Completed Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery

When you put new things into people’s hands, they’ll find ways to utilize it to do things they never could before. The Puppet Era of Gensokyo brought about radical changes to how its inhabitants handle all sorts of things, from their daily lives to conflict, from the Human Village, to the peaks of Youkai Mountain and the depths of the Underground. Puppets rocked the realm into a new age, a fascinating age where even more possibilities could exist.

This story is about four teenagers from the Human Village, who have decided that they want to sneak out of the village one night. Why? Rumor has it that there is an abandoned mansion, hidden away in the forests. If one listens hard enough, then they can hear what sounds like music coming from it. “But if it’s abandoned, then how can it be playing music?” This is what our protagonists hope to find out, as they discover the truth behind The Mansion of Mystery.

--Okay now I KNOW what you're thinking. You're probably thinking "Derx, this isn't Faith & Prayer Version! What're you doing!" Except, you probably aren't thinking that because I'm new here, and there's no thread for Faith & Prayer Version here! Well, forget what you don't know about Faith & Prayer Version for now, we're discussing something else! We're talking about a small project I made (and finished! Wowie!) back during October called Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery.

The game was built for the Pokecommunity Game Jam, "Blinded By The Fight" back in October, where you had to follow a specific theme to enter - the theme being utilizing the Dewford Gym darkness circle mechanic. When I saw the theme, I knew instantly what I should make (Though I spent a few days during early development cementing ideas). As such, the game is extremely short - roughly 2 to 4 hours, maybe longer depending on factors.

It revolves around a group of four from the human village and their expedition to uncover the truth behind “the mysterious mansion that has music coming from it”. The writing of the game is about as close to your average Touhou plot as I could get, and the way the game is handled is also similar: Six core stages, one Extra stage that gets accessible only if you can Perfect Run (1cc/no blacking out) the entire game. The difficulty is a bit rough, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the 1.8 Type Chart, but it is beatable without grinding, and in one shot. The game also has a slightly modified EXP system, where you get x1.25% exp (5/4ths) for beating a Puppet, just to make up for how short the game is, and how quickly the levels ramp up as a whole. It's balanced around battling every trainer, so take that into consideration!

Honestly, making this game was extremely fun! The deadline let me keep myself in check, and I needed fresh blood to work on to try and get me back in the swing of development. I’m glad I made it and took part in the game jam! So far I’ve heard good feedback about it (even one of the judges said it was a close race for first between mine and first place!), and I know I put in a lot of effort to make the game as good as I possibly could! It is my hope that you all who download and play it can enjoy it just as much, if not more, as I enjoyed making it! Granted I took second out of three, but it was an extremely close second according to the judge.

A link to the game can be found here: Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery (ver. 1.2)

A comprehensive list of credits can be found in the spoiler, because it's very lengthy and detailed.

Spoiler

--- Graphics ---

• Spyro: Graphical assets for Puppets
• Kasael: Fairy trainer sprites
• HemoglobinA1C: Aside from being the developer of Touhoumon, the artist of all the sprites not designated by someone else
• Irakuy: Overworld sprites and a few trainer sprites
• Akiraita: Modification of one of Irakuy's sprites
• Uda-shi: Developer of Gensokyo Scenario, which is where some of the tiles come from
• AmethystRain: Artist of the North/South Stair Tile in the Mansion Tileset
• Dairi: Artist of the original portraits used on the continue screen
• Stuffman: Lyrica's Keyboard Overworld Sprite
• FocasLens/Fantasy Puppet Theater: Developers of Gensou Ningyou Enbu -Yume no Kakera-, and distributors of the Asset Collection pack for said game, which is where the portraits and backgrounds for the Vs. Transitions come from. (https://pastebin.com/EHK7HsXf )

--- Audio ---

• Mr. Unknown: Artist of several of the tracks present in game
  • Dimension of Reverie (Human Village)
  • Youkai Modern Colony (Forest of Magic)
  • Witch's Ball ~ Magus (Marisa Kirisame's Theme)
  • Misty Lake (Misty Lake)
  • Alice in Wonderland (Ruined Western Mansion - Floor 1)
  • Alice Maestra (Ruined Western Mansion - Floor 3)
  • Ghostly Band ~ Phantom Ensemble (Prismriver Sister's Theme)
• a-TTTempo: Artist of several of the tracks present in game
  • Gensokyo Millenium ~ History of the Moon (Rest Stop theme)
  • Love Colored Master Spark (Vs. Trainer)
  • Doll Judgement ~ The Girl Who Played With People's Shapes (Vs. Wild Puppet)
  • Higan Retour ~ Riverside View (Basement)
• Uda-Shi & KecleonTencho: Artists of several tracks present in game.
  • Illusionary Night ~ Ghostly Eyes (Ruined Western Mansion - Floor 2)
  • Because Princess Inada Is Scolding Me (Victory! Vs. Trainer)
  • Reach For The Moon, Immortal Smoke (Victory! Vs. Wild Battle; Also featured in Captured Wild Encounter)
  • Shanghai Teahouse ~ Chinese Tea (Captured Wild Encounter)
  • Our Hisou Tensoku (Evolution)
  • The Year-Round Absorbed Curiosity (Fairy NPC Pre-Battle theme)
  • The Great Fairy Wars ~ Great Fairy Wars (Zephyr Fairy Theme)
  • Healing, Level Up, and Item Obtained all come from Gensokyo Scenario
• brawlman9876: Reinstrumentalizer of various midi tracks present in game
  • Hiroari Shoots a Strange Bird ~ Till When? (Youmu Konpaku's Theme)
  • Heian Alien (Nue Houjuu's Theme)
  • Beware The Umbrella Left There Forever (Kogasa Tatara's Theme)
  • Deaf to All But The Song ~ Flower Mix (Mystia Lorelei's Theme)
• ZUN: Artist for several tracks used in game
  • Did You See That Shadow (Title Screen)
  • Memory of Forgathering Dream (Introduction)
  • Mystical Dream (Continue Screen) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Plain Asia (Keine Kamishirasawa's Theme) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Phantom Ensemble ~ Piano Mix (Lyrica Prismriver's Theme) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Evening Primrose (Ending Theme) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Eternal Full Moon (Credits Theme) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Hourai Illusion ~ Far East (Ruined Western Mansion - Roof) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
  • Magical Girls' Crusade (Layla Prismriver's Theme) [Midi reinstrumentalized by Derxwna]
• Ludwig van Beethoven: Artist of a track used in game
  • Midnight Sonata ~ 3rd Movement (Possessed Keyboard cutscene)

--- Scripts ---

• NuruYuri: FModEX Script
• KleinStudio: Map Exporter, Mosaic Transformation Fix
• Luka S.J.: Slight modifications to the code to allow music-based shenanigans in Stage 1
• Mej71: Multi-Save Script, Vision-Altering Darkness Circle
• Zeus81: Video Player script
• Rot8er_ConeX: Doppleganger Trainer script
• Maruno: Pokemon Essentials. The entirety of the modern build.
• Marin: Toggleable Turbo Script

And in case those pictures didn't do anything to help, have a few videos as well:

Spoiler

 

[Djaco75]

Wow! The game looks really well done and polished. I love the idea of you expanding on the flash circle thing, and feel like your setting and theme really answers the challenge put forth - a well deserved second place. I like the sprites and think they are well done as well as the maps. They look highly detailed and original. One of the best ROM Hacks I've seen.

If you do come back to this game one day and decide to make a sequel/prequel, I can't wait to see how it looks. I really am excited to play this game! It looks amazing!

 

[DerxwnaKapsyla]

it's not a rom haaaack ;~;

Thanks for the complement! Honestly, I put forth an absolutely immense amount of effort into this, much more than I probably needed to, but when I heard what the theme was I knew exactly what I needed to do. Given the fact that I was suffering from a two year motivation loss after my external fried, I'm honestly surprised I was able to do this- not even do it, but finish it. This is actually the first of any project I've ever finished, so completing it felt exhilarating.

The sprites weren't all mine, but I had permission to use to use every single sprite that was present in the game (and the ones I didn't have strict permission to use were basically anything Hemo made, but the core Touhou Puppet Play stuff is kind of open to use anyway, and that usually includes Hemo's sprites).

As for a sequel or prequel, I might recommend checking out Faith & Prayer Version! It's not really a prequel to the game, but this game takes place after the events of Faith & Prayer Version do. It's also my current main project in the Touhoumon universe, and is in... "active" development. The early game might feel a bit slugish, but I've been working on that for five years, so my methods have evolved along with its development.

 

[TheGamingPaladin]

i'll be sure to check out Faith & Prayer versions when they are completed, until then i'll enjoy this little Touhoumon special, sounds like an impressive project to get off the ground in the span of a week or two.

 

[DerxwnaKapsyla]

So I might be (read: have been looking into, and dabbling with) making some post full release updates and fixes to the game. Because the game was made in the span of a month, I didn't get a chance to fine-tune absolutely everything (the cutscene in the Ruined Western Mansion F3 is correct for only one protagonist for example), so I wanna go back in and add another level of polish.

For those of you who have played, I'd appreciate some feedback on what you think could use some looking into, and I'll see what I can do, if anything! So far, here's what I've got going on:

• Looking into a revision of how you get the Good end. I feel it's too punishing right now, and I'm trying to figure out a way that makes it challenging, yet not impossible/forcing you to save before every single battle.
• Fixing the cutscene in Ruined Western Mansion (That's gonna be painful, but it's gotta be done).
• A few text fixes here and there.
• Removal of a few debug things I left in on accident.
• I had plans for a "Bonus" boss of sorts, but I scrapped it because I didn't have the time to accumulate the necessary resources. I may look into it now?

 

[DerxwnaKapsyla]

Folks! It has been far too long since I have been around, and since the bowels of depression have ensnared me within its vicious cycle of self depreciation! While I have not fully escaped its grasp yet, I have managed to create a tunnel that will go upward once more hopefully, and put me back where I desire- making games that make me satisfied. To start with, I have finished up Version 1.1 of Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery! It's taken me several months to finish what should have taken me a few weeks, but- it's finished and that's what counts!

So what exactly was included or changed in 1.1? Overall, not a whole lot! There were a few things I wanted to fix up from 1.0 that I wasn't satisfied with, add an extra layer of polish, that sort of stuff. However, there was one thing I wanted to include that I didn't get a chance to: the bonus boss.

​

During the 2016 October Game Jam, I had plans to include one final boss in the game, but there just wasn't enough time to throw it in and make sure it all worked. It was a small regret, but one I let sit there until after the game jam subsided. I told myself I'd eventually add it in; and so, with this update, I finally did. The only way you can unlock this fight is by reaching the Extra Stage Mid-Boss, which of course means making it to that point without having the Bad End unlocked. Oh, right! Speaking of the Bad End and Extra Stage, I have some news regarding that!
​

​

While the loss restriction is still in place, it has been modified to be much more lenient. In 1.01 it was if you lost even once. In 1.1, it's been bumped up to six losses. I felt that this was necessary, and if I could replicate the Touhou Project's continue system better I probably would have attempted to. Alas, it would have been far too clunky, and ultimately not worth the effort. This should hopefully make it much, much more forgiving and allow players to be able to reach the Extra and Phantasm Bonus Stages.

Aside from those two big changes, not a whole lot else was changed! Well, I fixed some eye colors, that's fairly big in my book! Maybe not yours, but shrug!

At any rate, you didn't come here to hear me ramble! The download link to Version 1.1 can be found below. If you've been waiting to give it a shot, or if you're just now learning about it, or even if you feel like playing another run- whatever the case may be, go for it! Enjoy!

- DerxwnaKapsyla​

-- Download --
Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery (Ver. 1.1) [200mb, .rar]​

 

[DerxwnaKapsyla]

​

So, it's getting close to the most wonderful time of the year again. No, not Christmas. Halloween! And I've been burdened with unnecessary and distracting thoughts, such as "How can I celebrate the holiday season this year", and what better way to celebrate it than by making yet another patch for The Mansion of Mystery! That's right, there's another patch in-bound, and it's almost done. Just one last thing remains to be done for this patch before I can upload it.

As such, you're probably wondering what that image above is, and how it corresponds to The Mansion of Mystery's latest patch? Well, for those of you who haven't been around on any discord server I'm on (or follow any of my social media accounts, which I mean, fair. Social media is exhausting.), then you'll be surprised to know I've upped my ante in regards to the Pre-Battle Vs. Transitions I usually make very roughly, might i add, and threw them into the game! Every single boss will have a unique Vs. Transition in a style similar to some of the modern-era Pokemon Vs. Transitions.

However, that isn't everything I've done. While it (and another feature) is the main focus of this patch, I've tweaked a few things here and there that have been bugging me since 1.1, and even 1.0's, releases. You can have a change log of what to expect in the upcoming patch provided in link-format, and a handy-dandy image preview!

Not a whole lot of stuff, and mostly small stuff at that, outside of the Vs. Transition update! I do have one last idea in mind for this project, but it will not be part of this patch. The process of implementing it will be daunting and exhausting and I don't want to hold onto all of these goodies so long that they expire, all in the midst of this most wonderful time of the year.

Currently, I'm working on the last thing listed in the change log; an overhaul of the credits sequence. Since 1.0, I was never satisfied with how bland and generic-looking the credits sequence was. I have nothing to show for it right now as I've just started it, but the ultimate plan is to turn it into a cutscene event while the credits play out alongside it. I've already story-boarded how the cutscene will play out, so I just need to buckle down and get it done. Once that's done, I'll begin the process of uploading and releasing 1.2.

As for that mysterious last feature I mentioned for the theoretical final patch? Well...

Spoiler

Let's just say that Puppets that can be caught in the late-game might actually have a purpose when my idea is implemented... And perhaps, don't get too attached to your items while we're at it.

I'll catch y'next when the patch is up. See y'all then!

 

[DerxwnaKapsyla]

Alright folks! Hot off the presses, I bring you patch 1.2 of The Mansion of Mystery! There isn't a whole lot to say that hasn't been said already, so I'll skip all the formalities and fluff and just drop the download link here (and in the first post). Enjoy everyone!

-- Download --
Touhou Puppet Play ~ The Mansion of Mystery (Ver. 1.2) [200mb, .rar]​

 

[WolfShadowWhisper]

Nice. I lost my copy of this when my computer 'exploded' (the router was hit by lightning) died and now I get it back and its a new patch! Coooool.