A month long depression is not something easy to shake off. I seem to be doing ok now, though.
I tried opening a Q&A topic on GameFAQs, but the lack of interest matches by own lack of motivation. The only two questions I got related to why I'm not working, which anyone who's read the blog would know.
Anyways. The primary development bottlenecks right now are graphics and dialogue boxes. I'm having trouble with spriting and sentence sizes respectively. It gives me a new appreciation for how challenging it must have been for earlier developers to get as much information as they did in such a small dialogue space.
Current Projects
Mostly test models for animation and dialogue boxes, individual collision and gimmick tests. Not much success, but I'm working on it. Another major problem is because I haven't worked in over a month I've forgotten where I left off, what certain variables and event flags do and so on. I might have to start from scratch. Better documentation next time!
Other Projects
Nothing of note. I keep coming up with new ideas and the inability to express them is becoming a burden. I'm still keeping notes though.
Gaming
More Clonk Rage, some Borderlands, I finished the last of the From Dust challenges too. I also finished Front Mission Evolved, which I thought was pretty good aside from some derpalogue.
Other
Healthy again, for the most part. I had to get a blood test that took about 30 vials of blood... but I started to feel good right after. Maybe I got too much blood in me, I hear depressed people cut themselves, this must be why (HURRRRRR)
Ok, I promise to get some work done this week. If not Epilepsy Man then at least an engine prototype that uses the placeholder graphics.
I'm illin', Lok
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
I Think I'm Dying... bleh. Also From Dust's DRM.
Well, probably not.
Just general misery, but it had been winding down the last two-three days. In general, I've switched from general dumpiness to muscle pain.
I also started a reviews blog. So far all I have reviewed is Mega Man 4. I'd appreciate feedback. Here is the link. http://lokreview.blogspot.com/
The biggest news this week in gaming would be the release of the PC version of From Dust, a game I've been looking forward to for a long time. And what do I see when I go to share my enjoyment of the game? Wall to wall complaints of UbiSoft's DRM. This has nothing to do with gameplay! That'd be like berating food because the supermarket was being gimp. Oh, UbiSoft lied~~~ BAH! If people got a refund every time they were lied to then governments would fall.
Ok, there are a few legitimate complaints like the poor use of PC controls (IE: Mouse). The game works just fine with a gamepad, and what self-respecting gamer doesn't have like 20 gamepads lying around by now. Hell, I still have 1 button joysticks for PC! I remember upgrading to 2 buttons to play Duke Nukem and One Must Fall 2097. The other concern is a lack of anti-aliasing. (L2 D3Doverrider) and the lower framerate. I didn't even notice the framerate was lower, because it was 'stable', something much more important to me. Dropped frames are very jarring to me and I never noticed any frame drops.
The tribal dudes are very endearing with their little dances and shouts. Surviving my first tsunami was thrilling, seeing the power of their faith save them from destruction. Each of the stages adds something new and wastes nothing. I prefer this style of level design. Also featured is some of the best water effects I have ever seen, the tides actually flow realistically and pools correctly form and drain. Simple game logic I have taken for granted over the years was tested: In the second level of the game you have to divert a river for your tribals to cross. The first thing I did was simply cut the river off with dirt, only to see the sourced water correctly flow over the top. I build higher and higher until the water is eventually dammed - and am rewarded with the river flowing over the next highest barricade... the one leading into my village. More care is needed!
SPOILERS!
What got me was the ending. I may be reading too much into this (But I like doing that)... But it's a pretty good metaphor for the creation cycle. In the last level your tribals finally acquire the power of the ancients... the power of creation. They craft a new land in their own image and all is good. But they get restless, they need new challenges... they need more. So using all of their might they perform the ultimate act of creation, summon a gateway to a new land. Immediately the land begins to crumble and die. Only a brave few make it to the gateway and the power of the ancients is taken from them. Then... the first level starts again.
Did they perish due to greed or hubris - was the power of creation not enough for them? Or did they honestly seek destruction so that they may once again face the challenges of simple survival? Or did I miss something because it was three in the morning?
Well, enough about that.
Current Projects
Tossed out all my level design. Was getting too complicated. I'm going to avoid the complicated large room style of play and work more on smaller easily connected rooms... IE: Less like Super Meat Boy and more like Super Mario Bros. I still mostly need additional sprite work, which I'm finding to be very difficult. It's not like you can go to school for this.
Other Projects
None
Gaming
Mostly From Dust, which I really like, and Borderlands.
Other
I know I complained about mysteriously losing weight, but now I'm mysteriously gaining weight. I'm still at a pretty big net loss, but it would have been nice to keep it all off.
I'm finally sleeping well and at the right times. I'll probably be able to get work done this week.
I can move mountains, Lok.
Just general misery, but it had been winding down the last two-three days. In general, I've switched from general dumpiness to muscle pain.
I also started a reviews blog. So far all I have reviewed is Mega Man 4. I'd appreciate feedback. Here is the link. http://lokreview.blogspot.com/
The biggest news this week in gaming would be the release of the PC version of From Dust, a game I've been looking forward to for a long time. And what do I see when I go to share my enjoyment of the game? Wall to wall complaints of UbiSoft's DRM. This has nothing to do with gameplay! That'd be like berating food because the supermarket was being gimp. Oh, UbiSoft lied~~~ BAH! If people got a refund every time they were lied to then governments would fall.
Ok, there are a few legitimate complaints like the poor use of PC controls (IE: Mouse). The game works just fine with a gamepad, and what self-respecting gamer doesn't have like 20 gamepads lying around by now. Hell, I still have 1 button joysticks for PC! I remember upgrading to 2 buttons to play Duke Nukem and One Must Fall 2097. The other concern is a lack of anti-aliasing. (L2 D3Doverrider) and the lower framerate. I didn't even notice the framerate was lower, because it was 'stable', something much more important to me. Dropped frames are very jarring to me and I never noticed any frame drops.
The tribal dudes are very endearing with their little dances and shouts. Surviving my first tsunami was thrilling, seeing the power of their faith save them from destruction. Each of the stages adds something new and wastes nothing. I prefer this style of level design. Also featured is some of the best water effects I have ever seen, the tides actually flow realistically and pools correctly form and drain. Simple game logic I have taken for granted over the years was tested: In the second level of the game you have to divert a river for your tribals to cross. The first thing I did was simply cut the river off with dirt, only to see the sourced water correctly flow over the top. I build higher and higher until the water is eventually dammed - and am rewarded with the river flowing over the next highest barricade... the one leading into my village. More care is needed!
SPOILERS!
What got me was the ending. I may be reading too much into this (But I like doing that)... But it's a pretty good metaphor for the creation cycle. In the last level your tribals finally acquire the power of the ancients... the power of creation. They craft a new land in their own image and all is good. But they get restless, they need new challenges... they need more. So using all of their might they perform the ultimate act of creation, summon a gateway to a new land. Immediately the land begins to crumble and die. Only a brave few make it to the gateway and the power of the ancients is taken from them. Then... the first level starts again.
Did they perish due to greed or hubris - was the power of creation not enough for them? Or did they honestly seek destruction so that they may once again face the challenges of simple survival? Or did I miss something because it was three in the morning?
Well, enough about that.
Current Projects
Tossed out all my level design. Was getting too complicated. I'm going to avoid the complicated large room style of play and work more on smaller easily connected rooms... IE: Less like Super Meat Boy and more like Super Mario Bros. I still mostly need additional sprite work, which I'm finding to be very difficult. It's not like you can go to school for this.
Other Projects
None
Gaming
Mostly From Dust, which I really like, and Borderlands.
Other
I know I complained about mysteriously losing weight, but now I'm mysteriously gaining weight. I'm still at a pretty big net loss, but it would have been nice to keep it all off.
I'm finally sleeping well and at the right times. I'll probably be able to get work done this week.
I can move mountains, Lok.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Still Sick-ish
I'm not gonna give up on these projects, no matter how slumpy I get.
The biggest news this week is that I've decided to streamline this blog a bit. I'll still be making a development process post every week on Saturday, but once I get a beta for one of my games going I will make a new sub-blog for each game. That way people can get "just the facts" quickly. Moreover, that means I can keep this blog how I want it... my day to day struggles with game development (since, well, y'know... I AM disabled)
I also came up with a new game crossover, but there's no way I can make it due to legal junk. I was thinking of a crossover between Minecraft and Columns. Basically, You drop a vertical line of 3 crafting materials like in Columns. These match up into shapes to craft new items using the same recipe plans from Minecraft. As more complex things are crafted you begin to run out of space. Items like picks need to be built to destroy unneeded walls. Also, monsters attack at night. Zombies create a block in the grid that is unusable, Spiders create a 2x1 block that scales upward, Creepers blow up when you construct near them (for better or worse).
Of course, I'm sure there's no legal bizzy for copying the basic gameplay of Columns (there's dozens of clones of it out there) and I'm pretty sure using similar materials and patterns as Minecraft would be a non-issue.... but the charm would be from using official graphics and creatures which most certainly would be protected. However, since I have no interest in actually making this game I don't need to worry about it. If I was interested, I could always, y'know, ask the guy for permission.
Current Projects
Level design for my platformers. Decided I was over-thinking it and my perfectionism was getting in the way so I'm going simpler. I'm still at a bottleneck though, graphics. Sound can be added completely on a whim, but graphics require special attention to make sure they match up properly. Yes, I'm using placeholders... but it's time to swap them out. I desperately need a tutorial for this, or someone I can just pay to do it.
Other Projects
Almost nothing, but I am working on getting dialogue box "pausing" to work (there's a strange bug where when I freeze all events I can't get the box to keep messaging). I'm sure I'll figure it out.
Gaming
Mostly been vegging out on the couch playing Breath of Fire 2. I'm just not feelin' it. Also tried playing Borderlands some more. Cleaned out the latest Terraria patch in about two hours.
Other
I'm still just simply not feeling good. I'm told it might be depression, but I say people should shut up if they're just gonna label without fixing me.
Been playing a lot of bass guitar recently. Thinking of buying a new one (still.) Yes, I do things very slowly; That's just how I am. I have crippling task-aversion which is compounded by my schizoid/social phobias (not being able to get help from others). Even my family seem like strangers to me recently.
Also, my rapid unexplained weight loss seems to have stopped at a total of just under 40LB lost.
I need a life coach, or a girlfriend, or a boss, or something. I NEED to be commanded and I tell people (family/doctors/other) this. But people are so pro-independence that they won't give me what I need most.
By Your Command, Lok
Amendment:
So I was watching Extra Credits on The Escapist... the one about pre-production. Well, it pretty much nailed me. I'm stuck in pre-production and need to get to actual work. Just not sure how.
The biggest news this week is that I've decided to streamline this blog a bit. I'll still be making a development process post every week on Saturday, but once I get a beta for one of my games going I will make a new sub-blog for each game. That way people can get "just the facts" quickly. Moreover, that means I can keep this blog how I want it... my day to day struggles with game development (since, well, y'know... I AM disabled)
I also came up with a new game crossover, but there's no way I can make it due to legal junk. I was thinking of a crossover between Minecraft and Columns. Basically, You drop a vertical line of 3 crafting materials like in Columns. These match up into shapes to craft new items using the same recipe plans from Minecraft. As more complex things are crafted you begin to run out of space. Items like picks need to be built to destroy unneeded walls. Also, monsters attack at night. Zombies create a block in the grid that is unusable, Spiders create a 2x1 block that scales upward, Creepers blow up when you construct near them (for better or worse).
Of course, I'm sure there's no legal bizzy for copying the basic gameplay of Columns (there's dozens of clones of it out there) and I'm pretty sure using similar materials and patterns as Minecraft would be a non-issue.... but the charm would be from using official graphics and creatures which most certainly would be protected. However, since I have no interest in actually making this game I don't need to worry about it. If I was interested, I could always, y'know, ask the guy for permission.
Current Projects
Level design for my platformers. Decided I was over-thinking it and my perfectionism was getting in the way so I'm going simpler. I'm still at a bottleneck though, graphics. Sound can be added completely on a whim, but graphics require special attention to make sure they match up properly. Yes, I'm using placeholders... but it's time to swap them out. I desperately need a tutorial for this, or someone I can just pay to do it.
Other Projects
Almost nothing, but I am working on getting dialogue box "pausing" to work (there's a strange bug where when I freeze all events I can't get the box to keep messaging). I'm sure I'll figure it out.
Gaming
Mostly been vegging out on the couch playing Breath of Fire 2. I'm just not feelin' it. Also tried playing Borderlands some more. Cleaned out the latest Terraria patch in about two hours.
Other
I'm still just simply not feeling good. I'm told it might be depression, but I say people should shut up if they're just gonna label without fixing me.
Been playing a lot of bass guitar recently. Thinking of buying a new one (still.) Yes, I do things very slowly; That's just how I am. I have crippling task-aversion which is compounded by my schizoid/social phobias (not being able to get help from others). Even my family seem like strangers to me recently.
Also, my rapid unexplained weight loss seems to have stopped at a total of just under 40LB lost.
I need a life coach, or a girlfriend, or a boss, or something. I NEED to be commanded and I tell people (family/doctors/other) this. But people are so pro-independence that they won't give me what I need most.
By Your Command, Lok
Amendment:
So I was watching Extra Credits on The Escapist... the one about pre-production. Well, it pretty much nailed me. I'm stuck in pre-production and need to get to actual work. Just not sure how.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Tired.
Been having health problems all week, or even the last month or so, but they're just more noticeable now.
Didn't get any work or gaming or TV or anything done this week. Didn't eat or sleep much either.
I've been thinking of changing to a bi-monthly update, but decided against it since this blog is pretty much the only regular thing I even do anymore.
All that aside, I've been working hard in my head at least... when I get back to working I should be able to get much done.
I'm constantly getting new ideas for games; I hate dismissing them in favour of existing projects, but I MUST get something done.
Current Projects, Other Projects, Gaming
Nothing. Barely left my room even.
Other
Procrastination is still a huge issue for me, but at least I can say this week I simply didn't work because I didn't feel like it and not because of procrastination.
Probably, Lok
Didn't get any work or gaming or TV or anything done this week. Didn't eat or sleep much either.
I've been thinking of changing to a bi-monthly update, but decided against it since this blog is pretty much the only regular thing I even do anymore.
All that aside, I've been working hard in my head at least... when I get back to working I should be able to get much done.
I'm constantly getting new ideas for games; I hate dismissing them in favour of existing projects, but I MUST get something done.
Current Projects, Other Projects, Gaming
Nothing. Barely left my room even.
Other
Procrastination is still a huge issue for me, but at least I can say this week I simply didn't work because I didn't feel like it and not because of procrastination.
Probably, Lok
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