Pokemon Desolation Episode 5

[Ice Cream Sand Witch]

I'm about to take on Emily (for the third time, she's 40% more difficult on this playthrough for some reason) and this is my team:

Froslass probably isn't a permanent team member, since I tend to not use duplicate typings and Walrein is Ice type. But for now while I don't have a 6th permanent member, it offers support with Captivate and is a way to quickly deal with Gallade, which appears on a few trainers' teams in this episode and who I otherwise don't have super effective moves for. I'm thinking of having Clefable be my sixth member, but I'm waiting to complete that sidequest until at least after beating Emily so the level cap is a little higher.

Also Toxicroak is holding Expert Belt. I gave it that to get back some of the damage it would lose against Tristan with Route 4's field.

[yonatanlp]

Now that is a good question, since the download link for Version 2 is nowhere to be found...

Edit: Actually, it's on page 15.

Edit 2: So much for that, then.

Well damn, it doesnt work anymore. thatll be the last time playing this game then.

[Caz]

Well damn, it doesnt work anymore. thatll be the last time playing this game then.

I've said this many times. The issue was patched in 3.0.1, the only download link that's up currently. If you're still on 3.0 then the game will crash.

[Caz]

Little update goes here

Just a few things to touch on. You guys know I'm not one for writing walls of text so as usual, I'll make this quick.

Custom Mega Evolution

Instead of waiting for a particular time period before announcing a winner I instead decided I'd just wait until each poll gets over 100 votes. Seeing that this poll is almost at that, you should expect an announcement soon.

Episode 3.0.2 vs 3.1

The next update coming in a couple of days is Episode 3.0.2, fixing almost all of the remaining bugs in the current release.

3.1 won't be coming for a little while yet but I might as well explain its purpose. After having feedback about Episode 1 it seemed that most people were happy with the content after you select a Pokemon. The problem is the intro and the boat. Thus, I decided that the only thing being remade will be the intro, that is, until you're on the beach. This means that saves won't be affected as you couldn't catch any 'mons before this point anyway. This remake will be included in v3.1 as Episode 4 won't be seeing the light of day anytime soon.

That's all for now... that is, until I talk more about a particular Hyena...

[Zargerth]

Good to know. I first decided to wait for 3.1 before starting my third playthrough, but now it seems I don't have to worry about big changes coming soon and messing up my coming playthrough (and perhaps the one after that).

I could wait for 3.0.2, but only a couple of bugs bother me a little and even then some of those are fixed already.

[Dante52]

So, I now have Sena following me everywhere and I can't get rid of her. Anyone have any brilliant ideas?

Edit: Got it fixed. Thanks Caz!

Edited May 8, 2016 by Dante52

[Eternal Shading]

I understand that you're adding in custom Mega Evolution's but when will be able to use them? Will you be adding in the Mega Bracelet earlier that what was planned or...?

[Caz]

I understand that you're adding in custom Mega Evolution's but when will be able to use them? Will you be adding in the Mega Bracelet earlier that what was planned or...?

You'll hear more about this in the future. I'm aware it would be silly to add in all these Mega's but not let players use them.

[Tempo17]

Well looks like mightyena won this round of custom mega, wonder how caz is going to settle the tie between milotic and weavile

[Pandalex12]

Well looks like mightyena won this round of custom mega, wonder how caz is going to settle the tie between milotic and weavile

They will be in the next poll and people that voted for Mightyena may not have an equal distribution (in terms of liking Weavile and Milotic) like this one so Weavile or Milotic will win the next poll unless Caz puts in a pokemon that will get pity votes (I pitied Mightyena so I voted for it).

Edited May 8, 2016 by Pandalex12

[Drayker]

(french fellow here, apologies for my approximate english)

Well, I just finished Ep. 3 (last night at 4am huehuehue) so here's my feedback (heavy spoilers ahead) :

Storywise : I wasn't hooked by the plot at first. The whole first part of the game (up to Vejyr, i'd say) sounds a bit cliché and overall the characters feel a bit too dull : you got the typical rival-like jerk, the typical "I'm gonna be the very best" girl, the "YAY DRUGS" Electric leader, etc. Shiv & Nova sure sound intriguing, but I've never been a fan of humans with superpowers in the Pokemon world (same thing for Rejuvenation here, why bother with magic when you got 719 amazing 'mons to do the same thing ? But that's a personal opinion so let's keep on going).

But as the game progresses, you work on theses flaws, the plot evolves and so do the characters : Connor stops being a jerk, Scarlett betrays, etc. I must say that I wasn't very emotionally implicated by her treason, given the fact that 1 hour of gameplay earlier she was just the "I want to be a trainer to finally become useful" girl, but her death (?) was a good scene.

There are a few ideas that were pretty good though; the hypnotized villagers, the Blackview battle, the Weeping Hills. The twist about Tristan was definetely the thing that got me hooked up in the story, too bad it happened at the end of the episode Same for the psychotherapist-like sessions we see in those flashbacks, they got me really interested.

It's also very clear that you progressed a lot in storytelling through the episodes; the Keneph villagers arc seemed a bit rushed, whereas the Blackview arc was pretty intense and interesting. Maybe you'd want to rework the first episode when (if) you'll have the time.

Unique gameplay : Pretty awesome. The reputation system (even if it doesn't seem to cause great changes yet, at least I didn't spot them) is very promising, and there are plenty of interesting sidequests. I still have to finish the Rangers guild line and the Fighting Club, but it's already on par, even better, than what Reborn or Rejuv offer in terms of secondary content.

The fields effects don't seem to differ a lot from what Rejuv or Reborn offer, but there are nice additions (fuck that fighting nerf against Tristan aha). Maybe add a description of them somewhere (if not already done) ?

Map design : Your map design is very original. There is always a LOT to do on your maps (Weeping Depths, Silver Rise are very dense in term of content, I love it). It may seem a bit too much at first, and upon entering a new map I knew I was about to get lost, but in the end persistance is rewarded (even if I still don't know where to use that fucking shiny key).

I hated Vejyr tho. The fact that you spend the entire map doing the same thing (rock smashing pillars over and over again while fighting Crescent), that you constantly have to go back to Ava to heal, all of this while encountering wild Pokemon every 5 steps... it was not very enjoyable. Overall, I think you should nerf the encounter rate a bit in your game. I spent all my money on repels because I was getting sick of getting interrupted all the time (moreover, super repel not being sold until Silver Rise makes it even harder).

The spriting could need a little more work sometimes (the beach, Keneph, Hardened Mound exterior, or the alternate-plane-Grind-teleport-thingy could help a little more details). But overall it's pretty good, your town design is consistent and original.

Conclusion : A bit perplex with the story and characters at first, but you clearly progressed and I'm confident that you'll deliver a great story in the next episodes, as good as (if not better) than Rejuv or Reborn. Keep up the good work !

[Jmanultrax1]

I'm still a little confused about the whole Tristan deal. There's so much mystery behind it.

[Caz]

(french fellow here, apologies for my approximate english)

Well, I just finished Ep. 3 (last night at 4am huehuehue) so here's my feedback (heavy spoilers ahead) :

Storywise : I wasn't hooked by the plot at first. The whole first part of the game (up to Vejyr, i'd say) sounds a bit cliché and overall the characters feel a bit too dull : you got the typical rival-like jerk, the typical "I'm gonna be the very best" girl, the "YAY DRUGS" Electric leader, etc. Shiv & Nova sure sound intriguing, but I've never been a fan of humans with superpowers in the Pokemon world (same thing for Rejuvenation here, why bother with magic when you got 719 amazing 'mons to do the same thing ? But that's a personal opinion so let's keep on going).

But as the game progresses, you work on theses flaws, the plot evolves and so do the characters : Connor stops being a jerk, Scarlett betrays, etc. I must say that I wasn't very emotionally implicated by her treason, given the fact that 1 hour of gameplay earlier she was just the "I want to be a trainer to finally become useful" girl, but her death (?) was a good scene.

There are a few ideas that were pretty good though; the hypnotized villagers, the Blackview battle, the Weeping Hills. The twist about Tristan was definetely the thing that got me hooked up in the story, too bad it happened at the end of the episode Same for the psychotherapist-like sessions we see in those flashbacks, they got me really interested.

It's also very clear that you progressed a lot in storytelling through the episodes; the Keneph villagers arc seemed a bit rushed, whereas the Blackview arc was pretty intense and interesting. Maybe you'd want to rework the first episode when (if) you'll have the time.

Unique gameplay : Pretty awesome. The reputation system (even if it doesn't seem to cause great changes yet, at least I didn't spot them) is very promising, and there are plenty of interesting sidequests. I still have to finish the Rangers guild line and the Fighting Club, but it's already on par, even better, than what Reborn or Rejuv offer in terms of secondary content.

The fields effects don't seem to differ a lot from what Rejuv or Reborn offer, but there are nice additions (fuck that fighting nerf against Tristan aha). Maybe add a description of them somewhere (if not already done) ?

Map design : Your map design is very original. There is always a LOT to do on your maps (Weeping Depths, Silver Rise are very dense in term of content, I love it). It may seem a bit too much at first, and upon entering a new map I knew I was about to get lost, but in the end persistance is rewarded (even if I still don't know where to use that fucking shiny key).

I hated Vejyr tho. The fact that you spend the entire map doing the same thing (rock smashing pillars over and over again while fighting Crescent), that you constantly have to go back to Ava to heal, all of this while encountering wild Pokemon every 5 steps... it was not very enjoyable. Overall, I think you should nerf the encounter rate a bit in your game. I spent all my money on repels because I was getting sick of getting interrupted all the time (moreover, super repel not being sold until Silver Rise makes it even harder).

The spriting could need a little more work sometimes (the beach, Keneph, Hardened Mound exterior, or the alternate-plane-Grind-teleport-thingy could help a little more details). But overall it's pretty good, your town design is consistent and original.

Conclusion : A bit perplex with the story and characters at first, but you clearly progressed and I'm confident that you'll deliver a great story in the next episodes, as good as (if not better) than Rejuv or Reborn. Keep up the good work !

Thanks for your review, I appreciate the feedback. Like most "approximate english" speakers you have better english than half the people I know, so don't fret. It's a shame that it takes some people a while to warm up to the game but that's my fault as a developer, as during the first two Episodes I was still learning the basics of RMXP. Future Episodes will hopefully remedy this problem. Edited May 8, 2016 by Caz

[FairFamily]

I'm still a little confused about the whole Tristan deal. There's so much mystery behind it.

Well it is meant to be confusing, if it was clear it wouldn't be half as terryfying . I would like to presenr a theory explaining Tristan but I'm not sure if I have to wait a bit longer for that.

[Jmanultrax1]

I think its one more week or so to post things like that im not sure. As for my post earlier Fair I wasn't specific enough. What I meant by my confusion around Tristan is his deal with you. More specifically why is he interested in you only, y is he following u, y is it that only u can c and talk to him. this is what I meant by it. I have my own theory too around him btw so mayb we can compare

[Atlas105]

YAS!! The poll is over 100 votes with mightyena still in the lead!!! I IS SO EXCITED!!

[Jmanultrax1]

Glad that Mightyena is getting full support for the mega evo, but I personally voted for weaville cuz I think that would also b an awesome design

[JustAnElite]

I have a few questions...

SPOILER ALERT

ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK

'What is the purpose of the 'Yellow Piece'? Does it play a role at all in this episode? Also, can you unlock the large door in Bronze Island in this episode? If so, how?

[Jmanultrax1]

To answer your question Elite

the yellow piece has no connection to the game yet (mayb sometime in the future for an event. Only Caz knows the outcome of the pieces as there r 3 in the game currently I think) As for the bronze island door that cant be opened. In future episodes we will have a single new island added each time probably with a key for the door. So the door cant be opened yet. Hope this helps

[JustAnElite]

Thank you so much, Jman!

Wow, I guess it'll be a WHILE before we get to open the door in Bronze Island...

[Atlas105]

So a little while back I gave my suggestions for mega Mightyena. Adding on to that, what about also changing its typeing to something like Dark/Ghost. The only 2 dark/ghost pokemon are sableye and spiritomb, and even though sableye has a mega, they are both very defensive pokemon. So, why not have an extremely Offensive Dark/Ghost type with mega mightyena. Or, you could change his typing to something else, just preferably not dark/fighting. I feel like Pangoro and Scrafty have that under control And I don't want to have 2 dark fighting pokemon on my personal team.

Edit; Oh my God this website automatically puts wynaut there that is hilarious

Edited May 9, 2016 by Atlas105

[Caz]

@Fairfamily- Feel free to post theories, in fact I enjoy reading them. Just make sure you put it under a spoiler tag. Thanks!

[Atlas105]

I want some people opinion on this.

Putting aside weather you like her or not. Do you think Scarlet's death would make a better story or not. Even though I did go out of my way to save Scar in my game think about it. Scar dying would give the player all the more reason to hate team crescent and stand against them, or it could make the player give in and think maybe they are right bc you don't want to see anyone die like that again. On the other hand keeping her alive could very well add really good things into the story later on. What do you think makes a better story? And remember, I'm not asking if you wanted to keep her alive, I'm asking weather or not it would've made a better story. Thunk about all the shows or movies you've watched where a character you really liked dies, but it overall made the movie or show better

Edited May 9, 2016 by Atlas105

[Ice Cream Sand Witch]

To answer your question Elite

the yellow piece has no connection to the game yet (mayb sometime in the future for an event. Only Caz knows the outcome of the pieces as there r 3 in the game currently I think) As for the bronze island door that cant be opened. In future episodes we will have a single new island added each time probably with a key for the door. So the door cant be opened yet. Hope this helps

There are actually 4 pieces currently, and IIRC there'll be 7 total.

[Caz]

There are actually 4 pieces currently, and IIRC there'll be 7 total.

This is correct. The final game will have 7 pieces. These pieces are actually unrelated to Majiras Rest. Those who have found Majira's First Key will know this.