Before getting into the main theme of the announcement i would like to remind you that
I'M NOT THE LEAD DEVELOPER HERE! I'M ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE USER INTERFACE DESIGN/CODING AND STORY DEVELOPMENT!
Hello everyone,
I promised (my bad) to bring you a video + pics of the finished UI ingame, some OST's and maybe some models! Of course you noticed that didn't happen and here's why.
Well, i THOUGHT that Akira_Shaga1 would reply to my messages and give the resources i needed since i gave him about 2-3 months to do so (Due to vacations and my job i was unable to continue working on the project).
When i came back, i found out that he didn't replied to my messages either on Skype or here... I apologised to everyone who supported our project for my lack of time trying to hide the fact that our developers were "sleeping" hoping that they would "wake up" sometime.
Last update from Akira_Shaga1 was on Mar 7th, 2014 with a 3d model. Last update ever made was from me on May 4th, 2014 with an update for my UI progress.
I check out the page every day to see if any other developer from Argus reply to the comments and guess what..... no one ever did...
A while ago a developer from the team posted on facebook and then left, in case you missed it here's the post:
"So, I'm planning to be very transparent, I'm not going to hide anything. Before, I had asked you all to not lose hope until I do. (even if I say that there's nothing done for weeks or that the project is going bad)"
And today myself and few fellow developers have lost hope, I don't want to be too hard on Argus, but I have to say what's really happening. There is really nothing much done, there is about 5-6 active member in Argus (Now less), and this project is lacking a lot of organization and leadership. Contact with Kingjo is completely lost, nobody in the team have ever even seen the NG. The team lacks skills in some important aspects of game development, e.g. any of the levels/floors, game code and networking etc. I'll just stop because I could go on and on but I don’t want to sound like I’m dissing Argus. However, I just can't leave all of you in the dark. Still, I believe that SAO will become a reality eventually, but not from Argus (At least the way they are now)…
Maybe this post will be deleted but I feel like I had to let the truth out…
Sorry, I'm leaving,
=Owex="
I reposted this without editing anything.
Well, without further ado i will announce that i'm LEAVING the team and take my work with me (you can hate me now if you haven't already).Also i will declare the project DEAD since NO ONE except me are working.
Also some of my notes
Lance - Lead Boss Desginer (missing for like 1 and a half year)
Blacksword01 - Lead Static Object Desginer (did some outstanding work but i haven't seen him since the day i joined)
KiritoSA0 /JoyfulSushi - Lead Concept Artist/Artist (And where are the concept arts?)
Shekali - Lead Skill Programmer (Skill programmer? I thought that i had to do this too)
Tsunax12 / FinalBlast92 - Sound Editor (We had sound editors?)
Aliath - Lead Programmer (is the only one that i can say he's alive and replying to my messages)
Nebulastar - Lead Monster Desginer (never seen him/her or even knew that he/she was on the project)
Shaga1 / Flowflow - Lead level Desginer (Both missing, maybe they're locked in a bunker or had a hangover and are on a tropical island without internet) (Shaga or Akira_Shaga1 told me that he could start working on his own FDC but i haven't heard anything)
Techno_Magic (the only one i talked to recently but all i got is that "I haven't really been able to keep up with the project right now because I've been very busy"He was making the videos so i don't blame him for anything)
Kingjo - Lead Full Dive Equipment developer (Now is the good part! Kingjo got us all hyped up with his last post on Sep 24 2013 :"I have not tried it but 5 of the 15 people working with me on this have tried it and that's how we know sight, hearing, and smell works. There is currently one problem we forgot to put in a sensor to tell if ur brain is sending male or female brain waves so we just fixed that and we have installed emergency log outs and a battery inside that lasts a week we are also putting a wireless internet connection and wired in case the wire gets unplugged u are still save all good questions glad to answer them. tongue.gif"
i think he died after all the curses everyone threw at him because he disappeared afterwards without telling anything else ..)
Akira_Shaga1 please prove me wrong but either way i'm OUT.
I would like to thanks Gatreh for pointing out some of my mistakes and help, Astreus for his database and Yui_Lover for the ideas he gave me.
DaBlackSwordsmun, tsukiyomiikuto0 i'm really sorry for the time you lost trying to tell everyone that the project is alive (and maybe it is alive, just the devs are working into a bunker but lost the door key).
Sorry if i forgot anyone...
Also i would like to add the same thing that owex said:
The game will definitelly come out sometime soon but 90% not from Argus, moreover i'll say that THE TECHNOLOGY FOR A FDC EXISTS BUT NEED SOMEONE TO PUT IT TOGETHER.
I know you hate me but i would ask anyway :
If anyone is interested for a UI developer please tell me since i'll have plenty of time available from now on...
I will be happy to answer to any comments.
Your support made me happy and gave me strength to stay on the project but i'll stay no more.
I'm Azuna, Former member of Argus and Former User Interface Leader and Story Writer for Sword Art Online Project.
Too bad that i was the only one working here, anyway i did my job regardless that everyone else failed to do so..
Today is a sad day for this project
good luck
Age-of-aincrad.com | Indiedb.com
Azuna, I think your work is very nice, maybe you would find a place there (AoA), so that your SAO UI don't gets wasted. At first sight I think it doesn't look very well, but if you see the updates you'll get amazed (maybe), give it a try. Anyway, I appreciated your updates on this and wish you luck on your next projects.
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Things like this happen all the time with indie developers.
But it's for the remaining team members and especially leader responsability to find new members to replace the ones that are left.
When leader doesnt do his job the project is on a dead road.
Btw another thing that is hard for a indie leader - especially if it's a free game.
When a team member is not doing his job right or at all,a leader should be able to say something to stop that bad behaviour,but if he does he is often going to scare away that team member because after all it's not a paid job.
I also have a indie game in the making,but currently only I and a programmer are in the team.
Same thing,he answers from time to time,but he doesnt have time to work on the game be it he doesnt feel like it or he really has some other stuff.
A bit before that I was also like your leader.
Ready to give up,cuz it was really stressfull being alone.(before coder joined)
I also wrote a similar message to people,cuz I really had to sort my life,figure some things....
But when people heard that I was quiting they tried to encourage me to continue.
Luckyly for them,they managed to change my mind.
A game is already 4 years in making and yet we barrelly have any code,just because the old code we had for the game somehow stopped working correctly,so now we have to rewrite it and make it better.
Anways...you get my point.
So even if I asked you to join us there is no guarantee that your work will be put in the game soon.
Here you can check out my game: Indiedb.com
P.S. lol,just now I noticed how long my post is xD
Well, thank you for taking your time to post, but it's not the same with this one just because THE DEVELOPERS are NOWHERE to be found...
Also, your project seems really good, keep it up :)
Azuna
Tnx :)
Aside from what I wrote what interests me the most is what you quoted about NG - Nerve Gear.
Is that true?
Cuz I do belive that in future we will have NG,but if someone is working on it now that would be great.
Well its time to say good bye to this project D:.I hope SAO will become reality someday.
And thank you Azuna for working on this project till the end.
Don't forget to tell me if another SAO project starts or this come back alive ;D
If it's any consolation, Azuna, but I was also trying to get in touch with Akira about the whole project. You may not remember me, but I was another member of the project, although my role wasn't as frivolous as the designers and creators of the game. I was mainly concept art and advertising the idea. A month or so ago, I dropped trying to get in touch with any of the developers.
Regardless, the only person I could get in touch with was Owex, who informed me that he had left, and to try and get in contact with Akira. I still couldn't get a hold of him. I also sent you a message, if I recall correctly, on Argusgames.discutland.net , yet I believe you were busy at that time.
Point being, I can understand why you're leaving. But if you need help, send me a message. I'm still interested in helping out, even if the topic isn't precisely SAO. Although my experience in games or programming isn't much better than the average joe, I'm eager to learn. Thanks for your dedication to the idea though, I admire the effort that you tried to make this topic a reality.
Another point, I believe I shall retire from the project as well, seeing there isn't much to go on with most of the developers out of the picture. Sorry to all.
Good luck, and Au Revoir.
~Mogther
I was hoping to be a part of this project, But never get a reply from Akira. It's sad to see this project die, and to see you leave. I hope you find some other project that will communicate better.
Wishes you the best of luck
Stealthunt3r
Well... Looks like the dreams and wishes of a few hundred people can finally be put to rest. Thanks Azuna for telling us. Hope to see you guys around the web. If anyone needs me for something (Idk what but if you do), contact me.
Yours faithfully,
DaBlackSwordsmun
Honestly, I think all these SAO games get announced, hype **** up.. then just completely die on us.
This is why I do NOT get my hopes up on anything like this.
Did any of you actually believe someone actually invented the nerve gear, purely based on what proof? How gullible do you have to be?
At the moment the neural technology is something handled by few experts of computer technology and neural biology, and if someone has the means and knowledge to do such work SURELY won't be working for free on a nerve gear clone.
I don't see in the staff any environment artist, character artist, animators, riggers, VFX supervisors or any role that actually helps to achieve a proper and full fledged realistic MMO.
To do a project that big and make sure everyone works up until the end you need dozens of hired professionals to work full time, you can't even make a game like World of Warcraft in your spare time , more the less an MMO so massive and detailed that so far is only a fictional game in a distant future (for good reasons, since most of the game was procedurally generated by a ridicolously complex game engine that would require several million dollars to develop and some of the most talented coders around)
My biggest amazement is how people actually hoped that this game could be achieved in the first place, even tough i am a fan of SAO myself, you can't just toss a couple of undetailed models of Heathcliff and some swords and say you're developing SAO. way before doing any 3d work you should have got a team of coding geniuses to write your game engine and have some alpha/prototype (i'm just gonna skip on the entire NG thing, because is nothing short of hilarious even to think some random guy on the net was actually doing it)
I feel really sorry for the people that actually believed this was a doable project. Also i feel even more sorry for the people that wasted their time on a project that simply cannot be done with the current public technology (and even cutting edge technology isn't advanced enough yet) and requires roughly 20-30 people working full time (and paid) for years.
I also share your concerns.
Someone told me the developers are actually a bounch of kids(teens)...not sure how accurate that info was.
Anways...I hope nerve gear will be reality withing my lifetime.
If these guys are indeed trying to create nerve gear,then it would be better for them to actually focus on that than creating a game.
Games can be created anytime.
I would buy a nerve gear no matter the cost :/ I just want to see SAO gets real the price of it wont matter.
Good work, at least you can see that sometimes things don't work out, especially for "Argus".
Maybe you'd like to work for Covert Games and help us out with our game, Cyber Online? I'm sure you'd probably hate me as a Lead Developer and a leader because I have trashed on the SAO project, but sometimes things can be put aside, haha. You'll be seeing a whole different perspective on teamwork however, you'll probably get a bit more stressed because I will be giving you tasks unlike your other leader.
Indiedb.com
There's the game link if you're interested.
In the future; if you still work with Covert Games, you will be paid substantially.
- crimson