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TIGSource ForumsCommunityDevLogsDeep Sea Descent (Trailer)
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Triplefox
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« Reply #20 on: December 20, 2009, 11:12:44 AM »

I will be putting up a build later today. For the moment though, I would like to point out Flash being stupid again:

Code:
var gradmatrix = new flash.geom.Matrix();
gradmatrix.createGradientBox(m.shape.w,m.shape.h,0,0,0);

g.beginGradientFill(flash.display.GradientType.RADIAL, m.colors, alphas, m.proportions, gradmatrix,flash.display.SpreadMethod.PAD);
g.drawEllipse(0,0,m.shape.w,m.shape.h);
g.endFill();

// workaround: flash is allergic to drawing radial gradients with x/y above ~2500.
// therefore, I make a bitmap and draw that :P

var bd = new flash.display.BitmapData(Std.int(shape.width),Std.int(shape.height),true,0x00000000);
var matrix = new Matrix();
bd.draw(shape, matrix, null, flash.display.BlendMode.ADD);

var matrix = new Matrix();
matrix.rotate(m.r * 0.0174532925);
matrix.translate(m.x-m.shape.w/2.,m.y-m.shape.h/2.);
surf.draw(bd, matrix, null, flash.display.BlendMode.LIGHTEN);

The >2500 bug was making the halos of my lights not show up when they were placed at the bottom of the map. I feel fortunate that that was actually fixable. Wizard
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« Reply #21 on: December 20, 2009, 01:02:03 PM »

Code:
FOURTH PLAYABLE(14th-20th)

14th:
    Colorize rocks
        First pass (quick 2d edits) # DONE
    Darken background rocks # DONE
    Normalize Manta to 20 degrees # DONE
    Brighten Manta # DONE
    Model "Trilobite" for drone # DONE
    Start making a SQLite schema (buzhug is getting toooo slow) # DONE
    Plan fish effects: Entities that move randomly, active only when in camera view, swim away when encountering other entities
        Create fish sprites # DONE
    Particle effect: Bubbles
        Create bubble sprite # DONE
    Research procedural generation of metallic background art # DONE
    Lighting/20-degree-angle pass on "Demon" # DONE
    Brighten Demon # DONE
    New "Hunter" concept: bow+arrow
15th:
    Add lighting effects
        Prototype # DONE
        Finalize lighting/mist engine(ellipsoid and trapezoid shapes, three-pass system: mist, lights, halos) # DONE
    buzhug->SQL exporter
        Create tables # DONE
        Insert data # DONE
    Implement demo recording and playback features
        Proof-of-concept # DONE
        User UI # DONE
    Add drone "dash" ability # DONE
    Ramming enemies no longer spawns health # DONE
16th:
    Lighting:
        Add lighting entities # DONE
        Test from tool # DONE
    Demos:
        Add mouse recording to handle menu inputs correctly...
            # CUT. I tried, but the menu system just wasn't designed for this and I made using menus gameplay-critical; in addition there are some problems with an extra frame recorded/dropped at the ends that I'd have to sort out.
            # If I get time, maybe after shipping, I could probably go back, rip up a whole lot of stuff and make the whole game recordable. As-is, there are too many glitches and oddities.
                    I'll keep the "Playback" menu option in for this release, so that you can see for yourself how inconsistent it is sometimes.
    tool optimization
        bottleneck identified: buzhug reads fast but has *very* slow updates. Moving all image caching outside of buzhug is therefore a sound move.... # DONE
        and I should move to SQLite ASAP, it will make the tool more responsive.
    Revert to one-color rocks (will use lighting to vary scenes instead) # DONE
    Considered adding a complete dialogue skip # REJECTED. A + S advances the dialogue fast enough, any more and it would really compromise the point of having dialogue.
    Colored player shots green # DONE
17th:
    buzhug->SQLite port # DONE
        SQL->Game export # DONE
            Flatten:
                Textdata # DONE
                Scenes
                    Tiles # DONE
                    Stamps # DONE
                    Entities # DONE
                    Targets # DONE
            Write output # DONE
           
            add explicit background/foreground support to engine # DONE
           
        convert hscene, db, hsprite to SQLite # DONE
        persist sqlite instead of buzhug # DONE
    Add environment collision for more than one tile type # DONE
    Add blurring to lights # DONE
18th:
    Invert the behavior of items following drone (should fix a rare bug) # DONE
    Targets do not export correctly. # FIXED
    Change chain behavior to use a timer # AWESOME
    Add weaponry menu, bury system options in a submenu # DONE
        Three shot patterns: Straight, curve up, curve down # DONE
        Add HUD indicators for the curve shots # DONE
    Make enemy shots smaller # DONE
    Add glow to halos # DONE
    Prototype procedural metal background textures # DONE
    Investigate FGL's tracking API # DONE
        Added implementation hooks # DONE
        Test # DONE
19th:
    Fixed an issue with collision detection of large rectangles caused by overeager culling
    Add tutorial messages # DONE
        Text centered on stage, timer # DONE
        Locational messages # DONE
            Substitute keybinding infos # DONE
        Dialogue messages # CUT
        Implement some tutorialization # DONE
    Add mission score and scoring # DONE
    Add mission timer # DONE
        Timer toggle # DONE
    FPS toggle # DONE
    POC tally screen # DONE
        Transition # DONE
    Locked down final manta sprite
    Fill out E1M1's lighting # DONE
    Travel home # DONE
20th:
    release limiting for menu button presses (so fast-forwarding dialogue doesn't cause accidental menu opening) # DONE
    Design "C" model
        Head # DONE
        Body
    Create a better "entrance" sprite # CUT, I'm just going to play with lighting for now
    Improve procedural textures # unsatisfied, still, but DONE for now
    Tally stats display # DONE
    Lighting fixes # DONE
    Render iterated music # DONE
    Tune sound quality (smaller filesize) # DONE
    Release
    Create turbulent explosion fireballs as well as the round one   
    Start prep for FC2010 demo
    e1m2 empty layout
    e1m2 populated

I iterated over the music. Tell me "better" or "worse."

I really, really don't like how those procedural metal bits look at the moment. The basic flat shading doesn't sit well in the environment, even after adding a bevel filter.... so I will probably end up rendering assets for them.

The demo recording stuff will go away after this build as a result of sync bugs that I'm not going to fix. Enjoy it while you can.
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« Reply #22 on: December 20, 2009, 07:38:07 PM »

This looks interesting.  Somewhat reminded me of Solar Jetman for the NES. I loved the gfx for the health station and the switch Smiley. Programmer art in all its glory.

One thing, which seemed a little off to me was choosing shooting directions from the menu. Personally I'd rather have dedicated keys for that (or maybe a mouse-aim sort of thing ?).
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« Reply #23 on: December 20, 2009, 09:06:21 PM »

Yes, the directional shooting is kind of an experiment. I'll probably add a button to toggle the three modes without a menu. I might also do something to make the menu look more "in-game" and not like the other options screens - an inobtrusive toaster pop with icons in the corner of the screen, for example. Those two things would make it almost identical to the weapon select interface of, say, Cave Story.

Other options to consider, and problems I see with them:

A dedicated fire button for each screws up the HUD effect for the diagonals
Dedicated buttons to select each sounds unnecessary
Mouse aim is kind of troublesome too because shots have different x/y acceleration to get the curve effect. I'd have to change the acceleration, or at the least, keep the HUD effect on continuously so that firing is "readable."

Mouse is an interesting idea, though. I might be able to use that too, for a completely different ability...for example, a missile that you launch, that tracks the mouse......I'd probably have to limit ammo or it would be too easy to exploit of course.

I did a shmup prototype years ago that was 100% mouse - the UI let you toggle between moving and firing straight ahead, or shooting tracking missiles. The main problem with that one was that it was very rigid and sensitive to level design - either you could hide in a corner and just shoot missiles, or you had to maneuver too much to ever be able to use missiles. For this game the combat is already very "designed" with unique paths for every single enemy in the game, and the main trouble with that is that it takes effort to make dozens of different paths for enemies to follow - the creativity dies when you just end up repeating the same things in your design. The angle shots are a way to make the combat scenarios more lively and varied, and missiles would do the same. Oh! And I could have the drone be able to plant explosives and you set them off with the missile. Hmmmmm.....the main issue with any mouse control, then, is that it makes the game less "gamepaddable." But since it's a Flash game, mouse+keyboard is kind of taken for granted.

While I have a tendency to start my gameplay off as a skill exercise, I'm discovering that in this game, I've added so many variables - positioning, weaponry, sequencing, drones - that it's blown far past the point where you can hope to figure out an optimal path. It's become "Whee! Shooting! Exploring! Points!" Hand Any Key Smiley Hand Joystick So I might as well keep going in that direction. All this and I have a story too, I just haven't gotten to really implementing it because I need to draw up all the characters. But that's okay because I keep changing what the story is about! At this point, it's become so dense that I probably need to simplify it or we'll be drowning in expository dialogue.

My next release is planned for Dec 25th, Christmas Day. I want to make two additional scenes, some final dialogue, some art assets, and now these ideas for menus and a missile. I will probably have to cut one for the sprint, and I skimped on the art last sprint to do lighting/angle shots/tool optimization. But having the missle will motivate the design of the new scenes, so I'll probably do both. That leaves the dialogue out to dry. It can wait until the New Year's build. Then I will have one month to finish another seven scenes and add finishing touches Epileptic
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« Reply #24 on: December 25, 2009, 07:55:40 AM »

Code:
CHRISTMAS BUILD (21st-25th)

20th:
    Start prep for FC2010 demo # DONE
    Change turrets to "flat" look instead of "perspective" for each facing, this will make them sit on the background better.
        Model new turret # DONE
        Render # DONE
        Integrate # DONE...but the lighting looks a bit off
    Render + integrate trilobite # DONE
    Tested stamps for procedural metal # DONE
    "C" Body # DONE
    Remove recording functionality # DONE
21st:
    "C" Pose/Render # DONE
    Iteration over "C" and "K" head models (wasn't happy with quality yet) # DONE
    Create stamps for procedural metal # DONE
        Model # DONE
        Render # DONE
        Integrate # DONE
    Investigated alternative enemy movement patterns # DONE
        Added stop-start movements # DONE
    Create new ingame menu
        menu models # DONE
        imported to blender # DONE
    Explosion research: Painted technique in GIMP. Solid noise for each frame, gradient map with "German Flag Smooth" gradient, erase around edges, 2nd pass add darks with fuzzy brush, 3rd pass add highlights
    Add weapon cycling key # DONE
22nd:
    New story setting: post-apocalyptic. # DONE
    Lower shininess of door # DONE
    new ingame menu look+feel
        renders # DONE
        integration
            Draw on screen, normalize sizing # DONE
    Start a release checklist # DONE
    Iterate over procedural metal program
        Reboot algorithm from "uniform" tiles # DONE
        Create variations # DONE
    Lower shininess of turrets # DONE
    Start second music track # DONE
    Work on e1m2
        Translate leftover bits of buzhug code to add a new scene # DONE
        Add stamps, tiles # DONE
        Add basic lighting # DONE
        Create a spiral-shooting turret # DONE
        Readd level select # DONE
    Write e1m1's "shipping" dialogue # DONE
23rd:
    Make enemy health bonus accumulate like mario's coins for an instant full-health (this puts more emphasis on strategies to avoid damage, right now it's too easy to ignore getting hurt if you shoot well) # DONE
    New menu code, first pass # DONE (for Manta only)
    Create menu for Trilobite # DONE
    Door preserves collision tiles (instead of destroying it forever and leaving gaps) # DONE
    Implement the e1m1 dialogue # DONE
    Added guided shot # DONE
    Create switch model # DONE
    Fixed an issue with collision on shots + enemies # DONE
    Plans for e1m2 design # DONE
    Research repair station model ideas # DONE
    Tally tickup effect # DONE
    Indulged in future tools research:
        The future UI is in the browser. Reason: Browsers are portable. Browsers now have extensive UI libraries. Browsers are user-extensible. WebGL will support rich graphics and the major vendors are all behind it.
        However, WebGL is in its early stages yet. For the next six months, approximately, it will be more prudent to combine a HTML/CSS UI with either 2D Canvas, Flash, or an external app. At that point I can reevaluate.
24th:
    Model "Bow+Arrow" Hunter # DONE
    Model cryonic capsule # DONE
    Extend tutorials # DONE
    Make the turrets be "background" sprites # DONE
    Research "IL Harmless" VSTi # DONE (Will probably purchase)
    Add basic black screen for loading # DONE
    Started on a browser-based control panel for project management to alleviate hundreds of scripts and folders open all over the place # DONE
    Add indicator for tracking mode # DONE
25th:
    a little bit of e1m2 gameplay # DONE
    issue with tutorials not showing $TOGGLE # FIXED
    Release # DONE
    issue with key config booting user out to main settings menu # FIXED
    camera follows guided shot # DONE
    player can move when using guided shot and not firing # DONE
    2nd Release # DONE

I didn't end up doing quite what I had expected, but it's progress just the same. The browser dev environment I'm making now is pretty awesome(all it does is launch scripts and editors, but it saves me from the 1000-windows-open situation).

Edit: I changed the guided shot behavior and it's doubly awesome now.

If you are running this game with Flash 10.1 beta, note that it will run substantially faster than previously(in fact, now it seems to actually hit the desired framerate). I may have to retune the game to match the new behavior.
« Last Edit: December 25, 2009, 10:39:27 AM by Triplefox » Logged

Triplefox
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« Reply #25 on: December 31, 2009, 03:35:01 PM »

Code:
NEW YEAR'S BUILD (Dec 25th - Midnight, New Year's Eve)

25th:
    Add click to advance dialogue(convenience for the players who use the mouse to navigate the initial menus) # DONE
    Add select noise to toggling # DONE
    Fix an issue where Demon gets damaged too much # DONE
    Ideas for tally screen look/features/fonts # DONE
26th:
    Took a break! (First time I've done that in over a month)   
27th:
    E1M2 gameplay
        Add LOS tracking mines # DONE
            Add LOS tracking code # DONE
            Integrate "saw_player" monitoring into a choreographer # DONE
            Create a complete gameplay sequence using the new mines # DONE
    Created a painted explosion sprite # DONE
        Thoughts for second iteration: reduce jittery noise(ex. rotate the basic noise background, instead of regenerating it each time), shrink noise as sprite shrinks(draw all sprites at full scale and then resize afterwards)
    Add "m-chain" (mean chain) stat to tally # DONE
    Add award tracking # DONE
        curveup, curvedown, tracking, and straight-only awards # DONE
        no-damage award # DONE
        add awards to tally # DONE
    Fix a regression from the new menu where the drone is never permanantly lost # FIXED
28th:
    Tried to make good explosions again (rotation does not look good, I'll have to find another way) # DONE
        Researched explosion footage for more clues as to the "perfect explosion": More white flash and a "smoky" disintegrating look seem to help
    Make tracking mines that only traverse cardinals(so as to navigate mazes slightly better) # DONE
        Make tracking mines that can "drift" in one direction and thus follow you around corners # DONE, AWESOME
    Iterate on menu look+feel; add text (Current curve directions do not make sense when mirrored)
        New shot icons # DONE
        Text display # DONE
        Control hints # DONE
29th:
    Work on explosion again
        Paint white flash + smoke # SUCCESS, albeit a bit too "soft" looking
        Render a Blender white flash explosion # DONE
            Integrate render # DONE and pretty good looking, if not the fireball I was going for originally
    Iterate in-game menu sprites
        Guided shot icon # DONE
        Flattened options icon geometry a little # DONE
    Ordered IL Harmless and Breverb AudioMIDI edition (Breverb is giving me nasty choppy audio unless I disable "secondary buffers" and go to 48khz. It's a very sensitive plugin, at least with this integrated audio chip.)
    Internal Playtest/Review # DONE
    Tally screen uses bitmap fonts # DONE
    "C" rerender with new head # DONE
30th:
    work on e1m2
        Fill out mine paths # DONE
        Add mines to second half of level # DONE
        Add demon sequence # DONE
        Add a second and third sequence to the demons # DONE
        Give the player a reason to traverse the SW corner of the map # DONE
    Laid some groundwork for DeepKit, the refined, open-source engine-to-be that will arise from this project's ashes.
    Fiddled with new music track # DONE
    Switch model # DONE
    Repair station model
        Modelled # DONE
    issue where a mine detonated on entry of e1m1 (due to addition of mine detonation on environment collisions) # FIXED
    issue where mines were awarding health after colliding against walls # FIXED
31st:
    add full-screen comm-loss effect when health is low # DONE
    Give fg/bg tiles different scales # DONE
    add a "unlock door" sound # DONE
    make green explosions # DONE
    issue where health bonuses expected a player even after player death # FIXED
    e1m2:
        Add a little more trim to the door # DONE
        Add more lighting # DONE
    Release # DONE

Being back with my parents for the holidays started getting to me this sprint. I got some good polish-type stuff done....but I'll have to push hard to catch up on content now.
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« Reply #26 on: January 07, 2010, 08:25:33 PM »

Quote
ALPHA 1 (1st-7th)

1st:
    Took notes and made plans on work schedule through February # DONE
    Compiled notes from a "kleenex" playtesting session last night - VERY informative # DONE
    Relaxed a little for the New Year
    Fixed an issue in e1m1 where a tutorial message appeared simultaneously with the dialogue # FIXED
    "fire-every" groundwork to choreographers in preparation for allowing a method of general fire discipline to enemy groups # DONE
    use "fire-every" to direct demon fire patterns as a timed sequence, rather than a barrage # DONE
2nd:
    Order a monitor # DONE
    Change sound options from ingame # DONE
    Mouse support for ingame menu # DONE
    Control tips for dialogue # DONE
    Lower invasiveness of comm cutout effect # DONE
    Award chain hits to enemies with unique ids per explosion(multiple enemy hits per shot weren't adding additional chain) # DONE
    Start on a pure-tutorial level(no mixing mechanics introductions with the story)
        Block out first area and introduce movement, doors, the drone, and switches. # DONE
        Add some lighting # DONE
        Integrate in level loader # DONE
    HUD look+feel work:
        battery # MODELLED
3rd:
    Spread out mines in e1m2 # DONE
    Install win7 on other laptop and get it building the game # DONE
    "C" costume ideas # DONE
    "C" coloring # 50%
    Decided to push back release two weeks: 1. I can afford to do it, 2. it'll help me relax and keep the content quality high; at my current pace I would have to rush to the end, and I'm getting a bit burned out already.
    Did a bit of work on DeepKit
4th:
    Did an outline and some writing that may be the beginnings of a small book. A constructive way of taking my mind away from the game temporarily.
    Some more work setting up the Win7 box # DONE
    HUD look+feel:
        wireframe Manta # DONE
        wireframe Drone # DONE
        try vector battery instead of render # DONE
    Tutorial level
        Add shooting sequence # DONE
    Unbeknownst to me, the landlady whose house I so graciously live in got pneumonia and nearly died the other day(I figured it was just a regular bug), but her boyfriend got her into the hospital and a few rounds of antibiotics later all was well. I think I'm coming down with it...
5th:
    Simplify and contextualize e1m1's first switch/door puzzle better. # DONE
    Optimized tool drawing, much more responsive now
    Messed with the music...a LOT
    Started redoing ludamix.com in a statically-generated blog format; goals are easy maintainability and the ability to host more writing content.
        Researched various static-site systems
        Installed, tested, and brought a Thingamablog system live(a very nice Java desktop app, automatically syncs via sftp when you're ready to publish)
    I am probably sick with the cold my landlady had, but I seem to be surviving it with little trouble. But this would explain why I've slowed down and why my attention has been all over the place the last few days.
6th:
    Worked on "C"'s illo.
    Slept for a good 12 hours or so.
    Fussed with ludamix.com some more, adding Google stuffs, Disqus comments, etc.
    Planned some more written content for ludamix.com   
    Reorganized my room with some new plastic shelves to alleviate "laundry on the floor" syndrome
7th:
    Feeling better & more productive today...
    Change drone ability from dash to sonar # DONE
        Added code to run sonar and flash marked items # DONE
        Added section to tutorial to test ability # DONE
        Added graphics and sound effect # DONE
    Make drone's normal movement a little bit faster # DONE
    Integrate mod player into preloader # DONE
        Test tune # DONE
        Start making a new preloader tune # DONE
    RELEASE # DONE

This week was tough. I was sick most of it and didn't even realize it for quite a while(which I suspect is from my low-carb/low-oil diet causing a very low-key immune response... not a bad thing overall, cytokinetic storms are a major cause of death for people my age). That made my mind wander off into other ideas and say and do some things that look outrageous in hindsight, but by the end I was back to the game and feel pretty refreshed/confident, even though there's still mountains of work ahead.
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« Reply #27 on: January 16, 2010, 03:28:55 PM »

Quote
ALPHA 2 (8th-15th)

8th:
    Replace e1m1 "dash" message with "sonar" message and add a hidden item there. # DONE
        Add hidden items to E1m1 # DONE
    Reword sonar tutorial "(with key)" message to be a little bit more clear # DONE
    Tutorial level
        Introduce alternative shot patterns # DONE (but not really that well)
        Explain health and the battery system (this can happen as the player completes the shot pattern tutorial) # DONE
    Worked on preloader tune # FUN
    HUD:
        Integrate battery and wireframes
            Images draw in game # DONE
            Alignment and glow effect on ship wires # DONE
            battery effects/iteration # OK for now, needs an art pass
9th:
    Explain chains # DONE
    Finish tutorial level # DONE
        (But I may want to add dialogue so that the player has to pause a little and take in the text.)
    Settled on some definite gameplay concepts for every scene in the game! Implementing them seems a lot less terrifying now. # YAY
    E2M1 visual layout # DONE
    Secret items:
        Floating behavior # DONE
        Graphical concept # DONE (albeit it was a lazy concept!)
    e1m2:
        Change right-side spawning mines to follow a path instead of idling # TEST
        Add secret items # DONE
    Manta can't pick up secret items alone # DONE
    Add secret item tally # DONE
10th:
    Modelled a crate for the secret item and weapons cache # DONE
    Did some writing
    Learned to work the Wings3D UV tool and made a simple weapons crate texture # DONE
        Export and render model # DONE (after wrestling with Blender for a long time)
        Make, export and render secret item texture version # DONE
        Integrate crates # DONE, had to work around a behavior change in haxe 2.05
    "C" is 85-90% done now (geeze, these characters take forever to get "right.")
    Reinstall Poser on win7 laptop # DONE
   
11th:
    Issue: Changing fire mode after firing a guided shot locks the camera # FIXED
    Refine textdata edit dialog in the tool to actually show the whole tag phrase # DONE
    Make e1m2's circling mines slower # DONE, and a big balance improvement!   
    finish the cryo capsule # DONE
    Repair station
        Rendered # DONE
        Integrated # DONE
    My monitor order and other stuff came in - mmm,cool gadgets... (spent a while playing with them)
   
12th:
    Integrate capsule in e1m2 # DONE
    Adjusted up/down firing to have a stronger curve # DONE (e1m2 is a lot easier with this!)
    Integrated updated first song # DONE
    Did some more work on new music
    Investigated pylint checking for the tool....there's so much noise it's not very useful as-is, I'd have to start a serious refactoring effort.
    Finish "C". # DONEEE
    Created e1m2 dialogue. # DONE
    Fix text speed # FIXED
    Finish e1m2 # DONE
   
12th:
    Relaxed and did laundry. A surprisingly unproductive day for no apparent reason.
    Planned a swarming enemy type, its looks and its behavior.
    Pickup sound
        Composed # DONE
        Integrated # DONE

13th:
    Swarming enemy:
        Copy Demon # DONE
        Add spawning function # DONE
        Create basic behavior # DONE
        Integrate into e1m4 # DONE
    start e1m4 # DONE
    update UI to show all levels(even if not present) # DONE
   
    Improve preloader
        Complete first pass music # DONE
        Change the way the loading bar works, add percentage # DONE

14th:
    preloader:
        Second pass music - fix errors, improve instrumentation a little # DONE
    SFX work:
        Chords on level complete, don't know if I like em yet # DONE
    Tried using Pro Motion to draw new explosions - it's an awesome tool but I'm still failing at the explosions
    Battery charger:
            Add extra sound when health is restored(make sure repair station uses it too) # DONE
            Iterate battery art # DONE
   
    Add "continue" to tally screen # DONE
    Fix "C" sprite to be correctly proportioned # DONE
   
    Finish new music # DONE
        Integrate new music in e1m2 dialogue # DONE
   
    Upgraded sound compilation pipeline to downmix to mono and 64kbps - result: new music has added no size to game (5mb total now) and I can fit in at least two more tracks before blowing my 10mb ideal limit.
   
   
15th:
    Did a few more passes on the level complete SFX. NOW I'm happy. This game sounds downright epic, even if it doesn't look as good as I'd like.
    e1m3,e1m4,e2m1,e2m2 art pass # DONE (but need: lighting, collision, entities. If you run them now you won't see anything.)
    tutorial art pass # DONE
   
    RELEASE

This week had some ups and downs, but overall, the two finished levels and tutorial feel pretty solid. I'm getting behind on content, but I anticipated that at the start of the month, hence why the schedule's pushed out till the 14th. That'll let me take my time and polish everything up(and rescue myself in the event of a late-stage mishap Epileptic )
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« Reply #28 on: January 27, 2010, 02:20:17 AM »

I've been neglecting this a bit for the feedback thread, which is much more exciting to me. Anyway:

Quote
ALPHA 3 (16th-23rd)

16th(post-release):
    Put up a video and start a feedback thread # DONE
    Recolor secret item gold # DONE
    Order another set of those plastic shelves...those are serious home-organizational tools, man.

17th:
    High-octane mode: increase the speed of enemy choreography. # DONE
    Display tutorial text as rescaled bitmap font, not system font. # DONE
        Add additional line breaks to tutorial text. # DONE
    Display menu text as rescaled bitmap font, not system font. # DONE
    Display conversation help as rescaled bitmap font, not system font. # DONE
    Realign all HUD text. # DONE
    Reverse ship tilt. # DONE
    Add drop shadows and bilinear filtering(via abuse of rotationX) to all text # DONE
    Colorize and add scaling to chain count. # DONE
    Thicken the size of the targeting dots # DONE

18th:
   
    Started on some better preloader music that uses more of the musical ideas I have going # DONE
    Pickup popup
        Add timer # DONE
        Add display # DONE
    Fixed an issue where pickups following the drone would add themselves to a list repeatedly, causing a memory leak # DONE
    Fixed sometimes incorrect alignment of tutorial text # DONE
    Reworked the game timing method to use ENTER_FRAME instead of TIMER(this seems to be more reliable) and adjusted framerate limit to 45FPS.
        Updated game timer to use 45fps seconds.
    Secret items now add 2500 points, other items add 250 # DONE
    Clean up the environment-collision box generation algoithm. # DONE, needs some more testing
    Fix Swarmer accels to player but not to drone # DONE
    e1m3 collision # DONE
    e1m3 lighting # FIRST PASS
    e1m3 ents # FIRST PASS

 19th:
 
    Add a "target and select the targeted ent" toggle to the tool. # DONE
    Remove the useless prints when placing tiles in the tool. # DONE   
    get the boxes in e1m1 positioned a little more realistically. # DONE
    Begin investigating forum hosting - Vanilla looks promising
   
    e1m4 collision # DONE
    e1m4 lighting # FIRST PASS
    e1m4 ents # 20%
   
    Took a break to learn a little bit about Scala. It seems pretty straightforward for a Java/JS/AS3 user if you start by focusing on the simple stuff(basic types, computations, method calls) and leave the rich type system, OO, and functional/concurrent stuff for later. Library usage is frustrating for someone unused to the Java environment, though - you have to learn Java instantiation to work with Java libraries....
    Broke some ground making an asset server for DeepKit. It serves both an index of data files and the files themselves over HTTP. This will enable a poll-based real-time update of game assets.....
   
    Pulse the battery icon as it gets more power # DONE

20th:

    Tuning pass on e1m3 # 80%
   
    Level clear music should play on music submix, not menu submix # DONE
    Add debug-mode teleport player key Ctrl+Z # DONE

21st:
   
    Was at a convention starting today. Got tons of useful feedback.

    Added hidden mines to e1m3 and e1m4! (You use the sonar to see them)
        Added hidden mines to tutorial too.
        Adjusted some tutorial layout stuff
    Some additions to e1m3, e1m4 ents # DONE
    Take down drone sonar noise by 75% # DONE
   
    Fix tutorial collision # DONE
    Find a way to add more tutorialization of "dock with the ship again". # DONE
        Maybe add something that forces the player to fire, instead of mines?
            Create "BasicTarget" # DONE
    Add a recovery station to the tutorial level. # DONE
    New art for recovery station # DONE
    New art for ingame menu trim....2 passes, I think the second works by virtue of simplicity # DONE
        Made menu icons "hardlight" instead of "add", it gives them a slightly transparent look.

22nd:

    I finally did it. I figured out how to make a sick Hollywood fireball-type explosion with Blender particles/halo. It is the defining moment of my existence. *proud*
        Make large explosion # DONE
        Make HUGE explosion # DONE
            Implement mike_bay mode # DONE
                Implement UI # DONE
    Smoothed out the "back" icon. # I think I actually like it less now Sad
    Playthrough stopper: a change to crate collision made the last sequence in 1-1 unwinnable. # FIXED
    "Finished" new preloader music. It's never finished!

23rd:

    Swarmer enemy
        Create/reuse asset # DONE, Using "Scanner"
            Make "Scanner" brighter!!! # DONE
    Worked on a new iteration of "K." # 15%, basic outline, needs costume
    New explosion for shots # DONE
    Water full-screen effect # ATTEMPTED
        Gave up, my first attempt was demolishing performance and still wasn't doing anything visible yet(but maybe I did something wrong)
    Some iteration + refinement in e1m3 and e1m4 - they're starting to look roughly like final gameplay now

24th:
   
    Make and render a "fat" Manta on its side to resolve all confusion over orientation and hitboxes. # DONE
        Fix up resulting collision issues # DONE
            Fix cannon+targeting overlay positioning # DONE
            Make sure all drone passages are exactly two tiles wide, no more no less # DONE
                Tutorial # DONE
                E1M1 # DONE
                E1M2 # DONE
                E1M3 # DONE
                E1M4 # DONE
    Fix some missing collision in tutorial. # DONE
    Do a pass on all hitboxes. # DONE
       
    Add a number to the battery meter. # DONE
    Explain one-shot gameplay and cancelling up front. # DONE

25th:
   
    Finished out my convention-going experience. Got some more feedback. Went home. Slept.
   
26th:
   
    Slept. Recovered.
   
    Find more ways to avoid breaking the tutorial by running ahead with the drone.
        Complement "find secret item" requirement with "shoot hidden target" requirement. # DONE
        Place targets in locations impossible to reach with straight shots. # DONE...

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« Reply #29 on: February 12, 2010, 12:46:56 AM »

Quote
27th:

    I was feeling pretty sick today. I figured it was just hayfever or something the previous day but I was wrong. (I keep doing that when I get sick, my immune response has gotten a lot more gentle with my diet changes.)

28th:
   
    Feeling better today...   
    Some work on music stuffs # DONE
    Adjustments throughout e1m2-e1m4 levels # DONE
    Finish e1m4 # DONE
        Add "spiralshooter" program. # DONE
            Fix brokenness # DONE
    Clarified "A skips" in dialogue to "go faster."

29th:
   
    Clarified drone docking with "Dock OK."
    Stamp layout for e2m1-e2m4. # DONE!!
   
30th:
   
    Collision in e2m1-e2m4: # DONE!!
    Placeholder lighting in e2m1-e2m4 # DONE!!

31st:

    Lockout second half of game and extras # DONE
        Create Gamersafe item # DONE
        Integrate constants # DONE
        Add lockout code # DONE
            E2xx.... # DONE
            on "Continue" # DONE
            Bury extras in a submenu # DONE
        Test # DONE
    Investigate more forum hosts # DONE
        Decided not to run a forum. I have a blog and Disqus. If I want to open more topics, I make pages for them on the blog. Easy.
        ~And if I want more, I can start something on a wiki farm.

    Write on concepts documentation for Deepkit # DONE

1st:

    fix first-frame open-menu-before-dialogue bug # DONE
    Iterated over preloader music # DONE
    Integrated second level track. It is going to need another pass because of rendering errors.... # DONE
    Worked on "K" sprite. # DONE
       
   
        Make it impossible for the drone to reach some areas in the tutorial, so as to avoid circumvention.
        Add examples of unusual techniques for puzzles that might be encountered. Stimulate player imagination!

    Investigate my IGDA status and see if I can get in on that health insurance deal - it's probably a lot better than what I have!
    Defrost the minifridge
    Integrate bubble
    Integrate fish

2nd:

   
    Tool feature: Map tiledata export to image # DONE
        (This allows me to sketch out a detailed high-level overview from the collision data.)
    e2m1-e2m4 Doors, switches and flow # DONE (but needs refinement to allow for drone sections)
   
    Fix up new music. # DONE
    Beef up level end sound's low end. # DONE   
   
3rd:

    Basic layout and flow of e1m5 (minus boss, conversations, level ending) # DONE
    Write some dialogue for e1m3 # 30%
    Started on a highly dramatic "pre-boss" tune # DONE
    Blurred up "scanner" to make it more ghost-like. (this doesn't change the look too much - needs more work, a glow effect or something.)
    Planned some ideas to create good-looking lighting data faster(more procedural tiles)


4th:

    Prototyped procedural tile lighting - looks like it's a "go." That should save me a good chunk of iteration time....
    Add "flip a switch to open a door" as the second tutorial puzzle. # DONE
    Fill in debugging teleports for E2M1-E2M4. # DONE
    Fill in waypoint paths for E2M1-E2M4. # DONE(whew!)
   

5th:

    Light day, the big highlight being that I upgraded my EEE 900's SSD and got Win7 on it. The old SSD choked the entire system, so it's really like a new machine now.
    Being able to run the game on it also revealed opportunities for performance improvement. I won't be able to get it to a solid 45 FPS but I can at least clear up a
    few low-hanging fruit issues.

    Set up my "netbook testing" environment. # DONE
    Add loading message and spread out loading process so as to not time out as easily # DONE
    Optimize rendering of tutorial messages # DONE
    Did a mix/master pass to all the music tracks - it smoothed out some of the harsh elements and made the mix "pump" a little more overall.

6th:
   
    Small optimization: cacheAsBitmap the top left HUD elements # DONE
    Researched if rest of HUD impacts performance: Not as much as I thought.   
    Regression where opening the menu with the drone away from the Manta = hang. # FIXED
    Some music tuning - integrated the mastered tracks # DONE
   
    I'm having some motivation troubles starting my next content push to fill out the second half of the game. Hopefully it'll happen next week.
   
7th:

    start implementing the key gimmicks for e2 stages
        "wavy" movements # DONE
        bullets aimed directly at player # DONE

    This was a big hurdle. I hate hacking on the choreography code, it's become a tar-pit. Oh well, every project has to have at least one failure, I guess.

8th:

    Create a tile that generates directional spotlights # DONE   
    Tutorial tweaks # DONE
    Played with Renoise...I might rewrite the boss music in it.
    Got the EEE set up with the level editor. Maybe getting out of the house will help me finish off the game's content.
    Did some e1m3 dialogue

    I feel really unproductive right now. I'm really on the downslope of the project now - no more scary unknowns, just "work" - and I think I'm subconsciously trying to delay the inevitable.   

9th:

    Issue with a small visual glitch at the start of each scene # FIXED
    Add a small blackout on level complete instead of just rudely flicking to the tally # DONE
    Start population of e2m1 # DONE
    Add "hidden mine warning" # DONE
        Tune the alignment a little, add blink, add coloring # DONE
    Got the complete build process going on the EEE!
   
    I feel like there was good progress today. The backlog I'm working up of what I thought I would have done by now is laughable, though. This project will have to go
    through the end of the month. The big blockers are the e2 level content, the two bosses, a lighting pass, and dialogue/character art.
    I might be able to do one of those by the 14th, but that's about as much as I can hope for.
   
10th:

    First pass e2m1 # TEST 2
    refine the end of e1m4 # TEST
   
11th:

    First pass e2m3 # 70%
    Updated preloader with better looks, and wrote a new song in the sweet .XM format instead of .MOD(since Flash Module Player now supports XM) The song is based on Tangerine Dream's tune "

," with some variation in the basic riff. It's better "preloader music" than the somewhat blaring tune I had going on before. Still needs some work to really shine...
    Worked on a side project - what was going to be part of "DeepKit" is now its own thing called "Liberation," and it is doing some awesome things already.

Nice big update, though it doesn't show off much of the content work since I've been focused on the (locked-out) second half of the game. This is honestly the hardest part of the project because I'm making "final" decisions. And with a decent-sized project like this I can't point to any particular decision and say "I signed off on this" either, it'll just be one of many "things that I overlooked or couldn't get to." Epileptic
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« Reply #30 on: March 14, 2010, 11:55:47 AM »

This is looking and playing much much better (the last time I tried it was in December) and seems to be shaping up well .

Some minor points if I may
- I found the guided shot to move a little too fast for my comfort.
- The red dots which show a projected path for a shot seem a little tacky to me. Maybe something that looks like the guide trails in Osmos perhaps ?
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« Reply #31 on: April 22, 2010, 08:55:47 PM »

Bumping this to say that the game is done and in the queue for sponsorship now. It should be officially out in around 2-4 weeks.

I let my updates stop. The last weeks of development were essentially "fix various things, do one tiny bit of a level at a time, address feedback, repeat." Various things I didn't think I'd do were done, like particle effects. Other stuff got dropped(like having more unique assets). Things I hadn't thought would be improved(like the guided shot) got improved several times over. But progress got very slow; the last few days were just painful.

Anyway, check out the

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