Vlarion 1 - The Elemental War

Honestly, I have never been a ‘true’ Vlarion fan. Sure, I have watched all the movies in the series so far, and I have enjoyed them all too, especially Alternate Vlarion 3, but if you had asked me about the general story a month ago, I would not have much to say at all. I don’t deny at all that it deserves all the recognition it has received, and I do believe that it is rightly called a ‘classic’ series—it just did not do enough to make me discuss the saga with anyone or watch the whole thing again. But despite all of this, the huge amount of hype surrounding the remake of Vlarion 1 still made me feel very excited. Aaron has proved himself with every release in the past couple of years, and I think it is fair to expect a lot from him this time around too. Judging from the high number of glowing reviews and scores, it does not look like he has failed at all in revamping a quietly loved film into one that is critically acclaimed from just about everybody, and it should come to no surprise that he has successfully upgraded Vlarion into a proper 2006 movie, transforming it into a much more pleasant film.

In the process of being remade though, it has lost a lot of its original charm. Vlarion 1 is no longer as distinct as it once was. While the remake is still original, innovative and creative, for me the 2000 original will be the more memorable in the months to come. The typed-up dialogue, the turn-based battles, the world map and everything that gave a nod to all those old and classic role-playing games was what made the original almost magical (the only thing lacking was perhaps a more consistent and complete story) and although the remake does its best to emulate that sort of magical feeling, it does not feel as special. From a narrative point of view, however, the 2006 remake is certainly superior. As said before, all of the role-playing game elements have been missed out, but even though this takes away most of what made Vlarion memorable to start off with personally (and remember, this review is not coming from a ‘true’ fan as stated earlier), weighing this all up, Aaron has done the right thing. Removing all of these elements allows makes the movie more serious; this is a movie and not a video game. Of course, the extra six years does help tremendously. The stale, fixed camera angles, the bland scenery and the very basic animations have all been replaced with stunning pans, gorgeous views of the Vlarion world and brilliantly animated battle scenes. This most definitely feels more like a proper film, and thus helps to tell the story.

There is one extra addition that has helped with the storytelling too: the voice acting. Nearly every voice actor who played a part did his or her lines very well, bringing much more life into their respective characters. I was really fascinated how ‘Advamc’ could describe Jack as a ‘tough black guy’, because if anything, Eric Russoniello’s voice and lines suggest the complete opposite. The voices add a staggering amount of extra depth that the originals could not provide. However, everything is not perfect. I was not completely happy with Stacey’s voice. This seems to be because of personal taste though, since it looks like everyone else is praising Shannon Kelley of her portrayal of Stacey. Her voice was clear and distinct, but I found it to be unconvincing, and consequently, it did not seem to fit in with the other voices well at all. Nevertheless, it was nice to hear a girl voice a female part rather than a growing teenager trying (and failing) to provide a convincing, feminine voice for a woman. Derelict comes into mind. I doubt I could have watched the whole film if that were the case here, with so many lines for Stacey.

Despite being the not-so-hardcore Vlarion fan, I was still expecting the 2006 version to completely pull me in. While it achieves two major and highly important tasks, producing a more stable and logical script and improving on its storytelling methods, the pure story scenes were not quite as gripping as I would have liked. In fact, the first hundred scenes went pretty slow. I could put this to a number of reasons: the story has not had enough time to develop yet; we barely know these remade characters; the story had to progress more steadily and systematically, and not jump from point A to C making illogical jumps like the originals did. None of this, however, changes what those first moments felt like. Things do pick up very quickly though. From the moment when Dask and Stacey meet up with Jack, the film suddenly hooked me like most of Alternate Vlarion 3 did. What the film does best, which is demonstrated firstly from around scene 200, is building up the suspense and excitement. Great, fitting music, decent dialogue, and very neat camera shots helped it wonderfully build up into the first Vlarion battle, against Brackus—particularly strong voice acting from Adam Clough here—as Hirolix (pronounced Hy-ro-lix, which I found to be quite unusual). I doubt this could have been pulled off this effectively with fixed camera angles, text boxes and MIDI files. Simply put, scenes 200-215 were brilliant.

This brings me to Vlarion 1’s battles, and on the whole, they were superbly done. The animations were almost flawless, the Vlarions were fearsome monsters, and the fights were tense and full of excitement. I would like to give praise to Aaron in particular for how the Zarethio battle started off. The music was chosen especially well, and it was incredibly intense when Zarethio formed and stared right down at Dask. There was one thing that bothered me a little though; the climax of the battles did not seem to do the build-ups any justice. They did not end with a huge ‘bang’, and it was as if the Vlarions died quietly. The same unfortunately happened at the end of the film, when the AT operatives were under attack. I really, really loved all the build-up, getting happily wrapped into it and hoping Adrack will get out alive (I will admit that I did forget what role he actually played in the Vlarion series), and I loved everything right up until the climax, but then…it just ended. The music died down a little bit, and then we got some dialogue. Like Stacey’s voice though, this seems to be only my problem, so I will leave this at that.

A lot of the Aaron’s attention has been given to the visuals, and it is hardly surprising, considering that is what a lot of people have been hyped up about. As you would expect from Aaron, he makes the most of v3dmm and has created some breathtaking sceneries and lifelike animations. I could go on about how gorgeous the Vlarion world is, but I would be stating what everyone thinks. Besides, this was not the thing that pleased me the most, visually. What impressed me the most was how much effort Aaron has put into adding tiny, realistic touches. Okay, many people nowadays tend to make all their characters blink, but Aaron goes much further. Water is never static, platforms bobble on water, cars bump up and down occasionally, and even Dask’s hair is blown by the wind. All of this makes the world more believable, and these subtle changes certainly add to the whole experience. What were also pleasing were the edited models. Their altered appearances were hugely refreshing, which further reiterates that this is more than just a tiny update. This is almost a completely new movie. There were even more touches and animations that people would not have thought possible two years ago. Scene 308 (Dask jumping around the corner) and scene 311 (Dask leaning against a wall) in particular were brilliant, not only because they just looked good and lifelike, but also because they added an emotional feel to it. He comes across as more urgent and desperate to find Lisa, and his reaction when he finds her lying on the ground made me go speechless. It is amazing how a couple of subtle touches can end up being so powerful.

But while Vlarion may look pretty, this instalment does not offer a consistently entertaining script. Looking back, it took me a while to get into the original Vlarion, but with the whole remaking process, and even though events did make much more sense this time around, the story is still not that strong. However, this should not be a long-term problem; as the story progresses in later Vlarion films, it builds in depth and appeal. This is probably the biggest flaw in this epic film, but should be easily resolved by the time the remade version of Vlarion 2 comes. There are no such problems in the audio department though. The music was undeniably one of Vlarion’s strongest points, virtually perfectly chosen in each case. Without it, the battles would not have been anywhere near as fun and exciting as they were. The sound effects were also mostly solid. I especially liked the way the volume of the footsteps was proportional to how close the corresponding character was from the camera, although there were a couple of rare places where I did not think a particular sound worked.

[Zaps]

If you look past all the eye-candy, Vlarion delivers in terms of storytelling. Gone are the illogical jumps and the inconsistencies from the original. While the movie did drag on a little bit too much at times, with its occasionally cheesy dialogue, I will give it the benefit of the doubt, as the meat of the story has not quite been reached yet. Its cinematic approach does pay off, despite losing much of its original charm, and its stunning scenery and animations strongly back up the people’s expectations. Combined, they provide a very enjoyable and at times engrossing film. The Vlarion remakes can only get better, with the introduction of yet more characters, an increasingly captivating plot, and yet more Vlarion battles. It may not have been as ‘magical’ as the original Vlarion 4 or Alternate Vlarion 3, partly because of its inferior story at its current stage, but I am almost certain that the later films will surpass them in quality. It is wonderful to see that Aaron has started to make the epic Vlarion series more accessible to newer movie-watchers, and it will ensure that they will not ultimately miss out on the final episode that is Alternate Vlarion 4. For me, Vlarion may be a visual achievement, but it is only a taster of what is still to come.

[Zaps]

Sorry, wrong button.

[Aaron Haynes]

Originally Posted by Zaps

In the process of being remade though, it has lost a lot of its original charm. Vlarion 1 is no longer as distinct as it once was. While the remake is still original, innovative and creative, for me the 2000 original will be the more memorable in the months to come. The typed-up dialogue, the turn-based battles, the world map and everything that gave a nod to all those old and classic role-playing games was what made the original almost magical (the only thing lacking was perhaps a more consistent and complete story) and although the remake does its best to emulate that sort of magical feeling, it does not feel as special.

This whole notion confuses and confounds me, and is the main reason I haven't replied to this review yet. I just haven't been sure what to make of it. On one level I can kind of see where you're coming from, on another level I think nostalgia and that "first impression" effect have colored your perception of the series, on yet another level I wonder how you can simultaneously not be as affected by the originals and yet still think of the the 2000 edition as the more resonant one, and on some deep, dark, resentful level I'm banging my head against the desk and screaming about how I just can't fucking win.

For years I'm the black sheep director of the 3dmm community because no one can wrap their head around the format I did my namesake movie series in. It's inaccessible, it's self-indulgent, it's campy. People are turning it off five minutes in. So I work and improve and build and then spend a whole year remaking the entire thing in the image I want it in, with full production values, voices, the whole works. I get it to a level I never thought was possible using this program. And then someone tells me it lost a bit of what made it special, the unique flavor it had six years ago.

That's it, I give up. It's impossible to please all of you. You all want something different, and you've all got different things to complain about in the finished product. I can't make my movies conform perfectly to that special feeling you expect to be engulfed in for eighty minutes as soon as you see the download link. I am a man, of flesh and blood. I've done the damned best I can, so if I haven't unlocked the secret door to those childhood memories of half-imagined wonder and excitement that you'll never ever get again, I am afraid you're out of luck there. Moving on!

From a narrative point of view, however, the 2006 remake is certainly superior. As said before, all of the role-playing game elements have been missed out, but even though this takes away most of what made Vlarion memorable to start off with personally (and remember, this review is not coming from a ‘true’ fan as stated earlier), weighing this all up, Aaron has done the right thing. Removing all of these elements allows makes the movie more serious; this is a movie and not a video game.

Thank you. This is what I've been told by everyone except one or two "true" fans when considering whether or not to retain those elements. In fact, even Magocs and HMC weren't particularly adamant about it or even that sad to see them gone, so I'm really confused when you're the one who thinks that a certain spark of magic or whatever went with them.

Of course, the extra six years does help tremendously. The stale, fixed camera angles, the bland scenery and the very basic animations have all been replaced with stunning pans, gorgeous views of the Vlarion world and brilliantly animated battle scenes. This most definitely feels more like a proper film, and thus helps to tell the story.

Yeegh. Thank god. I was afraid that was gonna be part of what you thought took away from the feeling of the original.

There is one extra addition that has helped with the storytelling too: the voice acting. Nearly every voice actor who played a part did his or her lines very well, bringing much more life into their respective characters. I was really fascinated how ‘Advamc’ could describe Jack as a ‘tough black guy’, because if anything, Eric Russoniello’s voice and lines suggest the complete opposite. The voices add a staggering amount of extra depth that the originals could not provide.

I was extremely happy with how the voices turned out overall, and the process of getting them confirmed for me why I didn't do it six years ago: it's practically fucking impossible TODAY, never mind back in 2000 when no one would be able to live up to the standards I'd demand for something like this.

However, everything is not perfect. I was not completely happy with Stacey’s voice. This seems to be because of personal taste though, since it looks like everyone else is praising Shannon Kelley of her portrayal of Stacey. Her voice was clear and distinct, but I found it to be unconvincing, and consequently, it did not seem to fit in with the other voices well at all.

This is more fodder for my theory that everyone has something different to complain about, and thus I have no idea what to change. You're the only one with a serious issue about Stacey's voice; most everyone thought it was great. Meanwhile, you really liked the portrayal of Jack, who's gotten some complaints. Who do I listen to?

Despite being the not-so-hardcore Vlarion fan, I was still expecting the 2006 version to completely pull me in. While it achieves two major and highly important tasks, producing a more stable and logical script and improving on its storytelling methods, the pure story scenes were not quite as gripping as I would have liked. In fact, the first hundred scenes went pretty slow. I could put this to a number of reasons: the story has not had enough time to develop yet; we barely know these remade characters; the story had to progress more steadily and systematically, and not jump from point A to C making illogical jumps like the originals did. None of this, however, changes what those first moments felt like.

On subsequent run-throughs, I've noticed that the first ten minutes of the movie are a little slow. I fought for months with trying to figure out what to put in the beginning of this film. Dask needed more backstory, people said. There wasn't enough music, people said. Then it comes out and it starts slow. I felt like tearing my hair out.

This brings me to Vlarion 1’s battles, and on the whole, they were superbly done. The animations were almost flawless, the Vlarions were fearsome monsters, and the fights were tense and full of excitement. I would like to give praise to Aaron in particular for how the Zarethio battle started off. The music was chosen especially well, and it was incredibly intense when Zarethio formed and stared right down at Dask.

Zarethio was one of the first things I started and one of the last things I finished. I think I had his design and movie-setup squared before Hirolix's. It's one of the strongest points of the movie in my mind as well, so thanks

There was one thing that bothered me a little though; the climax of the battles did not seem to do the build-ups any justice. They did not end with a huge ‘bang’, and it was as if the Vlarions died quietly.

This is something I thought only I had noticed, and wasn't entirely happy with. Hirolix, yes, because I planned out ahead of time that he'd lose both eyes and freak out while blind, so the buildup here I thought was paid off well. Zarethio not so much, although I did try to make some truly insane stuff happen, his jaws being shattered and just in general being torn apart, but considering his ability to re-form himself throughout the battle, it's hard to tell why exactly he died when he did.

The same unfortunately happened at the end of the film, when the AT operatives were under attack. I really, really loved all the build-up, getting happily wrapped into it and hoping Adrack will get out alive (I will admit that I did forget what role he actually played in the Vlarion series), and I loved everything right up until the climax, but then…it just ended. The music died down a little bit, and then we got some dialogue.

This worried me more than anything else, and you're the only one to really point it out. I could have had another scene here, but I was just flat-out exhausted. The community was seriously getting vicious about the movie not being out. I had people loudly and repeatedly doubting it would ever see light of day. That's not good for inspiration. So I did what was necessary to get V2 started and called it an abrupt ending. Damn deadlines.

I could go on about how gorgeous the Vlarion world is, but I would be stating what everyone thinks. Besides, this was not the thing that pleased me the most, visually. What impressed me the most was how much effort Aaron has put into adding tiny, realistic touches. Okay, many people nowadays tend to make all their characters blink, but Aaron goes much further. Water is never static, platforms bobble on water, cars bump up and down occasionally, and even Dask’s hair is blown by the wind. All of this makes the world more believable, and these subtle changes certainly add to the whole experience.

Thanks As I went through the film I did my best to make sure that it was full of moments that keep the viewer hooked. As you mention, the edited characters and handmade actor animations were a big part of this as well.

[Aaron Haynes]

But while Vlarion may look pretty, this instalment does not offer a consistently entertaining script. Looking back, it took me a while to get into the original Vlarion, but with the whole remaking process, and even though events did make much more sense this time around, the story is still not that strong. However, this should not be a long-term problem; as the story progresses in later Vlarion films, it builds in depth and appeal. This is probably the biggest flaw in this epic film, but should be easily resolved by the time the remade version of Vlarion 2 comes.

This is my hope as well. V1 is not the strongest script of the bunch, and some of the emotional punch may have been lost in the logistics of what's going on. The idea here is to set up and sell the premise so that the rest of the series can build on it. Where the premise ends up going, what the Vlarions represent, the reasons all this is happening and the decisions the characters make and who they become are what excites me most about this series. As you say, this is the fundamental stepping stone.

There are no such problems in the audio department though. The music was undeniably one of Vlarion’s strongest points, virtually perfectly chosen in each case. Without it, the battles would not have been anywhere near as fun and exciting as they were. The sound effects were also mostly solid.I especially liked the way the volume of the footsteps was proportional to how close the corresponding character was from the camera, although there were a couple of rare places where I did not think a particular sound worked.

THANK YOU. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD THANK YOU. I am glad someone FINALLY noticed that I took the time to do this rather than complain that they were default footsteps.

Not all the sounds were perfect, but I watched one of my 3dmmer friends watch this and he seemed PHYSICALLY HURT when he heard a default sound. He seriously looked at me like I'd killed a puppy. Everyone else is fucking crazy, man. I'm the eye of the goddamned storm.

If you look past all the eye-candy, Vlarion delivers in terms of storytelling. Gone are the illogical jumps and the inconsistencies from the original. While the movie did drag on a little bit too much at times, with its occasionally cheesy dialogue, I will give it the benefit of the doubt, as the meat of the story has not quite been reached yet. Its cinematic approach does pay off, despite losing much of its original charm, and its stunning scenery and animations strongly back up the people’s expectations. Combined, they provide a very enjoyable and at times engrossing film.

While I still don't really understand this whole idea about losing the charm of the original, especially from someone who admittedly didn't enjoy the originals as much as 'true' fans, I think this is a fair enough assessment.

...

Seriously. Blue text boxes. 1000 frame scenes. Weapon equip segments. HP damage. Fake dialogue choices. Attack names. These really added a spark for you that the remake is missing?

The Vlarion remakes can only get better, with the introduction of yet more characters, an increasingly captivating plot, and yet more Vlarion battles. It may not have been as ‘magical’ as the original Vlarion 4 or Alternate Vlarion 3, partly because of its inferior story at its current stage, but I am almost certain that the later films will surpass them in quality. It is wonderful to see that Aaron has started to make the epic Vlarion series more accessible to newer movie-watchers, and it will ensure that they will not ultimately miss out on the final episode that is Alternate Vlarion 4. For me, Vlarion may be a visual achievement, but it is only a taster of what is still to come.

Thanks a bunch for the review. Sorry it took so long to reply, and for all the frustration, but I feel like a hundred people are telling me a hundred different things sometimes

Hope Vlarion 2 ends up as great as you're hoping.

[Tuna Hematoma]

Originally Posted by Aaron Haynes

I am glad someone FINALLY noticed that I took the time to do this rather than complain that they were default footsteps.

There shouldn't of been default sounds, period. Why spend so much time on everything else then just use, "BODY FALL DIRT" JUST... IT'S SO NOT COOL HAYNIES.