[Goshi]

Guy, on Dec 20 2009, 08:56 AM, said:

ZUN draws far, far better than that. Also, ZUN doesn't draw dudes.

Lies.

He probably drew Rinnosuke at some point also he designed the characters of Seihou... which has dudes.

This post has been edited by Goshi: 20 December 2009 - 04:18 AM

[T-Bone]

Umm... you know if you need help with graphics or things of that nature... I can always help. I've been told I'm "good"

EDIT:

Your title screen looks fine anyways. If you need help with tweaking I'm better at doing that since I don't really have the time to do complete screens from scratch.

This post has been edited by T-Bone: 20 December 2009 - 07:05 PM

[RyanThunder]

T-Bone, on Dec 20 2009, 02:02 PM, said:

Umm... you know if you need help with graphics or things of that nature... I can always help. I've been told I'm "good"

EDIT:

Your title screen looks fine anyways. If you need help with tweaking I'm better at doing that since I don't really have the time to do complete screens from scratch.

We'll get to that once I have you beta-test the complete version of the game (which isn't too far off after the graphical tweaking), and thank you for the title screen compliment, even though that is most likely getting a makeover.

After looking at it a little more, some of the logo letters are kind of unreadable. I adjusted both of the R's and the D a little bit with the new char set and it looks pretty good now.

I'm still in the midst of the char set overhaul for the introduction sequence, so it most likely won't be uploaded until sometime later this week, possibly after Christmas. Not sure yet. Needless to say, human figures and MegaZeux graphics do not mix. It's hard for me to do, but it's also a mixed blessing since the intro movie looks a lot better than it used to.

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 20 December 2009 - 11:58 PM

[asgromo]

Here's a (no doubt embarrassing) screenshot from a game CJA worked on maybe two years ago. It features a certain kind of man doing a certain kind of thing and some perfectly readable title text.



The problem isn't that human figures and MegaZeux graphics don't mix. You have to learn how human figures work and how MegaZeux graphics work.





http://zzt.belsambar...ooserulz3-2.gif (they wouldn't let me link this, wah)



Keep in mind that people like Nadir and Quasar aren't even expert illustrators. They've only ever shown a very sure hand inside these particular restraints.

I am personally not much of an artist! Here's a little doodle I managed for a Day of Zeux with RoSS or Revvy or someone and Wervyn:



Actually shittier than I remembered! But I toned down the colors and I made a meager attempt at fanciness and it turned out at least inoffensive. See how the text doesn't partially overlap the figure because I ran out of room? And how I tried to use several colors but they don't clash too horribly because I worked on them just a little?

All that said, of course, it's no use remodeling your whole game tiny piece by tiny piece to suit asgromo's or anyone else's artistic criterion. I was only concerned so much with your title screen because you made a show of using it as an example of your improvement and sustained efforts. In my experience, most people put the item they're most proud of on display, and what other work they've done amounts to very little (the traditional demo curse). I expect this is in most cases because they have nothing new or interesting to say or do, and therefore no clear aim for their work. They're just being tugged into the world editor because they desperately want to win the approval of their peers.

So, because your screenshots to me depict very little improvement or sustained effort, and because you are fussing over your inability to finish this stuff in a timely manner, and because you are using your real problems to apologetically explain the long time coming of your mostly uninteresting work, instead of just working on your mostly uninteresting work and finishing it because it's really the work you want to do, it all suggests to me that maybe you're fussing over the wrong thing and MegaZeux has a serious risk of becoming nothing but a "massive creativity black hole" for you.

And I'm still interested to know what your major was.

[RyanThunder]

asgromo, on Dec 21 2009, 04:22 PM, said:

I said lots of stuff.

Alright, now I understand where you are coming from.

I believe that I had the wrong perception when making this journal: to reveal the game in little tidbits, and with updates/screenshots few and far between, when in fact it should have probably been the opposite, since I don't have anything good in the DMZX archive to go by. When I started out making this game, my goal from the beginning was to turn my old 1996 chicken scratches into a playable video game with a fixed version of the story. I wanted a more accessible version of the story, so that I can go back and replay it again and again instead of having to whip out my dusty, old, dated, and poorly drawn homemade comic books. I also want to submit it to the archive, with the offbeat chance of a few of you enjoying it.

Yes, it has been in development for too long, but I have really enjoyed what it has become. I still enjoy playing it thus far too, and beta testing the levels still doesn't get old for me. And you're right: instead of excuses, I should just accept it for what it is and finish the damn thing.

It will never meet the graphical standards set to something like that town example above, but that's OK. It is what it is.

I have a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Information Systems. My special track was Computer Forensics.

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 22 December 2009 - 05:16 AM

[ThDPro]

RyanThunder, I like that you are making a game at all. Don't stop trying to make it better.

Quote

They're just being tugged into the world editor because they desperately want to win the approval of their peers.

And for the love of god, do not do anything only for the approval of DMZX. That would be indescribably silly.

... But you already knew all that.

EDIT:

And asgromo, I dare say that nothing in your above post was helpful in creativity or motivation. good lord.

This post has been edited by ThDPro: 22 December 2009 - 08:07 AM

[Sai'ke]

I'm smelling a storm eagle module

[RyanThunder]

Sai'ke, on Dec 22 2009, 04:50 PM, said:

I'm smelling a storm eagle module

You, sir, have a keen sense of smell. The game contains an OGG file of Storm Eagle when you choose to play it with the Mega Man X soundtrack enabled.

EDIT: By the way, I think I've asked this before, but does anyone know any games in the archive that have well designed large bosses?

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 23 December 2009 - 04:55 AM

[Risu2112]

RyanThunder, on Dec 22 2009, 08:42 PM, said:

You, sir, have a keen sense of smell. The game contains an OGG file of Storm Eagle when you choose to play it with the Mega Man X soundtrack enabled.

EDIT: By the way, I think I've asked this before, but does anyone know any games in the archive that have well designed large bosses?

Lamar pioneered the classic style "large" boss in his games. Talon's tale has some great examples, go check it out for a history lesson. However while those were pretty good at self righting, they still frequently broke apart. making a large boss from multiple objects is extremely difficult and requires a very strong low level understanding about how megazeux works.

The good news is none of that really matters now, sprites make the majority of that work unneeded. Use of a sprite is by far the easiest way to do this now.

This post has been edited by Risu2112: 23 December 2009 - 06:04 AM

[RyanThunder]

Risu2112, on Dec 23 2009, 01:03 AM, said:

Lamar pioneered the classic style "large" boss in his games. Talon's tale has some great examples, go check it out for a history lesson. However while those were pretty good at self righting, they still frequently broke apart. making a large boss from multiple objects is extremely difficult and requires a very strong low level understanding about how megazeux works.

The good news is none of that really matters now, sprites make the majority of that work unneeded. Use of a sprite is by far the easiest way to do this now.

Alright, I'll check it out. Were there any games that made good use of large, sprite-based bosses?

[ThDPro]

RyanThunder, on Dec 22 2009, 10:57 PM, said:

Alright, I'll check it out. Were there any games that made good use of large, sprite-based bosses?

I think most games now (definitely not ALL games) use sprites of at least 2x2 SOMEWHERE. Achtung had a bunch if i remember correctly, but they weren't exactly bosses.

[djtiesto]

asgromo, on Dec 21 2009, 10:22 PM, said:

quasar_town.png

What game is this?

[CJA]

Probably some DoZ, judging by the filename

[Risu2112]

RyanThunder, on Dec 22 2009, 10:57 PM, said:

Alright, I'll check it out. Were there any games that made good use of large, sprite-based bosses?

http://www.digitalmz...hp?title=Sprite

There's no way around learning the basic concepts (I've tried). So read that page, learn the basic concepts, implement a basic sprite, get it to move around ect. Then get on IRC and ask a lot of questions about how to get them to do specific things.

Sprites aren't complicated, but they are very different.

[RyanThunder]

Risu2112, on Dec 24 2009, 12:43 AM, said:

http://www.digitalmz...hp?title=Sprite

There's no way around learning the basic concepts (I've tried). So read that page, learn the basic concepts, implement a basic sprite, get it to move around ect. Then get on IRC and ask a lot of questions about how to get them to do specific things.

Sprites aren't complicated, but they are very different.

Alright, I may as well whip out the .MZX file I started I think two years ago based on that Wiki tutorial; it was pretty helpful anyway. The main thing I'm after is to program large sprite bosses that react from the player's actions, whether it be colliding conditions to hurt the player or getting hit by an attack.

I'll hop on IRC when I get crackin' at it.

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 24 December 2009 - 06:04 AM

[T-Bone]

djtiesto, on Dec 23 2009, 02:57 PM, said:

What game is this?

I'd like to know too.

[RyanThunder]

Introduction complete...again!

After a graphical touch-up of the intro, it has once again been completed.

I originally decided against uploading a video of it, but I've changed my mind:

Click here to watch.

So, enjoy!

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 24 February 2010 - 10:35 AM

[Dr Lancer-X]

Well, that was pretty cool. The default MZX explosions in the second-to-final scene looked a little out of place though

[asgromo]

Defied all expectations. Most entertaining MZX work I've seen in years. If the game is half as much retarded fun as your cinematics I'll be overjoyed.

[Micah]

most awesome thing

[CJA]

VERY COOL. The individual screens from earlier didn't look sharp just standing there still, but it looks great animated.

Also, good original music :U The fire part maybe could have a little bit of discordance in it, some A-on-A# Action. It sounds too happy as it is now.

[KKairos]

asgromo, on Feb 24 2010, 04:20 AM, said:

If the game is half as much retarded fun as your cinematics I'll be overjoyed.

Absolute agreement with asgromo.

[iamgreaser]

I already mentioned on the video that you win several internets for it... If you want to win more internets, I'd love to see you use parallax scrolling and largeish sprites and stuff.

EDIT: I mean in the actual game itself.

This post has been edited by iamgreaser: 24 February 2010 - 08:37 PM

[djtiesto]

That's some really impressive animation, and a great song too. Good job, but I agree with the other people how the default MZX explosion looks out of place at that scene at the end.

[Lachesis]

Your video blew my expectations. I hope this gets finished! :)

[Maxim]

FUCKING



AMAZING



!!!!!!$#$!#$%@^%&*#*

I just can't say enough good things about this. I watched it like 3 times already.

RT is going to RULE! I can tell, not just from this mind-blowing introduction, but also from what Ryan's been saying. My intuition tells me that this is going to be one hell of a game. And I'm usually always right.

[RyanThunder]

A note on expectations

Well...


Just...wow. I'm glad to see I surpassed some expectations, because you certainly surpassed mine on the feedback on this so far. It's practically the complete polar opposite from the posts above that video link post. With that said, let me say something:

Do not raise your expectations too high.

No, now wait...let me say that again...

Do not raise your expectations too high.

I need to stress my point of view when designing MegaZeux games: simple and elegant. This is a hobby of mine, not a career. I enjoy making games, but there's a certain threshold for me where it just stops being fun, and this isn't just limited to MegaZeux. I don't know about you, but something doesn't feel right to me when I spend an hour or so designing a level, and 2-3 hours to design the graphics for it. But, when I say that, that kind of goes against the entire introduction, doesn't it? Why spend so much time making an animated introduction? Well, just because it felt right. I thought it was necessary to show the player the way I see Ryan Thunder, and to make RT's universe at least believable. Yes, of course it was frustrating at times, but my motivation pressed on, and from the feedback I've seen so far, I got the results that I was hoping for.

Look, if you've played any MegaZeux 1x1 sidescroller, then you'll know what to expect to a certain degree out of RT. That's not to say it will have crappy quality like some of the ones I've played, but if it'll put your mind at ease: I still have fun beta-testing this game. I really like playing it! Also, if you liked my DoZ entry, or even Kya's Sword for that matter, then you will most certainly find at least a small fragment of enjoyment out of this game!

Alright, this is getting out of hand, so let's get back on track.

What's next in the development schedule?
-A bit of a sound effects makeover
-A graphical touch-up of the existing levels, to match the graphical consistency of the intro
-A more elegant death-restart system (the default MZX one is showing its age)
-Continuing normal development (i.e. finishing the rest of the levels and the game)

Also keep in mind that I'm still aiming for that release date I mentioned: March 30, 2010. In fact, I'll most likely be pulling off a MegaZeux Marathon Weekend for this upcoming weekend.

Again, thank you so much for these recent compliments. Like with any game developer, or creator in general, they mean a lot to me.

P.S. Fun fact: the intro also flawlessly loops if you let the game sit long enough at the "Press 'P' to Play" part, like with any video game.

[asgromo]

Right, we're hoping it will be "simple and elegant" and not "clumsy and broken".

[RyanThunder]

Unforeseen errors

The graphical touch-up of all of the existing levels went surprisingly well, and it actually put me a bit ahead of schedule. That is, until I beta-tested it again after the conversion to MegaZeux 2.83 and the implementation of the new death-restart system. Version 2.83 threw off a lot of my programmed boss routines, and the death system is pretty buggy with death traps for the player (i.e. spikes, lava, etc.). The animation robot for the player is also acting funny. I knew it would require some cleaning up, but I didn't think it'd be this bad.

I've been working on this game as much as I can muster, pulling off marathon weekends and what not, and I still am. I'm still trying to have the game finished by March 30, but as time presses on, that deadline is slowly becoming more unrealistic. After all, this is only a hobby.

So, I will be sure to post up a delay in the release date if it has to come to that, but I am still hopeful!

This post has been edited by RyanThunder: 24 March 2010 - 07:27 AM

[RyanThunder]

RT Delayed

Unfortunately, it will just not be feasible to release the game on March 30th.

However, the rush to finish it by then progressed the game much more further, and now all of the game's basic mechanics have been finished! All that's left to do is:

-Design 3 more levels and a boss
-Design the ending
-Final beta-testing stage and bug-fixing

Needless to say, it wasn't the best idea to announce a release date with the game in that state, but there were many things that couldn't be helped. Anyway, I'll announce a new release date sometime next month.

Don't worry! This game will be finished.