Dear friends,

I seem to be in a flow at the moment.... and even though "The Void" didn't seem to cause much "response" by the community I'm about to finish yet another new custom mansion.

Its working title is THE FOUR TUBES  and on the included overview you can see why. I have the feeling it's one of my best, really..... and it's about the only mansion that I designed on a sheet of paper before I started building (at least the overall structure), whereas all my earlier mansions were created "on the spot"....

In this manssion, that also features a few smaller custom design elements, Jack will have to travel through four tubes leading to different sections, and he is completely free to chose which tube he wants to start with, so exploration factor is high.

I will need at least one or two more weeks to finish it and have it tested properly..... but you can already have a glimpse at the picture below (which shows only the main section).

---

Looks very interesting!!

Don't clog the tubes....:D

Woohoo! Sounds like it will be great! I loved 'The Void.'

Arevn

The Four Tubes looks really good! BTW, I liked The Void (or at least the parts I could get through. For me, this one was very hard  :P )

Thank you all for your kind words, especially the comments about The Void.

Maybe I got the wrong impression there.....  if a mansion doesn't create much "post traffic" it doesn't have to mean that noone is playing it.... maybe it just means that there's not too much wrong with it  ;) .....

....or it was simply too hard ??   ;D

The Four Tubes won't be as hard BTW..... but it isn't necessarily easy either !

Or they are having such fun they don't have time to post!!! :D

I think real life just gets in the way sometimes. People are too busy to post, probably.

Really looking forward to the Four Tubes, it looks excellent!
8-)

Thank you, thank you, evyrbody...!

Last night I finished the last room of The Four Tubes....but now I still will need a couple of days to put in all those nice exztra touches, like additional creatures, backgrounds, props, statues, paintings etc..

Also I will have to play and play and play again myself (as I always do before handing it over to the testers) to find any faults, weak spots or anything that could be improved.

The greatest thing about this mansion really is its non-linearity.... being free to chose which tube (=route) to start with each time you play results in the strange effect that the save pedestals have no fixed order (and change according to your route-choice).

And - paradoxically - even though there is this liberating non-linearity there is also a lot of symmetry in it.....  which you will find out only later (so I should stop giving things away now).  :D   ;)

Yeah, this mansion looks like very cool when I can see the map of them. That's a nice one!  ;D

Hi aquamat,

I played the Void, really enjoyed it, especially all the hunting for secret entrances to rooms, took a while.  Very clever.

I understand what you mean about forum response, I too was very disappointed about the tiny bit of feedback I received from my one and only mansion; Immortal Ruins.  I spent a huge amount of time and energy on it, and it seems it was a flop.  Oh well, such is life sometimes.   :'(

Keep up the great mansion building, looking forward to the Four Tubes.

SandyBean [smiley=2vrolijk_08.gif]

Thanks a lot for the nice words, Sandy...!

I can assure you that Immortal Ruins was not a flop, at least not in my book..... I remember very well how much I liked playing it.

It did have a very high "exploring factor", too... due to its non-linearity, and as far as I recall, did also feature quite a few innovations !!!

The Four Tubes is currently beta-tested, and we have reached version 0.9.5 already.....   :)

Way cool, Aquamat!

Beta-testing is now finished and I'm currently doing version 1.0 (which will be the official "release version").

The only thing left to be done is set the music IDs.

And here I want to do the following (I know there will be a few players out there who might protest):

You know my preferance to play without (the supplied) music, and given the nature of THE FOUR TUBES, with all the exploring etc., I'd like to release the official version as a SILENT MANSION (=music set to -1 /off).

It will enhance the effect, believe me.

Should there be players out there who absolutely need the (MM-)music (and who are still not tired of hearing the same 4 pieces time and again) of course I cannot prevent you from using the editor to change the music IDs.  But I'd rather see you not do it......
(You can as well turn on your stereo while playing !)

So I invite an open discussion here, about the music..... to find out how many players really feel they need this music.
But unless there will be a majoritiy of you asking me not to do it, I will release The Four Tubes as a silent, but very atmospheric mansion, full of suspense... animal noises, footsteps, blood dripping sounds..... !

aquaMat wrote on 09.03.2008 at 18:51:59:

a silent, but very atmospheric mansion, full of suspense... animal noises, footsteps, blood dripping sounds..... !

Jack screaming to his death.
;D

No music is fine with me.

Good to hear that.....

T.F.T. is going out to Brell, later today !!

For the longest time when I first started playing MM, I did not have ANY sound on, as the SE's would make my young puppy thingy his ears and if Jack died, Murphy would really seem upset.   :-?

Now I play with the SE's at low volume, and the music even lower.  Murphy, and our now new puppy, Shasta, have become quite indifferent to the noises, and believe me, being able to hear the monsters and such is a great help to keep Jack alive. ::)

The music to me is not important, and even distracting at times when it changes between rooms and delays the play.  I think your mansion will be great as a silent, eerie space, with all kinds of trouble waiting for Jack! :o

Looking forward to playing it !

thanks,
SandyBean [smiley=2vrolijk_08.gif]

I often play without music too (but not always).

What about having a music track mostly silent, but with occasional creepy noises (doors creaking, spooky laughter, footsteps, things like that)?

The Four Tubes is out and can be downloaded at the usual places.

Toybox wrote on 10.03.2008 at 02:32:04:

I often play without music too (but not always). What about having a music track mostly silent, but with occasional creepy noises (doors creaking, spooky laughter, footsteps, things like that)?

That's a good idea, Toybox.... and I have thought about something similar too, in the past. But whereas I always went at it by thinking how I could add more "extra FX sounds" to the sounds that the animals, doors etc. make... I never thought about it like you did, which in fact is brilliant (and brilliantly simple), namely that it could be done via a music track...which is no music but occasional sound FX.

In the next couple of weeks, when I have a day off at my recording studio, maybe I'll try to produce such a track - for all of us to use.

Thanks, SandyBean
for your comment. You mention an  important side effect of the music: the changing of a music ID from one room to the next always results in that terrible "delay" you mention, which can really be very awkward when Jack slides or jumps or anything other than walking and such a delay "interrupts" the jump / slide etc.

It's another big reason to set all music IDs (except the first one) to 0 !

Thanks, brell, for the quick release.

The Four Tubes is fun, aquaMat!  Thanks for your latest creation.  Jack has been down all four tubes just to look around.  Lots of colored doors.  Now to get busy finding the keys.

Jackie

Loving the Four Tubes so far. Thanks! (And I never play with the music on anyway, so it's fine if there isn't any.)

Thanks everybody, for the nice and encouraging comments !!


BTW, I invite the first player who beats this mansion with ALL secrets found to report it here..... so we can celebrate.

Life was good.  Jack was happy.  He got through the four tubes and started exploring nearby landscapes.  But he needs a Save spot real soon and the one he found is near the treasure room and doesn’t allow him to return to continue the game.  He can’t figure out how to get through the gray door in Room 13504 to get the purple key.  He pulled the red lever in the upper level and jumped back so he wouldn’t fall through the column.  It also triggered another red shelf to fall but he can’t see the significance of that.  Does anybody have hints?  We’ve been going around in circles for days.

Jackie

Hi Jackie,

thanks for playing The Four Tubes.

I have the strange feeling you didn't explore the area near the grey door in room 13504 properly. (That was a hint, BTW).

The upper level you mention, though important on its own, has no direct relevance to the door in question. (BTW, the "red lever" and "column" you mention are not even in the same room as the grey door.)
However, once you are up there you are on your way to the portion of room 13504 that leads to that grey door.

Please keep on trying......  and maybe don't try too much to avoid certain things that are meant to happen.  (Another cryptic advice..... :) :D  !!)

I need help in the Blue tube.  I can get through the other three but come out with a green key. If I start with the blue tube I get to room 14500 but can't figure out how to get up to the lever and continue. Hints please!

Thanks and great mansion!
Nancy

Hi Nancy,

thanks for playing The Four Tubes.

If you traveled through the tubes, with the blue one being the last, and you ended up with the tube before that and haven't been given a blue key you certainly made a mistake (= you missed something) near the end of the third tube.
The system is constructed in such a way that it always works, no matter how you start !!

As for your other question:
When you start with the blue tube you have problems in room 14500 ?
Well, the only hint I can give you is LOOK EVERYWHERE.... search more carefully.... and I'm sure you'll find out how to get to the top level in 14500.   8-)

Nobody said you need to go there first, BTW.
The great thing about The Four Tubes is that even within the sections you are pretty much free to chose where to go first and what to do next. However, sometimes there are certain things that need to be done first,  to be able to explore a certain area (within a section).
E.g.: a certain area is closed with a grey door, so naturally you'd have to go looking for a way to open that door first. (That is just an example).

If this (rather general) advice doesn't help you, please get beack with a more detailed description of the problem you have.

Have Fun !!!  ;)

Well I solved the problem with getting the blue key, but I am still stuck on how to proceed in room 14500 to get to the upper lever. I have tried everything I can think of. A hint would be appreciated, and then I will feel dumb that I didn't see it! But dumb is better than stuck!

Thanks, Nancy

OK nevermind I found the way! Thank you!!!

aquaMat wrote on 23.03.2008 at 20:31:55:

When you start with the blue tube you have problems in room 14500 ? Well, the only hint I can give you is LOOK EVERYWHERE.... search more carefully.... and I'm sure you'll find out how to get to the top level in 14500.

Room 14500 makes me sad and want to cry.  :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(

Please. Help. Me.

I will die without MM fun.

:D.

Hi Lara! Where are you in the room 14500?? Where have you been before that? There are 3 floors in this room so you need to walk out and back again to reach a new floor. It is important to use the map.

I've figured it out. I'm such a doofus, I need to pay attention to the funny pixels. :D.

Hi, I'm needing some help.  Jack has just been going 'round and 'round for several days trying to figure out Rm 13504 in Four Tubes.  He's on the right side of the grey door and obviously needs to be on the left side.  I believe there must be a moving platform triggered in the brick column as Jack falls after releasing the red trap door.  But, as many times as he's fallen through the column he just ends up at the bottom of it and goes through the same rooms over and over.

Jackie

Hi Jackie,

thx for playing The Four Tubes, first of all.

I'm not sure if I understand exactly what your problem is.
But if you are in room # 13504, right of the grey door, I assume you have gotten there by jumping from the vine in 13505. Although you are free to explore it in any way you can imagine, you have probably already guessed that this is the "wrong way".

You somehow need to arrive LEFT of the grey door (to be able to open it) ..... and how do you get there ???   See my answer to a similar post above (which was also from you, if I remember correctly).

As above, I can only repeat that you need to find the "entrance" to that lower area of room 13504.
If I should guess I'd say you didn't explore the rooms 13703 and 13704 thoroughly enough......

If you insist on a more specific hint, please PM me..... I don't want to spoil the fun for other players.

Thanks for fun aqua! That's one excellent mansion of you! 8-) ;D

Hi Aquamat

Completed it!  Thanks for your hint.  Great mansion.
;D

I LOVE the Four Tubes - so much fun!

Aquamat:

Finally made it through The Four Tubes!  Appreciated the help you gave me and very much enjoyed the mansion.  Almost missed the surprise ending.  You had some very nice portraits in the tube areas.

Jackie

Thanks a lot, everybody, for all your nice & encouraging words !

I enjoyed building The Four Tubes a lot, probably more than any of my previous mansions (maybe because it was the first one that I sketched out on paper before I started to build).

I even thought about making an edited version for the Expansion Pack (should it ever appear) !?!

BTW, has anybody managed to end with all secrets (and all money)  found, yet ??

Note: For 2 days now my hi-speed internet access is either very slow or not working at all (e.g. for this reply I had to wait 20 mins. until the page "materialized") !!  
So I probably won't be able to participate that much until the fault has been found and the speed is "back to normal" !

Whee, that was so much fun!!! Congrats on a great mansion!

I only finished with 58% secrets, however. :-[ I couldn't figure out how to get into the last tube since my key was the wrong colour.

The order in which I accessed the tubes was (highlight to see):

Blue, red, and yellow, making green the tube I couldn't enter. I finished the yellow with a blue key that let me explore the second part of the mansion. Oh, and I did find the final yellow key, though!

ETA: I played again by accessing the tubes in a different order and was able to finished with 97% or so of the secrets. Yay!

Arevn

Am I playing an old version, or just missing something? I seem to remember a blatant lack of BBB for one of the tubes (that is, no "The Green Tube" announcement - although maybe it is another colour).

:-?

@Toybox:

You are right. In the first (or first two) versions I accidentially ommitted the BBB for the green tube !
This has neem fixed in the meantime, although I'm not sure whether that update has already been released. (I'll check later).

@ arevn:

As I said before:  No matter in what order you travel through the tubes you will always be able to finish (= access the final section).
If you didn't in that one instance, I'm sure it had nothing to do with the "tube order" but was due to some other oversight of you (and I guess I know which).

The whole door/key color system is very logical, it works similar in every tube.

Thanks for the fun game, AquaMat.

I have questions (as usual!). One of them seems to have been answered above; I only have the red tube left to access but have no red key, so assume that I missed a red key somewhere...

The other is - I think - room 14303 with the pillars. I'm just not getting where Jack is supposed to launch himself to from that vibrating brick. Have gone through more lives than I care to admit here, and would be grateful for a clue if you can do so without ruining it for the others.

Thanks
Scout

@ Scout:

Thanks for the nice words !!

As for your question:
You should simply try to get back to "safe ground" (e.g. the top of the column that has the "vibrating brick" in it) and from then on continue your way upward....

Does that help ?  (I'm not completely sure I understood your question correctly !?)

@ arevn:

Addition to my reply above:
In the meantime I have tried to duplicate your behaviour to find out what your problem might be.....  I sent you a PM about it.

However, starting with the BLUE tube is definitely just as possible as any other order.

Hello,

After the 4 tubes, in the next section.....room 13704....bottom ledge.  How to open the grey door.  I did it the 1st time, now I can't remember.  It's been days & still I can't figure out how to open that darn grey door (just before the moving belt.)

Any suggestions?   [smiley=embarassed.gif]
 

Hi again, Missy,

there is no grey door in room 13704.... but maybe you are talking about the grey door in room 13504 (the room directly above it) ???

Other people have asked this question before....so maybe it helps if you check in the depths of the "Four Tubes" thread...

But I'll give you one hint:

The grey door can NOT be opened from the right side !!!

I really can't understand why there are apparently a few people who have real problems with this room, whereas I (and probably most of the other players) find that area in TFT quite straight-forward.

Anyway, I give you one more hint:

As the grey door in question cannot be opened from the right side, it surely must be opened from the other, the left side....  An area you get to only a bit later in the game.

So when you are now RIGHT of the grey door in 13504, I advise you to simply forget it for a while and continue with what's left right of that door etc.

Should you be already LEFT of the grey door....well, then you only need to look for the hidden switch.

Did that help ??

Missy, there are NO glitches in any of the custm mansions.

Btw. Palace of Gore is located at the same place where you found Small Palace of Gore

Actually, I never heard of any "gliches" in any of the custom mansions, either.

Couldn't it be some problem of your computer ??

PS: Thanks for the nice words !!

I was very tired and was thinking I had just plain missed it. I have never had any other problems with the mansions.

Missy wrote on 16.08.2008 at 00:16:28:

Hi AquaMat, I finally finished TFT.  Love the twist on the money chamber!!!   Question:  Rm. 14706 which is under the exit door in the money chamber, are we suppose to find a way down, below the scorpions?  The reason I ask, is that I see a broken ladder and a large yellow slate/brick.   missy

Well, Missy....
what am I gonna say.....  yes there are parts of a ladder visible, so why don't you just try and see if you can get down there ?
8-)

PS: You're the first person EVER I hear from who has problems with Apple hardware. That really surprises me......

[/quote]PS: You're the first person EVER I hear from who has problems with Apple hardware. That really surprises me......
[/quote]

Me too!  It was a dream come true and as always, when I really want something sooooo bad, something always happens to sabotage it.  Weird eh?  My brand new iMac died, literally died in 6mths.  Thanks to Apple Care, they sent me a new one (after 4 weeks in service), unfortunately, Apple did not label the box with fragile and this site up stickers.  The minute I hooked up the new iMac Leopard it was making loud noises.  I notified Apple immediately about the lack of common sense in shipping such a fragile piece of equipment without labels.......I mean, how dumb can you get.
So this one has been acting up since Mar/08 and I really should have it looked at when I am more mobile.  I have been too sick to get around. (I should have sent it back, but I was in the middle of course exams online and would have lost my license if I did not finish them then and there, so I kept it with all the noises.  The noises have subsided somewhat.....and Apple does know about it.
That makes it 2 lemons in a row......I wonder if the 3rd one will be better?

Wow, Awesome, What a grrrrre8t adventure.  Just finished the four tubes after weeks of enjoying it.  Love your work, all of your mansions.  Thank You so much for hours of enjoyment...... cw

Thank you very much.....  and welcome to our forums !!

And I hope you continue having fun with all the available custom mansions (...more than 100 now !!).   ;)