Everyone seems to want to mark the 100th year anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic I’m afraid. I sincerely apologise to all of those who visit my blog to purely look at the Titanic – Adventure Out of Time content. This year seems to have quite a lot of slightly off-topic posts. Yet there will be more content on the game soon I promise!
On Christmas day last year ITV1, one of the main television broadcasters in the UK aired a trailer of their upcoming new mini-series involving the Titanic. It is a UK/Hungary/Canada co-production and will be produced by Nigel Stafford-Clark and Chris Thompson and due to officially air in the UK in April 2012 to mark the centenary anniversary of the sinking of the ocean liner.
ITV1 screenshot
It has been written by Julian Fellowes, who is better attributed to his period drama ‘Downton Abbey’, which has aired world-wide since its creation in 2010.
There will be four 1-hour long episodes which will present viewers with a combination of mystery, action and romance narratives. The huge cast of 89 characters will be a mix of fact and fiction and will focus on passengers from all social backgrounds and varying national identities. Each episode is said to focus on different characters and ITV state that
“Each point of view will culminate in a cliffhanger as the ship begins to founder, building to an explosive conclusion which draws together each of the stories.”
The trailer can be seen below. As far as I know the drama will also be shown in ABC in the US and Channel Seven in Australia..
Trailer that aired on Christmas Day in the UK on ITV1
I wonder whether this will prove a hit among audiences? Or is that too much a bad pun?
This year has been a productive year for the Titanic AOOT fan blog. January saw the refurbishment of the tour guide page, along with the recording and embedding of the tour guides from the game into the blog itself. I’d like to say thank you for the positive feedback I received from doing this.
Furthermore, a way to play Titanic – Adventure Out of Time on Windows 7 and Vista was discovered, albeit quite tricky for some but a way nonetheless!
The Titanic Voyage project launched again, this time it literally did crash but we’re promised another improved interactive browser adventure next year in time for the 100th year anniversary of the sinking.
Out of everything this year though, the most memorable and exciting piece of news has to be the mods that have been under development. I received news that the Half-Life 2 mod was to be stopped in April but further work on Titanic – Lost in the Darkness (for Crysis) meant that we shouldn’t be down hearted. The mod, or possible game we’re told is story-based so is the nearest thing we have to Titanic – Adventure Out of Time. Yay!
It was a shame to report the spat that took place on the 22nd December regarding the future of TLITD. Thankfully all is well again and the mod can sail forward to completion.
As for 2012 and the fan blog, I have plans:
Certain items that were entered into the trivia page have been commented on by visitors to this site so I’’m going to make modifications to the page. I will also add two other items to the trivia page that I have been meaning to for a while.
There is also going to be a new feature page called ‘The Poop Deck’, thanks to some ‘random’ comment left on my blog regarding an entry that I now look back on and think: “why did I publish that?”. It’s going to be called ‘The Poop Deck’ as it’s derived from the the saying ‘Youtube Poop’ and is used to describe all entries that are nonsensical and random within the fanblog. This could range from a photo-shopped picture of a game character to an edited video of the game content. And of course Poop Deck is a nautical term so stays within the theme of Titanic.
You’ll soon notice a page called ‘The Lift Attendant’, also known as the Blog Map. As this fan blog gets bigger certain content is over shadowed by other, newer blog entries. The Lift Attendant is there to help you get to where you want to go! The search function is to remain, the map is just an addition to helps visitors to the blog.
There is another item I’m working on and have been for some time yet it remains unpublished. I think I’ll keep it to myself for a little bit longer though…
Happy New Year to my followers and may the following year bring you good news.
Titanic Lost in the Darkness mod for Crysis 2 posts bulletin that project may be under threat.
I reported in July about the aforementioned mod being developed by the group ORM Entertainment (blog entry can be found here.) Since then there has been various updates, many of which can be seen on their facebook page and youtube channel. The mod has received a lot of support and gained a lot of interest since them. However, it seems that complications have arisen regarding the project.
Yesterday saw exterior modeller Michael Woods post an urgent request on their facebook page stating that their interior modellers had dropped out of the project and they are looking for replacements. Today TLITD posted a bulletin on their youtube channel: (certain names have been edited)
“We have an big problem. You must help us. The project “Titanic lost int the darkness” is in great danger! As you know a man called ************ create the 3Dmodels for us. Now he got a contract with National Geographic. They want to use ******* models. ******* can get some Money for it. Now there is a “J” who destroy The whole project. He want that we delete the mod, the videos. Stop him we need your help. Say ******* that we need him to continue. Write a comment in my channel please.”
Edited bulletin from youtube
From what I understand from the comment J left on the TLITD facebook page it is true that bigger opportunities have arisen and there is a need to begin copyrighting certain works. He does not state which works but many would assume it is linked with the TLITD mod which would result in the removal of their contribution from the TLITD project.
J's comment on facebook
He continues to defend himself on youtube…
“ORM have completely misunderstood. They think I am trying to overthrow the project and make decisions for ******* but that is completely untrue. ******* made the decision himself to leave the project and ORM are not understanding and are now trash-talking me all over Facebook, YouTube and forums. They have totally reacted in a way I didn’t expect. If you were in our position, believe me, you would understand our reasoning for dropping out.”
I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens. However, if you are a modeler and interested in helping out the TLITD team on the project then here are the contact details:
The Titanic: Adventure Out of Time fanblog has been following Daniel Hobi and his project ‘Titanic Voyage’ since it’s maiden voyage in 2010.
For those who have not heard of Titanic Voyage, it is “a five day virtual experience that occurs April 10th through April 15th that enables users to witness and participate in the maiden voyage of the Titanic and gives them the possibility to converse and meet others with a shared interest in the Titanic.”
This month saw the launch of its facebook page. Although still in its early stages it will act as a community base where you can get updates on the progress of the forthcoming project to mark the 100th year anniversary of the inaugural journey of Titanic. If you’re a facebook follower then you may want to check it out. The page will also describe in detail the functions of Titanic Voyage in an attempt to help you get the most of your experience when the time comes to ‘virtually’ board. The page has already made its first post describing the suitcase and has added several screen shots for users to view. Definitely worth a visit.
This page is an addition to the music pages and houses the remixes created from the Titanic – Adventure Out of Time original soundtrack. The tracks here have been used with the permission of their authors.
My last entry into this blog focused upon the cancellation of the Half-Life 2 mod by youtube user ALITITANIC. Although it’s always sad to hear that a Titanic project has floundered and sunk (so to speak) there’s always another on the horizon.
I briefly mentioned in my last post about the mod for Crysis, one which I’d like to write about in this entry. I’ve postponed writing about this before now as the details for this mod are a little sketchy. The creators have a youtube channel and a myspace account but haven’t really listed any specific details. Some of you may already be aware of what I’m writing about.
The mod is called Titanic – Lost in the Darkness and is made by ORM Entertainment. For those of you reading this unaware of what a mod is, it is simply a third-party or fan-made (usually fan-made) modification to a computer game. From what I understand they have been working on the project since October 2008 and if all goes well it will be ready for the 100th anniversary (but let’s not all hold our breath, we all know release dates are easily pushed back.)
ORM Entertainment Logo - Copyright ORM Entertainment
ORM Entertainment consists of five members, of which there are three members who do the majority of the work on the project.
If you research the project you’ll notice there seems to be confusion over whether T-LID (ok, it should be T-LITD but I think T-LID rolls of the tongue better) is a mod or a game. The current position of the project is that it is a mod for Crysis 1. There’s plans to switch over to Crysis 2 yet there are concerns that the mod will only run on a PC and not on PS3 or Xbox360 due to the performance requirements.
Furthermore, If the group get the go ahead from Crytek, a German video game company who produced Crysis (which is distributed by EA Games) they hope to distribute it across the world. If it is not possible to issue the game in a CD Box then a downloadable version of the game is hopefully going to be made available to the public.
The problem ORM have is that they don’t possess any license for the engine they are using which is why the game remains a potential mod.
Titanic Postproduktion Render - Copyright ORM Entertainment
I’ve not mentioned the storyline yet, which I found on encyclopedia titanica. ORM seem to be German (or most are) and their English not the greatest (no offence!) This probably explains why all the information surrounding the mod is sketchy. I’’ve tried my best to re-word it the best I can. The original description can be found in the references links at the end of this post.
Story:
Until 1 September 1985, the RMS Titanic lay undiscovered at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean for 73 years. The next day news of the discovery is transmitted all around the world. It is in a New York bar where 93 year old Titanic survivor Howard Williams hears the story.
Also present in the bar is enthusiastic, young journalist Daniel Louis. He introduces himself to the old man and urges him to tell his story. A story Williams has never spoken of before.
Williams tells Louis of how he became to be a passenger on the Titanic.
[I’m guessing now is the part where the past tense becomes the present tense and you’re blasted back in time. The description isn’t that clear.]
After a failed bank robbery in London he attempts to flee England on the Titanic. Although originally a third class passenger he manages to bribe officers and stewards to secure a place in first class among the rich and wealthy.
Everything seems perfect, with the past events securely behind him and nothing else to hinder him. However, disaster strikes when Titanic unsuspectingly hits an iceberg and Williams discovers the ship is to sink.
Third class passengers find themselves sectioned off from the rest of the passengers and crew, unable to reach the boat deck and save themselves. Williams is their only hope to liberate them from their deadly prison.
ORM hint at a demo version being released but be warned, your PC would have to 2-4 GB ram accompanied by a fast processor.
Don’t be afraid to view one of their Work in Progress youtube video.
N.B.
This blog entry has been contrived through information obtained through the public domain. Things mentioned here have not been confirmed by anybody, but are merely scraps of information pieced together and I mean scraps. I trawled through all the creator’s comments on his youtube videos to get more information on the mod. If you know anything about the mod that you may wish to share, or if something has been reported incorrectly or has been the subject of change, please comment below.
You may remember that back in July 2009 I posted a news story detailing a new Half-Life 2 mod that was to be constructed by the user ALEXTITANIC (aka ALITITANIC.) It was to be based on Titanic – Adventure Out of Time (more info can be found here)
Early picture of the mod in construction
Well, as with a lot of Titanic projects, many do not make it to full fruition and are dropped, cancelled, archived and never to see the light of day again. Unfortunately, this is the same old story with the Half-Life 2 Mod.
We must give AlexTitanic his due as he has been kind enough to apologize and explain his reasons (personal and time-restrictions.) Although the mod has sunk into oblivion he plans on making another in a different game, Crysis so we can only wish him luck with that in the future.
I notice a lot of people come back to this blog to see if I have updated it. I receive quite a few comments regarding my future updates. Well, to help people save time I’ve decided to create a Facebook page dedicated to the Titanic fan blog. I realize that there are currently a number of pages that relate to the game but this page I assure you will keep you updated on all the breaking news that appears on the blog. So if you frequent Facebook then keeping up to date with all the additions should not be a problem if you follow this link and like the page. Alternatively, you can click on the icon below.
Not forgetting that the Twitter page is also active for our Twitter users and the link can be found here.
The RMS Olympic was Titanic’s sister ship and they were considered almost identical. It is from the Olympic that most researchers get their information from regarding the Titanic. Especially the interior as the Olympic was open for press photography whereas the Titanic wasn’t. In 1935, immediately before the Olympic was scrapped, her fittings and fixtures were sold at auction.
A man called Douglas Smith, of the paint firm Smith & Walton, attended the auction with the intention of purchasing panelling and fittings to fit out a new factory building, as an office block and canteen.
The canteen
He bought numerous items from the auction. From the Olympic’s dance floor to star mouldings from the first class smoke room.
More fixtures
During the 1990s the factory was occupied by a company called Akzo Nobel Decorative Coatings (Crown Paints) and they were contacted by Titanic – Adventure Out of Time’s producer, Andrew Nelson regarding the Olympic fittings so they could work on a digital recreation of the Titanic for the game.
I managed to obtain copies of the written correspondence between Cyberflix and Akzo Nobel and have published some of the letters here (not all, and certain info has been omitted.)
Many thanks to Stuart Kelly for supplying me with the information I needed. I recommend anyone in the RMS Olympic to feel free to visit his personal website here.
Initial fax from Cyberflix
Reply from Azko Nobel
Final thank you letter from Cyberflix
For those who have played the game, you may notice that Henry and Ribeena Gorse Jones, two of the characters in the game that you meet on one of the First Class stairwells mention that they are from Haltwhistle. I’m guessing that this place name was decided during Cyberflix’s research of the Olympic Fittings.
Henry and Ribeena Gorse Jones
If anybody is curious as to the current whereabouts of the Olympic fittings then they may be disappointed to hear that they were sold at auction in September 2004 to various collectors all over the world. However, on a positive note it could mean there is an increased chance that the items will be viewed by the general public.
You may remember an article I wrote last year reviewing the success of Daniel Hobi’s real-time browser adventure, Titanic Voyage. The experience lasts five days and you can log in and out as you please. The best way to describe the project is that enables users to virtually witness the maiden voyage of the Titanic again and gives them the possibility to converse and meet others with a shared interest in the Titanic. The good news is, that on April 10th, 2011 the Titanic Voyage project will sail again and registrations to take part open today!
Participants from last year’s project will recall their experience. Every location is an open chat room, giving you the ability to meet new people, the chance to drink yourself underneath the table in the Café Parisian and a new feature of smoking cigars till you pop in the Smoking Room (Well, didn’t Smethell’s mention there were 8,000 on board?)
View the video review for Titanic Voyage 2010
To pass the time, passengers are invited to participate in missions involving hidden objects and deliver them to the Purser. Although, not obligatory they are a fun way explore the whole of the ship and believe me, there is a lot to explore!
View the trailer for Titanic Voyage 2011
Speaking of exploration, the deck plans have been enhanced making movement a lot easier and allowing certain areas to be highlighted and more information given.
Improved maps, with area highlight
Last year highlighted issues which have lead to enhanced performance this year. An updated GUI with more chat space, new clock and side bar has been added. As well as an improved menu structure, allowing the user to chat and read messages simultaneously.
Better Menu structure and features
2011 also sees the introduction of features that will allow you to transfer money to other passengers if you feel that way inclined.
Money transfer, why not buy a new friend a drink?
This year marks the 99th anniversary of the Titanic disaster and what better way to commemorate it by spending it on board a virtual Titanic amongst friends. Be who you want to be, you even get an option to choose to be a famous character from the disaster such as Molly Brown or John Jacob Astor.
Happy New Year to my followers and may the following year bring you good news.
