~Teh Panda~
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The Rom Hacking Newsletter
Kickin' it off
Old issues
The Rom Hacking Newsletter
Kickin' it off
Opening Notes, by ~Teh panda~
4/3/09, New RHN Issue 1
Welcome to a new edition of the well known RHN which I have taken the reign of recently as Darthatron has resigned. In this weeks issue we will have 3 hack reviews, tips and tricks, a rant, and an interview with Erick (Blaze Emotion). The team here is still going to be hard at work as you can see with this redesigned CSS by me. Thank you for the support from the community and I will not give this up any time soon so do not worry.
Team RHN.
Welcome to a new edition of the well known RHN which I have taken the reign of recently as Darthatron has resigned. In this weeks issue we will have 3 hack reviews, tips and tricks, a rant, and an interview with Erick (Blaze Emotion). The team here is still going to be hard at work as you can see with this redesigned CSS by me. Thank you for the support from the community and I will not give this up any time soon so do not worry.
Team RHN.
HOTW Review
Hack of the week review, Issue by Adam
Quite the original hack. You don't see Paper Mario GBA Pokemon adaptations every day. The story follows that of the original Paper Mario for the 64, but the option of playing as Luigi is available. Additionally, there are new areas to explore.
It may seem like everything in this hack is solid, but don't be fooled. The mapping is gelatinous. That is, while the maps have fair playability, they're lacking in natural design. The mountains are a little too linear and some vegetation is unnaturally placed. Tiles are used effectively, but there are some tile errors. i.e. In front of the second body of water seen. The inside of Peach's castle is realistic and error free though.
On the other hand, the scripting and dialogue are fresh. I didn't notice any "borrowed" events or reused dialogue; such as the infamous youngster that talks about shorts. Having two battles at the beginning of the game was refreshing and players are sure to enjoy the Bowser event in Peach's castle. What I did notice, however, was a lot of typographical errors. For one, guard is frequently misspelled as gaurd. Nothing so big as for a player to notice if they're not looking for it though. The new scripts and Mario styled dialogue make for a fun time.
If you like Mario and Pokemon, you'll love this hack. Even non-Mario fans may find enjoyment in playing the current demo.(Alpha 1) At the moment there aren't any complex events, but that doesn't mean it's not good.
I think this hack is pretty original and overall good.
It may seem like everything in this hack is solid, but don't be fooled. The mapping is gelatinous. That is, while the maps have fair playability, they're lacking in natural design. The mountains are a little too linear and some vegetation is unnaturally placed. Tiles are used effectively, but there are some tile errors. i.e. In front of the second body of water seen. The inside of Peach's castle is realistic and error free though.
On the other hand, the scripting and dialogue are fresh. I didn't notice any "borrowed" events or reused dialogue; such as the infamous youngster that talks about shorts. Having two battles at the beginning of the game was refreshing and players are sure to enjoy the Bowser event in Peach's castle. What I did notice, however, was a lot of typographical errors. For one, guard is frequently misspelled as gaurd. Nothing so big as for a player to notice if they're not looking for it though. The new scripts and Mario styled dialogue make for a fun time.
If you like Mario and Pokemon, you'll love this hack. Even non-Mario fans may find enjoyment in playing the current demo.(Alpha 1) At the moment there aren't any complex events, but that doesn't mean it's not good.
I think this hack is pretty original and overall good.
Hack Review
Pokemon Dissension Review, hack by ЩѻƦḽᶑʂḽдƴƹƦ™, article by 0m3GA ARS3NAL
Trust me when I say, don't judge a book by... it's title! It may throw you a bit off, but this hack is destined for greatness!
Pokémon Dissension introduces fans of hacked ROMs to the region of Koen, and from what I have heard form the hack's creator, ЩѻƦḽᶑʂḽдƴƹƦ™, it is going to be vast! Returning to the Pokémon, scene, are the Shadow Pokémon. The story has been kept a bit 'hush-hush', but from what I have read, and heard behind the scenes from the creator, I can promise this game has a thrilling new storyline, not like most hacks we see being made today!
One thing I can say is this game is visually stunning, with the Kyledove tileset used as a base, ЩѻƦḽᶑʂḽдƴƹƦ™ has built up from that, and had his tile insertion specialist, Marxvile, add some new tiles to his project... What he added, You'll have to see when he manages to release a demo!
This game features a few new features, yet to be had, such as being able to capture your own starter Pokémon, and change the storyline depending on some key events, situated throughout the game!
The last thing I have to make note of, is how this is going to be, if I am correct, the FIRST ROM hack, EVER, to feature game play in both FIreRed version, AND Ruby version... What could that mean? Could there possibly be different Pokémon? Could there be a slightly altered plot line? Or could there be something entirely new? You'll just have to wait and find out!
Pokémon Dissension introduces fans of hacked ROMs to the region of Koen, and from what I have heard form the hack's creator, ЩѻƦḽᶑʂḽдƴƹƦ™, it is going to be vast! Returning to the Pokémon, scene, are the Shadow Pokémon. The story has been kept a bit 'hush-hush', but from what I have read, and heard behind the scenes from the creator, I can promise this game has a thrilling new storyline, not like most hacks we see being made today!
One thing I can say is this game is visually stunning, with the Kyledove tileset used as a base, ЩѻƦḽᶑʂḽдƴƹƦ™ has built up from that, and had his tile insertion specialist, Marxvile, add some new tiles to his project... What he added, You'll have to see when he manages to release a demo!
This game features a few new features, yet to be had, such as being able to capture your own starter Pokémon, and change the storyline depending on some key events, situated throughout the game!
The last thing I have to make note of, is how this is going to be, if I am correct, the FIRST ROM hack, EVER, to feature game play in both FIreRed version, AND Ruby version... What could that mean? Could there possibly be different Pokémon? Could there be a slightly altered plot line? Or could there be something entirely new? You'll just have to wait and find out!
Hack Review
Pokemon Kobalt review, hack by Amaz!ng, review by .Phones
Pokemon Cobalt…
One look at this hack makes you wonder if your own hack measures up.
But on the second look…. Not so much.
Let's start out with the graphics, alright the tiles are just great, the combination of Fire Red palettes, with the games own quirky style are very pleasing not just to the eyes, but to the over all feel of the game, my only criticism is that the use of Fire Red building tiles is a bit disappointing, I mean with such great Pokecenter and Pokemart tiles, why not make some buildings to match?
The mapping is so original, Sinister Zeikku should be proud that he is using his trees; some of the maps are lacking playability, while others are very rich in that area and still do not lack beauty.
That's one of the main problems on this hack, it lacks consistency, one set of tiles could be fantastic, but another set could be a total let down, the story is another example.
There is really nothing new or original in this story, nothing new from Nintendo or any other game in progressing hacks, I for one am tired of becoming a Pokemon master.
I really can't go any farther since there is no beta, or scripts shown.
I hope Amaz!ing takes what I said into thought, because a few changes in the story and consistency, could make this hack the shining light of the rom hacking forum.
One look at this hack makes you wonder if your own hack measures up.
But on the second look…. Not so much.
Let's start out with the graphics, alright the tiles are just great, the combination of Fire Red palettes, with the games own quirky style are very pleasing not just to the eyes, but to the over all feel of the game, my only criticism is that the use of Fire Red building tiles is a bit disappointing, I mean with such great Pokecenter and Pokemart tiles, why not make some buildings to match?
The mapping is so original, Sinister Zeikku should be proud that he is using his trees; some of the maps are lacking playability, while others are very rich in that area and still do not lack beauty.
That's one of the main problems on this hack, it lacks consistency, one set of tiles could be fantastic, but another set could be a total let down, the story is another example.
There is really nothing new or original in this story, nothing new from Nintendo or any other game in progressing hacks, I for one am tired of becoming a Pokemon master.
I really can't go any farther since there is no beta, or scripts shown.
I hope Amaz!ing takes what I said into thought, because a few changes in the story and consistency, could make this hack the shining light of the rom hacking forum.
Tips and Tricks
IRFranView How-To, by ~Teh Panda~
In today's Tips and Tricks I will be showing you an easy way to index and edit palettes of an image using a tool known as IRFranView.
Open up your sprite or whatever you need to index. Now you will go to image>Decrease color depth. Once there uncheck dithering and click decrease to 16-bit color. After that you can go to image>Palette>Edit Palette and edit your pal as much as you want.
Next week I will have a longer Tip to show how to use this for inserting tiles on Advance Map
Open up your sprite or whatever you need to index. Now you will go to image>Decrease color depth. Once there uncheck dithering and click decrease to 16-bit color. After that you can go to image>Palette>Edit Palette and edit your pal as much as you want.
Next week I will have a longer Tip to show how to use this for inserting tiles on Advance Map
Rant
A rant by .Phones
"Documents and Tutorials"
The word "Tutorial" just pops out doesn't it?
Then why do people refuse to look in that forum?
Each day I see a hefty number of threads made in the Scrapbox, most of which are made by excited newbies, eager to jump into the world of hacking. So they make a five minute storyline and add a help section that is longer then they're knowledge of hacking.
Here's a thought, do some ground work! Read a tutorial! Download a tool! Don't just make your thread and expect help! Learn to script, there's a large amount of tutorials for scripting, so sit down and READ! You'll earn no sympathy from being new to the forum and you'll probably just piss of s a lot of people. Sure it may be boring to learn, but the only way you will make your vision come alive, is if you use your brain and conquer a task that may seem tedious! Mapping seems to be the area that most people think they "can" do, but what makes you so sure? All I am seeing is boring, square maps full of tile errors and a stunning lack of planning before hand. Mapping tools may be the easiest to work with, but it takes a lot of creativity and a lot of work to make a map look nice, besides mapping isn't the most important aspect of a hack, actually far from it.
Scripting brings a hack to life, it gives the player a purpose, you could make a great game, just by having talent in scripting. You could keep Nintendo's maps and make a game about a new trainer in Kanto, or Professor Oak was kidnapped, or it started raining Bidoof's and you have to catch all the Bidoof's before there is an epidemic! Good mappers are everywhere, but a good scripter is hard to find.
The word "Tutorial" just pops out doesn't it?
Then why do people refuse to look in that forum?
Each day I see a hefty number of threads made in the Scrapbox, most of which are made by excited newbies, eager to jump into the world of hacking. So they make a five minute storyline and add a help section that is longer then they're knowledge of hacking.
Here's a thought, do some ground work! Read a tutorial! Download a tool! Don't just make your thread and expect help! Learn to script, there's a large amount of tutorials for scripting, so sit down and READ! You'll earn no sympathy from being new to the forum and you'll probably just piss of s a lot of people. Sure it may be boring to learn, but the only way you will make your vision come alive, is if you use your brain and conquer a task that may seem tedious! Mapping seems to be the area that most people think they "can" do, but what makes you so sure? All I am seeing is boring, square maps full of tile errors and a stunning lack of planning before hand. Mapping tools may be the easiest to work with, but it takes a lot of creativity and a lot of work to make a map look nice, besides mapping isn't the most important aspect of a hack, actually far from it.
Scripting brings a hack to life, it gives the player a purpose, you could make a great game, just by having talent in scripting. You could keep Nintendo's maps and make a game about a new trainer in Kanto, or Professor Oak was kidnapped, or it started raining Bidoof's and you have to catch all the Bidoof's before there is an epidemic! Good mappers are everywhere, but a good scripter is hard to find.
Interview
Interview with Erick
This weeks interview was with "Blaze Emotion" (Erick)
There you have it,he recommends Pokemon Crono. Thanks Erick
Spoiler:
There you have it,he recommends Pokemon Crono. Thanks Erick
Closin' Time
Thanks for reading
Thank you for taking interest in the New New RHN. We shall try to be persistent on a weekly or bi weekly schedule. Thank you to all my writers and thanks again to Erick. For next week I am planning on getting a new section up called "Experience Matters" which is planned to be a 2 person gameshow with a host. Whoever answeres questions correctly and first will get a point. It is still being sorted out so share your opnions. Comment and discuss people.
Team RHN.
Team RHN.
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