Tritium - An MMORPG.

[RonnieNeeley]

Hmm... yeah that'd make sense.

AndyLangel lives in your hometown? That's weird.

Yeah, Vikadin, AndyLangel and I all go to the same school.

[AndyLangel]

If you guys want i can help out with coding, like before It'll be a work in progress however- still wrapping my head around C++, which might take until the end of the year, but with it still being summer, i am enjoying my last week by doing nothing at all, so as soon as school starts ill start reading up on it again.

As far as what you will need programed, that up to you- ill take a look at the source code again, see if i can figure out how everything works. Other than that, there can actually be a lot done with the Cube 2 language, which can also be modified i believe- once again ill have to check the source code.

But yeah, ill try and keep myself on track.

[chocolatepie33]

How are you learning the C++? Like, books, websites, stuff like that... I have 3 books now, but no compiler to try out what I learn...

[RonnieNeeley]

Andy, If you would like to help with coding, we are still fine with that.

All we want is a definitive answer, yes or no, we don't care which. It's the "I don't know... I want to, but..." that we don't like.

But if you want to help, yes, we are still welcoming. And again, we aren't expecting you to do everything, Dan will probably be the main coder (unless you end up taking that on). So yeah, just start learning C++ and Cubescript, we don't need any actual coding right now (besides the simple stuff I am doing with adding textures.)

If you are still interested a week from now, I'll give you the link to our website with every little bit of ProjectTS information (Basically, our archive of the game).

I understand your lack of interest, I feel that way about other things right now (namely music), and it saddens me to see you waste your talent and ability. Maybe working with other people will make you more interested, because there are 2 other people working on the game, it's not all up to one person.

Anyways, yeah, think about it. We need to know if you are really in so we can start shaping the project that way.

[RonnieNeeley]

How are you learning the C++? Like, books, websites, stuff like that... I have 3 books now, but no compiler to try out what I learn...

You can download free compilers from Google.

[AndyLangel]

@ Ronnie

I not a straight answer kinda person- but yes i want to help, so if i go about changing my mind, you have the full and complete right to change it back for me ^.^ At any cost. I know i will hit a point where i'll be all like, "OHH I WANT TO MAKE ANOTHER GAME!" and when i get to that point, do not hesitate to beat me until i no longer want to make another game, and only wish to continue with Project TS. But with that being said, yes. Hope that answers it, i am now your code slave.

@ chocolatepie

A really good compiler i love using is Microsoft's Visual Studio Series (For C++ that is Microsoft Visual C++ Express) which is free. It can be found by googling "Microsoft Visual C++ Express"

It is a really nice compiler if you like microsoft, if you dont, try Borland's C++ Compilers they work nice too.

[InHumanUnit]

Dude, I just got a QUAKE II demo. Its awesome.

[RonnieNeeley]

I not a straight answer kinda person- but yes i want to help, so if i go about changing my mind, you have the full and complete right to change it back for me ^.^ At any cost. I know i will hit a point where i'll be all like, "OHH I WANT TO MAKE ANOTHER GAME!" and when i get to that point, do not hesitate to beat me until i no longer want to make another game, and only wish to continue with Project TS. But with that being said, yes. Hope that answers it, i am now your code slave.

Well, I would be a liar if I said I only thought of ProjectTS, I have been getting other ideas. The thing is, I know ProjectTS is something different, something I want to play. It is because of ProjectTS I am even making a game, if I didn't have the idea, I wouldn't settle for anything else.

I know you disagreed with what we sent you back in June, but the game has changed a lot since then. We are no longer trying to make a spin-off of Twelve Sky, the only thing we really have in common are 3 factions, and our factions aren't even the same as theirs anymore. The thing is, we would love to add things you like (like other skills, etc.) but we always keep coding in our mind, so we tried to keep it as simple, yet effective, as possible. We would love to include mining and woodcutting, etc., but we would rather focus on the core game than try and add things we're not even sure we could successfully pull off.

Another incentive I guess is the (more than likely) possibility of getting paid for doing the game. If anything, think of the money you could make. That is not my reason for the game, but maybe that will keep you interested, so that you can buy endless supplies of Monsters.

Anyways, yeah, if you are serious about it, things will be great. The going will get rough, but Dan and I are there as well, and I know the three of us could solve any problem we would end up having.

Dan and I are prepared to do the game ourselves, so you joining is just splitting the workload. Now it isn't, "The game will be made!", it's "The game will be done quicker and better!". The game has moved past "if", the game is a matter of "when". I know we can make something truly incredible, it will just take some time.

[AndyLangel]

Well all the ideas i have for adding things will only make the game like another- though some people (Such as me) hate combat based games, so a nice alternative route is always preferably, and i assume you and Dan have steered away from a fully combat based game (Which is good). What annoyed me before i can care less about now, i just want to make a game that actually works as i really don't have a good record going.

As far as development goes, adding skills shouldn't be even on the planning board as of yet- even making the maps is way off typical structure of a game. You can add content yes, but without a solid framework, you masterpiece will just be a pile of lots of cool things, but you need that structure to hold it all together. Though, being we lack C++ knowledge, i guess thats all we can do to make progress.

Anyways, the main point is that we should focus on the mainframe of the game, the framework- this is broken into the bones of the project- you have your plans and your story, and that makes up about half of the framework- the engine will cover for the other half, but i think we need to do some serious work on the engine before we get too far into this project. We need to change the engine to allow everything that we want to add to it.

Now the engine dictates the power of the language, and the language is what the game will be written in- this language is the Cube language. So we need to figure out what we want the language to support, then edit the engine so that the language supports it. Now feel free to replace the wes with yous i found we easier to type though. And by you i mean You and Dan, as i refuse to impreed my corruptuous thoughts onto your diabolical plans. Never mind the the world that arn't even words.

Mainly,m i think the engine could use a good overhaul, as it currently won't get you a game worth anything of much value. If your looking for an income, you have to make a game worth that income, and that is not very easy. The game will have to be good in design, execution, and presentation- the design is pretty much laid out, and i am sure that is more than what people will be willing to pay for. The execution is in the Language, and that needs to be worked on. The presentation is in the engine, and that needs an overhaul.

Some things i want to change to give the engine a modern commercial feel are:

Dynamic lighting, so that you have have a sun that can move across the sky, and cast dynamic shadows that will move with the movement of the light- not sure how hard this will be- but i know that if you looking for a simple system, its pretty simple.

Improved Physics, not sure how the current engine works, but i am sure it can use some updates, like wind and stuff, so we have moving flags and trees, and possibly working sailboats?

Better Particle System, because the one in the engine now is pretty limited, so i want to expand this so we can get some realistic volumetric effects.

Filters and Effects, such as Line of Sight, and Light columns- this stuff looks AMAZING and really i don't think it takes too much to add it.

And the otherthings, whatever i missed here.

I'll need to learn how to do all that ontop of learning C++, but i know people and i have sources, so i think that in the end it is all possible- and most of that stuff won't be needed until the end, which is a good thing.

The main thing we need to be concerned about coding wise is the engine and what we need to add to it. Other than that, i think the engine is pretty nice- but when its done, it should look like something that would be sold and marketed today.

However, on another note, good graphics done not make a good game.
But yeah, yet another essay by me

[RonnieNeeley]

However, on another note, good graphics done not make a good game.

Yeah, that's how Dan and I feel. Statistics show 80% of gamers don't care about graphics. Hence I'd play Stronghold Crusader (2001) over Stronghold Legends (2007) any day. Yeah, SHL has better graphics, but SHC is far more fun.

The main reason Dan and I are making this is because we are dissatisfied with games today. I haven't played a computer game in the last 4 months (well, an online one, anyways), because they all suck. Every company has a Korean Grindfest MMORPG, every company has a generic FPS, and I'm sick of it. The games that are good hardly have any content. And worst of all, these companies are making huge profits!

I want to make a game people want to pay for. However, our game will be Free to play, with an optional cash shop, but still, we are adding things people want to buy, not that they need to in order to play the game.

Dan and I have a few mini games (the lockdown game, for example) that make the game far more interesting. The more side stuff we add to the game, the less reason people have to play anything else. And we aren't trying to pull the evil game corporation "Keep them playing so we make money", yes, Dan and I want people to play the game, but we want it to actually be fun. We've been researching how companies purposely exploit human nature to get gamers addicted, and it's scary stuff. We don't really need these techniques as we are making something we ourselves would play.

You are right about the engine, it needs some modification. Dan and I hope to know exactly what we need done to the engine by the end of this month (we are thinking about more than the storyline.) We have a list of specific things we need out of the engine, we will update it further to present to you and get your opinions. And as for the "change the we" thing, if you are working on the game, it is your game as well. If you are dedicated, don't feel as if you are just a helper, if we see some serious work out of you, it is just as much your game as ours. Yes, in the long run I guess Dan and I have ultimate say over it, but we are very flexible, and if you suggest any good ideas, we will include them (assuming that they fit with the game.)

Dan and I are ex-gamers. We know what we want to see. We are also ex-gamers, meaning we are serious. We don't say "Oh, I'm playing a game right now, I'll work on it later", we take it seriously. Not to say we don't have free time, but for the last 3 or 4 months, we have been giving this 110%, and it is paying off already.

Dan and I only made those 2 maps, partly for fun, but to get more acquainted with the engine. We know we cannot start anything serious yet. We are still in the conceptual stage.

Anyways, at this stage in the game, we are planning/learning. We want to get good at what we need to do before we actually do it. That is why, if you wish to help code, by all means, learn as much C++ as you can. Dan is learning C++ as well as modelling, and I am working on conceptual stuff (faction stuff, map ideas, quests, music, etc. Not a lot I can do at the moment, most of my jobs come in once we start).

But yeah, a rough rough due date for the engine would be like 6 months from now. Probably longer though, cuz we wanna take our time and do it right, because if it isn't done right, it shouldn't be done at all.

Well, I'm rambling and I've been on far too long today, time to go to sleep for this young game maker.

(By the way, we should continue game conversations on Facebook or something, probably not a good idea to put everything out there )