Bloodstained Hands [Full VX Project v1.4]

Story

The Xian Empire. A land of thieves, assassins, and deception... and home of the greatest magical academy in the world. The academy is where all magical research is conducted. Within its walls, many secrets are held, as are those who would abuse them. The academy resides within the capital, Sapphane. The Royal Guard defends the palace from invaders, but nothing can prevent the Empire from rotting on the inside. Within the walls of Sapphane, a plot begins to unfold. A plot to unravel the greatest of all secrets, and bring the Empire to its knees. There is but one hope. One chance to purge the rot that has swept through Xian... and stop the coming nightmare.

Rating and Controls

M (17+) - Strong Language, Blood and Gore

Move: Arrow Keys
Action key (talking, reading signs, etc.): Z or Space
Cancel key: X or esc
Menu key: D
Dash: Press and hold C
Scroll (in menu): Q and W

Characters

Good

Rain/Fang
(Self Named Protagonist)

Age: 18
Class: Assassin
Weapon: Knives/Katanas
A young boy who lived with his brother Matthew until the Empire comes to take them away. He escaped capture and is now an assassin working against the empire to save his family.

Marisa

Age: 18
Class: Assassin
Weapon: Knives/Katanas
A girl working for the Hidden Blades. She is serious about her work, but kind in nature. She has a soft spot for Rain, but doesn't show it much.

Grey

Age: 20
Class: Mage
Weapon: Staves/Elemental Magic
A childhood friend of Rain and Matthew. He has a talent for magic, although he hasn't practiced much. He dislikes the Hidden Blades, but follows Rain.

Remainder of characters to be revealed in gameplay.

The Known World

<> Cyana - Northwestern corner of the Xian Empire. Home of Rain.
<> Emerdala - South of Cyana. A village hidden in the Mist Forest. Very peaceful.
<> Amethyne - A large bustling city across the ocean, on the Eastern side of the Empire. Home of King Rello.
<> Five Islands - South of Amethyne, East of Sapphane. Home of two small villages, three other islands, and General Gareth.
<> Diamo - A village in the far Northeast. Very cold and snowy. Home of the Diamo Training Facility.
<> Goldare - A city in the desert to the Southwest. Very hot, and located above a network of magma tunnels. Home of General Dawn.
<> Silvein - A city South of Goldare. Home to the world's only Silver Mine. Home of General Snow.
<> Sapphane - The capital of the Xian Empire. Located in a circle of mountains in the centre of the continent. Home of the Imperial Palace, the Royal Guard, and Emperor Kilano.

Credits

Credits are in the Credits folder, in the download.

Screenshots

Spoiler for SANCTUARY:

Spoiler for BATTLE SCENE:

Special Thanks to Kitten for Layout.

Download
Approx. Game Time - 20 Hours
Notice: This game requires the RPG Maker VX RTP to run.
Download Game
Download RTP
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I've received one complaint saying that the game does not load properly. Anyone else who has tried this demo, would you please either comment or PM me to let me know if this game loads or not. I don't know if it's that one persons computer or the game itself. If there is a problem I will fix it right away if notified.

I've been able to get your game running, later today I will post a "First Look at [game] with NAMKCOR" video to the RMRK YouuuuuuuTube, and to this post.  Please Note: the first look video will concern the demo in its current state and will contain possibly more criticism than anything else.  Take it constructively.

Will do. Thanks NAMKCOR.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGlM1N3Ggcc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGlM1N3Ggcc</a>

youtube fixed itself
quality is nice now

I'll have to agree with Nam here, as the mapping could use a lot of work. The battle backgrounds look nicely thought out, the pixilation giving it the feel of an old-school RPG. The main enemy being the empire is also a nice thought, instead of being just a single villian. However, the hero being a rebel fighter hoping to overthrow an evil empire is pretty cliche.

Also, I think that Esc and Num-pad 0 can be used in the same way as X.

All I can say is THANK YOU!!! Whenever I get people to test my games, they never give full criticism because they think they might hurt my feelings or something. I don't know, it's stupid, but THANK YOU FOR THAT REVIEW! Now I know what I need to work on!

*noticed the video and has come to investigate*

All I can say is THANK YOU!!! Whenever I get people to test my games, they never give full criticism because they think they might hurt my feelings or something. I don't know, it's stupid, but THANK YOU FOR THAT REVIEW! Now I know what I need to work on!

no problem, I hope you take the critique to heart.

A couple somewhat minor things I didn't mention:
- Music styles clash, I know it might be hard to find matching music resources, just try to do what you can.
- Message Boxes jump around way too much for my liking.

Love the battle system. The maps could be beauty thought. Still, very nice, a project that shows alot of work already

I just finished re-creating a lot of the maps that needed work, and I even went on some mapping tutorials (going back to RMVX school) to get a better idea of what a good map is. I'm also working on the dialogue, a lot of the cliches, and I fixed that weird face aura thing. I've taken notes on everything mentioned in the review and it's really starting to get better. I'll post an updated demo within three weeks time.
(Also, yes NAMKCOR, you were right. The forest dungeon was in fact created by a Random Dungeon Generator. I just slightly edited it so that instead of walls, there were trees)

What FaceMaker are you using? My friend would like to know...Or are you just drawing them yourself?

What FaceMaker are you using? My friend would like to know...Or are you just drawing them yourself?

http://translate.google.com/translate?js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=1&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Flovelymoro.web.fc2.com%2Fmoromagalabo.html&sl=auto&tl=en

The game has been updated. The update includes improvements of nearly everything mentioned in the video, but I realized very quickly that one problem couldn't be fixed without bringing up another. As such, cliches are still a factor, and my mapping is still not the greatest, but it is a large improvement over the previous demo. Feedback/CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is welcome, enjoy the demo, I'm gonna get back to work now.


I've been switching up the tilesets and fixing up the maps, so now they look a lot better (and more original). I'm posting a few preview screenshots that may or may not be in the next release of the demo.
Here they are:

Spoiler for:

Spoiler for:

Spoiler for:

Spoiler for:

Okay, I love this one. Just sayin.

Admittedly, the maps still need work, but I find that front-view roof-tops are much nicer, and the forge isn't nearly as empty as it used to be. Also, the trees are now actually leafy, airy, trees, rather than a giant blob of green leaf pillar that the RTP includes as their "trees." Comments? Advice? Death threats? Constructive criticism?


Hey, posting to remind everyone that yes, I'm still working on this project, and I'll be posting a HUGE update on the game in the new year! hope you're all excited, and I hope to hear back from some of you when the new demo is released!

EDIT: Well that worked. :|


Ok, no guarantees on a new demo being release THIS year, but here's hoping. I'm still re-working a lot of the resources, mostly characters, music, and face sets. But I am still working on this. Weird to think I've been working on this for over three years now. Released the project two years ago, but it's still a work in progress. I hope this project is really worth the years of time spent on it, and I hope you all get just as excited about it's final release as I am. (FYI, really excited)


Demo Released once more!


So I've been SUPER hard. At work on this project.

*Tee Hee*

Honestly though, it's coming along great, and I can't wait for you all to see this project reach completion. With the recent changes I've made, the magic system has been completely changed, making it much more versatile, much more interesting, much more customizable, and much more personal to the person playing. I've also switched a few things around for a more visually stimulating game experience. I've already completed my editing of the storyline up to the next three cities, all the way up to the assassination of the first General. More importantly, I've reworked the story to make more sense from a logistical standpoint, making the hierarchy of the separate armies in the game much clearer, much more pronounced. All this and more will be included in the next demo, expected to be released soon. Stay tuned for that, and thank you all for your support! Peace!

EDIT: Also changed the Hidden Blades Sanctuary, so it's way more detailed, and has more assassins than before. It's also one large map, not two separate maps.


Adding some finishing touches on the next release of the demo, so that should be out in the next week or so. More screenshots will be released along with that. Also, this project isn't exactly new... and I am still working on it...

Substantial Project? Possibly?

Ok, combined all those old posts into one. Saves a lot of space.

ANYWHO!

I have done it. I have successfully created an event-based endless mission system, much like the one found in Skyrim. It is now possible to continuously do different missions (up to 45 different mission combinations), thus never running out of money (which was a huge dead end in the recent changes I made, i.e. monsters don't drop money). Worked on it for days, but the game will now grant missions endlessly! I'll update the demo soon.

And seriously. Substantial Project? I'm just saying, it would be a nice gesture, or Christmas gift, or something...

I'd work on the logo a bit more.  The colors are so close that the busy design in the background makes it difficult to read the nonstandard font.

I'll see what I can do. I didn't make the logo, but I'm not terrible at image editing. The main problem I encountered before was that the blood in the background didn't really look like blood. I just cranked up the saturation to give it more of a glow.

EDIT: Ok, here's some samples. Just some colour changes, and I played around with the inversion feature as well.

Spoiler for SAMPLE 1:

This is the one I was using before. Just massive saturation.

Spoiler for SAMPLE 2:

For this one, I inverted the image, shifted the hue back to red, then cranked up the saturation. I kinda like the black blood.

Spoiler for SAMPLE 3:

I shifted the hue on this one to make it orange, then turned up the saturation to give the blood the red glow.

Spoiler for SAMPLE 4:

For this one, I inverted the image, shifted the hue to orange, then cranked up the saturation.

Spoiler for ORIGINAL:

This is the original logo, created by Bunny.

It's time. The new demo... is released. This is a final release of the intro to the game, aside from some text editing. The main ideas are down, but the dialogue itself... I could do better. Any writers wanna take a crack at it, go right ahead.

Enjoy!

Don't use that last one, there...

all I can really advise is to use contrast.

Contrast... I'll do that.

And yeah, meow you see why I didn't want to use the original.


This is what I've got, after fussing over it for several hours. Not much different. I don't have the greatest image editor.

I liked your second sample the best.
I think the white definitely needs to not be white.
I gave it a shot, but it's hard to work with without the original layers, and there's a weird transparency on the letters.



It looks a lot better on a light background.

Do you have the original file? I could do pretty much whatever you wanted to do to it with the original layers intact.

I didn't make the original file but I'll link you to where I got it.

Here's the exact post.

Just as a heads up, I would use the second sample, except for two reasons. First, there's a white glow around the logo that stands out against the black background of my title screen. Second, even if that glow weren't a problem, the glow cuts off. It looks funny.


Ok! Did this by accident. What do you think?

Spoiler for LOGO ONLY:

Spoiler for TITLE SCREEN:

Updated the demo! Also, follow the project on Facebook! I've got a page ready there where I'll be posting all updates made to the game.

https://www.facebook.com/bloodstainedhandsrmvx

Can u fix a game link pls?

ya updat ur gam lol

Heh, oops. Fixed.

Note: The RTP is not included with the game. If you want to play the game, and don't have the RMVX RTP, you'll have to download that as well.

Also, seriously. Everything can be found on the facebook page here.

there is not reasons to be getting agnry

I am not agnry.

So, after seven years of working on this game, it's finally finished! You can download it from the link at the bottom of the main post.

Also, if I could get this moved into Completed Projects, that would be great. Pretty please.

EDIT: Thanks!

Don't know what drugs I was on. I apologize. o_o

Good job completing your game! :D

Lol, no worries. Thanks!

ah Strak, I've got a problem. Could be it's just me but......

Early in the game, in the training room with the dummy, I HOLD the A key then tap the X key but the session does not end....

Please, what am I doing wrong ??

Thanks

Also, uaually you can bring up a MENU with the ESC. key but it seems no key is bringing up the menu. I like to check the items to see what great
things are in my inventory , skills, equipment etc. but I can't bring up the menu.

there is not reasons to be getting agnry

Looks to me like he was not really angry, just pointing out that his FB page has all the updates and might be easier to get there...
Maybe next time he should add a 

The controls may be dependent on the settings you have for the platform the game runs on. If you currently have the buttons set to the platform defaults, then the Battle Escape function is triggered by the Q key on the keyboard, not the A key (in-game "button" assignment is "L").

If you wish to change the key and button assignments, you can do so in game by pressing F1. This should open a tab that can adjust certain settings. The button assignments can be accessed from the Gamepad tab, and the key assignments can be changed from the Keyboard tab.

As for accessing the menu, the default platform key on the keyboard is D (in-game "button" assignment is "Z").

In addition, there is an in-game Guide that can be accessed from the menu, which describes any discrepancies that may arise from the control scheme. This should answer any questions you may have, although if there is anything you wish to know, please don't hesitate to ask. Good luck, and thank you for playing!

Thank you for getting back to me so fast......ON BOTH SITES 

No problem! I'm happy to help.

NOTICE: A bug has become apparent in the side-mission system. When accepting an "Assassination" mission at the guild, there are five different targets you may be sent to kill. Each of these targets may appear in any city or dungeon you have already visited. It has come to my attention that when asked to kill the "Spy" in any dungeon (not cities), the spy will not appear, and the mission will become impossible to complete, preventing any further missions from being accepted. I will be releasing version 1.1 soon, with several updates, including a fix to this bug. In the mean time, it is recommended to save before accepting any side missions, and if asked to kill the spy, to reload the save file and accept a different mission. Note that the targets are randomized at the acceptance of the mission, and are not done in any particular order, so you may still accept missions from the same mission giver.

Version 1.1 is now available! A lot has changed, so be sure to check it out! And if you're already playing the game, I apologize I couldn't release this version the first time. There were bugs that became apparent only through several rounds of testing. Regardless, the game is much better than it was before. Here's a list of all the updates.

v1.1 Updates:
-Improvements to the battle system (implemented "Wait Modes")
-Adjustments to power of skills and spells
-Adjustments to power of Toxins
-Adjustments to Weapon and Armor stats
-Adjustments to Character stats
-Updates to animations
-Updates to Alchemy System
-New Items
-New Spells
-New States
-Updates to Side Missions
-New Enemies
-Graphical Errors Fixed
-Ancient Catacombs expanded
-Mist Forest Updated to be more navigatable
-Updates to treasures found in dungeons
-Updates to skills "Assault" and "Backstab" (HP Cost)
-Updates to In-Game Guide
-Updates to Menu System Options
-Updates to Enemy Skills

Bug Fixes:
-Fixed a bug where "Spy" would not appear in Dungeons
-Fixed a bug where World Map BGM would reset when boarding a vehicle

Possible future updates may include:
-"Shield" skill fix (I plan on removing the skill, and have the "Shield" state trigger randomly when shields are equipped)
-Parallax mapping
-Original Resources (in particular, music)

I have a request, if anyone is up for it. I'm looking for some feedback on this game, mostly on game mechanics, story, and "draw" factor, or how well the game keeps you interested. If there's anyone out there who would like to make a review of this game, I'd greatly appreciate it, as it would help me to determine what needs improvement and what was done well for future projects. Pretty please and thank you!

I noticed you had posted that Version 1.1 was up for download.
Could not find the link here so went to your FB page.
Clicked on a link and found a download button.

IT COULD HAVE BEEN MY MISTAKE but after the download my computer went crazy and I thought I was going to have to call
call someone to come fix it. BLUE SCREEN and all.

I was finally able to delete 4-5 other programs that piggy-backed the download with a crap load of popups and advertisment
websites.
Like I said, it my have somehow been my fault BUT it could also have been the fault of the site you uploaded the new version
and that may be why you did not get any feedback.

Why not upload it again on RMN, the main site with all the other games???  Just a thought.

Oh wow, I had no idea. I hope everything is alright on your computer, and I sincerely apologize if the download for my game was the cause of all that, but I'll be sure to move it to a different site. Thanks for the heads-up.

EDIT: Before I completely remove this link, I just want to make sure. When you went to download the game, did you access the download through a tab that looked like the attached image? There are ads on indiedb that have links that say "Download Now" and stuff like that, but none of those ads are actually associated with the website itself or any of the games on the website. The actual download for my game can be found under the downloads tab, or simply by scrolling down until you see a downloads section, just like the one in the attached image.

Sorry for the reply delay. Guess I don't have this site set up to notify when something is post here

Not sure what really happened. I'm not familier at all with  indiedb, so not sure what caused the problem.
Like I said, I may have picked the wrong "download" button. Some sites may do that on purpose. All the download
buttons and hitting the wrong one may get them some $$$$ from adverts they allow on their site.

OK, please pray for me  I'll try again and hope I don't get snagged by a bunch of popups   

OH NO WHAT HAVE I DONE?  clicked on the "download" button on the bottom of your original post  and it automatically began downloading from a page that did not appear to be another site........will have to check my puter to be sure you did not prank me into downloaded a super, super virus......just kidding.  Will let you know how it all goes....

Fingers crossed? The download link at the bottom of the original post does lead directly to the actual download link for the game, but because the game is so large, I can't actually upload it directly to RMN. I had to use a different host. I really do hope it works for you though, there shouldn't be any reason that it wouldn't.

Fingers crossed? The download link at the bottom of the original post does lead directly to the actual download link for the game, but because the game is so large, I can't actually upload it directly to RMN. I had to use a different host. I really do hope it works for you though, there shouldn't be any reason that it wouldn't.

If you ask the mods at RMN, they'll usually allow people to upload larger games. Within reason, of course. The limit is there to stop people superfluously uploading large files, rather than to limit people's projects.

Ah, good to know. I'll get on that. Thanks!

Got it........YYYYYAAAHHHHHHHHHHH

Now I just have to find time to play on my puter

Hey Strak great project looks nice downloading right now to see how your game is and I'll post back to tell you if its cool or not. I downloaded the one thats on the first post, not sure if thats your demo or not. If it isn't your full game give me the link or tell me where to find it.

Ok so when I start the game I get this RGSS202E.dll could not be found error. Is this because I don't have the RTP installed? It's been a while since I've messed with RPG maker so I'm kinda rusty on how that all works. If it is links would be appreciated.

The RTP is necessary to play the game, I'll post a direct link to the RTP on the main post.

EDIT: By the way, I'd like to apologize for all the trouble that this game has caused, simply due to the circuitous nature if the downloads. I truly did attempt to make this as simple as possible, but apparently I'm not very good at that.

Well its like big surprise a lot of this shit isn't easy. I mean Ive actually made games using Visual Basic and it's a pain in the ass but it's nice. Just try putting it all in a zip or whatevs I'm sure you'll get it right. A good idea would be to have multiple seperate folders in the root of the zip, like the game and the RTP and then a file text describing how to install it, a friendly introduction to the game, controls, credits, etc. It's nice to do this cuz then people won't be alienated and they'll feel like your communicating with them. It would be cool if it was a pdf then you can put like some art that would be on the box cover of your game if it was like an SNES title or something.
Well hopefully I can get it to run. Wish me luck.

Yeah Im stuck on the tutorial battle where you fight the dummy. I can't exit even though I hold A and press X.

This has been a common issue, one which I'll fix in the next update. My control scheme during the development of this game was different from the platform defaults, and I forgot to account for different controls for different consoles. Here's the solution I posted to a previous player:

The controls may be dependent on the settings you have for the platform the game runs on. If you currently have the buttons set to the platform defaults, then the Battle Escape function is triggered by the Q key on the keyboard, not the A key (in-game "button" assignment is "L").

If you wish to change the key and button assignments, you can do so in game by pressing F1. This should open a tab that can adjust certain settings. The button assignments can be accessed from the Gamepad tab, and the key assignments can be changed from the Keyboard tab.

As for accessing the menu, the default platform key on the keyboard is D (in-game "button" assignment is "Z").

In addition, there is an in-game Guide that can be accessed from the menu, which describes any discrepancies that may arise from the control scheme. This should answer any questions you may have, although if there is anything you wish to know, please don't hesitate to ask. Good luck, and thank you for playing!

Version 1.2 is now available. This can be downloaded directly from the main topic, or found on Indiedb. Version 1.2 includes updates to enemies, spells, skills, graphical updates, audio updates, and dialogue updates. Bug fixes include removal of false control prompts and errors when applying states.

Hello Strak.

I'm trying your game and it seems there is a bug with the Synthesis spell.

At the start of the game, Grey has 3 versions of the spell (Synthesis I, V and IX). Pretty strange in the first place. In the Technique menu, the number of uses overlaps when moving the selection from one version of the spell to another, and I can't upgrade my Synthesis IV -- considering it has just reached 40 uses and Grey is lvl 21 --, probably because Synthesis V is already there.

If this isn't intentional, could you please tell me how to fix the problem?

Oh no! When I created the spell, I had to test to make sure it was sustainable, but not overpowered, so I gave Grey three versions of the spell for testing purposes. I usually remove the spell from his list after testing, but I must have forgot before I uploaded the new version. Thank you for bringing this to my attention, I'll release a new version later today with the update. Unfortunately, there is no current way to simply fix the problem without re-installing the game. Grey will naturally learn the higher levels of spells as you use them, so it won't break the game, but it may be a nuisance until then. You can still play it as is or download the updated version later today. I'll post here again when the new version is available.

EDIT: You could just use Synthesis V to level up the spell that way. You'd be stuck with Synthesis IV in your spell list still, but you could at least continue leveling the spell.

Thank you for your response.

That's actually what I suspected. But as I was not sure, I allowed myself like an idiot to use Synthesis V a few times when I shouldn't have (well... 27 times exactly). It was mainly when going to Gareth island, with the activation of the two switches. After that I only used Synthesis I-IV. I hope this is forgivable.

I'll wait for the new version.

Using the higher level spells isn't necessarily game-breaking, although technically Grey was not supposed to have access to the higher level spells until the lower levels had been mastered. In addition to this, Grey was not supposed to have access to the first level of Synthesis until the scroll that teaches the spell had been purchased from a vendor in Amethyne.

Regardless, the new version is available on Indiedb and from the main post. It's doubtful that your save file will work with the new version, so unless you want to play through everything all over again, you may prefer to simply continue with your current version, as there are no further game changing updates in the new version. I apologize for the inconvenience, but again, thank you for bringing this to my attention.

Sorry but here is another bug for you. 

It occurs in the Madness Caverns, every time an air elemental attacks.
I took a screenshot.



That dungeon couldn't have a better name, though it should be possible to rush through it with the chaotic daggers, assuming a bit of good luck.
(I started over, by the way. Not a big waste of time.)

Now that IS unusual. I've battle tested the elementals, and haven't come across any issues. I see you're in the forest section of the caverns, so I tested battling them in that area as well. I also noticed you're in the process of escaping while they attack, so I've tested that. I tested using berserk, forcing the elemental to use a physical attack instead, and I've tested silencing the elemental, but I can't seem to replicate the bug.

To be thorough, what equipment are you using? Are you attacking with any specific skills or spells before this bug occurs? What are your characters levels, and what level are your spells? Specifically, what level is Grey's Wind spell, and how many uses does it have?

Also, does the bug occur before or after the attack animation? If it's after, is there a particular actor that the elemental usually targets? If it's before, how far into the attack does the elemental get? Does is show the magic circle under the enemy to show that it's trying to use a spell, or does the bug occur immediately after the gauge is full?

EDIT: Also, thanks for playing the game! You sure got through it pretty quick, I'm impressed. I hope you've enjoyed it.

I may have found the problem.

After looking through the resource files and data files, I found something unusual. Although every animation graphic file is a .png, the wind animation file for the level of spell this elemental uses is in fact a .jpeg.

This is especially unusual since animations should not be able to have a file extension of .jpeg. If you know much about image files, you'll know that .jpeg does not have an alpha layer in the same sense that a .png does. While it is not impossible for a .jpeg to be partially transparent, it isn't quite the same as an alpha channel in a .png.

This theory as to why this bug occurred is reinforced by the notice at the top of the error window which reads "libpng warning." In very rough terms, it's saying that the .png file the game is looking for is broken, which isn't exactly true, it's just non-existent.

I'm usually quite careful about maintaining similar file extensions as much as possible, but this one must have slipped my notice. I'll try to work on a fix as soon as possible, hopefully without needing an entire new download.

Alright, try this. Download the attached Wind_002.png attachment. Open the game folder and go to Graphics/Animations. Remove the Wind_002.jpeg file in that folder, and replace it with the .png. Just to be safe, don't delete the .jpeg, just move it outside the folder. If this doesn't work, replace the file as it was before. I'll try to figure something else out.

The platform recognizes files by their file name, not the extension, so this should replace the animation. As I said before, I haven't been able to replicate the bug, so I don't know if this will work or not.

The .png file didn't solve the problem. I was pretty sure it would, as the message box appears exactly when the spell's graphics should display.

I tried to click repeatedly on the "OK" button and, after 10 clicks, the error message changes twice before the window closes:



To answer your questions, Grey has Air V with 0 uses. And... (!) as I'm writing this, I realize that the same error appears when I'm trying to cast Air V. Which makes sense but becomes quite inconvenient.
Perhaps it is related to the RTP somehow, or, indeed, libpng. I'll try the game on my laptop to see if the bug occurs there too.

Hmm... I was so sure that would work. The only inconsistency I've found between spells is the file extension of that one animation. I assumed that replacing that image file would fix the problem. It's good to know that the bug occurs immediately before the animation though, that does narrow down the problem. I wonder, however, if the problem is how the spells level up. If any time a monster uses Air V, does it try to add a count to the number of times Grey has used the spell? Is that why it's crashing? That doesn't seem likely, it seems more likely that it's simply an issue with the Wind_002.jpeg file. I'll continue to work on this, see if I can replicate the bug, and if I can, I'll see if I can find a workaround.

Now, you mentioned that you'd try this on your laptop. Which platform had you been using earlier?

EDIT: Here's the code where the third error message occurs. I don't know Ruby, but if anyone does and wishes to offer input, that would be greatly appreciated.

Code: [Select]

def self.load_bitmap(folder_name, filename, hue = 0)
    @cache = {} if @cache == nil
    path = folder_name + filename
    if not @cache.include?(path) or @cache[path].disposed?
      if filename.empty?
        @cache[path] = Bitmap.new(32, 32)
      else
        @cache[path] = Bitmap.new(path)
      end
    end
    if hue == 0
      return @cache[path]
    else
      key = [path, hue]
      if not @cache.include?(key) or @cache[key].disposed?
        @cache[key] = @cache[path].clone
        @cache[key].hue_change(hue)
      end
      return @cache[key]
    end
  end

Also, Arcanod, try this. Replace the .jpeg with the .png as before, but this time, replace one more file. In the Data folder, find the file labelled Animations.rvdata and replace it with the file attached to the bottom of this post. See if that works.

Sadly, the .dvdata file doesn't fix the bug either, which occurs on my laptop as well. Both the desktop PC and the laptop have Windows 8.1 installed, if it is of any importance.

Hmm. I'll be honest, I'm stumped. I still haven't been able to replicate the bug, and I've played this game on Windows Vista, 8, 8.1, and 10.

Spoiler for "Possible Spoilers":

Unfortunately, the only way I can think of to get you through this dungeon wouldn't work, because saving is disabled in that dungeon.
My suggestion would have been to save periodically throughout the dungeon and reset if the bug ever occurred, but that won't work. You could try increasing the wait mode to 4, and use backstab as much as possible. This would give you as many opportunities as possible to attack before the elemental automatically attacks. Or you could use water magic with Grey in an attempt to silence the Elemental. You could also use either berserk or sleep with Mia, preventing the elemental from using spells. The only issue with silencing, berserk, and sleep is that the chance of afflicting the elemental is only 60%, and the hit ratio for sleep and berserk are very low at low levels. Also, Grey and Mia may not be fast enough to attack before the elemental. If you wanted to attempt to find a different ultimate weapon first, you could alternate between using backstab and other ultimate abilities. In essence, my advice would be to do everything you can to prevent the elemental from using spells, or kill it before it can attack.

I'm truly sorry that you're having to deal with this, I'll continue to try to find a fix for this.

Don't be sorry, it's not your fault. And good luck if you continue to search for a solution. Please tell me if you find somethind. 
As for me, I'll try the game on another computer when I can.

Spoiler for:

With backstab -- which is the only option here because the main character is the only who can act before the elemental (tough Flare is not far behind) --, this dungeon should be doable. On the other hand, the Academy is impossible: you have to use Wind on the training puppet. And I bet the 4th page for the recipes book is somewhere in this place!...

Edit: the bug occurs even on a Windows 2000 virtual machine, with a fresh download of the game and the RTP. 

Ah, shoot I forgot you had to use Air there. As for page 4, I'm guessing you haven't taken many side missions from the other assassin's, eh? Check with them. You might be surprised.

So I still can't seem to replicate the bug. If you could, can you compress your copy of the game in a zip folder and send it to me in a PM? I can examine your copy and see if there's something missing from the download, or see if the bug continues on my computer.

I've fixed the problem. Something was going wrong with the encryption process when extracting the game, but I've found a way around that. I'm uploading the new version right now, and I have a file specifically for you, Arcanod, with all your save files intact. It's taking its sweet time to upload, but I'll send you a PM with the link to the download once it's ready.

EDIT: And the game is live! Hopefully this is the last game breaking bug.

Version 1.4 has been released. This update includes minor bug fixes, aesthetic changes to the mission log including removing the failed mission category, and the addition of Spellblade techniques, ensuring that armored characters are not overpowered against purely physical enemies such as soldiers. In addition, the BGM files have been converted to a smaller file size, saving approximately 10MB from the final download size.

The new version is available through the main post, or from indiedb.com. Thanks for playing!