New Graphics

Apart from debugging the graphics which are needed I've started to look at the Player's Sprites. These graphical images are moved and selected by the player in order to try and win. I've been looking about and at the moment there seems to be only one Bluetooth Multiplayer game out there, so If I can pull my finger out, then I could make an impact. I'm thinking of adding in some basic AI for a single player version or even hot-phoning, (where two players can use the same phone) but these modes will have to wait until I have the basic ready.

More success. I'm not used to it.

The New Graphics Work a treat, It's beginning to look pretty. I've got to tidy up a couple of things and design some player graphics. It's then moving them about the screen. I've put in some more mapping code to refine the layout and that has improved things consideribly. Now I've got to make sure it works for both sides.

Smiles all round though

Coming or going ? I just Don't know.

I put the entry in the wrong blog, just so busy at work.

Done some more graphics. I've decided that some of the graphics require some more refinement, which also means ripping up some of the map generation code. It has to be done, it looked pants and I only the rewrite what was only a stop gap until I had better Java skills under my belt. Hopefully I'll be testing this at some point today.

What was I saying....

and for the last two days I've officially joined the Midnight workers club. A Demo was supposed to happen with client six failed to materialise (not good) and everybody else has been pointing fingures. I have only so much time in the day and I'm not going to be working 80 hr weeks again unless they pay me.

Ups and Downs

I've just seen the latest edition of Edge. It's got a JME2 game version of tempest there. It's uplifting to see that the G3 phones will have the capabilities I require but I'm hoping that no-one has had the same game idea as I. Another thing that hit me is I had the original idea of Upload over a year ago and interface was derived from it six months ago. I'm now at the point were I should have been before Christmas. It's just hitting me how much time I actually spend playing games instead of writing them.

My nightmare senario would be if I opened a game review magazine and a very similar game appreared to either of them. I keep on telling myself, 'I'm only doing this to get the Java and .NET language experience'. But it would be great if it could earn me a little payback. I've now got to step through all the graphics and redesign them. Long night ahead !

Well now it starts getting interesting...

I've managed to stop the flickering which is a relief. I've cut and pasted code from a tutorial and to be honest I don't know how it works, but it works which helps. Now finally seeing the result, the graphics have to be changed slightly. They're not clear enough.

The random number generator which is used to determine the outcome of the map, doesn't seem to be as random as I hoped. I might have to pass this object down to where it's needed instead of it be recreated.

I now have the following tasks to do to get the game working;-

1. Map Generation (Almost there!).
2. Process Unit Graphics.
3. Clock Graphic and counter.
4. Process Unit Keypress Capture.
5. Pathway Activation Animations.
6. Pathway Activation Code Checks.

I've also been looking at which phones will be able to run the game and it looks hopeful. Initially it was to run on the N-Gage only but now it looks as if I can put in on most of the new video phones which will be coming out later this year.

OH MY GOD !

Success at last. I've managed to get something looking vagly like a map onto the screen. It flickers like hell and I don't this it's 100% but its there. Right, now that I'm over that (and it's only taken three months), I can start to look at the rest of it.

Fantastic.

Three weeks later...

And I'm still rewriting the display code. It's hard when you home and work life pulls you all over the shop so you can't sit down and crack on. Think in the last three weeks I've managed three hours of work on this project.