_______ __ | _ | .-----. .--------. .--------. .---.-. .-----. .--| | .-----. .----. |. 1___| | _ | | | | | | _ | | | | _ | | -__| | _| |. |___ |_____| |__|__|__| |__|__|__| |___._| |__|__| |_____| |_____| |__| |: 1 | |::.. . | `-------' ___ ___ | Y ) .-----. .-----. .-----. |. 1 / | -__| | -__| | | |. _ \ |_____| |_____| |__|__| |: | \ |::.| . ) `--- ---' ______ __ __ __ | _ \ .-----. .--.--.--. .-----. | | .-----. | |_ | |_ .-----. .----. |. | | | -__| | | | | |__ --| | | | -__| | _| | _| | -__| | _| |. | | |_____| |________| |_____| |__| |_____| |____| |____| |_____| |__| |: | | |::.| | `--- ---' Commander Keen Newsletter Issue 21, "New Beginning" (c) 2002-2003 by Joseph Burke, all rights reserved. All trademarks are properties of their respective owners. WARNING: This document may not be distributed without permission. Check out also our site at http://www.spatang.com/cknews/ ========================================>>>>>>>> >> In this issue << [1.0] Articles [1.1] A new way to play? [2.0] ReviewCorner [2.1] Game Review: ...Test your keen skillZ... by Eazyjay [2.2] Website Review: Commander Keen's "Dungeon of Mystery!" [2.3] Website Review: Keen Online [3.0] KeenFiction [3.1] Chapter 10 of Ilsoap's fan fiction [4.0] Keen news [4.1] CK.net closing [4.2] A real pet yorp! ;) [4.3] Platform Engine [4.4] Totally new Keen site! [4.5] Something new to play [4.6] New Art! [4.7] Some game news [4.8] Mmmh... new patches! [5.0] Miscellaneous [5.1] Announcements [5.2] Credits ========================================>>>>>>>> >> [1.0] Articles << ---- [1.1] A new way to play? Are you tired of playing the same Keen levels over and over again? You shouldn't, because Keen is the best thing human has ever made. But in case you are, here are some tips that can improve your Keening time - make your Keenin' more fun and interesting. :: KeenRush :: Basicaly, try to do something special. Something that you haven't done ever before. Often this means that you somehow limit your playing, that you aren't possible to play as well as before. The first step is to play with harder difficulty level. Then, not to save. But after these you can start searching for a new way to play - something unique. There are many ways to enjoy Keen, below I tell you some of them. (Or all that came to my mind while writing this crazy article.) After knowing some you can easily make up some of your own. Playing with one hand. Yeah, you heard right! I've done this sometimes, even managed to finish Keen 4-6 with it. (Keen 3 would be impossible for me with one hand, I think!) With this gaming style you can only use your other hand - choose left or right. I played with right. Soon you can notice how even the first level can be quite hard with easy mode on. ;) Also, it can be good practice - who knows when you lose your other hand somewhere. Pogoing all the time. Yes, try to pogo all the time. It may be necessarily to stop bouncing somewhere, or Keen stops himself (for example when you use door gem in Keen 4-6 and so on). When playing Keen 1 go to grab the pogo as soon as you can! Don't shoot! Try playing without shooting anything. My favourite is Keen 5 with this way. Select hard difficulty and go. It's awesome to jump a cool pogo trick backwards, collect some goodies, and see how volte-face zaps under you and sparky approaches... :) Also, do not try to avoid your big red friends. But avoid their ammo, that's pretty fun. You can have a lot of fun with different creatures there are. Notice that you maybe have to shoot somewhere to finish the level, for example in Keen 4 you may need to shoot a slug or two to get past of them if they are somewhere where you can't jump over or go below. Also, don't squish the skypests! Min or max. For example try to collect every goodie possible, or as few as possible. Timed zone. Take a look at the clock while you play. Try to finish the game as fast as you can. Try beating your records. Show your results to your friends (in case you have), and let them try to beat them. Though, I think they would probably try to beat you instead of beating Keen levels. Seems that many doesn't like it anymore these days... Tricks. Try doing all kinds of tricks all the time while playing. Impossible bullet, pogoing backwards, cool jumps... :) Oh, and when you have done all this some thousand times, you can take a look at those wonderful Commander Keen modifications! And maybe try some fan games, in case you don't get entirely hooked with the mods. ;) Billy says: "play keen eight days a week yeah" --KeenRush ========================================>>>>>>>> >> [2.0] ReviewCorner << ---- [2.1] Game Review: ...Test your keen skillZ... by Eazyjay download here: www.spatang.com/files/maps/1/kopievankeen1.zip Quality: 7/10 Originality: 10/10 Keenishness: 7/10 Overall: 8/10 I'd have to say this is one of the best levelpacks I have ever played. It's premise is very original and different than that of other games. There is essentially only one level in the pack, but there are 11 or so copies of the level, each a little harder than the previous. Towards the end, I was unable to beat the levels myself and it got to be quite a challenge. Parts were just annoying, like jumping over fires in a small passage, but overall the level was interesting, fun, and challenging. I would definately recommend playing this. ---- [2.2] Website Review: Commander Keen's "Dungeon of Mystery!" http://www.geocities.com/cactus2clouds/keenpuzzle.html Site Rating: Excellent Quality - 9/10 Originality - 9/10 Keenishness - 9/10 Overall - 9/10 This is a really nice site. The graphics are simple and keenish (well they're from the game), and the colors work well with the background. It starts with a simple explanation of what the keen games are so someone with no knowledge of keen could take an interest in the site. The main attraction of the site is the "Dungeon of Mystery" which is a level made for Keen 1 which is sort of a puzzle. It looks quite complicated to do the keys in the right order. For an easier time you can also try the level without enemies. The author supplies a map of the level and some hints to help you on your way. If you successfully finish the level you can get your name listed on the site. There are also links for other levels and links to some general Keen sites. It's A nifty little site with an interesting level that looks to be worth a try. --Yorpy ---- [2.3] Website Review: Keen Online http://commanderkeen.soupinajamjar.com/ Site Rating: Excellent Quality - 10/10 Originality - 9/10 Keenishness - 10/10 Overall - 10/10 This site will serve as a very good resource for fans. It is VERY keenish looking, you can tell a lot of time was spent on the graphics and design. I really like the graphics next to the news to indicate the general subject. There are news, links, a mod of the month, a poll, and downloads. You can also sign up to be a member of the site and leave comments on the news or submit a news update of your own if you would like. Most definately worth a visit if just to see the amount of stuff that is on the site. --Yorpy ========================================>>>>>>>> >> [3.0] KeenFiction << ---- [3.1] Chapter 10 of Ilsoap's fan fiction Keen began his explanation. "We were four years old when we first met each other, and we instantly became friends because of our intelligence in comparison to everyone else. There wasn't a day that went by that one of us wasn't at the other's house. But it always bothered you when we took IQ tests that your score was slightly below mine. Of course, we both laughed about it and said that IQ meant nothing, but deep down you were always competitive about it. "In grade 3, we took an IQ test, the last one you ever took, and in that test, you beat me by one point. At that moment, our friendship suffered. You started taunting me and teasing me, calling me 'Mister Three-Fourteen'. I put up with it for awhile, but after a few swirlies and an atomic wedgie, I had had enough. We fought in the playground of Oak Street Elementary, and never said a word to one another again. Anything sounding familiar yet?" "Sadly, yes." K-2 said. "It's starting to come back. Please continue." "I heard rumours that you were trying to build an interstellar spaceship, so I started to build one too. But instead of the high-tech expensive materials you were using, I decided to stick with more ordinary household materials and appliances, and with a little advanced thermonuclear physics, got to visit Mars before you did." K-2 interrupted. "That's not quite accurate, Keen. The reason it took me longer was because I wasn't just building a ship, I was also building a robot copilot. If I remember right, I built him to look just like me, and I called him..." "...let me guess. The Grand Intellect?" Keen said. "Yeah, that's right." K-2 replied. "I gave him my brain power, personality, everything. I figured two heads would work faster than one. When I finally finished work (with the help of G.I.), we made a test flight to the moon. While on the moon, I saw you and your ship whiz off to Mars, and decided to play the ultimate prank on you by convincing some of the Mars locals to steal some of the parts to your ship." "Those aliens were called 'Vorticons'." Keen said. "I walked around on Mars, exploring, and when I came back to my ship, four major components were missing, but nothing else. I always thought assumed someone intelligent knew what they were doing when they stole those pieces. But if that's true, why was the Vorticon Mothership orbiting earth, ready to blow it up?" "Oh... um, I don't entirely remember all of the details, but as far as I can recall, that was G.I.'s idea. See, when I convinced the Vorticons to steal parts of your ship, G.I. did some research, and found out that the Vorticons came from an entirely different planet. As I said, I programmed G.I. with everything about me, including my feeling of superiority over the rest of the people on Earth. G.I. decided to contact the Vorticon homeworld and let them know that there was a planet they could easily conquer." "Why didn't you stop him?" Keen asked. "OK, in hindsight, I probably should have, but I was really impressed with my handiwork. Here was a piece of artificial intelligence that I created, and it was making plans for world domination! In a twisted way, I guess I was kinda proud." K-2 answered. "But I can't quite remember why the Vorticons were so eager to destroy Earth." "Mind control belts." Keen answered. "The Vorticons had mind-control belts on, controlling their every thought and making them want to attack Earth and me." "Oh," K-2 said. "That explains it." Keen continued his explanation. "I figured that the Vorticons were a major threat to me, so I went to their home planet to defeat the brains behind all of the attacks. That's where I met G.I., your android duplicate." "Yeah... you destroyed him in the Mangling Machine." K-2 recalled. "But what happened after that? Things are really foggy in my memory." "I went through the galaxy, defeating enemies who wanted to destroy the universe. However, nearly all of those enemies were linked to one person: Mortimer McMire. Sound familiar?" "No," K-2 said, frustratedly. "The Vorticon incident was the last big thing I remember." "Well... you made one android duplicate... do you remember ever making another one?" Keen asked. "No, I didn't make another one. One was enough." K-2 answered. After a moment's thought however, K-2's face lit up, "G.I. did! G.I made another robot, just like himself, except improving on his operating system and simplifying his basic commands. He called him 'G.I. Joe'. I told him that it was already taken, but G.I. was a very stubborn robot." "I'm not surprised. He had a stubborn teacher." Keen said. K-2 flashed him a look, then continued. "When G.I. exploded, G.I Joe changed his name to G.I. and made it his quest to destroy the galaxy to get rid of all of the 'mental wimps'. He sought out the most efficient alien species he could find so that he could avenge G.I.'s death." "Touching. And you just stood idly by while this was happening?" Keen asked. "I tried to escape, but I was caught and held captive. I think I made more escape attempts after that... but I can't remember." "It was probably around that time that your mind was wiped." Keen explained. "The new G.I. took your identity, and began causing havoc in the galaxy under your name." Keen and K-2 both paused to get a drink of water (their throats were getting dry from all of this talking). Norp, being pretty much bored by this point, had wandered away and was playing PaddleWar 3.01 on Keen's new and improved ComputerWrist. K-2 put down his cup of water. "Let's fast forward to yesterday. I wake up as a half-man half-yorp, convinced that I'm you. How'd that happen?" "Convincing you that you were me was probably pretty easy." Keen answered, "Keep in mind that the first Grand Intellect figured out a thing or two about mind-control, and being my best friend for almost four years, you had plenty of memories about me in your mind to fill in the gaps. My guess is that G.I., or should I say 'Remitrom' (that's who he is, of course), merged you with a yorp before you ever got to Jupiter's moon. He plopped you down with a fake Bean-with-Bacon Megarocket that was incapable of travelling outside of Earth's solar system, knowing that you'd have no choice but to eventually return home." "Which means," K-2 interjected, "that Remitrom WANTED me to find you. "Why?" "Doesn't matter at the moment. We've arrived." Keen said. K-2 peered out the window at a yellow planet with purple veins on it. The BwB soared into the atmosphere of the planet. "You know, Keen," K-2 said, "you never answered my question about why we're coming here." Keen walked over to the pilot's seat of the ship. "Yeah, I guess I didn't." He switched controls from auto-pilot to manual. "And I don't think I will, either. At least not until we land. This will be a valuable stop for both of us." TO BE CONTINUED... --Ilsoap ========================================>>>>>>>> >> [4.0] Keen news << Hi everyone! :) Too bad, not so much has happened this month. Maybe everyone are busy with school/work and things like that. By the way, it's fun to see how fast this time goes on. It's only month since the previous issue was released, and now it's time for this again. Month by month this year goes towards X-Mas and other cool stuff, and then it starts again. :) I'm also a bit sad, hopefully there's always some light at end of the tunnel... PS. Get your Matrix: Revolutions -movie tickets now! ;) ---- [4.1] CK.net closing. While you're reading this, Commander Keen Network will probably be already closed. If not, then probably in the next month. Xtra's site spatang.com will be hosting the Commander Keen Newsletter and the forums of the CK.net. Cheers! The new addresses are: http://www.spatang.com/cknews/ http://www.spatang.com/ckforum/ The old hosted pages won't be in the web for some time. Keencyclopedia is under redesign, and Commander Keen Vault will be closed, but I'm going to make a new site. Let's see what future brings. :) ---- [4.2] A real pet yorp! ;) Heh, check out this, Manboy has a real yorp on his house. "What is this GREEN ONE-EYED thing on your desk?!" http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpubliccommanderkeenforumothercommanderkeenstuff.showMessage?topicID=772.topic ---- [4.3] Platform Engine CommanderSpleen is making a platform engine that sounds quite nice! The physics are going to be pretty much same than in Keen 4-6 and it has a lot of other nice features. Read more from this topic: http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpimentogamedevelopment.showMessage?topicID=834.topic ---- [4.4] Totally new Keen site! Keener keen online has opened totally new Commander Keen related site! The site is called Keen Online, and it's pretty cool! Be sure to check it out: http://commanderkeen.soupinajamjar.com/ ---- [4.5] Something new to play ElecDude33 has posted a new beta if his mod for us to enjoy. Be sure to test it out - there are some bugs, but they will be fixed, if he continues working on the mod, hopefully he does continue. I think the mod is pretty cool, it has somekind of classic game feeling in it. Check out the topic, right here: http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpubliccommanderkeenforumothercommanderkeenstuff.showMessage?topicID=773.topic ---- [4.6] New art! Scizor CT has returned (or actually he has been with us in the forums all the time), with his cool Keen related drawings. He has opened a new topic where you can see his newest works! Check them out: http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpubliccommanderkeenforumothercommanderkeenstuff.showMessage?topicID=775.topic ---- [4.7] Some game news SodiumSponge91 has started making somekind of internet Keen RPG. Find out more, here: http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpubliccommanderkeenforumothercommanderkeenstuff.showMessage?topicID=770.topic This may be a bad news for all you mod lovers out there. Dr Villain is probably going to stop doing his Mortimer McMire related mods, and do them as fan games. GAAARG! http://pub128.ezboard.com/fpimentogamedevelopment.showMessageRange?topicID=809.topic&start=41&stop=44 ---- [4.8] Mmmh... New patches! ;) If you haven't checked the Keen: Modding forums for a while, do it now! There's plenty of new cool patches around to make your mod even more cool: http://durdin.net/andy/keen/modding/viewforum.php?f=1 --KeenRush ========================================>>>>>>>> >> [5.0] Miscellaneous << ---- [5.1] Announcements As you probably know commanderkeen.net has shut down. Forge was providing the website and he has decided to move on. But the newsletter will survive with hosting from xtraverse and spatang.com. As a reminder we are always looking for articles or reviews from readers to put in the newsletter, if you have something to contribute don't hesitate to post on our forum. It really seems to be a slow time in the world of Keen, not a lot seems to be happening but I think things will pick up when new mods start getting released. Anyways, happy halloween! --Yorpy ---- [5.2] Credits Yorpy - website reviews, composition MRC Marky - website, graphics KeenRush - news, article xtraverse - hosting, working on HTML issues, game review Forge315 - started this newsletter ========================================>>>>>>>> * swim swim hungry *