Eltrotraw's Works - pictures, movies, games(04/24/13 - Return of Bearington)

Hey, have I actually posted in here yet? Weird.

Anyways, I think everything looks pretty good so far. And kinda weird but I think I like that purple hornet over there with the blank eyes more than the normal one, but they give off different feels, so... well, it still looks fine to me.

Also, just a small thing, but the spikes look a bit out of place to me. Maybe they could be the same color as the wall or thin and modeled like stalactites that inexplicably poke out of the walls, but that might be too much trouble.

Hmm, wouldn't a roundabout way to do this be to make the game not render the objects unless they're fully on-screen? I think some games do this in order to cut FPS reduction...
but yeah, just an idea... its your game, after all!

The framerate plummets drastically once there are roughly 30+ of these objects stacked on top of each other(and considering how they spawn, they'd have to spawn reasonably fast - at the most, 1 every 10 frames or so), because it again has to calculate every single object per frame. Keep in mind the computer I'm using to test this stuff isn't bad either, so computers that are worse have it even worse off.

The lava level's special effects would rather prefer this treatment than something that's never going to be implemented in the game realistically, because those things actually can be handled with offscreen not-rendering.

Heh, a nice, subtle touch.
I like it.
A shame about the purple hornet not being permanent, as its rather pretty but I just love purple.

Look out for the wolf stamp on other non-wolf enemies

Hey, have I actually posted in here yet? Weird.

Thought you did

Anyways, I think everything looks pretty good so far. And kinda weird but I think I like that purple hornet over there with the blank eyes more than the normal one, but they give off different feels, so... well, it still looks fine to me.

The blank eyes were like that because I took it in the editor, actually - the eyes lock onto Carter properly during actual game editing. The eyes are actually pointing downward, if you look closely enough, but it's hard to catch considering the angle of the shot.

I'm a little surprised at how much attention the purple hornet's getting, though.

Also, just a small thing, but the spikes look a bit out of place to me. Maybe they could be the same color as the wall or thin and modeled like stalactites that inexplicably poke out of the walls, but that might be too much trouble.

The main thing to accomplish here with the spikes is to make them identifiable for the player. The player should be able to see these types of obstacles and think of a proper response to them - in this case, "oh, these are spikes" and possibly "these are possibly bad to touch". If the player doesn't realize spikes = bad, the first set of spikes you encounter is obviously in a spot where you can touch them and land safely after you realize what they do(check the last full screenshot).
^{Incidentally, the first set of moving platforms introduce the lava pillars to the player, and the second set introduce the lavafalls. Both situations are not very dangerous, at least compared to the rest of the level.}

However, with that, this means that the spikes also need to be reusable. This means then that I can't have too many differentiating shapes(especially considering potential stalagmite/stalactite background elements) to possibly confuse the player. I want things to be easy to understand at a glance, and easy to pick up, yet have enough depth to it that you can't just plow through the whole game.

See, man, I totally told you the purple hornet was prettier! :>

And yeah, the Minccino and Zubat look really good. Carry on with that weight painting and UV mapping? :P

See, man, I totally told you the purple hornet was prettier! :>

Honestly haven't heard too much past that post on "why" it was prettier, though. More interested in the why regarding this, mainly, considering the environment that I'm going to place the hornet in.

I'm rather shocked there's nothing else to be said about the lava cave.

[Ark]

Honestly, purple is just a really pretty color, and it goes well with the hornet. Of course, it would probably be really out of place since he's in some kind of swamp level, right? The current model of the hornet looks great (not as pretty, but it doesn't have to be), and I think that the texture is totally boss material.

I can't wait to see Carter get put through the lava level since the lava spouts and falls look like they'll be really fun to see in action. Also, dem spikes, especially the ones on the right side of the screen, look pretty scary to get through.

I can't remember, but did you ever decide on a background for the level?

Honestly, purple is just a really pretty color, and it goes well with the hornet. Of course, it would probably be really out of place since he's in some kind of swamp level, right? The current model of the hornet looks great (not as pretty, but it doesn't have to be), and I think that the texture is totally boss material.

I haven't rendered the swamp, but yes. The fight may or may not take place in a giant swamp pit, meaning Carter would have to fight with the terrain as well. The hornet boss is simple enough as is, as mentioned, despite the rather interesting gimmick behind it.

I can't wait to see Carter get put through the lava level since the lava spouts and falls look like they'll be really fun to see in action. Also, dem spikes, especially the ones on the right side of the screen, look pretty scary to get through.

Why the right side, though? It's really not that scary:


^{highlight for explanation}

I can't remember, but did you ever decide on a background for the level?

Not rendered yet. I hope you like your present instead, that's what I did instead of that


----

While I'm at it...

ZUBAT



ZUBAT EVERYWHERE

[Ark]

How would Carter be fighting with the terrain? I'm guessing he'll be slowed down when in the swamp. And maybe he'll be sinking in the swamp mud... stuff, so he'll have to be jumping in order to get out and stay mobile?

Actually, I should feel really bad for not being able to tell the difference between left and right. Anyway, now that I think about it, the middle one with the enemies would probably be worse to get through since you have the wolf and the snake either knocking you into the lava, or comboing you into spikes.

And of course I like my present. But yeah, I'm excited for the background too!

How would Carter be fighting with the terrain? I'm guessing he'll be slowed down when in the swamp. And maybe he'll be sinking in the swamp mud... stuff, so he'll have to be jumping in order to get out and stay mobile?

Basically that. The hornet flies, so it's not bothered by this, and this especially helps it close the distance and keep it maintained.

Actually, I should feel really bad for not being able to tell the difference between left and right. Anyway, now that I think about it, the middle one with the enemies would probably be worse to get through since you have the wolf and the snake either knocking you into the lava, or comboing you into spikes.

That, incidentally, also involves moving platforms(moving up and down). There're two of them - one with the lavafall(this guards the first R letter), and the second one that's completely surrounded by spikes, right after it. That second one I had to tone down twice, just to give an idea of how aggravating it was in comparison... plus, that was even before the spikes were implemented!

And of course I like my present. But yeah, I'm excited for the background too!

We'll see then.

This isn't any real update, I just wanted to show this thanks to finding a way to use League of Legends models.



Also a test to show that I can use transparent textures to indicate "ghostly" enemies.



But I'm still alive. There is something else I'm working on but it's a bit hush hush for hush hush reasons.

Well, the ghostly wolves look pretty cool. Will they be used as enemies in anything?

Well, the ghostly wolves look pretty cool. Will they be used as enemies in anything?

A ghost house, probably... though it's still unclear of their actual purpose of what they'll do.

Suggestions for more environments for Carter are welcome, but do keep in mind I'll be trying to filter through them for reasons

A ghost house, probably... though it's still unclear of their actual purpose of what they'll do.

Here's an idea: what if they "possessed" items and used them to attack Carter? Or something?

Here's an idea: what if they "possessed" items and used them to attack Carter? Or something?

I've had three thoughts, already, though it's still in the planning stages(so it can be subject to change):

• Act like ghosts in Mario. That is, hide when you face them, chase you when you face away from them.
• Act like Ghosts in Castlevania. Continually chase you in sporadic bursts.
• Act like ghosts in... uh... the only example I have in Megaman Zero 4 - ghosts that possess "bodies" scattered across the stage, essentially sending "zombies" after Carter.

I did some research and found another thing that allows me to import the League models more accurately...

I foreshadowed to this with the Minccino and Zubats

Behold, an animated short, titled "Minccino's Destiny with Karma".

It took me quite a while to get everything "good" in this, and even then I'm still seeing a few errors. I have a lot more respect for 3D animators after trying to do this among all the delays and other things I had to deal with, but I think it turned out good enough.

Obviously there's room for improvement. Anyone want to pitch in a few thoughts?

[Agent Gold]

Nice. Let's see...

0:34 -- Zooming in on the moment of impact (especially if it's not exactly expected) is a pretty effective camera trick. I had to watch it twice before I even consciously noticed it, but I do think it adds a nice touch there. (Walking in right after that looks a bit like he's gliding, though. I'm not sure exactly why that is. My gut says have him turn in a bit sooner, but I don't know.)

1:01 -- The last Zubat that comes down looks like he's swooping in, but the way he turns around looks a bit unnatural. Maybe have him distinctly bring himself upright, then turn around to face the center? Alternatively, you could have him descend in an upright pose already facing the center instead of swooping.

Nice. Let's see...

0:34 -- Zooming in on the moment of impact (especially if it's not exactly expected) is a pretty effective camera trick. I had to watch it twice before I even consciously noticed it, but I do think it adds a nice touch there. (Walking in right after that looks a bit like he's gliding, though. I'm not sure exactly why that is. My gut says have him turn in a bit sooner, but I don't know.)

Intended. Another technique I notice used back in the Cartoon Network DC superhero shows is that the screen flashes white whenever a hit connects, but I didn't really think about how to do that in Max, so I figured to do this instead.

The same camera "zoom" also happens when the Zubat hits the Minccino.

The gliding, I'm not quite sure on. It might have to deal with the walk cycle as well, but this is something I'm aware of.

1:01 -- The last Zubat that comes down looks like he's swooping in, but the way he turns around looks a bit unnatural. Maybe have him distinctly bring himself upright, then turn around to face the center? Alternatively, you could have him descend in an upright pose already facing the center instead of swooping.

That probably might have been the safer choice, but I was really picky on getting the animation to be 100% smooth even though it was offscreen. That Zubat was the one that ended up sending the Minccino flying, it did a loop right after landing the bite, but I needed it to fly upright as the Zubats were swarming over the body.

There was another scene that I had intended(the shiny one gets up, finds the knocked out minccino and steals his shades), but I thought I spent too long on this already - I intended the animation to be finished within a week, but the Zubats really delayed me more than I anticipated.

Well, this was exactly as great as I thought it was be. It was a lot of fun to watch and yeah, definitely brought a smile to my face.

[Agent Gold]

That probably might have been the safer choice, but I was really picky on getting the animation to be 100% smooth even though it was offscreen. That Zubat was the one that ended up sending the Minccino flying, it did a loop right after landing the bite, but I needed it to fly upright as the Zubats were swarming over the body.

Something I've been told as far as graphics rendering and animation is that part of the "game" is to take as many shortcuts as you can afford to. (This is probably more important to real-time graphics rendering than anything, but it's applicable elsewhere.) Much like hand-drawn art, if it's convincing and well done, most people looking will overlook a lot of minor flaws. Since you made this, I'd imagine you spotted some other things I wouldn't even notice unless they were pointed out (don't point them out!).

You definitely have your choice on how you want to go about it. If you're being careful about details even when they're off screen, it should be that much more real when they're on screen, and you're less likely to mistakenly leave something unpolished on screen. On the other hand, if you wanted to "cheat" a bit while they're off screen, it's not likely anyone would notice, even if it means they pop up in a spot they wouldn't quite have gotten to yet. It's just a matter of what's important to you and what approach you'd like to take.

There was another scene that I had intended(the shiny one gets up, finds the knocked out minccino and steals his shades), but I thought I spent too long on this already - I intended the animation to be finished within a week, but the Zubats really delayed me more than I anticipated.

That's hilarious just to think about!

Something I've been told as far as graphics rendering and animation is that part of the "game" is to take as many shortcuts as you can afford to. (This is probably more important to real-time graphics rendering than anything, but it's applicable elsewhere.) Much like hand-drawn art, if it's convincing and well done, most people looking will overlook a lot of minor flaws. Since you made this, I'd imagine you spotted some other things I wouldn't even notice unless they were pointed out (don't point them out!).

You definitely have your choice on how you want to go about it. If you're being careful about details even when they're off screen, it should be that much more real when they're on screen, and you're less likely to mistakenly leave something unpolished on screen. On the other hand, if you wanted to "cheat" a bit while they're off screen, it's not likely anyone would notice, even if it means they pop up in a spot they wouldn't quite have gotten to yet. It's just a matter of what's important to you and what approach you'd like to take.

It's rather funny now that I think about it, looking at the animation reel, that sort of "offscreen technique" was employed earlier in the video(I'll leave it to you to guess), but I didn't think to do it for the Zubat swarm. Whoops!

The big problem about why I'm really hesitant to go look this over again(or go through more rendering) is the lighting, primarily. You notice that short 40 second sequence outside the cave? Because of how the lighting and shadows were set up, this meant every frame took about 30-40 seconds to render, making the entire sequence take about, what, 3 hours to render? Could've been 4-5 hours if I set the lighting to higher quality.

So while a few of the obvious errors are there, I'm not sure I'd want to go back to clean that up. I'd like to go focus on other things, such as Carter, once again.

[itsameluigi1290]

These are VERY impressive. I feel bad for the Minccino in that video, will there be a sequel?

These are VERY impressive. I feel bad for the Minccino in that video, will there be a sequel?

Karma is mean.

I've already mentioned the only planned final scene for the video that I opted out on because I still need to work on other things(like Carter), and this was much more time-consuming than I anticipated.

[itsameluigi1290]

Ok, well, I just hope he didn't DIE or something.

Updating real quick with a side project that I tried to finish up for a certain someone in time(hi, Lenore! happy late birthday!) for today, but didn't quite finish completely. Since I gave myself a self-imposed time limit - I started on the 13th of this month - you can see the progress as I went through below, or you could play the game and see it for yourself(subject to change).
<sup>Quick rundown of the controls right now:
- arrow keys or wasd = move
- z = whip
- x = jump
- c = subweapon</sup>

_{As always, you can highlight the thumbnails for more information}


It is incomplete, so I'd like thoughts on what players find to be infuriating or could need improvement on, and why. There are a few apparent bugs and problems I'm aware of, but I'd like to see if people can spot them or propose reasonable solutions to them.

Don't fret about Carter, the bats used here will be utilized for Carter as well in a similar fashion, I'm thinking... just not looking like Zubat.

I almost forgot to note my other part of the gift to Lenore, the Snivy avatar she's using at the moment.

[BrandonSP]

Climbing up the hill that you first go down is pretty slow and clunky. I mean, I guess you can just jump back up, but walking it is really a pain if you missed a Zubat and you still want to kill it.

Climbing up the hill that you first go down is pretty slow and clunky. I mean, I guess you can just jump back up, but walking it is really a pain if you missed a Zubat and you still want to kill it.

That has to deal with the collider method I used for the Snivy in this instance, I wanted to try something a little different this time around... though that's noted as well.

I've apparently gotten a few complaints that the DARK ZUBAT is way too difficult to beat, but I think that was the intention. It wasn't meant to be an easy boss, though there are two ways I can think of that make it easier overall.

As for Carter, I'm merely fixing up the last part of the lava level and starting to draw up plans for the swamp area. I may or may not release a demo version at that point, or I could do a preliminary demo version of it right now(though some parts are still missing). What do the faithful viewers think?