Early Wedge in Html5

Ok after a long time I finally have a playable demo I can share with everyone via the web.  Just go to

http://apoidgames.web44.net/wedge.html

The controls are basic and it may run a little slow as I only have one type of the two types of triblock showing.  There is also no collision detection so you can walk right through all of the blocks.  I built it using three.js, and I'm hoping to get to the point where it can be edited.  It at the very least will give everyone an idea of what I am going for in the landscape.  Just imagine lots of these triangles put together into one large field.  Anyway I'm back to figuring out how to make this even more interactive.

Beginners Ambition

So I've come across this term in my research and I thought I would talk about it a little.  Having spent the last few years of my life pursuing a dream that was far too ambitious for a first project, and also meeting many beginners in the game creation process, I have seen a definite pattern that has emerged.  When someone is unfamiliar with what it takes to make a video game they think remaking some large game or creating an MMO is just a matter of using the existing framework and tweaking it a little.  What happens afterward is a realization of what a colossal effort it takes, as every question they look up on Google leads to two or more new questions, which when followed lead to yet more questions.  Soon a beginner is quite overwhelmed, and that grand game they have thought up becomes an unconquerable beast of a task.

So what advice would I give to someone interested in becoming a game developer.  Well one is start small, with learning how to make pong for example.  Think of pong as the monster conquerable by a beginning adventurer.  It's not that exciting, but given you are just starting out it's where you are and it will give you valuable experience needed for the next level challenge and the challenge after that.  Eventually you will be able to recreate games from the 8-bit era like super mario bros.  Unfortunately there are no shortcuts if you wish to create something truly unique.  If you wish to program a 3D game then you will need to learn matrix math and programming challenges that will really stretch your creative and analytic skill sets.  Perhaps one day, hopefully with the help of others going through a similar journey, you will be able to take on that challenge and make your game.

Also I cannot stress enough that making games is a challenge that will require a good education in math, computer science, and depending on what you want to include in your game a wide variety of other subjects.  It is not a challenge for the faint of heart, and unlike playing most games you will fail many times before you succeed.  I have a great respect for game developers now, and I truly hope that many of the rising generation are able to take on the challenge to become great game developers in the future.

Working on Web Programming and Three.js

So I've been doing some soul searching and trying to determine what to teach myself in programming relating to graphics.  I learned a bit about GLUT (an open GL library not really used much these days) and rather than learning older technology I am going to work on understand HTML5, javascript, and WebGL.  I hope to put something together that runs in a browser (probably Chrome, upgrade if you haven't yet) by the end of the semester.

To this end I am learning about an interesting library called THREE.js by one mr.doob.  He has been instrumental in getting several chrome experiments up and running and I feel that the library is approachable as the novice I am.  The cool thing would be that I could share whatever I make on the internet, so hopefully you all can experience it too.  Thanks for reading as always.

The power in WebGl

I recently stumbled upon a pretty amazing demo showing just what can be done with javascript and Webgl.  You can check it out at https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/demos/detail/bananabread . Basically they took a full game engine written in C++ and OpenGL and ported it to javascript and webgl.  It's open source, so I will be able to study it out and get a good idea of where I could go to start my own game later on.

Reality Check

I'm coming to the realization yet again that this is no small project that I have undertaken.  I recently had a few good discussions with people on Google+ about game making, and here is what one +Robert Mitchell, who has some experience in the game industry, had to say

"The fact is that the level of competition for good game dev gigs has never been higher. And the reward:risk isn't as good as other sectors unless you offset with an obsession about games in the first place. The likes of EA, for instance, has a tiny fraction of a percent hiring rate for applicants to any given job offer made.

Even then, lucking out with stable employment in this field is just like netting a pink winged unicorn that tastes like chocolate bacon."

Also

"But again, if you find yourself awake at night thinking about how the latest games you played could be improved - and not just from the addition of a new character - and or find yourself in deep thought about the emergent properties found in the interaction of systems around you. Or if you enjoy reading game theory papers talking about conflict and cooperation and Monty Hall's three door game makes obvious sense to you and you don't mind the years it might take to fully pivot over... Game development is incredibly rewarding, IF and ONLY IF you have the love of the craft... because otherwise, this industry will devour your soul and leave you a grumpy, sour mess. I've seen it happen and almost always to good people who just wanted a stable, straight forward job."

I've given a lot of thought to his comments, and the cold hard reality is that I will have to put the needs of my family first and foremost.  I have also come to realize that I am not passionate about making games in general, rather I am passionate about making a game that I think I would enjoy playing.  I probably won't be able to get the resources to make this particular game as it is so ambitious.  I do plan on continuing my education and finishing my master's degree, and I'll find out how much I can get done before that period of my life is finished.  I might end up doing a thesis as opposed to a project, but I still have a long time before I have to make that choice.  To any aspiring game developers who may be reading this, I recommend learning as much as you can as early as you can.  Trying to learn all of this in my mid 30's has been quite tiring.

Firefall review

So I recently had the opportunity to try out Firefall and I must say that for a free to play game it was very impressive.  I liked the ability to swap out battleframes, which is very similar to the idea I have for switching roles.  There was a definite PvE (player vs environment) push, with PvP(player vs player) being almost an afterthought.  The PvP matches were basically 5v5 team deathmatch style with the possibility of 10 v 10 on different maps, but there is not the persistent open world pvp I was kind of hoping would be there.  There are a kind of simple tower defense type situation where you and your squad defend a thumper (a type of mining device) from wave after wave of overgrown bugs and other mutated wildlife, which provides a challenge of it's own.  Finally there is the Chosen, who are evil incarnate NPC (non player characters) who come to take over watchtowers and generally make life difficult.  Some of them are quite powerful, leaving me roasted a many a time as I tend to walk around alone.  Even so I was able to take out dozens of them single handed, and I'm sure that even with improved AI players will eventually figure out way's to kill them easily.

As for what I would hope to see,  I would say that player controlled chosen would make the game very interesting.  That way large scale open world pvp could be realized, though that also introduces some problems as to how would tech and other items work.  That and if you have the "good" side and the "bad" side developers often will unconsciously favor the good side.

Product vs Service

As I continue to study the art of game creation I came across an interesting and thought provoking concept, that we are moving away from games as a product to games as a service.  I certainly would say that I hope to create a system for the latter, but I suppose I should explain the differences before I go into that.

In the past games were required to be in a complete state (meaning completely coded, put into a package to be sold in retail outlets, etc..) before they got to the consumer.  Often once it had shipped the developers would no longer have anything to do with the product other than wait for one of two outcomes, success and the opportunity to make more games or rejection by the masses which usually meant the end of said game development company.  With every "product" shipped there was a definite gamble,  and since publishers who were funding the product from the inception and who also are very concerned with making a profit were pretty much in control, any failure to produce said profit was a death sentence to any game developer who didn't perform well.

Now switch to games as a service.  MMO's are a great example of how this mindset works.  A game is created and then costumers are brought in before the game is complete (usually in beta) and they give feedback as to what they would like to see in the game as a finished product.  The thing is that the game is never really finished, as things keep getting added on.  Costumers also don't do the one time purchase as in the other model, rather they pay on an ongoing basis either through subscription costs or via micro-transactions.  The game developer and the consumer then have this continual relationship where there are feedback loops and opportunities for creating an experience that players enjoy and game developers are happy to provide.  It also means that game developers are able to work with a product long after it has reached the hands of the consumer.

I think the second option has a better chance of creating communities around a game, and also gives developers a chance to polish and work out games to become the very best that they can.  I look forward to the change in paradigms that is already occurring.