Canceled Mace's Deadly Case

[MadGear]

Hey guys,

I'm here to let you guys know that I'm working on a new mod. No, it's not another release of 'BDD: The Revenge' or a sequel to those mods. I intend to make a 2D version of a 'Fighting Force' game. I still play and love the original Fighting Force to this day. My favorite character is Mace. For some reason, I chose her back then and never looked back.

Then came the sequel, 'Fighting Force 2'. I was so excited to play with Mace again... So you can probably guess how greatly disappointed I was when I realized that Mace was nowhere to be found in the sequel.

So, this new mod that I'm working on is basically a single-player game starring Mace as the playable character this time. In the manual of the original Fighting Force, you find out that she's a private investigator. So the story will probably involve that one way or another. I used the King of Fighters character 'Vanessa' as my base for creating Mace and she's coming along just fine. I already finished editing most of her moves. I still have a very long way to go, though.

 

[O Ilusionista]

Please, post some images so the topic will remain in WIP section.
Thanks.

 

[MadGear]

Please, post some images so the topic will remain in WIP section.
Thanks.

I would if I knew how to post images. How do I do that? When I click on 'Insert Image', all I get is this [img/img] What does that mean?

 

[Bloodbane]

You need to upload the images in free image upload site then link it here

Here's an example:

Quote my post to see how I did that

Back to topic:

So you can probably guess how greatly disappointed I was when I realized that Mace was nowhere to be found in the sequel.

Me and my sister too  :'(. The big change in sequel's genre and removal of some characters are huge drawback of that sequel

I took the King of Fighters character 'Vanessa' as my base for creating Mace and she's coming along just fine. I already finished editing most of her moves

Somehow I think King would be better but it's your choice

 

[MadGear]

There, I did it. Thanks Bloodbane


As you can see, this is her standard combo. In game, the animation is more smooth. Editing her is really complicated. I actually tried to give her jacket some animation, which is quite tough actually (for me).

I'll try and post some more pictures at a later time.

 

[NED]

Very good news!
I'm a big fan of Fighting force! And I reacted just like you about the 2nd game.
Even the cover was a deception to me. This kind of George Michael face on the cover was a bad start...

Anyway, I hope your project will be a success... IMO, the most difficult thing will be to restore FF atmosphere in your custom levels.

I really recommand using OST from PSX or PC version (N64 have different tracks)

Also, Im not really a Mace player, but yes! She's cool!
I would definitly give you a hand to add the other characters later when your project is done

Good luck! we need projects like that in Openbor world!

 

[Mr.Din]

This should be interesting. Always wanted to see some more fighting force. 2 was indeed a disappointment. good luck!

 

[MadGear]

IMO, the most difficult thing will be to restore FF atmosphere in your custom levels.

I don't really know what you mean by atmosphere, but if you mean 'level design', I intend to have Mace all over the place. Think about warehouses, docks, factories, boats, park, subway, etc. Maybe even different countries. That's what I intend to do.

I really recommand using OST from PSX or PC version (N64 have different tracks)

I actually had the same idea for the soundtrack. I will use a lot of the music from the PSX/PC version and also a couple of songs from the N64 version. And most likely some other songs that you hear in other games as well.

I would definitly give you a hand to add the other characters later when your project is done

Thanks for the offer, but like I said earlier, I really just want to make a single-player mod starring just Mace. Sorry. You can, of course, unpack the mod and add/remove stuff as you see fit once it's released

This should be interesting

I hope I can deliver. I'm certainly not the best modder out here, so it's probably best not to expect a huge deep mod that's very complex so to speak. I will, of course, use all the things that I have learned as the years went by when I was developing and releasing updated versions of 'Battletoads Double Dragon: The Revenge'.

Anyway, thank you for all the kind replies.

 

[MadGear]

As I said earlier, here are some more pictures.

We've got a 'run' animation over here.

A 'fierce kick' animation over here.

And a 'fierce punch' animation over here.

I had to manually edit each and every frame to make the character look like Mace and add some animation to her jacket. I'm happy with the results

 

[maxman]

A Fighting Force mod, eh. That looks interesting. You got some nice edits there. You seem to be consistent with animation fluidity which is hard and nice. I know editing sprites with animation (for shading) is hard I can tell but you are going along nicely and carefully. I know/Sorry if I'm gonna sound like I'm jumping to conclusions but the enemies are gonna be edits as originals? It's an interesting mod I can watch the updates for.

 

[aL BeasTie]

It's not really a Fighting Force if there's only one person  :

 

[MadGear]

the enemies are gonna be edits as originals?

Sorry, but the enemies are gonna be the standard bunch of characters we've seen before. I can't bring myself to edit more characters. I do it this one time because I really want to make a mod starring Mace. That's what keeps me going, because I only have to do it once. If I have to edit more characters, I know I'm gonna lose motivation after a while. And that's just not worth it to me.

 

[MadGear]

It's not really a Fighting Force if there's only one person  :

You are correct And that's why I'm not gonna name the mod 'Fighting Force'. I'm gonna give it a different name. I just don't know what yet. And I'm actually having quite a hard time coming up with a nice name for the mod. Anyone got any suggestions?

 

[maxman]

That's okay. Making a full character takes quite a while. You know you focus on Mace first.

Just some ideas to come up with:

- Mace of Destruction
- Streets of Mace
- Brute of Destruction / Brute Force
- Brutes of Rage
- Brutal Combat
- Colossal Wreckage

 

[Bloodbane]

I just don't know what yet. And I'm actually having quite a hard time coming up with a nice name for the mod. Anyone got any suggestions?

What about : Fighting Force : Mace's Deadly Case or just Mace's Deadly Case ?

[quote author=maxman]the enemies are gonna be edits as originals?[/quote]

There's no need. IIRC none of the enemies from Fighting Force are unique and memorable so regular thugs will do. Not to mention, it depends on the story, i.e if Mace is working on a case in different city, she's more likely to meet different enemies

 

[Miru]

I just don't know what yet. And I'm actually having quite a hard time coming up with a nice name for the mod. Anyone got any suggestions?

What about : Fighting Force : Mace's Deadly Case or just Mace's Deadly Case ?

[quote author=maxman]the enemies are gonna be edits as originals?

There's no need. IIRC none of the enemies from Fighting Force are unique and memorable so regular thugs will do. Not to mention, it depends on the story, i.e if Mace is working on a case in different city, she's more likely to meet different enemies
[/quote]

I second Mace's Deadly Case.

 

[MadGear]

Thank you all for coming up with some nice names The ones I really like are 'Mace's Deadly Case' and 'Mace of Destruction'.

[quote author=maxman]the enemies are gonna be edits as originals?

There's no need. IIRC none of the enemies from Fighting Force are unique and memorable so regular thugs will do.[/quote]
Yes, it's true. Almost all enemies from the original Fighting Force were, more or less, palette swaps from eachother. They sometimes just had different heads or different colours and most of their animations were also the same. Most of the male enemies even shared their fighting stance animation with Hawk when you look at it.

 

[MadGear]

I've got the story right here. I'm usually really bad at coming up with decent storylines for my mods Anyway, the story is set a couple of years after Fighting Force 2.

Story: Crime gang 'The Underworld' wants to take over the plans of the Cloning/Cyborg research from the now destroyed Nakamichi Corporation (villain from Fighting Force 2) to make advanced/enhanced henchmen. Not all files were erased when the Nakamichi Corporation was destroyed. And so, 'The Underworld' actually have gotten their hands on the plans of the Nakamichi Corporation.

A mysterious figure named 'Unknown' contacts Mace and hires her to investigate what 'The Underworld' is up to. When Mace finds out what they're up to, she decides that 'The Underworld' must be stopped before they're becoming the most dangerous threat.

However, 'Unknown' warns her that if she's going through with this, she stands alone and 'Unknown' will not help her because he/she doesn't want to risk getting exposed. As to not cause any panic amongst the people, Mace decides that this case will be done in secret.

So, there you have it. Not the best of stories, I admit. But I like this to be honest

 

[MadGear]

Anyone fancy some water-skiing? (it's still a work in progress)

Will most likely be used for some kind of bonus level where you can earn some extra lives.

 

[MadGear]

I think I'm gonna settle with 'Mace's Deadly Case' as the title for the mod. Or should I perhaps just call it 'Deadly Case' and leave Mace out of the title name? Which one sounds better to you?