking and looking but i cant find it. ::)
Sorry if im blind or something :D but i really want ti see it hehe
So last week i was gutted. i am not going over that again - that's in the past now.
today a little ray of sunshine - i received the first look at a game review.
It is attached to this post.
finally some sort of positive news and progress albeit very slowly.
There's some minor modifications required as pictures don't match up with words on the left page and a few other minor things but it looks like there is a bit of hope it will get finished by the end of the year. i will update again as soon as i have the info from the graphic artist.
No the rating is not a love heart - its been hidden on purpose ;)
if any of the 4mhz guys are seeing this post what do you guys think of the look of the review of Adios A La Casta 2 ?
*** jesusdelmas there is no link as yet - just scroll through this thread and you will see some pics posted ;)
Cheers!
Latest UPDATE received yesterday.......
after feeling upbeat last time .....
and again im disappointed.
im just going around in circles it really is doing my head in.
even though progress is being made its so damn slow and there is so many errors and corrections required - i gotta find a better GFX Artist to put it all together for me for the next project as this is not funny any more.
I've been working my butt off in my own job very very long days then i had to spend the whole morning a 5 hour stint fixing up picture and layout errors that i shouldn't be doing.
its like im going 1 step forward and 2 steps back every time, im just so frustrated and stressed from the whole project. I completed the content months ago - i provided clear instructions, examples, PDF's, all the written text files and all the pic files..... jesus its like what do i have to do to get this completed ?
Another challenge i have found is that i thought polyplay was sending me some posters to go with the project they are pretty good posters i thought - i had offered to pay for them they said it was fine i offered to pay for postage to australia they said it was ok - ive written several emails to them without a reply from them?
everything is so so so so so so so frustrating.............
ive attached some pics -
the first section of the reviews is done that is all games except cpcretrodev 2016 and adventure games.
when i say its done i mean its in magazine format but its a mess..... here let the pictures tell the story - i got to get some sleep i have a 10 hour shift tonight.
*** Shining could you please get in contact with me i have written you a number of times but no reply - i need to talk to you about the defence review - thanks.
I've often thought to myself that no one will ever believe the amount of work it's been to create 8-bit Memoirs. I don't consider it 2 step forward and 1 step back process, but rather 10 steps forward and 9 steps back process.
I can't count how many times I've had to redo various parts of the project for various reasons. And this applies to many categories: The music, illustrations, videos, text and of course code due to bugs.
I'm pretty sure most of us who creates these projects experience what you're experiencing. And yes, it can be very frustrating. The only way forward, in my opinion, is to forget all about having a deadline whatsoever, and that way try to let the project remain an actually hobby that you enjoy doing.
That being said, I also think an important key is to learn to accept that not everything has to be 100% like you want it to be. If you can accept a result shaped by everyone who contributes to the project, meaning it'll probably only be 70% (or maybe even less) of what you wanted it to be, then things will go faster and be less frustrating. You "just" gotta work on not being annoyed that everything isn't 100% to your liking.
I hope these folks aren't doing it through No Bloody Network (NBN). >:(
Quote from: mr_louI'm pretty sure most of us who creates these projects experience what you're experiencing. And yes, it can be very frustrating. The only way forward, in my opinion, is to forget all about having a deadline whatsoever, and that way try to let the project remain an actually hobby that you enjoy doing.
Deadlines can be motivating, however. When I'm making a short film, a review or whatever I always have a release date in mind for it because it helps focus me on actually getting the bloody thing done, rather than putting it off because it's too much like work and I just want to take some time off. Having said that, I'm very much in favour of moving a deadline if something really isn't going to get done without far too much stress and frustration. It's only a hobby project after all.
So I suggest having deadlines, but being flexible enough to move them if it's absolutely necessary to maintain your own sanity and wellbeing.
Quote from: mr_louThat being said, I also think an important key is to learn to accept that not everything has to be 100% like you want it to be.
Absolutely. Sometimes you have to be able to look at something and think "hey, it works and it's good enough. On to the next thing!" It's the only way to get work done.
Quote from: AMSDOS on 09:26, 28 October 17
I hope these folks aren't doing it through No Bloody Network (NBN). >:(
bahahahaha i still haven't got my slower then Kenya internet where i live..... many regional towns have received it yet my city location still has not got it.
I read what you wrote Mr Lou and there is some very good points made.
However i just would like to point out i sort of had a deadline earlier in the year it was not a strict deadline by any means i kept it fairly flexible.
I never really set a specific deadline as such but i have completed everything i need for the mag and cpc community people have submitted some really good content which i want to get out in the magazine to share with everyone - a quick thanks to Nich, Rhino, Amsdos, i think its ICE, theres the guys from Imperial Mahjong, theres Keith from Chibi Akuma, The Oliver Twins, Neil Reive, shining quite a few more i can't remember off the top of my head and i do mention them all in the mag by the way.
What i am getting at is that the gfx artist is a paid professional and i have provided all the information required - i have provided instructions on each section of the mag on how it should look, on what goes where etc etc.
As a paid professional with all the written content and all the pics to go with it and all the instructions required plus pdfs with words and images to show what goes where etc etc i would expect that the task wouldn't be so excruciating slow with so many revisions and corrections and not taking sooooooooo long as it is.
As i handed over al the information months ago it really shouldn't be taking this long.
I really shouldn't be going backwards making heaps of corrections every single time either ......
see pics below as just one example of what i mean.
first pic is what i got back from the gfx artist...... so what's wrong with this picture ? whats wrong with this ? 1) its missing a logo that should be there 2) the pics are meant to be in sequence to show the gameplay they are not 3) the yellow pic on the right page was never meant to be there 4) the mini invaders review is not meant to be there 5) the comparison box is upside down by that i mean the words are meant to be on top of the pictures in the comparison box.........
then the 2nd pic is using cut and paste to fix the errors
on the positive side i have found a comic artist who has put together a 1 page comic just waiting on him to do some alterations that i asked for as some images / drawings needed a bit of a fix.
i can share the first image of the comic with you all below...... the comic will be a bit of a laugh at Lord Sugar no its not called Sugar Man :P
cheers and peace :)
All I can say is: That's reality.
I wanted illustrations for 8-bit Memoirs, so I found an artist who'd do them, for money. At least that's what he said. So I gave instructions, and then waited and waited but no illustrations ever came back.
So finally I found another artist, who also didn't deliver anything after having waited for months and months.
I went through 5 different artists this way. Not all professionals, but all were supposed to be payed. They all wanted to do the job, but just didn't have the time apparently. Combined waiting time here was at least a whole year. Not kidding. 5 different people.
Finally my girlfriend felt sorry for me, and decided to help me out. She had initially said no due to lack of time, but as she could see I was going crazy here, and she would like to keep her boyfriend relatively sane just a little while longer, she offered to help anyway.
Time consuming? She ended up creating 16 awesome illustrations for 8-bit Memoirs - but most of them has taken about 20 hours each to create! That's not a joke!
And that's not counting my own time, that I spent to find the reference photos and draw sketches for her to follow.
So somewhere between 200 and 300 hours in total. That's a lot of hours when you only have an hour available here and there during our daily routines!
Why did it take so long? Same reason that you describe. Lots of corrections along the way. It is simply unavoidable. No one gets it right the first time. Doesn't matter if you're a professional or not. It just doesn't happen.
See the problem with all of this isn't really the huge amount of time it all takes. Not really. The problem is that we thought it take much much less time. Like 25% of the time it actually took. This twisted view of ours of course comes from lack of experience.
I have no doubt that someone out there reading this will think to themselves: "Come on! It doesn't take that long. *I* could do it much faster".
Well then. Could you now? Go ahead then. Let's see it. ;) We patiently awaits your awesome CPC related project. GOOD LUCK!!! :D
even though i am very frustrated, i won't continue to vent my frustrations on here i must be sounding very negative and like an annoying broken down vinyl record playing over the same scratch spot to those who read this post.
i will try to focus on some positives.....
so the latest from this week is i have been told that the next section of the reviews is being worked on which is #CPCRETRODEV 2016 - (and yet its already #CPCRETRODEV 2017 this weekend! whats that i was saying about being negative? ok i will try to cut it out!!! yeah but any money i will have to spend alot of time on revisions and corrections...... damn it!)
anyway moving on.....
apparently the GFX artist has mentioned i have some white space that i need to utilize.... so my idea is to cover this up / fill it with selfies of people from the cpc community with them playing on their cpc either real or emulated. It can be any game they wish to be playing with maybe a short description of why they are playing it? If you want to include your family / kids that's cool too. If you want to be innovative like having a drone take the pics thats cool too....
I have asked 3 people outside of the CPC wiki forums for this and haven't had much luck with it.
So if anyone on here would like to post their pics on this thread or send me a message to contact them via PM and i can send you my email to send it to that would be much appreciated.
Hopefully i get a better response this time ?
cheers
Well, here's something to hopefully reduce your frustration.
Einstein said "All is relative", which means I should theoretically be able to reduce your frustration by informing you of your project's success in relation to my own project's success:
You and I both posted about our projects on this forum, thinking that once we presented our awesome projects here, everyone would love the idea and practically line up to help out in any way they could.
And that's exactly what happened - in your case.
People did line up to be a part of your project - and rather fast too. You've received quite a lot of material that you can (and have) used in your project.
I know you probably expected to receive more material than you did, but then think about this:
I did not have any such luck with my project, which is why I ended up having to do most of it myself (which of course also explains why it took 5 years rather than 2).
My project was supposed to have been a community project like yours.
So I think that's something to keep in mind at least: Appreciate the community support that you have. it's not a given.
i think you are a little off course Mr Lou.
i have always been appreciative for any support that's come my way from anyone in the community. I have made that very clear in all emails and contacts i have had with people in the community. A number of people have been very helpful, with some great content so to that end its been a success.
As well when people have asked me for help with their projects then i have helped to the best of my abilities, even though i work long hours and look after my ill mother i still find some time to help. I don't recall your project Mr Lou, i am not that active on here, if you had asked me for help i would have been willing to provide any help within my capabilities.
As i have said my frustration lies with the GFX artist who is a paid professional someone who gets up and goes to work 9 - 5 who does this type of work for their profession every day. To that end the project has not been a success and continues to give me nightmares.
I did not expect to receive a great deal of help from anyone as you may be implying, i worked on the AA118 tribute mag back in 2008 and saw then that alot of people like ideas and projects but often is the case not much happens. This time however more people have been involved which is terrific.
I don't have any issues with the content or of the help i have received from members of the community as i have repeatedly said i have been very grateful to receive anything of use whether it be images, words for an interview or whatever. And once again i thank those members who have been very supportive of the project. I just wish i was able to have a finished product now which i really should have instead of being messed about with all these delays and corrections.
My frustration is and always has been with GFX artists who i am paying to put the mag all together.
As i said in the last post if anyone has any selfies with their cpc's real or via emulator and wish to be in the mag that's fantastic, if not im not going to cry about it or blame anyone i am well aware that's the reality of life. It's just an idea i had, if people want to participate i would be very appreciative as always, if not then i work around it and find another solution to fill any of the blank spaces......
Peace :)
With respect, you clearly misunderstood my post.
I wasn't implying anything. Just saying that your project is successful and backed, and that it might help the mood to think about that when frustration comes knocking on the door.
I initially also thought 8-bit Memoirs was going to be a community project. I imagined all the different parts of it would be created by different people. But when I asked various video-creators about contributing with gameplay videos, I never heard back. When I asked graphics-artists for Amstrad CPC themes, only one replied - that he didn't have the time. I had to write many newsletters on IndieGameMusic.com in order to gather 11 tracks for background music. And I already told you about the frustation regarding finding an illustrator.
These circumstances didn't help me much when frustration came knocking on my door. ;)
Will this project be renamed 2017 or 2018??
2016 doesn't seem quite right as we are rapidly approaching 2018.
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Quote from: tjohnson on 18:04, 05 November 17
Will this project be renamed 2017 or 2018??
2016 doesn't seem quite right as we are rapidly approaching 2018.
Naming it "2017" won't make much sense if the content is about the games from 2016. ;)
Quote from: mr_lou on 18:32, 05 November 17
Naming it "2017" won't make much sense if the content is about the games from 2016. ;)
Oh is that what its about....!
Quote from: tjohnson on 19:43, 05 November 17Oh is that what its about....!
As far as I understand yes, it's a collection of reviews about games and demos from 2016.
Quote from: mr_lou on 18:32, 05 November 17
Naming it "2017" won't make much sense if the content is about the games from 2016. ;)
Quote from: tjohnson on 18:04, 05 November 17
Will this project be renamed 2017 or 2018??
2016 doesn't seem quite right as we are rapidly approaching 2018.
Sent from my E5823 using Tapatalk
i agree 2016 doesn't sound right now, i had a similar discussion with another cpc'er recently. Way too much time has passed and to compound things i have already done too much and getting the gfx designer to make changes is going to mean more delays and more cost unfortunately. I left it way too late to make that decision which is my fault.
some good news albiet minor in the scope of things the comic i am putting in the mag is almost done (no this is not from the same gfx designer ) - The 8bit Apprentice comic coming in CPC MAG 2016 (whenever that is.... don't get me started - i am doing my best to get it finished). Here is the first 3 panels of the comic. Question to all should i keep it black and white or go for a colour comic ????
I say keep it black & white, I really like the style of it.
Quote from: Skunkfish on 15:18, 13 November 17
I say keep it black & white, I really like the style of it.
Totally agree...
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Quality, you have to send that to Alan Sugar, not sure if he'd find it funny though. Send it to the BBC Apprentice show for the attention of Lord Sugar.
Maybe you should get the project released asap even if it is slimmer and less than perfect and not quite the way you had originally envisaged, sometimes you just have to say enough is enough, then make space to work on the 2018 edition :) Maybe call something like Amstrad CPC 2016 Retrospective.
ok so latest CPC MAG 2016 update: not going to focus on the negatives because there are many! What no negative talk ? ok i will share only one negative and surprise, surprise the mag is still not finished.....!!!!@#$!!!
So with that out of the way i will tell you that i saw the GFX artist today Aussie Eastern Daylight Savings Time. I was informed the main reviews section was very difficult to put together. The changes i made that i showed you all last time around are still being worked on :'(
What has been done since are the following sections - CPCretrodev 2016 reviews, Adventure games reviews, Oliver twins interview and the start of the demos section.
I have attached a selection of pics to show you all how it is looking. Going forward i plan to meet up with the GFX artist again in 2 weeks and hopefully it will be all finished meaning a finished copy that will need to be proof read and minor changes made to appearance, pics and text etc, etc, etc.
im praying i will have a finished copy as i have time off from work for 2 weeks at xmas which will allow me time to proof read it all and go through and highlight changes needed and send back to the gfx artist for correction.
I also have the finished comic from the comic artist.
Some good news Shining got in touch with me. Thanks Shining for sending me all that stuff.
Poly Play got in touch with me and have asked me to pay for the postage of the posters. I said that it was fine and am waiting on Poly Play to respond on how i should send payment thru to them.
Thanks again to the Oliver Twins that is really good interview reading - but i can only show you a little bit of how it looks at this stage and yes i know the quality is poor to read i am just giving everyone an idea of what it might look like when its finished.
cheers
It looks really awesome.
I really like the idea of having a mag that assembles everything that was made during a certain year on the CPC. Like a kind of historic mag of some kind. I would definitely be a collector of something like that, and this appears to be exactly that.
But I don't remember seeing anything like this for previous years. Did I miss those, or is this just a first?
Are you thinking of making anything like this for previous and/or following years?
Sorry if these questions has already been asked.
Quote from: mr_lou on 16:14, 21 November 17
It looks really awesome.
Thanks. Still much to be done. Please Please Please gfx artist have it ready in 2 weeks !!!!!
I really like the idea of having a mag that assembles everything that was made during a certain year on the CPC. Like a kind of historic mag of some kind. I would definitely be a collector of something like that, and this appears to be exactly that.
But I don't remember seeing anything like this for previous years. Did I miss those, or is this just a first?
Are you thinking of making anything like this for previous and/or following years?
Sorry if these questions has already been asked.
I don't know about previous years so i think it could be a first?
I would love to make more about the previous years and the current year. I did start a post in the forum for a 2017 magazine thinking i could do it but now i am not so sure.
This experience has almost broken me in more ways than one. I work long hours and when im not working im caring for my ill mother so time is at a premium for me. I can find time sure but its a matter of finding it.
Also the gfx artist experience as you and others have read has been a nightmare for me financially and of the time it has taken to get everything done. I couldn't go down that path again. If there is someone reliable and trustworthy out there to put the mag together then sure i would provide as much content and pics as possible to get it done but as i already know everyone is too busy and have their own lives to live. Also getting interviews from people at times is fun and can be easy but at other times it is very frustrating as you may not get a response or you get a positive reply and then spend so much time chasing up an interview. To all those people on here who have sent me interviews or any content for the mag i can't remember you all off the top of my head i just want to say i can't thank you enough and i have mentioned this in the magazine as well.
cheers
Thanks for the update, I'm really looking forward to seeing the result of all your hard work!
>:( >:( >:( >:( :'( :'( :'( :picard: :picard: :picard: :picard:
Latest Update:
I have had to pull the pin on the project meaning i have had to put a stop to the project continuing on the current path. What does that mean ? It means i can't afford to spend any more money on it. The costs have gotten out of control without a finished mag being put together. I asked for the mag to be completed by the end of November, the indication i was given by the gfx artist was that it would be, but surprise surprise it was nowhere near completed. So once again i was forced to pay for work that has only scratched the surface in getting the job done. I am just gutted, i really wanted that mag finished. Just so so so so..... well you know the feelings and emotions i am sure. I have ranted on and on before about the gfx artist this and that. Sure they are to blame for alot of things. The continual going over the same sections of the mag telling me the sections were completed but actually weren't is one. There is so many other reasons as well which i already have stated in previous posts. So now I have ran out of money for it and i cant afford to continue to waste money on it. I won't be thinking about completing it any time soon, i would like to at some stage but it will have to take a back seat for some time. My mum needs 2 eye operations to remove cataracts $6000 aussie dollars so i wont be spending any more money on cpc mag.
I am so disappointed, but in all honesty i really only have myself to blame! I made my own bed, i chose to go down that path, at the end of the day the responsibility was mine and it has not progressed as i would have liked, nor has it progressed at all or in a professional manner. I feel conned and cheated, so I had to put a stop to it - i had no other choice. I think the stress of it all has got to me as last week i spent a whole week off work, by Thursday i was in hospital couching up blood i had some serious chest pains so i stayed in hospital for about 8 hours and did all the tests yes even a ct scan. I was not well last week and still not feeling so good this week. To be more specific about the mag, early in the year i was asked by the gfx artist to provide missing images or words for certain things - i did so and put these all on a pdf so it would be easier for the gfx artist could follow and make the corrections etc etc. I also sent a heap of stuff via emails for anything that the gfx artist requested and I am thinking these corrections had been made, yet i find out on Wednesday just gone that those corrections still had not been done. The rest of the mag was just a mess, i would be lucky if anything / any section had been fully completed properly. I have attached some photos to show what i mean about unfinished work and the state of the mag. Pic one shows notes of corrections still to be done - there are 6 pages of these notes of work to be done to complete sections its crazy they should have already been done. Pic 2 shows amsdos interview not completed none of the coder interviews were completed. Pic three shows the community section not finished, pic 4 and 5 shows the works in progress are now out of date as they are released but not even finished these were at the start of the mag and should have been some months ago. Pic 6 the thank you page looks like the only thing that can be ticked off as done. I do want to get this project done but right now i am taking a break from it and hopefully i can revive the project maybe next year sometime without all the stress i have got from it this year.
My sincere apologies to everyone who was looking forward to it being completed - i could write how disappointed i am but that would be using a whole lot of swear words which is not appropriate here.
I can't thank everyone enough who went out of their way and gave up their free time to send me information.
cheers
Well I can't say that I don't understand you, but I'm still sad to hear you've thrown the towel.
It really does sound like you've let the obstacles bother you way too much. No project is worth getting health problems over. Not that I'm completely innocent myself. At the end of my own project, I was also seriously beginning to lose my patience with all the obstacles that kept being thrown in my face. (I may write a post about that some day).
I won't preach a whole lot. I'll just say that I hope you'll pick it up again later at some point. Giving it a rest is probably a good idea.
Hope everything will be alright with your mum.
Sorry to hear that, but the health of your self an others should always take priority, so I think you've made the right decision.
It sounds like the graphic designers you've been involved with are pretty useless, I wonder if there is isn't anyone on here who has the software and skill to help finish the project without adding any cost?
I understand you very well.
I have several projects stopped because I cannot find the right people to help me, and I don't have the time to do it myself. And that drains a lot of energy.
As Keith said, health is much more important. So just sit down, relax, forget about it for some time and then try to look for new ways to finish it.
I hope you'll get better soon, and send our best wishes to your mum!
Oh man what a bummer, i can imagine the frustration when things don't go the way you expect them. Has there been a communications issue, you know what you want in your head but the artist isn't getting it nor telling you that, have you sat and spent time with the graphic artist like sit with them for a day and direct them to do exactly what you want? Why are you using a graphics artist, from what i can tell you are trying to effectively layout the sections of the magazine not really drawing graphics, is this the most appropriate person for putting together a magazine? Do you need a different type of person or someone else as well as the artist to draw the graphics. Do you need to lower your expectations to get the project complete and out the door? Try not to let it get you down, your decision to cut the project could be the best decision if it is costing too much financially and personally. much as it can be difficult to let go of something close that had taken alot of time and effort already. You only live once so make the most of it.
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Quote from: robcfg on 08:47, 09 December 17I understand you very well.
I have several projects stopped because I cannot find the right people to help me, and I don't have the time to do it myself. And that drains a lot of energy.
This is what I don't understand.
We have a rather big community at this point. I find it puzzling that we can't find someone to work with on a CPC-related project.
I suppose the biggest problem is lack of time? But surely there must be someone on the forum who can assist with this project, and others?
Or maybe sometimes the best approach is to just learn how to do it yourself? That way it'll take longer (or maybe not?) but at least it'll eventually be completed.
In the past I've tried messaging other CPC enthusiasts when I needed assistance for my project(s), but rarely heard back from anyone. Maybe it's a better approach to create a forum post asking for anyone who can help out?
Sorry to hear that. What about releasing what is done? Even if the layout isn't finished, what matters is the text. No one will blame you if it doesn't look as professional as you wanted it to.
I have sent out emails informing everyone i can remember who sent me info that the project is abandoned at this stage.
I have to say that there have been many kind words not only on here but also in the emails i have received back.
Unfortunately i can't work on it any more at this stage but i do hope to resurrect it, perhaps sometime next year.
My mums first operation was on Monday just gone and sight in her right eye is much better now, i am trying to see if we can get the left eye operation done for free but i have to weigh that up against the waiting period which i have no idea of as yet as with public hospitals the waiting could be some time so if its too long a wait i will have to go back to a private hospital and spend another $3000 aussie dollars to get it done.
Mr Lou i have seen the intro of your 8 Bit memoirs dvd and have shared it on twitter and fb - looks really good the change/ selection into cpc or c64 or amiga modes is retro coolness. Hopefully other people see it and get it as it looks like a terrific job you have done there.
thanks again to everyone who has written on here and via email showing their support - as i said above hopefully i can resurrect the project again next year.
Did you see this little summary I wrote?
http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/off-topic/creating-a-big-project/
Gives you an insight of how much trouble I had to deal with when doing 8-bit Memoirs. I imagine most people will think I'm exaggerating, but someone like you know I'm not. ;)
My point is, these crazy obstacles happen to all of us (I think). Everyone who's doing a project that size. And there's really only one solution: Keep at it.
So yea, you should definitely resurrect your project - but only when you're ready.
8-bit Memoirs had several pauses along the way too. It was necessary.
Your biggest challenge really isn't to complete it. The biggest challenge is to be all zen about it and stay calm, i.e. not let the obstacles bother you. If you manage to do this, tell me how you did it.
Thanks for the update... if things come to a point you are in a position to continue this again in some form, please let us know!
In the meantime, take care, and don't let things like this project get on top of you!
Keith
Just take it easy for now and take care of your mum and you :) No rush at all, and there will never be. In the future, if you are feeling like releasing it, it will be very welcome but otherwise it will be fine too :) On the other hand, as the people already said, I am sure that many in the forum would be really glad to help you in case it is needed.