Go on, ask me anything.

General Discussions
#201

considering the strong/unique look of your games, ever consider selling puppygames merchandise? (T-shirts, mugs, key rings, mouse pads, etc)

#202

Yes - tshirts definitely, probably mugs, and maybe… just maybe… plushies :o

Cas :slight_smile:

#203

I would say given the company name you might make games around plushies.

#204

you guys do know about maxine and related projects, right? code inlineing for jvm methods, native methods… kernel? et al?
combine it with static typing and elimination of the need to use hardware memory protection and I suspect that you got some crazy speed on your hands.

though I hear more and more complains about bytecode, but considering we get by without memory mapped objects ::slight_smile:

anyways, so cas what part of creating games do you find most satisfying? and what do you spend time on when you don’t feel like developing?

#205

Do you play game’s? (not indie) what genre games you like?

#206

What’s the status on the IOS and Android port of ROTT?

#207

Just the satisfaction of making a really solid, cohesive, together sort of game. That’s why I never really manage to embark on little projects or those experimental indie title styles that seem all the rage like Nidhogg. I like seeing it finished. I like it when people say they really enjoy playing it. I feel like I’ve done a little good to the world.

I especially like it when I get my hands on their filthy green.

Cas :slight_smile:

#208

I used to pretty much play Soldat exclusively. Now the last few games I’ve bought are Bioshocks 1 & 2, Amnesia, and Portal 2 is just downloading in the background there :slight_smile: Not much work going on tonight whilst Chaz and I do some, er, research.

Cas :slight_smile:

#209

Got a meeting next Wednesday with Adam Martin to sign off on a contract to port it - it seems that’s his speciality these days along with a bunch of other guys.

Cas :slight_smile:

#210

I also will be doing research with by partner in crime tonight :slight_smile:

#211

Am I the only old fart here who remembers ROTT as standing for Rise of the Triad, the post-Doom 3D sensation of 1995?

Ok I have some questions:

  1. Do you use UML, if not how do you keep document/keep track of all your classes?
  2. Do you javadoc all your stuff?
  3. How many hours each day do you spend programming games?
  4. How many hours sleep do you get/need?
  5. Does your gf mind you spending all that time in front of the PC?
  6. How do you get any time at all with 2 kids (I have 3, and it’s fecking difficult).
  7. Are you on Facebook? Do you find it a time sink (I do).
  8. Have you read “Effective Java” and is any of it relevant for the kind of hacky games programming we all do :slight_smile:
#212

@20thCenturyBoy

Trying to be a games programmer with 3 kids?!? Are you asking for a heart attack/stroke from all that stress?!?

#213

I’m not actually a games programmer, I just like Java and tinkering around with ideas. It’s actually a bit of relief from being a parent!

#214

I remember Rise of the Triad.
I’ve tried using UML with my code and eventually stopped, because it took to much time and little benefit.

#215

I can’t agree UML for java games until now. It’s just too… pain :expressionless:

#216

If you don’t mind the indiscretion, how much is yours and your artist’s revenue share ? 50/50 ?
And what was the share of the workload ? Of course my opinion is a little biased but I believe you worked much more as a programmer than he worked as an artist , or am I wrong?

#217
  1. No, useless waste of time that is. Just in my head.
  2. Some of it. Badly. I am a bad man.
  3. Varies from 0 to 20.
  4. I need about 8. I get about 3-4.
  5. Yes :stuck_out_tongue: Well, she did until it actually made some money, now she’s a bit less cross about it.
  6. With difficulty! My gf tries to find things to keep her and the kids occupied during the day. But I get distracted a lot right now.
  7. Yes (not many Caspian Princes on Facebook!) I waste a little bit of time on there, but post little. Mostly I just keep track of friends and keep in touch.
  8. Never read any books on Java. I don’t even know half of it!

Cas :slight_smile:

#218

Me and Chaz split everything 50/50 - we’re partners in the company. And the workload is like 50/50 too or thereabouts. I do basically all of the code, business, and support; Chaz does everything even vaguely graphical. We both have a big hand in the design of the games, but I’m more into the mechanics and Chaz is more into the production. I do the sound production though.

Cas :slight_smile:

#219

A few quick questions here.
How do you do level design and storing of the actual levels for any games that this would apply to?
Do you use some sort of graphical level editor, or do you type out a level in ascii?
Also, what is your process behind designing/testing a level? Do you make it one room at a time and test everything as you go along?

#220
  1. It’s been different for every game we’ve made. Ultratron and Titan Attacks had hand-crafted designs made entirely from XML defining animations and so on. Droid Assault has a built-in level editor (which I suppose we should have enabled some time ago, except that it’s not exactly… user friendly). The Droid Assault levels are stored as serialized Java objects - not especially robust but works well enough. Revenge is of course mostly randomly generated within various parameters, and is also serialized.
  2. See #1
  3. Pretty much, yes :slight_smile: We just play them. A lot!

Cas :slight_smile: