RIP Slasher

lorenzo · Tue 15/08/2023 11:20:36

I'm so saddened by Les's passing. He was such a nice guy and a legend here. I always enjoyed his quirky games and his sense of humour.

I worked together with Les on his big game, Maelstrom Obscura, and I wish he had managed to finish it, since it was very ambitious. He also helped me test some of my games, which was especially nice since I could write him during game jams and he would be ready to try them the next day, and the new versions as soon as I had them. Plus, he always had ideas on how to make the games better.

Quote from: Cassiebsg on Mon 14/08/2023 20:24:34We colab in a few games where I did graphics for his game... but boy did he annoyed me sometimes by requesting hard to do BGs (making me do more work on a BG that I couldn't see how it would possible look better) and then end up using a grab from an online reference pic in game.... or using an unfinished BG when I specifically told him I wasn't finished, and just wanted some feedback to improve it... or picking a sprite and distorting it to fit his "size" (instead of asking me to rendered it again at a bigger size)... but I'll still miss him and his horde of games.

Quote from: Mandle on Tue 15/08/2023 00:03:48HAHAHA! Yup, that's Les all right! The same kind of stuff happened during my copy editing of his game texts. He would sometimes just rewrite pieces of text I had already corrected and signed off on without running them by me again. And those monstrosities would show up in the released games that had my name on them as copy editor, making it look like I had overlooked them.

It's funny how I had a similar experience with him, where he added stuff to my backgrounds that clashed quite a lot with the original images. I think he was just used to working alone, fixing problems by himself, and he didn't want to bother me with adding changes. But one email exchange clarified things and didn't create any issues between us. It was just easy to get along with him and when there was something wrong, you could just tell him and there were no hard feelings.

Quote from: Mandle on Sat 12/08/2023 16:58:26Slasher, your grammar and spelling were atrocious, and I just had to contact you and ask if I could correct the whole mess, which led us down a years-long journey where I copy edited your games.

Funnily enough, I remember when I was making my jam game Bartolomeo, I sent him a first very rough version of the game. I wrote it so quickly because I was afraid of not making the deadline, and it was full of typos and badly written sentences.
Les pointed out so many of them and helped me improve the game so much, that I had to add him to the credits for proofreading, which I always found a bit funny since his spelling was usually terrible

But I guess he couldn't be bothered to write better in his games and communication.

It was the same with his games: he just wanted to get them done, no matter the bad graphics or lack of polish. And there was such a rough honesty to them that you couldn't help but smile when playing.

--

Thank you very much to all who took their time to find out what happened, and especially to heltenjon for contacting his son.

heltenjon · Tue 15/08/2023 11:58:19

When I started using the AGS pages, it was partly because they provide a huge supply of relatively short games, as I had little time for playing full length titles. And the heart and soul of it all was the MAGS contests. (In my mind, they still are, even with dwindling participation.) Even now, I may find an old MAGs thread, download the games and see what different people got out of a theme. MAGS games thus was my way of finding Slasher's games.

I was always amazed by this non-stop game making machine. He would be finished in half the time, and fix errors if we players found them before the deadline. Looking back, there are dozens of shortcuts made: re-use of character graphics, or simply recoloring their clothes, ripped music or backgrounds, anything to get the job done. What was so amazing is that he made use of almost every conceivable genre. There would be mystery games, science fiction stories, horror, musicals, board games, love stories, westerns, action games, driving games and so on. And always with a quirky sense of humour. Among my favourites are Stuck on you (the one where you have to get rid of a wig glued to your head), The Rat Pack do Cheesy Castle (which may not be the greatest game, but those rats singing about cheese always put me in a good mood), and Deep Space Mission: Are We Alone? (the upcoming pick of the month and an impressive full length game in its own right).

I volunteered to do some voice work on his unfinished epic Maelstrom Obscura, and he basically taught me how to use sound programs, make ogg files and do voice work. Even though my Helicopter Pilot voice work probably never will be heard, I've made use of this for my own games and when making voice work for others.

Here's to you, Les. I will do my best to play and comment on all of your games in the database. I dread the day when I have played them all and know there will be no further games from you on this plane.

Stupot · Tue 15/08/2023 16:37:45

I've noticed that Slasher's birthday is coming up (Sunday 20th, if I'm not mistaken). I feel like we should do something but it's a bit late to organize much

What if we were to just open the AGS Awards client for the day so anyone who wants to can just drop in and have a virtual beer in his honour?

DBoyWheeler · Tue 15/08/2023 22:13:23

Also, I've been thinking with others who had gone on before... somewhere in this forum we should have an "AGS-er Memorial Wall" to commemorate those who shuffled off the mortal coil.

cat · Fri 18/08/2023 11:29:59

Quote from: lorenzo on Tue 15/08/2023 11:20:36And there was such a rough honesty to them that you couldn't help but smile when playing.

This. Thanks for putting this feeling into words.

Frodo · Fri 18/08/2023 14:35:52

I'm so sorry to hear this news. As others have said, he is a legend!

I had the honour of testing some of his games, as well as voice acting. I always enjoyed it - his games are a lot of fun.

R.I.P Les. You will be missed.

Kastchey · Sat 19/08/2023 11:24:35

Quote from: Stupot on Tue 15/08/2023 16:37:45I've noticed that Slasher's birthday is coming up (Sunday 20th, if I'm not mistaken). I feel like we should do something but it's a bit late to organize much

What if we were to just open the AGS Awards client for the day so anyone who wants to can just drop in and have a virtual beer in his honour?

That's a nice thought, I'm checking what we can do.

LimpingFish · Sat 19/08/2023 18:50:25

Quote from: lorenzo on Tue 15/08/2023 11:20:36It was the same with his games: he just wanted to get them done, no matter the bad graphics or lack of polish. And there was such a rough honesty to them that you couldn't help but smile when playing.

I remember rating a bunch of his games for the rating panel, and I don't think I could ever bring myself to rate them lower than two or three cups, because, regardless of how higgledy-piggledy the artwork was, or how rough around the edges they were (and some of them where really rough), there was always a good idea lurking somewhere or a clever moment that made you sit up and pay attention.

And, like others, I was amazed at his output. On more than one occasion, I found myself thinking "Maybe if he slowed down and concentrated on one game, took his time, really polished it...", but that wasn't what his games were about. He just had all these ideas, and he wanted them out there and experienced by as many people as possible, and he had the drive to do it. That's such a great quality, and I really envied him for it.

I know some of his opinions might have perplexed a few people, and he even received a short ban over some of his "Q"-flavored posts, but I can honestly say he was a valued, and valuable, member of the community, and we will be poorer for his passing.

Here's to you, Les.

Ponch · Sun 20/08/2023 01:31:01

Quote from: Mandle on Tue 15/08/2023 00:03:48the Roger Corman (and sometimes the Ed Wood) of AGS in many ways.

I think Slasher would be very happy with that comparison!

AndreasBlack · Sun 20/08/2023 22:42:29

Slasher, here's a screenshot from the re-mastered room! In honor of you i'm posting it when the graphics ain't really done

Enjoy wherever you are. @heltenjon you don't happen to have any build of his unfinished masterpiece?

Would be fun to see his best effort!

heltenjon · Mon 21/08/2023 02:30:36

Quote from: AndreasBlack on Sun 20/08/2023 22:42:29@heltenjon you don't happen to have any build of his unfinished masterpiece? Would be fun to see his best effort!

Sadly, no. He was looking for testers back in spring 2022, but given the game's size of nearly 6 Gb, if I recall correctly, it was hard to get people. I told him I could do it, but not quickly, and he responded that he was doing some self testing. I never got a download link.

Case 1 is in the database, though. https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/site/games/game/2372-maelstrom-obscura-case-1/

If someone should have the entire thing, I would perhaps think @Adeel could be a better guess, listed as assistant scripter on the Maelstrom Obscura page. But I don't know how updated that page was.

heltenjon · Mon 21/08/2023 12:37:42

On Les' Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/@maelstromobscura1575/videos there are walkthroughs/game videos from several of the unreleased chapters: New World Order, Antarctica and Yeti.

Cassiebsg · Mon 21/08/2023 21:28:14

Maybe worth asking the son about it?

lorenzo · Mon 21/08/2023 22:15:55

Quote from: heltenjon on Mon 21/08/2023 12:37:42On Les' Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/@maelstromobscura1575/videos there are walkthroughs/game videos from several of the unreleased chapters: New World Order, Antarctica and Yeti.

Thanks for the link! I wanted to point that out as well, but I couldn't find the link to the channel anymore.

Perhaps those who have collaborated on Maelstrom Obscura could share what they had done for the project. It could be interesting to see what it could have been. I know I have a lot of backgrounds from that game.

CaptainD · Tue 22/08/2023 08:16:47

I helped Les with some occasional brainstorming and feedback - I think the most relevant thing I told him was that there needed to be some movement in each scene, the backgrounds were nice but extremely static 0 but my main claim to fame is that I came up with the name "Maelstrom Obscura". It's a real pity Les never got to finish it.

TheFrighter · Tue 22/08/2023 14:39:03

Riposa In Pace, Slasher.
Requiescat In Pacem.

He asked me to dub voices in a game, but I wasn't skilled enough.

_

Durq · Tue 29/08/2023 00:54:34

Slasher helped me when I was first trying to learn AGS. He took the time and had the patience to answer my beginner questions.

In March of 2022, he said Maelstrom Obscura was "being fully tested", which I'm assuming meant the game was mostly complete. I searched around in my files to see if I have a recent build of the game, but I don't seem to have one beyond the first case.

Gurok · Thu 07/09/2023 13:51:50

Vale, Slasher. You will be greatly missed. Slasher's games were a guilty pleasure for us on IRC. I remember we were all playing one of his games together one night. I don't know if his games were intended to be funny, but they were just so absurd and full of heart. A great author who didn't mince words and produced so much.

ukz530 · Fri 29/09/2023 05:37:22

I don't know him in detail, but I've often seen him talking to other AGS users on this forum or Discord. And it's sad that he's no longer with us.

RIP Slasher.

Mandle · Fri 29/09/2023 08:15:36

Quote from: Gurok on Thu 07/09/2023 13:51:50Vale, Slasher. You will be greatly missed. Slasher's games were a guilty pleasure for us on IRC. I remember we were all playing one of his games together one night. I don't know if his games were intended to be funny, but they were just so absurd and full of heart. A great author who didn't mince words and produced so much.

Having had worked closely with him over several games, you can rest assured that the comedy value was 100% intentional. The old fart could never resist a bit of toilet humour, and left much of the jankiness in the games either on purpose or because it was funny, or probably equal portions of both.