It makes me sad when one of the people that I used to love to watch just looses it.
For quite a while now, I've been a fan of Jason "LordKat" Pullara. He can be quite funny, and I loved to watch most of his shows quite a while ago for the humor and effort he put into them. It was enjoyable, and you could tell that he actually cared about his audience. For the last six months however, something's changed.
It started back when he cancelled his Until We Win series. The last episode is well worth watching, because this is the general feeling I've gotten from most of his productions since. It's a man who doesn't care, trying to get this done as quickly as possible. At least, that's how it's been until this article.
The article is nothing but a number of cheap shots at the community, fulled by his own frustration over the lack of understanding of the bill by the community. I understand his position, and I do side with his arguments on two fronts:
1. The copywrite holders have the final say on all of their copywrited works. That's the law.
2. The streaming video or LP of a game is definite copywrite infringement.
However, he goes about pushing his arguments through by belittling the community, calling them idiots and such. The actual content of the article, while containing some valuable information, is complete garbage. It's the slavering rantings of a deranged madman.
The trip downhill for this former net-celeb has been grinding down for a long time, and I hate to say it, I think I'm glad to finally see it hit rock bottom. He needs to take control of his site, and stop relying on the community to populate it with articles, or just give up and admit defeat. I, for one, am declaring him dead to me, and I urge the rest of you to do the same.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Game Development - Tokenizer
Recently, I've started studying a bit about a very specific and somewhat nightmarish method of programming: Tokenizers
What is a tokenizer?
A Tokenizer is a piece of code that serches through a text document or data stream for different pre-set "tokens" and modifies the program as it reads. If it does not recieve a specific token, that part of the object is then set to a value standing for unused(In my case, 0).
So, Why bother?
Here's the interesting thing about tokenizers: They make your game infinitly moddable. Take dwarf fortress for example; everything in the game, from the material the earth is made up out of, to the structure and types of creatures, to even what foods and goods can be produced, are built from a token based system. This means that the end user can add and tinker with the game as they please, adding much more replayability to what may stagnate quickly.
I also want to build a tokenizer system for ease of content creation. I havent decided yet to waht extent the end user will be able to influence the world through token modification(There will be some things, such as overland geography, that will be locked out.)
Yeah, that's all well and good. Aren't you making a browser game though?
This is what really excites me about a tokenizer system. With the correct group of data tags, I can just import all the game data in from external, easy to mod sources. The framework is the only piece of the puzzle that will be time consuming, and once it's up and proven then the basic frame can be used in any number of projects.
It basically allows me to go from a full hard coded source to a engine, which is really exciting for reusability.
So... how would it work?
The basic idea is that you have a script(Probably in a flash file) that is retrieving a constant data stream from a server location. All of that information is just placed in a properly formated XML file, for example. The script goes through each character of the stream, looking for start and stop characters(eg. [ and ]).
Once the script has found a start character, it stores all the values between it and the stop character in a temporary string, which is then compared to all of the tolkens in the program. Once it finds the tolken it's looking for, it empties all of the information between the tags into a data appropriate container. It does this with all the information on the file in the preloading sequence.
Occasionally, the program will also update these tolkens and refresh the values stored in the engine, lets say once a hour.
(I have some more to add, but I'll do it later. Please pester me if I forget.)
What is a tokenizer?
A Tokenizer is a piece of code that serches through a text document or data stream for different pre-set "tokens" and modifies the program as it reads. If it does not recieve a specific token, that part of the object is then set to a value standing for unused(In my case, 0).
So, Why bother?
Here's the interesting thing about tokenizers: They make your game infinitly moddable. Take dwarf fortress for example; everything in the game, from the material the earth is made up out of, to the structure and types of creatures, to even what foods and goods can be produced, are built from a token based system. This means that the end user can add and tinker with the game as they please, adding much more replayability to what may stagnate quickly.
I also want to build a tokenizer system for ease of content creation. I havent decided yet to waht extent the end user will be able to influence the world through token modification(There will be some things, such as overland geography, that will be locked out.)
Yeah, that's all well and good. Aren't you making a browser game though?
This is what really excites me about a tokenizer system. With the correct group of data tags, I can just import all the game data in from external, easy to mod sources. The framework is the only piece of the puzzle that will be time consuming, and once it's up and proven then the basic frame can be used in any number of projects.
It basically allows me to go from a full hard coded source to a engine, which is really exciting for reusability.
So... how would it work?
The basic idea is that you have a script(Probably in a flash file) that is retrieving a constant data stream from a server location. All of that information is just placed in a properly formated XML file, for example. The script goes through each character of the stream, looking for start and stop characters(eg. [ and ]).
Once the script has found a start character, it stores all the values between it and the stop character in a temporary string, which is then compared to all of the tolkens in the program. Once it finds the tolken it's looking for, it empties all of the information between the tags into a data appropriate container. It does this with all the information on the file in the preloading sequence.
Occasionally, the program will also update these tolkens and refresh the values stored in the engine, lets say once a hour.
(I have some more to add, but I'll do it later. Please pester me if I forget.)
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Pockie Ninja - Basics - Simple Leveling Tips
Pockie Ninja, like many other browser based games of the type, is a grind fest. There are few easy ways to earn XP, and those that you have are either dangerous, expensive, or both. I thought I'd write a simple guide to help people along who struggle with the low levels.
#1. Complete your quests
It's a simple truth of all games like this that quests give amssivly out of proportion floods of xp, versus what one would normally get from grinding. When you have a quest avalible, do it.
#2. Save those gift cupons
There are many things that one can spend gift cupons on, but the one thing that I seem to find gives the most bang is HP/Chakra carier bags. It works in Los Noches, which saves a tonne of trouble, and it means that you can easily join groups of players with far faster computers for Slots, which seems to give a large proportion of good equipment rewards.
#3. Get apprentices
A junior player with two apprentices can net over 8000 xp a day without even playing, and one who maximises thier availible apprentices can walk away with a extra 10,000 Xp. Something simple to think about.
#4. Use xp maks and fresh beer
Fresh beer(+1.25% xp) and xp marks(varies) are a essential to any slots group or monster grind. It dosen't seem like much at first, but the extra 100 or so xp per battle really adds up in the end.
#5. Level and equip your pet.
High skilled pets can be the difference between life and death in some matches, so make sure you have one with at least one attack skill equipped. I run a potato normally with suppression(stun + attack) and block on, and it has saved my butt more times then I can count. Higher skill = tougher monsters, more xp.
#6. ALWAYS do Los Noches.
Los Noches is simply pure xp. You don't get bonuses, but it also dosen't take movement power, and seems to be able to generate 1/10th of what you need to level up each day. It's worth it. Note: XP marks do not work in Los Noches.
#7. Always do Valhala
Even if you have to run the intro course, always do val. The items, xp and stones make it one of the best areas in the game to farm, and you will never, ever regret doing a instance.
#8. Run slots at least once a day
It's a silly thing and the xp is not worth it, but there are great rewards hidden...
#1. Complete your quests
It's a simple truth of all games like this that quests give amssivly out of proportion floods of xp, versus what one would normally get from grinding. When you have a quest avalible, do it.
#2. Save those gift cupons
There are many things that one can spend gift cupons on, but the one thing that I seem to find gives the most bang is HP/Chakra carier bags. It works in Los Noches, which saves a tonne of trouble, and it means that you can easily join groups of players with far faster computers for Slots, which seems to give a large proportion of good equipment rewards.
#3. Get apprentices
A junior player with two apprentices can net over 8000 xp a day without even playing, and one who maximises thier availible apprentices can walk away with a extra 10,000 Xp. Something simple to think about.
#4. Use xp maks and fresh beer
Fresh beer(+1.25% xp) and xp marks(varies) are a essential to any slots group or monster grind. It dosen't seem like much at first, but the extra 100 or so xp per battle really adds up in the end.
#5. Level and equip your pet.
High skilled pets can be the difference between life and death in some matches, so make sure you have one with at least one attack skill equipped. I run a potato normally with suppression(stun + attack) and block on, and it has saved my butt more times then I can count. Higher skill = tougher monsters, more xp.
#6. ALWAYS do Los Noches.
Los Noches is simply pure xp. You don't get bonuses, but it also dosen't take movement power, and seems to be able to generate 1/10th of what you need to level up each day. It's worth it. Note: XP marks do not work in Los Noches.
#7. Always do Valhala
Even if you have to run the intro course, always do val. The items, xp and stones make it one of the best areas in the game to farm, and you will never, ever regret doing a instance.
#8. Run slots at least once a day
It's a silly thing and the xp is not worth it, but there are great rewards hidden...
Pockie Ninja - Basics - Synthesizing
I thought I'd whip up a quick article about synthesizing, as this seems to be a question asked over and over on the game chat system.
Synthesizing in Pockie Ninja all goes about with the item value. Each item has it's own value rating, on a scale of 1 to 70. To understand the pure basics, this is a good general rule-
Tier 1(Grey suits and items) + 30 + 30 = Tier 2(Blue suit/item)
Tier 2(blue suits and 2 enchantment items) + 30 + 40 = Tier 3(orange suit/item)
Alright, that seems pretty simple... what's all this about 2s, 3s, 4s then?
#s is just a simple abreviation for the number of enchantments a item has. For example, if you have a sword that gives + 20 agility and +2% speed, it's a 2s sword.
So what about 2s and 3s recipies?
I... don't really like using enhanced equipment by it's enchantment rating. The synth rating is a much more even gague of what you're going to get.
Alright, I have a tier 2 suit, but it's not the one I want. What do I do?
Simple. If you synth a blue, orange or grey suit with 2 1s items as catalysts you will get a item of the same tier 100% of the time.
Synthesizing in Pockie Ninja all goes about with the item value. Each item has it's own value rating, on a scale of 1 to 70. To understand the pure basics, this is a good general rule-
Tier 1(Grey suits and items) + 30 + 30 = Tier 2(Blue suit/item)
Tier 2(blue suits and 2 enchantment items) + 30 + 40 = Tier 3(orange suit/item)
Alright, that seems pretty simple... what's all this about 2s, 3s, 4s then?
#s is just a simple abreviation for the number of enchantments a item has. For example, if you have a sword that gives + 20 agility and +2% speed, it's a 2s sword.
So what about 2s and 3s recipies?
I... don't really like using enhanced equipment by it's enchantment rating. The synth rating is a much more even gague of what you're going to get.
Alright, I have a tier 2 suit, but it's not the one I want. What do I do?
Simple. If you synth a blue, orange or grey suit with 2 1s items as catalysts you will get a item of the same tier 100% of the time.
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