Games – ɔimoɈɒ

Two Books on sale at DriveThruRPG

In an attempt to calm this raging passion I have for writing, I’ve begun to embark on putting my books on DriveThruRPG – the pre-eminent site for selling RPGs online.

Testament and Creed are two books of a trilogy of games. Both are set at the end of the world, in the Jude-Christian sense. The Rapture is upon us and in the first book, Testament, the players are witnesses to the Rapture. In the second, Creed, they are part of the problem with their sorcerous ways.

The third book, Rapture, where the player takes the role of an Angelic Being during the Rapture and the Apocalypse, will be written if the other two do ok.

Unity 5 versus Unreal Engine 4

Unity 5: free for up to $100,000 revenue / year, no royalties. Deploys to Mac, Windows, Linux, IOS, Android, Blackberry, Tizen, PS3, PS4, PSVITA, XBOX 360, XBOX One, Web Player, WebGL, GearVR, Oculus Rift, Samsung Smart TV, Windows Phone 8 and Wii U. Unreal Engine 4: free, 5% royalties after $12,000/year. Deploys to Windows, XBOX … Continue reading “Unity 5 versus Unreal Engine 4”

Unity 5: free for up to $100,000 revenue / year, no royalties. Deploys to Mac, Windows, Linux, IOS, Android, Blackberry, Tizen, PS3, PS4, PSVITA, XBOX 360, XBOX One, Web Player, WebGL, GearVR, Oculus Rift, Samsung Smart TV, Windows Phone 8 and Wii U.
Unreal Engine 4: free, 5% royalties after $12,000/year. Deploys to Windows, XBOX One, OpenGL (for Linux, Mac, PS4, IOS, Android Ouya) and WebGL.

There’s some talk about whether UE4 or Unity5 provides the same visuals but frankly that’s the remit of the teams who can produce AAA (Triple A; link) quality assets. If you can afford them, then you’ve got a decision to make.

Jeff LaMarche on the MartianCraft blog describes how his team have switched their primary game engine from Unity to Unreal. But it’s his project, his team; I do think it’s worth remembering that you can change. I’ve been working with the game dev and animation team in the Image Centre in South West College because they’re able to work with both toolsets. I recommend if you have a novel gaming or “interactive experience” project, get in touch with them.

Unity 3D the clear industry favourite.

The recent growth of Unity 3D in industry locally despite the push in further education for the Unreal Engine (at odds with industry demand) was why we worked with South West College to deliver more training for converting some programmers to Unity Devs. And, of course, to aid collaboration and component re-use for game jams! … Continue reading “Unity 3D the clear industry favourite.”

Digital Circle spends a lot of time looking at industry trends. We focus on the good of the industry which has a different perspective to support agencies like Invest NI (which has a focus on jobs created) and Northern Ireland Screen (which has a focus on headline-grabbing movie projects).

We couldn’t have delivered some of our interventions without the help of the Arts Council ‘Creative Industries Innovation Fund’ (supported by DCAL) and the Honeycomb Creative Works programme (supported by the SEUPB). The bad news is that both of these programmes will not be active in the coming future.

It is just nice, every now and then, to know that we did the right thing, for the right reasons, with the right outcomes.

If you want to get stuck into Unity, there are heaps of tutorials on their web site and if you’re a small business, you could do well getting support from the InnovateUS programme to get Unity mentoring from South West College. There are also heaps of video training resources in YouTube.

Spherical Worlds

My work for this week will be following this tutorial. Related posts: Raspberry Pi: some useful links for doing more than playing around. from Virtual Reality to Augmented Reality An Education-focused Link List Old Maps to 3D Worlds

My work for this week will be following this tutorial.

Game School

I’ve always found it easier to work in groups. Being able to talk to someone about a project and, in return, feel better for helping others. So the pitch is; meet once a week, maybe an evening or maybe a lunchtime and write game stuff. Yes, I’ll be leaning on others. But hopefully I’ll help … Continue reading “Game School”

I’ve always found it easier to work in groups. Being able to talk to someone about a project and, in return, feel better for helping others.

So the pitch is; meet once a week, maybe an evening or maybe a lunchtime and write game stuff. Yes, I’ll be leaning on others. But hopefully I’ll help others too.

Ethical concerns in video games

Leigh Alexander has compiled a list of ethical concerns in video games. I’ve spoken about some of them previously; the arms manufacturer agenda, the proliferation of war. The article is little more than a list but it’s to prove a point. The things that are not ethical concerns are the trumped up worries and accusations … Continue reading “Ethical concerns in video games”

Leigh Alexander has compiled a list of ethical concerns in video games.

I’ve spoken about some of them previously; the arms manufacturer agenda, the proliferation of war.

The article is little more than a list but it’s to prove a point. The things that are not ethical concerns are the trumped up worries and accusations of the worst part of the industry.

NOCT: Now on Kickstarter, beautifully done.

Depicted through the eerie glare of a thermal imaging satellite, the game will have you hunt weapons and items while fending off the bug-like horrors that await. (Link to Kickstarter) It’s a fabulous idea and one that is worth repeating. In fact, it really reminds me of Zombie Gunship, depicted below: Related posts: Fabulous Kickstarters … Continue reading “NOCT: Now on Kickstarter, beautifully done.”

Depicted through the eerie glare of a thermal imaging satellite, the game will have you hunt weapons and items while fending off the bug-like horrors that await. (Link to Kickstarter)

It’s a fabulous idea and one that is worth repeating. In fact, it really reminds me of Zombie Gunship, depicted below:

New Project: Zephyroth

Just back from UNITE’14, I wanted to do a project that would resonate with me as well as link into the experiences of my past. I wasn’t always a techno-geek; I used to be a biologist, I used to be a writer and I also used to design roleplaying games. I also built a substantial … Continue reading “New Project: Zephyroth”

So, I’m working on this:

Take one part Super Mario Galaxy and one part Monument Valley. Sprinkle with a little Tron and a little Journey and wrap it up in a Kabbalistic journey from the Physical Realm to Godhood.

And yes, I know this explains nothing but I’ll update as I make stuff.

’71

After watching this trailer, I want to play the game. There should be a game. Related posts: All I needed to know about games… Show me the MMOney Contemporal, Cospatial and Connected Immersive, Connected, Asynchronous

After watching this trailer, I want to play the game.

There should be a game.

EL3D

I’ve started building something in Unity that I’ve been wanting to work on for a while. I’m a novice at this stuff but it’s somewhat invigorating. I did have a lot of difficulties as 3D interfaces don’t come naturally to me but this will hopefully improve with practice. Removing the shader from the plane has … Continue reading “EL3D”

Removing the shader from the plane has made it so much easier to place cubes. Before that I was almost blinded with my own lighting. That’s why the floor is magenta.

Yes, life would be so much easier if I had a bunch of cash and any talent but we have to work with what we have got.