Screenshot of the art-style for the game as it is.

Settled on the type of game, but still working on the mechanics though. More on that soon..

Once again, I shall partake in the upcoming Ludum Dare (And hopefully finish this time.. )

Tools

Language: C++
Library: SFML

I’ve spent what time I’ve had over the weekend working on a somewhat random game, while getting used to programming with SFML in C++ (Somewhat similar to C#, but slightly different). This is what I’ve gotten up to so far:

I’m liking the idea that I generated from this theme ( Collect Radiation, Power Buildings using Radiation, Protect Buildings from Radiation ), and will most likely finish this up during the week.

Achieved:

• Loading Resources
• Handling Input
• Scene Management

Totally looking forward to this one!

Might be changing things this time around, we’ll see

Language: C++ or Lua (Maybe Both, Depends)

Libraries: SFML2 if C++, or LÖVE if Lua

Audio: SFXR

Good luck to everyone!

9 days in, and this is where I’m at:

Currently, the plan is to get path-finding working, and then getting the rest of the game logic in place (Win conditions, objectives, combat, etc).

I’m going to make a decent attempt at this, I have this idea I’ve been “tinkering” with for a while now, and would like to actually finish it (For once ).

Most of my updates will be posted on my blog, but I’ll post weekly snapshots over here as well.

As it currently stands, I’m currently playing around with the concept of an editor where players can (eventually) drag and drop components onto units.

The next step is to allow new components to be placed onto “mount points” that units have.

And finally, some (programmer) eye candy

(It’s some concepts that I’ve got for a set that will focus primarily on allowing customisation by attaching attachments onto other parts, and so on (An attachment on an attachment, on an attachment?))

Blocks now optimise themselves properly

I’ve settled on the idea that I’ll be using for the game. Basic rendering is in place for the time being:

“Block” drawing is horribly slow at the moment (Currently drawing 625 “bits” per block), plan to work on a “welder” for that first.

And then onto room generation!

Here be the setup that I’ll be using for the competition:

Not long to go now!

Other than a slight “distraction” for a few hours that weekend, I should be able to participate in this Ludum Dare!

I’ll be using a slightly different setup this time around:

Language: C++

Libraries: SFML2 & Box2D

Audio: SFXR

Base Code: None (At the moment )

Now to make room for the timelapse

Good luck everyone!

Firstly: I’ve uploaded all of my notes that I wrote during the competition to here, and added a link to them on my submission page.

What Worked

No Framework

From what I have gathered from it, not having a massive framework to use helped me get what I wanted done more quickly, as I wasn’t spending time trying to get the code to work with the framework. Also, not using a framework meant that I’d often just write something that was basic and worked (GUI Especially) or use existing code without writing a class for it, instead of going overboard.

Modular Code

This time around, I think I’ve gone for a more modular approach to the code. Which made me reuse the core much more than what I did in the last submission (The player and enemies use the same movement logic, except that the input for the player is controlled by actual keys). This made it somewhat easy to fix any issues that arose, as all I would have to do is change one file instead of multiple files.

What Didn’t Work

No Framework

The only downside to not using a framework was that if I needed anything, I’d have to spend time implementing it. I think the solution here is to find a point at which the framework doesn’t impede code development, while at the same time providing useful tools that can be reused through each project.

Too Big of Idea

While the core idea for this game was quite simple, I (once again) decided to go slightly overboard with the ideas that went on top of it, which resulted in majority of the features not getting implemented, or quickly tacked onto the game to make it playable.

Basically: Next time, keep it even more simpler

What Could Be Improved

Cross Platform Development

Once again, I chose to use C#, which effectively limits playing to people who have a Windows machine. A better alternative would be to use Java or Flash so that people from multiple platforms can play the game. This is something that I will look into before the next LD.

But once again, I had fun working on this game! Bring on LD #21!

The full timelapse of me building Isolation can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fHk8a3zvy0

You can check out the game here:

http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-20/?action=preview&uid=3094

I’ll upload my notes later on today, and also write up a post mortem.

Quite simple logic, but it works. (Once the player gets to a certain distance, they start following by going left or right until they hit a wall, at which point they will jump).

Update: “Stealth” units now crouch when not pursuing the player.

Here’s the timelapse of the first 12 hours of me working on my submission:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfF85klAcsw

Just over 24 hours to go!

I’ve just about finished the tutorial level, and am now working on the store that players access mid-way between 2 levels, where they can purchase items with the money that they get during the level.

Today’s Tasks:

* Finish random level generation (Add complexity as level ID increases)
* Store
* More Enemy Types
* Cover System

I’d post a screenshot… but not much has changed in that area since last time

Time Awake: 8.5 hours, Time Asleep: 0

I’ve now got a basic menu system in place, buttons work, and the player is able to get to the “game”.

My focus now is to get the map generation going, and ensuring that save/load works (The load button does work, it’s just that it won’t do anything if it is given a file).

For those interested, you can find a copy of it here:

http://mitchdev.com/projects/ld20/builds/Release-Build0.zip (1.27 MB)

Back to coding!

(More programmer art! )

Making very good progress on the game, working on the initial level now.

I’ve now gotten the basic idea of how the game will play out sorted, and the enemies now “chase” the player. Working on weapons now

Back to coding!

(Programmer art FTW )

Making progress, the player now doesn’t fall through the ground, and effects such as rain are working properly!