Greetings

Title Screen
95%

-have to implement some global variables to record the users score and remaining credits. That's it.

Level 1
100%

Level 2
80%

-I have to play around with the zombies on the second level because for some reason (I think there's some aft code in there somewhere) they cause it run with a terrible lag.
-Fix Evil.K's death sequences.

Level 3
60%
-Lucifer is half-finished and already implemented in the game. However I want to have a 'transformed' Lucifer where he flies around attacking you, instead of running on foot. Working on the mesh at present.
-Level needs more gore.
-Death scenes for all enemies.

The Damned is truly nearing completion. All 3 levels are quite fleshed out now, and are loading nicely into a placeholder mc on the title screen, and all in all I'd say it was about a month and a half from going beta to alpha.
Sweeet..

I of all people know it's not a perfect game. It's a bit sparse in places and doesn't feel like there's enough action going on, but I'm quite satisfied with it as a first-time game. I'm reaching the point where I'm ready to move onto the next project, which at the moment in my head is a remake of the C64 classic Samurai Warrior. The Damned 2 will come soon in the future though, and it will absolutely blow away the first one.

Update Central

Greetings peeps,

Yes, I have been busy. Just had my Japanese style wedding a few days ago, and boy am I glad that's all over. Anyone who's ever had an 80 year old relative sing karaoke at their wedding will know exactly what I'm talking about.

But somewhere inbetween in between the sake drinking and the speech-making, I managed to find the time to sneakily work on The Damned, and in fact I have quite a few updates to report (as if anyone reads this shit).

The third level is going well now. I rewrote the entire enemy spawn function, and also made the decision to reduce the dimensions of the sprites. It's amazing how much faster the game runs now, and without any serious compromise in visual quality. Sure, the monsters look a bit blockier when they get close, but the extra frames of animation more than make up for it. This was the way I should have had it from the start.

Got the little Crow dudes running around in there now, and I FINALLY invented a method that works successfully in simulating fog with movieclips. Further more, the modified weapon code is functioning well now, and can accommodate any other firearms I decide to include (not likely until The Damned 2). Another addition (though still in testing) is the implementation of a power-up symbol that gives you extra shotgun rounds if you shoot it. It's done but needs a cool sound effect.

One last amendment is the inclusion of a new beastie. Yes, I thought just having CrowMen to shoot might make the level a little bit bland, so I've gone ahead and designed my own Garrador/Dr.Salvador hybrid. No name for them as yet (any suggestions?). I downloaded (oops, rented) Friday 13th the second part the other night and the whole sack on the head thing was working for me. My character doesn't wield a machete, but a karambit, an ancient Indonesian style hunting tool. It's a lot uglier.

Check him out;



The other day we were chit-chatting on FlashKit about C64 remakes, and I was thinking how I'd love to remake the Friday 13th game. Making a Jason character now might save me some time in the future if I ever do pursue such an idea.


More to come real soon!

Back at the helm..

So, for the past month or so I've been a little busy. My wedding is on the 4th of November, and I've been up to my ears in prep. I'm actually already married so the whole event feels a little pointless, yet this is how they do it in Japan- marriage at the local registry first, wedding later on in the year.

I took a coding hiatus from The Damned for a while in order to work on my isometric engine, but I'm back now. I've basically spent the last month teaching myself how to use 3DSMAX, and I've been learning rather than creating. FINALLY, I'm getting the hang of working with a mesh in Max, though for almost a week it's been an awful wrestle trying to get to grips with texture mapping enough to produce an end result I can be proud of. I suppose I've got more of an advantage over your average noob though, having mastered other programs such as TrueSpace and Lightwave in the past, and know my specular from my ambient mapping. The change was inevitable really, as Poser is well...shit.

Presenting my first mesh success 'CrowMan';



Picture this little squawking freak coming at you from out of the fog, because that's what will happen in the game.

He isn't the boss, just the standard enemy for the 3rd (and final) level of the game.
I have yet to rig him up and attach wings, but the mesh and texture maps are finalised. He's not perfect- yes, the mesh seams are visible close-up; yes, some of the textures don't blend nicely- but from a distance he does the job. I figure later on down the line I'll probably come back to this game and improve on all the graphics/code one day anyway.

It's a high-mesh model of Poser's James, exported to Max and altered quite a bit. As mentioned, texture mapping was the hardest to do. Only until I came across an easy method using a combination of UVW MAP and UNWRAP UVW,to keep all the textures in one jpg file. At anyones requests, I will write a mini-tutorial on how to do this.


All for now.


Progress on the game should be faster now that MAX and me are starting to like each-other.

Well howdya do..I wasn't going to bother to blog today, but my little peach is asleep already, and here I am.

I figured out a little trick today. Have you noticed that all my demo's run a little bit faster now, yes?


Well, want to know the secret?


RAMP UP THE FPS ON YOUR GAMES. BIG TIME.


I know, I know, every respected programmer will beg you never to go over 30 fps - because do you know - the poor cheap bastards out there who haven't upgraded their PC since 1999 and can only dream of figures and specifications such as 64mb ram and 1.4 ghz won't be able to play it.
Well screw 'em, that's what I say. After all, they're in the minority. I say boost it up to 60, and while you're at it, get some real sprites on the screen, not peewee space-ships that expire with miniature explosions.
Why stop there? Make two versions of your game, one that runs at 60, and one at 80 with twice the action - for the people with real graphics cards. And screw the guys who tell you not to push your fps beyond what is deemed considerate. Because the fact is, Flash simply can't handle big, fat, in-your-face bitmap games at 30 fps. MY little 500 pound laptop runs them fine at 50 fps (though online it slows to about 30 -JUST RIGHT-). And I don't know anyone who has a shittier laptop than me. Anyway, people who are regularly into games tend to own high-spec computers. Even kids who are not into games that much will nag their parents to buy high-spec until they give in.
My old dear has a fairly decent PC and believe me, she doesn't know the difference between the vacuum cleaner and the electric toaster. That's just the way things are these days, PC's are faster, better built. So there you have it. Focus on making the games you want to make, not the ones that are built to serve redundant specifications.

So push forward with your evil-self and slam the fps to the hilt. 'Cos unfortunately with Flash, it is so often is the only method available to whip some honest performance out of the slow-ass biatch.

p.s.New FLASH GTA demo on the sidebar.

Kris is back in the house...

It's been an inexcusable absence, but the dude is on the scene once again.

I've been pressed between finishing The Damned and YouTube. It's incredible that in a periodically short amount of time, YouTube now has videos on just about everything. I even discovered one containing out-takes from Vamp, one of my favourite childhood horror movies.

Progress with The Damned has been, er, damned slow. See, prior to the third level, most of the models I created were humanoid and as such could be made with a minimal amount of mesh adjustments and a few Photoshopped texture maps, but on the third level I have been faced with the task of creating the 'birdmen' monsters that I have conjured in my minds eye. Another issue has been focusing on the actualisation of a foggy landscape. I'm still working on creating the illusion of a believable, animated forest floor, but the ceaseless displays of moving, sometimes animated alpha-channelled images is persistingly costing a lot of processor power and getting around this has been tasking. It's times like this when you wish you had a senior coder with 10 years experience handy.

On the sunnier side of things, Lucifer is looking sweet coming out of the mists, and the 'birdmen' are coming along in a nice, creepy fashion.

A demo of the level 2 boss, EvilK, has replaced the previous link to the first level on your right side, enjoy. Seek out the weakspots!

p.s.

A bit of free code for those who want it. Mist in AS using the perlin BitmapData filter. Slow as shit, unfortunately.

import flash.display.BitmapData;

function makePerlin()
{
 

  for (var a = 0; a < 10; ++a)
    {
        offsets[a].y = offsets[a].y + offsetSpeeds[a];
  
    } // end of for



    datab.perlinNoise(50, 50, 6, rnum, false, true, 1, true, offsets);

  
  
}
  

var offsetSpeeds = [4, 2];
var rnum:Number = Math.floor(Math.random() * 10);
var datab:BitmapData = new BitmapData(550, 400, false, 0x00CCCCCC);
var offsets = [new flash.geom.Point(0, 0), new flash.geom.Point(0, 0)];
var mc_1:MovieClip = this.createEmptyMovieClip("mc", this.getNextHighestDepth());
mc_1.attachBitmap(datab, this.getNextHighestDepth());


onEnterFrame = function ()
{
    makePerlin();
};

Okay. Today, bad movies..

Just a couple of horror flicks that've come out in recent years that are don't deserve the praise.

Hostel
Damn, well this started off pretty good, but the last 30 minutes killed it. And thinking about it, the only reason is was good in the beginning was not because of any horror element, but just enjoying the adventure that the 3 young guys were having getting laid in Slovakia and the Netherlands.
Like I said, the last 30 minutes were bloody ridiculous. Suddenly the mostly complacent hero turns into a whacko and does all sorts of comic-book anime shit involved cutting up bad guys. It's completely deters from any form of psychological reality. To top that, there's one part involving this crazy American businessman torturing a Japanese girl with a blowtorch. Moments later, the J-girl is up and running with a prosphetic eyeball hanging off her cheek.
The whole thing leaves you shaking your head muttering "weak". I can't believe Takeshi Miike lowered himself to do a cameo in one scene of this steaming poo-pile.

Saw 2
Ahhh, this was rubbish. Frankly, I think Saw was the equivalent of a one-hit wonder for the two main dudes involved in the producing of it, and so it came to me as no suprise that they disguise the lack of any solid professional talent in the making of the second one. The guys shouldn't have sold their souls to cash in on the franchise, because they could have remained respected members of the horror crowd otherwise. Sigh.

There are parts that are good, but Saw 2 has the feel of a college project with a big budget. Jigsaw is over-exposed and has some stupid lines. "Oh yes, there will be blood" sounds like it's ripped off from Waynes World, for Christs sake. There are major writing flaws in the human psychology of the characters, and the plot tries to be too clever for it's own good, ultimately leaving us with a weak ending that never really seems feasible.

Dead Birds
First off, don't let me convince you that this is a bad movie. It's not. But it is overrated. If anything I'd say watch it if there's nothing else at the video-store.
So what didn't I like about it?
Well, though the acting was good, I generally felt the pace was a little slow throughout, and I hated the grown-up kid from E.T. in the role of a cowboy tough guy.
Though the monsters in the movie were original and spine-chilling, they never reach their full potential as seat-jumpers. You don't see any good killings, and the movie almost seems like it's 90 minutes of people traipsing through beautifully rainy corn-fields or in and out of shadowy rooms, without any of it ever coming to a remarkable head.
Lke a delicious Caesar Salad that you never get to eat.
At least the ending has a good twist.



VIDEO-GAMES
-----------

Just posted a demo over at FlashKit. Here's a pic of the GUI.



The reason it's titled FEAR is because that was the name I changed it to before I discovered some cheeky bastards have called their game F.E.A.R.
Sons-of-bitches.
Mind you, it's hardly an original name, and THE DAMNED is started to grow on me more now.

More to come tomorrow.

Photoshop does the trick...

I'm feeling more optimistic today. Just got 250 quid remitted to me as a wedding present, and I just watched the new "Hills Have Eyes" movie which was hachet-in-your-skull sweet.
Hell, let's skip video-games for a minute and let's talk about horror movies. If you're not into them, roll on down the page some.

Let me tell you, I am more than qualified to make a zombie-game due my Tarantino-esque obsessiveness for gore flicks. Here's a presentation of a few superb movies for you guys out there with *BitTorrent*...ahem....sorry I meant 'time to see'.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The new one. I loved this more than the original. Embedded in my brain is the memorable scene of one of the victims having his leg chainsawed from behind a washing sheet line, and Leatherface giving a hammer-sandwich to some guys head.
Most memorable scene: The prior mentioned hammer to the head. SMACK!

Dawn of the Dead
Both the old one and the new one are good flicks. The first one starts off at a fast pace, but wanes toward the end. It's actually in some ways more of a social commentary than a clear-cut horror movie. However, it is still superior to the second one, which is somewhat formulaic for the most part. Saying that, it's a great Friday night.
Most memorable scene:A zombie baby being born.

Hills Have Eyes
I haven't seen the first one so the only thing I know about it is that it starred the mongoloid guy from Weird Science.
This is a great movie. It's part of this new wave of gore-out, scare-packed horror movies that you just can't get enough of. This one goes that extra length to shock and has truly horrific and delicious moments.
Most memorable scene:Mum and daughter coming in to the trailer to save their daughter only to get blown away.

Jeepers Creepers 1 & 2
Whilst the second one is slightly better, the first one is still high viewing. The director has made good use of jarring imagery that sticks with you, such as;- two kids watching a body being dumped into a pipe, only to see the murderer/monster turn to notice them; the monster exposing his face to the kids on the bus as he 'scents' them (very nice moment), and the flying monster snatching a kid into the sky whilst being chased by the family. Excellent movies. Probably the ones responsible for this resurge in good-quality horror movies in recent years.
Most memorable scene:Ah..too many to mention

Imprint
Very rare 1 hour Takeshi Miike special, and one episode of an American show called 'Masters of Horror'. To be honest with ya, I thought the Ring and the Grudge were both shite. What's so scary about a teenage ghost-girl with hair issues? Nothing. I see she's even making her way into video-games, which sucks.
No, you could say I was skeptical about this offering, but how can you go wrong when a horror episode is taken-out of a horror series for being too grisly. I just had to have it. It wipes the floor with the other directors efforts (even f*&king Argento screwed his one up, twat). A stylish, unpredictable and ultimately sickening period piece, which I can do nothing but recommend. Though I have to admit I generally enjoy the simple Hollywood horrors more, Imprint is an hour of madness you will do well experiencing. One last thing to mention is the marvellous acting of the lead Billy Drago (Snow from that movie Vamp). This guy, with his gaunt features and demonic grin, was born to do horrors. So why isn't he in more? Come on directors, get him into some good flicks before he croaks!!
Most memorable scene:Kumomo getting tortured with pins to the fingernails. Yowch!

Silent Hill
Wow, a highly original paranormal horror. This doesn't aim to get you behind the couch as much as go for the long-term creep out. It does well in absorbing your attention for the entire runtime. People who have played the Silent Hill game will adore this. It is the best attempt of a faithful conversion of a game to the silver screen I have ever seen. It beautifully captures that mixture of mystery and the traces of ethereal sadness that the game expounded. Resident Evil was cack (how dare they fire Romero when they pawned his invention!!), House of The Dead was...ummm fuck House of the Dead. S.H. will probably remain the popular choice of the People-Who-Know-A-Good-Horror-From-Their-Arse crowd for a measure of time.
Most memorable scene:Without a doubt Pyramid-Head tearing a girls flesh off and chucking it at the door.


The Descent
Oh yes. I've left the best for last. Do yourself a favour and watch the others first because this one is the chocolate at the bottom of the Cornetto. You will benefit from that lingering taste that should be maximised. In comparison to the others mentioned here, I can only sum it up by quoting Lance as he talks to Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction "These are all real, real good shit, but this one is the the f*ckin madman". The Descent is absolutely terrifying. Believe me, I haven't reacted to a horror this way since Aliens. Everything in this movie is perfect. The cast, the music, the lighting, the residual fear of the whole situation. And it continues to scare you, again, and again, then when you've already shat yourself, one last time. Then finally, the ending is poetic, and yet deeply disturbing and memorable. Watching this movie is like going down the gym for all the constant heart-rate fluctuations you go through. Horror movie of the decade.
Most memorable scene:Can't spoil it for you. I'm not that cruel.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back to Video-Games

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm forced to make my death-scenes with some simpler animations. Truth be told, Snakeman's one is done now and it's not half-bad.

I'll post a pic today or tomorrow.