March 3rd Rant!

I apologize for the lack of a better title?

Three days in and I'm keeping to my goals... mostly. As you can tell, my rants are proportionate to my stress level. The more stress I feel, the longer the rants become. Best to have somewhere to vent, right? (Okay, seriously. It's not all that bad. But I am under some serious pressure.)

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Pokémon Rant:

As most of you can tell, I've been hooked on the DS games lately in preparation for Black and White release on Sunday. I'm probably becoming quite annoying about it on Facebook too, maybe.

l booted up my copy of Pokémon Pearl Version yesterday and finally got around to evolving two Eevees into a Glaceon and Leafeon respectively. I also found a Thunder Stone so I got a Jolteon as a bonus. Score?

I didn't know evolving Eevee into those two forms (Glaceon and Leafeon) were as easy as leveling up near two Rocks in Sinnoh. I thought you'd have to have them with max happiness or something. Anyway, I'm going to train those this weekend before Sunday. I also found some more Pokémon in the PC on Pearl version that I want to level up. These include:

Skarmory
Breloom
Flareon
Jolteon
Pidgeot

...and some others I imagine, but I honestly can't remember at the moment. But I don't know, Pokémon seems to be a great quick stress reliever and I guess it's a better option than what some others would do in the same situation. *coughdrugssmokedrinketccough*


And I want a freaking Victini!


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Software Engineering Rant:

Now this is where the stress comes in. Not too hard of a class, but I feel like the deadlines are extremely unrealistic for our project. I've been assigned to the Heap Sort, and while that is pretty doable, we have to code it in JavaScript. Now, JavaScript isn't too difficult to learn, actually it's very similar to C++. However, we have to use a "jsAnim" library for animations, and that is not exactly easy to figure out.

Now coding a Heap algorithm is easy, actually animating it using code with little knowledge on how it works, that's a little tough.

Again, I don't think Software Engineering is hard by itself, but with other classes that are just as time consuming (is that the right way to put it?) I think I bit off more than I could chew. Never again. I would rather postpone graduation than do a schedule this difficult again.

While I'm on the subject of programming, I'm getting really rusty in C++. I'm going to need to practice on some of that to get ready for Operating Systems next winter.

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Final Fantasy XIV Rant:



Some people really have the audacity to think that Final Fantasy XIV is becoming like World of Warcraft, and make that their reason for playing no longer. Now, I don't play WoW, nor will I ever, but that game has 9,000,000+ players. Isn't that a good thing? People seem to say that WoW is this terrible game. I don't think it's that bad if it has that many people playing, but I don't think a couple of floating '!' icons will ruin FFXIV. In fact, it's been in Final Fantasy titles already (Notably FFIX and XII), so it's not anything new.

Also, a lot of people seem to be disgusted with the changes to the user interface. There have been people disagreeing with it saying it takes away from Final Fantasy's uniqueness. I don't know, though. I mean, Naoki Yoshida is working his ass off to get this game to succeed, and I greatly admire this man's efforts. He's seriously the captain of the Titanic as it's going under and so far successfully steering it back to balance. It's very exciting to watch, actually. But people who cannot embrace change because of a NPC giving a stupid little confirmation window and a "!" icon in a CS, I really don't know what to tell you other than "deal with it or leave".



Anyhow, less ranting and more informing. Yoshida did an interview in Los Angeles today with Eorzeapedia, and it's quite an interesting read. I posted it on Facebook, but no one seemed to give a damn so I took it off and posted it here instead. He's taking an interesting approach with classes though. He wants to introduce the traditional classes as either an advanced path to the current classes of XIV, or make them as subclasses of the current class system.

Personally, I vouched for the second method. It would only make sense that a Conjurer that has primarily white magic equipped would be a white mage, right? Maybe it's just me.

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Now time to focus more on my homework. A more enlightening post will come Saturday after midnight. Maybe!







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A new month! March Goals, School, Eevee evolution chosen, and more nerdy stuff! March Madness FTW

I've re-designed for the month! I'm already missing the blue theme I've been used to since I started that look in 2008. But I think I can consider myself well-equipped to reflect all of the pinching. Right? Oh well, it'll be back next month.

Anyway, a new month means a new start, right? I realized I didn't make too much progress in terms of the February goals. In fact, I don't think I accomplished one damn thing on that list. (Okay, okay, I did get a Suicune from Gamestop.) What's the point of goals when they don't get fulfilled?

In any case, I tried to go for more realistic goals for March that I think I can fulfill.

-I'm looking to pass all of my classes. (Notably Physics, Machine Organization, and Software Engineering. I don 't need to worry about Geology, easy A). (See also: Progress to degree(s)). Easier said than done, right? Though, I'm right on the curve in all three of those classes. I never anticipated that the load would be this heavy, but I'm taking it small steps at a time. I've somewhat learned to stop procrastinating on doing Physics lab assignments, and that has helped greatly to my benefit. I just need to keep on hacking away and make sure I stay decent so I pass all of my classes. I've kind of past the point where I aim for high grades in these classes, but aiming to pass them all without the horrible fear of repeating any and setting back graduation any further. Needless to say, this is my utmost priority, and if I can at least get this goal done then the others can really be pushed to next month.

-A new version of Dojo Adventure is going to be released later this month, look for it! It'll most likely be released after Finals. I posted some of the changes that are coming in a different post! As well as a timeline for Codename: EPIC!

-Another important goal is to finish "If Jon Ruled the World". We are really running late on this skit, but it's almost done. It will be posted this month. Believe it! It's pretty cheesy, but it's very funny, and I think you'll enjoy it once it's completed.





-I've decided on the Eevee evolution that was greatly influenced by Twitter and Facebook posts. I'm going to go with Glaceon!

Yeah? I'm a sucker for blue Pokémon? It is my favorite color after all. And it would be formidable against opposing Pokémon like Garchomp or Dragonite. He's going to be a great addition to the Pokemon Black/White team, which I almost forgot to mention...

-Pokemon Black and White comes out Sunday! I'm looking forward to it! My poor DS is going to be abused for a couple of weeks straight! I already love the surfing theme they put in the game. (Music spoilers!)






-And I must, must, MUST finish Final Fantasy XIII. Yes, that abomination. I keep procrastinating in dealing with the game (I'm stuck on Barthandelus in Disc 3 of the XB360 version, so I'm not far from the end of the game), but I must finish! But it always helps to watch a funny movie that spoofs it, like this for example:





While I'm on the subject of Final Fantasy, I'm also looking forward to the changes Naoki Yoshida and his team are bringing to Final Fantasy XIV. They're bringing back the Black Mage costume!!! And do I see Dark Knight or Dragoon in there too!? I'm going to hopefully knock out a lot of quests for XIV with the Viva Eorzea Linkshell, so I'm looking forward to the patch that will be released in a few days.




That's about it for my March goals, more comprehensive than last months, but certainly more doable. (At least I think so). And I'll close out the blog post by an inspiring song by Steely Dan to kick off the month! Bring it on, March!




Hello one and all
Was it you I used to know
Can't you hear me call
On this old ham radio
All I got to say
I'm alive and feeling fine
Should you come my way
You can share my poison wine

CHORUS:
No marigolds in the promised land
There's a hole in the ground
Where they used to grow
Any man left on the Rio Grande
Is the king of the world
As far as I know

I won't take your bread
I don't need your helping hand
I can't be no savage
I can't be no highwayman
Show me where you are
You and I will spend this day
Driving in my car
Through the ruins of Santa Fe

CHORUS

I'm reading last year's papers
Although I don't know why
Assassins cons and rapers
Might as well die

If you come around
No more pain and no regrets
Watch the sun go brown
Smoking cobalt cigarettes
There's no need to hide
Taking things the easy way
If I stay inside
I might live til Saturday

CHORUS

Dojo Adventure March 2011 Version + Codename: EPIC Timeline Update

Dojo Adventure:

The current version of Dojo Adventure can be downloaded on the top bar with all of the links.

I'm currently outlining some changes that will be coming in next month's version of Dojo Adventure. I've received some suggestions about improving some aspects of the game, so I'm going to announce some adjustments to several classes:


-Some of the Blackbelt, Hunter, Swordsman, and Tamer abilities are going to be adjusted and split into tiers.

For example, the Blackbelt ability "Crit Hit" will be split into three new abilities: "Crit Hit 1", "Crit Hit 2", and "Crit Hit 3". Each one will have increased damage and accuracy over the previous tier. This effect will be done for various abilities over various classes.

-Paramedic is also going to get the ability "Heal 4" which restores all HP to a party member. This will be learned at level 80.

-Final abilities will be adjusted so that it will require a minimum of 999 AP to cast, and will take all of the player's AP, even if it exceeds 999 due to Max AP+ attributes. For example, if the character possesses 1036 AP and uses the respective class final ability, it will take all of 1036 AP, instead of having 37 AP remaining.

-The ending of the game will be modified. The storyline will remain the same, but there will be some added scenes in order for a longer, more consistent flow and not give the impression of a rushed ending.



Codename: EPIC:

We have made a decent amount of progress with the Codename: EPIC project yesterday, and we pretty much have a rough time-line for when parts of the game is to be released.

Unveiling of Game Title (Early-Summer 2011)
Tech Demo Trailer of the Game (Mid-Summer 2011)
Playable Tech Demo of the Game (End of Summer 2011)
Chapter 1 Download (December 2011)
Chapter 2-12 Download (2012)





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Friday-Induced Rant! The Good, the Bad, the Interesting.

^ Happy Friday!

Better start with the good, and then the bad:

Good:

-Today, we're hoping to get the rest of the filming for "If Jon Ruled The World" done. The video may be released by this month, but it seems unlikely. Possibly March.

-After that is all over, I'm going to head over to GameStop and download my Celebi to my Pokemon SoulSilver and Pearl versions. (That's right, I get two!) I can get the event in HeartGold/SoulSilver that allows this:

Make sure to get your Celebi to your DS before March 7th!

-We also a composer interested in the Codename: EPIC team! So we almost have a full development team now. I just need to train two other people how to use the software so we'll be able to develop different parts of the game at the same time.

-I'm also working on a new update to Dojo Adventure which should be coming in March.

-Some of the Blackbelt's abilities are going to be adjusted and split into tiers. So Blackbelt will be getting new higher-form abilities out of what exists and the existing abilities will be adjusted and made weaker as well as have their accuracy adjusted.

-Paramedic is also going to get the ability "Heal 4" which restores all HP to a party member.

Bad:

-I had a Physics midterm today, and although I think I did okay on 3 of the 5 problems, I don't think it's enough to garner enough points to have a decent score. I need to work on the labs and homework to get a decent grade for the class and move on to Physics II next quarter.

-I still need to get my laptop repaired, the USB ports are still dislocated, and I've yet to get them fixed.

Interesting:

"Where did all the nice guys go?"

-A friend sent me this article a couple of days ago, but I really have to say that he was right on par, and this article is very, very, true!

(It also doesn't just apply to guys, I imagine this works with both genders. But from personal experience, it couldn't be more true.)

Though it is kind of sad when you think about it. We always overlook what's in front of us and try to go for what we can't have. Yay for plans backfiring, right?

Also:

Gotta admit, guy has a point.

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Update on progress for degree(s) - Updated for upcoming Spring 2011 Quarter.

An update on classes I'm taking for Spring 2011 quarter from March-June.

PHYS222 (Physics II)
Math 262 (Statistics)
Math 372 (Combinatorics)

I didn't want to take such an underwhelming schedule, but I needed a lighter courseload for three reasons: I was advised that PHYS222 was much tougher than PHYS221, and my alternatives for courses weren't to my liking. (I don't feel like I'm ready to take Operating Systems just yet.), and most importantly I was making myself ill going four days a week 12 hours a day. Here are the flowcharts for the two degrees I am going for:

-Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (The standard degree. Accredited. Major emphasis.)

-Bachelor of Arts in Computer Systems -Video Game Development (Second Degree. The one I really want, but is a dream job/career. I want to be qualified to do other software development as well.)

Key:

A red X denotes that the class has been taken and completed.
A red circle denotes that the class is currently being taken (as of Winter Quarter 2011)
A blue circle denotes that the class is scheduled to be taken
No mark means the class has yet to be taken.




I crossed out CSE500. That's a class that is not on my year's course work to be completed. Well, it is, but it's only a requirement for 2009-2010 and on. I'm kind of happy now that I graduated in 2008, now I think about it.

Codename EPIC February Updates: Open Positions, Concepts, The Works

^ Sample game created on the engine.


Looking for Positions:

[X] Denotes that the position has been filled. Positions listed at the top are of most important, positions near the bottom are of least importance, but may be moved up in a later blog post as development moves through the stages.

Urgent:

-Voice actors for the characters.
-Game Designers knowledgeable with RPG Maker 2000, 2003, XP or VX software/engine or are willing to sit through an in-person tutorial to learn from me.

Needed/Wanted:

-Monster Artists
-Ruby programmers (Mostly concerned with user interface tweaking, and battle system re-design)
-RGSS Scripters (Mostly concerned with user interface tweaking, and battle system re-design)

Going to need in the near future:

-Map Designers
-Dungeon Designers

Filled Positions:

-Musical Composer [X]
-Sprite/Battle Artists [X]
-Logo Designer [X]
-Character Artists [X]
-Storyline Writers [X]
-Protagonist Artists [X]
-Antagonist Artists [X]
-Title Screen/Game Over Screen Designers [X]

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For more information on the project, please see the list of posts I've done in the past pertaining to this project in this link or in the future click "Codename EPIC" in the top of this blog to automatically filter out all posts except those that pertain to the project.

This project is going to be commission-based, so everyone will get a percentage share of profits exceed development costs, (which right now is hovering at around 80-90 dollars including Enterbrain engine license fees, purchasing Fraps for filming together trailers to pitch the game idea for Kickstarter to possibly get funding for the project). Chapter 1 will be developed and released at the end of this year for free. Chapters 2-12 will require purchase of the full game which is to be released in Summer of 2012. Price of the full game will be determined and voted on by the team and is to be announced.

Consoles:
PC (Windows XP, Vista, 7)

The most important position I'm looking for at the moment is a composer for the game project. I would do the tunes myself, but I'm only good at making small themes (See: Dojo Adventure victory theme) and I'm certainly not a Junichi Masuda (though I would greatly aspire to be, that man is talented).

I'm looking for composers that really know video game music or know where I'm going with the idea, not so much any composer, but for a RPG, the right theme has to go with the emotion. It doesn't have to be anything particularly complicated, but sometimes simple, catchy melodies work better than long complicated ones in a game.

Also, I plan on using only original music for this project. I don't plan on using copyrighted themes, or freeware themes. I want only original material for this game from the ground up, no matter how long development will take to complete this.

I'm hoping to put it on Amaranthia, that's my dream to have one of my projects on the front page of their website! Amanda Fitch, who is the game designer behind the main game on said website (Aveyond) is notable for being one of the few developers that makes a good amount of money (as well as publicity) for leading development teams for her Aveyond games, and I'm hoping to do something similar to that as a side hobby/job to get extra money on the side.

If you're interested in joining the project, contact me via my social networking links on the navigation bar at the top of my blog. I'm looking for anyone who may be interested in working on the project, though you may be forced to sign a non-disclosure agreement if I do not know you personally (for legal reasons).


Anyway, while we're on the topic of video game composers, here are some video game RPG music pieces that I really find inspiring:







































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Naoki Yoshida "Yoshi-P" Part III

Now the changes are coming in...

Blog Notes/Relevant Links:

See also: Letter from the Producer, III
See also: Final Fantasy XIV Battle System Poll
See also: Unofficial FFXIV Battle System Poll (if you don't play and still want to see it)

See also: Naoki Yoshida Part I
See also: Naoki Yoshida Part II



^ Naoki Yoshida (FFXIV's Producer/Director) at a 4Gamer Interview.


So on Thursday, Naoki Yoshida released a new letter informing us of the changes that are coming to FFXIV. Some of it, most of us were expecting, but some of us were kind of blindsided by other changes that are coming to the game.

Here are my opinions on the coming changes:

Really Like:

–NEW– Storylines and world quests
–NEW– Quest-related system changes
–NEW– Development and release of supplemental storylines and world quests
–NEW– Introduction of additional quests
–NEW– Rank/Level up fanfare

–NEW– Instanced PvE Content (Dungeons/Raids)		–NEW– Examination of dungeon content for full parties (8) of high-rank members   Ongoing examination together with battle system adjustments (8-member content)
		–NEW– Examination of dungeon content for small parties (4) of mid- to high-rank members   Ongoing examination together with battle system adjustments (4-member content)

Good:

–NEW– Addition of confirmation windows for accepting/refusing quests

–NEW– Re-examination of class-based requirements for gear

–NEW– Addition of class-specific gear to enhance class uniqueness and goal-oriented play

–NEW– Re-examination of recommended class system for gear

–NEW– Re-examination of stats

–NEW– Addition of an auto-MP regeneration feature

–NEW– Ongoing reeaxmination of attributes and stats

Seems Un-necessary:

–NEW– Addition of icons to make quest NPCs easily recognizable

Character jump feature



Don't Want:

–NEW– Auto-attack system

–NEW– Examination of an auto-attack feature

–NEW– Examination of risks of and scale of changes for an auto-attack system

Possible introduction of traditional names such as paladin, monk, white mage, etc.


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I (as well as many others) are excited about the majority of things that is coming to the game, but I can't help but feel that they're trying to appeal to the mass exodus of players that left and are most likely not coming back.

I'm mostly happy with the game at this state, and I am hoping they introduce new content, but some stuff they really are intent on transforming the game as a whole.

For example, one aspect I don't like is that they're considering scrapping physical levels. It's not mentioned in the Letter from the Producer, but it's in the Battle System Poll. I'm hoping they don't, since I'm almost level 40 (as opposed to being rank 34 Gladiator and rank 35 Sentinel), and it's much easier to level up new classes with a high physical level. Basically, scrapping physical levels would make it seem too much like FFXI which, while a good game, I spent eight years on. I'm done with it and want to move on to a new system, and I was hoping for that, but it really is going to come down to what the players want.

All in all, I'm still in it for the long haul, and now I'm trying to get Physical level 50 before the time ends just so I can laugh as all my work goes to waste. Or am I just that foolish?

Regardless of my feelings on the issue, what matters most is that there's finally a good timeline and direction of the game, it's interesting watching the development and transformation of this whole thing (even more so that I'm not paying for it), I'm looking forward to the results of the poll and what Yoshi-P has to say about it in a week or so.



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