Leadwerks

Between class and work I've been bogged down with no free time to speak of over the past several weeks, but I haven't been idle. In that time, Gabriel Strife, a classmate of mine, started Team Playground, a small group of programmers, 3D modelers and assorted others to work on potentially-commercial games using the Leadwerks Engine, which we currently have one license for. The team consists of Gabe as the manager, myself as lead programmer with Dom as the only other dedicated programmer, Rob and Ernest on concepts and misc. tasks, Mike Sovey on 3D Modeling, Adam as a 2D/Concept artist and Tom working with the Leadwerks Sandbox and mapping. We have so far been meeting every Tuesday morning, and have made little progress so far beyond setting up the engine and getting the idea for the game down.

The first project we will be taking on will be called Shadowcast. The concept so far involves the main character, Nick Shadow, who was a member of a world-operating secret orginazation who has just recenlty died. To save yourself from some form of horrible damnation, you return as a shadow with the intention of convincing your fellow world-ruling madmen to abandon their evil ways in favor of a more peaceful, less evil world. Gameplay will consist of hiding in shadows (as light will damage you) and taking temporary control of caporial beings to be able to manipulate the physical world. Sounds a lot like Geist, but I believe it will be an interesting game to program, and hopefully fun to play.

In other news, since the new semester our progress on The Advenctures of Ace Detective Guy has grinded to a resounding halt. The engine is almost done, and there isn't really a lot of difficult work after that, but we don't currently have a decent time for all of us to meet, and it's made progress slow. Hopefully after the Christmas break we'll be able to get more done.

The Adventures of Ace Detective Guy

Sorry it's been so long since the last update, I've been pretty busy and haven't gotten a lot done on any project for a while. Now, however, I have sufficient progress to post about.

Mike Sovey and I have started a point-and-click adventure game projects, The Adventures of Ace Detective Guy, with a few others we found at DeVry and a good friend of mine Scott Lowe. The project is being done in C++, using SDL for graphics, sounds, input and drawing text. It has been three weeks since our initial meeting, and we are hoping to have a demo of the engine working by next Friday the 10th (a bit ambitious, but everyone decided it was possible). Here is a picture of the team:

Just in case you couldn't tell, that picutre was never taken, horrible photochop by me. Here are the team members depicted, from left to right: Spencer, Trae, Myself, Mike Sovey, Skitch. Not in the picture: Jawara (I somehow didn't get a picture of him). The room we are in in that pciture is the GSP Studio (Alienware Lab) at DeVry, which is a perfect place for a team to meet and work.

I will attempt to keep this updated as to our progress, and possibly post the demo when it becomes avialable. The project is open-source and will be released under the GLP, and has a board on the Awe+ Forums.

It's Been a Busy Month

To explain a recent lack of updates: In the past month or so I've moved, gotten a job, went to New Jersey and had people visit me here in VA. There's been a lot going on and I haven't had a chance to keep things up to date on here. So let's catch up, shall we?

Tridel Games has contacted me asking for my assistance in a total conversion mod they're doing for UT3, and so I've been working with them on that. OddMods has been more active, but there's been little by way of progress on projects, and most of my personal projects have been neglected for a while. Hopefully things will start slowing down and I'll have a chance to get back to work on things soon.

OddMods Return

I checked the OddMods Forum the other day, not really expecting to find anything new as it had been dead for quite a while, and to my surprise I see a post in the Schedule/Management section. Turns out Sean attempted to rally the team again so we could get back to work, and it appears to be working. I am quite excited, as I was already learning the new UnrealScript to possibly work on a Total Conversion with Tridel Games LLC (I was asked to join them in an email I recieved last week). It looks like I will end up doing work on Unreal Tournament 3 after all.

Havok

I found out a little while ago that the Havok Physics Engine is available for free download and use for non-commercial games. Which is excellent, so I downloaded a copy for myself and was starting reading the included documentation. I'll tell you, it's impressive. So, expect some updates about me working with it.

As for Asteroids, my progress has been halted by a baffling inability to get the SDL addons to work, namely SDL Mixer and SDL TTF. I must be doing something wrong with the installation, but I can't tell what. I am going to seek some help with it, and hopefully I will get it down soon and be able to finish it up. I added a particle system for explosion effects when the asteroids or the player is destroyed, and the high score table is fully functional. The only thing I really need now is sound and on-screen text.

Asteroids Clone Progress

I've made a good deal of progress on my C++ and SDL based clone of Asteroids. A friend of mine, Mike Sovey, saw the prototype I had online and sent me a copy of the game with graphics he made already implemented, and when I opened it I was very "wowed" for quite a bit. Since then I've been working on finishing it up, and presently I have a high score table working in code (no display) and momentum, as well as a series of other tweaks and add-ons to the original. Click somewhere in this sentence to download the latest build. Please tell me what you think of it, I'm anxious to get some feedback. Finished game should be done by Wednesday, so keep an eye out for it.

Asteroids Clone & Other Progress

I woke up yesterday with a single thought in my mind: start and finish a new project. As I continued thinking about it, I decided on Asteroids, the lovable 2D space shooter from 1979, in native C++ with SDL. Sure enough, I sat down at 10:00 am and began work, and by 7:00 pm I had the game coded and horribly in need of debugging. After spending almost the entire day working out the kinks in my LinkedList (first one I wrote in C++) and getting the game flow under control, I am left with a working model of Asteroids, which you may try out by clicking these words. The graphics are all simple circles made in MS Paint and the direction the player is facing isn't yet apparent, but those are simply aesthetics. The gameplay works fine, possibly in need of a bit of fine-tuning, and to that end I've finished my first game in C++ in 2 days. I'm very happy with it so far, and I hope to add sound and better graphics, possibly a high-score table of sorts and the like into the game, but those are all details. As I said, I'm quite happy I was able to accomplish this in only one weekend.

Aside from that, our meetings to finish Breakout were rescheduled for various reasons, and probably won't take place until this upcoming weekend at the soonest. With any luck we will be able to sit down on Saturday and finish the game up though.

I've also made some progress on my site, everything from changing a few of the aesthetic details to adding a PHP form for sending me emails, and one for updating my Projects Page (which needs a password, of course). The only thing I absolutely need to finish at this point is the Portfolio Page, which is both challenging in concept and code. I have a draft of what the portfolio will look like, but nothing finalized yet. Hopefully I'll be able to finish it soon and more on to learning the AJAX necessary to get the page to work the way I have it planned. Keep checking the site for frequent updates, because I still haven't decided what to do with the main page either.

Website & BreakoutClone

I have been continuing work on my site, and I think it's coming along fairly well. I've had some trouble getting a variety of feedback though, so if you would like to check it out and comment here about what you think, the site is at DorthuGames.com. At present the Projects page and the About page resemble what they will upon completion, but both require more content to be truly finished. Mostly I'd like to know what you think of the style sheet and the general appearance of the site. I do appreciate and take into consideration all feedback, so please don't be shy.

In addition, tomorrow I am meeting with Mike Sovey, Steve Louridas and Richard Bell to finish the BreakoutClone game we began in C++ a few weeks ago. I believe that we should have no trouble completing it, so expect to see it online soon. Finishing a project is always exciting, especially this time since none of us have ever compiled all of the source code all at once. Hopefully everything goes smoothly.

PHP, CSS and XML

A good friend of mine and excellent programmer, Scott Lowe, gave me a crash course in modern web development, so I am finally redoing my site using modern techniques and kicking the old IFrame (which was the cutting edge back when I first learned HTML). After his instruction I had no problem understanding how PHP and CSS work, so progress is coming quickly. Hopefully the site will be finished before too long and I can get on with my other projects. My new site, however, will have an extensive portfolio section in addition to a projects section, the portfolio section will be geared towards industry professionals looking to hire me where as the projects page will be a list of downloads for games I've made. Anyway, keep an eye out for it.

Newton's Nightmare - 2.03

I know I'm flying through the versions quickly, but I have added a tutorial level. I intend to remedy my other observed problems in a slightly later release. Click these words to download the latest build. Don't be surprised if I don't post for any minor updates.

Newton's Nightmare - Reception

Today we presented the games we made in our GSP240 class in an open-house environment, allowing people from outside of the class to come in and play the games and allowing us to see each other's finished products. Through observing the people who were playing Newton's Nightmare, I took the following notes:

>It took a good deal longer for players to firmly grasp the concepts of the game, making me think that the learning curve is set too high. An introductory level may be advised.

>Although the music was frequently complimented and does suit the game, the inclusion of sound effects would be beneficial. Consider this.

>Players who understood the concepts still took time to master them. This is another point towards a bad learning curve.

>Players who took interest in the unique idea of the game seemed to progress much further, allowing for more gameplay and enjoyment. One woman requested the site from which to download the game.

>Name entry was not put in the most reasonable form. Letters should not require ENTER be pressed between them.

>Overall reception was good. Game should be more complete with the addition of a solid intro level.

From this information, I am considering modifying the game slightly yet again by adding an introductory level which will be played automatically the first time the game is started and presenting the player a brief tutorial of how the game works and the concepts of it. There are a few other tweaks I intend to make as well. However, for the most part the game is good, and if you'd like to download the current copy, you can here.

Newton's Nightmare - Release

Newton's Nightmare v2 - Release is now ready. The game is finished this time, with the addition of a game mode, a main menu, scoring system and music. Click this sentence to download it. Please take the time to view the Readme.txt for licensing information, as this game has been released under a Creative Commons license (mostly for the purpose of using the music). Speaking of, all music was found on Newgrounds.com, and a complete audio credits can be found on the main menu and in the Readme.txt file. Please leave any feedback on the game here or email me.

Newton's Nightmare Release & Exploration

I have placed an official release date on Newton's Nightmare; April 23rd, by 5 pm. I will, by then, have the game finished and a link online. Please check back at that time for the finished version.

In other news, I finished the exploration game for my GSP240 class. It turned out alright, or at least that's what everyone else says. I think it's my least-inspires most hammer-out work yet. I don't like it or what it represents. It presented few challenges during development and its story is insignificant. The gameplay is somewhat buggy and it has few redeeming factors. If I thought it could go somewhere I would finish it, but I don't think it can. It will not be released.

Newton's Nightmare Progress

I have been working on Newton's Nightmare, and it is almost done. Hopefully soon I will be able to publicly release it; about all I have left is the menu screen. I am happy with how it turned out, as I think it is an interesting concept and I think it is decently well-executed. I still get the feeling that it could be expended upon somehow, so if anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them.

On another note, the exploration-based game for my 240 class turned out to be a point-and-click adventure around pictures of my apartment. The objective is to leave and get to class, and before then you have to find an assortment of things, including books, air freshener and breakfast. I don't plan to release this one online, mostly because it was put together quickly and I feel it is not of my highest caliber work.

Breakout Clone Progress

As planned, a group consisting of Richard Bell, Mike Sovey and Steve Louridas met with me to begin programming a breakout clone in native C++. Unfortunately the meeting was delayed by one day and so took place yesterday instead of Sunday because of scheduling issues, but when we met progress was excellent. We began with a discussion of what needed to be done, and I asked who wanted to do what. Rob seemed to have a general idea of how collision detection worked, so he took that portion of it (I believe it was the most difficult part of the project) while Sovey took the hierarchy of Collidable classes (including the paddle and blocks) and Steve took the rest of the Game class (which controls how the game actually runs). In all we finished more than half of what needed to be done, and I am excited to say that everyone present showed either some talent or motivation towards programming, which made me very happy. Hopefully they will realize how doable this kind of thing is and join the Awe+ Team to work on our engine.

In other news, I have come up with an idea of what kind of exploration game I will do for my GSP240 class; I was thinking of doing something in the style of the Submachine series on Newgrounds. It seems easy enough to do while at the same time being of at least good quality. To be honest I don't think it will be much, mostly because I only have 1 week left to do it in and I am not feeling too well at present. Hopefully it will be presentable though.

Breakout Clone

Tomorrow or Monday I plan to gather a group of 4-5 programmers together to work on a breakout clone. The intention here is to educate them in the game-related areas of C++ and build up their confidence so that they will feel less intimidated by larger projects, mainly the Awe+ Engine. Alright, I admit, it is sort of a recruitment thing, but I think it will work, or at least if nothing else teach them some things they need to know anyway. The truth of it all is, we haven't actually had any game programming assignments at DeVry yet; our programming classes have taught us some C++ and our game design classes have taught us the business end of games. I think it will be good for everyone involved.

Newton's Nightmare & Exploration

I have finished version 1 of "Newton's Nightmare," my gravity game for my GSP240 class. I am not particularly happy with it, but it will do for my class. If I choose to use this game at the expo at the end of this class, and I think I will, then I will add a better menu, better levels, and more sound effects. If you would like to see it, click here. The games have been shared with the class, and it seems that they took to mine well; many vowed to beat the last level (it has yet to be beaten all in one run).

In addition to this, the second game has been assigned: a game focusing on exploration. This will no doubt be very different from the first one, and I think it will be challenging to come up with something original for this one. I will post my progress soon.

Gravity Game - More Progress

After attending my GSP240 class, I have made a decision on which prototype I am going to sculpt into my final gravity game. I have decided to go with the game where you can turn the room and walk on the walls. While the game does not appear to have strange gravity, what is really happening is that the direction of gravity changes and the camera turns to make it appear as though you are still on the ground. I am currently developing levels and considering a graphical scheme. I will post some screenshots when I have more done, and the game should be online soon.

Gravity Game Progress

I have been working steadily on the gravity game for my GSP240 class, and I have boiled it down to 2 ideas which I have made into working prototypes: A game in which you can turn the room left or right 90 degrees at a time and have to navigate and avoid obstacles to reach a goal, and a game in which you control a circle which moves around the outside of larger circles, and can jump from one to another. Both of these prototypes work well, and I am at the point where I need to make a decision and add graphics and whatnot before continuing. I am going to wait for tomorrow to see what my classmates came up with, and based on that make my decision; if someone else did something similar to one, I will do the other. I don't want to appear as though I'm copying anyone else after all.

Gravity

Well, it seems I should have waited for my GSP240 Game Maker assignment to be posted before starting on it, because it is somewhat specific. It requires me to make a game which uses strange gravity, specifically a main gravity effect which does not point downward. I am playing with the idea of making a game where the center point of the screen is the point of gravity or something. I plan to start on it soon. It will be due in 2 weeks, so look for something gimmicky from me in that time. On the bad side of it, I will be postponing The Adventures of Fungilad until a later time when this project is finished. We will be required 2 more games, so I may finish it for one of those assignments. We shall see.

The Adventures of Fungilad

Although I am not entirely clear on the specifics of the assignment yet, I have begun work on a Game Maker game required for my GSP240 class, which will be remaking a game I made a long while ago; The Adventures of Fungilad. I chose to redo this game because it was the first and only time I made graphics myself for a game, usually I have someone else do them or else use sprite sheets and other premade resources. I will be posting sheets of my original sprites soon, and the game itself will be required to be finished in 2 weeks, so I can guarantee it by then. It will be an attempt to combine simple storytelling with some character development and comedy, so it should be of interest. Check back for more updates soon!

Finally got the Blog online

Not that it was a particularly hard feat, but it warrants a mention. Setting up a blog is one of the things I am doing to update and improve my site, hopefully making it look more professional and better with CSS. The blog bit is being added to replace what I had been doing with my main page, that being using it to keep a record of all of my updates. I feel this will be both easier and more convenient for me, which may encourage me to update it more. So lets kick things off, shall we?

For starters, I am one of the original developers in a large-scale project, the Awe+ Engine, who's site it listed on the "Links" menu, but I will put it here as well: AwesumGames.com. The site isn't much at present, but hopefully soon it will take off and become a thriving community. The Awe+ Engine, which is the project, is a currently in-development, cross platform, expandable, open sourced 2D Game Engine which is being produced by Awe+ Games right now! The engine will utilize SDL and OpenGL for their cross-platform abilities, and we are looking into OpenAL at present. For more specific (and probably recent) information, check out wiki.awesumgames.com.

I am in the process of building a map for Unreal Tournament 3, REMansion, which I am using as a way to learn the basics of the new UnrealEd. It is the layout of most of the mansion from the remake of Resident Evil, with come areas removed to improve gameplay. This map will hopefully be finished soon!

I am also working on a Portal map, although I admit it has been some time since I last worked on it. Coming up with creative and original puzzles is quite difficult, and that is pretty much the part I am stuck on right now. With some luck I will be inspired with crazy, not-impossible puzzle ideas soon, and have the map completed shortly.

Another project I have been neglecting, but intend to finish, is Fate's Compromise, a game I was required to make in Game Maker for my first Game and Simulation class at DeVry. This assignment was to produce a game from High Concept to GDD to Product, and I have almost done just that. The game features four massive levels, an in-depth plot, and real voice acting! The only things that need to be done are fixing minor bugs and adding background music.

And finally, I am working on finishing a game made entirely in C++ and SDL, Connect4, with a friend Tom Jordan. The game works, and we only need to tweak the graphics and add end-game behavior before it is complete. I hope to have it online soon. We then plan to make a more complicated game, such as a Tetris or Breakout clone using C++ and SDL.

Well, I guess I wrote a lot more than I intended, but that is about where I am at the moment. With any luck the site will be finished within the month and I will have it online with an improved portfolio and a regular downloads page. Thanks for checking in, I will post new updates shortly.

~Dorthu