The latest Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club session report is up. Games played: Carson City.
Ben plays Carson City for the first time.
Last shabbat I played Quelf for my first and last time.
Thứ Tư, 27 tháng 7, 2011
Movie Reviews
The Adjustment Bureau
Matt Damon stars with some random woman (the casting was entirely unimportant; all she does is look nice and hold his hand) in a plot that should have been a 22 minute TV show. John Slatterly (Mad Men) and some other dude play angels whose job is to keep people on track with their fate. Despite complete access to everything everyone is thinking and will think in the near future, these angels fail spectacularly just when a plot turn is needed.
It all makes little sense, somehow the entire universe is centered around the NY area, and the ending (and most of the movie) is predictable, a cop-out, and stupid, but John Slatterly always looks good in a fedora.
Captain America
Captain America the most comic book of all comic book movies. Deux ex machina rules, the hero can do anything, has any skill, and can do no wrong. People appear where they shouldn't, women lead charge into battle (in WWII), cars can fly faster than planes, metal shield always bounce back when you throw them, and inertia and gravity apparently don't exist when they're not needed - no one ever gets hurt in an accident, no matter how fast they were flying or falling.
The two mcguffins are a) an infinite energy crystal or some other dohickey belonging to the gods, and b) a serum that makes, together with vast amounts of radiation, a superhero. Ok. Why not? Nazis with lasers are cool.
The other recent superhero movies, such as Batman, Spiderman, Iron Man, etc tried tempted us with seriousness using flawed heroes. Captain America is superhero for the pre-teens and teens who wouldn't understand that stuff (you'll say "Sure, why not?" many times). And for the adults who can remember being too innocent to care about complexity. Actually, one small scene at the beginning of the movie pays lip service to a modern sensibility, namely that it's not about killing but about standing up to bullies; but this is quickly forgotten. There are endless scenes of killing and explosions, but no blood or gore.
A very enjoyable summer blockbuster, some quotable lines, and shallower than a kiddie pool.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
The finale of the eight part movie series, the movie doesn't spend even a second getting you up to speed, so make sure you've watched the previous films. There's little in the way of characterization or exposition. Heavy, emotionally gripping, and important scenes in the book are passed over in a few seconds of screen time. Spells that would be particularly useful in certain situations are often conveniently forgotten.
However, there many well-directed action sequences, as well as kisses, daring rescues, dramatic flights, humor, climax, and denouement. If you've come this far, you'll want to see it. It's satisfying.
Jane Eyre (2011)
Another adaptation of this novel, the main question is how it compares to the 1995 version: they're about the same (both good, but quiet drama pieces). They both tell the same story. Ok...
Morning Glory
A light comedy with Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford. McAdams plays random smart but overwhelmed protagonist girl (think Sandra Bullock in nearly every movie except The Blind Side), and Ford plays gruff older man who won't give anyone the time of day but eventually is seen to actually have a heart. Formulaic. It was ok. Other than the first bullpit session, it's all pretty forgettable.
Source Code
Jake Gyllenhaal, some random woman, and Vera Farminga. Again, the love interest is eye candy and not much else. Jake is a dead? dying? army dude sent to occupy a mind and body on a train that is going to explode in eight minutes. Somehow the "memory" of the train event, and every person on it, is recorded and able to be run in simulation, over and over, with each repetition changing depending on how Jake acts. Not only the train, but every possible location and person within travel distance of the train. It's not just the memory recorded; apparently it's the entire world and what each person would do if the script changes.
The bomber is on his way to set off another explosion, so time is of the essence. And yet, only through Jake's unsubtle, brute force detective work will they be able to find out who actually planted the bomb on the train and where that person is headed now. No, it doesn't make sense, but you kind of go with it. Until there is some kind of hint that the alternate flashback reality can be made into something more than just a simulation, and then I got lost.
Jake and Vera are both good presences on the screen (though I tend to get Jake and Tobey MacGuire mixed up). The material should have been written by someone who understands paradox, consciousness, time travel, ... heck, science, a little better.
Speak
A very good adaptation of an excellent novel starring a pre-Twilight Kristen Stewart, this is some super acting and directing work about a teenager at high school with a secret that's not so much of a secret to the audience, but that doesn't matter. It's not a feel-good movie; but it's not a downer, either.
Super 8
A movie that feels like a classic 70s/80s Spielberg movie, interspersed with explosive effects from a JJ Adams movie. It's got a lot of sweetness and a lot of kid-centered action driving the plot. However, it moves along at a quicker pace than I remember actual Spielberg movies moving; remember ET slowly crawling around picking up Reese's Pieces, or long treks with singing kids in The Goonies? We don't have time for those types of scenes today.
The payoff might let down some people, and some problems raised in the movie's middle are not dealt with by the end of the movie. But it's good, solid, summer fun.
Thor
Eh.
Trust
Along the lines of Speak, this is another very good movie about a similar subject (rape) in a similar setting (high school). Only this time the creep is a 35 year old man who hides behind the identity of a teenager on the internet. A tad didactic, but beautifully acted and directed with a great script.
Womb
Creepy European movie about girl meets boy, girl loses boy, girl clones and gives birth to boy copy, and what happens next? Is this kid ... her future lover? Ick.
Contains the oft-seen trope of prejudice against "them" (clones, this time). But mostly you need to know that the movie is a string of pregnant images with little in the way of conversation. Each shot is a beautiful frame or moment, mostly of barren coastlines and landscapes, but it's all very unreal. Most jarring is that boy clone ages from birth to adulthood, but no one else (especially the girl) ages at all, which makes little sense and kind of skews the point of the movie. For lovers of cinematography.
Matt Damon stars with some random woman (the casting was entirely unimportant; all she does is look nice and hold his hand) in a plot that should have been a 22 minute TV show. John Slatterly (Mad Men) and some other dude play angels whose job is to keep people on track with their fate. Despite complete access to everything everyone is thinking and will think in the near future, these angels fail spectacularly just when a plot turn is needed.
It all makes little sense, somehow the entire universe is centered around the NY area, and the ending (and most of the movie) is predictable, a cop-out, and stupid, but John Slatterly always looks good in a fedora.
Captain America
Captain America the most comic book of all comic book movies. Deux ex machina rules, the hero can do anything, has any skill, and can do no wrong. People appear where they shouldn't, women lead charge into battle (in WWII), cars can fly faster than planes, metal shield always bounce back when you throw them, and inertia and gravity apparently don't exist when they're not needed - no one ever gets hurt in an accident, no matter how fast they were flying or falling.
The two mcguffins are a) an infinite energy crystal or some other dohickey belonging to the gods, and b) a serum that makes, together with vast amounts of radiation, a superhero. Ok. Why not? Nazis with lasers are cool.
The other recent superhero movies, such as Batman, Spiderman, Iron Man, etc tried tempted us with seriousness using flawed heroes. Captain America is superhero for the pre-teens and teens who wouldn't understand that stuff (you'll say "Sure, why not?" many times). And for the adults who can remember being too innocent to care about complexity. Actually, one small scene at the beginning of the movie pays lip service to a modern sensibility, namely that it's not about killing but about standing up to bullies; but this is quickly forgotten. There are endless scenes of killing and explosions, but no blood or gore.
A very enjoyable summer blockbuster, some quotable lines, and shallower than a kiddie pool.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
The finale of the eight part movie series, the movie doesn't spend even a second getting you up to speed, so make sure you've watched the previous films. There's little in the way of characterization or exposition. Heavy, emotionally gripping, and important scenes in the book are passed over in a few seconds of screen time. Spells that would be particularly useful in certain situations are often conveniently forgotten.
However, there many well-directed action sequences, as well as kisses, daring rescues, dramatic flights, humor, climax, and denouement. If you've come this far, you'll want to see it. It's satisfying.
Jane Eyre (2011)
Another adaptation of this novel, the main question is how it compares to the 1995 version: they're about the same (both good, but quiet drama pieces). They both tell the same story. Ok...
Morning Glory
A light comedy with Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford. McAdams plays random smart but overwhelmed protagonist girl (think Sandra Bullock in nearly every movie except The Blind Side), and Ford plays gruff older man who won't give anyone the time of day but eventually is seen to actually have a heart. Formulaic. It was ok. Other than the first bullpit session, it's all pretty forgettable.
Source Code
Jake Gyllenhaal, some random woman, and Vera Farminga. Again, the love interest is eye candy and not much else. Jake is a dead? dying? army dude sent to occupy a mind and body on a train that is going to explode in eight minutes. Somehow the "memory" of the train event, and every person on it, is recorded and able to be run in simulation, over and over, with each repetition changing depending on how Jake acts. Not only the train, but every possible location and person within travel distance of the train. It's not just the memory recorded; apparently it's the entire world and what each person would do if the script changes.
The bomber is on his way to set off another explosion, so time is of the essence. And yet, only through Jake's unsubtle, brute force detective work will they be able to find out who actually planted the bomb on the train and where that person is headed now. No, it doesn't make sense, but you kind of go with it. Until there is some kind of hint that the alternate flashback reality can be made into something more than just a simulation, and then I got lost.
Jake and Vera are both good presences on the screen (though I tend to get Jake and Tobey MacGuire mixed up). The material should have been written by someone who understands paradox, consciousness, time travel, ... heck, science, a little better.
Speak
A very good adaptation of an excellent novel starring a pre-Twilight Kristen Stewart, this is some super acting and directing work about a teenager at high school with a secret that's not so much of a secret to the audience, but that doesn't matter. It's not a feel-good movie; but it's not a downer, either.
Super 8
A movie that feels like a classic 70s/80s Spielberg movie, interspersed with explosive effects from a JJ Adams movie. It's got a lot of sweetness and a lot of kid-centered action driving the plot. However, it moves along at a quicker pace than I remember actual Spielberg movies moving; remember ET slowly crawling around picking up Reese's Pieces, or long treks with singing kids in The Goonies? We don't have time for those types of scenes today.
The payoff might let down some people, and some problems raised in the movie's middle are not dealt with by the end of the movie. But it's good, solid, summer fun.
Thor
Eh.
Trust
Along the lines of Speak, this is another very good movie about a similar subject (rape) in a similar setting (high school). Only this time the creep is a 35 year old man who hides behind the identity of a teenager on the internet. A tad didactic, but beautifully acted and directed with a great script.
Womb
Creepy European movie about girl meets boy, girl loses boy, girl clones and gives birth to boy copy, and what happens next? Is this kid ... her future lover? Ick.
Contains the oft-seen trope of prejudice against "them" (clones, this time). But mostly you need to know that the movie is a string of pregnant images with little in the way of conversation. Each shot is a beautiful frame or moment, mostly of barren coastlines and landscapes, but it's all very unreal. Most jarring is that boy clone ages from birth to adulthood, but no one else (especially the girl) ages at all, which makes little sense and kind of skews the point of the movie. For lovers of cinematography.
Thứ Ba, 26 tháng 7, 2011
Double Trouble
Hallow thar Free Gamers!
Warmux, the project formerly known as Wormux, is dying. (It amuses me how "formerly" sounds like "formally", doesn't it? Or is that my colloquial pronunciation?)
The current development version has rather minor changes: improved game mode (ie including weapon), new "squad" play (teams can ally). But there's little more coming. What this means is that the next version - if any - of WarMUX, might be the last. At least, it is most probably over for the author of these words.
Who knows. It was not long ago that the PARPG lead was calling that dead (and I scolded him for it, did I). The great thing about Free software is that it can live on.
Moving on to more vibrant projects, and ToME4 beta 29 30 31 is in the wild. The current development pace is quite astonishing. More graphical tiles, bug fixes, play balancing, and some useful optimizations - don't get addicted!
zzoxx
In a similar vein, the author of Scourge has embarked on another project: a HTML/JS isometric graphical rogue-like called zzoxx. It is intriguing, though not yet really playable. What's the best Free browser-based game you know of? Comments encouraged, let's talk about how Free software gaming is engaging the browser as a platform - and if it is a good idea or not.
Freeciv 2.3rc1 (NEWS) was released a few days ago. This major release of Freeciv is focused on multiplayer features including longplay. I just had a quick go and Freeciv is really well done these days. There's a few kinks still, but this is the best release yet. It still misses some of the charm of the original, and there's a few ways in which is not friendly to new users (no direct link from the city screen to the help content, in case you want to know what a wonder or building does, for example). I'd love to see some dedicated community members put together an introduction and a palace and/or throne screen.
There's also been a Freecol bugfix release. Freecol 0.10.1 fixes many of the issues with version 0.10.0 which was a fairly major release for the project.
There's been other stuff I forgot about. It's a funny time of day. Speaking of fun - here's a rather fun video of Stunty Rally 1.2 mishaps doubled up with music I found fitting. There are several points where it seems like those two videos are deliberately synchronized!
Thứ Bảy, 23 tháng 7, 2011
SuperTuxKart 0.7.2: Add-on manager release
SuperTuxKart now has an add-on/DLC/community-content manager, which allows you to download tracks and karts from inside the game, without having to move or unzip files. I am very excited about this feature, which hopefully will be a strong motivation for community members to create new content for the game.
One example of the advantages of this feature: a few days after the release of 0.7.2 the amazing Suzanne (Blender's mascot) kart was finished. Instead of having to manually download and install it or wait for 0.7.3, players can simply get the kart in the add-on manager. [edit: unfortunately right now Suzanne is only in SVN and not yet in the add-on manager (to be fixed)]
Here's a video of some of the content you can get via the add-on manager:
In case you are on Linux or OS X, consider getting the 0.7.2a release, which should perform much better [info here].
Two more content addition in this version are:
Suzanne's kart
Here's a video of some of the content you can get via the add-on manager:
In case you are on Linux or OS X, consider getting the 0.7.2a release, which should perform much better [info here].
Beastie
Two more content addition in this version are:
- New Beastie Kart
- New Snow Peak track by Samuncle
Thứ Năm, 21 tháng 7, 2011
NOLF2 source released but to what end
The commercial abandonware 2002 game No One Lives Forever (trailer) has been released under the GPLv2.
The NOLF2 source code has been released under the GPLv2 by Touchdown Entertainment. Along with the game source code, you will find the engine source code, as well the tools behind it. It's great news for the entire NOLF2 modding community, since now we'll be able to keep the game alive!
I have uploaded the package to free services since the Touchdown Entertainment website is down: http://www.multiupload.com/WBO4EQHRAE
It isn't yet clear what license the assets are released under, but as with most commercial game source releases I suspect that it is not part of the source release.
Do these commercial source pseudo-Free releases have any merit beyond giving loyal followers a way to keep their fun alive? It has been of great benefit to have had the ID engines released as Free software, but they were the platform for a number of very significant free projects that would later transition from freeware mods to true Free software.
If the source release is a way to say thanks to the fans, why not bundle the media too?
The same recently happened with the more popular Arx Fatalis. The Arx Liberatis developers are doing a valiant job of cleaning up with the ultimate goal being a native Linux port (currently WINE reliant) but is this just a commercial company using the open source community to keep a dead game alive and milk the last few drops out of their dying cash cow?
I'm not impressed by decade-old game source releases that do not include the full media for the game. It's still not Free, even worse, it's still not free. If anything, it is arguably a negative for the open source community because it reduces the pool of developers who might otherwise contribute their skills to a more worthy cause.
*grumbles*
Session Report, in which I have bad luck in Cities and Knights of Catan
The latest Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club session report is up. Games played: Quest Adventure Cards, Santiago, Cities and Knights of Catan.
We try out Quest Adventure Cards (full review coming to Purple Pawn soon), discover that Santiago doesn't work as well with three players, and I have astoundingly bad luck with the dice in Cities and Knights.
I have now packed away most of my games in preparation for moving.
We try out Quest Adventure Cards (full review coming to Purple Pawn soon), discover that Santiago doesn't work as well with three players, and I have astoundingly bad luck with the dice in Cities and Knights.
I have now packed away most of my games in preparation for moving.
Thứ Tư, 20 tháng 7, 2011
RIOT Game Coding Competition
RIOT is a game coding competition for Caanoo, Wiz, Pandora and Dingoo's Dingux developers. In the future, probably also for nD devs, unless that one turns out to be vaporware.
The contest entry dealine is over but votes are running until July 22 2011.
Four RIOT entries that provide source
So far, four of the entries provided their source, you can filter them out here.
Thứ Năm, 14 tháng 7, 2011
Session Report, in which we teach a visiting player Homesteaders
The latest Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club session report is up. Games played: San Juan, Odin's Ravens, Homesteaders, Tribune, Tichu.
We entertain a visitor to Israel, an experienced gamer from Germany.
Actually, the session report is pretty boring. So anyway:
Israeli Tournament: Dragonicon
There will be a game convention at Bar Ilan University on Thursday August 18th, from 8:30 am until 9:30 pm (or so). Games will be RPG, mini, board and card games. Entrance is 60 (or maybe 65) NIS for the day. More info (in Hebrew).
We entertain a visitor to Israel, an experienced gamer from Germany.
Actually, the session report is pretty boring. So anyway:
Israeli Tournament: Dragonicon
There will be a game convention at Bar Ilan University on Thursday August 18th, from 8:30 am until 9:30 pm (or so). Games will be RPG, mini, board and card games. Entrance is 60 (or maybe 65) NIS for the day. More info (in Hebrew).
Thứ Hai, 11 tháng 7, 2011
HTML5 2D Game/Engine crowdfunding: Time Hammer
When I was looking for last post's link to Justin's portraits, I found a collection of b/w portraits and a new crowdfunding game project: Time Hammer.
What is Time Hammer?
I was reassured, that flash will not be used at all, not even for sound.
What is Time Hammer?
"Which license?" was my first thought and question.
- A game where you run, jump, fall and die, try again, smash enemies, and have fun (hopefully!) It's a retro, 8-bit throwback to an earlier time, but with some modern touches that we just couldn't help but include. Low gravity, destructible environments, a kickin chip-tune soundtrack... yeah, it's a blast!
- A gaming engine built from scratch in HTML5 / Javascript. Time Hammer will be the first fully-featured, plot-driven game featuring the HTML5
- An indie community dream come true. The game engine will be released open-source on GitHub - meaning that anybody can download it, improve it, and use it for any purpose, free of charge.
I haven't actually researched the nuance of those licenses, and honestly some of the kickstarter money would be used to get a lawyer to recommend one. Two strong contenders are the GPL and MIT license.Isn't there a group of free software lawyers, who might consult for free beer or less? Supporters can voice their opinion to this topic on the comments page.
Going for USD 8,500
I was reassured, that flash will not be used at all, not even for sound.
Chủ Nhật, 10 tháng 7, 2011
Anyone Else Want to Produce My Game?
Reiver Games aka Jackson Pope has finally sold off the remaining stock of the second edition of my game It's Alive! and released the rights back to me.
So, any other publishers interested in producing it? It's still a game that I enjoy playing, and I'm a pretty fierce critic of games, you know. I'm especially interested in retrying it with a religious theme (Menorah, Santa, etc) which would immediately make it one of the few decent religious games on the market.
I still have a few copies of the second edition, as well as a few of the prototypes from the original Menorah version.
So, any other publishers interested in producing it? It's still a game that I enjoy playing, and I'm a pretty fierce critic of games, you know. I'm especially interested in retrying it with a religious theme (Menorah, Santa, etc) which would immediately make it one of the few decent religious games on the market.
I still have a few copies of the second edition, as well as a few of the prototypes from the original Menorah version.
Thứ Bảy, 9 tháng 7, 2011
Flare 0.14 Characters, Quests and HD video
The last version of Flare that Free Gamer took a look at was 0.11. The newest version is 0.14.
Title and savegame loading screens now exist, adding to immersion.
Character customization (gender, portrait and name) is now possible. (Note how much depth this part of starting a game can acchieve in some cases). The character portraits are a product of Justin Nichol's fantasy portrait marathon.
Joystick support, conversations, vendors, quests, a new area and many more smaller additions included. It is now possible to configure keybindings and resolution, which leds to my first 720p HD video of Flare gameplay:
Clint Bellanger, main developer of Flare, posted a reflection on game progress in Flare, which includes some simple but interesting statistics.
You can show Flare some pocket love via Flattr.
Character customization in Flare
Title and savegame loading screens now exist, adding to immersion.
Character customization (gender, portrait and name) is now possible. (Note how much depth this part of starting a game can acchieve in some cases). The character portraits are a product of Justin Nichol's fantasy portrait marathon.
Joystick support, conversations, vendors, quests, a new area and many more smaller additions included. It is now possible to configure keybindings and resolution, which leds to my first 720p HD video of Flare gameplay:
Clint Bellanger, main developer of Flare, posted a reflection on game progress in Flare, which includes some simple but interesting statistics.
You can show Flare some pocket love via Flattr.
Thứ Sáu, 8 tháng 7, 2011
Board Game Blog World Roundup
Time for another roundup of board game related blogs that are new to me since my last roundup. These are blogs that update with some regularity and that cover general board game topics. As usual, I also dropped a number of blogs that haven't updated in the last several months.
A note about this blog: this blog has been pretty slow for the past two years, since I've been concentrating on Purple Pawn. Traffic has slowed to around 150 visits per day. My advertisers have all bolted. C'est la vie. This is likely to continue for the foreseeable future: a weekly session report, the occasional snippet about my life or something humorous, an occasional philosophical musing on gaming, and my travel adventures (look for daily trip reports and pictures in November).
2d6 - Kevin, Marco, Bob, George, Eric, Landon. Written and video reviews.
Cartrunk Entertainment - John Moller, Wyoming, DE. On games and gaming events.
Castelli Board Game Reviews - Harry max Ryan, Sydney, Australia. Podcast and reviews.
Debbie's Board Gaming Book - Debbie Ohi, Toronto, CA. Board game cartoons and stuff.
Deck Building Games - Jeremy Mueller, Portland, OR (I think). All about the title.
Dice Food Lodging - Tim Rodriguez, NY. Podcast on games.
Drunken Goblin - Mike Devonald, Bristol, UK.
FANTASARD - Tony, Faye, and Mark, New Zealand. Fantasy meets war gaming.
Game People - Ed Stephens, somewhere in the UK. The board game section of a gaming site.
North of Reality - Sean Johnson, Avon, IN. A pastor on board games.
Perpetual Geek Machine - Kevin Alexander, Dan Zuccarelli, Ryan Hewson. Game reviews and stuff.
Tabletop Hell - Branko, Serbia. Sessions, thoughts, etc. Also runs TCG Hell.
The Card Gamer - David, Cleveland, OH. Reviews and video reviews.
The Dump Stat - Gregory Schuster, Japan. RPGs and other games.
The Game Traveler - Daniel M. Perez, Miami, FL. Highmoon Games hosted podcast.
The Noble Gamer - Ian Noble, El Dorado Hills, CA.
A note about this blog: this blog has been pretty slow for the past two years, since I've been concentrating on Purple Pawn. Traffic has slowed to around 150 visits per day. My advertisers have all bolted. C'est la vie. This is likely to continue for the foreseeable future: a weekly session report, the occasional snippet about my life or something humorous, an occasional philosophical musing on gaming, and my travel adventures (look for daily trip reports and pictures in November).
2d6 - Kevin, Marco, Bob, George, Eric, Landon. Written and video reviews.
Cartrunk Entertainment - John Moller, Wyoming, DE. On games and gaming events.
Castelli Board Game Reviews - Harry max Ryan, Sydney, Australia. Podcast and reviews.
Debbie's Board Gaming Book - Debbie Ohi, Toronto, CA. Board game cartoons and stuff.
Deck Building Games - Jeremy Mueller, Portland, OR (I think). All about the title.
Dice Food Lodging - Tim Rodriguez, NY. Podcast on games.
Drunken Goblin - Mike Devonald, Bristol, UK.
FANTASARD - Tony, Faye, and Mark, New Zealand. Fantasy meets war gaming.
Game People - Ed Stephens, somewhere in the UK. The board game section of a gaming site.
North of Reality - Sean Johnson, Avon, IN. A pastor on board games.
Perpetual Geek Machine - Kevin Alexander, Dan Zuccarelli, Ryan Hewson. Game reviews and stuff.
Tabletop Hell - Branko, Serbia. Sessions, thoughts, etc. Also runs TCG Hell.
The Card Gamer - David, Cleveland, OH. Reviews and video reviews.
The Dump Stat - Gregory Schuster, Japan. RPGs and other games.
The Game Traveler - Daniel M. Perez, Miami, FL. Highmoon Games hosted podcast.
The Noble Gamer - Ian Noble, El Dorado Hills, CA.
Thứ Năm, 7 tháng 7, 2011
Session Report, in which I grimace through an entire game of A Touch of Evil
The latest Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club session report is up. Games played: A Touch of Evil, Vegas Showdown.
First play for all of us for A Touch of Evil.
First play for all of us for A Touch of Evil.
Thứ Ba, 5 tháng 7, 2011
Warzone2100 art revolution project
I've been following the Warzone 2100 art revolution project for some time now... but after years of displaying only nice renders of cool new models, it finally seems to be getting closer to an actual game integration with the recent integration of GLSL normal-maps etc. into the latest Warzone2100 snapshot.
More awesome (very much work in progress) screen-shots can be found in the Warzone2100 art dev forum (especially this thread) and on the art revolution forum. And while there is still a lot of things to do... an actual Warzone2100 release with a massive graphical update seems not too unlikely in 2011! Lets hope for the best ;)
More awesome (very much work in progress) screen-shots can be found in the Warzone2100 art dev forum (especially this thread) and on the art revolution forum. And while there is still a lot of things to do... an actual Warzone2100 release with a massive graphical update seems not too unlikely in 2011! Lets hope for the best ;)
Script Blocks: 3d visual programming(?)
Yesterday we wrote about Java3d-based Callie. This project is also Java-based but uses the jMonkeyEngine.
Script Blocks is a 3D .. environment, in which you can place blocks that produce or modify signals and blocks that react to them by changing color or by moving for example.
I assume that the project is inspired by Minecraft's Redstone Circuits. And I think it's a great virtue that instead of yet another attempt to implement Minecraft, this project focuses on one (complex) mechanic and extends it.
The video below is much better at explaining what the project is about:
Script Blocks is a 3D .. environment, in which you can place blocks that produce or modify signals and blocks that react to them by changing color or by moving for example.
I assume that the project is inspired by Minecraft's Redstone Circuits. And I think it's a great virtue that instead of yet another attempt to implement Minecraft, this project focuses on one (complex) mechanic and extends it.
The video below is much better at explaining what the project is about:
Thứ Hai, 4 tháng 7, 2011
Real Estate Agents Think I'm an Idiot
"Here's the bathroom. That's the shower. There are tiles on the floor. And over here is a kitchen. See that six foot tall, three foot wide large box like object with two handles with the word 'Amana' written on in? That's the refrigerator. It's a big refrigerator. You can put food in it for shabbat. Or if you're having a party, you can also put food in it. Here is a sink. You could put a table here. Or you could put it here."
Shut. Up.
I've seen a lot of acceptable, some nice, and some very nice apartments in Raanana. I nearly took one that was stunning, but I would have ended up paying more than I wanted to pay, and he appeared to be taking less than he wanted to accept, and we were still haggling over terms (not the price). I decided to pass, after all.
The agent who showed me today's apartments takes a month rent from BOTH seller and buyer, which is simply ridiculous; I thought agents only took from one or the other. He didn't provide much in the way of service, other than to show up late, get in my way, make promises I know he won't keep ("I'll tell the owner to put in central a/c for you!"), and annoy me.
Which is a pity, because the first apt he showed me I would take at the listed price, but after paying his fee, the price bumps up to 10% more (a month plus VAT divided over a year's rental), and that's above my price range. There are so many apts listed for rent, with dozens as nice and equivalent in price to the ones he showed me, that I can afford to be picky.
More days of uncertainty. Wish I didn't have to move at all.
Shut. Up.
I've seen a lot of acceptable, some nice, and some very nice apartments in Raanana. I nearly took one that was stunning, but I would have ended up paying more than I wanted to pay, and he appeared to be taking less than he wanted to accept, and we were still haggling over terms (not the price). I decided to pass, after all.
The agent who showed me today's apartments takes a month rent from BOTH seller and buyer, which is simply ridiculous; I thought agents only took from one or the other. He didn't provide much in the way of service, other than to show up late, get in my way, make promises I know he won't keep ("I'll tell the owner to put in central a/c for you!"), and annoy me.
Which is a pity, because the first apt he showed me I would take at the listed price, but after paying his fee, the price bumps up to 10% more (a month plus VAT divided over a year's rental), and that's above my price range. There are so many apts listed for rent, with dozens as nice and equivalent in price to the ones he showed me, that I can afford to be picky.
More days of uncertainty. Wish I didn't have to move at all.
Callie: 3D Action
Callie is an in-development 3D action game with jumping puzzles and guns. It runs using Java WebStart.
This is Amy
There are a few common problems with the project: animations are missing, the camera is hard to handle in the level environment, license info is missing for both assets and code. One very nice thing the developer did is providing this simple control scheme.
The use of Java3D in the project, lead to complaints and might discourage developers from contributing code. Apparently the problem is that Java3D is not an active project.
Callie 0.4 gameplay
Chủ Nhật, 3 tháng 7, 2011
Some random news from our forums etc
Yes, big summer hole here in FG... luckily we get at least some guest posts from Bart (aka the OpenGameArt founder).
So, maybe today we just make a small summery of recent news that popped up in our Freegamedev forums (boring for the forum regulars I know :p ):
First of all (as we mention that project way to little), find a release candidate of the latest SuperTuxKart version in this thread.
In our showcase forum you can also find a nice (but low-fi) turn based strategy game called Strategic Initiative, which is made by the same guy who was also behind the classic Empire (well I didn't know it before ;) ). Also don't miss the updates on The Legend of Edgar.
Back in the section of out hosted projects, the user Skorpio has been showcasing some nice Mechs for Linwarrior3D lately, which are now being integrated into the game:
At the Red Eclipse forums an interesting collaboration project to make a mod loosely based on Team Fortress (classic?) recently showed up, with the user John_III making a lot of progress on the first map (and a very recent small WIP by me too ;) ):
Oh and the work that is currently done to redesign the look of OpenDungeons as seen in this thread, is looking rather fantastic too.
In other words, don't miss the action in our forums (and on the FG planet), during this time of little blog updates ;)
So, maybe today we just make a small summery of recent news that popped up in our Freegamedev forums (boring for the forum regulars I know :p ):
First of all (as we mention that project way to little), find a release candidate of the latest SuperTuxKart version in this thread.
In our showcase forum you can also find a nice (but low-fi) turn based strategy game called Strategic Initiative, which is made by the same guy who was also behind the classic Empire (well I didn't know it before ;) ). Also don't miss the updates on The Legend of Edgar.
Back in the section of out hosted projects, the user Skorpio has been showcasing some nice Mechs for Linwarrior3D lately, which are now being integrated into the game:
At the Red Eclipse forums an interesting collaboration project to make a mod loosely based on Team Fortress (classic?) recently showed up, with the user John_III making a lot of progress on the first map (and a very recent small WIP by me too ;) ):
Oh and the work that is currently done to redesign the look of OpenDungeons as seen in this thread, is looking rather fantastic too.
In other words, don't miss the action in our forums (and on the FG planet), during this time of little blog updates ;)
Thứ Sáu, 1 tháng 7, 2011
Session Report, in which we are uninspired by Canal Mania
The latest Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club session report is up. Games played: Canal Mania, El Grande.
Our group was not inspired by Canal Mania, but they only played a third of a game. A pity.
Our group was not inspired by Canal Mania, but they only played a third of a game. A pity.
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