Haha I am so glad you are doing this and not me cause you lost me pretty quickly. But it sounds like good stuff
Zone Server Progress Well, all that theory about scene sectors later, I have some decent working zone servers! It's a big ole screenie but it shows a server running with 50 networked game objects (the red boxes), each moving up to 10 times a second. Also shown are 3 test clients. Note how their views are in synch with each other. This was all created to support more robust key/mouse/joypad movement, and also for our game servers to be able to run AI monsters. The coolest thing about this tech is that it's runnable from the main game application. Which means your iPod could be a game server. Still teasing, more on this soon Next is to put back in all the game-specific stuff, as this was a MAJOR surgery for poor DangerLands, and I started with a stripped down project while creating the new network stuff. Woot!! Finally can start making the cool stuff again
I can't wait for this one to reach fruition! Even though I couldn't follow all the theory completely, I understood enough of it to make me interested in how everything integrates. I love the behind the scenes stuff that goes into game design
It gets pretty insane quickly. I begin by asking questions like "how can I reduce the load on the server" or "is there a smarter way to figure out which players need to know about which objects". I then think up all kinds of solutions and narrow them down to a couple to try. I then jump in the deep end and swim my way out. It's fun and educational. One awesome side effect of this research and prototyping is that I've stumbled upon the baseline methodology that would let us create massive worlds which adapt the server load based on player concentrations. It's not useful here yet, but could be for me someday.
Next I start working back in all the DangerLands features I had built already, with an eye on optimization and refactoring (this is when you take something you made and make it better). Then, first order of business is combat.
I wish I could say 'tomorrow' but I work 2 jobs and they've both been really busy. ASAP anyway. The artist also got busy over Thanksgiving but will probably finish up this month.
Some lore to tide you over It isn't a screenshot or in-depth technical description, but I have put up our first bit of lore for your enjoyment. My plan is to tell a story that will help get everyone "into" DangerLands. The lore is here: http://dangerlands.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=4&Itemid=8 And an article about the lore is here: http://www.multiplaying.net/2009/12/02/writing-that-might-get-read/
I've been following this for like 2 months now, I really like the way you describe each step, zone creation etc.. Keep up the good work !
Thanks, Ezak! I'm aiming to get a short story out each week. They are mini-chapters really. Fun to write. Hopefully fun to read.
Here is another post to whet your appetite: http://www.multiplaying.net/2009/12/07/do-you-dungeon-crawl/ I'm creating a dungeon, and I'm looking for feedback. Please leave a comment there, on the DangerLands forums, or here.
Except it screwed itself over double...first by not making it accessible to anyone outside Japan and the USA, and more importantly by only offering it to people who own iPhones...really pwning there...
First thing you're right about, but I live in USA so I don't care. The second thing you're wrong about. It just got updated to work with everything except first gen touchpod.
We shall see! We're not in competition, but sevenswords is fun (and out) right now, where we have a long way to go yet.
I've been trying sevenswords and it indeed is fun, but I am quite confident we will have 1000% more to offer. Nice net code though!
Thank you for your in-depth analysis On a more serious note, I really want to see how Dangerlands turns out. Seven Swords seems fun but well, i'm not so much into korean style mmos. Also here, the devs are close to the community too, that's a huge plus. Dangerlands could be the closest thing to a classic heroic fantasy mmorpg like EQ (Winin's first dungeon was Befallen, so that's already a win) I think what i miss the most in todays' games is fear In EQ, i'd say fear could be divided into two points: - "TRAINNNNNN!!!". In EQ, you could be scared of the mobs, but you were always terrified of players... That disapeared with the full blown arrival of "Instancing", having just your party in the dungeon. - Corpse runs. However tedious they were, they gave every zone, and every dungeon their very own terrifying memories. In wow for example, if you die in an instance, you can safely zone back in thanks to nearby GYs and being a ghost. In EQ, you had to run back to your corpse, going through numerous dangerous zones, then deep inside the very dungeon that had you killed, naked. Oh yeah, and everytime you died you lost XP =) Every zone, every dungeon had its very own identity. Anyways, I'm don't really know what i'm after, and I don't know what the plans are, but if the game offers a nice pvp experience in world with an EQesque feel, then awesome ! If it offers a single/party pve experience, giving the nostalgia of zones like Unrest, Befallen, Mistmoore, etc, then it's priceless.
Wow, just found this thread. Didn't realise that an mmo was developing right under my nose! Hope to know more because this looks promising
