The GameDev Lounge 00000011

[Kitsu]

http://bit.ly/1CckCs9
Don't think I posted this before.
was a thing I was working on sometime last year, but then I couldn't see where to take it.
would have been a shmup/strategy mashup sort of
Game is mouse controlled, and has one mostly complete level.

[Mors]

[Koh]

I made a GameJolt page for that old version of World of Chaos DX Extended. Although this version is cancelled, you can still play what was the final release of the game, and show your support =).
http://gamejolt.com/dashboard/developer/...iew/48224/

[Natis]

I really didn't want to make a thread, because I didn't think it needed it, so I hope it's ok to post it in here. 
Some friends and I created a game called Flameborn: Shine that is a tie-in to a live stage performance we put on locally. The first version has released and I was just looking for some feedback to see what we could add to make it better. 

You can download it on the iPhone or an Android device. (If you are one your mobile device, clicking on whichever one you have should take you to the place you can download it)

Looking forward to see what everyone thinks!

[E-Man]

I'm not ready to have this game idea have its own thread, but I wanted to share it with you guys anyway. I haven't done much for it outside of formulating the basic game mechanics, but I'll consider posting concept art if I want to make this game a reality.

I got this idea from feeding ducks in a park close to where I live. It's a fun mini-game of sorts that offers at least four ways to play. I don't know if I'll make it a tablet game or try to put it into something like Mario Party. What you see below are my rough thoughts I copied from a small text file I made about the game, so I'm sorry if the way its written looks slightly different from how I usually write.

Quack Crumb Splash

Gamemode one - All the players are on the river bank and they are tossing breadcrumbs at ducks. The idea is that you either need to feed random ducks to score points or feed ducks that are your own color. Any crumbs you throw are edible to other ducks (including ones belonging to other players). Maybe I'll throw in bad ducks that steal points if they eat your bread? Also, I could have players throw bombs to kill the bad ducks and other player's ducks. This is a risk because the bomb can kill any duck, so the idea of losing points by killing your own ducks comes to mind.

Gamemode two - Only two players are on the river bank, while the other two are in the water dressed as ducks. Each of the two teams have a human and a duck player. The main idea is to toss breadcrumbs into the water to have your duck teammate eat it (although probably not really since eating wet bread from possibly filthy water is gross). The catch is that the duck player on the other team can also eat the breadcrumbs to gain points. On top of that, fish in the water can not only eat the crumbs, but also stun duck players by touching them. In other words, throw crumbs carefully to allow your teammate to "eat" them without hassle. The bombs could also be used to in this gamemode to stun player ducks (regardless of whether its  your own teammate or not) and the fish. Who knows? I might include the bad ducks and helpful NPC ducks to to make things interesting.

Gamemode three - It is similar to gamemode two, but only one player tosses bread. The idea of the bread tosser is to not have the duck players eat the bread. Since the bread tosser is forced to throw bread at set intervals, the idea is to throw the crumbs away from the playable ducks and have them get eaten by fishes. It is not easy because the duck players are able to stun the fishes this time around by swimming over them. To make it even more challenging, I'll use mean, swift fishes to eat crumbs and cost the bread tosser some points. Bombs, of course, make a return to hinder player ducks and maybe make sushi out of some fishes.

Gamemode four - This is just like gamemode one, but all the playable characters are in duck suits. The bread tosser is now an NPC who throws breadcrumbs everywhere and you need to catch them. As usual, bombs will be thrown among the breadcrumbs and they will stun the player ducks. I'm not sure if the fishes and NPC ducks will return since having some guy throw bread everywhere randomly in challenging enough.

[Gwen]

That feeling when you've got a game idea in the noggin but don't have the skills to make the assets or work with coding.

I've pretty much been writing down notes and I'm going to start working on a plot and other info.

[Silversea]

That feeling when you've got a game idea in the noggin but don't have the skills to make the assets or work with coding.

I've pretty much been writing down notes and I'm going to start working on a plot and other info.

You know what is worse? You get that idea then start it but it doesn't work out the way you want... *points at pile of 38 early game concepts*

[Bombshell93]

if anyone here knows javascript would you consider this a good practice for keeping clean code?

Code:

var myObjectType = new function() {
   //private static functions and variables
   var constructor = function() {
       //constructor stuff
   };
   constructor.prototype = new function() {
       //public static functions and variables
       //this functions
   };
    return constructor;
}

I can't think of any downside short of a slight cost in its creation, but ofc its only created once and it gives a lot more encapsulation control

[Bombshell93]

Sorry to double post but I need some thoughts on a game concept, I'm not making a thread just yet because I have little more than sketches and am unsure whether to go through with it.
Never the less, here is the concept, TL;DR at the bottom

---

Wisp

Gameplay Concept

an in browser action mmorpg, many skills levelled through non-combat means (resource gathering, crafting, enchanting and denominations thereof), activities all reward currency which can either be used on combat levels, goods and services or crafting. combat revolves around your races combat tree, which you gain points for via combat levels, up to a cap which can only be raised by combat activities (to stop players buying their way to mastery) movement inspired by the likes of spyro and ratchet and clank, open platforming but nothing too precise, just enough to give challenge where due.
this all seems fairly standard so let me get to the ambitious part; content is split between 5 stages of the game, Hub Planets, Dungeons, Space Traversal, Rogue Planets, Warzones. I'll speak more in detail of these concepts shortly, but first I'll mention another ambition, significant persistent world events, what I mean is events triggered by player interaction which have a persistent effect on the game world, such as solving a puzzle, using an artefact in a special way, planting a banner on a comet, etc. this will require plenty of content development, so I dont imagine it being an early part of the game.
The 5 stages of the game;
Hub Planets, typical mmo world, some passive areas, some aggressive areas, some shops, some inns, some resources and ofc a fast means to travel from place to place, primarily used to introduce players or to host social interaction.
Dungeons, dungeons can be found just about anywhere, they are private instances for anywhere from 5 to 20 player teams, story mechanic I'll explain later makes canonical revisiting a possibility.
Space Traversal, after a great deal of story quests and dungeons and confidence that the player may understand their surroundings they are given access to a special mount allowing space travel, this involves visiting comets for resources, anomaly encounters akin to a rail shooter, discovery of secrets. visiting other planets and eventually (very end game) claiming a homely rock of your own.
Rogue Planets, for lore reasons I will explain later, some planets are a constant danger, some even in constant battle, these planets equate to high risk high reward survival areas, possibly a task for groups for taking on rogue world bosses.
Warzones, warzones affect areas depending on what side the players decide to fight and or help, eventually when a warzone ends, a victor is picked and they dominate the area, be it a faction or a race, this may affect the services offered, the quests available, the aesthetic, or in time of content updates, the story.

Story Concept

First there was a creator god, it created time, in it was put space, in it was put a set of gods (the elder gods), they were given power without restraint, this was a mistake and in time the creator god put the elder gods to rest and make lesser gods (the new gods) who received portions of the elder gods power and the restraint, that to use their power was to give part of themselves in the form of magical entities called wisp.
Time passed, the new gods had crafted beings and worlds, competing for efficiency and proficiency, pitting them in games against each other in the spirit of "survival of the fittest", eventually these games became sour, the new gods bickered and formed rivalries, eventually damaging each others creations in ways which the wisp could not be recovered (pretty much killing the gods bit by bit), a small faction of new gods banded together, creating an array of wisp wells and a control well, conspiring to use these wells to suck all the gods dry of their power and leave all their creations to do with the wisp as they see fit. They succeeded.
More time has passed, many gods have been forgotten in name, some are greatly praised or scorned, the wells have been used to extraordinary feats and wisp are no studied by scholars seeking knowledge and tyrants seeking power, used in any manor of ways their craft has birthed new magics, new beings and even new figures nearing to godhood. Most notable of which the dragons, created to outlast time itself they have forgotten more about the gods than will ever be learned.
For the intro to the first major story arch, the pale dragon is missing, beings of his god are turning undead and spreading the plague to others, rumours of a cult "the Wisperers" are circling, the believe if they find the long lost control well, they can restore the gods to original glory, at the sacrifice of all wisp kind.

---

TL;DR?

I want to make a browser based MMO with looping maps for planets, space travel, warring planets, grand storylines and persistent effects to the world, content being based on exploration, action RPG combat, race / class based systems and resource / craft / augmentation skills. the story involves magic created by the bodies of dead gods, magical undead curses (ghosts, wraiths, banshees, liches not just zombies) and occult mystery.
Its stupidly ambitious and at the very least would be a technical achievement to get 1 world running, would it be worth me trying? or should I just make something stupidly simple?... feel like I'm answering my own question

thanks to anyone reading, let me know any thoughts, I'll probably attempt this even if I just wind up making chat and some running characters.

[Daxar]

Its stupidly ambitious and at the very least would be a technical achievement to get 1 world running, would it be worth me trying? or should I just make something stupidly simple?... feel like I'm answering my own question

It's a common game development trap to expand upon an idea TOO much and to start a project that has far too big of a scope. I think it may be due in part to just how many MMOs and open world games are out on the market currently; it makes indies fall into the trap of thinking they can do this sort of thing, without realizing these companies have giant teams of hundreds of people working overtime for years in order to make each game. And that's using a lot of technology the company already has built or licensed from other companies! Unless you'll have a team of that size, and will be able to put that much time and effort into it yourself, there's a massive scope problem.

That's not saying it's a bad game idea; it's not. Implemented correctly the idea is great. Therein lies the problem: Anybody can come up with great ideas for games. Good game design is knowing your budget and scope, and being able to effectively communicate these ideas you have in a way that your team is excited to build their part of the game. Or, if you're going an indie route, knowing how to build each part of the game yourself, knowing how to limit your scope properly, and knowing when to keep polishing your game and when to stop.

I guess I'm becoming more of a killjoy as the years go on when it comes to game design, but I feel there's honestly too little realism that goes on when it comes to indie games (and games in general), and I feel like too many people are jumping in on the bandwagon without sitting back and thinking at length about important things like scope, budget, etc. first.

That's not to say that everything you make has to be stupidly simple if you're working by yourself, but I've found in my own game design endeavors that I've learned a whole lot more from making tiny projects (like a 2048 clone that I decided to add all sorts of crazy tech to) than from all my other countless game ideas I started programming and stopped midway through because I ran out of steam (like an ambitious space RPG/exploration game idea that I'd still REALLY like to make, but jumped in too early without figuring out where I was going with it first).

[Bombshell93]

Sorry but you misunderstand, I'm not unsure of my ability to do it, nor am I novice to the concept of attempting big or achieving small, its not a matter of budget nor scope, I'm essentially wondering whether to make something along side my up and coming 3 years of university (which something of stupid scope like an MMO would lend itself to) or should I instead make something small, as a means of finishing a project (something I've had troubles doing)
I'm torn between the 2, but being rational I should go for the small project, perhaps I can make something to help me through uni.

[Kitsu]

If you're confident you can complete a long project, then go for the long one.
If you're unsure, I'd suggest doing smaller projects, probably 1 per year (or, if you're really shaky, maybe 1 per half-year)

Alternatively, you can use an agile methodology so you can develop a longer project in chunks at a time, so you can drop the project at any time and still consider it done.

[puggsoy]

University has been taking up a lot of time for me, I'm barely able to work consistently on personal projects with all the work I get (granted I'm doing a BE(Hons) which is known to be full-on but even so).

I think a huge project would maybe prove too overwhelming. Something like one decent-sized (but not gigantic) project a year, as Kitsu suggested, is probably more feasible. Especially if you haven't actually completed a fairly-sized project before, it's good to have some stuff under your belt, if only to look back on for motivation later on when the going gets tough.
I personally tried to make a good-sized mobile game, even with a team, and although we got fairly far my time was really constrained. Right now we've put it on halt and decided to aim for something smaller instead, to actually get something done, and it's something I'm able to work on in chunks whenever I have free time, rather than something larger in which I would probably need to focus on consistently.

That's just what I'd recommend if you're unsure about the workload. If you know that you'll have a heap of free time then you can still go for the long project if you think it's not too much to handle.

[Bombshell93]

I'm doing BA(Hons) Game Design, took the course with intention of learning team and planning skills and while I'm there build up a respectable game dev portfolio, but to be honest my primary concern is money, while my student loan covers travel and some living expenses I've no job to pay keep (I'm living with my parents as is, plan was to move out for uni, but my job went south and laid off over 100 people myself included and all thoughts of independent living became trash)
My thought is if I make some small projects and one of them shines through, I'll work on that project to release for profit, at the very least it'll mean I can pay my parents what they deserve, at best I could be putting money away to move out.
I feel like personal need is twisting my means of game development, but then again, nothing exists in a vaccum, and need is need.

[TheShyGuy]

How to draw sprites using a palette in GM Studio:

Vertex Shader

//
// Simple passthrough vertex shader
//
attribute vec3 in_Position;                  // (x,y,z)
//attribute vec3 in_Normal;                  // (x,y,z)     unused in this shader.
attribute vec4 in_Colour;                    // (r,g,b,a)
attribute vec2 in_TextureCoord;              // (u,v)

varying vec2 v_vTexcoord;
varying vec4 v_vColour;

void main()
{
 vec4 object_space_pos = vec4( in_Position.x, in_Position.y, in_Position.z, 1.0);
 gl_Position = gm_Matrices[MATRIX_WORLD_VIEW_PROJECTION] * object_space_pos;
 
 v_vColour = in_Colour;
 v_vTexcoord = in_TextureCoord;
}

Fragment or pixel Shader

// Simple passthrough fragment shader
//
varying vec2 v_vTexcoord;
varying vec4 v_vColour;

uniform sampler2D Palette;

//size of palette image, in pixels.
uniform vec2 PaletteImageSize;

void main()
{

//Use 255 if not intel.
//texture2D() returns colors in range [0,1].  Put them back into the range[0,255],
//where the value refers to the exact pixel X,Y.
vec4 indexPixel = texture2D( gm_BaseTexture, v_vTexcoord) * vec4(256);

//Comment out these conditionals if not intel.
if(indexPixel.r >= 128.0)indexPixel.r--;
if(indexPixel.g >= 128.0)indexPixel.g--;
if(indexPixel.b >= 128.0)indexPixel.b--;
if(indexPixel.a >= 128.0)indexPixel.a--;

 //convert the pixel coords into UV coords in the range [0,1],
 // as expected by texture2D()
 vec2 paletteCoords = vec2(indexPixel.x,indexPixel.y) / PaletteImageSize;
 
 //issue: gamemaker stores all images into a "Texture page",
 //thus, the above coords are incorrect.
 //fix: externally loaded palette images
 gl_FragColor =  texture2D( Palette, paletteCoords);
}

Notes:

"uniform sampler2D Palette" refer to a sampler texture that is an externally loaded sprites since GM will auto batch sprites into a "Texture Page". When that happens, GM will change the UV coords to something unexpected. But, I need to know the exact UV coords of the palette image, so instead I externally load them to reserve the original UV coords.

The drawn sprite (gm_BaseTexture) is an indexed sprite, where each pixel's color.r (indexPixel.x) refers to the x coordinate of the correct color within the palette (domain [0,255]) and color.g (indexPixel.y) refers to the y coordinate of the correct color within the palette (domain [0,255]).

___

I'm just typing this up for other people and for my own reference. If you ever move to GM Studio or any other graphics library (OpenGL, Direct X), you can still refer to the above to draw sprites with arbitrary palettes.

Gors Edit: parts of the code were being rendered as smilies. I disabled smilies in this post.