The Second Reality Project 3 [status, screens]

Alright, now onto the feedback!
Thanks so much to all of you!


Interesting point, and first time I hear about that.
While it's way too late to change that now considering they did already appear like that in TSRP2, I am going for a more "diverse" look of the NPCs this time around instead of all of them looking the same.
So it might be interesting to try that out. Thanks for the suggestion!


1999 I thought? ...


Thanks for bringing this up! I was actually wondering about that too, but I wasn't sure if it was just me.
I figured "hey it worked in Sonic CD, so why shouldn't it work here?"
I'll try to play around with the palette a bit to set the BG a bit apart from the FG.


Thank you!
Btw, some (many) years ago you did send me a beautiful composition featuring the TSRP-theme supposed to be for a waterfall castle. You don't remember by any chance who did compose it?
I was wondering putting it up on my site under the bonus tracks-section, but I didn't wanted to do it without credits.


Yeah, they were a product of their times, and times change, no doubt about that.
It will be interesting for me as well - my previous hacks mostly featured stuff from 2002-2006, so TSRP3 will be the first hack since then featuring "new" stuff.


Yes indeed! Funny how that worked out!


Thanks for the kind works! I'd say from what I've seen your stuff looks usually pretty great as well. I'm afraid I never really got too much into it because Kaizo isn't exactly my kind of thing.


Re:CW:Medical: Show/Hide

Sorry to hear that! And yes, it sucks quite a bit. Even when it's going well, you never really know how long it'll last. All the best to you as well, of course!

Some of them, yeah.
So yeah, why not.
Does fit the C3-theme, I guess.

Mario's Time Machine=enable
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Mostly very subtle changes here. The biggest change is the change from Cate to Catterina.
Cate was originally a character from TSRP2, in which all Happy Goombas and all Powercats looked the same. And well, that worked there because their presence in the hack wasn't big.
That is very different this time around, and I figured having two characters around who look (and act/talk) pretty much the same - didn't made sense.


This is part of the old intro level, back when TSRP2R didn't existed yet. As such it has the extra honor to start with a proper ending to TSRP2, because TSRP2 didn't had that.
Ultimately this was one of the many reasons I decided to do the remake because using TSRP3 to provide a proper ending to TSRP2 did felt a bit arkward.

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This one changed quite a bit, for some reason.

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Several minor changes; different BG, the "W" on the box later became a "M", the "houses" were decreased in size, because the original size didn't made much sense for the Catgoom Kingdom-folks.

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Most of the BGs in the old version were quite simplistic, thanks to the limited amount of GFX-slots.

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All the cutscenes changed too. This one recalls the graphics from the original TSRP2, because again, the remake didn't existed yet.

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Again, only a minor change on the BG, as that one on the first screen was quite overused and it didn't even made much sense considering the castle was supposed to be on top of a mountain.

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Arguably the old cutscenes look better because of their size...
But they came with their own fair amount of problems thanks to an obscure camera glitch which has since long been fixed by LM itself, if I'm not mistaken.
Either way, that glitch was yet another reason back in the days that let me put TSRP3 on hold in favor of TSRP2R.

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This one went through quite a bit several changes over the years. The very first version from 2007 used an entirely different tileset before it later became a level for the Hedgehog Hills. Don't have a screen of that, though.

The very first level created in 2007 vs 2024
Actually, leveldesign-wise, nothing really changed.
For me, this one's interesting because it's the only level build "pre-icegoom".
One notable change (while playing at least) is the different height of the level.
In the original version, there were instances were Mario was covered by the status bar or could jump outside of the screen, which didn't exactly felt quite professional - I'm glad the new level modes became a thing.

Powercat's Castle 2009 vs Powercat's Castle 2024
This one's quite a different beast... as this level was also one of the reasons I decided to put TSRP3 on hold.
It sucked big time because of so many reasons.
I dare to say most of them are quite obvious, some others not so much.
Again, this was done at a time when you could only select one tile from the map16.
This level originally had ridicoulous loading times, and the fact that have to go forth and back between different sections didn't helped there much either (everytime you went through a pipe it took forever).
Interestingly, this always seemed like a level made for the new level modes, so I was super happy that I could combine previously seperate sections into one.
Mario's Time Machine=disable

Alright! That's it!

Thanks again, everyone for the kind words and support!

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Ah, there is something I forgot to ask. I was wondering about one thing. Do you plan to still make some compositions for The Second Reality Project 3? I think that one of the biggest points of the series is the soundtrack itself. A lot of great song picks and mostly important: original themes. The music helps a lot in establishing an identity to the hacks.

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^

I also am curious about the music that was shown in this old C3 thread as well if any of what was shown there will be making a return for the current TSRP3?

Thanks for showing the comparisons of the screenshots above btw. I appreciate how this project's levels has changed and evolved since then.

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Modern Redrawn Mario Bros. 1.5 (last update - February 14, 2023, some new bonus frames, tons of minor touchups to various poses)

On Pixel Art Requests: Depends on what it is and if I have the time for it. If its complex and I don't have the time, don't expect me to accept it.

Projects I support:


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[19:43] <StrikeForcer> I also want to say that "because everything on the internet is definitely true!" is a derailment tactic that serves as a shorthand change for "I dont accept the facts"

[19:44] <StrikeForcer> When the information posted clearly is fact-based.

You're a strong and brave person for not only improving your health status but also not disappearing from this community out of nowhere. Bravo.
I played both of the TSRPR's and while they weren't my main source of inspiration, they definitely left their mark on the community for being one of the first lore-focused hacks out there. Albeit the standards today have changed, I would still recommend these for somewhat new but experienced players.
Your style since then hasn't changed very much and I consider that a huge standout to the current era of smw hacks. dont get me wrong but some hacks out there feel a bit bland or generic bc it always follows the same formula
As always, I can't wait to see this finished and play through the entire thing.
Revolutionary work, FPI.

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Kirbo was here

I had no idea about your heath issues. Good to hear they're doing better now, and hope they continue to do better!
I'm excited to see this come to fruition. I only relatively recently got to play both reloaded hacks, this should be impressive!

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Please pardon the eye.

I recognize this area... it's from the very first preview of TSRP3, all the way from 2007!


Funny how the placeholder music was dubbed into the video, since at the time they can't be put into the game as is. Nowadays, we can pretty much do that thanks to advancements in SMW music hacking since then.

Speaking of music, do you have any plans to release any music from the TSRP trilogy for others to use in their hacks? I know S.N.N. released the music for TSRPR's Acoustic Castle, and the version of Wario Land 1's Stage Theme XI currently available on SMW Central sounds a bit different from the version heard in TSRP2 v2.0. Also, will any music in TSRP3 utilize custom samples, or are you just going to stick to unsampled music like in the previous two games?

Finally, I'm excited to see that Snake Eater from VLDC7 will be getting a visual remaster for this game.

Godspeed on finishing this hack, FPI... you'll need it.

Alright, regarding the music:


Yes. However when I resumed work in '21 & '23 again, I decided to prioritise on the levels first and felt the music would slow me down too much, and I don't see that changing any time soon.
In any case, I think this is an area where I sure wouldn't mind getting help at some point.
Some weeks ago I listened to TSRP2R's soundtrack (which I haven't done in ages), and I felt it holds up fairly well, but I think it has a huge part to do with the contributions from AxemJinx, Moose & S.N.N.


Probably. Much of the stuff we composed at the time did ended up in TSRP2R already, though.
Also, some of the stuff S.N.N. did never was completed, but I'm planning on looking into this stuff at some point, just not... anytime soon.


Yeah, I was playing around with the idea of using the Mountains-port in the finished product. Haven't really decided on it yet.


It does? Can't remember doing a change there, but I'll take your word for it.
For what it's worth, I thought about releasing some of it a while ago, but wasn't really sure on it.
Personally I'm not even a fan of most of my tracks from TSRPR, and I don't think they aged particulary well.
Besides it seems pretty much the norm nowadays to use samples, so I'm not sure who would even use these tracks today.
Also, these tracks were obviously made with outdated versions of addmusic, and honestly I'm a bit out of the loop with music hacking, so I don't know what needs to be done to have them up to speed.
If I look in the music section, I could have sworn I uploaded more of my ports at some point, so I wonder if some of them got deleted for maybe not matching the standarts or something?


Would like to use samples this time around, yes.

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Late to the party because I was busy until now, but I've been hearing people talk about this thread and could not wait to check it out!

The TSRP series will always have a special place in the hacking part of my heart - it's been there in one way or another since way before I joined the community, and always seemed to be way ahead of its time, especially in 2007-ish. I feel like you knew what good level design was before any of us had any idea. Seeing the early TSRP3 screenshots and videos still has this magic to it.

I figured you were still working on TSRP3 since you were checking back occasionally and we talked in PMs for a little bit, but actually seeing an announcement thread, with screenshots of levels in the works, brings me a lot of joy. From the look of it one would assume it's nearly done, what with all the different worlds you're showing off, but I guess you're working on many spots at once rather than linearly from start to finish.

It's hard to describe how happy it makes me that you've never given up on this project - and just as hard to describe how much I'm rooting for you right now, and wishing you'll continue to be in good health. I'm really looking forward to playing your hack when it comes out - it'll be a piece of history for sure.

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It's been 19 years since TSRP2 came out. TSRP3 looks cool.

Prioritizing the levels first before music is something I do agree with because you, the author know the kind of layouts and visuals that will set the tone for the music you have in mind. Also, I am sure that you could find musicians that can help with composing various music for your project, most hang on discord since that's the current method of communication I find.



I don't have much nostalgia for TSRP2R's music as I do with TSRPR's but I wouldn't mind a release of the music from both hacks, regardless of the version addmusic used. There was someone that did fix up TSRPR's music (I think it was ASMagician Maks though I also recall Ice Man doing an earlier fix) for it to be working on accurate emulators back in 2017, I think you could get the .mmls sorted out with that person. And yes, there was a music moderation all the way back in 2011 when there was a need for music to work on accurate emulators. The merge to AMK came later. A second remoderation did happen 2019 that I recall is still ongoing.




This is just me I personally liked and preferred the unsampled compositions seen in the first two since I felt it showed the power of how SMW's default instruments could be used to make original music when in the hands of a composer... and that I believed hhas elped with the series's identity. If you are doing compositions for TSRP3 with custom instrument samples this time around, I am curious to see how it will turn out.

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Modern Redrawn Mario Bros. 1.5 (last update - February 14, 2023, some new bonus frames, tons of minor touchups to various poses)

On Pixel Art Requests: Depends on what it is and if I have the time for it. If its complex and I don't have the time, don't expect me to accept it.

Projects I support:


Collapsed text: Show/Hide

[19:43] <StrikeForcer> I also want to say that "because everything on the internet is definitely true!" is a derailment tactic that serves as a shorthand change for "I dont accept the facts"

[19:44] <StrikeForcer> When the information posted clearly is fact-based.

TSRP3 I was quite young when I saw the trailer 17 years ago, so this news now brings back memories.

As someone who enjoyed playing the TSRP series, I think this is the most surprising WIP in C3.

So, any plans to incorporate the more expansive innovations in SMW hacking we've been getting recently, such as Daizo Dee Von's extra Switch Palaces, or Yoshifanatic's Overworld Revolution and Cutscene Revolution patches?

That trailer up a few posts above. I used to watch that over and over thinking how cool Mario hacks were. Then I one day decided to make my own hack.

In my opinion, the history of the TSRP series is similar to looking at the development process of SMW Hack. TSRP1 is crude, TSRP2 is advanced, and TSRPR and TSRPR2 is even more advanced.

Thanks for the kind words!
I feel, I just was a bit lucky being there at the right place at the right time or something. If I ever was "ahead of the time" I don't think that's particulary true anymore - SMW hacking has changed a lot over the years, and lots of lots of highly skilled and creative people put there mark on the scene. But that's quite fine, being there from the beginning, seeing the scene evolve, with all the people from literally all over the globe coming in, with their very own personal take on that italian plumber form Brooklyn, invented by a japanese company is quite amazing.

As for me, I always approached my hacks, trying to do "what I would have liked when I was a kid".
TSRPR for example has a lot of stuff in it which popped up in my head when I played SMW for the very first time, and every once in a while I check out my old handdrawn stuff to see what could be perhaps re-created in some ways.


Yeah, I'm afraid I'm far from done. Jumping all over the place here for some reasons.
Thanks to the fact that the hack is like 100% completed in my hack since 2009 or so, this is quite easy to do, and quite fun.
It also gives one a greater overview of what the hack looks like as a whole - before 2023, I was a bit annoyed only seeing World 1 there and this was it, pretty much.

I also think this approach might help in providing a more varied experience.
All the levels in the first world were after all created from 2007-2009, and while they are fine, they are clearly made with the possibilities that existed at the time.
So, when I resumed work in '23, I didn't wanted the additional worlds to fall into the trap of being "the 2023-world", and then there's the "2024-world" and so on.
Ressources change, possibilities change, even someone's own skills and approaches change.
Even at this C3, there have been a few new custom sprites appearing where I was like "Oh wait, this would come in handy in that one Hedgehog Hills-level I skipped so far", so by jumping all over the place it gives you the opportunity to easily get some new stuff into earlier worlds as well - instead of later going back and artificially changing things here and there to inject them after the fact.
The original TSRP2 had something like that, when I was about 99% done with the levels, and suddenly there was this revolutionary change on the SMW-hacking scene with custom sprites popping up for the very first time.



Thanks a lot! I'm quite happy how the last year turned out, things continue to go well, and I'll always give my 100%.


Same here!
In any case, I don't have any plans completely replacing the original samples - but I wouldn't mind having some additional ones in there.


I'm glad you asked.
I was looking for the switch-stuff but I couldn't find it. Have to look into it. No guarantees.

As for the overworld-stuff, like with the music, that's something I save for much later.
I would love to give it a try at some point, but again, no guarantees.


Thank you! Sorry to keep you waiting, but yeah sadly some things are outside of anyone's control.


...which turned out quite well I might add! Glad to have been a part of the inspiration of joining the community!


Indeed - it's such a neverending learning process. Considering I also started with "obvious Level 105-level edits" I think it's prove to any beginner that they shouldn't give up. Everyone has to start somewhere.

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I'm glad to have helped you concerning Switch Palace resources — I'm surprised they're not actually hosted on this site already. Good luck!

It's nice to see after all these years some folks from the Acmlm's Board era still hacking.

The hack looks extremely polished and it's interesting to see how since you've been working on it since 2007, the hack has stayed true to form while gradually becoming more modernized with recent resources.

Take all the time you need, and we all look forward to playing this whenever it's ready.

While I'm more into unhinged type of standard design these days, I've been always a fan of your style and a fan of the second reality project series, because this series is one of the very first hacks I played many years ago. I'm glad to see you're continuing this work and I'll be excited to see this one in particular finished.