56 replies to this topic

[wakeskater_X]

Thanks Bjorn!

Yes, i am adding feedback to space, I have a few planets added in the latest update which I'll release with some of the test fixes. I've been experimenting with a few things, so it's going slowly as I try different things out in the test level.

For planets, what I am doing is making them move slightly based on where you are. So, the planet will be at 3000,3000 on your map, but based on where you are, it will be closer to you. I am doing this to make them seem farther away than the space stuff on the plane you are, but not as far as the stationary background (which I am not sure is in the current demo, but is stationary now, and looks way better) The coordinates are there to help out but yeah, I plan to add a lot more graphical things to help you find out where you are, and more objects in space as well.

I will fix the platforming thing where it immediately asks you to go back in, I just haven't done it yet. And also yeah, I need to make the reset start you back at the room, but I just need to figure out the code for it (been lazy) ;P

I do need a spriter, my sprites aren't really the best haha, I can make do, but I'm just not that polished of a pixel artist.

Anyway, thanks for the feedback Bjorn! You were the first to actually comment on my blog too! :D
As my new job is settling in I'll have more time to program too.

edit:: Yes it's ambitious, but that is why I am putting a team together for it ;D



**note** my blog has been doing well, it has doubled in viewership each month so far, we'll see how December goes! if anyone hasn't checked it out look in my sig for the link

Edited by wakeskater_X, 10 December 2011 - 07:18 PM.

[FoxInABox]

make the view cordinates custom to the ship facing direction / or motion direction if not turning and just drifting, so we see more in the direction we are going.

something like:

view_xview[0] = x + lengthdir_x(view_hview[0]/2,direction) - view_wview[0]/2;
view_yview[0] = y + lengthdir_y(view_hview[0]/2,direction) - view_hview[0]/2;

(ofc .. need to change the view follow object to noone for it to work)

it's so long since I played a space game with strafing, but I think the friction in space is a bit high ..

it looks like the ship is turning, but that the wings stand still ^^

one last tweek can be to make less heat fills the shield faster..

it is something, and it seem pretty stable so far .. so good luck with your project.

[wakeskater_X]

Hmm, i can adjust the view a bit, I might test that out and see if I like how that works.

Yea technically there shouldn't be friction in space, but it makes it a lot harder if you don't just slow down. So the deus ex-planation is that your ship has balancing thrusters that slow you down when not accelerating.

Also, yeah the Ship sprites need to be redone a bit, still looking for a better spriter than myself for the project, and the heat adjustments, etc will be done too, some weapons def overheat the ship too fast, even when I jack up the cooling for test purposes. Some of the weapons you test will overheat the ship, but it's also because you will get items later to increase cooling, etc.

Thanks for the feedback, i'll work with the views some and see if I can get something worked out.

[wakeskater_X]

Finally got some time off work! My new job has been crazy busy, but tomorrow I will grind out a bunch of work on SBX2. Since I don't have an artist yet, I'm going through and doing all the designs myself, and it's taking a while, but I have the first sprite for the first NPC you come across in the game: General Bradsworth. He is the General of your platoon and will give you orders at the beginning of the game and direct you in what to do in a few areas.

Here is a nice little sprite that I came up for him:


He'll have a few more positions to be used in the story as well.

Stay tuned, I should have another update on Sunday *hopefully* with a few of the aforementioned bugs fixed in the testing area, and then I'll begin work on the saving system and then the tutorial/first area.

Exciting, Exciting! Check out my most recent blog post here: SBX Blog: New Job, New NPC

Thanks for reading!

~WakeskaterX~

Edited by wakeskater_X, 03 December 2011 - 03:10 AM.

[wakeskater_X]

Well nearly through with my 15 days of work in a row... HALF A MONTH! (Nearly being... well my first day off since last month is Saturday)

So there hasn't been too much time to code things, BUT, I have gotten a few things done, so you can look forward to them:

First: There are new screenshots on the first post! Check out what the new background and planets look like.
Second: Began work on the first level - an intro level to the game. Not much is done, working on making small parts of the systems so I can use them multiple times later. Making new tool objects where I can feed in data and use the same object over and over for various tasks.
Third: Working on an actual story!

I'll also be working out how I want to do the save system... i might just use the in game save system this time instead of .ini files to store data. That way I can only let the user save at certain areas and keep that data. I have the profile screen already sketched out and processed in Paint.NET, but I haven't implemented it in game yet.

Anyway, look for updates probably this weekend when I have some days off (FINALLY).

[wakeskater_X]

New Update!

What has been added:
1: Dialogue boxes! I modified J-Factors (cred to him) dialogue script to suit my needs (and used his font file and sound file for now, but that'll change later)
2: General Bradsworth's portrait! Ever wondered what the general looks like up close? Well now you know!
3: A mock up story, but will be replaced later when I add in Lt. Hawk's portraits as well.

I'm not the best artist, but I think the portrait turned out alright, check it out here:

Spoiler

That's the background and portrait for General Bradsworth. Soon I'll add in Lt. Hawks portrait as well and finish out the tutorial story line. I also need to redo the background on the tutorial level, but the current back layout was done by: TheUltimate, so props to him for making that background, and perhaps he'll make some more parts for it

And of course, while I'm giving all the credits out, my sound guy: Waseem Faraz Butt custom composed the song "Rock-IT" for the test area. You should be seeing some more of his work soon.

Well, I'll get some more done this weekend! 2 whole days off! Wow! So I have lots of time finally to get some work done!

Let me know what you guys think, there are also a few small bug fixes this patch, but when you die, well you still restart the game, I'll do that one later ^^;

Thanks for reading and look for a new blog post soon (today probably)!

~WakeskaterX~

Edited by wakeskater_X, 10 December 2011 - 07:52 PM.

[TheUltimate]

Nice to see that there's some progress on this. What the heck is with all this "not that good at spriting" thing? That portrait's actually pretty good! Just needs some shading or something to match the rest of the dialogue box.
Something you should keep in mind for platforming levels is to avoid long stretches of straight ground. The intro level could easily have been done in one screen's worth of space instead of two. I think his running speed could be a little faster as well, but otherwise it's fine.
As for the space part, I finally don't suck at it! Got used to the strafing controls. Yeah.

◊ TheUltimate ◊

P.S. You know those are supposed to be platform tiles and not background tiles, right?

Edited by TheUltimate, 11 December 2011 - 02:38 AM.

[wakeskater_X]

Nice to see that there's some progress on this. What the heck is with all this "not that good at spriting" thing? That portrait's actually pretty good! Just needs some shading or something to match the rest of the dialogue box.
Something you should keep in mind for platforming levels is to avoid long stretches of straight ground. The intro level could easily have been done in one screen's worth of space instead of two. I think his running speed could be a little faster as well, but otherwise it's fine.
As for the space part, I finally don't suck at it! Got used to the strafing controls. Yeah.

◊ TheUltimate ◊

P.S. You know those are supposed to be platform tiles and not background tiles, right?

haha, well they weren't isometric so the player standing on them would look a little weird O_o I'll change it later, i do need to figure out a background though. Anyway, yeah I know, i meant to put more stuff in the intro level, but for now it's a little empty, it's supposed to be a run from your stationed area to the hanger where the ship is, but atm there isn't a hanger or much of anything... cept the 1 locker. Glad you are getting better at the controls! :D And here is my other portrait... kudos if you can guess who i used for the base image:

Meet (up close), Lt. Jack Hawk:

Spoiler

There is some new dialogue for the newest file, I added it later today, but not before updating the file, perhaps I'll upload a new version tomorrow, we'll see.

Anyway, Theres a bit

[wakeskater_X]

Ok! A new file has been uploaded, I basically re did one of my sprite sheets and fixed some graphical things.

The Tutorial level has been updated: It requires you to do all the things to get to the test stage now!

It's a bit cooler now, but I'll still need to add a nice background behind everything which I don't have yet.


Anyway, I'll post a new blog post soon and you can check out the new file!

I'll also update the first post to list known bugs etc: I know that one of them is sometimes enemies will turn in circles and won't stop, among others.

[wakeskater_X]

Okay! Another small update:

There is now a profile selection room. There isn't any save system yet, but this is there to facilitate the development of the save system once the game is long enough to warrant it (And you can access a map menu which isn't made yet).

Also the platforming area accessible inside the space test area is now useful! You only start with your Gatling Gun now, but you can swap to the Double Shot once you get the item.

And I added a new background for that area as well so it doesn't look so void.

Cheers Enjoy!
~WakeskaterX~


**note** if you like League of Legends, you should check out my most recent blog post here: http://spaceblasterx...ent-league.html

I made a character design document for a character I thought up.

[wakeskater_X]

New Update!

Fixed a few bugs and added a few things.
1. New Space Level Design (The graphics for the new design are temporary and will be replaced, they are simply the template)
2. New Weapon Unlocked in Platform Area!
3. New Enemy added to test area! Better be careful he wants to give you a hug.
4. Dying in Space area now simply resets the room instead of the game.
5. Updated Enemy Movement. (Fixed the circle bug, but enemies are twitchy some times... will try to fix later).

Have a great Christmas Eve or whatever holiday you celebrate!

Look for a blog post in the near future. ;D

And the team is getting close to being complete for starting the project officially in 2012.

[wakeskater_X]

If you are a fan of MMORPGs, I implore you to try out Star Wars: The Old Republic... damn game has been sucking up all my programming time, but damn, is it a good game.

I posted a review here:
http://spaceblasterx...ublic-1010.html

But don't worry,
I'll be working on SBX2 as well: This weekend should provide some new updates and time to get some core programming done.

Look forward to an exciting January too! (Still Looking for a Graphic Designer who specializes in pixel art and a talented programmer who is fluent in GML and (preferably) has experience in some other languages and organization skills in programming to help with some of the work and double check a lot of the code.)

~WakeskaterX~

[wakeskater_X]

New Update!

Mostly Graphical, there are some behind the scenes stuff that I did, but that'll still need work.

Updated some items, added in some weapons for the player. **hint** try pressing shift after you pick up your gun.

Also added in the next area that I'll add story to.

Been super busy but perhaps tomorrow I'll get a bunch done... we'll see ;D

I also need to update the screenshots on sandbox and here.

The sandbox file is updated though, so go ahead and try it out!

~WakeskaterX~

[wakeskater_X]

The tutorial area is finally complete!

From here the story is finalized and you can begin your adventure (once the content is there!)

The story has been implemented and there are only a few things left to add (minor things like **cough** backgrounds and touch ups)

After this you can expect a map system, save system, autoshop system, and more!

Look forward to some exciting new content in the future releases!

There should be a blog entry soon on the new content and other items of interest as well. Check the yoyogames link for the information.


Thanks,

~WakeskaterX~

[TheUltimate]

Alright, alright, I get all the hints you’re sending my way. I’ll see if I can make some backgrounds for you.
Something else you should add to this game is the ability to land on those planets in the background if you’re being overwhelmed in space or just feeling adventurous. I’d love to see a system where you can forge alliances with whatever civilization’s there depending on your actions (i.e. if you explore in peace or just blow everything up). This way, you get to customize way more than just your ship, and on top of that, you may get some help during boss battles!

◊ TheUltimate ◊

[wakeskater_X]

Haha, that would be quite an addition to the game. For now at least I'm going to keep the planets aesthetic. Well some of them anyway. I will probably have planets that are huge and close that you can land on (with little teleport down thingies) But it'll be to explore and find items for your player and ship. The main story is that you are kinda the only one left to save the galaxy... again... so I'll probably keep it fairly streamlined to just the player (and a few characters I have planned along the way).

But If I ever have time to add an entire system to the game ... >_> then maybe

But yeah, I have so much to work on and so little time at the moment.

[wakeskater_X]

Well I added some new backgrounds to the tutorial area **thanks to TheUltimate who made them**

Here is an example of what it looks like compared to the old.

Old:


New:


As you can see it looks a lot nicer and more like a space station .

I've been sick the past few days, but I'll begin work on the new systems for the game soon when I get to feeling a little better and can focus on the programming.

Edited by wakeskater_X, 17 January 2012 - 07:07 PM.

[wakeskater_X]

I've got the save system and map system in place. I'll begin work on level 1 soon! (the first level after the tutorial area )

Also stay tuned for bug fixes and whatnot, I know there are a few bugs still that need to be worked out like the tutorial space area resets after you enter the platforming area for the first time, and only the first time >_> dunno why I think it's a bug with the persistence of the room.

Also there are a few other things to iron out but overall I got all my save and load scripts set and we should be good to go! All that is left is designing the next level and the graphics for it and then the AutoShop (which will come after this next level).

So things are coming along! Got a lot done today. The new save files will include the .ini save files, if you want to keep them from a previous game, you can just drag and replace them over the new ones later (and unless I change some syntax that should work fine for a couple of patches at least).

Edited by wakeskater_X, 21 January 2012 - 12:01 AM.

[wakeskater_X]

Just so you guys know...

I've resumed work on SBX2. Going back and upgrading some stuff on SBX1 made me realize how much i miss the organization of this game. AND BOY, do i miss having organized code. SBX1 is a giant jumble of MESS. It's disgusting. No really it is. But anyway:

Coming Soon:
- Level 1 progress
- Adding tons of new upgrades to the game (Generators [used to be cores in SBX], Addons [the new special weapon-ish items], Boosters and Weapons) There probably won't be too many weapons added until I finish Level 1 and figure out how many of each Item I want in the game (probably 20 of each, yeah a LOT ) because of the design for the Auto Shop. There will be tons of secrets and stuff to explore to find all the items, imma hide em thoroughly in the levels (which are huge and will probably take you getting used to the coordinate system).
- Autoshop (this is gonna come after level 1, which is gonna take a lot of time and work to finish).


So stay tuned, June and July should be some good months for SBX progress (also expect the tutorial area to be a bit easier with enemies having less HP)

When I release a new update, expect a blog post as well, and if you haven't tried SBX2, try it out here:
http://sandbox.yoyog...of-the-fuscians

Edit: New blog post here:
http://spaceblasterx...ics-update.html

Cheers,
~WakeskaterX~

Edited by wakeskater_X, 13 June 2012 - 08:39 AM.

[TheUltimate]

Ah, it's the Great Revival of your game, eh? Nice. Now hurry up with the update!
(And update Julius Dragonslayer while you're at it. I designed the ice caves like two weeks ago, so hurry up with that one too!)