: I didn't read through your entire message yet (I'm at work and not even
: supposed to be here), but I wanted to point out, first of all, that there
: have been non-Marathon-related total conversions before, most notably
: Excalibur: Morgana's Revenge. And second, I'd like to give you some advice
: that I never heeded myself, and in hindsight reallly should have: Start
: small.
I have Played Excalibur: Morgana's Revenge. I know there have been other non-marathon related scenarios, and I've played them. and yes, I am aware that stuff may have came before it, I just said that so it sounded /?cool/, not really implying anything there.
: A project like this is a huge undertaking that few individuals could complete
: themselves, and even then, it would take years. If you really want to do
: this, you're going to need help. You seem to realize this already - it's
: not that hard to figure out. The part that most people, my younger self
: included, do not realize is what it takes to get that help.
I had that problem too.
: Up until about six months ago I had recieved sporadic help at best on my
: project Eternal. Now, suddenly, I've got some of the best content creators
: active in the community gladly helping me finish it. The difference
: between then and now is that I've released something and proven that this
: is a project worth working on, and that I am somewhat skilled (in some
: area, not sure which) and worth collaborating with.
: Had I to do it all over again, I would have done as most successful
: scenariowrights have, and started by making and releasing a single map,
: maybe the first level of my project - a story hook and a starting point
: for me. Then revising it based on feedback again and again until I had
: released a single *really good* map to show off.
A demo, you say. Not a bad idea... not a bad one at all... I was thinking about that today.
: Then I would have made a simple map pack, five to ten levels, summarizing
: either the first chapter of my story or the major points of the overall
: story - and again, revise that based on feedback over and over until I've
: got a *really good* simple map pack.
: Once you've gotten to this point, you've got a project and some talent to
: show and you can try recruiting someone to make your new textures. Work
: with that person until you've got the textures perfect and final, and
: retexture and re-release the map pack with these new textures so that they
: can get feedback too. Once everyone is generaly satisfied with the
: textures, start building the rest of the maps with them, and start
: recruiting people for your monsters, weapons, etc.
: Unfortunately your project is not at all Marathon related so you can't apply
: any of this incremental work directly to the final project. You might be
: able to get away with using standard Marathon content (textures, monsters,
: weapons) as placeholders, using Pfhor but not calling them Pfhor, like
: Devil In A Blue Dress (the predecessor to Excalibur: Morgana's Revenge)
: did. Then when you get your new, custom content, you can start to swap it
: in in place of the old Marathon content until nothing of Marathon is left.
: But one way or another, start small. Don't even attempt a project like this
: until you've got a simple and well-reviewed map pack released, and I
: probably wouldn't even try a map pack until you've released a single
: stand-alone map that everybody really likes. Not only will these build up
: your skill before you do a bunch of work that may need to be scrapped
: later, but they will get you and your project name recognition, and
: respect in the community, which will in turn get you help from other
: skilled and respected people, which is what you'll need in the end to
: complete your final project.
: And one other thing: when you do start the final stage of the project, plan
: Plan PLAN! Think out and write up in excruciating detail everything you
: will *absolutely need* to get your message across well, and prioritize
: that first. Then also keep a list of everything else that you might just
: want, that could make the project better, and possibly hold that off for
: an "Extended Edition" or some such later. Set schedules and
: deadlines for yourself and stick to them. Resist the urge to revise core
: parts that will require, for example, all your maps to be retextured.
: Stick to your plan and see it through to the end.
Yep, thanks for your words, Forrest. I've now realised what I must do...
....
