Switching to the Hero Engine

Ever since I made the decision to create an MMO, I have been stuck with a simple yet very complex decision, 2D or 3D? At first it seemed like a no brainer. 2D was easy and was really a good starting point for a first time game designer. After nearly four months of work now, the 2D perspective has been too limiting. Every idea is halted until it can be adapted to the engine. This is something I really can not put aside. I do not want to sell my self short or put something out there knowing it could be better if I had a better engine. Personally I feel if this is going to work then I will need to switch to 3D. For any G2D fans, there is nothing wrong with the engine, it's probably the best one out there for Dx7 and soon Dx8 support. I have different needs in the end.

So, I have switched to the Hero Engine. This has got to be the most advanced 3D engine out there. Although I have not spent more then an hour with it in development, I am very excited with the features this engine will bring. I have been following them closely over the past two months and I feel their professional standards and friendly community will reflect on my work ethic and allow me to produce something far better than running off into a corner with the Unreal Engine and hoping for the best. As my girlfriend would say, "oh god, another idea Steve?". I just like to think of myself as ambitious. :)

Switching to Maya I think will be the hardest part of all of this. Sure I can make a ball in Blender but a monster in Maya? Ouch time. I figure I will start with very simple textures and models. Over time I can improve on them and update them as necessary. Updates are so easy with HE.

I have other things to wrap up today and tomorrow. Hopefully my account will be completed this weekend and I can start setting up all the directories and so on.

On hold

Figured I should let anyone reading this know that I have put this project on hold until February. The new directx8 engine should be out by then.

I will still be working behind the scenes pen & paper style. Graphics take a lot of time as well so those will be tested and what not.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year! Cya all in 2012!

Interview today!

I have been spending the past two days writing dialogue for quests. I noticed that there is no real depth to questing. You kill or collect said item or monster and then you are done. Most of the work consists of short stories to go with the quests which is relatively easy but time consuming.

The reason I have been working on quests is because there is supposed to be a new release for the G2D engine out this month. But it's looking like it's for donators only. Not really sure I want to donate just yet. If I land this job today then I will for sure! Wish me luck.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy

Okay, if you don't know which movie I just quoted in my topic, then please go Google it. If you did see the movie, "redrum! Redrum!".

Seriously though, I have been thinking and breathing this MMO for almost a month now. Not to mention all the work I did on the project before this (also an MMO). Heck I even started having dreams about the game. I was updating my blog as I drove, which was very dangerous, and I felt it was getting to be too much for me. Having the weekend off was perfect. I got some shopping done over the Thanksgiving weekend. It was Thanksgiving right? I am in Canada, we had ours a month ago.

I came back this evening with a clear head and a new set of ideas. I even did some research and found a well written article on creating and managing an effective economy. Although I do not understand some of the points the writer was making, nor do I agree with all of his ideals, it was a very informative read and has changed my economic model for the better, I hope.

Last night I was putting together some tilesets, again, and figured out a way to cut my work in half. Instead of making a blended tileset for each type of terrain, I can just make it half grass and the other half transparent. This way I can mix dark grass with sand or rock or whatever at any time, with out having to do any extra work. This will also cut down on my file size immensely.

I quit!

I quit! No, not really, but I feel like it. I know graphic design is probably the hardest part for me and that things will get easier, eventually. But it's such a time consuming and stressful process. I did figure out how to make my tilesets more vibrant which is a huge improvement to the look and feel of the game environment. Other then that all I can say is, "headache"!

I won't be getting much of anything done today. I got real life stuff to take care of and I gotta prep for Christmas. Setting up decorations and do some shopping.

I plan to release a playable client in January 2012. So stay tuned for that.