SECTOR91.com: Java/SVG Games

WIP games, tools & toy projects Archived Projects
#1

SECTOR91.com is my personal website from which I run my own one-man independent game development company, SECTOR91 Productions. I specialize in Java games with complex and challenging game mechanics, and I am trying to create a fan community that can help me develop and improve my games. In case it wasn’t obvious already, the location of my site is:

http://www.sector91.com

SECTOR91 games are completely free (well, for now…) and open-source (although there’s a catch–if you use my games’ code in anything you make, you have to give credit). I encourage players to join the SECTOR91 Forums and tell me what they would like to see me do next, or what features I should add or problems I should fix in my games. And speaking of games, here they are:

GAMES:

SECTOR91 games are called by names of the format “Project (insert Greek letter here)” while in development. So the first one is called Project Alpha, the second Project Beta, etc. Technically, these names are placeholder codenames until I decide on a final name for these games, but in practice these have become the “official” names of the games, so the names are probably not going to change.

The biggest and most popular game on my site, and probably the reason you’re here, is Project Gamma:


http://www.sector91.com/games/gamma/gammabanner.png

If you’ve played any of the dozens of online Flash RPGs out there, you’ve probably noticed that they lack any kind of strategy or deep game mechanics, and are generally about fighting endless random battles to farm for shiny new weapons and equipment that only differs from the other weapons and equipment in that it’s stronger and looks cooler–no strategy involved. Project Gamma intends to change that–and, in order to help support open standards (and save me lots of money), it’s made with Java/SVG, not Flash.

Artix Entertainment, which made the well-known AdventureQuest online RPG, recently made a game called MechQuest, a similar RPG game based around anime-style mecha combat. I found this game extremely disappointing after all of the hype that surrounded it, so I decided to make a superior alternative to it. And that’s what Project Gamma is–my attempt to create a game that is better than Artix Entertainment’s MechQuest. But it’s not a clone of MechQuest; although the basic concept is the same, battles are real-time instead of turn based, and the battle and customization mechanics are much more complicated and in-depth. It is powered by the Batik SVG Viewer engine, and as far as I know is the largest and most complex game made with SVG ever, period.

Project Gamma is not an MMORPG, although it has rudimentary multiplayer features. The current version of Project Gamma allows players to create accounts (like most similar online games, but no personal information is required at all), have up to 10 mechs and infinite weapons in inventory, buy, sell, and salvage mechs, battle computer-controlled versions of other players’ mechs (the latest update introduces Team battles), and much more.

Another, less popular game (probably because it requires a download) is Project Alpha:


http://www.sector91.com/images/alphabanner.png

Project Alpha is a sidescrolling shooter similar to the old Mega Man and Metroid games, but with puzzle elements reminiscent of games like Chip’s Challenge. It is extremely difficult, but also really fun once you get the hang of it. (And it has a high score system. Think you can beat my scores?) The normal game has 13 levels, but you can build new levels using the freely available Mappy map editor program.

Also, I am currently in the process of developing a new game called, you guessed it, Project Delta. You can read more about it on the main page of the site. I’m currently looking for help making this game, as the latest article on the site states.

#2

Hi!

You created a company but how do you get money if your games are free? Only by receiving credit when one of them is reused in another open source project?

#3

I feel really bad saying this because you’ve put a lot of effort into your post and likely, your actual games, but your site completely blinds me, literally. I hope you don’t take offense, but I can’t put it any other way. It’s been a long time since I had a site force me to hit back because the color scheme just killed my eyes. :frowning:

#4

[quote]You created a company but how do you get money if your games are free? Only by receiving credit when one of them is reused in another open source project?
[/quote]
It’s not a “real” company, I just like to call it one. I’m not after money, just recognition, which is why my source code license creates a sort of “viral advertising,” assuming anyone actually uses it.

[quote]I feel really bad saying this because you’ve put a lot of effort into your post and likely, your actual games, but your site completely blinds me, literally. I hope you don’t take offense, but I can’t put it any other way. It’s been a long time since I had a site force me to hit back because the color scheme just killed my eyes. :frowning:
[/quote]
You’re the first person who’s complained about this. Personally, I’ve always thought that dark color schemes were easier on the eyes.

#5

OOh, no he’s right, it’s the high contrast white on black that hurts. Consider using a very dark grey shade for the background and a slightly fatter, nicer font in an off white colour.

Cas :slight_smile:

#6

Well, I can only do so much to change it, because a lot of the site and even the games was designed with the color scheme in mind. But I can do one thing: I’ve changed all of the text to a more subdued gray, and made the links a darker red. (This also allowed me to add some neat effects with different shades of red and gray.) Take a look at it and see if it helps at all. You may need to refresh the page or even clear your browser cache to see the difference.

#7

Tried Project Gamma as an applet but;

java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError: org/apache/batik/swing/svg/SVGUserAgent
	at java.lang.Class.getDeclaredConstructors0(Native Method)
	at java.lang.Class.privateGetDeclaredConstructors(Unknown Source)
	at java.lang.Class.getConstructor0(Unknown Source)
	at java.lang.Class.newInstance0(Unknown Source)
	at java.lang.Class.newInstance(Unknown Source)
	at sun.applet.AppletPanel.createApplet(Unknown Source)
	at sun.plugin.AppletViewer.createApplet(Unknown Source)
	at sun.applet.AppletPanel.runLoader(Unknown Source)
	at sun.applet.AppletPanel.run(Unknown Source)
	at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)

W2K Java 1.5

#8

Ah yes, that’s rather easier on the eye.

Cas :slight_smile:

#9

You need 1.6 or higher. 1.5 will not work.

#10

I haven’t looked at any of the games, but why did you compile to 1.6? How many non-programmers do you think would have downloaded 1.6 by now? I know it’s not that hard to just download 1.6, but are the improvements you get by using 1.6 really worth that much?

#11

The improvement that I get is the usage of pack200 for compression. Without pack200, Batik SVG Viewer (Gamma’s graphics library) is a 4 MB download. I could remove pack200 and compile to 1.5, but the initial load time and the strain on my server would be incredible.

#12

What’s wrong with 1.5’s pack200?

#13

1.5 has pack200? Well, whatever the problem is, pack200 doesn’t like 1.5, at least the way I use it. But it doesn’t matter; I’m working on a version detection script as we speak that will prompt 1.5 or 1.4.2 users to either download 1.6 or use a low-speed version of Project Gamma without pack200, and that should solve these problems.

#14

As far as I know, yes. The docs refer to it and the exe files are in the bin directory. But I’ve never used it though.

#15

Okay, I have now added a version-checking script, and Project Gamma should now be compatible with older versions of Java. However, I don’t know this for sure, because I don’t have a computer with an older Java version to test it on! Test the new version check system, and see if it works. Just click the “Play (Java Applet)” button on the Project Gamma page like you usually do, and if you don’t get any errors, it’s working properly. You may have to clear your browser cache if you’ve played it before.

#16

Plugin-detection is somewhat of a black art, that isn’t easy to solve at all!

Luckily somebody did the hard work for us:
http://www.pinlady.net/PluginDetect/PluginDet%20Generator.htm

To give you an idea, these are the stats from a site I control:

[tr][td]no java or 1.3 and lower[/td][td]–>[/td][td]31.03%[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]java 1.4[/td][td]–>[/td][td]6.60%[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]java 1.5[/td][td]–>[/td][td]13.43%[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]java 1.6[/td][td]–>[/td][td]48.33%[/td][/tr]

(21.000 unique visitors)

#17

Is that 21k visitors, or 21 point zero zero zero? :slight_smile:

Kev

#18

Sorry for messing up notations

Ofcourse I meant 21 unique visitors… :stuck_out_tongue:

#19

Still no good;

Running Java 1.5.0_15 by Sun Microsystems Inc.
java.lang.UnsupportedClassVersionError: Bad version number in .class file
	at java.lang.ClassLoader.defineClass1(Native Method)
        ....
#20

Okay, I guess I did need to recompile Project Gamma… This is what I get for not having the right systems to test on. :stuck_out_tongue: