//silverwing.one/en/2025-02-23T00:00:00+00:002025-02-23T00:00:00+00:002025-02-23T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2025-02-23:/en/news/2025/ping-2025_08.html

<p>February is nearing its end and it's time once again to look back at what has been done and what is to be done.</p> <p>No releases so far, but the progress is steady (albeit slow):</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Plainstead version of A Dragon and the Tower has some critical fixes and can be …</li></ul>

<p>February is nearing its end and it's time once again to look back at what has been done and what is to be done.</p> <p>No releases so far, but the progress is steady (albeit slow):</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Plainstead version of A Dragon and the Tower has some critical fixes and can be <a class="reference external" href="//code.silverwing.one/games/Dragon-and-the-Tower/changelog?branch=tiny">downloaded here</a>; Expect a usable package released in March; For now it will be a separate package; We'll check later if we can unify this build with the main one;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>A Dragon and the Tower 1.1 is progressing:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>We have a fully working build of INSTEAD for Windows 98 and Pentium 2 CPU; Going further is much harder because I have to rebuild all of the dependencies, but I am going to at least try, to see if it's worth it (performance mainly)</li> <li>The game itself is currently loading a lot of stuff into memory at times, requiring up to 60+ megabytes of RAM; Even if we decide to limit our support to Pentium 2 it may still be a little bit too much; We'll see if we can optimise that without imparing the experience too much;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li>Prologue for the next game is being implemented; Most likely we will be able to switch to the first chapter in March already;</li> <li>Streams are progressing steadily with 2 times a week; We still have a lot to play in the repo; I'm starting to think about making a small page on this website with basic info about each game and a link to the walkthrough;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>I have started a limited redesign of silverwing.one; The goal is to ensure better support of lightweight and older browsers; I don't work on this intensively, so don't wait for this too soon (still, let me know if the site is displayed poorly in your browser of choice, and I'll see what can be done);</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Sadly, not every browser is like Internet Explorer and most of them have no way to provide unique markup overrides, so I will have to resort to javascript for this purpose; This leads to four levels of styling:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Baseline (no CSS)</li> <li>Safe CSS (Will not require Javascript; Styles that are safe to use in any browser; Most likely will be limited to font sizes)</li> <li>Minimal CSS (Will require Javascript; Will be enabled for older browsers with proper CSS support; Visuals will be simplified -- no rounded corners, programmatic gradients etc.)</li> <li>Full CSS (Will require Javascript; Will be enabled for browsers supporting CSS3 or later; The site will look roughly as you see now)</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> <dl class="docutils"> <dt>Thus the plans for the March are:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last simple"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Release A Dragon and the Tower 1.1 + INSTEAD-9x builds;</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Check if i486 builds provide sufficient performance on at least late Pentium MMX machines;</li> <li>Check if game can be optimised to use up less RAM in peak;</li> <li>Publish some INSTEAD-9x builds;</li> <li>Release A Dragon and the Tower installer for Windows 9x-2000;</li> <li>Release A Dragon and the Tower package for Plainstead;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li>Finish the prologue for the next game;</li> <li>Continue working on website redesign;</li> <li>Continue streaming; <strong>Maybe</strong> make a page with short games info;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>If any time is left -- it's time to start working on the engine;</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Work on the engine will most likely lead to a number of articles supported by prototype implementations and parts of specification;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> </dd> </dl> <p>Thank you for your attention! Until we meet again!</p> 2025-01-26T00:00:00+00:002025-01-26T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2025-01-26:/en/news/2025/ping-2025_04.html

<p>Ambitious goals are good... When you can reach them. Which is not the case for us. January is over and the progress is... Modest at most.</p> <p>It's not easy to work on projects in spare time, since you have to share it with a lot of other things. A lot …</p>

<p>Ambitious goals are good... When you can reach them. Which is not the case for us. January is over and the progress is... Modest at most.</p> <p>It's not easy to work on projects in spare time, since you have to share it with a lot of other things. A lot of effort was spent on resolving personal matters, leaving only about half the planned amount to the projects.</p> <p>Still, there is some progress:</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>A plainstead/tiny instead version of A Dragon and the Tower is mostly ready and can be <a class="reference external" href="//code.silverwing.one/games/Dragon-and-the-Tower/changelog?branch=tiny">downloaded here</a>. We are planning to keep it as a separate branch for now, since it contains differences significant enough to warrant extra testing. As 1.1 in general will mostly be about graphics and performance, there is no benefit in having those changes in plainstead.</li> <li>Design document for the full prologue of our next game is ready.</li> </ul> <p>For the February we plan to focus on A Dragon and the Tower 1.1 update and implementing the prologue for our next game.</p> <p>Thank you for your attention! Until we meet again!</p> 2024-12-29T00:00:00+00:002024-12-29T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-12-29:/en/news/2024/ping-2024_52.html

<p>Happy New Year, everyone!</p> <p>Time to summarise the last year:</p> <ul class="simple"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>A Dragon and the Tower was released with 499 downloads across all platforms (gathered on 29.11.2024 в 19:18 UTC);</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>My first successful attempt at writing music for a game; I'm not sure if I want to continue …</li></ul></dd></dl></li></ul>

<p>Happy New Year, everyone!</p> <p>Time to summarise the last year:</p> <ul class="simple"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>A Dragon and the Tower was released with 499 downloads across all platforms (gathered on 29.11.2024 в 19:18 UTC);</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>My first successful attempt at writing music for a game; I'm not sure if I want to continue;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li>Kitty, my second short-story released on this website;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>I've returned to streaming. Sadly, running two channels in parallel is not realistic, so I need to choose:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>I will finish current stream-series on my Russian channel and after that will move completely to English -- this will let me focus on a single channel;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> <p>And to share our plans:</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Ping will come out monthly, we will use week numbers for them;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>We are working on a new game. Right now we can only share so much:</dt> <dd>It is going to be a fantasy text adventure, noticeably larger than A Dragon and the Tower, but it will also has less graphics. We are actively working on prologue and chapter 1 right now. This is our primary priority for 2025 and we will put maximum effort into this project. Important thing is that it will most likely be pay-to-play;</dd> </dl> </li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Plans for A Dragon and the Tower 1.1 finally decided:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Main effort will be on game optimisation and lowering system requirements:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Simplified graphics mode -- removing animation in main menu, replacing alpha transparency with more light-weight effect in the endings;</li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Working build of INSTEAD using SDL1, compatible with Windows 9x-2000. So far results are like this:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Playing on my Pentium 3 is much more pleasant. There are no freezes on Windows XP and on Windows 98 the game runs even smoother;</li> <li>There are currently issues with file-system -- no saves, engine crashes when trying to show the list of games. These should be quite fixable;</li> <li>I need to investigate running on non-SSE machines -- some of the dependencies included are built with SSE, thus requiring a Pentium 3 or higher CPU;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li>Compatibility with Plainstead. Despite graphics being an important part of the game, the gameplay does not depend on it that much, so we can reduce the requirements;</li> <li>We will work on improving translations support as well -- details will come later(it still needs some further checks);</li> <li>Think (but do not promise) on possible support for resolutions lower than 640x480 -- here things are limited by the art, which is made for 960х600 and is cut for smaller screens;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>We are starting the work on an engine for new games. Primary project goals are:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Maximum API stability. A game written for an older version of the engine should work on newer ones without changes;</li> <li>Efficient sprite-based 2D graphics and formatted text;</li> <li>Maximum cross-platform support without sacrificing either of the above;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>Smaller plans:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>I'll focus on streaming games from INSTEAD repository on my Russian-languaged Youtube channel. Streams will happen twice a week, unless otherwise noted;</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>This will most likely be the last series of streams in Russian for the foreseeable future;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>I would like to make a video-review on Outer Wilds in English. I'm not sure if I finish it this month, though;</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Reviews will not be something regular, most likely I will switch to a textual format -- videos are taking too much time and effort, but I still would like to share opinion on some projects later;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li>Write at least one short-story this year as well;</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> <li><dl class="first docutils"> <dt>And finally some technical points:</dt> <dd><ul class="first last"> <li>Most likely we will remove bug tracker soon -- we have switched to another tool anyway;</li> <li>We are still looking for a solution for EMail-subscriptions (it's not critical yet with our posting regularity);</li> <li>If the next game is going to be pay-to-play, we need to implement some authorisation mechanism for downloading it (we'll return to this closer to the release).</li> </ul> </dd> </dl> </li> </ul> <p>Thank you for your attention! Until we meet again!</p> 2024-12-25T00:00:00+00:002024-12-25T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-12-25:/en/news/2024/adatt_update104.html<p><strong>This update fixes an issue non-critical for game completion. We recommend you to update</strong></p> <p>A Dragon and the Tower updated to version 1.0.4</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>A couple of typos fixed</li> </ul> <p>Please report any bugs and issues via email: <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">inbox&#64;silverwing.one</a>.</p> <p>You can download the game <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p> 2024-11-10T00:00:00+00:002024-11-10T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-11-10:/en/news/2024/adatt_update103.html

<p><strong>This update fixes an issue non-critical for game completion. We recommend you to update</strong></p> <p>A Dragon and the Tower updated to version 1.0.3</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Change default text input method to correctly handle user's keyboard layout</li> <li>Rope can now be used immediately</li> </ul> <p>Game Manual is also updated</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Added troubleshooting section …</li></ul>

<p><strong>This update fixes an issue non-critical for game completion. We recommend you to update</strong></p> <p>A Dragon and the Tower updated to version 1.0.3</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Change default text input method to correctly handle user's keyboard layout</li> <li>Rope can now be used immediately</li> </ul> <p>Game Manual is also updated</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Added troubleshooting section</li> <li>Fixed some typos</li> <li>Added new setting description to the corresponding section</li> <li>Added some extra hints to the walkthrough</li> </ul> <p>Please report any bugs and issues via email: <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">inbox&#64;silverwing.one</a>.</p> <p>You can download the game <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p> 2024-11-02T12:00:00+00:002024-11-02T12:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-11-02:/en/news/2024/adatt_update102.html<p><strong>This update fixes an issue non-critical for game completion. We recommend you to update</strong></p> <p>A Dragon and the Tower updated to version 1.0.2</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>An error in the terminal is fixed</li> </ul> <p>Please report any bugs and issues via email: <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">inbox&#64;silverwing.one</a>.</p> <p>You can download the game <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p> 2024-11-02T00:00:00+00:002024-11-02T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-11-02:/en/news/2024/adatt_update101.html<p><strong>This is a minor update, you don't need to update if you're already playing</strong></p> <p>A Dragon and the Tower updated to version 1.0.1</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>Improved automatic scaling on small screens</li> </ul> <p>Please report any bugs and issues via email: <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">inbox&#64;silverwing.one</a>.</p> <p>You can download the game <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p> 2024-05-23T00:00:00+00:002024-05-23T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2024-05-23:/en/news/2024/may-2024-ping.html

<p>The time has come to start the beta testing of our game.</p> <div class="gallery"> <img alt="A Dragon and the Tower: Poster" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/poster.png"/> </div><p>If you want to participate, please contact me <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/about.html">in any meaningful way</a>.</p> <p>Depending on the number of testers, I may split the process into waves, to show the fixed game to new people.</p> <p>As soon as we are …</p>

<p>The time has come to start the beta testing of our game.</p> <div class="gallery"> <img alt="A Dragon and the Tower: Poster" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/poster.png"/> </div><p>If you want to participate, please contact me <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/about.html">in any meaningful way</a>.</p> <p>Depending on the number of testers, I may split the process into waves, to show the fixed game to new people.</p> <p>As soon as we are ready, we'll send you the link to the page, from which you can download the game and additional materials. After that the process is usual -- you play the game, and I wait for any feedback from you: bugs, advice, opinions and any thoughts about the game.</p> <p>If you want you can continue playing next versions, or you can stop after the first walkthrough.</p> <p>After the test all participants, who have finished the game and given any feedback, will be added to credits (Please clearly specify in advance what name or pseudonym you would like to use).</p> 2021-12-30T00:00:00+00:002021-12-30T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2021-12-30:/en/news/2021/dec-2021-ping.html

<p class="first">Happy New Year to everyone!</p> <p class="last">Sharing news and plans for 2022.</p>

<p>Happy New Year to everyone!</p> <p>Sharing news and plans for 2022.</p> <ul class="simple"> <li>We will run 1-2 streams per month on <a class="reference external" href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ob62Q9afK8MuXtEpfQwBQ">Youtube</a>. Announcements will be posted on our Twitter, VK and Telegram channels (only Russian, though I can handle discussion in English if anyone comes). I will mostly stream games for now. Polls regarding streams will happen on Telegram, as it's our only option currently.</li> <li>We will share info on projects on this site and, if needed, in videos both on Youtube and this site.</li> <li>We intend to release <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">A Dragon and the Tower</a> in 2022. Now we mostly work on graphics, music, UI and text changes. We have made some screenshots to show project's current state.</li> </ul> <div class="gallery"> <a class="reference external image-reference" href="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower4.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img alt="Gameplay" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower4_p.png"></a> <a class="reference external image-reference" href="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower5.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img alt="Inside the tower" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower5_p.png"></a> </div><p>As always, we are waiting for your response on <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">email</a>.</p> <p>Thank you for your attention! Until we meet again!</p> 2020-12-13T00:00:00+00:002020-12-13T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2020-12-13:/en/news/2020/nov-2020-ping.html

<p class="first">Hello everyone!</p> <p class="last">We have made a small video on our next game. It will show you some new things.</p>

<p>Hello everyone!</p> <p>We have made a small video on our next game. It will show you some new things.</p> <div class="videocontainer"><video src="//files.silverwing.one/a_dragon_and_the_tower/assets/adatt.mp4" poster="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower1.png" style="width:100%; max-width:800px" controls="controls" preload="none">Your browser is unable to play this video. Please download it using the link below. </video></div><p>If you are unable to watch the video in your browser or want to download it for any other reason, you can use this link: <a class="reference external" href="/files/adatt.mp4">A Dragon and the Tower</a></p> <p>As always, we are waiting for your opinion on our <a class="reference external" href="mailto:inbox&#64;silverwing.one">email address</a>.</p> 2020-08-23T00:00:00+00:002020-08-23T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2020-08-23:/en/news/2020/adatt_scr_2.html

<p class="first">Hello everyone!</p> <p>We have added a new screenshot for our new project, A Dragon and The Tower. On the screenshot you can see the game's actual gameplay.</p> <p class="last">Full information on the game is available <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p>

<p>Hello everyone!</p> <p>We have added a new screenshot for our new project, A Dragon and The Tower. On the screenshot you can see the game's actual gameplay. This is a classic INSTEAD-game. You will explore the game world, gather and use items, talk to characters, solve puzzles and do much more.</p> <div class="gallery"> <a class="reference external image-reference" href="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower2.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img alt="Gameplay" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/dragon_and_tower2_p.png"></a> </div><p>Full information on the game is available <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p> 2020-07-31T00:00:00+00:002020-07-31T00:00:00+00:00Khaelenmore Thaaltag:silverwing.one,2020-07-31:/en/news/2020/july-2020-ping.html

<p>Hello everyone!</p> <p>We have kept quiet for some time and there is a reason for that. Time has come to tell you about a new game, that we are making together with <a href="https://naikomy.neocities.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sabra Naikomy</a>.</p> <h3>A Dragon and the Tower</h3><div class="gallery"> <img alt="A Dragon and the Tower: Poster" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/poster.png"> </div><p>You are a dragon. A real one -- huge, winged, flying and …</p>

<p>Hello everyone!</p> <p>We have kept quiet for some time and there is a reason for that. Time has come to tell you about a new game, that we are making together with <a href="https://naikomy.neocities.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sabra Naikomy</a>.</p> <h3>A Dragon and the Tower</h3><div class="gallery"> <img alt="A Dragon and the Tower: Poster" src="//silverwing.one/en/static/images/adatt/poster.png"> </div><p>You are a dragon. A real one -- huge, winged, flying and even capable of magic.</p> <p>For centuries you have been living on Earth. No, not among humans. Dirty and crowded cities of those creatures do not entice you. Moreover, you would have to hide your true nature from them.</p> <p>Only here, in a system of caves created by your magic, you can be yourself. This place is reliably hidden from eyes of humans and their artificial aides -- radars and satellites.</p> <p>But the time has come for you to leave your home. The old map, that you've been keeping since times immemorial, is now ready to unravel it's secrets to you!</p> <p>This will be a small text adventure game, full of puzzles and entirely free.</p> <p>All information about this game will be available <a class="reference external" href="//silverwing.one/en/pages/adatt.html">here</a>.</p>