1st May 2004: Project Update
Hmm Day Four, gonna have to speed up!
Made a huge level to test the engine with today with many rooms, areas, underwater section, stairs, ramps and loads of lights. Looks beautiful! Runs at 2fps
So, like me, I spent most of today fiddling with it, making optimisations etc. when I should have been doing something more productive, only to get a final frame rate of... 17fps
Kind of a waster of time then. What I should have done is re-written or optimised the object format and loader, so that all levels will run faster. Obvious really, but I just got caught up in it and wasted time instead. Pleasant surprise, when I turned off all the special effects I got a more respectable 75fps, so I can work with that, make the game properly playable, then go back to it when I have time at the end. Really gotta get my act together tomorrow if this thing is gonna be playable by end of day 7, still, its doable I think. Probably a demo, with most features enabled, but only a hand-ful of levels perhaps, with more to be developed after the time is up. This way I still win the bet, I reckon...
RPG_Freak "I'm still saving up for all the software I need to make a game, plus I still have to learn how to model properly"
Yeah, modelling and mapping are the things I find hardest, hence why I'm using DM models to save time on this 7 day project. As for the money aspect, most software at a low level is quite cheap. DBPro for a birthday present, Milkshape for 5 car washes etc. It all adds up!
r_kabouter "OMG... You're really serious about this..."
lol told ya
r_kabouter "Are you gonna tell us who you are after this project?"
Maybe I'll leave it a while, to see if I can make some money off these solo projects. If I can then I can be a free man lol
M00NSHiNE "This is crazy!"
You got that right! My fingers are getting more swolen each day
M00NSHiNE "I think Lee Bamber is up to something. Could this be FPSC were seeing?"
Lmao! Lee's a great guy, and in many areas has much more knowledge than me. There's no-way I could have written DBPro for starters! FPSC however, well yes I think I could put together a point and click style FPSC style product quite quickly. I wouldn't do anything to directly be in competition with FPSC though, a simpler budget FPS Maker title, or a more complex multi genre title would be more my-style.
Cavex "How you doing the A.I.? Using A*?"
I'm actually trying a method I haven't exactly used before, its my own blend of many styles, simplified. The point for me is to write a rountine that I can use for other games, not just FPS ones. The AI system I am making could easily be adapted to an RTS, or platformer for example. I'm really using this 7 day project as a learning experience and to start a much more complex, multi-use engine, made in DBPro.
ESC_ "You could check out www.limefly.net"
Thank you! Yes, I have used stuff from there before. I have many royalty free textures stored on my hard drive which I will use on the final levels, the screenies I'm showing at the moment are simply to test the engine itslef, not a final level, hense why I'm not really bothering to go to town on the design or texturing yet.
ESC_ "Are planning to change the muzzle flash"
Yes, you're psychic, I already have done! That was just a generic texture, made in a few seconds from a light placed in Paint Shop. I'm making many different special effects, all unique to each weapon. Most muzzle flashes are quite large due to the dramatic projectiles etc comin from them, but they resize/disperse quickly.
1st May 2004: Screenshots
3 shots of the first part of the tester level, looking quite nice I think. Not really proper in game shots, more flybys to test the lighting. They are being rendered in DBPro though, so its not cheating! lol Check em out here :
http://deathbed.20m.com
Once again, thank you everybody for the kind words, its all helping, especially when I have a comparitively frustrating day like today. Hopefully though I'll be able to add much more tomorrow!
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