Tyraziel just posted up the new Speed Coder Challenge with the theme: Warmth/Warm Up and Speed.
Your game has should have either a WIN/LOSE(like Super Mario) or a SCORE/LOSE(PacMan) system and should have a significant challenge to be (subjectively)enjoyable. Your game can be anything from text mode to 3d, with the goal of doing it in 2hrs.
All entries must be submitted by:
11:59PM EST Thursday, May 31st, 2012
Building a platformer and are thinking of procedural generated levels? Gamasutra has an interesting 3 page article up by Cloudberry Kingdom developer Jordan Fisher talks about precisely how he created the algorithmic level design system for his procedurally generated platformer.
Thinking of building a platformer and mulling over editor/engine choices? CDN member Hanclinto has a great platformer application; Platformer Starter Kit, using the PushButton Engine it allows you to easily create your own flash based platformers with XML based levels, advanced physics, full documentation/source and starting artwork so you can get crackin right away.
Wired has an article up teasing Epics upcoming E3 reveal of the ever popular Unreal Engine 4. While much of the article is gibberish journalist talk it gives a bit of a look of some of the elements of future mainstream graphics technologies.
Honestly the presentation doesn’t impress me as much as other advancements over the past several years. Much of the features toted are common to lesser known engines and have been available to the interested developer for years (dynamic lighting, physics based particles, etc.). It brings up an interesting discussion regarding graphical enhancements, other than a few milestones (mainly sparse voxel octrees and ray tracing) the technological leaps have been averaging out. Engine development companies have been turning much of their focus towards the easy of use of their toolsets and it’s become clear in the last few years that the easier the toolset is the killer feature. What do you think the next advancements will be in? Animation? AI?
This weeks faith discussion is: What hard time in life has God helped you get through?
In our recent discussions; What makes a game ‘Christian’? and Are Christian Games Dead? We’ve been discussing, well, Christian games and their future. One subject that always comes up is that Christian games need to forge a new way to express themselves through new gameplay elements.
Keith Burgun has an interesting article up about ‘designing games for the future‘, ignoring genres, pushing aside thematic thinking and focusing on the small pickup elements. Hopefully it’ll stir the creative juices and inspire developers, we do have an upcoming SpeedGame coming in June(!) which would be a great way to test your theories.
So you got a beta version of your game done and through a little grass roots marketing you’ve caught the eye of a publisher looking to take you under their wing. Jovan Johnson, a California attorney and partner at Johnson & Moo, examines the important legal issues that may arise when you sign your mobile game up with a publisher for distribution, and explains how you can take steps to insulate yourself from negative outcomes.
The 3 page article is a good basics read on dealing with publishers, I’d recommend reading the comments as well and, if you’re finding yourself in such a situation, devour as many articles and interviews you can about developers working with publishers.
Christian music, Christian movies, Christian books, Christian mints(?), when it comes to Christianity in forms other than the religious ideology we seem to love to define what it is. So when it came to games developed by Christians with a Christian message then it should be called a ‘Christian game’…right?
Over the years at CDN we’ve debated about what makes a game Christian? Can games even be called Christian? Is defining it as such counteractive to outreaching to others? Is including Christianity into a product that’s sold for profit the same as turning the Lords house into a marketplace? Are we assisting in the commercialization of Christianity? Should we be ‘shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves‘ and hide our true identities and intentions? Where should the line be drawn in representing Christianity in games? Should there even be a line? Can Christian games be used as an outreach tool? Should they be?
If you enjoyed this thread then maybe you’ll enjoy our other current discussion going on: Are Christian games dead?
Valve Software engineers and artists regularly contribute to industry and academic conferences, covering topics from the high level goals of our cabal development process to the inner workings of cutting-edge rendering algorithms. While many of these articles are several years old they still apply to todays workflow and in many cases are still unrivaled in the industry today.
Here’s the main directory of articles and a few select favorites of mine:
Connecting Visuals to Gameplay
Stylization With a Purpose: The Illustrative World of Team Fortress 2
For those just starting out in 3d modeling may find Oskar Janssons workflow article for weapons in Battlefield Heroes an interesting read. While Oskar uses Maya, Mudbox and Photoshop the basic principals of his work flow could be applied to any 3d modeling application.
For those who enjoy the raw data as much as I do will be especially interested in Tiger Styles recent blog post about the lifetime sales numbers for both of their iOS titles: Walking Mars and Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor. The comparison between the two titles (including the $4.99 and $2.99 price marks), the niche status of Walking Mars and what they hope to do to boost sales and exposure.
“ As a result, we take on a lot of risk. We care a lot about innovating and inventing new forms of gameplay and moving the medium forward in some small way. Broadly speaking, these goals have been of greater importance to us than the goal of “being a mega-profitable business.” That said, we always keep an eye on the market and our own ability to make an impact there. For Tiger Style to continue its existence and stay independent, we literally HAVE TO sell copies of our games. Lots of them, in fact.
Our very existence should hopefully demonstrate that it is POSSIBLE to survive with a company focused on innovation and gameplay, but that doesn’t mean that it’s an easy thing to do. By sharing our sales numbers with the public, perhaps we can encourage others to take similar risks — with a cautious eye on the potential pitfalls.”