Sacman
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Posts posted by Sacman
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Ok then here is a thought...can you use a 3D map to take advantage of height fluctuations etc... and still use 2d Sprites for PC's, NPC's, MOBS, buildings etc? This seems to be the best way to go. I am not very found of the 3D shift in RTS games. I don't care to zoom in and look at horrible polygon minis of my characters. I would rather look at them from afar. I also NEVER rotate my map in RTS games. I may be the exception to that rule though.
So, if you locked the camera at an 'iso' viewpoint, could you get away with this?
Also, Ultima Online was my absolute favorite of all the MMORPG to come out (and I have played almost all of them). There is a screenshot of UO in that article.
Wade
Oh and one more thing, if you haven't seen them you MUST look at these:
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Hey Greg, are you using a custom built engine or off the shelf?
Also for anyone interested, I came across the following explanation of why Tile based is better than big graphics. I had to read it several times to get the idea down but I can see what they are saying. I am gonna recreate the text since it is out of a hard copy text I have:
You have a map with 100 * 100 tiles in it. That comes to 10,000 tiles total. Now imagine you decide to use one large bitmap for the map instead of tiles. To calculate how much memory the map requires, you must multiple the number of tiles by th esize of each tile. The following demonstrates this concept:100 tiles wide * 100 tiles high = 10,000 tiles
64 pixels * 64 pixels = 4,096 pixels per tile
10,000 tiles * 4,096 pixels * 1byte (8-bit) = 40,960,000 bytes using 256 colors
10,000 tiles * 4,096 pixels * 4 bytes (32-bit color) = 163,840,000 bytes
Wow! Check that out the simple 100 x 100 tile map takes a whopping 163 MB of storage. ....
All right now that you have seen the dark side, it is time for a little enlightenment. Take the previous example and calculate the memory storage requirements for the same 100 x 100 map this time using tiles.
[Edit: I am moving one of the after statements to the top to make this more clear. The next example is using a 100 tile tile set. That is 100 different types of tiles tiled however you wish]
100 tiles wide * 100 tiles high = 10,000 tiles
64 pixels wide * 64 pixels high = 4,096 pixels per tile
100 tiles [Edit: this is the entire tile set] * 4,096 pixels per tile * 4 bytes per pixel = 1,638,400 bytes
10,000 tiles * 1 byte per tile = 10,000 bytes [Edit: this part confuses me somewhat I am assuming that it takes on 1 byte to display the tile]
10,000 bytes + 1,638,400 bytes = 1,648,400 bytes total
Check that out. Using a tile set of 100 tiles, you can create the 100 x 100 map using only 2MB of memory. Heck, you can use a tile set of 1,000 tiles and still use less than 20MB of memory.
I know this isn't crystal clear but if you can decipher it and it makes sense, it shows the distinct advantage of tiles over large bitmaps in 2D/Isometric games.
Wade
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Nero works well for creating DVD menus. I use it when building VCD discs and it gives you some pretty good options.
Wade
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It opens for me full screen. But....since I have my screen res set higher the movie plays at 640 x 480 in the center, it does not force my machine res to a lower setting.
For some more toys to play with in MMF, go to this site:
http://www.reinerstileset.4players.de:1059/englisch.htm
Found it on accident but it actually has quite a few animated and static sprites for use directly with MMF. I am not sure what sets them apart from standard sprites but he has them listed that way on his site.
Wade
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I am only picking up an odd pattern on the hill itself and even that would not be too distracting if there were a tree or bush or dirt or flowers or something to pull the eye away. I think the rest of it looks fantastic. Please keep going forward. There are very few people that post here that do outdoor terrain and it is a subject of interest to a lot of people.
Keep posting updates as you progress.
Wade
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Actually the second pic you posted with the starfield looks pretty sweet. It doesn't look even remotely like a flying saucer but it has a cool planet halo look to it. If you could do somethng about the middle of it, it would make a pretty sweet pic.
Wade
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Whew! That's probably a lot more detail than you wanted, but if I can help just one animator make a better short, then I've done my job.
Absolutely not. That was exactly what I was hoping for. One last question.
Even with a good quality mic, did you use a filter? I have actually been to professional studios that literally stretch a piece of panty hose across a hoop of some sort to filter hard consonants and the sssss that is inevitable in some cases. I imagine p's and s's to be the worst but I suppose there are others. I guess quality actors are better at filtering these out themselves. I know that when I was in the choir oh so many years ago that they taught us how to control those sounds. Anyway enough rambling.
Wade
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Different direction with the questions.
You and someone else did the voice acting for this.
Where did you record? Did you use a professional studio? Or do you have something set up at home. I cannot listen to it here at work but i think I remenber very good quality in the voices. If you are doing this yourself, can you describe the mehtod you used and what equipment to get it this clean?
Wade
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A wee bit far to travel but I bet it would be fun. Is it always in San Francisco or does it move around?
Maybe it will come to Atlanta one year.
Wade
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Not sure what kind of feedback you want but the opening scene is very pixalated on my machine. I am running 1024 x 768. I am not sure if this makes a diff.
How much control do you have with pathfinding? If you tell him to go to a place he cannot get to, he just keeps trying and trying. In the path finding routine he should know that this area is a blocking object and stop trying once he gets close.
It still kicks butt though. In case you have not found this info yet, I have read that, for an isometric game, the animation frames for your characters should be taken at 30 degrees. This info took me some effort to find so I wanted to post it for anyone that may not know.
Keep posting this is awesome to see.
Wade
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Ok...so I swiped a copy of Visual C++ 6.0 from work and am slowly slogging my way through a couple of PDF tuts that I downloaded. Very confusing. In the meantime I have been reading the books that I mentioned in other posts as well as some other gome dev books that I downloaded.
So I downloaded MySql which is a free database utility. I am fluent with Microsoft Access so I have quickly picked up on the whys and wherefores of Mysql. This is great so the next step in one of the tuts is to download a Win32 'plugin' for mysql. I do this and in the process read where it is not supported by Visual C++ version 6 because version 6 apparently sucks. But if I want I can download another version of the plugin that is no longer supported and good luck if it works. So I do this. The C++ to Mysql interface fails miserably and the tut just continues on trucking. So I am stuck and I head off in another direction....
So I am reading on the Gamedev.net forums and there are so many opinions of what is right and wrong that I will simply make up my own mind and continue. However, the problems I run into are the inconsistancies in software. Every tut must assume that you have EXACTLY what they have cause if you happen to have release 6.1 and the author has release 6.2 nothing works. This is true for DirectX this is true for Visual C++ this is true for Mysql. Now I am getting frustrated so I am looking for a tut that was written yesterday using Visual c++ 6.0 Direct X 9.0 etc, etc...
This is so frustrating.
Of course another path is to use an existing game engine. As discussed in another post, it looks as if MultiMedia Fusion is a good choice. However, I do not want to be locked into what they say you have to do. I like the idea of learning how to do it myself so that when I want something to happen it can. I don't even really know if this is an issue with something like MMF but I cannot justify the expense not knowing where the limitations will be.
I am big on Real Time Strategy (RTS) games and this is the path I want to take so I will continue to pull hair and smoke too much! But I will keep anyone posted that is interested. As I start to get things to come together, I have no problem with sharing any source files that I create. This is going to be quite the challenge and I would hate to see anyone else in the boat that I am in.
One of the added advantages of doing my own is that I can come back later and change this and that but still use the basics that I develop.
Maybe this belongs in the Rants and Raves section
Wade
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Scratch that. The 5th is the weekend of my oldest son's birthday. Any other is okay though.
Wade
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I can adjust to any weekend. If we would rather shift to the 5th or 19th, just let me know. My wife's cousin owns an H&R Block in Knoxville and sometime soon we will need to go up to get our taxes done. So I will need to work that into the mix. Just waiting on my house statement.
Wade
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This is another of those brutal cycles that repeat every so often. The trick to this is:
DO NOT PREVIEW YOUR POST!!!!
For some reason when you preview, it loses the attachment. It took me about 4 months to figure out why I could not post pics. I sent emails to Hash and begged here for some help but know one seem to know what the deal was.
So anyway....
DO NOT PREVIEW YOUR POST!!!!
and it should work fine.
Wade
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I can do February 12th. If we can set it up, we should definitely carpool.
I don't have any secret techniques unless you count the cuss words that I use.
I would like t0 talk about game programming stuff though.
I did however, get a laptop which is pretty sweet. It is one of the leftovers here at work and is not even remotely close to what I wanted but, they could have said no. So I am happy with it. 800Mhz Sony Vaio AMD something or other with only 128MB ram. I don't even know what the vid card is. I am afraid to find out.
It is loaded down with every bit of software development software I own though and serving that purpose nicely.
Anyway.....definitely up for Feb12
Let me know
Wade
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I wanted to bump this to start the discussion down a different path. I am studying Visual C++ right now and wow does it suck. What you can do with it doesn't suck but learning it does.
Everything I have read strongly urges the use of D3D and Direct X and to steer away from OpenGL for graphics. Particularly 3D. The Direct X SDK is free for download and includes so many of the basic 3d functions that actually render and show graphics that many of the steps needed are removed.
Also, Dirext X/D3D is owned by Microsoft. Apparently the OpenGL programmers are very slow at responding to the demands of the market and upgrades to Graphics Accelerator chip sets. Microsoft, as everyone knows due to how often we have had to update Direct X over the years, is apparently not as bad about this.
I do not have the direct X eporter but intend to buy it if it works as described. I hope to be able to get some tests run by someone that already has it before I buy. By using the Direct X exporter coupled with D3D then most of the problems are solved. Of course it would be great to import Hash .mdls directly into a graphics engine and watch it chug away but this is not going to happen anytime soon.
Maybe Avalanche will convert for you for a fee. Or better yet....make their source code available to the public as a plugin. If you are serious about game programming, it would likely be worth whatever Avalanche charged.
Thoughts??
Wade
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I just got my hands on two books
Strategy Game Programming with Dirext X 9.0
Real Time Strategy Game Programming Using MS Direct X 6.0
Both have their pluses even though the second one is out of date. He references the absolute necessity of having 128MB ram for their development and art machines several times and I chuckle.
Great books, very deep. I am gonna have to start back a couple of steps and learn some C++. I know Visual Basic and Visual Basic for Apps very well but C++ is like an alien landscape for me. So I have a copy of Visual C++ 6.0 from work and I am starting from scratch.
That being said, good luck on making an RTS. If I ever get to that point I am gonna hire out for the art. Too much work on top of the coding.
Take a look at this guy's work
Wade
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Ti moute's idea a couple of posts up sounds interesting. I do not know how much time or detail you could put into the 6 + 1 days but it would look really nice.
Wade
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For those of you that have been to one of the trade shows, you know they have posters of some of their better work all over the booth. This would go over VERY well at Dragoncon. I hope Martin and Co. see this and you guys work out a deal to get it printerd for that show this year.
Wade
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Is this for the creation museum being built in Kentucky? I think it was Kentucky. I just read about it a couple of weeks ago. I am looking forward to it. My wife will love it.
Wade
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Footsteps?
That is the only thing that throws me. No sound at all until she speaks. There should be some ambient noise or her footsteps even very very light footsteps would help.
And I also assumed it was a movie clip. Awesome job on the voice acting!!
Wade
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Wegg you are quite the industrious little beaver. It seems like you have something knew every day. I need to get a hold of some 'she' money so I can play with your new materials.
She Money: Money she (the wife) doesn't know about.
Wade
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Incredible!
INFERNO!
in Game Development
Posted
Absolutely. Ensemble used strictly 2D in AOEI and II. I think went to 3D with Age of Mythology. Those screenshots are reported as being actual in game shots. I cannot wait for this game to come out.
That cliff shot is by far the best of all of them. I know they used 3d but I am certain a very similar effect could be pulled off using 2D. When you have a minute why don't you throw one together
I downloaded a trial version of MMF. It is pretty well built for what it does. I only scratched the surface with the breakout tutorial but it is pretty intuitive. I downloaded the Donkey sprite from the aforementioned website and played around with it some since the Demo comes with very few resources and most of them for the tut. Pathing is not very easy to figure out. I can see why this is gonna cause a little grief but I did not have any objects to collide with. I simply used a point path and drew a path on the screen to see how it would behave. It is nice that it automatically interprets the correct direction for animation.
Anyway keep working and posting as you go. I like to see the progress. Even if they are small steps.
Wade