LOOKING BACK: A BLURRED LINE

A look back at some classic Rpg Maker games.

  • Tau
  • 07/21/2012 02:44 AM
  • 15030 views

What is Looking Back? A series of articles talking about those classic Rpg Maker games from the past.







Created by: Lysander86.
Made With: Rpg Maker 2000
Gamepage: Here


An indie cyberpunk RPG made with RPG Maker 2000, A Blurred Line follows the story of ordinary blue-collar joe Talan, who works for the all powerful and omnipresent Company. When the President of the Company is assassinated after giving a speech at the factory Talan works at, Talan finds himself the prime suspect and goes on the run. It's then up to Talan to evade his pursuers while getting to the bottom of the mystery at hand.

There are many times when people, new to the amateur game development community, waltz in and think they can whip out this kick-butt game. I know because I was one of them. However, it takes more than knowing what you want to do to make a good game. It takes knowing what a good game is with the limited skills a one-person developer can take advantage of. A Blurred Line, in my opinion, is the perfect example of a game that's most enjoyable to play, even without all the fancy perks everyone thinks a game needs to be good.

When you first play the game, you're hit with instant classic flashback. I won't ruin the scene for you, but the games storyline sort of runs backwards and play up to the point. My first impression of the game, was the graphics.

I said, "Boo! This game gets so much hype, but it looks like shit! Flawed maps, over-used sprites--it's horrible!"

I was WRONG. The graphics were indeed flawed, but Lysander86 took advantage of what he got. Computer screens were animated, there many nick nacks scattered like dispenser machines (that worked of course for double the normal price =p), freeways with cars, and everything just completely put you in a whole realm of gaming that made it 'fun' to play. There was so much detail that made everything interesting.

Not only was the atmosphere friendly, but the gameplay is also worth mentioning. To stereotype, sum up the games style, and make it easy for all gamers to understand, I'd say A Blurred Line's gameplay resembles a beat together mixture of Earthbound and Final Fantasy VI & VII. Like VII, it was a couple hours before you left the antagonist's hometown. However, the way the world map and areas were set up reminded me a lot of Final Fantasy 6. The other gameplay itself was very similar to Earthbound; For example, the battle system:

Wack the enemies with a bat!
Eat a Sandwhich-HP
Wack some more.
Enjoy the funny antics of your weird party members.
Finish off killer Rat Bosses.
Continue..

Although the battle system seems friendly, don't underestimate the difficulty of this game. The gameplay and battle system is very well balanced and tuned for average-hard gameplay. I believe it was Lysander86's goal to not make this a breeze, get-through game. The battles make up a majority of the action in RPGs, and Lysander86 didn't want you to feel cheated. However, the battles aren't tedious, boring, and long either. The only way you'll know if it fits your style is to play it!

The storyline of A Blurred Line is one to mention. I really 'don't' want to ruin that for you because it was a nice experience the first time I played through it. However, I'll try my best to outline it. You see, the game starts off small and comedic. As you progress in the game, the world expands and more situations arise that drag the protagonist deeper into the real problem. After seeking paradise from his 'problems', the antagonist enjoys his fortitude but finds out that it's not all great. Soon, another story unravels that will draw you even deeper. I know, it's a very vague description. However, it's complexity rivals that of your great console RPGs, but it also contains the simplicity of an amateur game. The story did have its holes, but it was enjoyable.. that's what's important.

You see, whenever somebody comes to me and says, "What's a good game to play to get some experience on how I should make my game?" I will always point them to this game, here. This game gets top score not because of its fancy scripts or spectacular maps, but it's just fun to play. Unfortunately, this game does have its flaws so it's not perfect. Of course, it's very rare that you will find a game like this one, and it's more rare that you'll find a game like this one that has all that fancy junk. A developer, who has math skills in designing their game brilliantly and has a mix of what makes A Blurred Line great, will have the right state of mind for creating one legendary game.

Any game developer will want to check out this piece for a lesson in how substance does indeed conquer flash. Do yourself a favor and play Lysander86's A Blurred Line. I guarantee that you will not walk away disappointed.





(Asking for Line's End is the Rpg Maker equivalent of asking Gabe Newell when Episode 3 or Half-Life 3 is coming)




(Just one of the many other great games Lysander made with his time in the community)

The great hero Lutine was sent to end the Dark Wizard's reign of terror, and everything was going swimmingly -- until Lutine was thrown from the top of his tower. Now, she has been given a second chance -- but will this time be any different?

A completed game with a functioning Custom Battle System.

Gamepage!


Posts

Pages: 1
Tau
RMN sex symbol
3293
I changed the Looking back logo a bit. Also 10th LB! The Frozen World is just one of Lysanders other great Rpg Maker games, you guys should check them all out.
This is one of the first RPG Maker games I played and I loved it. Please release Line's End, please, Lysander! (I ask too much)
chana
(Socrates would certainly not contadict me!)
1584
Thanks for that little bit of Line's End! I had no idea it existed..
I miss the days when we were getting updates on this game. :(
Yellow Magic
Could I BE any more Chandler Bing from Friends (TM)?
3154
WHEN'S LINE'S END COMING OUT
I always thought this game was pretty overrated, but I still would have liked to see Line's End.

If you ask me, The Frozen World that you mentioned at the end there is a much more well-made game than this. If anyone here hasn't played it yet, they really should.
author=Drifloon
I always thought this game was pretty overrated, but I still would have liked to see Line's End.

If you ask me, The Frozen World that you mentioned at the end there is a much more well-made game than this. If anyone here hasn't played it yet, they really should.


I actually didn't like Frozen World... it was too disjointed and nonsensical to me. Blurred Line was more emotionally packed for me.
Dance to music for massive damage <3
ABL was really awesome shame the newer generations of rmer dismiss it because of the graphics. Damn I rarely see games that are as well written as this game and The Way
Weird, I remember when A Blurred Line came out it was damn good. I can't remember the end of the combat message when you ran, something like you extract yourself from the fray! Haha
Still haven't finished ABL yet, but I liked the Book of Three a lot.
Best RPG story in nearly 20 years imo.

I find it hilarious and kind of sad that this wonderful person was able to create a much more balanced and better written RPG than entire Corporations can do in the past 15-20 years.
I wouldn't say that he was able to create it, considering that the game is entirely unfinished.

And really, ABL is definitely well-written, but how you can call it well-balanced in terms of gameplay is beyond me. ABL's battle balance is frankly appalling by any modern standards.
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