Game Revision History

Version 1.00 (23 June 2005)
* First release of game

Version 1.10 (28 June 2005)
* Bugfix release
* Fixed Event Skip at startup bug
* Fixed Party menu hotkey bug
* Several other small fixes

Version 1.20 (06 June 2005)
* Bugfix and update release
* A few textual errors fixed
* Fixed a number of small and generally insignificant bugs
* Fixed a rare but annoying glitch with the auto-party-menu-call code
* Made windows translucent, so they don't obscure the battles so much

UPDATE: 06 August 2005
Version 1.2 of Genesis Innocens is available now! Get the update patch if you downloaded 1.00 or 1.10! The binaries for the 1.2 compiled build are up now, as well.

UPDATE: 28 June 2005
Version 1.1 of Genesis Innocens is available now! Get the update patch if you downloaded 1.00! The binaries for the 1.1 compiled build are up now, as well.

UPDATE: 23 June 2005
It's a day late due to some difficulties with the server, but the game is out now! Go to the Downloads section to get your copy!

UPDATE: 08 June 2005
The beta test has begun. However, release schedule has been pushed back slightly from what was hoped, due to an unexpected vacation (yeah, not something you'd normally see as a reason for a delay in release).

Current estimated release date is now listed here, right below the table of contents.

UPDATE: 07 June 2005
It took a bit longer than expected, but the NPC layer is complete! Now I just have some final tweaks to make, and then the beta can begin!

UPDATE: 01 June 2005
I'm on a roll! This progress update has another bit of bolded text. Yes, I have finally finished the sidequests.

Later: Wow, I've been ambitious. Yet another bolded percentage. Down to just NPC's and finishing touches now!

Still Later: Mostly an update to the format of the site. Made more user-friendly.

UPDATE: 30 May 2005
Again, progress bar updates. Things are moving right along, though. With any luck, a beta may not be far off.

UPDATE: 22 May 2005
Progress bar updates. Yeah, that's all.

UPDATE: 09 May 2005
Actually, there have been several updates before this. Anyway, new screenshots, and a new explanation of the Layer system that I'm employing while building this game. Percentages have also been updated to reflect recent progress.

UPDATE: 30 March 2005
Bet you thought THIS game was dead and gone. Well... it is, sort of. The old RM2K build is history, but the RM2K3 build exists now! I'm working overtime to make this quite a bit better than before.

UPDATE: 12/05/2001
Progress is slow in the land of RPG Maker 2000. Since my beta testers are mostly slacking (and I'm not in the proper mood myself to beta test or fix bugs), I've moved LoS1 to the back burner, so FF6j can be worked on.

UPDATE: 6/27/2001
LoS1 has reached the beta testing phase. As of now, only a select few are being allowed to beta test it, as it is still in the first beta phase. A final release of the game should be out within the next month or so, hopefully.

UPDATE: 5/06/2001
THIS is the project that I've been working on for all of those updateless months. It's still not done, either...

What is the Legend of Shenja?

The Legend of Shenja is my first RPG series that I've ever decided to release. Originally designed with RPGMaker 2000 for PC (and now being made with RPGMaker 2003), I've worked on making this game as detailed and vivid as possible. The key goal behind the Legend of Shenja is to make an RPG that, while not Japanese in origin, resembles the style of Japanese console RPG's such as Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger.

I've put many hours into this game, and had virtually no help in programming it at all, save for the occasional inspiration from a friend or two. The game does many things that RM2K and RM2K3 aren't supposed to be able to do. It also sports many features that RPG's have been sorely lacking over the years.

As for plot... Well, you'll have to wait until I release the game. No spoilers here, sorry. Take a peek below if you want to see the intro text, though.

Teaser Intro Text

Shenja, the world of Ouroboros...

In times past, Shenja was a land filled with conflict and battle-lust. This era of the planet came to a close 31 years before the present. The year is 2,042. Shenja seems peaceful, and the once-great empire of Tenmai is being kept in check. A new age is about to dawn...

However, it is not destined to be an age of peace, as many have assumed. There looms over Shenja an almost unknown threat of a war that could well destroy it... The flow of time and space is weakened in this era of uncertainty, and history itself is about to change...

...forever.

Features

* A deep, intricate, and original story with many layers of subtlety, as well as a fully developed world with many diverse national backstories
* Custom Main, Party, and Class menus, designed with fludity and functionality in mind, with lightning-fast access to their features
* Highly customizable gameplay experience: change system graphics, sounds, character names, and even the encounter system at any time
* A very flexible class system, which allows you to change your class on the fly, and retain all stats from all classes you've been in
* Event Skip system, which allows you to skip story scenes; very useful when forced to re-watch a story sequence before a boss fight
* Next Goal Indicator system, which ensures you'll never lose track of where you're supposed to go next, even if you come back to the game after a long time
* Many dynamic and diverse sidequests spread throughout the game's plot, which never become permanently inaccessible
* A battle arena, a casino, and even a bonus dungeon await seekers of diversions from the main gameplay
* Carefully crafted and tested gameplay engine that allows almost any combination of characters and classes to excel, with the right applied tactics
* A myriad of other small but noticeable features that give the game the feel of a professionally designed product
* Two different endings, with several variations for each depending on your actions during the game
* Two different New Game options once you've won the game, ensuring additional replay value

Estimated Total Progress:
Engine Layer - 100%
World Layer - 100%
Story Layer - 100%
Sidequest Layer - 100%
NPC Layer - 100%
Final Tweaks - 100%

Total Estimated Progress - 100%

What do these "layer" terms mean?

I've built this game in a rather different way. Instead of doing everything at once, I'm working on the game in layers. The layer priority is roughly as shown above. Here's what each layer means:

Engine Layer: This is the gameplay engine itself, including items, enemies, characters, classes, custom menus, and any special features of the game. Basically, the skeleton of the game.

World Layer: This layer is the towns, dungeons, and other buildings of the game. Any location that the player can visit falls into this category, as does linking these areas to each other. This is basically the internal organs of the game.

Story Layer: Obviously, this layer consists of all the critical aspects of the game's plot. All plot-furthering event scenes and significant events fall into this category. This is essentially the life of the game.

Sidequest Layer: Anything not relating to the plot, but still requiring design. This makes up quite a bit of the gameplay experience, as with most modern RPG's. Can't think of a good analogy for it, though.

NPC Layer: This is what any character who is not directly tied to events falls into. I wanted to make this layer next-to-last, to avoid having to make numerous changes to NPC dialogue as the game's story and sidequests were refined and finalized.

Final Tweaks: Cleanup work, mostly. This is the point where I go over all of the significant events and flesh them out if necessary, as well as balancing out difficulty. Sort of the crucial final coat of paint on the product to make it look good.

Downloads

Version 1.20 (RTP included) (90MB)
Version 1.20 (no RTP included) (75MB)
1.20 Update (1.2MB)

RPG Maker 2000/2003 fonts (4KB)

Genesis Innocens Walkthrough

NOTE ABOUT UPDATES: The Updates are for those who have downloaded an earlier version of the game. Simply extract the files from the update .zip over your current version of the game, and your game will be updated.

NOTE ABOUT RTP: If you do not have RPG Maker 2003 installed, you'll need to download the RTP-included version of the game. Otherwise, you can download the no-RTP version. Whichever version you download, please read the Readme file included.

NOTE ABOUT FONTS: Follow the instructions in the readme. This SHOULD fix the ugly fonts that some people experience.

RM2K3 Screenshots

The custom main menu.	The custom class-changing menu.
The party-switching menu.	The arena challenge menu.
Now THAT is a tower.	A shot of the intro sequence.
What? Wait, I don't want to know...	Current title screen; subject to change.
A shot of the world map; note the next goal indicator

Old RM2K Screnshots

NOTE: These screenshots are no longer accurate! The game has changed quite a bit since the RM2K days. They're here for archival purposes only!

Behold, the title screen!	Wandering around a shop in the desert...
Easily annoyed, isn't he?	Walking over a bridge at night. Hmm...

Witness the horror of "Lame Shenja" yourself!

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