Benny Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 From memory (and I cant remember right now where I heard/read this) when Aric Wilmunder was getting speech working with SCUMM, he did the initial tests with MI2 and there were a few lines of test dialog recorded. Once it was sort of working it was migrated to Loom/Indy. My assumption was always the same as elTee - that it was a complicated job, and a lot easier to manage when making a new game. Also at the time it probably wasnt commercially viable to re-release it with bolted on speech. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laserschwert Posted June 14, 2009 Author Share Posted June 14, 2009 I've always wanted to know what some of those themes would sound like with actual instruments playing the parts. Well, you've got at least one MI2-track revived in MI3 (and thus played with - some - real instruments): Captain Kate's Boat / Booty Island from MI2 Falling Off the Cliff from MI3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderPeel2001 Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Well spotted, LS! Not sure it anyone's seen these, but they're funny! (And MI2 related) http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/111996 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urluckyday Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 All depends on how well SMI sells...then anything can happen if it sells well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elTee Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Well spotted, LS! Not sure it anyone's seen these, but they're funny! (And MI2 related) http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/111996 Haha, not seen that for years. The 'Zoiks, Walt!' clip still cracks me up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Same here, I'd forgotten how good that was. Thats up there with rusty anchor for lec-related flash excellence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plamdi Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 - The art in MI2 is much more refined than the art in MI1, thus remaking the backgrounds would be much more difficult The art in MI2 is scanned, all they have to do is re-scan it at a higher resolution. - MI1 has about 40 minutes of music... MI2 has about 2 hours... re-recording it would be a much bigger task - MI2 uses iMuse to fade between different music-tracks and -arrangements... adapting that to digital audio requires a lot of work I disagree. Keep the music in a synthesized format (there's plenty of ways to make it sound better than MIDI while still using sync formats, I was always impressed by the SNES music format, just sounds so much better than MIDI because the format allows for fully customized sounds so it doesn't sound so synthetic), update it ... do what you have to do... - Using MI1 to test out receptions of an SE makes sense, as it's one of the most successful LA-titles, and yet not as complex as a lot of their other games... this doesn't mean, that MI1's volume is the maximum they're willing to invest into Yeah, well, MI2 is only a sequel nowhere near as popular as the first. Think about how many systems MI1 was released on, many more than MI2 ever touched. MI2 "fans" are a subset of MI fans; although by now you'd expect MI2SE to sell the same as MI1SE ... Gabez - Tiller is hardly an authority on MI1/MI2 art, he wasn't involved in it at all. If the scans can't be digitally fixed for use, then I'm sure Purcell at least would be willing to get involved in re-doing them. Scanners have come a long way, and today there are much better programs to touch-up scans that "dpaint". At any rate, I've just previewed this: http://speechproject.mixnmojo.com/ And it's actually pretty good! When finished it may even be better than MI1SE! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laserschwert Posted June 17, 2009 Author Share Posted June 17, 2009 The art in MI2 is scanned, all they have to do is re-scan it at a higher resolution. No, that's no all there is to it. The artwork was never supposed to be used at HD-resolution, so simply scanning it wouldn't do it. They'd have to paint a lot of details in, and it's easy to mess these great paintings up if you're not very skilled at this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderPeel2001 Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Yeah, well, MI2 is only a sequel nowhere near as popular as the first. Think about how many systems MI1 was released on, many more than MI2 ever touched. MI2 "fans" are a subset of MI fans Woah there, Nellie. MI2 sold more in its first month than the entire run of MI1, IIRC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s-island Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Keep the music in a synthesized format (there's plenty of ways to make it sound better than MIDI while still using sync formats, I was always impressed by the SNES music format, just sounds so much better than MIDI because the format allows for fully customized sounds so it doesn't sound so synthetic), update it ... do what you have to do...MIDI is just a protocol for transferring data between equipment, it has nothing to do with the quality of the sound being generated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrik Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 While I don't mean to disrespect what the speech project is doing, what is the point exactly? Isn't the Special Edition going to basically do exactly what it's trying to do, except with professional voice acting as well as the original cast? I know the Special Edition also comes with redone art and whatnot, but I imagine someone like Benny will quickly work out how to isolate the speech and just have the new voices. This is based on SCUMM after all, which the Mojo community has a long history of hacking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plamdi Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 No, that's no all there is to it. The artwork was never supposed to be used at HD-resolution, so simply scanning it wouldn't do it. They'd have to paint a lot of details in, and it's easy to mess these great paintings up if you're not very skilled at this.I don't see why they have to "add detail". Every graphic in MI2 would look better if re-scanned, and then re-sized to 320x200 using a modern colour quantizer to reduce to 256 colours (minus "shared pallet" whatever that is 16 or 32 colours). I'd imagine they'd all hold up well at 640x400 as well, and yeah they probably do need a bit of work, but that's what background artists are for, they should be able to re-paint a painting onto a larger canvas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parabolee Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 While I don't mean to disrespect what the speech project is doing, what is the point exactly? Isn't the Special Edition going to basically do exactly what it's trying to do, except with professional voice acting as well as the original cast? I know the Special Edition also comes with redone art and whatnot, but I imagine someone like Benny will quickly work out how to isolate the speech and just have the new voices. This is based on SCUMM after all, which the Mojo community has a long history of hacking. I have a feeling the speech project will wind down now. Seems too much work since most people won't care once the Special Edition hits. Shame for them because they were doing good work. Maybe they can work on some other non-speech SCUMM games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plamdi Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 While I don't mean to disrespect what the speech project is doing, what is the point exactly? Isn't the Special Edition going to basically do exactly what it's trying to do, except with professional voice acting as well as the original cast?There's no "original cast", the dialogue was never written to be spoken. I know the Special Edition also comes with redone art and whatnot, but I imagine someone like Benny will quickly work out how to isolate the speech and just have the new voices. This is based on SCUMM after all, which the Mojo community has a long history of hacking. It's already been demonstrated by LucasArts that the game-mode can be changed in-game, but that isn't the point. The "fan-talkie" version is good from the preview, and there's no reason why it can't be completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderPeel2001 Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 I don't see why they have to "add detail". That's just what they did. They sharpened edges, clarified important objects and probably made changes and adjustments, as necessary, throughout. (It would be silly to get Purcell to paint a whole new background if there were only minor changes, for example.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy.brush Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Hi everyone. new to this forum. I just read Purcell's newest blog entry and found it interesting that he put some MI2 art up: http://spudvisionblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/cartographers-cabin.html If a MI2 SE happens and they rescan the old art I might die of joy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrik Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 There's no "original cast", the dialogue was never written to be spoken. It's already been demonstrated by LucasArts that the game-mode can be changed in-game, but that isn't the point. The "fan-talkie" version is good from the preview, and there's no reason why it can't be completed! You know what I mean about the cast. And yeah it is possible to switch between the old and the new version, but it isn't possible to mix and match them — if you use the old graphics you can't hear the voices. Thus a fan-made patch would be needed for that particular feature. And the preview was okay (nowhere near as good as LucasArts' effort IMO), but there's an awful lot of work between a preview and a finished product. I mean if the team wants to dedicate dozens upon dozens of hours to it then fair enough, but like I said earlier it seems like a fruitless endeavour to me. There'll be very little to no interest in it following the Special Edition, especially seeing as hardly anyone outside the immediate community is aware of it anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monkey Mania Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 While I don't mean to disrespect what the speech project is doing, what is the point exactly? Isn't the Special Edition going to basically do exactly what it's trying to do, except with professional voice acting as well as the original cast? Well, the speech project was started well before the SMI:SE was announced, so you can imagine their excitement as well as disappointment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickelstein Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Its pretty messed up though. I've heard that they've been working on it for quite a while and now that SOMI:SE is coming out, with a possible MI2:SE in the works it seems kind of pointless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elTee Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 They should just be pleased - I know I would be in their position. They started it at a time when it seemed to all of us that LucasArts didn't give a shіt about their SCUMM games. Making a fan version was just a way to do something that, in a perfect world, LucasArts would have done themselves already. So, even if they'd finished the project, we'd all be sitting around going "Great work, but imagine how cool it would be if they'd somehow managed to convince Dom to do it! And someone really should work on updating that artwork next..." It's all good news, surely? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haggis Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 I read in the Telltale pre-order forum that Dominic Armato was actually thinking of joining the speech project, were it not for the legal hoo-hah that might ensue. Of course getting a version with all the "official" voices is infinitely better, although I do applaud the Speech Project team for their efforts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrik Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Tee. Man, I love how much of a fanboy Dom himself is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parabolee Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Interesting update on the backgrounds. Steve Purcell posted a MI2 background painting on his blog - SOURCE And I posted this question Do the paintings still exist for all the original Monkey Island 2 backgrounds? Could they be scanned in high resolution and used for a MI2 Special Edition? Because if they do a MI2:SE I really want it to be as faithful as possible while also being a significant upgrade. Thanks And he replied :- I have no idea if those MI2 paintings are in an archive. That's a great idea though to rescan them in hi-res. Awesome to have a question answered by Steve Purcell himself! :-D Very cool that he likes the idea of rescanning them. Especially since that seems to be what most people would prefer for a MI2 remake. Imagine how tragic it would be if they do not still have these images in the archives! They could have been sold charity for a fortune so why would they not be lovingly stored? Chances are they are safe and sound at Lucasarts but he scared me a little there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sven_Q45 Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 Yer dreams are over. From the TTG forums: http://www.destructoid.com/lucasarts-not-planning-to-update-more-monkey-island-games-136552.phtml#comment Btw If both parties show up, enjoy the game and want to see more then I think we'll be on the right path to not only do more updates, but all new adventures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laserschwert Posted June 17, 2009 Author Share Posted June 17, 2009 Yer dreams are over. Huh? He says the same thing as he did all the time... that there are currently no plans for further updates, and that it all depends on sales and success of the MI:SE. Of course it does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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