Game Jolt Contest #8
09 August 2012
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Game Jolt are running a new contest from the 11th to the 19th this month. It's been way too long since their last contest in September 2011, so the news is exciting! --contest poster by KniteBlargh In case you're new to how Game Jolt contests work, it's pretty much like this: developers get together (through the power of the interwebs) to make games, live stream as we develop, chat it up, and hang out. There'll be prizes, featured games, and hopefully some Good Ol' Fashioned Fun Time™. There's a new contest page which has a live feed that picks up site activity, tweets, and livestreams. Yup. Stick around for the start date to find out the theme, and make some cool games! |
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Questionnaire:
What's most important in a game development library?
28 March 2012
For my final year at university I have to submit a project and dissertation. I am building a cross-platform framework / library that targets Windows, OS X and Android, but need to elicit a set of requirements. I'm doing this with a questionnaire.
If I could quickly pick your brains about what you feel is most important in a game development library, that would be great.
Please either fill in the .doc or .rtf and email me it or fill in the survey online.
Thanks in advance for any help!
If I could quickly pick your brains about what you feel is most important in a game development library, that would be great.
Please either fill in the .doc or .rtf and email me it or fill in the survey online.
Thanks in advance for any help!
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New Game: Omnivium
18 March 2012
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Omnivium is an abstract and atmospheric "dreamscape" game based on the theme of "Ouroboros". With just myself and sound designer Nick Dymond as a team, I was both the game's artist and programmer. At kick off, Nick and I immediately had a few ideas based around using and making the best of the player's movements. Some of which were directly tied to gameplay mechanics, but many of which were as a way of creating an abstract sequencer or music toy. Nick's specialty, and an area that intrigued me more than the average schmup or platformer. We decided we would get going, without fully knowing what it was exactly we were making. I remember finding flaws in the initial concept (and almost giving up!) - it was back and forth quite a few times before we nailed another solid idea on the head. In my notepad is genuinely written "MOAR BASSES" at least twice. After a good number of hours and an equal number of both coffees and beers, the end result was Omnivium, and I'm very happy with the way it turned out. The name Omnivium is semantically comprised of the latin prefix "omni", meaning "all" or "every", and the study of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and music, known as the quadrivium. Omnivium was developed at the Pervasive Media Studio hosted Global Game Jam 2012 in Bristol in ~15 hours. Links: Play in Browser Download (Windows) Download (Intel Mac x64 10.6+) Video: |
New Game: Black Santa
24 December 2011
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Black Santa is a clone of the classic "helicopter in a cave" game. Luke Davies was the monster coder while I was on art, music and sound duties. Black Santa was developed spontaneously on Christmas Eve in ~5 hours. Links: Download Play Online |
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New Game: Spectranaut
10 November 2011
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Spectranaut is a twitchy colour-switching platformer based on the theme of "Colour". Tom Parry worked on the art, animations, and level designs while I developed the game. Nick Dymond contributed sounds and music. Spectranaut was developed at the Experimental Play Interactive Festival 2011 - Game Jam in Plymouth in ~15 hours. Download Spectranaut: Windows Intel Mac x64 10.6+ |
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New Game: Mirrornaut
10 October 2011
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Mirrornaut is a running, flipping and jumping action game based on the theme of "Mirrors". Tom Parry worked on the art and animations, Nick Dymond worked on sounds and music, and Tomas Rawlings was level designer and team coordinator. Mirrornaut placed second at the Experimental Play Interactive Festival 2011 - Game Jam. Download Mirrornaut: Windows Intel Mac x64 10.6+ |
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Game Jolt Contest: Music Interpretation
30 August 2011
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 Proudly announcing a new contest over at Game Jolt. This one is just over a month long and is sponsored by Indie Function. The theme this time around is "Music Interpretation" which is as open as you like. For full details, see this thread on the Game Jolt forums. n.b. I made the poster this time. |
LOVE V 2.0 - A VVVVVV Level
04 August 2011
VVVVVV 2.0 was released recently, the latest version of VVVVVV rewritten in C++ to work natively on 6 different platforms.
It's not just a port though, it includes a level editor and levels made by some well known indie game developers. I decided I wanted to make one of my own and here it is.
The crew's love for the Captain takes a toll with a romantic rivalry between Violet and Victoria.
See more over at Terry's forums or download now (right click, save-as).
It's not just a port though, it includes a level editor and levels made by some well known indie game developers. I decided I wanted to make one of my own and here it is.
The crew's love for the Captain takes a toll with a romantic rivalry between Violet and Victoria.
See more over at Terry's forums or download now (right click, save-as).
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New Slick Contest
01 March 2011
Yipee! There's a new contest over at the Slick forums.
The themes are quite interesting and you don't strictly have to use Slick. You could try to develop an Android game with the "Android are not always friends of mine" theme using the new Slick for Android stuff that Kevin Glass has been working on.
Post on the official thread on the Slick forums to register for the contest. The deadline for this is March 15th; make sure you do it!
Here is the official poster for the contest, which (handily) has some more information:
The themes are quite interesting and you don't strictly have to use Slick. You could try to develop an Android game with the "Android are not always friends of mine" theme using the new Slick for Android stuff that Kevin Glass has been working on.
Post on the official thread on the Slick forums to register for the contest. The deadline for this is March 15th; make sure you do it!
Here is the official poster for the contest, which (handily) has some more information:
Game Jolt Contest: Invention
18 January 2011
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A new contest is being held over at Game Jolt. I've publicised the last few contests and jams there, and that doesn't change this time with a month-long contest being sponsored by NALGames. The theme is "Invention", which leaves you with plenty of creative options. Secondly, there are prizes; hurrah! (So there's no excuse that you're too busy with TIGSource's Versus Compo!). The full details are over at the Game Jolt forums; here's a link to the contest thread. A piece of art inspired by the "Invention" theme, if you can call it "art". I can just imagine a bunch of dinos running around inventing language, the wheel and other things that humanity takes for granted. What is it with me and dinosaurs?  |
OH MY GROWTH!
12 November 2010
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OH MY GROWTH! is an ambient 'growing' game where you play as a blood cell in the bloodstream fighting off infection. Aaron worked on the graphics, and Dave collected sounds and music. It was developed in C++ using my in-progress OpenGL game library for work's third game jam (November 2010) and includes basic support for Gamepads. Download: OH MY GROWTH! for Windows |
Android Development: !BZZT
18 September 2010
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Some time back in June, I got hold of a HTC Desire. Admittedly, I was waiting for a decent Android device with a full qwerty keyboard, but I figure I would have had to wait for far too long, so I gave in.
Now, I don't like to admit, but the first thing I did when I switched it on was plugged it in and tried to make an app for it! After experimenting with the SDK for a while, I created an app named "!BZZT". During those few months experimenting, I occasionally forgot to set my phone to silent when I went to bed. You know what this means, right? I had a combination of email, mobile internet notifications, phone calls and sms messages all deciding to wake me up! This is what prompted me to write !BZZT. Here's the description I put on the Android Marketplace: !BZZT is an application that enables you to automatically silence your phone based on particular days and particular times through the use of Profiles. For those of you who forget to put the phone to silent before you go to sleep, this is an app for you. To the left is a QR code to download the app easily, and below are some screenshots. Give it a try, let me know what you think, and if you enjoy it, rate it and share it with your friends!   |
Gun Of Thunder and AG iPod Exchange
12 July 2010
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Gun Of Thunder is a shocking platformer created for Game Jolt's Indie Game Demake Contest (July 2010). Gun Of Thunder is a demake of Ted Lauterbach (rotten_tater)'s Thunder Gun which was entered into Game Jolt's first contest where the theme was "Shocking". Link: Gun Of Thunder on GameJolt AG iPod Exchange I had to format my laptop due to a few virus issues and when everything got back to normal, Yamipod decided that it didn't want to work for me anymore (probably due to a pesky update by Apple). This prompted me to create my own really simple program to copy the contents of my iPod back on to my laptop with names that actually make sense. It uses an external jar library to read in the ID3 tags which can be viewed here. What a way to spend a Sunday afternoon, eh? Download: AG iPod Exchange Download |
Blind Redux
27 April 2010
Do you recall that Minimal Contest I mentioned at Game Jolt some time ago? If you do, you'd know it was a great success and there were some 50 or so games submitted.
Well, I've only just gotten around to playing one of the games submitted: Blind Redux by CROS (David DeCarmine).
It (honestly) had me laughing from the start, right up to the finish.
It's been around for a good 5 months now. How did I possibly miss this game?
Anyhow, it has a reference to me (that's right, me in it) so I thought I'd post it up here for note.
Well, I've only just gotten around to playing one of the games submitted: Blind Redux by CROS (David DeCarmine).
It (honestly) had me laughing from the start, right up to the finish.
It's been around for a good 5 months now. How did I possibly miss this game?
Anyhow, it has a reference to me (that's right, me in it) so I thought I'd post it up here for note.
Slick with GameJolt Quick Play
09 January 2010
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So you've got your Slick applets working on Game Jolt, but what if your game is normally a downloadable? Game Jolt has "Quick Play" which is pretty handy considering most people don't want to download, unzip, and run a batch script to play your game. You've tried compiling your Slick game into an executable with both launch4j and JSmooth, but neither have seemed to work. Did you ever try asking Game Jolt to run your batch script? I did, and it didn't work. After some reading, here is the reason why: The Quick Play java applet which downloads and runs your game uses the method Runtime.getRuntime.exec(). Programs ran with exec() will stall if they produce more than a few lines of output. |
Windows 7: Gadgets not working with UAC off.
01 December 2009
You've disabled UAC, and your gadgets have stopped working. Coincidence, I think not!
Fixing it requires you to add a small item into to your system registry.
Fixing it requires you to add a small item into to your system registry.
Windows 7: XP/Vista style "Show Desktop".
30 November 2009
You've probably just installed Windows 7, it's working wonderfully, but you're a little frustrated that your "Show Desktop" button is now on the far right.
You're probably using a laptop touchpad, another crazy input device, or you're just too adjusted to the old button positioning. :)
Ever heard of Windows Key + D?
I've stumbled upon a method to do this using a program which you can "pin to taskbar".
Download "ShowDesktop.exe".
If you're interested in the source code, click "Read More".
You're probably using a laptop touchpad, another crazy input device, or you're just too adjusted to the old button positioning. :)
Ever heard of Windows Key + D?
I've stumbled upon a method to do this using a program which you can "pin to taskbar".
Download "ShowDesktop.exe".
If you're interested in the source code, click "Read More".
LOVE ME!
18 November 2009
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LOVE ME! is a minimal R-Type shooter created for GameJolt's Minimal contest (November 2009). Minimalist Aim: The aim was to create the whole game in polygons and to programmatically generate the sound. This would have been such if we had more time. :) Programming, Sound and Graphics by Ashley Gwinnell and Sam Connolly. Music by boomlinde titled "Aether Bats". Minimal Story: You are white square in a world of reds. The reds don't really want you around, but they are normally passive beings. You've provoked them a little, and things escalate. You are no match for their army. Minimal Gameplay: Arrow keys and leftctrl to move and shoot. There is no definitive ending to this game, you will eventually be killed by the swarms and swarms of red stuff. O_O Links: LOVE ME! on GameJolt Boomlinde Music |
Utilising an API: GameJolt.
02 November 2009
Recently, I read a thread in the GameJolt forums that wasn't receiving very much attention. A few users were requesting dynamically generated images for their games on the site. Nobody else has created the means, so I took it upon myself to do so.
Here are a few examples:
Here are a few examples:
How to use:
What do you think? Well, the good news is that it's as easy as using a normal image!
Simply replace GAME_ID with the game's id in
http://netbin.co.uk/gj/box/GAME_ID.
I'll work on beautifying the script in the coming days.
I almost forgot! GameJolt API!
Game Jolt Contest #3!
30 October 2009
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With the Slick contest coming to a close, and having not officially entered a game into it, another opportunity arises. Game Jolt's 3rd contest will run for a week starting on the 1st of November. Theme: The theme hasn't been announced yet, but the image to the left is a teaser/hint as to what the theme may infact be. Could the theme be colour, light, retro or glow? We'll find out soon! Prizes: The 1st place prize is the choice of a game from Steam! and the 2nd and 3rd place prizes will get you featured on the website. Game Jolt Forum Thread on the contest! |
Slick "Beer" Contest!
28 September 2009
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You may know already that I've been using Slick quite adamantly for some time now. Well, a young man named Gornova from Random Tower thought it would be a jolly good idea to start a beer-themed contest over on the Slick Forums. Granted, I thought about posting one a while back, but figured that JGO was for that kind of thing. What is my idea? I don't want to give too much away, but it involves... cider! Slick Forum Thread on the contest! |
Maibox
24 September 2009
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Maibox has been added to the Software page. Download | Screenshot 1 | Screenshot 2 | Screenshot 3 |
Inverse Polarity
13 September 2009
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Inverse Polarity is my short platformer schmup for the GameJolt Axiom contest (August 2009). Axioms Used: Even a broken clock is right twice a day. In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Links: Quickplay (Java Webstart) Readme File Inverse Polarity on JGO Inverse Polarity on GameJolt |
Introducing Fluent Cutscenes
26 August 2009
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With my GameJolt Axiom contest entry going all too slowly, and still needing to create cutscenes successfully in Damon the Dinosaur, I decided that I could genericise my existing cutscene code so that I could use it in my Axiom entry, Inverse Polarity. A while ago I wrote a short article titled "Fluent Animations and Effects for your next Slick game". I've extended this concept recently for the above reasons and have written a small library built on top of Fluent FX. It's aim is to simplify and code-lessen creating interactive cutscenes for your games. Downloads: Fluent Cutscenes demo Fluent Cutscenes Jar Fluent Cutscenes JavaDoc Fluent Cutscenes Source Code |
Madness? Success!
24 July 2009
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The "Two Hours Of Madness" contest deadline was over a week ago, and all the entries have been judged. Most were pretty awesome, I was sure that some of the other entries were better. However, Hoola Roundup came in first place! I am really, very proud of myself; this was the first games programming competition that I had ever entered. There are an array of features that had to be left out of Hoola Roundup due to time constraints, but I will be putting these features in shortly. Thanks go to Gideon Simons (AKA QOG) for hosting the competition. |
Create A Game in 2 hours? MADNESS!
12 July 2009
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Around and about the time that I've had recently, shifting between projects - Damon The Dinosaur, Harmonia, etc - I felt I should give myself a break from the long-term projects. Some of the good folk over at GameJolt have started a competition to create a game in two hours or under using any tools necessary. It's not an official GameJolt competition, it was just posted by one of the GameJolt members, who is also on Poppenkast. The theme of the competition is "MADNESS", and surprisingly, there have not been any entries including Spartans yet. My entry is called "Hoola Roundup" The competition ends on 15th July. Can you find two hours to enter? |
Music, Sounds, Fonts!
20 February 2009
Today I am going to share a few resources that I have found useful to me during my time. Those who know me in the real world will have acquired a large grievance with my use of the tool that I am about to share with you.
Fluent Animation & Effects for your next Slick Game.
13 February 2009
Alex at Another Early Morning has written an animation and effects library with the aims of providing rich and concise animations and effects to games without the need to restructure the game architecture.
It will run on Java 1.5+ and has no depencencies, and can be used (if not preferred) with Slick.
It will run on Java 1.5+ and has no depencencies, and can be used (if not preferred) with Slick.
Java: Writing an XML HTTP Server.
13 February 2009
What am I doing? Rewriting the wheel!
Why is it that Java (BufferedReader(InputStreamReader(InputStream))) reads everything in my HTTP POST request fine up until the actual POST BODY?!
It only reads the POST BODY once PHP has timed out. :(
Well, in relation to my last journal on Harmonia_Game_Engine (which I forgot to tag...), I'll make a note to remember.
Don't use BufferedReader if dealing with InputStreams; use StringBuffer.
But why? You may think the BufferedReader's readLine() method is good, because it reads you a line (yep, no parsing of ints to chars), but when it comes to the last line in your stream, it doesnt return -1.
So in revision, don't check for -1 if you want to break out of a 'read input stream loop', use an \"end of stream\" set of characters or equivilent.
Why is it that Java (BufferedReader(InputStreamReader(InputStream))) reads everything in my HTTP POST request fine up until the actual POST BODY?!
It only reads the POST BODY once PHP has timed out. :(
Well, in relation to my last journal on Harmonia_Game_Engine (which I forgot to tag...), I'll make a note to remember.
Don't use BufferedReader if dealing with InputStreams; use StringBuffer.
But why? You may think the BufferedReader's readLine() method is good, because it reads you a line (yep, no parsing of ints to chars), but when it comes to the last line in your stream, it doesnt return -1.
So in revision, don't check for -1 if you want to break out of a 'read input stream loop', use an \"end of stream\" set of characters or equivilent.
HP Pavilion dv9820 downgrade.
11 January 2009
Okay so this week I decided it was time to give up Windows Vista.
For why may I downgrade?
It's pure and simple, Vista runs so many background processes, and uses graphical resources even when using the 'Classic' windows theme.
For why may I downgrade?
It's pure and simple, Vista runs so many background processes, and uses graphical resources even when using the 'Classic' windows theme.
Tags
Buddy Blogs
Ted Lauterbach - rotten_tater
The crazy developer of the awesome game Thunder Gun, as well as most other things that are awesome.http://www.rottentater.com/
Another Early Morning - Alex Schearer
Alex Schearer created the fluentfx library which I used in Inverse Polarity.http://www.anotherearlymorning.com/
Indie Games
Let's face it, what indie gamer or developer doesn't follow this one?http://www.indiegames.com/blog/
Inkidia
The developer of Voltorometer, a game that was entered into the Game Jolt shocking contest. Sequel in the works!http://www.inkidia.net/
Random Tower
Gornova just keeps learning! There's quite often content here that amuses me. http://randomtower.blogspot.com/Achroware
Jack mostly posts stuff on Twitter, but hey. http://achroware.com/Kieran Patel
Kieran mostly posts stuff on Twitter, but hey. http://kieranajp.tumblr.com/Kommander Klobb
Mr. Klobb is founder of Honeyslug and is one of the London indies.http://klobb.posterous.com/
Oh, Games - Joe Bain
Joe has developed an Android game named Kaptilo, as well as an abstract game about catching birds. He's also one of the London indies.http://ohgames.co.uk/
Not The Internet - George Buckenham
George is another of the London indies. He created "Hell is other people". Play it.http://nottheinternet.com/