Note: LucasForums Archive Project
The content here was reconstructed by scraping the Wayback Machine in an effort to restore some of what was lost when LF went down. The LucasForums Archive Project claims no ownership over the content or assets that were archived on archive.org.

This project is meant for research purposes only.

Anybody played AVS yet?

Page: 1 of 2
 mh2k8
11-20-2008, 10:19 AM
#1
Anybody here managed to play a bit of The Vampyre Story yet? I wanna hear what you think of it.

I ask because it's not available on my favourite warez site. it's available now but too big to download because of stupid bandwidth limits. it's not available in australia yet :|

And there is no chance I am downloading it right now. None whatsoever.
 Ascovel
11-20-2008, 10:53 AM
#2
In short: it's very good. Can't talk now. Must play.
 Sven_Q45
11-20-2008, 2:10 PM
#3
I´m waiting for Amazon!!
 Udvarnoky
11-20-2008, 3:05 PM
#4
It's great. I hope to get a Mojo review up at some point in the near future.
 Gabez
11-20-2008, 5:04 PM
#5
I saw some mixed reactions in the comments for the demo... were they unfounded? Or was it just a bad demo?
 B00
11-20-2008, 5:34 PM
#6
Playing it right now actually, stumped on this one puzzle though. Playing the full game not the demo.
 Kroms
11-20-2008, 5:35 PM
#7
I saw some mixed reactions in the comments for the demo... were they unfounded? Or was it just a bad demo?

Bad demo.
 Sven_Q45
11-20-2008, 5:58 PM
#8
AVS and Mata Hari are on the way! I hope I can start tomorrow with AVS. :)
 B00
11-20-2008, 6:03 PM
#9
I won't spoil it for you but it can be pretty off at times.
 Udvarnoky
11-20-2008, 6:52 PM
#10
I saw some mixed reactions in the comments for the demo... were they unfounded? Or was it just a bad demo?

The only complaints I saw about the demo that weren't related to technical problems (ran fine for me) was Mona's voice, which for my part was infinitely more tolerable in the actual game.

I wouldn't say it's a bad demo so long as you don't delude yourself into thinking it's anything other than just that: a demo.
 Sven_Q45
11-21-2008, 12:18 PM
#11
 Ascovel
11-21-2008, 1:18 PM
#12
 Sven_Q45
11-22-2008, 10:16 AM
#13
Btw here an other interview with Bill Tiller:
http://www.adventure-treff.de/artikel/interviews.php?id=32&lang=eng)

Link this to the mixnmojo site if you want. ;)
 Igl85
11-22-2008, 3:03 PM
#14
Anybody else preordered on game.co.uk and is wondering, what is up with the release date being January 2009 ? And does anybody from UK know anything about it?
 Sven_Q45
11-22-2008, 3:56 PM
#15
I´m ready! :) (ca. 8 hours)
And I started Mata Hari after AVS immediately! :D
 Ascovel
11-22-2008, 5:36 PM
#16
I just finished AVS. I have to say some nasty bugs have diminished my satisfaction from playing greatly. I wonder about some of them. For example, I can't decide if the random graphical glitches I encountered were caused only by some incompatibility with my own hardware. They were really odd.
 Sven_Q45
11-23-2008, 2:57 PM
#17
There was no big problem for me. :) Yes a few bugs on the book shelf in the castel and so one. On one point Mona speeking english in the german version.
And I could play it again immediately. But this time in english. But now I must play other adventures first!!

So I´m now ready with Mata Hari, too. :)
 Ascovel
11-23-2008, 4:52 PM
#18
Sven, did you have to use the stadium backdoor to get to the orchestra song list during your playthrough? Because I experienced a glitch that just magically transported me there at a certain point in the game.

In regard to Mata Hari, I'm very curious how conventional or unconventional its gameplay is for an adventure game. It seemed very reliant on mini-games from descriptions.
 Maratanos
11-23-2008, 5:27 PM
#19
Okay, does anybody by any chance have a save game from right after they got into the boathouse? Because I'm fairly sure a bug broke my game. I emptied the perfume bottle then refilled it, and now I need it empty to create a potion, but it won't let me do it again. I suppose I could wait for a patch, but...

Edit: it just occurred to me there should be enough overlap between the saves that something from the arrival at the lab would work too.
 The Tingler
11-23-2008, 5:47 PM
#20
Speaking of save files, where exactly is the save game folder?

Anybody else preordered on game.co.uk and is wondering, what is up with the release date being January 2009 ? And does anybody from UK know anything about it?

Play and Amazon have shipped, but GAME are still insisting on next year. Cancel your order and go with one of the other two - they're also cheaper.

However, Amazon appears to be out of stock! :(
 Maratanos
11-23-2008, 6:58 PM
#21
Okay, that is actually a pretty good question and I'll tell you that if it weren't for timestamps on files, I wouldn't have figured it out either.

Here's the deal. Go to A Vampyre Story\game\assets\scripts. Yeah, it's a weird place for save files. But sort by date modified and you'll find a section consisting of several sets of three files each. Two are .bmps and one is a .bin. I couldn't possibly tell you how the file names are chosen, but that's the save games. Pick the right one based on the date-stamp, which you should be able to pair up with the datestamp as viewed in the load menu.
 The Tingler
11-24-2008, 2:48 AM
#22
Thanks mate, that's just weird.
 Gabez
11-24-2008, 2:55 AM
#23
(Welcome to the forums, Maratanos! Hope you stick around!)
 Igl85
11-24-2008, 8:12 AM
#24
Play and Amazon have shipped, but GAME are still insisting on next year. Cancel your order and go with one of the other two - they're also cheaper.

However, Amazon appears to be out of stock! :(

Well, sadly, Amazon doesnt ship video games to my country and Play doesnt shipe anything at all :( I'm counting on sendit.com at the moment :)
 Sven_Q45
11-25-2008, 12:24 PM
#25
@Ascovel
You need an employee ID from the stadion. ;)

I had only a bug at the book shelf in the castle and there was a point where Mona speeks english in the german version.
I played it without big problems. :)
 Ascovel
11-25-2008, 2:05 PM
#26
@Ascovel
You need an employee ID from the stadion. ;)

I had only a bug at the book shelf in the castle and there was a point where Mona speeks english in the german version.
I played it without big problems. :)

@Sven
Getting the employee ID was not a problem.
But when I gave it to the prostitute and followed her through the main entrance to the stadium I was suddenly teleported far inside without being stopped at the entrance by the ticket controller. And I didn't have the required song title item in the inventory yet. So I was stuck without being able to get out of there. This glitch ruins also one of the puzzles. The proper entry to the stadium that Mona and Froderick should have used at a specific point in time was the stadium's backdoor
 Sven_Q45
11-25-2008, 4:19 PM
#27
Where´s the song idea item? Away? lol Don´t understand that.
 Bagge
11-25-2008, 6:03 PM
#28
I got it from play.com today, and have put a few hours into it.
I love the art direction but the writing is not up to the standards lucasarts veterans are used to in adventure games. The game also forgets to take into consideration what you know and don't know at some points in the game. For instance (very minor spoiler: ) at the beginning of the game, Mona does not acknowledge that she has been turned into a vampire, yet if you ask her to put her hand in the fireplace, she will refuse because "burnt vampire flesh smells bad". Also, the puzzles range from very clever to "aimlessly trying to combine everything until something works", and there are occational graphical glitches.


Still, it's a good adventure game with a really strong art direction that feels like it could have been made in 1997 - which is a good thing in the world of point-and-click adventure games. I think everyone with a passion for classic adventure games will easily be able to overlook the game's flaws and enjoy the best full-length adventure game in many, many years.
 Ascovel
11-25-2008, 6:28 PM
#29
The game also forgets to take into consideration what you know and don't know at some points in the game.

This is quite a problem in a later section of the game. However, the example line you mention fits actually pretty well with Mona's mindset. As you will learn, Mona is quite aware of being a vampire, she just likes to pretend she isn't and prefers not to think about it in general. So you can consider her line a slip of the tongue.

Whereґs the song idea item? Away? lol Donґt understand that.

I thought you already finished the game. :confused: If one doesn't collect the mentioned item early enough, one gets stuck permanently in the stadium location. At least that's how it worked on my system and I wanted to know if you had a similar experience.
 Udvarnoky
11-26-2008, 12:41 PM
#30
Wait, this game has dead-ends? Noah, Hal - how could you? :(
 Sven_Q45
11-26-2008, 1:07 PM
#31
@Ascovel
Yes, but I didn´t understand your problem sorry. :)

Btw on November 13-16th was a fair in Stuttgart, Germany where you could play AVS for free! I was there but I came directly from vacation without internet and I didn´t know that. And I didn´t see that. I was too busy to buy cheaper older adventure games. :D Later at home I read it! But that was too late. :( But that
But it doesn´t matter now. I played it and it was very good. :)
 Ascovel
11-26-2008, 3:38 PM
#32
Wait, this game has dead-ends? Noah, Hal - how could you? :(

Nah, I was talking about AVS. I found two dead-ends in the game. The later one is obviously caused by a glitch and not by bad design. So I'm struggling with my language skills to inquire if anyone else has been teleported near the song list at the stadium without arranging it with the ticket controller or using the backdoor. That's what the aforementioned glitch is about.
 Sven_Q45
11-26-2008, 5:20 PM
#33
 Ascovel
11-26-2008, 5:26 PM
#34
Looks very gruzzle indeed. ;)
 Thriftweed_
11-26-2008, 5:29 PM
#35
Nah, I was talking about AVS. I found two dead-ends in the game. The later one is obviously caused by a glitch and not by bad design. So I'm struggling with my language skills to inquire if anyone else has been teleported near the song list at the stadium without arranging it with the ticket controller or using the backdoor. That's what the aforementioned glitch is about.

Same thing happened to me.. I found the game to be very buggy, especially graphical glitches.

But I really enjoyed it non the less, a really great game looking forward to avs 2
 Maratanos
11-27-2008, 11:27 PM
#36
Ever since I played Beyond Good and Evil with crappy drivers, I've only barely ever noticed graphical glitches at all.
 Ascovel
11-28-2008, 6:12 AM
#37
A very negative review of Mata Hari just appeared at the German website AdventureTreff:

http://www.adventure-treff.de/artikel/tests.php?id=173)

:(
 Gabez
11-28-2008, 9:04 AM
#38
70% isn't that bad... what do you make of the game, those who have played it?
 Ascovel
11-28-2008, 9:16 AM
#39
I think this 70% is just a mathematical sum of pretty good scores for sound and graphics and very low scores for puzzles and atmosphere.

Anyway, the review's text practically rips the game to shreds (in a civilized manner). The reviewer even wonders if Noah's and Hal's involvement was more of an marketing ploy than actual collaboration.
 neon_git
11-28-2008, 12:47 PM
#40
Hmmm, we'll have to see what other reviewers say.

As a rule, Ascovel, would you say that reviews from that site are pretty accurate?
 Sven_Q45
11-28-2008, 1:03 PM
#41
Yes Mata Hari was not so good. I´m a little disappointed!
The thing is I was too "hyped". lol I thought at last! a new Hal Barwood (ex-LucasArts) Game has a good story and so on, but it was not so.
 Ascovel
11-29-2008, 7:35 AM
#42
Hmmm, we'll have to see what other reviewers say.

As a rule, Ascovel, would you say that reviews from that site are pretty accurate?

Assuming that even websites can pass inaccurate judgments, how can you be sure that some one like me will pass an accurate judgment on a website? ;)

Well, OK. I'm not some great fan of AdventureTreff. I visit them because they have often very early reviews and information on adventure games. Some good interviews too. However, they're well known for overrating games. In fact, in the comments for the Mata Hari review the reviewer admitted that his 70% score means actually something around 45%! They're just so cool that they treat the 50% mark as zero (a slight simplification because the given explanation was very complex)! Great idea for inflating adventure games' scores IMO. ;)

Anyway, I've seen almost only negative comments on Mata Hari so far. At the German Amazon website for example. At AT there are also suggestions floating around of some falling out between dtp and Noah and Hal during the last year. I'm not sure if they're properly founded though.

Personally, I'm not giving up on this game so easily, but I haven't read any encouraging impressions yet.
 AlfredJ
11-29-2008, 10:59 AM
#43
Hi guys, I have been lurking on Mixnmojo for a number of years now, and I thought it would be time to post. I just started playing AVS, and I have to say, I'm a bit dissapointed. I would have been more impressed if Telltale Games hadn't happened in the meantime. The writing just isn't up to par with the Sam & Max-games (I'm not really a fan of the Strong Bad-games, so I won't comment on those). The game looks and feels amazing, if only they had some of the great writers of the Telltale Team... It's not a bad game, and I'm enjoying myself, and I love the 90s-feel it all has, but I can't stop thinking it could have been so, so much better.

However, I did find something nice which I think isn't mentioned anywhere yet. When you look at the journal of the baroness in the library, Mona says something like "Visit Von Kiefer - Period - Com". The site really exists, so, there you go: www.vonkiefer.com)

The site doesn't seem to work that well yet, I can't seem to turn the page, but I thought you guys would like to know.

EDIT: Ah, I see it's already mentioned on the Pumpkin Post. Never mind me!
 Sven_Q45
11-29-2008, 11:53 AM
#44
@Ascovel
There are so good adventures this year. And Mata Hari was one of the badest. That doesn´t mean it´s very bad. But it´s far away from Indy 4.
 Gabez
11-29-2008, 12:35 PM
#45
Welcome to the forums, AlfredJ! Everyone is very welcome here, but especially "lurkers" who haven't interacted before!

Look out for our A Vampyre Story review to go up tonight.
 neon_git
11-29-2008, 12:49 PM
#46
Assuming that even websites can pass inaccurate judgments, how can you be sure that some one like me will pass an accurate judgment on a website? ;)

Assuming that even websites can pass inaccurate judgments, and assuming you can pass an accurate judgment on a website, should a woodchuck chuck wood? ;)

Sad news on the Mata Hari front then I guess. I'll probably still get it though, just with lowered expectations. Such is life I suppose.

@AlfredJ
Hello and welcome! Quality avatar by the way.
 Ascovel
11-29-2008, 2:36 PM
#47
Assuming that even websites can pass inaccurate judgments, and assuming you can pass an accurate judgment on a website, should a woodchuck chuck wood? ;)

:thmbup1: Yah, these are some of those mercilessly twisted philosophical questions that true pirates ponder.

@AlfredJ
Welcome. I was once a lurker like yourself, so we may share quite a lot of similarities. :)
 Haggis
11-29-2008, 3:59 PM
#48
Hi AlfredJ, welcome!

I must say I am also not 100 % impressed by AVS, although the game looks and feels great. I haven't yet finished it though, and I must say that the game really opens up in the second chapter. It's just a bit hit-and-miss I guess, but more hit than miss, especially when Mona says "Let's crush Froderick's fruits and nuts." That had me in stitches, heh. Overall I'm optimistic about the future of the series. There is room for improvement, and I am hopeful that we'll get that improvement in AVS 2.
 Gabez
11-29-2008, 4:44 PM
#49
You can read our review of the game here (http://www.mixnmojo.com/features/read.php?article=avampyrestory).

It will be interesting to see what other people have to say about A Vampyre Story. The general reaction seems to be pretty positive, though!
 Sven_Q45
11-29-2008, 5:11 PM
#50
One question:
Did anybody of the non German buy the German version or the Collectors Edition?
Page: 1 of 2