Ragefest IV: Trolls & Tribulations

[Maritisa]

There's a reason why I repeatedly didn't vote for this one. Save the best things for last and all.

No, I never played it or anything. No I don't know anything about it or the author. I just kinda... got that vibe from it, y'know what I mean?

but yes please do upload a part one that would be amaze.

[MarkyJoe1990]

Ugh, The video doesn't seem to want to render. I might not be able to get this up today. Sorry guys.

[RandomSwordmaster]

It's fine marky. Take your time with the finished product. Make the icing beautiful on the already delicious cake.

[MarkyJoe1990]

It's literally just a 23 minute video with 9 jump cuts. =(

Edited March 12, 2016 by MarkyJoe1990

[HeyItsKyo]

Got back from my recording session.

Holy cooooow. This one's AMAZING.

I might just go and edit the first part cause god damn, this is awesome.

There's a reason why I repeatedly didn't vote for this one. Save the best things for last and all.

No, I never played it or anything. No I don't know anything about it or the author. I just kinda... got that vibe from it, y'know what I mean?

but yes please do upload a part one that would be amaze.

Holy shit.

I've actually been following this thread since it started for the most part and felt like I should finally actually say something to help show I didn't die or fall of the face of the earth between when I submitted my hack and now but I've been putting it off since at this point since the last few posts here have made me rather speechless. :U

This is my first time releasing a hack publicly (well, only Marc has it for now but I was planning on throwing up a download link once the contest was over if he didn't :U) so I was pretty anxious on how it'd be received. Thank you both so much for your words of praise, it really does mean a lot to me.

I hope you can sort out your video problems without it being too much of a hassle, Marc. Hopefully it's nothing unsalvageable. If you do have to re-record stuff, I'd still love to see your blind footage even if it's all unedited.

[MarkyJoe1990]

Finally fixed the bloody rendering problem. I think I might just stop using the soxfilter function to compress the audio dynamic range in my videos in avisynth.

For those of you who are skeptical of the submission, just wait til the end, alrighty?

[RandomSwordmaster]

I was not expecting that at all. Truly a great act of trolling...in a good way.

[Knight]

That first part looks really rough and amateurish, though given how brief it is, I think that was definitely the point. I'm excited to see what's next.

[Eliwan]

Went from bad to amazing (as in I fell off of my bed and had to start my watching over because I stopped paying attention because my brain stopped working that transition was so flawless and suddenly everything is amazing) in under a minute.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Eliwan

[CobyTheGoober]

Woooaaahhh, the quality jump from the beginning of the submission to the actual start of the submission is is huuuugge. I can't wait to see what happens next!

[47948201]

*generic comment about how the intro was all bait and switch in two ways*

[MarkyJoe1990]

Wait a minute.

Evil Lyn's hair is not longer than her entire body.

Immersion ruined.

Also part 2 is coming soon.

Edited March 15, 2016 by MarkyJoe1990

[RandomSwordmaster]

WHAT!? THIS IS A TRAVESTY! INSTANT DQ!

​EDIT: THE TIME OF POSTING THIS IS 8:08 PM PDT AND I SHALL NINJA THE FACT THAT MARKY HAS POSTED PART 2!

Edited March 15, 2016 by RandomSwordmaster

[MarkyJoe1990]

Aaaand it's up.

So now, we finally get to see just how good this submission actually is.

Edited March 15, 2016 by MarkyJoe1990

[RandomSwordmaster]

Well....nobody was expecting ​himher to return....and this hack is shaping up to be a real contender for the grand prize!

[47948201]

This may well be the best submission of the whole contest. That is all.

[Eliwan]

Marf Santangelo == a reference to DIFFERENT DIMENSION OSTIAN PRINCESS.

I don't think you checked Seamus's description. Nor Jake's. Nor Batta's.

But this just went from amazing to AMAZING and made me physically start cheering with reference materials and I couldn't stop chortling.

[Baldrick]

There's so much going on in this hack. I can't wait to try it.

[Mr. Mister]

Ah, so that's why his red gem isn't droppable: you just give it over (alongside his axe) the turn you control Shamas.

This submission seems to be the best one at implementing anti-turtling tactics (Batta's presumptly faulty AI nonwithstanding; this is where FEXNA's "nobody's friend team" feature would be handy). I'm not even sure it's possible to get to both the thiefgirl, the sea villages and the northern village all in time, forcing you to choose on the move.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Mr. Mister

[CobyTheGoober]

These videos on the submission have been a joy to watch so far, since the in the game, there is so much going on, and it's all pretty funny.

[Pwntagonist]

Ragefest: Revengeance will probably win now.

I feel that there are 3 factors in Ragefest that determine which submission will win. From most important to least important, they are:

1. Marc's opinion of the submission. Marc goes out of his way to tell us exactly what he thought of each submission in each of his videos. This is the most direct, contributing factor to whether a viewer likes the submission or not. Of course... the best way to get Marc to like your submission and in turn rate it highly is to make a high-quality submission.

2. Memorability of the submission. The main reason why I put this above quality of the submission is purely because of Marc's Special Day. Before Ragefest III, submission quality went hand-in-hand with memorability. Submissions like Cedar Nyx's Matthew's Nightmare and Ephraim225's Rondo of Madness both had good quality design as well as memorability, often including or introducing memes. However, Marc's Special Day was... well, nothing special in terms of quality, especially in comparison to other Ragefest 3 entries. What it did have over specifically Bullet Hell Madness and F.EXE was memorability, which is why it won.

3. Quality of the submission. While quality does influence Marc, it clearly does not influence the viewers as much as memorability. The gap in quality and memorability in Ragefest 1 and 2 was extremely high between the winners and the others, which is why it is unfair to cite Matthew's Nightmare and Rondo of Madness as exceptions to this pattern. If you have a memorable or exceptionally funny submission like Marc's Special Day, your submission doesn't have to be that high-quality, provided Marc doesn't pay as much attention to or comment on the poor quality.

In my opinion (and evidently several others' opinions), Ragefest: Revengeance excels in all 3 categories. But here are the main reasons it will win, if things keep going like they are.

1. It is extremely well-liked by Marc, who has the biggest influence on what the viewers vote for.

2. People are discussing the possibility of it winning, which influences voters further.
3. The jokes, atmosphere, and design of the hack are memorable.

4. It was showcased close to the end of the contest, which triggers recency bias and makes the submission way more memorable. As much as I don't want to admit that this is a factor, it is technically responsible for influencing you a little.

[RandomSwordmaster]

I had some hope my submission might win an award. Then Ragefest: Revengeance happened. And I suspect PwnageKirby's submission will be top notch as well, given what i've seen from MAFC, and FEXNA's potential.

[MarkyJoe1990]

Even though my reactions in the video are very positive, it's been on the back of my mind that this is sort of another submission that has in jokes that the uninitiated viewer isn't gonna get, so I'll prolly mention that near the end.

[Avraxas]

Ragefest: Revengeance will probably win now.

I feel that there are 3 factors in Ragefest that determine which submission will win. From most important to least important, they are:

1. Marc's opinion of the submission. Marc goes out of his way to tell us exactly what he thought of each submission in each of his videos. This is the most direct, contributing factor to whether a viewer likes the submission or not. Of course... the best way to get Marc to like your submission and in turn rate it highly is to make a high-quality submission.

2. Memorability of the submission. The main reason why I put this above quality of the submission is purely because of Marc's Special Day. Before Ragefest III, submission quality went hand-in-hand with memorability. Submissions like Cedar Nyx's Matthew's Nightmare and Ephraim225's Rondo of Madness both had good quality design as well as memorability, often including or introducing memes. However, Marc's Special Day was... well, nothing special in terms of quality, especially in comparison to other Ragefest 3 entries. What it did have over specifically Bullet Hell Madness and F.EXE was memorability, which is why it won.

3. Quality of the submission. While quality does influence Marc, it clearly does not influence the viewers as much as memorability. The gap in quality and memorability in Ragefest 1 and 2 was extremely high between the winners and the others, which is why it is unfair to cite Matthew's Nightmare and Rondo of Madness as exceptions to this pattern. If you have a memorable or exceptionally funny submission like Marc's Special Day, your submission doesn't have to be that high-quality, provided Marc doesn't pay as much attention to or comment on the poor quality.

In my opinion (and evidently several others' opinions), Ragefest: Revengeance excels in all 3 categories. But here are the main reasons it will win, if things keep going like they are.

1. It is extremely well-liked by Marc, who has the biggest influence on what the viewers vote for.

2. People are discussing the possibility of it winning, which influences voters further.

3. The jokes, atmosphere, and design of the hack are memorable.

4. It was showcased close to the end of the contest, which triggers recency bias and makes the submission way more memorable. As much as I don't want to admit that this is a factor, it is technically responsible for influencing you a little.

All valid points, but you know what would really seal the deal with knowing if Revengeance will win?

A Part 3 video.

*cough* Marc *cough*

[MarkyJoe1990]

Man, you guys seem so eager to count out all the other amazing submissions that have been played. In fact... I'm gonna use this post to gush about a few of them.

Firstly, may I remind y'all that Tales Of Purt was really good? I wasn't fond of the writing at first, but it's grown on me a lot, and the level design is good too. It's a shame it's held back by FEXP, but honestly, if it ever gets ported to FEXNA, there are very few weak spots in this submission aside from some extra fat that coulda been cut. Not only that, but it's very original. There are so many submissions where I'm the protagonist, but how many make me the VILLAIN? Beyond that, this submission just has so much personality to it. I don't know how to explain it, but just look at how goofy the submission is. Especially the part where each character's epilogue is explained. That's the kind of shit you see done by someone who is just naturally kind of a goofy guy. Let's not forget the intro. Honestly, if we have another Ragefest, I want to see a lot more submissions like this.

Then there's Emblem Warriors by Ephraim225. It's not a submission that stands out in presentation, but when you're playing it, there's a lot to appreciate. The innovative gameplay mechanics are no doubt gonna influence future hacks, cause c'mon, this fresh new idea is just begging to be explored further. This submission's also one of the VERY few that actually made the money man funny. Remember how money is no longer important, people? If I were to criticize, I feel like the submission should have used custom music, or at least anything but that lame ass Hector mode player phase theme. It's too mellow for a submission that's a large battle.

Lyn's Revenge hits a soft spot for me because... Well, lemme say that I'm a very analytical person. There's a lot of stuff in these submissions that make everyone but me laugh. The problem is that I'm so used to this whole Ragefest gig by this point that I can predict a lot of things either by empathy, or by applying past submissions to the present. But Lyn's Revenge makes me laugh because it's so unabashedly stupid that it defies analysis. There's nothing I can analyze about Hector convincing Matthew to join him by agreeing to hook the guy up with weed. There's just too many things dumb about that and my mind doesn't even know where to begin. This submission also surprised me because it looks like a typical garbage submission, but actually requires a lot of thought to beat, and the winning strategy is very satisfying.

DISTORTION. Okay, I'm pretty sure this submission isn't gonna win a lot of votes, but no submission has EVER made me feel so... violated! I can't even describe it, since the words I'd use are heavily inappropriate, but just LISTEN to me in the video.

Trapped In Painful places probably has the best intro of any submission, and it's also legitimate satire since, like, I know there's a large number of people who listen to what I say and take it to heart. I also think the design of part 1 is a masterpiece from a Ragefest point of view. What really holds the submission back is - all together now - part 2 is all sorts of lame. But damn son. Titanwood. Just. What the fuck.

Not all of these submissions I listed are necessarily my favorites but I feel they all have at least one thing that no other submission does better, and I wanna remind people that there have been plenty of high quality submissions this year, and that I don't think the winner is gonna be so cut and dry.

... Though, the recency bias is a thing. I'll have to figure something out for that.

Edited March 16, 2016 by MarkyJoe1990