In the previous post I described how I learned about the cube/sphere geometry so that I could put a square grid on a sphere. I ended up spending too much time on that, because it turns out the mapping from cube to sphere wasn't as useful as I had thought. This happens to me sometimes, where I find something fascinating, spend a lot of time on it, and it turns out to be not that important.
As the final step in learning how to work with square tiles on a sphere, I wanted to make something on the sphere. I decided to make a dungeon map.
Dungeon map on a sphere
Despite my interest in procedural generation, I've never made a dungeon map before. I wasn't sure how hard it would be to work with the cube/sphere geometry so I decided to keep the dungeon part of it simple. I started out making a dungeon on a single square face of the cube, and was hoping I could easily extend it to work on the entire cube. It worked out but not without some missteps. I think geometric dungeon-making techniques like binary space partitioning may be more difficult in the cube/sphere map than graph-based techniques like Delaunay triangulation or graph grammars, but it's hard to know until someone tries them.
extending a square grid to a sphere is not too hard, as long as the player is mostly looking at the grid and not the sphere
the 8 corners of the cube are problematic, and it's easiest if you can have the player avoid them
some algorithms will extend to the cube/sphere much more easily than others
sometimes instead of modifying an algorithm to work on the cube/sphere, it's easier to have an algorithm pretend it's on a flat surface and then "fold" the coordinates onto the next side of the cube
I think that's it for this little exploration. It was fun and I learned a lot but I'm ready to move on to another project.
Rules allow Mind Sports South Africa's (MSSA) inter-club ladder to be played on Regional, Provincial, and National levels for all categories.
Thus a club like Northcliff High School, could theoretically become the City of Johannesburg, Gauteng and SA National ladder champions for both schools and senior ladders.
Of course that would require a number of games to be played, but who would shy away from playing games?
Teams entering the ladder may pick-and-choose who they want to challenge. In theory a team could go from being unranked to being the top ranked team.
The ladder is thus be a great deal of fun, and will, no doubt, help teams prepare for LAN championships and National Team Trials. In turn, teams will be further prepared for the international circuit.
The rules are:
INTER-CLUB LADDER
All affiliated clubs shall be invited to participate.
Initially teams shall be listed in order of ranking.
Inter-club tests may be held in each period.
Inter-club test matches may be held on Regional, Provincial, and/or National Championship levels for schools, university, and/or open as well as for the categories as per LAN championships.
If held on a Regional level, then such Regional Director shall be responsible for the notation of challenges, the collation of results, the write-ups of results, and the lodging of dates on MSSA's Calendar.
If held on a Provincial level, then such Provincial Director shall be responsible for the notation of challenges, the collation of results, the write-ups of results, and the lodging of dates on MSSA's Calendar.
If held on a National level, then such Gaming Representative shall be responsible for the notation of challenges, the collation of results, the write-ups of results, and the lodging of dates on MSSA's Calendar.
All teams shall only consist of Registered Players.
Clubs may enter any number ofteams.
Results shall be submittedto the Management Board before 9H00 the day after the test was held.
Any team may challenge any other team in the same ladder.
The Chairman of the relevant BOC must be copied in on all challenges.
The challenged team has five (5) working days (for esports), and twenty-one (21) working days for board gaming and figure gaming, to respond and play the match.
A team that is challenged as per the above rules that does not play the game within five (5) working days (for esports) and twenty-one (21) working days for board gaming and figure gaming, automatically defaults and counts as having lost the match.
A team challenged during any official MSSA event while both teams are participating in such event, and are paired by the umpire to play against each other, must play such challenge.
The winning team takes the place of the losing team, if the losing team is listed higher.
It the winning team is listed higher, the winning team remains in its current position.
If the losing team is listed higher than the winning team, the losing team drops one position on the listing.
The highest listed team, per period, at the end of the SA National Championships is given the title of SA LADDER Champions.
All results must be submitted to mindsportscorrespondence@gmail.com
For this month's interview we sat down with Alex Gleason, creator and developer of Vegan on a Desert Island, an upcoming libre action/puzzle RPG. The game follows the story of Rachel, a vegan girl who shipwrecks on an island, and becomes embroiled in a quest to uphold her own conflicted values against the interests of the island's many talking animals. A newcomer on the scene, we spoke with Alex on what inspired him to create this project, along with his views on activism, software freedom, game development, and of course, life.
FG: Tell us a bit about yourself and your project to begin with.
Alex: My name is Alex Gleason and I'm making a game called Vegan on a Desert Island (VOADI). It's a puzzle-adventure game with emphasis on art, music, and storytelling. The game is about Rachel's journey, which I modeled after some events in my life involving animal rights activism I organized in real life, including all its conflict and turmoil. It's a linear story meant to be experienced once and leave a lasting impression.
FG: At a first glance, a vegan stranded on a desert island seems like an unusual concept to make a game about. Could you elaborate on how your experience in activism motivated you to create this project?
Alex: In conversations about veganism people often ask if we'd eat animals under dire circumstances, such as being stranded on a desert island. It's a ridiculous question that deserves a ridiculous answer, which is why I decided to develop VOADI.
The true answer is coconuts. In The Real Castaway, a woman in real life was stranded on an island for 9 months and survived entirely off of coconuts. To answer to the deeper question, it's the same question as if you'd be fine eating another human on a desert island. I believe that animals are people and there is fundamentally no difference. It's impossible to know what you'd really do, but it's not a black-and-white situation. It's okay to not have all the answers.
While developing the game I started to feel like a "vegan on a desert island" in a different way. The animal rights organization I founded collapsed on me. They took my home and crushed my dreams. I was the villain in their story and they were the villains in mine. This inspired me to create a more meaningful story in VOADI, reflecting what happened to me.
I redefined the character of Greybeard from being a classic evil-doer to an ambiguous villain. You're never sure whether he's really good or bad. Good vs evil is a false dichotomy that doesn't exist in real life and I wanted to reflect that in VOADI.
FG: Why did you decide to translate this particular experience of yours into a video game?
Alex: Unlike books or movies, video games force you to experience something yourself. I want players to take a step in my shoes for a minute. The downside is that I cannot guarantee they will actually enjoy it. Successful games make people feel happy, but a lot of VOADI is about misery. Some gameplay elements are even intentionally antagonizing to the player. I think this is balanced a bit by CosmicGem's cheery music and Siltocyn's meticulous pixel art. At the very least, I hope players will always be wondering what's coming next.
The game conflates serious ethical topics with ironic humor
FG: What you just mentioned highlights a certain tendency in the video games industry to reward and empower players in a way they will feel good about themselves, which is a bit contradictory to the idea of art as a form of self-expression. Based on that, do you think there's enough interest or room for dissemination for this type of project?
Alex: VOADI is not a game for everyone, but a few people will deeply resonate with it. If that happens I'll consider the project a success.
FG: For such a personal background, so far the game has been presented as having a cheeky and humorous façade, with an ironic twist to it. Could you elaborate on the role of humor and how it has shaped the game so far?
Alex: I think humor itself is antagonistic. It's about subverting expectations, meaning there is a conflict between what your mind expects and what's really there. "Vegan on a desert island" is a ridiculous premise met with a sarcastic answer. The game is funny precisely because it's antagonistic. Part of that antagonism is in the way the game is presented: a cutesy colorful game about talking animals where very serious things happen.
FG: The project itself has been openly publicized as being a Free Software and Creative Commons endeavor. How did you first became familiar with both of these movements and how have they affected the development of VOADI?
Alex: Software freedom is a boycott, much like veganism. There's a lot of overlap between the communities because it's people who understand the concept of sacrificing something for the greater good. I still use copyleft licenses for all my works. It's a deep conviction I'll never change, and you can be sure everything we put out there will free culture approved.
Linux was a groundbreaking discovery because it defied everything I knew about people's incentives to create things. I thought software freedom didn't go far enough. Later I discovered Nina Paley, a copyright abolitionist, and her view that "copying is not theft" really resonated me. She is a personal hero of mine and an inspiration. In some ways I am quite literally following in her footsteps.
In terms of project impact, being Free software helped VOADI garner more widespread support. Daniel Molina is an amazing volunteer who joined the project to advance software freedom for gaming. I've received support from the sidelines as well, with people donating money and others doing small but important tasks like updating wiki pages and mirroring assets. It's pretty incredible how much people will help you without being asked if you put yourself out there and are willing to give back.
FG: Eventually this has taken you to present your project at LibrePlanet last March. How did that come to be?
Alex: I've been a member of the LibrePlanet community for years but never gave a talk. Last March the stars aligned. I didn't intend to give the talk originally, but I felt empowered by the people there. Lightning talks seem like a low-pressure way to showcase something you've been working on, and VOADI was received very well! Lightning talks at LibrePlanet are open to anyone on a first-come-first-serve basis after the conference starts. All you have to do is add your name to a list.
FG: Switching to more technical matters: You have been using the Solarus engine as a main development platform. How did you first hear about it and how has it helped making VOADI a reality?
Alex: Solarus has a map editor GUI making it a great tool for beginners. The Solarus community is vibrant and generous, always eager to help. It was developed by Christopho as a reimplementation of the game engine from Zelda: A Link to the Past, a game I was already very familiar with. I highly suggest Solarus to anyone new to the free gaming scene, looking to create their own games!
I used to love Zelda, especially the Game Boy Color titles. Nintendo is notorious for cease-and-desisting fan created works, which I think is unjust and counterproductive to a healthy society. I struggle to enjoy the games from my childhood because I'm too distracted by the fact that society would punish someone for deriving or extending works that they care deeply about. I see Solarus as a stepping stone towards creating a new ecosystem of free games that can hopefully touch people's hearts in a way that they'll want to extend and remix the game, and they'll be allowed to do so.
FG: VOADI notoriously bases most of its graphics style on a Creative Commons tileset (Zoria), but it also features original additions of its own, as well as original music. How did you go about sourcing an adequate free tileset, along with finding artists to fill in for the remaining necessities of the artwork pipeline?
Alex: Zoria tileset was found on OpenGameArt. I had been trying to make my own tileset, but knew I couldn't match that level of quality on my own.
Later I commissioned our tileset artist, Siltocyn, through an ad I posted on the /r/gameDevClassifieds subreddit. CosmicGem, our chiptune musician, was found through Fiverr. This has worked out really well for VOADI. It's amazing how much you can do with a small amount of money.
In both cases we switched to free platforms (email and Matrix) for communication. Reddit was the most effective at garnering attention for our gigs.
Originally I planned to make all contributors sign a waiver similar to the Apache contributor agreement, transferring their copyright to me. But the freelancers wanted to maintain their privacy (they didn't want to sign their name and address). So instead now there's a policy where all contributors must put the license on the deliverable file itself, or distribute it in a ZIP with the license.
For graphics we created these stamps that say stuff like "Siltocyn CC BY-SA 4.0" in a tiny font in the corner of the files
A glimpse into the development process
FG: When are you planning to release the game, and in which formats will it be released?
Alex: I'm planning for a 2020 release for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. We'll consider more platforms depending on the reception (although anyone will be free to port it if they have the skills).
I'm planning to distribute the game on some proprietary platforms like Steam, Humble Bundle, etc. Those versions will have a price associated with it. I think of it as a "proprietary tax." Users in the free world will play the game gratis.
I'm also planning for a limited physical release on CD, which I'll cobble together at home using LightScribe disks, booklets I print myself, and used jewel cases from eBay. I mostly just want something to hold in my hands.
FG: Any tips for other Free Software or independent developers out there?
Alex:
Put yourself out there.
Good art and music goes a long way.
Start it and don't stop.
FG: Alright, thank you very much for your time Alex.
Alex: Thanks so much for the opportunity!
Vegan on a Desert Island is set to be released in 2020. The project's code is licensed under the GPLv3, and al of the art assets are being released under CC-BY-Sa 4.0. If you would like to contribute to the project you can join development talks at VOADI's Riot channel or check their repository at Gitlab. You can also donate via the project's Patreon or Liberapay.
All of the images on this article are courtesy of Vegan on a Desert Island, released under CC-BY-SA 4.0.
As we probably are aware that Forza Horizon 4 is out now for the individuals who pre-ordered the upgraded version of the game, and it'll be out in full for everybody on PC and Xbox one week from now. So in this Forza Horizon 4 control, we'll be strolling you through the entire rundown of fundamental tips and tricks which you have to know going into the game. What's more, let me disclose to you Forza Horizon 4 is right now the best open world racer game made in these couple of years.
Forza Horizon 4 Tips & Tricks : How to Unlock Fast Travel Anywhere in Forza Horizon 4.
Driving anyplace in Forza Horizon 4 is gigantic measures of fun as you get the chance to see the excellent open world, incredible taking care of and lovely autos, at times you simply need to get some place in a moment, deserting all the mission that is going on. Ideal from the beginning of the game you can quickly make a trip to occasions and different spots of intrigue you've found for a cost (except if you've discovered the majority of the quick travel sheets, at that point it's free), yet to quick travel totally anyplace, you have got some work to do.
Picture of location of Fairlawn Manor
With the end goal to open the capacity to movement quick anyplace in Forza Horizon 4, you have to buy a reasonably costly home that is toward the south of Edinburgh. Fairlawn Manor will cost you like 2,000,000 credits, which means you most likely wouldn't get it until you've made a not too bad scratch into the game. Yet at the same time it merits doing , as it empowers you to movement quick completely anyplace on the guide, or, in other words. Particularly once you've discovered all the quick travel sheets so it turns out to be allowed to utilize. Purchasing Fairlawn Manor additionally grants you with 10 Super Wheelspins, or, in other words, and a Silver Top Hat for the individuals who get a kick out of the chance to dress their symbol up in style.
How to Download DLC Cars in Forza Horizon 4.
In the event that you've acquired a unique release of Forza Horizon 4, or on the off chance that you claim the auto go for game, at that point you may consider how to get your hands on a portion of those superb elite DLC vehicles, similar to the James Bond autos. To get to a rundown of DLC autos in Forza Horizon 4, you'll right off the bat need to make a beeline for either the primary Festival Site amidst the guide, or a House.
With the end goal to buy the autos, first you need a houses and they are not difficult to establish, you simply need to continue seeking them on maps while driving around, and once you've discovered a House, you'll at that point have the capacity to buy it utilizing CR (despite the fact that they're normally entirely costly, which means you presumably wouldn't purchase until you've made an OK gouge into the game.). Either visit the Festival Site in Forza Horizon 4, or visit a house you've acquired, and you'll have the capacity to see a rundown of all the accessible DLC autos that you can download.
There's one thing you have to remember that while the vast majority of the DLC autos in Forza Horizon 4 are accessible for nothing once you've acquired their comparing development packs, some will cost you CR to get. These are typically the more first class autos, similar to the James Bond Aston Martin DB10, in which case you'll need to get out on the streets and procure some CR through races and different occasions. This may be the finish of our initial Forza Horizon 4 guide for the time being, however there's bounty more to cover on the game presently. We'll be refreshing this guide at a later date, when we reveal any extra subtle elements in the game.
Till then keep sharing and tell your friends too, to "ENTER THE PRO-BROS ARENA"
Today, Oceanhorn is being released on Nintendo Switch!
Nintendo Switch is an amazing video game console and when I first got my hands on it, I immediately fell in love with it. The ability to go from portable mode to TV works flawlessly, and it all comes down to the genius design of the console. Nintendo has nailed the screen size of the device, to diminish the disparity between the modes – making sure the same game works perfectly on both modes. We investigated a lot of this when we ported a portable game (iPhone, iPad) to the big screen for PC and consoles and it is not as simple as it sounds. People have different expectations when it comes to big screen titles.
Oceanhorn on Switch is probably the most definite version of the game. The game is based on the remastered PC version of Oceanhorn and you can play it in both portable and TV mode. The game runs beautifully 60 fps / 1080p in docked mode and equally impressively 60 fps / 720p in portable mode. The game includes an amazing soundtrack from the industry legends Nobuo Uematsu and Kenji Ito, and our own brilliant composer Kalle Ylitalo. Voice talents range from Ray Chase (Final Fantasy XV, Noctis) and Kevan Brighting (Stanley Parable, Narrator) to Fryda Wolf (Mass Effect Andromeda, Sara Ryder). We could not be more excited to give Nintendo fans a chance to enter the world of Oceanhorn.
Oceanhorn on Switch is probably the most definite version of the game.
From the personal perspective of a small indie developer, this moment feels historical. Like many others, I grew up with Nintendo consoles and games, and this Kyoto-based company will always have a special place in my heart. Nintendo has played a crucial part in the history of video games ever since the dawn of home consoles, and they keep setting the standard for video game entertainment from one decade to another.
From this love and admiration, comes my driving force to cherish the experiences I had in my childhood. I got into making video games, because of the ever-inspiring experiences such as Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana, and Zelda.
Oceanhorn is a game for the Nintendo fans, because it was made by a bunch of them. We are well aware that it is a smaller title and a different title from many of the console experiences that inspired it – but I truly believe that we were able to capture some of the essence of the classics in this game, as well as establish Oceanhorn as a franchise of its own.
Hey, welcome back, it's Super Adventures 9th birthday etc. But never mind that, I've got TERRIBLE NEWS for you. Some quirk of Blogger has retroactively screwed up all my damn 256 colour images, removing shades and leaving them more dithered than they should be.
It only ruined little bits of them, only a few of the colours, but ideally you want your screenshots to be 0% ruined.
So I've got GOOD NEWS for you: mecha-neko wrote a thing and I did a thing and over Christmas we replaced something like 14,000 images over 1000 posts. So now the site is entirely fixed... or mostly broken, or somewhere in between. Why not click a few old posts and find out! I mean after reading this one.
Developer:
Nintendo
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Release Date:
1997 (1996 in Japan + US)
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Systems:
N64, DS, iQue Player
This week on Super Adventures, it's Super Mario 64!
It's a game that needs no introduction, so instead I'll start off by talking about how much I hate 3D platformers. Actually I don't hate them,as long as they keep their distance and don't bother me, but they've never been my genre. I like 2D platformers, I like games where you wander around in 3D, but somehow when you combine the two I lose interest. Maybe it's because I don't like slipping off narrow platforms and misjudging depth.
Actually I will give the game a bit of an introduction, because I like trivia. Super Mario 64 was designed by pioneering Nintendo game genius Shigeru Miyamoto, who's been making Marios since the first Donkey Kong arcade cabinet. He'd already set the template for the 2D platformer genre with Super Mario Bros.so they were hoping he could pull off the same trick in 3D. And he did... though he took a few months longer than planned. Unfortunately Mario 64 was meant to be the big launch title that got people buying the Nintendo 64, so they had to delay the console for months as well. They probably made the right choice though, as the PlayStation and Saturn were well established even before the delay and the N64 needed to show off some actual magic to lure people over to a cartridge-based machine without videos, voices or CD music.
Personally I love the N64 and I've got a lot of nostalgia for it, but Mario 64 not so much. I've maybe played the game twice and the furthest I've gotten is the stone slab boss that falls on you. But some people seem to like it, and it's "acclaimed as one of the greatest video games of all time", so I'm going to give it another few hours to win me over.
Out of all the privacy-focused products and apps available on the market, Brave has been voted the best. Other winners of Product Hunt's Golden Kitty awards showed that there was a huge interest in privacy-enhancing products and apps such as chats, maps, and other collaboration tools.
An extremely productive year for Brave
Last year has been a pivotal one for the crypto industry, but few companies managed to see the kind of success Brave did. Almost every day of the year has been packed witch action, as the company managed to officially launch its browser, get its Basic Attention Token out, and onboard hundreds of thousands of verified publishers on its rewards platform.
Luckily, the effort Brave has been putting into its product hasn't gone unnoticed.
The company's revolutionary browser has been voted the best privacy-focused product of 2019, for which it received a Golden Kitty award. The awards, hosted by Product Hunt, were given to the most popular products across 23 different product categories.
"Our annual Golden Kitty awards celebrate all the great products that makers have launched throughout the year"
Brave's win is important for the company—with this year seeing the most user votes ever, it's a clear indicator of the browser's rapidly rising popularity.
Privacy and blockchain are the strongest forces in tech right now
If reaching 10 million monthly active users in December was Brave's crown achievement, then the Product Hunt award was the cherry on top.
The recognition Brave got from Product Hunt users shows that a market for privacy-focused apps is thriving. All of the apps and products that got a Golden Kitty award from Product Hunt users focused heavily on data protection. Everything from automatic investment apps and remote collaboration tools to smart home products emphasized their privacy.
AI and machine learning rose as another note-worthy trend, but blockchain seemed to be the most dominating force in app development. Blockchain-based messaging apps and maps were hugely popular with Product Hunt users, who seem to value innovation and security.
For those users, Brave is a perfect platform. The company's research and development team has recently debuted its privacy-preserving distributed VPN, which could potentially bring even more security to the user than its already existing Tor extension.
Brave's effort to revolutionize the advertising industry has also been recognized by some of the biggest names in publishing—major publications such as The Washington Post, The Guardian, NDTV, NPR, and Qz have all joined the platform. Some of the highest-ranking websites in the world, including Wikipedia, WikiHow, Vimeo, Internet Archive, and DuckDuckGo, are also among Brave's 390,000 verified publishers.
Earn Basic Attention Token (BAT) with Brave Web Browser
