Starting Monday Oct 25th the Chaos 2 Design saga continues with the next phase in C++. Over the summer I took Assembler and PreCalc, and I am glad they are out of the way.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
C++ Yes, it's still in use
Well fans and readers, C++ has come to a close, waiting on final exam results for final grade (went into it with a 93%) It's a bit clunky, and way too fussy bug-wise. But I realize that you need to slog in the bog before you get to run in Golden Gate Park.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Logic,Pseudocode and Booleans! Oh My!
CIS115 Logic and Design is focused on the basic ideas behind modular programming and the basics of logic. I am hanging onto an A in this course by the skin of my teeth. Because I'm having trouble with the pseudocode? Nope. Boolean? Nope.....vocabulary. Who would think that my problem would be in reading the frakking question correctly? slowing down now.....
Friday, February 19, 2010
GameMaker 8.0
In GSP110 we used GameMaker 8.0 Pro to design some simple games. Get the demo here! Now as I start chewing my way thru Sam's Teach Yourself C++, I see the logic behind this "crawl before you run your butt off" method. GameMaker is actually a preloaded object programming system. You can download numerous resources, be they bitmaps, jpegs even music files, and use them to create games that can actually be kind of fun to play.
The program teaches you to keep your design in mind, teaches you how to link sprites, objects, events and place them in rooms. While a simple level editor, it's interesting to see how the tool box works.
Kid Risk told me most Game Engineers start out working on Tools. So I'm now working on games that use as many events as I can come up with and still keep the interface manageable and on a learning curve that isn't too radical.
Finals next week for first session, going into both classes with high 90th percentiles. March 1st, Logic and Design CIS115 and getting a req bonehead class Computer Applications with lab out of the way.
Over the next week, I'm going to build a simple Dungeon crawler shooter.
The program teaches you to keep your design in mind, teaches you how to link sprites, objects, events and place them in rooms. While a simple level editor, it's interesting to see how the tool box works.
Kid Risk told me most Game Engineers start out working on Tools. So I'm now working on games that use as many events as I can come up with and still keep the interface manageable and on a learning curve that isn't too radical.
Finals next week for first session, going into both classes with high 90th percentiles. March 1st, Logic and Design CIS115 and getting a req bonehead class Computer Applications with lab out of the way.
Over the next week, I'm going to build a simple Dungeon crawler shooter.
Monday, February 15, 2010
When More Is Too Much
This week's assignment is to write a Design Document for the game we wrote the concept document for in week 5. (We're in week 7 of 8 now) Our document should be 5 - 7 pages in length. Halfway through the project, mine was standing firm at 9 pages...WTH?
So I start talking to Kid Risk,(He ain't heavy, he's my Brother) and he says to keep it short and sweet, as noone is going to read a 20+ page doc.
I trimmed it down to 7 pages. But if my design doc is supposed to be the document designers build the game from, how am I supposed condense some hundreds of hours of gameplay into 7 pages?
Harrrumpf!!!!!
So I start talking to Kid Risk,(He ain't heavy, he's my Brother) and he says to keep it short and sweet, as noone is going to read a 20+ page doc.
I trimmed it down to 7 pages. But if my design doc is supposed to be the document designers build the game from, how am I supposed condense some hundreds of hours of gameplay into 7 pages?
Harrrumpf!!!!!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Shhhh....did you hear that?
Class discussion today is on the use of music to create and enhance the gaming environment.
It made me think about how different genres have utilized music in games. Some excellent innovations, imho, have been BFVietNam's 60's soundtrack, Blizzard using full orchestration and the creation of the new genre that is Music Simulation.
However, with four teens in my house all of which play Guitar Hero and Rock Band, can I interest them in actual instruments and creating real music? Nope. This really chaps my hide as I look at the recent guitar purchases that sit in cases or on stands, unused.
Grrrrrrr........
It made me think about how different genres have utilized music in games. Some excellent innovations, imho, have been BFVietNam's 60's soundtrack, Blizzard using full orchestration and the creation of the new genre that is Music Simulation.
However, with four teens in my house all of which play Guitar Hero and Rock Band, can I interest them in actual instruments and creating real music? Nope. This really chaps my hide as I look at the recent guitar purchases that sit in cases or on stands, unused.
Grrrrrrr........
Thursday, February 11, 2010
No more Pencils......
In January I started my first classes. The classes are 8 weeks in length. This first session I'm taking Intro to Game Design and Simulation(GSP110) and Critical Thinking(COLL148). Both are pretty basic.
GSP110 utilizes GameMaker by YoYoGames. www.yoyogames.com While a very basic game design program it does teach you the creation process and how object based programming works. If the previous sentence read "May I mumbo dogface to the banana patch", move on to my next paragraph about Critical Thinking. Creating games in this tool shows you how sprites, objects, rooms and other resources coalesce into what the player percieves as a game. An aside for my High School Algebra II instructor.... Mr. A? You should've told us we could use that stuff to play games, we would have learned it faster and better!!!
Critical Thinking is more about process and methodology than it is about thinking itself. Very Euclidian.
Next Session is Logic Design and a refresher in Microsoft Office. Wheeeeeeee!
GSP110 utilizes GameMaker by YoYoGames. www.yoyogames.com While a very basic game design program it does teach you the creation process and how object based programming works. If the previous sentence read "May I mumbo dogface to the banana patch", move on to my next paragraph about Critical Thinking. Creating games in this tool shows you how sprites, objects, rooms and other resources coalesce into what the player percieves as a game. An aside for my High School Algebra II instructor.... Mr. A? You should've told us we could use that stuff to play games, we would have learned it faster and better!!!
Critical Thinking is more about process and methodology than it is about thinking itself. Very Euclidian.
Next Session is Logic Design and a refresher in Microsoft Office. Wheeeeeeee!
And So We Begin
My name is John Dickinson, I am a student at Devry University Online in the Game Development and Design school. This blog will chronicle my transformation from a not so mild mannered Insurance Agent to a Professional Game Designer/Programmer.
I have been an active gamer since games like Traveler and Dungeons and Dragons were first published. Yes, I'm old. I remember when dirt was new and a computer looked a lot like a slide rule. In 1979 I co founded and became President of the North Monterey County High School Fantasy Gaming Club. We ran games at lunch, hosted game nights at different members' homes and even brought gaming to a new generation of gamers by teaching and running games at our school's Lyceum for 4-8th graders.
My first video game that I truly became enchanted with was Vanguard. An excellent example of a scrolling game, it cost me probably hundreds of dollars one token at a time. I also discovered that we could play some script games similar to Adventure! at Hartnell College.
Throughout the 80's I continued to play RPG games, started groups in Prunedale, Ca, Vallejo, Ca and Colton, Ca. We played D&D, Gamma World, Champions and even on occasion, Paranoia. I created levels and Modules for entertainment in and of itself, I really didn't care if I had players, I enjoyed the creation itself.
Enter the real world. Husband and father of 6, I became an Insurance Agent then moved up and owned and operated an Insurance Brokerage throughout the next 19 years. With the collapsing economy I came to a crossroads in 2009 and decided it was time to do what I love for a living.
Fasten your seat belts, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!!!!!
I have been an active gamer since games like Traveler and Dungeons and Dragons were first published. Yes, I'm old. I remember when dirt was new and a computer looked a lot like a slide rule. In 1979 I co founded and became President of the North Monterey County High School Fantasy Gaming Club. We ran games at lunch, hosted game nights at different members' homes and even brought gaming to a new generation of gamers by teaching and running games at our school's Lyceum for 4-8th graders.
My first video game that I truly became enchanted with was Vanguard. An excellent example of a scrolling game, it cost me probably hundreds of dollars one token at a time. I also discovered that we could play some script games similar to Adventure! at Hartnell College.
Throughout the 80's I continued to play RPG games, started groups in Prunedale, Ca, Vallejo, Ca and Colton, Ca. We played D&D, Gamma World, Champions and even on occasion, Paranoia. I created levels and Modules for entertainment in and of itself, I really didn't care if I had players, I enjoyed the creation itself.
Enter the real world. Husband and father of 6, I became an Insurance Agent then moved up and owned and operated an Insurance Brokerage throughout the next 19 years. With the collapsing economy I came to a crossroads in 2009 and decided it was time to do what I love for a living.
Fasten your seat belts, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!!!!!
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