The Beta Release of the C1 Norn Updates
Written onAt last, I have the opportunity to announce something exciting in terms of my Creatures 1 project! I am very pleased to present the updated C1 male baby Banana Norns! In breed slot 0, these are also known as the Brown Mouse Norns. Everything has been updated for this life stage: Individual bitmaps were all resized, recolored, and/or reshaped. I was careful to avoid perfect appearances, though. I always enjoyed the appearance of Creatures 1 Norns, right down to their imperfections! This comparison shows one of the more obviously updated poses.
This is a beta release, which means I am seeking Creatures 1 players to test these little ones out and ensure that there are no quirky elements. I have done some fairly extensive testing, and should have everything ironed out. A second look from actual players would be most helpful, though! What does it take to help out with this beta release? Simply download the files, install them, and keep an eye out for the following:
- Discolored Sprites: Green, pink, purple, or other bright colors mixed in around the edges.
- Misaligned Body Parts: Joints or body parts that are horribly out of alignment.
- Floating Pixels: Any pixels that seem to “float” a little ahead of or behind the Norn.
- Gait Issues: Problems navigating through certain parts of Albia.
- Incorrect Body Parts: Upside down arms, sprites from other breeds, and related issues.
Feel free to report any other issues, including feedback or opinions! This breed experienced the fewest number of improvements compared with the other breeds. So if you notice few or even no obvious changes, this is a good sign! The other six official breeds underwent extensive upgrades, and this testing phase will help me get the body data correct for the other breeds. A final release depends on active beta participation!
Download the Creatures 1 Updated Baby Male Norns
This is another example of what one of the poses looks like before and after the updates. Also included with the download is a genetics file for a Banana Norn who will remain a baby for an extended period of time. This file also includes a fix to one of the pose genes: If testing with an original Banana Norn, you should notice that this pose has an issue where one foot is up in the air. I confirmed that this is a problem with the original pose gene.
Thank you to everyone who takes the time to test these Norns out! I would love to release the rest of the male baby Norn updates pretty soon. Any and all feedback is helpful, although please remember that these should still have a bit of a rough appearance to keep in line with the hand-drawn feel of Creatures 1. Enjoy these little guys!
I figured out a way to fix the way that C1 Norns often look like they’re wearing pants up to their chests when facing forward! The image at the top of this post illustrates this point. Pictured is the beta release, which does not include this fix. However, this will be included in the final release for all breeds. This should vastly improve the way mixed breeds appear in-game, as well as certain purebred Norns. Barring any major issues, the updates for all baby males should be available in the next week or two!
Wow, as if this news wasn’t excting enough, but to have a solution for the ‘pants’ appearance in cross breeding would be remarkable. Amazing work and I can’t wait to have a little spare time to get back into C1. Believe me, I’ll be using these updates!
Thank you, Arch! I haven’t heard any feedback yet, but I’m assuming that means there are no glaringly awful issues. I finished up the White Haired Pixie Norns yesterday, and they look adorable! I might share a sneak peek later this week if I’m unable to finish all of the breeds. The pants issue is now gone: Such an improvement! It will affect Norns when they directly face the camera, and when they face directly away from it so you see their backs. I love fixing things like this!
Wow…I thought I was the only person who still plays the game.
P.S,I’m really happy to know that I’m not the only one in the creatures world!
There’s a pretty big community still out there! I highly recommend checking out Creatures Caves: It’s become the hub of activity for Creatures, and features many different elements. Great to see there’s another Creatures player out there!
Wow, Jessica, this is really cool. :) I haven’t played Creatures in aaaaages, but I still lurk your blog every now and then, as it’s one of my favourites. If I do pick up Creatures 1 again, I’ll most definitely be getting these fixes! Brilliant!
Tarlia! It’s great to hear from you! Thanks for stopping by every so often, and for the kind comments. I should have a bigger release ready this weekend for all of the baby males. Perhaps I’ll have even more done the next time you play Creatures 1 again! Hope to see you around the community soon!