Alilatias

After 13 years, Super Eevee Edition is completed! https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?p=10613949#post10613949 I am so stoked that one of the original fan games from the old days is finally done!

It's been a very long time since I've played this game. So long in fact that I ended up losing my old save due to having to do a computer reformat. Losing the two teams I've rotated since episode 1 sucks, but I'm looking forward to restarting from scratch to see how things have been changed.

The Black Fox themes were indeed different between both versions, but not in the way you describe. You might be mixing up multiple themes, because I think the specific one you describe is still present in episode 5, just the way it's used might have changed. You want to go into the Desolation -> Audio -> BGM folder and look for 'Battle - Gang'. That sounds like the one you're describing with the sirens. Episode 5 has another variant called 'Battle - Gang 2' that's probably replacing the previous, but the old theme is still present in the Episode 5 files. Luckily I still have the old E4 files purely for music reasons, so if you can't find it, then I'll go and upload it here. (On a side note... What I -really- want is the Episode 3 gym battle theme, which I ended up losing when my old computer broke down. There was a brief moment in time where it was changed, but it got switched back to its current theme. I was one of the few that liked the new version better. I'm not 100% sure if the theme was actually present in Episode 3, or it was something that only existed in Episode 3 beta testing. If it was the latter, no one probably has it anymore.)

Many special Pokemon in this game actually come with moves that they usually don't have unless you have the necessary TM or breed for them. Desolation is a lot more lenient about giving you stronger Pokemon earlier on, compared to Reborn and Rejuvenation. For example, there's a... - Ponyta with Wild Charge (normally requires a TM) and High Horsepower (normally an egg move). - Dunsparce with Rock Slide (normally requires a TM) - Eevee with Curse and Wish (normally egg moves) - Rhyhorn with Superpower (normally an egg move) and Rock Slide (normally requires a TM)

Ah, that explains it. My Gardevoir is now special. The music is so much better now too!

...Jesus. Way to tell a story, Caz. 30 minutes in and the new chapter is already blowing my mind. Also, for some reason, my Roserade picked up Phantom Force and my Gardevoir somehow picked up Mystical Fire. I don't even remember what they had before, since it was like 2 years since I last touched that save file. (I think Roserade might have had Extrasensory before?)

Yeah, most of the game's soundtrack is lifted from Final Fantasy XI. Yes, the MMO. It actually has an incredible soundtrack, but not a whole lot of people know, because MMO. It would appear that its soundtrack is actually perfect for a lighter-hearted Pokemon fangame.

Despite the game's simplistic look (especially with the overall lack of custom sprites), the game's main selling point is that it has incredible writing and a great sense of humor from that. The game's a bit on the easier side if you're used to fangames like Reborn, but it's a pretty light-hearted whimsical game that occasionally dives into some really deep personal subjects without being overbearing about it. Though one should be aware that since this is an older fangame (it's older than Rejuvenation!), only Pokemon up to generation 4 (D/P/Pt) are available, and the game mechanics themselves only go up to generation 5 (as in, fairy types don't exist, and electric types can still be paralyzed and powder moves still work on grass types, I believe). I think level up movesets only go up to generation 5 as well. Some HMs were buffed too - Cut is now a 70 BP Grass move, Rock Smash got buffed to 70 BP, and Strength is now a 100 BP Rock move.

It's only been... Another couple years, but it's finally here! Just released half an hour ago, the long awaited final update to what many consider the best written Pokemon fangame of all. https://old.reddit.com/r/legendsofthearena/comments/hfq4fj/legends_of_the_arena_the_final_update/ (It's also worth noting that in usual LotA tradition, Strength got massively buffed. It's now a rock type move.)

Several years ago, I had an idea about a very non-traditional Pokemon game, with a lot of mechanics that differ from most Pokemon fangames. It involves an island that was basically trapped in its own time bubble, and recently reappeared in the modern era (right in the middle of a busy shipping route, which initially caused a bunch of chaos). So the world's leading professors and authorities launch a massive investigation into the island, though they quickly determine that the island appears to have been more or less untouched by human hands and technology until now. This causes the world's authorities to enact a rule that for the sake of preservation (and safety of the world, because who even knows what's there), not just anyone should be allowed in, so the nearest region (Hoenn) is given the responsibility of policing all traffic to the island. However, aerial investigations reveal that the island is actually larger than Hoenn itself - and somehow appears to be mysteriously growing and shrinking, with one observer describing islets flying in the sky, the next observer reporting rocky mountains in the same coordinates, and yet another reporting a vast desert below. The few known groups that have investigated the island on foot have either disappeared, or returned completely empty-handed. Those who have reported back mention that they did not encounter any Pokemon, but there were clear signs that they were present. The main character(s) are a pair of older interns studying under a Professor, and the game would have very special rules compared to the traditional Pokemon game.

I am popping in here to mention that Legends of the Arena is currently planned to have its final chapter released by the end of the month (per their reddit/discord).

I only came in here to say, thank you two for helping on this project. With the massive scope that Desolation had, I didn't think there was any sustainable way for the project to continue with a solo dev. Especially with med school thrown into the equation. Okay, I lied, I do have one question. With the new gen Pokemon, I assume that will mean changes to Pokemon availability. That means gym leaders would be rebalanced around them as well. Also, in that sense, have you considered adding additional starters, or replacing some of the existing starters? I intend on restarting the game from the beginning as it has been quite a long time. While we patiently wait for the new episode, I think the community would like to hear about any new additions before the first gym. After all, the first gym was a pretty infamous fight as well, where most people just recommended to bring a Biabarel.

Well. I'm late, but at least I can chalk this up to one thing in 2020 that's going right. Welcome back, Caz.

Sorry for the double post, but I thought it would be prudent to mention this. Another fangame believed to have been abandoned has also received a recent update, about a month ago for those who don't lurk the PokeCommunity forums. Pokemon Alabaster, a fangame that I saw as promising back in the day, mainly for its visuals and unique set of starters. https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=359964

The one thing that drew me to this fangame above all others is that it's really the only Pokemon fangame I've played with large scale world building. Most other fangames are designed and revolve completely around the player character's actions. The player character still drives the plot in Desolation, but they're still overall just a piece of the world. The only other two fangames to come close IMO are Legends of the Arena and Postscriptum, both also narrative-driven games.

I forget if this was ever mentioned publicly seeing as this conversation took place 2-3 years ago, but I don't believe Caz is doing an arbitrary 16-badge system. As already observed, the player level now is way too high to go through with such a system, and the badges don't really matter at all to the overall narrative compared to most other fangames. Caz does not seem like the type of writer that will bloat the story and gameplay for the sake of meeting a checklist of what fangames usually have. Of course, it WAS 2-3 years ago. Plans have likely changed majorly since Caz's deep dive into the field of health science. Also, welcome back, Caz.

Pokemon Apex was actually updated... 3 months ago. https://apex.iamvishnu.net/post/183347666934/alpha-build-8-now-available-its-here-its

I barely learned that Super Eevee Edition had actually updated about half a year ago, after about 4 years of hiatus. It appears to be back in active development. https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=224449&page=85 The latest update was pretty insane. It actually incorporated the beta Pokemon that were a huge deal a long while ago, to such incredible effect in the context of the game's plot.

So I'm replaying the game. I think I've run into a problem. Can anyone verify if the Braille puzzle in Redcliff is currently working? I've tried the old solutions posted years ago in this thread, and it would appear (to me at least) that the puzzle is no longer working properly. I ran a search for more recent results in this thread and it looks like there was one other poster recently that had the exact same issue, and no one responded to them. Hm...

IIRC one of them is at the top of hardened mountain, another is somewhere to the south of the ranger outpost in Route 2 (or was it 3? it was the soot rainy area), the last is at the top of the snow mountain.

If I remember correctly, credits are earned after every gym battle. Meaning that currently, we can only earn it once. I believe Caz originally wanted it to be based on something else like time passed, but there wasn't an easy way to program that.

Oh. LotA is about 85-90% done, the next update is supposedly going to be the final one. The game actually makes use of the DPPt graphics and somewhat generic-looking characters in some really clever ways later on. (Then again, the previous update was supposed to be the last one too, but the developer basically disappeared for about 3 years before coming back with a huge update. Probably got a massive burst of inspiration, and it shows.) Postscriptum, I'm not sure. I'd say it's probably somewhere at the halfway mark right now, but the developer got a bit demoralized with Nintendo ninjas going after Pokemon Essentials.

This is rather interesting, and it probably put into words why Rejuvenation's plot doesn't sit that well with me, even though I like almost everything else about how the game is structured. The thing is, being someone who played the game since it was back in version 2/3, the game didn't use to place that much emphasis on Melia. The game got overhauled like twice, as far as I remember, with many maps and scenarios being completely redesigned (Terajuma Island used to be a rather insufferable maze of surfing and Vileplume walls for no apparent reason, the new version of it is not only more colorful but also way easier to navigate). The prologue sequence with Melia wasn't extended until around chapter... 8? As for your final paragraph, I think you're literally describing Legends of the Arena and Postscriptum, the latter especially. Though Legends of the Arena doesn't have a gym system and the real plot doesn't kick in until later in the game (and boy does it REALLY kick in). Both games are also the only fangames I've played that actually question the role of Pokemon in society, and it's probably not a coincidence that I consider both to be THE top tier fangames in terms of writing.

The use of FFXI music is definitely for thematic reasons. The entire tone of the game is incredibly consistent because of it. It also helps that most people that would play LotA would have never heard of the tracks beforehand. I didn't, and I think LotA picked the best soundtrack of all the fangames so far, although that's not a high bar to set when most of the other high-tier fangames reuse the same tracks among each other. (I know if I ever made a fangame, I'd probably use a mix of FFXIV/Trails in the Sky themes for the type of fangame I'm thinking of. Although I imagine if the creator of LotA does indeed make a sequel fangame, it's going to use FFXIV themes just to hammer in the point.) You're in for a wild ride if you're replaying it, though there was a two and a half year gap between the release of the latest version and the one before it (so you might only have one new chapter to play through). That said, the latest chapter has some incredible twists that probably makes the game as a whole one of, if not the best written of all fangames. Which is really impressive considering the much lighter-hearted tone of the game.

Photo quest: You have to go to three specific landmarks and merely interact with them. The first is the giant tree at the Weeping Hill. The second is the statue of Moltres at Vejyr. The third is at the main entrance of the Keneph Village. And uh... Do be prepared. Ranger station: Currently can't be opened as far as I know. Locked door in the Weeping Depths: There's actually two of them, one involves solving the gravestone puzzle in the area, the other requires you to accept a specific quest from the Route 2(?) Ranger Outpost. Latter might be missing a detail or two, it's been a long time since I did a playthrough of the game. Arceus painting: Progress further in the photo quest to see what happens. Secret diary: I'm unsure what you're referring to. If you're talking about the diary required to unlock a certain dialogue option towards the end of the game... You can easily lock yourself out of ever finding it. Only hint I'll give you is this: Consider all options instead of doing what the first people you meet after each event tell you to do. (Also I believe the tiny key is the one that opens the door at the house on the top of the Silver Rise, above the locked Ranger station. Not sure. There's a lot of keys in this game. Sort of a running joke.)