JrMasterModelBuilder

The shadow toa rumor actually appears to date back to 2002. Unknown if this is just an assumption made from the text in the back of the 4th comic book. UPDATE: I think I found the source of the rumor. No telling if they were ultimately just a concept or included in the game. Seeing as how they did not appear in MNOG, I wouldn't be surprised if they were scrapped early on.

Thabks. BTW what shadow Toa? They weren't in the original 2001 story until Greg added them in that 2003 book. Originally, the Makuta being nothing attacked you with junk to show his power. They weren't in the game. Some people think that the whole Shadow Toa thing originated from LoMN. The problem is that no one can confirm or deny the Shadow Toa are in the game. From Shadow Toas Biosector article: The Shadow Toa were originally going to appear in The Legend of Mata Nui. However, the media was cancelled. The Shadow Toa were referenced in The Bohrok Awake and made their first appearance in Tale of the Toa. Is there some credible reason to believe that they are in the game? Clearly the were meant to be a part of the original story as they were mentioned in The Bohrok Awake (page 18 here), but there doesn't seem to be any indication that they are in the game. From the sounds of it, the game is more lke what we saw in the cutscenes of MNOG (which would seem to make sense). It would be great if they were in the game, but it seems to just be rumors at this point.

Just curious, why are you trying to contact Mark Durham? I don't think he would be much help. He might even get in the way.

Some of the 2001 Mata sets had these pins rather than the notched ones, but I believe they were rare. Here's a Peeron inventory for Kopaka that also makes note of them. None of my sets ever came with them.

Templar Studios is likely a Windows based studio, so it's likely that they used FL Studio to compose the music. If you read the description, this sound was made in FL Studio.

IMPORTANT: Don't add me to the drawing. Just wanted to add some insight on DVD region locking. DVD's may be region locked, but that does not mean people in other countries can't play them. VLC is a region independant player for computers, and it is possible to buy players for different regions. Unencrypted DVD's are region free. The are almost never published commercially however, even though DVD CSS was broken ages ago.

An SRT file is pretty simple to make, they are plain text files that can be made in any text editor. Here's an example from the Wikipedia article: 1 00:00:10,500 --> 00:00:13,000 Elephant's Dream 2 00:00:15,000 --> 00:00:18,000 At the left we can see... They are very well supported and can easily be loaded into VLC.

Nice! I'm guessing there's nothing especially new about the narration, but any chance of an English translation, or better yet, an SRT file? Here's a downloadable copy if it helps.

I don't think so but it's possible some of the unknown files are textures.

I think I should preface this with a note that, if you have a copy of this game, please contact me! I'm your best chance of unlocking the entire gameplay! I've successfully worked out the BLK format, extracted onua.blk, and uploaded the contents. You can grab a copy here. The .x files are Direct X binary model files, as we already believed. Here are the interesting ones. Onua: Onua's claw: Onua's mask: Different expressions: Other masks: A mud ball?: Rope: There are some other files also, that appear to be custom data files for defining the level. Reversing them will require a copy of the game. Also, if we ever do get a copy of the game, I will publish a tool that can unpack the BLK archives and create new ones (unless it will run without archiving). This post was originally posted here.

Considering American patents expire after one year, I don't think that the system is broken or that abuse of the system halts innovation by any significant measure. One year may be a long time as far as technology is concerned, but there's nothing stopping rival companies from spending that year on R&D and developing the technology further. They just have to wait a year before bringing ideas derived from a recent patent to market. 20 years actually. Also, it should be noted that LEGO owns over 600 patents compared to Apple's less-than 50, and attempted to obtain a trademark, on their brick design after their patent expired, to prevent competition. They were denied by the Supreme Court.

VNOLG has combat, so does MNOLG in the end. The the Kaita fight cut scene is violent enough too. VNOG was years later, and MNOG has cartoon violence at worst. Compared to CoD, no contest, plus the companies are completely different.

Here is the function resposible for creating the maze. Yes, it is randomly generated, though the scenes as consistently linked. I haven't tried to reverse-engineer the logic, but it appears that KantaisEntrance is set to the furthest link from the entrance, and KokoroRuinsApproach and KokoroWastesDeadEnd and positioned next to each other in a ramdon location somewhere in the maze. function createMaze() { connectionsList = []; var i = 1; while (i < 10) { connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "north", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "south", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "east", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "west", link: ""}); ++i; } finalResults = []; startNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; startNode.link = {name: "KokoroWastesEntrance"}; var j = 0; while (j < connectionsList.length) { if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == startNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == startNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; break; } ++j; } finalResults.push(startNode); var picking = 1; while (picking == 1) { fromNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; if (fromNode.name == startNode.name) { picking = 0; } } safetyCount = 0; while (connectionsList.length > 1) { var toNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; ++safetyCount; if (0 != safetyCount > 10 & 0 != (0 != (toNode.name != fromNode.name) | 0 != (toNode.direction != fromNode.direction))) { safetyCheck = 1; } else { safetyCheck = 0; } if (0 != (toNode.name != fromNode.name) | 0 != (safetyCheck == 1)) { safetyCount = 0; fromNode.link = toNode; toNode.link = fromNode; finalResults.push(fromNode); finalResults.push(toNode); var j = 0; while (j < connectionsList.length) { if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == fromNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == fromNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; } else if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == toNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == toNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; } ++j; } var picking = 1; while (picking == 1) { fromNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; if (fromNode.name == toNode.name) { picking = 0; } } } } lastNode = connectionsList[0]; lastNode.link = {name: "KantaisEntrance"}; finalResults.push(lastNode); selectingNode = 1; while (selectingNode == 1) { secondExitNode = finalResults[random(finalResults.length)]; if (0 != (secondExitNode.link != "start") & 0 != (secondExitNode.link != "exit")) { selectingNode = 0; thirdExitNode = secondExitNode.link; secondExitNode.link = {name: "KokoroRuinsApproach"}; thirdExitNode.link = {name: "KokoroWastesDeadEnd"}; } } _root.KokoroWastesMaze = finalResults; _root.KokoroWastesFlags = []; } Since the code is mostly JavaScript compliant, here is a JavaScript copy you can use to use if you want to analyze what it's doing, but basically it's creating a bunch of scenes, and asigning links between them: _root = {}; function random(max) { return Math.floor(Math.random()*max) } function createMaze() { connectionsList = []; var i = 1; while (i < 10) { connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "north", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "south", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "east", link: ""}); connectionsList.push({name: "Scene" + i, direction: "west", link: ""}); ++i; } finalResults = []; startNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; startNode.link = {name: "KokoroWastesEntrance"}; var j = 0; while (j < connectionsList.length) { if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == startNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == startNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; break; } ++j; } finalResults.push(startNode); var picking = 1; while (picking == 1) { fromNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; if (fromNode.name == startNode.name) { picking = 0; } } safetyCount = 0; while (connectionsList.length > 1) { var toNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; ++safetyCount; if (0 != safetyCount > 10 & 0 != (0 != (toNode.name != fromNode.name) | 0 != (toNode.direction != fromNode.direction))) { safetyCheck = 1; } else { safetyCheck = 0; } if (0 != (toNode.name != fromNode.name) | 0 != (safetyCheck == 1)) { safetyCount = 0; fromNode.link = toNode; toNode.link = fromNode; finalResults.push(fromNode); finalResults.push(toNode); var j = 0; while (j < connectionsList.length) { if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == fromNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == fromNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; } else if (0 != (connectionsList[j].name == toNode.name) & 0 != (connectionsList[j].direction == toNode.direction)) { connectionsList.splice(j, 1); --j; } ++j; } var picking = 1; while (picking == 1) { fromNode = connectionsList[random(connectionsList.length)]; if (fromNode.name == toNode.name) { picking = 0; } } } } lastNode = connectionsList[0]; lastNode.link = {name: "KantaisEntrance"}; finalResults.push(lastNode); selectingNode = 1; while (selectingNode == 1) { secondExitNode = finalResults[random(finalResults.length)]; if (0 != (secondExitNode.link != "start") & 0 != (secondExitNode.link != "exit")) { selectingNode = 0; thirdExitNode = secondExitNode.link; secondExitNode.link = {name: "KokoroRuinsApproach"}; thirdExitNode.link = {name: "KokoroWastesDeadEnd"}; } } _root.KokoroWastesMaze = finalResults; _root.KokoroWastesFlags = []; } createMaze(); for(var o, i = -1; o = _root.KokoroWastesMaze[++i] { console.dir(o); }

They did actually have a news article about their showing of the game at E3 2001: https://web.archive.org/web/20010802142437/http://www.saffire.com/news.html Archive.org has issues sometimes, so here is the content: It was added to their site sometime between Jun 2, 2001 and Aug 2, 2001, and stayed until sometime after Aug 6, 2002, when the page was removed completely. It seems they thought the gameplay was flawless.

I missed this before. Nice catch on Gali's pins! Looks like Gali must have had her pins in the same place as Pohatu at some point in her design. Here's a more clear image of this: http://www.unseen64.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/gali_view.jpg How did you manage to sodge that up!? XDWhat? Your post content got duplicated. This often happens if you edit your post and click save twice, or if you double-submit your post and it auto-merges them. Or if you copy-past twice.

Yet Kapura uttering the same dialogue in both games (though in different locations) clearly shows that one borrowed directly from the other at least once. Exactly what line is the same? Also, we don't know where the line originated. It could have been required by LEGO. The Game was sub-par and incomplete, considerably more so than this, but they had no problem with that being released in its dreadful state. Plus, BIONICLE: The Game is hardly LEGO's worst game. I think the developers could have made TLoMN better, and less-glitchy than most of LEGO's other titles from that time, in about a weeks time.

It's my understanding that LEGO was in charge of the story, and told Templar and Saffire what to incorporate. Saffire was supposed to tell the main cannon story line, and Templar the less-than-canon side story. When they cancelled the game, LEGO had Templar incorporate the canon story into MNOG. I doubt either borrowed much from the other, at least not directly.

He was an investor in Saffire Inc. We don't know how RedQuark knew this.

You would be surprised how many devices you interact with that are running Java perfectly fine. Reading from a file requires a loop in most languages, though Java 1.7 can read a file straight into a string. Usually, it would be easier to parse if read by line though. The class based system is also great for OOP, MVC, and modular code, and is pretty much the same in all class-based languages. Didn't we already cover this? That's kind-of like saying Browse Happy or crashie8.com is the primary source of the Anti-Internet Explorer movement. W3Fools is just a resource, by web developers, for web developers, to point others to. It should be noted that the only notable game engine that can publish 3D games (the kind of game the OP is looking to make) for web is Unreal Engine 3, and it's not clear if or how you can license it (unless you count games which require plugins, like Unity3D). Also, Python or C++ would be better languages for applications and utilities, unless you plan on making them in the browser. Out-of-browser JavaScript implementations are scattered and convoluted at best.

I forgot to mention before, the Source Engine is also really powerful, if more difficult to get into. I also think Unity has some draw-backs over their competitors, as they limit certain features to the pro version. I find the 3D graphics in Unity to be limited also. For a complex, script intensive game, I would recommend Unity, but for a 3rd person shooter (which is what TLoMN boils down to), I would recommend UDK. Hm, could you site an example of such an error? It'd be nice to confirm if I should stay clear of it in the future. Ads are never a problem for me anymore, I run full ad-blocking in my browser(s). One noisy, blinking spam pop-up too many a few years ago made me completely unwilling to spend a second more on ads. Yeah, I don't see their ads and their tracking code doesn't see me, but that's not the point. Here are a few example I can readily find, from forgivable to terribly dangerous. Example 1 - Vague and Incomplete Information: The HTML5 video tag page has vague and dated information on browser support, which is true of almost all of their pages, but especially notable here. MDN's article has detailed and, as far as I can tell, complete information, on browser support. Example 2 - Wrong Information: The CSS3 @font-face Rule page states that "Internet Explorer 8 and earlier versions, do not support the @font-face rule.", but this is not true. While it may not be ideal, Internet Explorer 5.5 implemented EOT web fonts, and I have personally seen web fonts in IE8. Their page also doesn't show the necessary hacks to make this work cross-browser in the real world. Example 3 - Dangerous code: Their PHP Secure E-mail may* be secure against mail injection, but it's definitely not secure against XSS injection. I really hope nobody uses this line in their code: <form method="post" action="<?php echo $_SERVER["PHP_SELF"];?>">Directly echoing PHP_SELF is vulnerable to XSS attacks. This is a basic attack vector that can easily be sanitized, but W3Schools makes no mention of this. * I have not personally verified that the email injecition code is not vulnarable as well. Example 4 - More Dangerous Code: Ignoring the fact that their MySQLi code only shows the old-school, procedual way of using it, their MySQL tutorial has SQL injection vulnerabilities. If you use this code: $sql="INSERT INTO Persons (FirstName, LastName, Age) VALUES ('$_POST[firstname]','$_POST[lastname]','$_POST[age]')";Expect you database tables to disappear one day. PHP's Magic Quotes might save you if enabled, but this can be bypassed in many databases. If they were using MySQLi correctly, this wouldn't be a problem. Also, why no article on PDO? It's better than MySQLi. Example 3 and 4 have remained for many years now.

I don't think you're allowed to link to that site. I've heard the 9/11 connection before, but it doesn't make any sense to me. What does a destructive terrorist attack on a city's buildings have to do with biomechanical warriors walking round an island fighting infected animals to reach magic masks? There wasn't an official statement/report on the cancellation at the time, nor did anyone actually involved in the game ever discuss it publically, so exactly why it was cancelled has always been a bit of a mystery. A higher-up from Saffire said that the WTC attacks played a big role in why it was cancelled. Different people have claimed different things, with questionable reliability due to differing perspectives. If it was a reason, it would doubtlessly be denied publicly. I agree that it wouldn't make much sense to cancel a childrens game becuase of it, but LEGO was very, border-line absurdly, anti-violence at the time.

Java in the browser has definitely left a bad taste. There are some really great desktop apps written in Java though, Eclipse is a great IDE, and is Java based. Many Android apps are also written in Java. Granted, but I have personally found the site to be riddled with errors, and uselessly vague information. It's also pretty clear they are concerned more with ad revenue than useful information, which is probably why they are pretending to be associated with the W3C.

If I were going to do this, I would use UDK, Unity3D, or WebGL utilizing Three.JS and Bullet.JS. I would probably favor UDK in this, since the default game is pretty close, and the only things you would need to code are your custom gameplay elements. You will also need a 3D modeling/animation/texture painting package, I would use Autodesk Maya and Mudbox, but Blender is not bad. JavaScript actually. While derived from Java at the most basic level back in the Netscape days, they are very different. Unless you mean putting an actual Java applet in an HTML page, in which case, don't. A Java applet will run far better out of the browser. I don't know if this is what you want to program up a game. Katuko's suggestions ring more true to me as better. If you want to know webcode to put your game in a browser, www.w3schools.com is your friend. But I've done HTML, CSS, and JS, and none of them seem ideal to program up a game. I've also never used Java for game design either - and I would advise against it personally, as Java is cantankerous to work with. If you really need to learn hard Java, C++, C#, etc, you need to take a programming class, and most aren't geared toward game design. Go with what Kat says - he's a game developer himself, and knows what he's doing.I would recommend Codeacademy if you want to get started learning to code. W3Schools is problematic. Also, learning web languages beyond JavaScript isn't going to help you much, since the only way a 3D game can be made in a browser like this would be through WebGL, which is a 3D drawing context to the HTML5 canvas tag.

Really? What are you using for a source? A search on ustop.gov turns up the following: It's a distinct possibility I'm missing something, as this is one of the worst websites I have ever used (I can't even link to pages on the site). The security of it is also questionable (are they seriousely piping the search query into a Windows executable?)

Disclaimer: This post should not be considered legal advice. It's worth noting that I don't think LEGO has any active registered trademarks for these specific products. From my understanding, trademarks are registered for 10 year periods, and must be renewed every 5 years. They can only be renewed if the company has a product which the trademark can defend. Seeing as BIONICLE products have not been sold in nearly 5 years, and only LEGO sets were sold in the last 5 years, I don't think they have a patent on these specific products. I know their registered trademark on BIONICLE cloathing expired. Their trademark on Rock Raiders has also expired, and has since been registered to Data Design Interactive, who is developing a new non-LEGO "Rock Raiders" game. All of this being said, I don't know if having a registered trademark legally required is necessary to defend it. Of course, any Bionicle designs and images are still copyright LEGO, and having a registered copyright is not necessary to defend it. So at most you could only call it BIONICLE, without using any official images. It would probably also be necessary to look sufficiently different from Bionicle, so that it is not a derivative work. It should also be noted that people make and sell custom LEGO sets all the time, and LEGO never complains. I don't think it would actually make a difference if he made a profit or not.