Bill Tiller revealed today that he's still working on a video for a future Kickstarter to fund the prequel A Vampyre Story: Year One. The plan is to launch it in September.
He also posted an image of a prop that will feature in the video:
Source: Bill's twitter
I sent him a mail to clarify the non-destructive nature of my rant.
Melancholick
... I know it's probably just the years/miles talking, but this feels like the third or fourth time that something we've done on Mojo has made Bill sad.
Mojo: Antagonizing its heroes since 1996!
I always imagine him typing his responses with a kind of slow-blinking, under-breath-muttered acceptance, like Snuffleupagus.
Anyway, as I said before, I'm going to keep supporting him. Giving my money is the only thing I can do.
manny_c44
My only wish for future Autumn Moon games is that at the end of development they play through with a critical eye toward pacing and relevant/funny dialog. I feel like 1/2 to 2/3 of the dialog could have been lopped away from the previous games and they would have been more compelling.
When I read Run Rogers first comment I thought, "ooh harsh!", then I thought about it and I have to agree with manny-c44's comment.
I don't think Tiller is a bad game developer - the art is fantastic and the engine certainly does the job. It really is the writing that is the component that lets AME's games down.
If they could sharpen that up then maybe they could rival Double Fine or TellTale (think Sam & Max Season 3, not the Universal games).
...that won't work! ;)
Jennifer
I'd rather have a text-only AVS Year One with a great story, excellent puzzles, and great music and art (which Autumn Moon already handles well) than one that is fully voiced but suffers in some areas because of it.
This!
Rum Rogers
@Jennifer: I wasn't aware of this, my fault. I guess I'll just have to take back my praise to DF for the kickstarter thing, though the rest remains unvaried.
Fair enough. I do agree that Autumn Moon's games weren't the best. In my opinion, they just barely scraped by to fall in the average category.
MrManager
I tend to agree his games have been mediocre, but I also think budgets have played a part in that. I'm not saying Tiller with a bigger budget would be the next Schafer, but then again, who knows? He has at least nailed the atmosphere in his previous games.
True. It's maybe a case of Bill Tiller stretching out the budget a little too thin. Psychonauts was excellent, but had a budget of $13 million US. Stacking and Costume Quest were also excellent, but had a budget of $3 million US. They made the most out of their games by sacrificing voice so the rest of the game could be the best it could at the budget they were given. Maybe Autumn Moon should do similar? I'd rather have a text-only AVS Year One with a great story, excellent puzzles, and great music and art (which Autumn Moon already handles well) than one that is fully voiced but suffers in some areas because of it.
@MrManager: yeah, that's true. He nailed the classic look&feel pretty well. That's why, after all, I'm going to keep on supporting Bill with his games. That's for sure!
Rum Rogers
And I'm not talking just about innovation of games, I mean, even the kickstarter stuff was totally unexpected and led to a new way to make games, with everyone jumping on that wagon.
It's not fair to criticize Autumn Moon for using kickstarter while at the same time praising Double Fine. Kickstarter is not new, and Ron Gilbert and Tim Schafer weren't even the first adventure game veterans to use it. LucasArts and Telltale Games veteran Heather Logas already used kickstarter to fund an adventure game back in 2010, which was covered by Mojo at the time: http://mixnmojo.com/news/Heather-Logas-Strikes-Back
Rum Rogers
I'm going to go with "mediocre" then.
I tend to agree his games have been mediocre, but I also think budgets have played a part in that. I'm not saying Tiller with a bigger budget would be the next Schafer, but then again, who knows? He has at least nailed the atmosphere in his previous games.
Jennifer
How does making playable games make him a "poor" game developer? Even you said that they were OK games. I'd think that would make him an OK game developer.
I see my post disappointed some of you here.
Didn't mean to offend or attack anyone.
I don't consider him an OK game developer for the mere fact that he seems a bit uninspired to me. As a Ron & Tim purist, I follow them a lot and see them continuously innovating everything.
And I'm not talking just about innovation of games, I mean, even the kickstarter stuff was totally unexpected and led to a new way to make games, with everyone jumping on that wagon.
Pure genius. Stacking? Genius. Psychonauts? Masterpiece.
To me, Bill only seems to miss the good ol' CoMI times (me too, actually), always proposing the same stuff.
So, maybe the term "poor" was a bit harsh, I admit it.
I'm going to go with "mediocre" then.
Rum Rogers
Bill Tiller, great illustrator, poor game developer. Just my humble opinion. He's more of a fan who makes "more of the same" than an innovator as Ron or Tim. Everything he does has already been done: episodic format first, then kickstarter. AVS and Ghost Pirates were just good enough to be considered OK. Nothing more, nothing less. No touch of genius. Great artist, though.
How does making playable games make him a "poor" game developer? Even you said that they were OK games. I'd think that would make him an OK game developer.
Jason
The rights to the sequel are tied up with a publisher who won't fund its development. Sucks.
Well that explains a lot. I haven't really been keeping up with AVS development. It seems a bit messy, but I hope they'll pull through!
Rum Rogers
You quoted just part of my post
I recognize that - it was a difficult part to get past.
Jeo
I'd rather fund a sequel. Anyone who's finished the first game should know why.
The rights to the sequel are tied up with a publisher who won't fund its development. Sucks.
Jason
What do either of these things have to do with being a good "game developer?"
If you don't consider innovation, genius and good storytelling/riddles to be parameters of quality for a developer of graphic adventures, then... nothing at all.
You quoted just part of my post, I wasn't only referring to episodic and kickstarter, I told something about the quality of the games too.
Rum Rogers
He's more of a fan who makes "more of the same" than an innovator as Ron or Tim. Everything he does has already been done: episodic format first, then kickstarter.
What do either of these things have to do with being a good "game developer?"
Jason
Is he? Feel like I would have noticed.
Just my humble opinion. He's more of a fan who makes "more of the same" than an innovator as Ron or Tim. Everything he does has already been done: episodic format first, then kickstarter. AVS and Ghost Pirates were just good enough to be considered OK. Nothing more, nothing less. No touch of genius. Great artist, though.
Rum Rogers
Bill Tiller, great illustrator, poor game developer.
Is he? Feel like I would have noticed.