Jump to content

[From hack to indie] Path of the Midnight Sun


Alfred Kamon
 Share

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 2.8k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

That's awesome, I'll be looking forward to one day hearing of whatever endeavors you will have tackled from now on.

Godspeed, my friend.

 

I actually checked here to post this because I thought that it might be helpful, but it seems like you have already figured this stuff out. Maybe I'll leave a link anyway:
 

Spoiler

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

See, this is the path you shouldn't take when doing a fangame. If you work on it, it's because you want to and you like it, and you do it for yourself. If you stop working on it for yourself and you start working on it because your fans want more content, it means something's going wrong. But it's fine that you decided to accept it and move forward.

Now I wonder, will you give permission to a good ROMHacker to continue this fangame in your place or will you leave it underground? Out of curiosity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/19/2017 at 8:35 AM, CrystalPoke said:

Now I wonder, will you give permission to a good ROMHacker to continue this fangame in your place or will you leave it underground? Out of curiosity.

I don't think he'd give someone permission to work on it in his stead.

Even if he did, most of the good ROMhackers are busy with their own projects. And the majority don't use FE8.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Hey Alfred. I don't know if you'll read this, but I hope you will.

I've spent the last three years in a community acting as a ex-admin / developer / avid fan, a sprite-based hack 'n slash type of game that also featured a roleplaying window. It was pretty similar to what you'd find on a forum in terms of literacy, but in a chatroom-like media, grafted onto this sort of Seiken Densetsu type of game. Roleplaying could help you acquire hidden abilities and was necessary to increase your power; you wrote your development.

I achieved a lot on my characters, but what I enjoyed achieving the most was making an entire branch of magic called Mournegale and a race of pretty much monster-blooded dark mages, and while my creations were pretty edgy with gaudy overtones- it got really complex and my passion was real. Unfortunately, things didn't work out with that game, and after a lot of feuding strife I bailed, ghosting off that place forever.

Then... I drifted, taking more hours at work to compensate.
I'd find shitty things to do like weeding or cleaning, just to stimulate my mind.

And then I happened on a video of your game; the prologue, played by ol' MJ. 
I'm a jaded writer. I've been at this kind of thing for ten years. You can guess my initial reaction.
I was expecting a lot of Sues and Stus; honestly, I was just watching to learn more about romhacking.

But then... a funny thing happened: your story kept me watching. Then, after watching up to Chapter 4, I said screw it and refused any more spoilers in favor of playing the game myself. I cannot believe what you did to me.

I immediately noticed the immense detail-work you did. I don't doubt it was hundreds of hours, and all of it comes together into something of such a depth, I feel a deep lament for how many people will miss out on it; not for the discontinuation of the hack, but simply because it takes insight to really understand what you did. That quintessential thing that mystified me! And I came to realize it only near the end: your heart was in every moment of this creation, and I related to that completely. Even in self-expressions of yourself manifesting into entire characters balanced miraculously into the best FE story I've ever witnessed.

Do you know what you made Awakening or Fates look like? You exceeded FE8's story quality, by far.
Your force of creativity charged in and destroyed the mediocrity of this franchise. 
Everything about this game is so fantastic, I can't even say I'm spoiled.

I still have a feeling where it's almost like I doubt it happened, and indeed it is too good to be true; I'm not telling you to continue the project, and having burnt out of my own creative frontier too (it's painful, and it's hard to understand without experience, I know) I wanted to tell you something. Not just my praise, either. It's really sincere, too. I'm a very corroded personality who doesn't enjoy much either; this game really did something, and I'm sure it hit other people hard too.

You say you've lost will for the project, but I think what happened was you found time and aspirations. 
Truth is, I'm pretty sure I know what happened to you; you just burnt out, dude. 

You're making art. Not just a stupid game people pass time with.
It's art. It has an emotional momentum that knocks people over inside their own hearts. It's really profound, and hard to describe to its constitution.
And... the currency required to create it is equally ephemeral. I can't say what'll motivate you.

But, when you say you feel like it'd just be doing it for others...
Maybe, that's worth an experiment. Real artists go out and interact with people.
It could just be you'll observe your current experiences and discover a muse in the dynamic of your changed life.

Even if what you come to express isn't strictly you from the core, if it's you from another layer or a perception of humanity seen in others, then perhaps it's the untapped inspiration to realize a new creativity in the Sunpath of Midnight. Based on the brilliance of this thing... I doubt you're really done. 

I'm just a talentless random, but I really wanted to send you this message.
I'm not convinced you've lost the desire to finish this piece.

Edited by Silas Crowley
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

I downloaded it but I couldn't open it on my emulator. What emulator should I use? It says it doesn't recognize it as a GBA file. I have Midnight Sun on another emulator but I'm worried about the updates, so what emulator should I use?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

53 minutes ago, dannyquil said:

I downloaded it but I couldn't open it on my emulator. What emulator should I use? It says it doesn't recognize it as a GBA file. I have Midnight Sun on another emulator but I'm worried about the updates, so what emulator should I use?

The problem you're having is unclear. Did you patch the file to a clean FE8 (U) Rom? If not, that would be a good idea.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, dannyquil said:

Alright, thanks! I'm having trouble finding a clean one, and I'm not that experienced. Any help/tips?

Google is your pal. You're pushing your luck and risking a ban by asking for ROMs here, unfortunately.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Just thought I'd let you know, on chapter 5x blind fury, if you kill Raymur too quickly (before they talk about you massacring they're soldiers), then on the turn they talk about said massacre, Raymur resurrects and immediately gets to attack you. I don't know if this happens with Asra (as I'm only in range of Raymur), but as it is, it needs to be fixed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, Anonymous#42 said:

Just thought I'd let you know, on chapter 5x blind fury, if you kill Raymur too quickly (before they talk about you massacring they're soldiers), then on the turn they talk about said massacre, Raymur resurrects and immediately gets to attack you. I don't know if this happens with Asra (as I'm only in range of Raymur), but as it is, it needs to be fixed.

Better get to fixing it yourself then, since Alfred isn't working on this anymore.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

"I won't abandon this project, it's important to me. It has a special meaning. So, I'll bring it to an end, even if it'll take me months, years!"

originally i was gonna say something like "you feel your sins crawling on your back",but after seeing so many people that respects your choice(and you haven't fully abandoned it),i just hope we can get an ending in any form before you are out of time.

!remindme 20 years later

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 18/10/2017 at 8:14 PM, Epicwindow+- said:

"I won't abandon this project, it's important to me. It has a special meaning. So, I'll bring it to an end, even if it'll take me months, years!"

originally i was gonna say something like "you feel your sins crawling on your back",but after seeing so many people that respects your choice(and you haven't fully abandoned it),i just hope we can get an ending in any form before you are out of time.

!remindme 20 years later

"Sins"? :|

I wasn't making this game for people like you anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Heyo! It’s been a while, hasn’t it?


I know what you all are thinking: “Is Fire Emblem Midnight Sun alive???”, and well, the answer is no.
It’s dead, guys. I’ve been working on that fangame for way too long (over 3000 hours) and I’ve reached an age where investing that much time into something that can’t be monetized has become a problem. I know it sounds materialistic, and I’m the first one who would work only for “passion” if it was possible, but sometimes things don’t work out as we had originally planned…


Now then, let’s get to the good part, shall we?
I won’t go as far as explaining everything that has happened to me ever since the cancellation of the project back in 2017 (I’m always available for interviews and podcasts for that!), but long story short, 8 months ago I quit my full-time job at a big corporation (Randstad) to follow my childhood dream of making my own videogame. And that’s how I became Game Director at Studio Daimon.


Our first project as an indie studio is… Midnight Sun! Yes, it’s now a legit game and it’ll be launched in 2020.

I officially announce that there will be a 10 minute “Direct” tomorrow at 5PM (EST) that will present the game to the world.

Here’s the link, by the way! 

 

FAQ:
1)    So, it’s not Fire Emblem?

No, it isn’t (copyright, duh), but it’s still a strategic turn-based RPG with some Visual Novel elements. I’ve tried my best to create a unique and compelling gameplay experience and I hope you’re looking forward to knowing more about the game!


2)    What about the story?

It’s not an “alternate Magvel” anymore for obvious reasons. The new world is called Arvium. The main characters and plot points are similar to the original Midnight Sun, but there’s much more to the lore now.


3)    What’s the current progress?

There’s… a lot of content already made. I’ve personally worked 2900 hours on this project so far (in 8 months… do your math haha) and that doesn’t even include all the work from the other 9 members of the team.


4)    On what platforms will it be released?

On Steam (Win/Mac) and hopefully on Nintendo Switch!

 


Right after the Midnight Sun Direct, our Kickstarter campaign will launch. We’ve prepared some interesting rewards so we hope you’re looking forward to that as well.
This is all I can say for now – as for the rest, don’t miss tomorrow’s presentation! Special thanks to @eclipse for unlocking the topic and allowing me to post this here.


And if you’re hyped as much as we are, make sure to share the good news with others! This means the world to us and we hope we’ll be able to achieve our dream. Thank you so much!
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Alfred Kamon said:

Heyo! It’s been a while, hasn’t it?


I know what you all are thinking: “Is Fire Emblem Midnight Sun alive???”, and well, the answer is no.
It’s dead, guys. I’ve been working on that fangame for way too long (over 3000 hours) and I’ve reached an age where investing that much time into something that can’t be monetized has become a problem. I know it sounds materialistic, and I’m the first one who would work only for “passion” if it was possible, but sometimes things don’t work out as we had originally planned…


Now then, let’s get to the good part, shall we?
I won’t go as far as explaining everything that has happened to me ever since the cancellation of the project back in 2017 (I’m always available for interviews and podcasts for that!), but long story short, 8 months ago I quit my full-time job at a big corporation (Randstad) to follow my childhood dream of making my own videogame. And that’s how I became Game Director at Studio Daimon.


Our first project as an indie studio is… Midnight Sun! Yes, it’s now a legit game and it’ll be launched in 2020.

I officially announce that there will be a 10 minute “Direct” tomorrow at 5PM (EST) that will present the game to the world.

Here’s the link, by the way! 

 

FAQ:
1)    So, it’s not Fire Emblem?

No, it isn’t (copyright, duh), but it’s still a strategic turn-based RPG with some Visual Novel elements. I’ve tried my best to create a unique and compelling gameplay experience and I hope you’re looking forward to knowing more about the game!


2)    What about the story?

It’s not an “alternate Magvel” anymore for obvious reasons. The new world is called Arvium. The main characters and plot points are similar to the original Midnight Sun, but there’s much more to the lore now.


3)    What’s the current progress?

There’s… a lot of content already made. I’ve personally worked 2900 hours on this project so far (in 8 months… do your math haha) and that doesn’t even include all the work from the other 9 members of the team.


4)    On what platforms will it be released?

On Steam (Win/Mac) and hopefully on Nintendo Switch!

 


Right after the Midnight Sun Direct, our Kickstarter campaign will launch. We’ve prepared some interesting rewards so we hope you’re looking forward to that as well.
This is all I can say for now – as for the rest, don’t miss tomorrow’s presentation! Special thanks to @eclipse for unlocking the topic and allowing me to post this here.


And if you’re hyped as much as we are, make sure to share the good news with others! This means the world to us and we hope we’ll be able to achieve our dream. Thank you so much!
 

Oh! So Midnight Sun is alive, this it was a bit unexpected, but hey I'm happy the project is living again.

Let's hope for the best.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Troykv said:

Oh! So Midnight Sun is alive, this it was a bit unexpected, but hey I'm happy the project is living again.

Let's hope for the best.

I mean... (for some reason the post didn't allow to edit it)

Oh! So Midnight Sun is alive... kind of...  this was a bit unexpected, but hey I'm happy the project reborn.

Let's hope for the best.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 hours ago, Alfred Kamon said:

Heyo! It’s been a while, hasn’t it?


I know what you all are thinking: “Is Fire Emblem Midnight Sun alive???”, and well, the answer is no.
It’s dead, guys. I’ve been working on that fangame for way too long (over 3000 hours) and I’ve reached an age where investing that much time into something that can’t be monetized has become a problem. I know it sounds materialistic, and I’m the first one who would work only for “passion” if it was possible, but sometimes things don’t work out as we had originally planned…


Now then, let’s get to the good part, shall we?
I won’t go as far as explaining everything that has happened to me ever since the cancellation of the project back in 2017 (I’m always available for interviews and podcasts for that!), but long story short, 8 months ago I quit my full-time job at a big corporation (Randstad) to follow my childhood dream of making my own videogame. And that’s how I became Game Director at Studio Daimon.


Our first project as an indie studio is… Midnight Sun! Yes, it’s now a legit game and it’ll be launched in 2020.

I officially announce that there will be a 10 minute “Direct” tomorrow at 5PM (EST) that will present the game to the world.

Here’s the link, by the way! 

 

FAQ:
1)    So, it’s not Fire Emblem?

No, it isn’t (copyright, duh), but it’s still a strategic turn-based RPG with some Visual Novel elements. I’ve tried my best to create a unique and compelling gameplay experience and I hope you’re looking forward to knowing more about the game!


2)    What about the story?

It’s not an “alternate Magvel” anymore for obvious reasons. The new world is called Arvium. The main characters and plot points are similar to the original Midnight Sun, but there’s much more to the lore now.


3)    What’s the current progress?

There’s… a lot of content already made. I’ve personally worked 2900 hours on this project so far (in 8 months… do your math haha) and that doesn’t even include all the work from the other 9 members of the team.


4)    On what platforms will it be released?

On Steam (Win/Mac) and hopefully on Nintendo Switch!

 


Right after the Midnight Sun Direct, our Kickstarter campaign will launch. We’ve prepared some interesting rewards so we hope you’re looking forward to that as well.
This is all I can say for now – as for the rest, don’t miss tomorrow’s presentation! Special thanks to @eclipse for unlocking the topic and allowing me to post this here.


And if you’re hyped as much as we are, make sure to share the good news with others! This means the world to us and we hope we’ll be able to achieve our dream. Thank you so much!
 

Now that's interesting. I'm glad you followed your will, and that everything is setting up for you. I wish you good luck for your game, and I'll look forward to it! 😄

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I will be utterly disappointed if the words "pony racist" are absent from the game!

I had a giant soft spot for this hack, so I'm glad that it's alive in some way, shape, or form.  Do keep us updated~!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...