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saimo 
Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 9:31:29
#1 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

Since the middle of May I've been working on a new game called Blastaway. It isn't finished yet, but it's playable.
Ideally, I would have loved to make it for AGA Amigas, but, instead, the target platform I chose was... Windows (!) Last week, I thought I could make it available for AmigaOS 4, too. So, I ported it and on friday I made an AmigaOS 4 build publicly available.
More about the platforms later: let's look at the game itself, first.

Blastaway will be (hopefully) a highly playable and entertaining arena shooter, gameplay-wise heavily and shamelessly inspired by Wizard of Wor and graphically somewhat inspired by The Chaos Engine.
Looking at the latest video will let you immediately understand what it is all about : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILtA75f4GtQ
You can try the game yourself anytime by downloading the latest build from the game's page (it will redirect you to https://retream.itch.io/blastaway, as itch.io is where I'm currently keeping all of my games).

At the moment there is only 1 stage (i.e. world) with its 10 arenas (i.e. levels), but the final game is planned to have 5 stages, for a total of 50 arenas. I have a few more points in my to-do list, but the core of the game is complete.
I'm releasing new builds frequently, so, if you're interested, keep an eye on the page and/or follow the public devlog on the same page or Twitter, LinkedIn, Patreon, TIGForums, YouTube. Whenever possible, I'll provide updates also in this thread.

Now back to the target platforms. There's a long story behind, and I'm going to be totally open about it. I'll try to keep it as short as possible, but still it will unavoidably turn out lengthy. Please bear with me.

I wrote that, ideally, I'd be making Blastaway for AGA Amigas: in fact, that would be the most self-rewarding experience, as I just adore programming the oldschool systems of my childhood/youth - the Amiga and the C64 - and doing that the oldschool way (i.e. direct hardware hitting). Moreover, I've developed a lot on the Amiga, but I have released too little, so my urge to make games for it is boosted further by the motivation of making more stuff of mine available for that machine. And then, I have a number of projects/engines waiting to be used, and I'm really afraid that I'll never have time to do anything with them. Those are the reasons that, less than two years ago, pushed me to return, after years of work on PC (in a general sense) and C64 games, to the classic Amiga and make SkillGrid.
Thus, the fact that I chose to target Windows is quite surprising, isn't it? And there's also another surprising aspect: while my other games are designed to bring innovation, be unlike anything else, and be based on rich and unusual mechanics (that often require massive and detailed manuals), Blastaway is familiar and straightforward, and I'm trying hard to refrain from adding the many gameplay features that my thirst for originality and depth suggests.
The reason for such a sharp (and tormented) turn is simple: I needed to reach the widest audience possible. I've been making anti-mainstream games, some of which for niche platforms (you know which), for a long time, but now I'm in a situation where I really needed to reach lots of people. So, I decided to go more mainstream. Sure, I'd better make real mainstream games, but my heart isn't there and I can't program a single line of code without heart (which is also why I'm not a developer by trade); also, I'm good only at making oldschool games, so Blastaway just had to be retro. Of course, this automatically means reducing the potential audience, but - hey - there are limits to what I can do. Also, the same limits are what rule out mobile platforms and consoles: I just can't find the words to explain how sick I feel at having to learn other platforms/systems/languages; I'm no geek, I'm not interested in technology per se, and I just feel like going crazy when working on systems which are alien to me (especially for projects that aren't my own). It's already a miracle I managed to build my own little, isolated world on top of C and SDL back in 2004, which is what allowed me to make games for PC like BOH, Huenison, KOG - and now Blastaway.

So, why do I need to reach a wide audience?
In the middle of 2016 I quit my job and returned to Italy to offer support to my seriously ill father and my mother. Returning to such country (and, in particular, the south part of it) automatically meant one thing: being unemployed or enslaved. I've had interviews, went through job selections, worked briefly for a certain company... all indecent, unspeakable experiences. Seeing how there's one thing that, even in this place, seemed to flourish, I decided to become a professional pizza maker. I've followed an expensive course and toured around making pizzas for about a year and a half; unfortunately, even this occupation fell in the category "slavery", so I quit. I've also written a book and looked for a publisher, but since in this rotten country publishers ask you money to publish a book (they run their companies with the authors' capital... now that's a smart business model!), I could only find a very small publisher willing to publish the book without getting paid: the book was indeed published, but the fact that the publisher was so small also meant that the book remained unknown (on top of that, I didn't get support from the people who had told me they'd help me with promoting the book). Basically, for about three years my only income was the little money that comes from my games, which is just pocket money (to give you an idea, just think that the all-time gross revenue of all my games on itch.io is a miserable $1389.84 USD). Basically, the only thing that allowed me to go on was that I was again at my parents' place: they gave me food to eat and a bed to sleep in - and, let's not forget it, the electricity to make my games.
(At least, my unemployment had the positive side of leaving me plenty of time to work on my projects: in fact, I have updated and re-released all my games, published the special physical editions of BOH and Huenison, had the heavily-expanded version of MAH published on cartridge and floppy, and even created SkillGrid from the scratch and have it published on CD and floppies.)
On May 5th a radical change happened: my father died (after years of ever-increasing physical/psychological/spiritual pain). Therefore, I could finally leave (for the third time) this devastated country and build a present and a future for myself somewhere else. Well, not really: I just couldn't leave my mother alone all of a sudden! I decided to stay a few more months so that she could deal with the loss more easily, and also to assist her with the burden of the bureaucratic matters. But then another thought came: I'd be far away just when she would need me most, that is, during the last part of her life. That will be hard for both, although she can't wait to see me begin to live again and will support any decision I'll take. I told myself: OK, for once, don't make the game you want, but the game that people want! As unlikely as it can be - who knows - maybe this time around you'll achieve a significant commercial success and be able to stay. Well aware of how nearly impossible that is, especially with an indie game of my kind, still I had a few months to give it a try: so, I (sadly) put aside my classic Amiga and C64 projects and started Blastaway. And not just that: to obtain the maximum visibility, as mentioned already, I also started keeping a frequently updated devlog, releasing pictures, videos, and builds, using the variety of channels listed above (plus Facebook, which I have recently gotten rid of due to personal data abuse). All that promotional activity requires a lot of work, which I honestly don't enjoy and I'd rather dedicate to the game itself. Finally, I never said that the game would be commercial: I haven't taken a decision yet, and actually one of the options was - and still is - that the game remains free, to really reach as many gamers as possible (in that case, what I'd earn is publicity, sales of my other games, and a chance to be noticed by some important player in the game industry).

Did I succeed? The answer is a big fat NO. In 64 days, Blastway had only 334 views and 60 downloads (and that's including multiple visits and downloads by who is somewhat interested in the game). There's only one word for this: failure.
I know it's going to be unpleasant to hear, but since I'm being 100% honest, I can't hide that such failure is the reason why the idea of making an AmigaOS 4 port came: I thought that I could get support from a small community that knows me already and that wants new software. By "support" I don't mean "sales", because, as said, the game might stay free and because the community is too small anyway, but the community might help a lot with spreading the word and attracting people outside of it, and also provide ideas regarding how to promote the game and reach others in the rest of the world.
That said, of course, giving the AmigaOS 4 community another game is an additional pleasure for me.

In conclusion: hey, I'm making a new game for AmigaOS 4, are you interested in it and would you help me let the rest of the world know about it? Please let me hear your comments and ideas, both about the game and about how to promote it, and let other people know!

Of course, you don't have to give support, nor must you necessarily like the game. If the game fails to generate enough interest in the community, I'll just acknowledge it and drop the AmigaOS 4 version.
Anyway, I'll do my best to get the game finished: it's something I personally and strongly want, even if nobody ever played it. I don't know how long it will take, and I'm afraid there will be soon major delays as I'll start looking for a job abroad at the beginning of August, but I really want to get it done (just like it happened to Huenison: I had started it when I was in Italy, then moved abroad three months later, and eventually finished and released it).

Finally, a few notes:
* I chose AmigaOS 4 because, quite simply, that's the only NG system I've ever had;
* please don't ask for ports to other systems: I can't take that burden (supporting two platforms is already demanding, and with BOH I've learned that increasing the number of supported systems beyond two is insane);
* please don't offer to make ports for other systems: also that, for several reasons, takes time and energies;
* please don't be offended if I don't answer to requests/observations about ports: I can't afford to get involved in conversations about something that isn't going to happen anyway;
* if you have a non-IT job for me in a Nordic country, please let me know!

Last edited by saimo on 18-Nov-2019 at 10:13 AM.
Last edited by saimo on 12-Nov-2019 at 05:31 PM.
Last edited by saimo on 10-Oct-2019 at 12:59 PM.
Last edited by saimo on 22-Jul-2019 at 09:31 AM.

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eliyahu 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 13:05:33
#2 ]
Super Member
Joined: 3-Mar-2010
Posts: 1957
From: Waterbury, Connecticut (USA)

@saimo

your games are far and away the most enjoyable i have on my amigas, and an excellent example of some of the creativity that is unique to our little community. BOH and huenison are completely addictive, so i'll certainly give blastaway a go. i'm sorry to hear of your difficulties and wish you much success. i'm already following you on twitter and will keep an eye out for promoting the game as it progresses.

good luck!

-- eliyahu

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 13:21:42
#3 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@eliyahu

Thanks for the nice words :)
I hope you'll find Blastaway just as enjoyable!

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Debaser 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 13:37:32
#4 ]
Regular Member
Joined: 25-Mar-2003
Posts: 192
From: Syracuse, NY

@saimo

You have my support for Blastaway for OS4. 'Watched video and dig the sound effects, they remind me of a few other retro games such as Dark Castle :) donno. Anyhow I will plunk my cash down for the game. Hope things get better for you soon too btw.

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 15:31:53
#5 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@Debaser

Thank you!
It's too early to talk about cash: for the moment being, if you want, just freely enjoy the game

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klx300r 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 17:53:08
#6 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 4-Mar-2008
Posts: 3833
From: Toronto, Canada

@saimo

what a great surprise Simone !!!

a BIG YES please count me in even for a phyical release as well if that happens...as you know already I'm sorry to hear about your recent struggles but keep strong and keep doing what you love and supporting your mother as much as you can

to all fellow my fellow amigans please consider donating anything you can afford to Simone's Patreon page:

https://www.patreon.com/RETREAM/overview


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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 22-Jul-2019 18:51:11
#7 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@klx300r

I'm deeply grateful to you for your neverending enthusiasm and support :)

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 14:35:59
#8 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

A less traumatic start: previously, the entrance was such that the player had to enter the arena very carefully, a enemies might hide behind the arch, and only their shadows could be seen behind the entrance bars. I decided that it was a little unfair, so I have redesigned everything.
The "only" other notable change here is that the AmigaOS 4 version gets hardware-accelerated scaling. Before, the old AmigaOnes like mine (AmigaOne XE G4 @ 1 GHz + Radeon 9000) had a very hard time coping with zoom factors from 3x and above (e.g. at 4x the frame rate dropped to about 16 fps), but now the game runs constantly at full speed, no matter the zoom factor! (The second part of the video shows precisely this.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij_pGJpaNkY

CHANGELOG
* Redesigned entrance so that enemies behind it can be seen.
* Added (experimental) hardware-accelerated scaling to AmigaOS version.
* Added an arena.
* Touched up some arenas.
* Improved manual.

Latest build download: https://www.retream.com/Blastaway

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eliyahu 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 14:43:33
#9 ]
Super Member
Joined: 3-Mar-2010
Posts: 1957
From: Waterbury, Connecticut (USA)

@saimo

Thanks for improving the entrance, it's much better this way. Also, is the transparency new? I hadn't noticed this before, and it makes the arenas much easier since I can see the enemies wherever they may be.

Please do consider making this game commercial if it's not too much trouble. This is a nice time-killer, and I'd certainly purchase it.

-- eliyahu

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Trixie 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 14:48:19
#10 ]
Amiga Developer Team
Joined: 1-Sep-2003
Posts: 2089
From: Czech Republic

@eliyahu

Quote:
Please do consider making this game commercial if it's not too much trouble.

+1.

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Hypex 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 15:02:28
#11 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 6-May-2007
Posts: 11180
From: Greensborough, Australia

@saimo

Thank you for producing your game even when you aren't under the best circumstances.

I've had a few goes and once I got the hang of it I found it to be a good game. The evil looking Sonics and monster dinos are amusing . Well that's what they looked like to me.

When I first played I was lost as I couldn't find the fire button. I pressed Ctrl, Alt, Amiga, shift but didn't know it was X until I remapped the keys. I see a manual is now included which marks the X.

You've addressed an issue I had where the view was obfuscated by the entrance. I must have walked into an alien three times in a row. However the floor tiles do confuse me. I'm not quite sure where I can fly as I try to go between two walls but get stuck. Then have to drop down a bit. But then I find I can only see half the sprite. Just takes getting used too.

I tested the game on my X1000. It could be a teething issue but the scroller on the title screen is sluggish. I haved an R7 250 card. Guess it misses out on compostiting somehow. Other SDL based games were fine. The game itself runs fine though.

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 15:15:45
#12 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@eliyahu

Quote:
Thanks for improving the entrance, it's much better this way.

Glad you like it :)

Quote:
Also, is the transparency new? I hadn't noticed this before, and it makes the arenas much easier since I can see the enemies wherever they may be.

No, it isn't: it's just the X-ray vision bonus (the orb marked with an X), which is the most rare along with the soldier bonus (i.e. extra life, S orb).

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 15:16:22
#13 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@eliyahu @Trixie

Quote:

Trixie wrote:
@eliyahu

Quote:
Please do consider making this game commercial if it's not too much trouble.

+1.

Thanks for letting me know. It's something I'll decide along the way. Anyway, commercial or not, the effort I'll put into it won't change

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 15:46:16
#14 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@Hypex

Quote:
Thank you for producing your game even when you aren't under the best circumstances.

I just can't escape the urge of making games...

Quote:
I've had a few goes and once I got the hang of it I found it to be a good game.

Thanks!

Quote:
The evil looking Sonics and monster dinos are amusing . Well that's what they looked like to me.

I didn't think of the wolves as evil Sonics, but you're spot on and now I can't unsee that
The dinos will change: they turned out to be kind of super-deformed, giving them a funny look. Redrawing them entirely is in my to-do list.

BTW, the mosters derive from those found in Wizard of Wor (type: Wizard of Wor name -> Blastaway name):
* wolf: Burwor -> Akrwor
* dino: Garwor -> Baqwor
* scorpion: Thorwor -> Czywor
* insect: Worluk -> Dmewor
* wizard: Wizard of Wor -> Exxwor

I might add more enemies in the other stages.

Quote:
When I first played I was lost as I couldn't find the fire button. I pressed Ctrl, Alt, Amiga, shift but didn't know it was X until I remapped the keys. I see a manual is now included which marks the X.

I personally like small keys, as they're lighter to press (and thus easier to the player), but I could change the default to a more standard key... but which is it? is there one at all? Maybe I'd better go for the same solution I used for the menu: SHIFTs, CTRLs, SPACE, TAB, ENTER, RETURN - all of them at the same time! Hmm... tempting! And I'm actually tempted to remove the reconfiguration option (but I guess I won't, not to annoy the WASD lovers).

Quote:
You've addressed an issue I had where the view was obfuscated by the entrance. I must have walked into an alien three times in a row.

Yeah, that could happen. One had to first check if any shadow showed through the bars. It was part of the only real peculiarity I included in the game: the fact that sprites can move behind vertical elements (like walls). But now I've decided to eliminate that initial obstacle.

Quote:
However the floor tiles do confuse me. I'm not quite sure where I can fly as I try to go between two walls but get stuck. Then have to drop down a bit. But then I find I can only see half the sprite. Just takes getting used too.

Yep. Most games with a similar perspective (e.g. The Chaos Engine) don't allow to go behind the vertical elements at all, so I decided to make that the only peculiar gameplay feature of the game. It requires the player to come to grips with the odd perspective and to pay close attention to what moves behind those walls.
Hint: don't look at the floor or at the walls, but at the tops! The soldier can go wherever no top shows (except for the graphics in the upper layer, which, for the moment being, consist of just the arches).

Quote:
I tested the game on my X1000. It could be a teething issue but the scroller on the title screen is sluggish. I haved an R7 250 card. Guess it misses out on compostiting somehow. Other SDL based games were fine. The game itself runs fine though.

The scroller moves at 1 pixel per frame, so the first letter will take 320 frames = 6.4 seconds to reach the left border. Maybe it's just a perception of yours, not a technical issue.
Also, the new version I have just uploaded precisely uses compositing (i.e. CompositeTags()), so, unless I'm doing something wrong, the video refresh should be 100% smooth (it is on my aging AmigaOne).

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Yssing 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 23-Jul-2019 23:03:05
#15 ]
Super Member
Joined: 24-Apr-2003
Posts: 1084
From: Unknown

@saimo

It looks fun, I would buy it.

Quote:
if you have a non-IT job for me in a Nordic country, please let me know!

So what kind of job are you looking for?
I don't have anything on hand, but I wont mind looking for something for you!

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cha05e90 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 24-Jul-2019 10:31:39
#16 ]
Super Member
Joined: 18-Apr-2009
Posts: 1275
From: Germany

@saimo

Quote:
* if you have a non-IT job for me in a Nordic country, please let me know!

I don't know whether the northern part of Germany is "nordic" enough for you (temperature is at 34°C atm ) but we mostly have IT(-centric) and developer jobs we're desperately trying to hire people for...

Back on topic: Looks really nice - partly reminds me of a 2,5D version of QIII Arena...

Last edited by cha05e90 on 24-Jul-2019 at 10:34 AM.

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 24-Jul-2019 13:35:02
#17 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@Yssing

Quote:
It looks fun, I would buy it.

Thanks.

Quote:
Quote:
if you have a non-IT job for me in a Nordic country, please let me know!

So what kind of job are you looking for?
I don't have anything on hand, but I wont mind looking for something for you!

Oh, no, I can't ask you (or anybody else) to do the job-hunting for me. I just meant that if anyone already had / knew of a job opportunity, I'd have liked to hear about it.
But thanks a lot anyway

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 24-Jul-2019 13:37:23
#18 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

@cha05e90

Quote:
I don't know whether the northern part of Germany is "nordic" enough for you (temperature is at 34°C atm )

Too hot

Quote:
but we mostly have IT(-centric) and developer jobs we're desperately trying to hire people for...

No, sorry, I can't take that. But thanks nonetheless!

Quote:
Back on topic: Looks really nice - partly reminds me of a 2,5D version of QIII Arena...

Glad you like it
I have no idea of how QIII Arena looks like, but if that's what reminds you... good! Maybe it's one more selling point

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saimo 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 28-Jul-2019 14:59:48
#19 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 11-Mar-2003
Posts: 2450
From: Unknown

More noise! Arenas feature now some blocks that can be destroyed by shooting at them: at first, that might seem useful to wander around more easily, but, on second thought, that also makes life easier to wors! In fact, they can destroy the blocks, too...
(Note: in the future, the blast marks on the ground might: a) stay as they are; b) go; c) be extended to affect also the vertical elements like walls. Option c) is the most unlikely.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Suv1vGPjxUs

CHANGELOG
* Added destroyable blocks.
* Assigned [SPACE], [ENTER], [RETURN], [CONTROL], [SHIFT], [TAB] the shooting function.
* Touched up graphics.
* Added one arena.
* Updated/improved manual.
* Made other internal improvements/bugfixes.

Latest build download: https://www.retream.com/Blastaway

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Hypex 
Re: Blastaway, a new game for AmigaOS 4 (?)
Posted on 28-Jul-2019 16:43:59
#20 ]
Elite Member
Joined: 6-May-2007
Posts: 11180
From: Greensborough, Australia

@saimo

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I just can't escape the urge of making games...


Escape is good.

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Thanks!




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I didn't think of the wolves as evil Sonics, but you're spot on and now I can't unsee that


LOL. Sorry. Oh is that what they are?

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The dinos will change: they turned out to be kind of super-deformed, giving them a funny look. Redrawing them entirely is in my to-do list.


At least I guessed that one. They have a character all of their own.

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BTW, the mosters derive from those found in Wizard of Wor (type: Wizard of Wor name -> Blastaway name):


I haven't played much of Wizard of Wor that I recall (the original WoW) but I did notice a pattern. I'm not sure the names form proper English words. They tend to look Polish.

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I personally like small keys, as they're lighter to press (and thus easier to the player), but I could change the default to a more standard key... but which is it? is there one at all?


I've seen Ctrl used a bit. Small key is a fair point. I didn't really care as long as I knew. I didn't know the first time and I didn't figure it out! Must have died three times trying to figure it out.

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Maybe I'd better go for the same solution I used for the menu: SHIFTs, CTRLs, SPACE, TAB, ENTER, RETURN - all of them at the same time! Hmm... tempting! And I'm actually tempted to remove the reconfiguration option (but I guess I won't, not to annoy the WASD lovers).


Sounds like a bunch of WASDs. The only thing that annoyed me is that I went to the reconfiguration menu to see what keys were assigned. And I couldn't view the current map. I had to redefine it to see what it was.

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Yeah, that could happen. One had to first check if any shadow showed through the bars. It was part of the only real peculiarity I included in the game: the fact that sprites can move behind vertical elements (like walls). But now I've decided to eliminate that initial obstacle.


Also dropping down the bars so the player was trapped in the game field. Funny. I suppose his team members would be in danger had it not.

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Yep. Most games with a similar perspective (e.g. The Chaos Engine) don't allow to go behind the vertical elements at all, so I decided to make that the only peculiar gameplay feature of the game. It requires the player to come to grips with the odd perspective and to pay close attention to what moves behind those walls.


From another look I could see it is all a matter of perspective. It's kind of a top down look with front walls below. I was confusing the walls for a floor. Takes a while to get used too.

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The scroller moves at 1 pixel per frame, so the first letter will take 320 frames = 6.4 seconds to reach the left border. Maybe it's just a perception of yours, not a technical issue.


I've not had trouble percepting things before like this. It's not exactly like an A1200 either where you can use hardware scrolling wth certain timing. I am wondering if you use a vertical blank? Just checking my screen modes and some are 60Hz where as others differ if that is affecting it. Either way 1 pixel at any refresh should look smooth without rendering lag.

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