Slowly hammering things out into a shape I can be proud of. Here's an updated CharGen screen. More elements to come but I have other priorities first now that it's 80% functional.
("Base Hit" is merely your hitchance in *perfect* conditions before Evasion and other modifiers decimate it.)
Also, completely nuked the old Arcade'y inventory UI that had no concept of Carrying-Capacity and had a slot for everything. It was ancient, basically made any Item changes difficult, and felt out of place by RPG standards. Biggest problem being that it basically limited me to only having 8 weapons in the game and any Weapon-Upgrade functions being janky as hell.
Now all items (Armor, Items, Guns/Ammo, Mods) occupy the same Carrying space instead of being stored in Hardcoded categories and slots. Ammunition has also moved from its own pool into the Inventory Grid as well - Guns themselves no longer have a set Magazine Size and instead obey the ammo-count and capacity of any Compatible magazine (or Speedloader) loaded into them. How do Weapon Mods work now? You're gonna find out, Cupcake. (ok, they work like Mods in the first Deus Ex)
All in all now the entire Inventory system is infinitely-extendable with Items no longer being Hardcoded to a specific amount that has to fit in predefined slots. Adding new Items and Equipment to the game is now as simple as adding in a single line of code to the list of Item Definitions. This beast is finally shaping up to be something a bit more professional.
And yes: This does mean I can indeed add the GEP Gun to the game finally!
It's been a very long time since I put any kind of update here, but it feels like things are starting to really come together now. And I'm super-proud of the progress I've made with the UI flows!
It's been a very long time since I put any kind of update here, but it feels like things are starting to really come together now. And I'm super-proud of the progress I've made with the UI flows!
Thanks! Yeah those bars are the levels (I've managed to keep no loading screens so far).
There's still a little work to do on that screen to add some more information, but that's the general idea. Also when they expand after selecting one it will show the hex code for that colour (essentially the level name).
I'm not using BSP. My process is roughly to block out the basic environment using a 32x32 cube with a lower left corner pivot. Essentially, I just scale a bunch of those cubes to block out the environment. I'll likely work in unlit mode for this (or just use a simple working light or skylight).
Then I do a first pass of art selecting which objects can be modular (i.e. props, pillars, etc.), build a basic version of those and then replace the rest of the cubes with basic bespoke chunks. Any more complex props will remain as coloured cubes at this point. I'll also start adding lights to begin applying a light intent to the scene (highlight doorways, routes, items, etc.).
And to hit the point I'm at now, I refine individual assets, then begin building the more complicated objects such as the typewriter (seen below). I'll also begin adding some effects and refine the lighting. At this point I can probably just start polishing :)
I can formalise this into a blog post/video or something soon (if there's any interest?).
Not a crazy amount of time. I guess truth be told it's second pass more than anything because...
I'm not using BSP. My process is roughly to block out the basic environment using a 32x32 cube with a lower left corner pivot. Essentially, I just scale a bunch of those cubes to block out the environment. I'll likely work in unlit mode for this (or just use a simple working light or skylight).
Then I do a first pass of art selecting which objects can be modular (i.e. props, pillars, etc.), build a basic version of those and then replace the rest of the cubes with basic bespoke chunks. Any more complex props will remain as coloured cubes at this point. I'll also start adding lights to begin applying a light intent to the scene (highlight doorways, routes, items, etc.).
And to hit the point I'm at now, I refine individual assets, then begin building the more complicated objects such as the typewriter (seen below). I'll also begin adding some effects and refine the lighting. At this point I can probably just start polishing :)
I can formalise this into a blog post/video or something soon (if there's any interest?).
Thanks, that's a lot of info from such a small (?) question. When you say cube, you mean the default UE4 shape one can create? Or are you importing one from Blender or similar? I'm just curious to see if my own approach resembles how a professional would do it. Are you emulating your daytime job work style when working on solo stuff as well? I'm assuming the art teams do the actual modelling at SD, but you have to do it all when working alone. I'm very interested in a blog post or video, if for nothing else to compare work approaches. My knowledge base has become very skewed towards Unity, I'm excited about how that can, and can't, be translated to Unreal :)
Thanks! I wanted something to make the screen feel less static and dead. I'm hoping to make the customisation options a lot more granular with a camera pan for each option (e.g. when you customise the wheels or license plate the camera focuses in on them).
This kind of thing is always cool to see. It makes me want to delve into 3D (I've never ventured into those waters...), but I simply don't have the time. Plus, my love for pixel art prevents me from abandoning it!
Since a few weeks ago I have been doing the rounds contacting press, sending review keys and whatnot, but it seems a lot of my acquaintances have moved on/not replying. So I have a lot of getting back in touch to do to those websites/magazines.
Besides the "distribute()" website mentioned in the OP and the usual things like "Curator Connect" from Steam, what other tools do you guys generally use?
Since a few weeks ago I have been doing the rounds contacting press, sending review keys and whatnot, but it seems a lot of my acquaintances have moved on/not replying. So I have a lot of getting back in touch to do to those websites/magazines.
Besides the "distribute()" website mentioned in the OP and the usual things like "Curator Connect" from Steam, what other tools do you guys generally use?
There was a bit of discussion about this back in April. I haven't yet reached that point in development, but I did some research and it seemed that a site called Woovit was the most popular / legit according to a reddit thread about them. Here's my post about it with a link to the thread itself:
Awesome, let us hear how it goes. Really hoping it relieves some of the pressure off you guys at least.
Edit: there's a comparative of similar services here, it might be useful as well. https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/6llny9/woovit_vs_keymailer_vs_terminalsio_vs/
The OP indeed mentions that many of Keymailer's features are locked behind a high monthly fee. They however gush like crazy about one called Woovit, so unless they're a shill working for it :D, it might be worth giving it a look!
Edit 2: The entire thread seems to gush about Woovit as well, it seems legit. Really hoping it helps you guys!
You can say that again... without this thread and tester feedback I think I'd have given up months ago. :D
There was a bit of discussion about this back in April. I haven't yet reached that point in development, but I did some research and it seemed that a site called Woovit was the most popular / legit according to a reddit thread about them. Here's my post about it with a link to the thread itself:
Thanks!
Will look into it. Although immediately asks to register using a youtube or twitter account where it has access to EVERYTHING including our pass? Weird.
Will read about it and check how it works.
I have to say Godot is actually pretty cool, don't sleep on it!
Especially as there are no paid versions, royalties etc., it's like the Blender of Game Development.
One thing I never really liked was custom scripting languages, like UScript, but Godot now also comes with C# support which is awesome.
Also I loved that I could follow the build tutorial and get a working exe right away.
I officially parted ways with the guy doing art for my project. He said that he wasn't into the project and didn't want to devote anymore time to it. Our chat was quick and then he hung up after saying that he hopes to see us around. I think addressing the issue directly was the best action, and I thank everyone for helping me make that decision.
Now we're polishing up some working features to show off a prototype level. I'm going to scribble out some prototype art to plug into the game and then we're going to shop around to a few artists that have caught our attention.
I officially parted ways with the guy doing art for my project. He said that he wasn't into the project and didn't want to devote anymore time to it. Our chat was quick and then he hung up after saying that he hopes to see us around. I think addressing the issue directly was the best action, and I thank everyone for helping me make that decision.
Now we're polishing up some working features to show off a prototype level. I'm going to scribble out some prototype art to plug into the game and then we're going to shop around to a few artists that have caught our attention.
I officially parted ways with the guy doing art for my project. He said that he wasn't into the project and didn't want to devote anymore time to it. Our chat was quick and then he hung up after saying that he hopes to see us around. I think addressing the issue directly was the best action, and I thank everyone for helping me make that decision.
Now we're polishing up some working features to show off a prototype level. I'm going to scribble out some prototype art to plug into the game and then we're going to shop around to a few artists that have caught our attention.
The good news is that finding an artist having a programmer seems to be considerably easier than the reverse. I've seen lots of Kickstarter games grind to a halt because they lost their programmer and couldn't find anyone else for months (if not years).
The good news is that finding an artist having a programmer seems to be considerably easier than the reverse. I've seen lots of Kickstarter games grind to a halt because they lost their programmer and couldn't find anyone else for months (if not years).
1. As a programmer: Why the bloody hell are the core people behind these projects not programmers themselves? That alone should be the Red Flag that says that Kickstarter is a No Go. An game development project needs a Renaissance Man, not an Ideas Guy. Saw way too many of these people back in the HL2 modding scene back in the day.
2. Finding an artist is easy, yes... Finding a good artist takes a lot of research. I spent several weeks looking for the right artists before contacting anyone.
1. As a programmer: Why the bloody hell are the core people behind these projects not programmers themselves? That alone should be the Red Flag that says that Kickstarter is a No Go. An game development project needs a Renaissance Man, not an Ideas Guy. Saw way too many of these people back in the HL2 modding scene back in the day.
I guess it's the projects that lose their programmers that are the most visible in that regard. If the project lead is the programmer, they can't very well lose themselves (which obviously underscores your point). :)
2. Finding an artist is easy, yes... Finding a good artist takes a lot of research. I spent several weeks looking for the right artists before contacting anyone.
"Weeks" is still considerably shorter than what most projects go through if they need to replace their programmer, if they ever do; and there's no guarantee it will be a good programmer, at that. In fact it's not easy to know who's a good programmer until it's far too late, especially if you're not a programmer yourself to judge their code (and then again, if you were, you wouldn't need one); whereas any layman can get a good idea of an artist's quality by taking a look at their portfolio (one of the things I envy so much about them).
I feel like I've done no actual work on my game for a while except thinking about it and all I've done is identified which bit of the current problem i seriously don't actually understand
Thanks, that's a lot of info from such a small (?) question. When you say cube, you mean the default UE4 shape one can create? Or are you importing one from Blender or similar? I'm just curious to see if my own approach resembles how a professional would do it. Are you emulating your daytime job work style when working on solo stuff as well? I'm assuming the art teams do the actual modelling at SD, but you have to do it all when working alone. I'm very interested in a blog post or video, if for nothing else to compare work approaches. My knowledge base has become very skewed towards Unity, I'm excited about how that can, and can't, be translated to Unreal :)
No I build a cube in Blender so that the origin point is at the bottom left of the cube. This makes it far easier to use as a fast blocking out base (via non-uniform scaling).
I'm somewhat emulating what I do day to day, but obviously I'm limiting myself in some areas because I know that I'll need to build the art and modelling isn't my area of expertise (in fact this is the first time I've done it). So that alters my process a little.
This kind of thing is always cool to see. It makes me want to delve into 3D (I've never ventured into those waters...), but I simply don't have the time. Plus, my love for pixel art prevents me from abandoning it!
Glad you like it :) And yeah, I don't feel like I'm abandoning pixel art (I love it too) but with my day job being in UE4 it made a lot of sense to move my personal projects towards that tech. Also, I have over a decade working in 3D games full time, I should probably use some of that experience in a home project for once ;)
I feel like I've done no actual work on my game for a while except thinking about it and all I've done is identified which bit of the current problem i seriously don't actually understand
It's probably hard to see it that way from where you're standing, but that is both actual work and actual progress. Thinking is a core part of development that unfortunately gets often overlooked, with predictably disastrous results. And specifically identifying "what we don't know" is a very important part of it.
Can you describe what bit is it that you don't understand? Even just making the non-trivial effort of conceptualizing and describing will help you understand it better, but there's also bound to be people in this thread that can help with it, or at least give you ideas.
No I build a cube in Blender so that the origin point is at the bottom left of the cube. This makes it far easier to use as a fast blocking out base (via non-uniform scaling).
I'm somewhat emulating what I do day to day, but obviously I'm limiting myself in some areas because I know that I'll need to build the art and modelling isn't my area of expertise (in fact this is the first time I've done it). So that alters my process a little.
Glad you like it :) And yeah, I don't feel like I'm abandoning pixel art (I love it too) but with my day job being in UE4 it made a lot of sense to move my personal projects towards that tech. Also, I have over a decade working in 3D games full time, I should probably use some of that experience in a home project for once ;)
That makes sense :) I've actually already kind of decided that if I make another game after Bushiden I'm going to move to UE4. I love MonoGame and the freedom I feel with it, but it just doesn't have the tools... And every time I've considered building tools I've kind of realized that the time I'll put into building the tool is roughly equal to the time it will take me to accomplish the given task the hard way so... yeah.
MonoGame is awesome for how fast you can get things going if you are a decent programmer and comfortable with C# though. Just the other day I was adding brand new functionality to the game regarding player collision and moving environment tiles. It had to be incorporated into my existing collision code which was written a year ago. Less than 10 minutes and 20 lines of code later the functionality was in. Worked perfectly the first time I debugged it. Moments like that feel amazing (and don't happen too often). I thought to myself "maybe you're actually not too bad at this." Haha
And just to leading by example about all that "share your issues" stuff, let me share a small conundrum I find myself in.
So, when attacks hit enemies, both the player and the enemy freeze for 1/5 of a second, and the enemy vibrates in place; this is what's called "hitstop". So far so good. I'm facing an issue about subsequent attacks on the enemy during this period, and what to do about hit detection.
- If I don't make the enemy invulnerable / turn off detection, then in some cases the enemy vibrates in and out of the attack's hitbox, causing it to be hit multiple times.
- If I do make the enemy invulnerable, then things like missile barrages become far less effective, as only a couple of the missiles actually do damage.
- A solution to both of the above would be to keep track of what hitboxes have triggered damage on what enemies recently, and only allow attacks to process if they're not in this list. It feels a bit cumbersome and inefficient, but it seems to be the more complete solution right now.
And just to leading by example about all that "share your issues" stuff, let me share a small conundrum I find myself in.
So, when attacks hit enemies, both the player and the enemy freeze for 1/5 of a second, and the enemy vibrates in place; this is what's called "hitstop". So far so good. I'm facing an issue about subsequent attacks on the enemy during this period, and what to do about hit detection.
- If I don't make the enemy invulnerable / turn off detection, then in some cases the enemy vibrates in and out of the attack's hitbox, causing it to be hit multiple times.
- If I do make the enemy invulnerable, then things like missile barrages become far less effective, as only a couple of the missiles actually do damage.
- A solution to both of the above would be to keep track of what hitboxes have triggered damage on what enemies recently, and only allow attacks to process if they're not in this list. It feels a bit cumbersome and inefficient, but it seems to be the more complete solution right now.
Yeah, I should have mentioned this in my post. You're of course 100% right, it should absolutely be just the visual moving, but unfortunately, for some stupid reason, Unity provides no offset vector for its SpriteRenderer component, unlike for colliders, meaning the only way to do that is to put the SpriteRenderer component in a GameObject nested within the enemy, instead of the enemy itself. Which could be within the realm of possibility if I had done it like that from the start, but doing it this far in development would be a nightmare, and among others break every single animation until I remade them (since they reference the SpriteRenderer at the root).
For the time being I've gone ahead and added a "hit recently by" list on Enemies, and check against that when processing hits. Players don't need it because they have proper "blinking" invulnerability after being hit. Hopefully Unity will add SpriteRender offset later on so it can be done the "proper" way.
Why do 60fps 3d browser engine demos feel so sluggish?
It's 60fps, it should be smooth, yet it feels so weird, is this because they don't smooth the mouse movements etc like ordinary engines? Or is it really a technical inability?
I would like to make a 3d browser game but if even the most simple scene already stutters ._.
If it helps, talk about it here. Most indie projects involve multiple people, so working well with your team is incredibly important. The small personal teams we form for an indie game is kind of unique to the field too. So I think it makes sense to talk and ask for help.
You may not always get responses to your specific issues, but sometimes it's good to write things out. It gives you a chance to look at things differently.
And just to leading by example about all that "share your issues" stuff, let me share a small conundrum I find myself in.
So, when attacks hit enemies, both the player and the enemy freeze for 1/5 of a second, and the enemy vibrates in place; this is what's called "hitstop". So far so good. I'm facing an issue about subsequent attacks on the enemy during this period, and what to do about hit detection.
- If I don't make the enemy invulnerable / turn off detection, then in some cases the enemy vibrates in and out of the attack's hitbox, causing it to be hit multiple times.
- If I do make the enemy invulnerable, then things like missile barrages become far less effective, as only a couple of the missiles actually do damage.
- A solution to both of the above would be to keep track of what hitboxes have triggered damage on what enemies recently, and only allow attacks to process if they're not in this list. It feels a bit cumbersome and inefficient, but it seems to be the more complete solution right now.
I'm currently using the second solution where I deactive the hitbox for a moment after a hit is registered. But I've been experiencing issues with fast-hitting attacks that mean I think I will transition to the third solution at some point.
I have had an idea rattling around in my brain for ages now and I really want to make it. If I wanted to get other people involved, would it be best to do a demo myself to show off the basics?
I have had an idea rattling around in my brain for ages now and I really want to make it. If I wanted to get other people involved, would it be best to do a demo myself to show off the basics?
If you have the skill and time, sure. A small prototype can be great, a so called vertical slice (a small game segment that showcases most or all core features).
If you have the skill and time, sure. A small prototype can be great, a so called vertical slice (a small game segment that showcases most or all core features).
I am filtering through the OP to get some tips on what engine. I have a little UE experience, so I might use that. Downside is that I have no programming knowledge, so I will probably have to ask over and over for simple things haha.
I am filtering through the OP to get some tips on what engine. I have a little UE experience, so I might use that. Downside is that I have no programming knowledge, so I will probably have to ask over and over for simple things haha.
I'd say UE as well. It doesn't have to be pretty or perfect. Otherwise you could just write down your idea as detailed as you can and show your friends or partners.
Answering questions is as helpful for us as it is for you asking them tbh.
I am filtering through the OP to get some tips on what engine. I have a little UE experience, so I might use that. Downside is that I have no programming knowledge, so I will probably have to ask over and over for simple things haha.
What is your main skillset? You might be able to find a programmer to partner with you, but if you're merely contributing with ideas it's going to be quite hard, since most devs will already be working on their own projects.
What is your main skillset? You might be able to find a programmer to partner with you, but if you're merely contributing with ideas it's going to be quite hard, since most devs will already be working on their own projects.
I have the ideas mostly, so I think I will attempt to solo it and grab advice as and when I need. I would not want to pull some of the more talented devs away from their own projects just to sort mine out haha.
I have the ideas mostly, so I think I will attempt to solo it and grab advice as and when I need. I would not want to pull some of the more talented devs away from their own projects just to sort mine out haha.
Doing a basic prototype will go a long way to convince people you're dedicated and not just another random person with big ideas. Even if it's super rough it will show your commitment to the project. If you post a basic pitch here, I'm sure people will be able to give you some feedback/advice on how you should start and good ways to approach development.
If it helps, talk about it here. Most indie projects involve multiple people, so working well with your team is incredibly important. The small personal teams we form for an indie game is kind of unique to the field too. So I think it makes sense to talk and ask for help.
You may not always get responses to your specific issues, but sometimes it's good to write things out. It gives you a chance to look at things differently.
I did a couple times before I never got any responses, you're the first to reply to one of these. Well basically this guy who took a month break came back and started to try and change stuff we established and then that guy was talking to one of the other members and he told the absent guy not to change the movement scripts because he's been working on them for a while and it turned into an argument and one said he'll take his talent elsewhere and the other told him to fuck off.
And there's one guy who can't seem to get Unity to run for him. I got a song made finally, but I'm not sure how to get this team back together. I haven't heard from anyone in a while and that fight was sort of awkward for me and I didn't know exactly how to approach the situation. I have to do something though because I want this game made and I plan to start my own studio so I know something like this won't be the last time. I also can't code worth a shit either so it's not like I can do all of this alone.
Raide, I think it would be a far better idea to start with a complete course or series of tutorials at first rather than dive into coding without any knowledge. Particularly, learning to code by oneself with no prior experience and using C++ of all things seems a bit suicidal. I would consider starting with Unity, which is bound to be considerably easier for a beginner. I mentioned a couple of really good Unity courses by the University of Michigan earlier, that's how I started.
Raide, I think it would be a far better idea to start with a complete course or series of tutorials at first rather than dive into coding without any knowledge. Particularly, learning to code by oneself with no prior experience and using C++ of all things seems a bit suicidal. I would consider starting with Unity, which is bound to be considerably easier for a beginner. I mentioned a couple of really good Unity courses by the University of Michigan earlier, that's how I started.
I agree on spending real time with tutorials/courses first, but the UE courses out there (the ones I've skimmed on Udemy) are pretty comprehensive when it comes to fully building games with Blueprint and using no C++ whatsoever. I legitimately think it's the friendliest intro to meaty game development that I've seen.
Not to dissuade from Unity at all, I just think that UE's approachability gets overlooked.
I agree on spending real time with tutorials/courses first, but the UE courses out there (the ones I've skimmed on Udemy) are pretty comprehensive when it comes to fully building games with Blueprint and using no C++ whatsoever. I legitimately think it's the friendliest intro to meaty game development that I've seen.
Not to dissuade from Unity at all, I just think that UE's approachability gets overlooked.
Oh, I didn't know about that. My knowledge of UE is limited, I thought scripting would be as crucial as in Unity (and also, didn't know about comprehensive courses). Thanks for the heads up!
I've been working on implementing grass and terrain into my engine. The above video renders 851968 individual blades of grass and a height mapped terrain which blends 4 materials using a weight map. Renders at about 90 fps on a Nvidia 760GTX. Still a ways to go as far as lighting and motion goes, but all of the technical pieces are in place.
I also added a shader reflection system which allows me to bind editor fields to shader variables. This allows me to iterate quickly on fx. You can see some of the bound variables below on the right panel:
