For whatever reason I missed this, as a big Vanillaware fan this keeps looking beyond lovely! I'm not sure if I missed or forgot this was a roguelite, which I love. :)
-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
Hobby and Indie Game Dev |OT 2019| Designing, Drawing, Coding, Composing, Everythinging
- Thread starter Popstar
- Start date
- Status
For whatever reason I missed this, as a big Vanillaware fan this keeps looking beyond lovely! I'm not sure if I missed or forgot this was a roguelite, which I love. :)
Polished up my magic wisps a bit and uv unwrapped my first sphere in Blender (the "eye" in the third effect):
Started messing around with Unity. The dream is to make a Turok-style FPS with some Metroid elements, but we'll see how far I can get. What little I've currently got up and running is about 80% copied straight from YouTube tutorials, but I was able to script the Life Force triangle rotation on my own... that's something, eh?
Started messing around with Unity. The dream is to make a Turok-style FPS with some Metroid elements, but we'll see how far I can get. What little I've currently got up and running is about 80% copied straight from YouTube tutorials, but I was able to script the Life Force triangle rotation on my own... that's something, eh?
It certainly is! Well done, and welcome to the arduous world of game development!
I have to wonder how you have 2.3k triangles in that scene though!
No idea, for some reason an empty scene is starting at 1.7k triangles for me.
The three cubes and the plane I temporarily threw into the scene seem to account for the bulk of the other tris, deleting those brings it back down to 1.7k tris. My lifeforce triangle model is only 15 tris
EDIT: Ah, the 1.7k triangles is the skybox apparently.
Last edited:
Still waiting on a few last rigging tweaks to my new Roobot character, I finally made a player character (J.O.E.Y.) I'm happy with, so I updated my poster - my one piece of key art that I'll use to make banners, etc, for now.
It's been cathartic getting this one image *done* - first time I've seen this image, which represents my vision for the game, in a way where I'm *done* with this piece. I could noodle forever on any part of this - I did a new logo, etc, but I think I'm truly happy with this. Like, if this makes you smile, you should like my game or at least get it! Anyways, just wanted to share that - it's a good feeling after years of "well it's kinda like this but I don't like this bit and I don't think I can do any better than what's there."
Of course real satisfaction would come from releasing a full game where you feel something of that sort, but it's good to be reminded of that feeling every now and then :D
This turned out really nicely, it certainly grabbed my eye as I scrolled through the topic!
I use paper, I feel like the tactile nature and the fact its not hidden away in a menu in an OS somewhere helps.
I use Trello. I'm not too organized with it, but it ultimately helps.
I remember struggling with homing missiles a lot back when doing a 2D shooter for a school project a lifetime ago. I was pretty relieved at how much easier it was to do in Horizon Vanguard with the tools modern engines give you 😬
I remember struggling with homing missiles a lot back when doing a 2D shooter for a school project a lifetime ago. I was pretty relieved at how much easier it was to do in Horizon Vanguard with the tools modern engines give you 😬
I use a simple text file that I keep versioned with the project. When I need to know what I've done (e.g. when compiling the patch notes) I just check the git log (I'm very particular about writing detailed commit comments). Rustic but it gets the job done, and you can do it all offline if needed be.
Re: homing missiles, I originally used the simplest, naive implementation (just accelerate in the direction of the target). You can get away with this as long as your top speed is small and acceleration is high, but eventually I made something a bit more elaborate that braked when closer to the target to avoid orbiting and such. Here's my code in case anyone is interested:
Re: homing missiles, I originally used the simplest, naive implementation (just accelerate in the direction of the target). You can get away with this as long as your top speed is small and acceleration is high, but eventually I made something a bit more elaborate that braked when closer to the target to avoid orbiting and such. Here's my code in case anyone is interested:
Code:
public static void HomeIn (IBounded pursuer, Rigidbody2D pursuerBody,
Vector2 targetPosition, float acceleration, float maxSpeed) {
// Vector from the pursuer to the target's center.
Vector2 dif = targetPosition - pursuer.GetCenter ();
float distance = dif.magnitude;
if (distance > 0f && acceleration > 0f) {
/// This factor avoids oscilating / orbiting by
/// decelerating when distance is small.
float decelerationFactor = pursuerBody.velocity.magnitude
/ (distance * acceleration);
if (decelerationFactor > 1f) {
pursuerBody.velocity = pursuerBody.velocity.normalized
* pursuerBody.velocity.magnitude / decelerationFactor;
}
// Divide by vector magnitude to make the vector unary.
dif /= distance;
// Multiply by acceleration and deltaTime to calculate velocity delta this frame.
dif *= acceleration * Time.deltaTime;
// Apply velocity delta to current velocity
pursuerBody.velocity += dif;
// If speed exceeds maximum speed, cap it.
if (pursuerBody.velocity.magnitude > maxSpeed) {
// Cap pursuer speed.
pursuerBody.velocity = Vector2.ClampMagnitude (
pursuerBody.velocity, maxSpeed);
}
}
}
Thanks! I like where mine are at but it might be worth consulting when I run into issues. My current problem is more to do with setting lock-ons since right now they just choose the closest objParent_enemy from point of origin, which is sufficient for testing but probably not what I want in a weapon.
However, I'm bored so I want to make a laser next I think.
However, I'm bored so I want to make a laser next I think.
Indeed! What I do is pick the target that is closest to its current route; that is, the one that necessitates the smallest deviation (in degrees) to hit.
Code here!
Code:
/// Returns the target that is closest to the given trajectory,
/// by comparing angles.
public ITarget GetEasiestEnemyTarget (Vector2 position, Vector2 direction,
FactionEnum faction, TargetTypeEnum targetType) {
ITarget ret = null;
List <ITarget> targets = GetTargets (faction, targetType);
// Compare angles if the projectile is moving, distance if it's not.
bool compareAngles = (direction != Vector2.zero);
if (targets.Count > 0) {
float distance;
float bestDistance = int.MaxValue;
for (int i = 0; i < targets.Count; i++) {
ITarget target = targets [i];
if (target.IsTargetable ()) {
if (compareAngles) {
// Projectile is moving: find target that deviates
// the least from its trajectory.
distance = Vector2.Angle (
direction, target.GetCenter () - position);
}
else {
// Projectile is not moving: find closest target.
distance = (target.GetCenter () - position).magnitude;
}
if (distance < bestDistance) {
bestDistance = distance;
ret = target;
}
}
}
}
return ret;
}
Hey if anyone wants any audio for their game I can do a few tracks for free - I have a bit of an itch to do some video game music again
edit: just to show off my style, I make sorta warm, organic beat-driven electronic music:
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/the-spirit
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/this-time
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/deep-devil-clutch
also ive done compositions for about 5 different games from the old site
edit: just to show off my style, I make sorta warm, organic beat-driven electronic music:
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/the-spirit
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/this-time
https://sadsic.bandcamp.com/track/deep-devil-clutch
also ive done compositions for about 5 different games from the old site
I use Excel spreadsheets for all of my project management (and all of my game design docs are in Word). I find it very quick and easy to create forms where I can track times and tasks and create to do lists.
Taking a break for a few days from Punchline! dev, been really messing around with my own custom NPR shaders in Unreal Engine 4 for my next project. Made a super basic scene in 2 hours with like two modular assets lol, main inspiration was The Wolf Among Us, what do y'all think?
Taking a break for a few days from Punchline! dev, been really messing around with my own custom NPR shaders in Unreal Engine 4 for my next project. Made a super basic scene in 2 hours with like two modular assets lol, main inspiration was The Wolf Among Us, what do y'all think?
I see the Wolf Among Us inspiration, but it also reminds me strongly of XIII, which I loved aesthetically, so needless to say, I'm looking forward to how this develops. Good job!
Taking a break for a few days from Punchline! dev, been really messing around with my own custom NPR shaders in Unreal Engine 4 for my next project. Made a super basic scene in 2 hours with like two modular assets lol, main inspiration was The Wolf Among Us, what do y'all think?
It's super lovely and indeed very TWAU-like. I'm particularly impressed how you managed to make flat surfaces like floors and walls "organic" and lived-in with just a few details.
I actually showed this to a mate of mine and he said the same exact thing! It really did remind him of XIII, great game. I definitely want to put these shaders to use in my next project.
Thanks! UE4 decals are super handy with this. All those little squiggly lines you see on the surfaces? I didn't do them in the texture. It's a transparent decal that I'm copy and pasting around the scene. I feel like doing this really helps to break up any repetition in using modular assets. Problem with this though is that it takes up a lot of resources so I wouldn't neccessarily recommend doing this for any sort of game-ready project.
I see! I have zero experience with UE4 or even 3D on Unity, but I'm assuming these are the same decals that are used dynamically for bullet holes and such?
Absolutely. At the end of the day, they're pretty much just materials that can be projected onto meshes in your level. For the most part, you can have quite a lot of deffered decals rendered at once without that much of a performance decrease but it will get worse with larger screen space size and higher shader instruction count.
No, I do not put my work up on the internet (except the little bit that i've shared here and on the old site when that was still a thing). I only do modeling and animation for my personal project, and at the moment the project is somewhere down in the abyss as a neglected mess of random things. Plus, I get depressed every time I go over to artstation; the people over there are on a completely different talent level.
This is great! I didn't know Clive 'n' Wrench had Toy Story / giant levels like that, and they're always super cool to me. Strangely, I'm reminded most of the first levels of Katamary Damacy.
Asana has worked pretty well for us. Trello was ok for a while, but Asana's integrated subtasks are so useful that it suited us better.
Haha no, not at all, that's precisely what I'm aiming for!
Indeed! It's only this one (and a small section of the hub level), I'll take the comment about Katamari as a compliment, too those games sell the sense of scale fantastically!
Thanks every one else, I'm glad that it's presenting well!
It absolutely is a compliment! Katamari games are among my favorite and in particular I love levels where you start small. Nothing like rolling items from below a table before you later on roll the table and then later on the house it was in. :D
This might be a silly question, but do ps1 and n64 era 3d games (platformers) use 6 sided cubes for backgrounds? like spyro, mario 64, ape escape etc.? or do they use one image that is always following the camera?
The reason I ask is that I am trying out unity and was unsure whether to use a skybox or a static image for my game. Just to experiment I tried using a paper mario background repeated 6 times as a skybox and it kinda works (the image loops on the side but I leave out the top and bottom since the camera doesnt rotate). However I tried a background taken from a spyro game for testing purposes, and since they dont loop, I figured that these ps1 games use static backgrounds rather than cubes. Don't know if that logic makes sense.
The reason I ask is that I am trying out unity and was unsure whether to use a skybox or a static image for my game. Just to experiment I tried using a paper mario background repeated 6 times as a skybox and it kinda works (the image loops on the side but I leave out the top and bottom since the camera doesnt rotate). However I tried a background taken from a spyro game for testing purposes, and since they dont loop, I figured that these ps1 games use static backgrounds rather than cubes. Don't know if that logic makes sense.
I don't know about those games specifically, off hand, but early PC first-person shooters like Doom and Duke Nukem 3D for sure used a simple horizontally-panning sky image and I'd be surprised if it was any different in Mario 64 or Spyro.
edit: Spyro actually does seem, judging by videos, to use actual geometry for the sky? Looks kinda warped. Same with Crash Bandicoot. On the other hand, in my mind's eye I was picturing Sonic R of all games, which definitely just uses a 2D panning background layer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSQrCdtgAd8&t=4m27s
Last edited:
These are my own game prototypes hosted on Github, and they are all open-source:
https://github.com/tommai78101/Pixavive (Java)
RTS pixel domination game.
https://github.com/tommai78101/PokemonWalking (Java)
Pokemon Walking Simulator + Level Editor
https://github.com/tommai78101/Multiplier (Unity)
RTS (or RTT) game based on Fibonacci Sequences.
https://github.com/tommai78101/Pixavive (Java)
RTS pixel domination game.
https://github.com/tommai78101/PokemonWalking (Java)
Pokemon Walking Simulator + Level Editor
https://github.com/tommai78101/Multiplier (Unity)
RTS (or RTT) game based on Fibonacci Sequences.
This is the magic wisp fx I posted earlier except in my own engine instead of Unity.
I'm basically prototyping fx in Unity and discovering the features/systems I need to add in my own engine.
I'm basically prototyping fx in Unity and discovering the features/systems I need to add in my own engine.
So GDC starts this week. Will anyone be attending solo or with their studio/company?
I'm pretty excited. I went last year solo and had a great time meeting people from around the world and seeing so many awesome indie projects.
I'm pretty excited. I went last year solo and had a great time meeting people from around the world and seeing so many awesome indie projects.
Last edited:
Came solo last year and again this year. It's a pretty great time, in typical fashion I ended up making friends with somebody from back home in Australia, but he wasn't able to come this time. Also had the classic moment of randomly chatting to someone in a bar, deciding to go out partying with them and then halfway through the night realising who they were and that they'd made a bunch of classic C64/Amiga games that hugely influenced my wanting to be in this industry in the first place.
I've been in the industry since 2003 and have never been.
Maybe I need to be more assertive at work!
How jarring would it be to have a sprite based FPS with 3D environments that transitions to either third person 3D environments or even completely 2D when entering a hub area of sorts? Like the levels would be Sprite FPS 3D and then the towns or something would either transition to third person or just go right into a 2D plane. Something like what Destiny does? I'm too lazy to prototype this and would like to know if anyone has tried this or seen it before.
The closest thing I can think of off the top of my head is the original Persona, which mixes:
- Third person isometric 2D for story sequences, battles, and "safe" indoor environments
- First person 3D for dungeon corridors.
- Overhead 3D for the world map (flat polygons, almost schematic-like).
Interestingly, Persona 2 mixed 2D and 3D in a completely different way: the world map remains the same, but everything else is isometric, with 2D characters on actual 3D environments this time.
Yeah that's a good example. I think I'll have to just go for it and get feedback on players' experience with it.
I hit a pretty big milestone for my RPG. We are mechanically complete. A fully functioning game with all core features done. The last few mechanics were spells and shops. Both are now complete.
That means we have Character Creation, Combat, Spells, Defensive Stances, Status Effects, Leveling, Party Characters, Dialog, Quest Triggers, Bosses, Inventory, Storage, Shops, wandering Monsters, Doors with all kinds of locks, Scene loading, game saving, and a bunch of other little stuff that makes it feel like a real game.
We have some nice to have mechanics that would make overworld exploration more metroid like. So we'll play around with that and see if it's the kind of scope creep we want to include.
I guess I need to start shopping around for an artist or publisher. Things aren't pretty right now, but it plays the way I hoped it would.
That means we have Character Creation, Combat, Spells, Defensive Stances, Status Effects, Leveling, Party Characters, Dialog, Quest Triggers, Bosses, Inventory, Storage, Shops, wandering Monsters, Doors with all kinds of locks, Scene loading, game saving, and a bunch of other little stuff that makes it feel like a real game.
We have some nice to have mechanics that would make overworld exploration more metroid like. So we'll play around with that and see if it's the kind of scope creep we want to include.
I guess I need to start shopping around for an artist or publisher. Things aren't pretty right now, but it plays the way I hoped it would.
- Status