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Work in Progress / RPG Engine: Geisha House. Screenshots and interface Beta test.

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 11:09 Edited at: 3rd Aug 2006 07:00
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Hey everyone, I'm back with the new installment of my RPG WIP. This time, it's Geisha House, a short RPG in which you must deafeat the guards of a mysterious Geisha House, and discover exactly what's going on inside there.

It's a very short game, mainly so that I might develop my engine properly. Rather than starting out with a huge terrible RPG, I'm trying to code the most efficient engine possible. Once that's done, I can scale my world up accordingly.

Lots of things have been done. Included are...

Building culling. Stories above, including the roof, are automatically culled, allowing a proper top-down view of the game.
Melee combat, allowing polygon based combat to occur.
Dynamic character and item generation in game.
Static world animals, such as butterfiles, fish, and birds.
Enemies, such as wild dogs and orcs.
Game interface, including health bar status during combat and an inventory management system.
New camera control system, which will allow me to orient the player to the mouse. This will allow for more realistic projectile combat - point and shoot.
Lightmapping
Completed interface, after testing.

Advanced terrain
Ocean, river, waterfall, and swamp
Spells, spell effects
Doors and windows
Billboards, for things like smoke and light
Scripted creation of everything

To come soon...
Night and day cycles.
Overhead map
Whatever else I've forgotten...

This is the latest public version of the interface. I've add a lot of stuff, read about what you can do under this composite image. The download is about 21 megabytes. It's big, but I think you'll be pleased. So, test it out, give me feedback. Every little bit helps. People have found bugs I never noticed, and given me great feedback for the project.


RPG Interface Demo 1.56, 21 Megabytes



Okay, here are some things you can do...

The spellbook is laying on the floor. Pick it up, double click it to open.
Press 'm' to enter magic mode. You can then cast the spells in the book (the three of them).
I included a console shortcut for spellcasting. Press 'enter', then type either 'a', 'b', or 'c' and 'enter' again to cast spell 1, 2, or 3.

Cast from the spellbook! It's more fun!!! It took a bit, but I got the hang of it...

A magic target cursor will appear. Select any dynamic item (including the character) as the spell target.

Bizar guy, this one is for you!!! You can zoom in or out with the mouse wheel. If you hold down control+scroll the mouse wheel, it will change the camera angle. So now, you can control the zoom / angle however you want. I love it!!

Also, check out the chimney smoke. I'm quite proud of it, it's a single textured plain.


Here are some pictures from the game, and a video.


Fish Video, swimming around. Not too exciting, but nice to watch.
http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=709845

Landscape Video





Door





Foilage Video




Lightning Video





14 July 2006 -






Bath area



Cloth Video

Dynamic Cloth Video, 2.77 MB







Come see the WIP!

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Sergey K
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 12:23
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ahh.. yeah i remember that naked girl..
nice job dude..

MyNewSite:http://gogetax.com
Forums(About BLO and more):http://gogetax.com/forum
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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 13:14
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looks like a nice engine, seems like theres an attack on a nudist colony

Yey! I removed the sig...
A Llama called Dalai
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Chris Franklin
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 13:40
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Sweet Sticky please!!!!!!!!

Great work ca$h

Theme park simulator wip boards

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TDP Enterprises
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 14:39
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i remember the nudist lady too, nice work

Snow Wars is making its return, check out the Game Design Theory board for more info...
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Deagle
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 15:26
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I remember that backpack-image from ultima online

Like mushrooms?
http://forum.thegamecreators.com/?m=forum_view&t=73892&b=8#search
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 17:12 Edited at: 12th May 2006 08:00
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Quote: "I remember that backpack-image from ultima online"

That's exactly where it came from. It's just a placeholder image, though. When it's time to release a game I'll have it (or have had it) redone.

I appreciate the comments, guys. I can't wait until the demo is released.

I've updated the interface a bit. Now it allows for dynamic gump (interface containers) generation. There are four on the screen at once. Zordering should work properly. Let me know how it works.



Come see the WIP!

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TEH_CODERER
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Posted: 18th Apr 2006 22:16
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Looks nice. Good work.

[url]andrewneale2004@yahoo.com[/url]
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Yarbles
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 00:02
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Hey, that looks like the knapsack the Ultima games!

Tried it out, works great for me. Keep it up!

please visit http://yarbles.zapto.org/realitytwin/
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Wiggett
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 18:54
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yay for ultima. looks like some nice work there, but for god's sake put some clothes on her.

Syndicate remastered: Corporate persuasion through urban violence.
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 19:12 Edited at: 12th May 2006 08:01
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Hey everyone, the interface is in version 0.9. It's very nearly done. Here's what I've got...

Dynamic gump creation
Dynamic object creation
Draggable gumps
Draggable objects, around the screen and into gumps.
Single click an object to see its name
Double click a gump for it to vanish
Press "i" and the first gump to vanish will reappear

Bind gumps to entities and define order of actions
Activate double clicking of items (targeted use)
Fix any oddities and bugs

I've integrated bitmap fonts into this test as well, to give me a better feel for the final look.

There are a couple of things to note. I wrote a custom mouse click, double click, and dragging routine for this. It's a bit picky, but I needed it to be that way. Currently the mouse click timings are based on your system mouse timings. If you single click and move before the timer has elapsed then the click will not register. I did it this way so that single clicks and double clicks would not overlap.

Here's the new download (it's actually the same as in the first post)

http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


So, test it out, break it, tell me how you like it. I want this thing to be right before I integrate it into the game. It's over 2000 lines of code by itself (I think half of that is redundant), so I don't want to be debugging it in the game.

I appreciate it!!


Come see the WIP!

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Bizar Guy
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 19:24
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When I drag an item, it doesn't stay with the mouse and sort of slides around attached to a white line. When I pull an item out of something, it jumps to the center of the screen and gets really big really fast.

Aside from that worked pretty well.

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 20:13 Edited at: 19th Apr 2006 20:33
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Thanks for testing it!

The whole white line dragging thing is my attempt to make moving objects look more realistic. Instead of just carrying them around with the mouse, you'll pull them around. How fast depends on how strong your character is.

That whole jumping to the center of the screen business... I should have corrected it by now. The deal is that every container will have a base object. If something falls out or is taken out of a container it will appear right next to the container rather than the center of the screen. There just happens to be no base containers ATM, so 0,0,0 was easiest.

In v1.0 it SHOULD look better. I'm glad you liked it, aside from those things. I'm done for today, but work will continue tomorrow. Until then!


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/?m=forum_view&t=77033&b=8&p=0
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BatVink
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Posted: 19th Apr 2006 22:14
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I very rarely visit the WIP forum, but I'm glad I stumbled across this thread, it's looking good

I don't know if your culling system can handle it, but if those indoor scenes were light-mapped it would take it to the next level.

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Teh Go0rfmeister
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Posted: 20th Apr 2006 01:16
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naked girl eh? sounds like a job for nipplegate...

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 20th Apr 2006 04:18 Edited at: 20th Apr 2006 07:55
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Quote: "I very rarely visit the WIP forum, but I'm glad I stumbled across this thread, it's looking good "

Coming from you BatVink, that is a compliment I can most certainly appreciate.

Quote: "I don't know if your culling system can handle it, but if those indoor scenes were light-mapped it would take it to the next level."

I haven't lightmapped yet for a couple reasons. I've got some z-fighting on my door frames and window sill and door frames. Plus, some of my furniture isn't to scale. Easy stuff to fix, but I've been in a programming mode. Plus, the program is about 6k lines, plus 1k more for the interface, plus 1k more (I think) for the Inca loading program (for the 3DWS lightmaps). Putting it off has helped speed progress along. But it's coming! Lightmapping does certainly add a whole new element to the game. It's like making 3D into 4D. I was amazed by the difference the first time I lightmapped.

Quote: "naked girl eh? sounds like a job for nipplegate..."

I own Nipplegate. I invented Nipplegate.

Well, the inventory management system is pleasing me very much. After I go through and add entity binding it will be complete. I'll drop it into my game and every character will be able to hold items. By default double clicking on your character will open your inventory. Double clicking an NPC will open their status gump. Once they're dead, double clicking them will open their corpse gump.

Then it's off to make the overhead map.


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/?m=forum_view&t=77033&b=8&p=0
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Drew the G
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Posted: 20th Apr 2006 21:22
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Great job to see you still working on this. Pics looks decent.
BTW - Use clothes now. I mean, I hope there isn't any Hot Coffee Mod on your game like in some other >.<

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 22nd Apr 2006 02:58 Edited at: 22nd Apr 2006 03:01
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Quote: "Great job to see you still working on this. Pics looks decent. "

I'm eternal. I'm constant. If I'm not working on it, I'm thinking about it.

Current progress - been working on a couple things. Fine tuning the interface is one. It's interesting, I've accurately reproduced some quirks (not so much bugs, because they don't reduce functionality) from the original Ultima Games. I can see why the dev teams didn't fix them. I feel their 2D pain.

I also need to write new camera handling routines. I think I'll look at some reference games to figure out how I want to do it.

I've also worked on blended animations a bit. It looks good. I've got a demo working that allows for smooth transitions between animation sets. I just have to make it timer based and then I'm set.

http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=853558
Here's the demo - it's crude, but I cooked it up last night pretty late. I can't guarantee how it will run on your computers, as it's not timer based. But, it shows what I'm looking to do.


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/?m=forum_view&t=77033&b=8&p=0

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Tom0001
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Posted: 22nd Apr 2006 17:01
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Brilliant work, Cash! This is looking amazing. Great work! As with Batvink,I rarely ever visit the WIP forums, or anywhere else outside the FPSC forums, but this is looking like some really good work. Keep it up!

Tom

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Steve J
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Posted: 23rd Apr 2006 03:44
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Cash, I love that you are going into fuedal japanese culture, because that, and late medieval europe, always intrested me. Good work. And good luck!

Undercover Steve lost his passport.
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 24th Apr 2006 06:28 Edited at: 24th Apr 2006 17:41
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New camera control system, which will allow me to orient the player to the mouse. This will allow for more realistic projectile combat - point and shoot.

After much trial and error, I have the new camera control system in place. It eliminates that evil rotating camera problem. I was worried that it wouldn't looks as good, but I kept the system adaptive rather than absolute, so there's still some give to the camera movement. Now, player movement is mouse controlled. This will allow the player to use the mouse for everything - movement, attacking, picking items up, etc.

I've also added animation blending. There are still some quirks. Basically, I animate the blending frames at 100 fps. That way, each transition animation takes one second. This interferes with impacts and deaths. I'll either disable it for those animations specifically or speed it up. I hate exceptions like that, but I guess I'll just have to deal with it. It does look cool, though. Whereas before, if I went from walking to attacking, it would jump. Now my guy moves his sword into position then attacks.

I will have a video soon! Like I said before, I have to fix my window sills and door frames. I'd also like to lightmap as well. Soon!! I'll also post new pictures as soon as I integrate the inventory management system into the game. I had to fix the camera thing first, as my system was not compatible with it.

Hey guys, thanks for the comments. They all motivate me.

[Edit]
So close to done with the interface! Now, containers are bound to objects and characters. If you double click on your character or a dead body, its associated container opens. I've knocked out a multitude of bugs, as well. Slow work, and certainly not fun work.


Come see the WIP!
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Drew the G
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Posted: 24th Apr 2006 17:32
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Quote: "Now my guy moves his sword into position then attacks."


So, now the main character is a guy? Not a girl anymore? Whoa, why didn't you post that before?

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 25th Apr 2006 19:35 Edited at: 26th Apr 2006 06:27
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Here's version 1.0 of the interface. It's very nearly complete. Let's test and break this one!

The last versions had a fatal mouse error that seemed to randomly strike. All fixed up now. Also, I increased the framerate by 25+ by consolidating object and sprite to cursor collision checks to 1 per loop. Much more efficient.

In this version, you can move the box character by pressing the 2nd mouse button. It is similar to character movement in the game.

There are now 3 crates. If you double click on, its gump will open. If you double click the main character, your gump will open. You must be standing next to a crate for it to open.

In order to move an item, you must be standing next to it. If you're not, your character will automatically move to it. In order to place an item, you must be standing next to the crate you're trying to do so with.

To display debug information, hold down the control key.

http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


Not much is left. I need to add targeting and some scripting capabilities, but it's built in such a way that those things will be a snap.

Quote: "So, now the main character is a guy? Not a girl anymore? Whoa, why didn't you post that before?"

I never said the main character was a girl. I did say, however, that the girl was a placeholder model. There was no story at the time, either.


Come see the WIP!

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 26th Apr 2006 06:32 Edited at: 26th Apr 2006 06:32
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http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


I hate to double post, but I must have been pretty sleepy when I posted that last version. This one is very similar to what I'll be using in the game. I've implemented attack mode, which changes the control system to more of an arcade style sytem. Press 'a' to change the cursor. Of course, you can't attack in this demo.

I added a character, which will help everyone (myself included) visualize the final product. I also added the camera control system, which I should have done in the first place. The coding for this is exaclty the same as the game itself, so it was just a matter of dropping the camera control module in.

Note - the idle animation is not timer based. I didn't feel that adding the animation controller would yield any real benefit, so I just looped the animation.

All of the gumps are closed by default now. You can walk up to a crate and open it, or open your own gump.

See how it feels. Please note any bugs and let me know. This thing is nearly ready!!!


Come see the WIP!
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Drew the G
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Posted: 26th Apr 2006 17:52
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Hey Cash, one more question or two questoins.

First, is that picture in your sig your wife. It looks awfully familar

Second, then what is you final model going to be, I mean, why'd you waste effort putting in that current model instead of just using that energy to create your final model.

BTW - I could write a storyline for you, if you like, just give me information on what you are looking for. Then I could type a rough draft, email that to you, and you make revisions accordingly. I don't know, it's up to you.

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 26th Apr 2006 19:06
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A duck eh? Very monkey island like, can't remember what you did with the duck, but the rubber chicken is the best, it looks like a good progress

Yey! I removed the sig...
A Llama called Dalai
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Bizar Guy
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Posted: 26th Apr 2006 23:15 Edited at: 27th Apr 2006 05:49
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Quote: "First, is that picture in your sig your wife. It looks awfully familar"

I don't think it's his wife...



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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 27th Apr 2006 04:09 Edited at: 27th Apr 2006 04:10
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@Drew G-
Quote: "First, is that picture in your sig your wife. It looks awfully familar"

Go to hell, Spammo. The only way my wife could look familiar to you is if you gave her the nerd eyeball right before I kicked the crap out of you and stuffed your balls in your mouth.

Quote: "Second, then what is you final model going to be, I mean, why'd you waste effort putting in that current model instead of just using that energy to create your final model."

There is no 'final' model, only a current one. I made the woman, but right now I'm using a Dark Matter 2 model for the main character. This is just a simple tech demo with a short story to give the engine focus. I'll do whatever is most suitable to my purpose.

Quote: "BTW - I could write a storyline for you, if you like, just give me information on what you are looking for. Then I could type a rough draft, email that to you, and you make revisions accordingly. I don't know, it's up to you."

I appreciate the offer. However, there really is no need in this installment. And, I've got my next two RPG stories done already, along with concept art, building schematics, etc. Maybe if you had the greatest story ever told I'd consider doing it 3rd, but I'm REAL picky. I'm also a good writer. If you've got something, I'll take a look at it, but it's certainly no guarantee. If it sucks then I'll tell you so.

@Bizar Guy -
Quote: "I don't think it's his wife... "

You had to remind me...

@Musashi -
Well, I doubt these items will actually appear in the game. They're were just handy when I needed some items. Who knows, maybe the duck will become vitally important...

Thanks... most!


Come see the WIP!
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Drew the G
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Posted: 27th Apr 2006 18:02
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@ Cash
Hey sorry for that comment. I was irritiated that day. Please forgive me. Anyway, I happen to be an half decent writer,so I will try to whip something up. Can you give me a little more detail on what the purpose is on the game, and any specific events that will happen.

Post back at me, I would like to whip something up.

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 28th Apr 2006 20:28
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Okay guys, now it's time for everyone to help out!!! This could very well be the final version of the GUI / inventory management system before I integrate it into the game.


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


Some righteous changes now. I've greatly increased the efficiency of the program by reducing unnecessary computations and 2D collision checks. I also removed the debug text, which can be viewed by pressing Control key.

Object targeting works now. Double click certain objects (if they're usable) and a target cursor will appear. Click on another object and you will either get a success sound or a failure sound. Nothing actually happens, as the specific actions will all depend on specific game item types, but the framework is there.

You can enter attack mode by pressing 'a', and single click items for descriptions. You can double click a gump to close it, double click an item to open its gump, or use it if it's usable.

So, move around, open items, drag items in and out. If it doesn't work, you're probably too far away from the pack or the item. Try moving closer and try again.

Please please please, identify bugs. Try and break it. If it can be improved, I need to do it. Try and pay attention to exactly what you were doing when the difficulty arose, so I can try and reproduce it.

Remember, the mouse click functions are a bit sticky. This is done so that single clicks are not confused with the first click of a double click. Basically, if you click and move the mouse before 500 ms, the click will not register. Give me your thoughts on this too. This is the maximum length between click for a double click on most systems. It will actually load your system's default time setting.

Thanks all!!!

@Drew G-
Quote: "Hey sorry for that comment. I was irritiated that day. Please forgive me."

Not to be a wet rag, but your personal feeling should really remain personal. If you want to make focused insults concerning my wife, you'd best be prepared to recieve my eternal hatred. As it is though, it's cool. I trust you won't do it again.

Quote: "Can you give me a little more detail on what the purpose is on the game, and any specific events that will happen. "

Like I said, this is more of a tech demo. The game will start, and do a short camera fly around of the scenery and characters. You will start in the wilderness. You will encounter wild dogs and orcs, in addition to much fantastic wild scenery. You must gain entry into the house by defeating the guards and discovering how to disarm the lock on the door. Once in the house, there will be more guards to fight. Your goal is to reach the top story and gain entry into the locked room.

Very short, very simple. It will allow me to create larger RPGs with ease once I'm done.


Come see the WIP!
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Drew the G
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Posted: 28th Apr 2006 21:26
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@ Cash
Okay good to see you aren't angry. Anyway, do you mean the story would lead up to the part in the wilderness, like most games? Sorry for asking for all this detail.
Thanks

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 29th Apr 2006 19:33
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I know you guys must be getting tired of this same crap over and over, I'm just very picky about how my game turns out. The interface, above all else, should be correct.

Here's the latest version. Thanks to some very thorough testing by Tinkergirl, I've eliminated lots of bugs. Here they are,

1. Chracter flipping - fixed.
2. "i" functionality - fixed, confined to main pack toggle.
3. Red dot artifacts - removed, hidden, shared.
4. 'Mystical pivot' disance issue - Changed from absolute distance check from local object 0,0,0 to local object 0,0,0 + object diameter. Should work better...
5. Weird turning, too far away - now you turn and walk toward object if you're too far away, no matter what.
6. "ERROWWWWWRRR!!!" - Will return another day.
7. Object scaling messed up - fixed.
8. Wrong font color - blue. I can't reproduce this, like you couldn't. Strange... Could it have been an item object description being displayed in the same location? Judging my code, this error doesn't seem possible. But hey, anything is possible.

9. Object placement problem when removed from pack - fixed. I had to change gumps(i).object to gumps(items(item).inGump).object. What the hell does that even mean?!!?!?
10. Before, you could drag an object into your pack no matter the distance from the object to the character. I BELIEVE I fixed it.

I've made the program much more efficient. I've cut out unnecessary loops, evaluations, sprite placements, etc. I'm getting 430 FPS on my system on idle.

Keep the bugs coming!!! Try and break this thing.

Things to note - if you can't open a pack or drag an item into it, you're probably not close enough to the pack, or the item you're dragging has to be closer to the pack (or player, if that's where you're putting it).

In addition to breaking the interface, let me know if there are any improvements you think should be made.

Interface Beta Test 1.3


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


Thanks all! I'm off to bed.

@Drew G - No, the game starts off in the wilderness. In the wilderness you'll find the means by which to gain entry into the house. It ends in the second story of the Geisha house.




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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 30th Apr 2006 12:21
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Quote: "Who knows, maybe the duck will become vitally important..."

It better be!

Yey! I removed the sig...
A Llama called Dalai
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Drew the G
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Posted: 1st May 2006 00:18
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@ Cash
Okay, now I have a few ideas, well, sort of at least. Anyway, now I know where that picture came from. That recent movie. I know, DUHHHH. Ok, I'll try to do something of a story, hopefully.

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Drew the G
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Posted: 2nd May 2006 21:40
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/bump?

"Bug? That's a feature."
"Retreat? We're advancing in a different direction."
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Pricey
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Posted: 2nd May 2006 23:10
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this is looking preeeety

:: 3Ghz Pentium 4 / Hyper Threading, 1024mb RAM, 250GB HDD, 256mb Radeon 9600XT Graphics ::


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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 3rd May 2006 04:59 Edited at: 3rd May 2006 04:59
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Quote: "Okay, now I have a few ideas, well, sort of at least. Anyway, now I know where that picture came from. That recent movie. I know, DUHHHH. Ok, I'll try to do something of a story, hopefully."

Yeah, she's hot.

Right now, I'm still working on the interface. I've integrated collision and a simple landscape, though the current version isn't available to download. However, I'm going to keep adding features to the interface. I'm going to add proper jumping, messaging, options menu, and some other things. It's just that this program compiles and initializes so quickly that it's so much easier to develop in.

I just got through with a major bug hunt, so everything is looking good.

I should have the new demo up in a couple of days. I want this to HOPEFULLY be the final. I know there will be new bugs, but new additions shouldn't interfere with anything I currently have done.

Once it's done, my game will be so much further along. I'll have integrated not only an interface, but dynamic item generation and mangagement, my entire GUI, dynamic character creation, and scripting. It's a major step forward.


Come see the WIP!
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 3rd May 2006 18:06 Edited at: 3rd May 2006 18:14
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Version 1.4!!!

http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316

Many new additions.

Oddities, quirk, bugs worked out! Tell me if I'm lying...
Collision added to objects.
Messaging system set up properly now. Press enter to activate, enter to 'send' message.
Color coded item descriptions - green for container items, blue for usable item, red for normal item.

Some other things...

Small fake terrain added. The blue was terrible...
Still getting 410 FPS on idle, on average.

To do...

Jumping. I have jumping in the main game, but I don't like it. I'm going to do it right in the interface then port it.
Options menu.
Scripting.
Define object use behaviors.

I'm not sure what else at the moment. Of course there's more, I want to squeeze every bit out of this interface that I can. Dev time is so much faster, as I can quickly compile and run the thing, even though it's over 3000 lines of code.

There were a couple of VERY nasty bugs. Strange, seemingly random behaviors, items popping around the map, items sometimes unable to enter a gump. They took a while to find, but I have actually aquired the superpower (super-nerd-power) to debug code in my head. I'll be doing something else and I'll realize what line of code was causing the misbehavior.

After this I was going to work on my AI. I have pages and pages in my dev notebooks. My special secret was the fact that sounds would be factored into character's reactions. Of course, the good folks here at TGC already did every bit of that. Great timing too, since I haven't actually done anything but basic AI. Now I can pretty much skip the mechanics of it and go right to its implementation.

Well, test out my thing, find bugs, find things you don't like. Thanks all!!


Come see the WIP!
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Bizar Guy
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Location: Bostonland
Posted: 3rd May 2006 22:23
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Heh, cool, but the character can drag themself, and I'm not loving the overhead view. Could you tilt the camera a bit? It would just make it more comfortable to look at. Also, you forgot to add the delete key to the meggase system, and the text just disapeared when I pressed enter again.

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 4th May 2006 07:15 Edited at: 4th May 2006 07:25
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Quote: "Heh, cool, but the character can drag themself"

Ouch. That's simplicity biting me in the ass. I classified the character as an item, since technically he's a container. That simplified a lot of things and fixed a couple of bugs. Thanks for pointing that out, I totally missed it. Easy fix, too.

Quote: "Could you tilt the camera a bit? "

This will require deep thought and meditation...

Quote: "Also, you forgot to add the delete key to the meggase system, and the text just disapeared when I pressed enter again."

I'm a fool, what can I say? I suspect I was tired. The message you type in will appear above his head, as though he is saying it. I'll add the backspace key, I just didn't feel like doing it at the time.

Thank you Bizar Guy I'm glad you're still downloading my junk. I'll try and make future releases more complete and interesting.

*************************************************************

I've got a question for everybody and anybody. How should I, in my great RPG of All RPGs, design the conversation system? There are many possibilities. I haven't really given it too much thought until now, as I am more concerned with the core engine. As it gets closer and closer to being done, I've begun to think about it more. So, I'd like to hear what you all have to say about it.

By it's very nature, an RPG is story driven and filled with NPCs. These NPCs should add to the environment and story, but not interfere with it.

*********


I could have a targeted talk system, where you select your target and choose topics from several choices. That's pretty common in RPGs.

I could have highlighted keywords in the words that you click on to talk about. Once you begin talking, the conversation branches out from there...

I could have predefined keywords that you had to type in, as though you were actually talking to the NPC. They would mention keywords, which you would have to type in yourself.

I could have something more in-depth, somewhat of an AI system that allowed for some idle chat...

Here's a crazy thought... I could have a magic system that required you type in the words for the incantation. If you have the correct reagents on your person, you'd try and cast the spell. Is that crazy?

*********


What's right? What's overkill? Remember, this is the RPG of ALL RPGs, so tell me what you think would contribute to a rich, interesting, gaming environment. Imagine playing the game in your mind, how would you want to interact with the world and its inhabitants?


Come see the WIP!
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Bizar Guy
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Posted: 4th May 2006 07:34
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Quote: "I could have a targeted talk system, where you select your target and choose topics from several choices."

This one, as only hard core gamers can be bothered with the others. Typing manually takes too long. What would really work is if you talked to the npcs through a microphone, and they could respond to you intelligently... But go with this way, and make the npcs able to talk about different things depending on the situation, and maybe the game could construct a list of intelligent responses you could use based on what the npc had said.

Quote: "What's right? What's overkill? Remember, this is the RPG of ALL RPGs, so tell me what you think would contribute to a rich, interesting, gaming environment."

Honestly? I suggest you look at fable and the dungeon siege games for awesome environments. Dungeon Siege is pretty much full of stunning rich environments. Look to fable though to discover perfect suspension of disbelief. You need the right graphics in the right places, the right sounds everywhere, great music that fits the scene, and a really stunning day-night-weather system always helps. Also, is this an action rpg, or a turned based, or something else?

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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 8th May 2006 16:29 Edited at: 8th May 2006 18:25
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Okay everyone, here's the latest inventory system.


http://forum.thegamecreators.com/xt/xt_apollo_download.php?i=849316


Collision is fully functional. It actually was already, but there was a problem with the object radius. It wasn't relative to the object's size, it was absolutely derived from the character's radius. It would cause the character to spin around on top of larger items, like the barrel. Blah, blah, blah.

Okay, some additions and fixes...
When you enter a message and press enter, it hovers above your head for a moment instead of just disappearing.
Collision and radius adjustments fixed
Object creation is totally scripted. You can now change / add / remove items by editing the .obj and .lua files yourselves. (Exciting, huh? Oh, no it's not)
Jumping added. Space bar!
Backspace works now!

It doesn't seem like a lot, but some of the fixes were deep, and adding scripting was down right lousy. I just didn't want to do it. Now, my code is righteous and modular, but it was still a pretty big change to my initialization. But, now it's done!

I still need to script the creation of characters, but that's a bit more complicated. I'm on it, though.

A couple things you might notice - the archive extracts into a folder now instead of just an EXE. The appending animation and the scripts didn't seem to want to add themselves to the EXE correctly. And, the animation sucks. Like I said last time, my real animation controller is on point. Just ignore it in this version.

**************************************************


Quote: " "I could have a targeted talk system, where you select your target and choose topics from several choices.""

I might go with this system. It seems like it would be the least obtrusive system, allowing NPCs to walk around and talk by themselves, and you to jump in and ask them a question.

Still thinking...




Come see the WIP!
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Drew G
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Posted: 8th May 2006 21:08
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I emailed you 5 months ago. Don't say anything to who I am.
Sorry
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Bizar Guy
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Posted: 8th May 2006 23:45
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Um, still no collision, and he's pointed like 45 degrees away from the mouse...

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Saikoro
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Posted: 9th May 2006 02:52
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The character does in fact still spin on the barrel.

"One World, One Web, One Program" -Microsoft ad.
"Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Führer"(One People, One Kingdom, One Leader)-Adolf Hitler.
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 9th May 2006 06:18 Edited at: 9th May 2006 06:19
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Quote: "I emailed you 5 months ago. Don't say anything to who I am.
Sorry "

Forgive and forget, I say. But, you're really pushing your luck with me. Just watch it.

Quote: "Um, still no collision, and he's pointed like 45 degrees away from the mouse... "

Hmmm... I modified the collision behaviors now (still no upload, I want to make more changes). Now when an item hits you, it sticks. When you hit the item, you slide. Some of the items, like the Med-Box and Wood Crate are really odd, because the collision ellipse inside of a box thing just doesn't feel good. The barrel works nicely, though. I'm having a problem with the stupid Plastic Crate though - no matter what I do, collision won't work. I thought it might be a program bug with the last created item, so I left it out, and everything else works just fine. I guess it's cursed or something.

Quote: "The character does in fact still spin on the barrel."

I'm a bit torn on this. The spinning is odd, definitely. It's much less likely to occur now. But, I hate to totally disable that behavior, because it allows you to climb on top of the item. That could be part of a puzzle, having to arrange things and climb them. If you guys all absolutely hate it, I'll take it out and figure something else out, though.

@Bizar Guy - How do you like the camera angle now? I thought it would wreak havok on item dragging, but it didn't really, just the mouse angle. I'll experiment with it.

Development continues! Once I get these issues hammered out, I'll start on magic.


Come see the WIP!
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Saikoro
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Posted: 9th May 2006 06:42
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Quote: "Forgive and forget, I say. But, you're really pushing your luck with me. Just watch it."

I hope that isn't who I think it is

So far as the puzzle factor you want to integrate, I think that with a top down RPG like you have, the act of going on top of an item would be kind of confusing to some players, because you can't really see the effect that well. I don't hate it, but it's not right the way it is. However, you're trying a lot of new things with this engine, so there's no point in holding back on this.

"One World, One Web, One Program" -Microsoft ad.
"Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Führer"(One People, One Kingdom, One Leader)-Adolf Hitler.
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Aaron Miller
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Playing: osu!
Posted: 9th May 2006 08:50
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I might of missed it, (no offense), but what's the plot-line for this game (not the story, or idea for a geisha)?

Looks good no matter what it is.

I have the BEST signature ever! I bet you cant guess what it is!
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Cash Curtis II
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Posted: 9th May 2006 08:59
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Quote: "I might of missed it, (no offense), but what's the plot-line for this game (not the story, or idea for a geisha)?"

The more I look at that sentence, the less I understand it. So you're saying you want something besides the story and geisha idea?

Just in case I'm misunderstanding you, I'll run through the concept. This is a tech demo for my RPG engine. Otherwise, I'll never get the engine done.

You're a warrior and your mission is to find the hidden secret that is in the Geisha house. It is well guarded, so you must use your brains as well as your strength to accomplish your goal.

The land will be inhabited by orcs and some wild animals. The key to breaking into the house lies in the orc encampment.

I don't want to tell much more than this, as it will give away some of the puzzles. It's a very short game, but I want to be fun.


Come see the WIP!
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Aaron Miller
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Posted: 9th May 2006 09:50
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ok, i got it. Assuming that sense the warrior finds a "geisha" house, it will not be rated E.

I understand you not wanting to give it away. I'm sorry my sentence was sloppy.

Anyways, looks good.

I have the BEST signature ever! I bet you cant guess what it is!
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