Messing with the site...

…for a second. Don’t Panic.

[ Edit: Done for now. ]

New Strategy: It's Done When It's Done

Not for lack of trying, the game isn’t ready for beta. Granted, things are going well (almost 11k lines of code!), but, simply, the game is a complex beast.

I see a lot of potential for this game, and I don’t want to screw it up by forcing myself into a corner and bastardizing the whole project. And, while the game’s natural structure should ease the player into the game without too much hassle, this game needs at least a basic tutorial. Isn’t the saying, “You only get one first impression?” It’s something like that.

But, like I said, I’m working on it. Everyday. And today too.

Soon, soon…

Bad News Bears, meet Good News Gophers

A week away from the self-imposed deadline and I’m thinking, “Ya, probably not going to make that.”

But it works out, actually, and seeing as there’s not much going on in terms of beta sign-ups, I think I’ll just implement an open beta for the web, Windows & Macs. Then I might have a secondary beta later on, fixing most of the major issues found with the first test and adding Android tablets as a playable platform.

And the new release schedule for the beta? Sometime between the 19th and the 21st.

Screenshot Wednesday because because

Working on the Mars game a lot this week, so, even though much of the art is still early, I thought a few screenshots might be fun:

Just moving my secret agents around Mars, don’t worry about me. Close up view of some districts. Any guesses at what they represent? Lot of blank space… Wonder what it’s used for?And a district card. Having a lot of these is more or less the point.

Obviously early days for the art (though keeping the general style), but the programming is coming along well.

Beta-wise: Though it’ll probably be fully playable by the end of the month, I’ll need some initial time to iron out much of the basic gameplay and balance issues it will suffer from. (It will have issues, as it’s a giant of a game from a mechanics — i.e. rules & combinations/interactions — standpoint.) That said, I want and need for this game to get made, so please expect the beta soon. If it goes over a month from now… I dunno, something bad. Something very bad. Write in with ideas :D

Enough talk, back to it…

And happy PI day.

PS

Here’s a few more:

The building screen.

Early-mid game.

The Operator’s info card.

The Mars project and call for beta testers

Kaizer is on hiatus for a bit. Kind of a given, as it’ll be awhile before I can get into the multiplayer (which would need some income to support the servers) and actually turn it into a profitable time sink (in a good way).

So, a few months ago and in light of the ever-increasing need for funds, I decided to take on a different project. Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot to show — it’s still a few weeks out from demoing and I’d much rather show all ya’all then — so I’m not giving much away here.

Except that it’s awesome and you’ll love it because:

YeeHah!

1. Mars ———————————————————————>
2. Strategy
3. Collecting
4. Researching
5. Building
6. Combating
7. Controlling
8. Tablets

“Ok,” you say, “but when will I actually get to play it?”

“Well, that depends on how soon you want to play it,” I would say. “And I am going to need beta testers. ;) ”

I’ll be releasing screenshots and gameplay information soon, but in a few weeks I’ll start incorporating beta testers that meet 1 of 2 criteria:

1. Own an Android tablet and have someone to play against (no AI in the beta).
2. Have a PC or Mac and have someone to play against.

You may, of course, meet both criteria, but I’ll only sign a person up for one beta platform. The beta test will probably be short (and beta testers, few), but, as a thanks to those who do test the game and give a little constructive feedback (like a paragraph, so don’t freak out or anything), testers will receive a copy of the game when it’s released for a platform of their choice (PC & Mac or Android).

This new game, like Kaizer, is going to be specifically designed around tablets, as I’ve mentioned, but initially it will only be available for Android devices (again: tablets, not phones). Why Android? Mostly because:

1. I’m poor and can only buy 1 Unity license. :(
2. I have access to an Android tablet.
3. The Android store seems like it might be slightly closer to my target audience. [Redacted by Apple’s Temporally-Binding Contract #3. See section: TIME KNOTS]

That’s about it for now. If you think you’d be a good beta tester, you can contact me with your information (i.e. a name that seems real enough and a legit email) and I’ll add you to the ULTIMATE BETA LIST (which basically signs you up for a weekly-ish newsletter I’ll start sending out as the beta begins).

For more about the game and upcoming beta, check out the Mars project forum.

P.S: Happy Belated Holidays & New Year & wow we’re in the Year of the Dragon? That’s kinda awesome.

The tracks go off in this direction...

Stack trace… and hours later. Somewhere in here is a problem.

:(

Working on the site: Part 2

Looks like this is going to be a trilogy. Meh. How about some economics to inform and delight?

This recent talk by Robert Reich (Secretary of Labor under President Clinton) is really quite good. Speaking at Google, Reich outlines, simply and succinctly, some of the gross imbalances in the current economic model and how those led to the current situation. A worthwhile 57 minutes.

Working on the site

So it might get messy… and a little weird at times. If things look really terrible, just wait a second and hit refresh — I should have fixed whatever it will have been by then.

Why not watch this remix of Astra Taylor’s talk “The Unschooled Life” in the mean time?

I’ll add a few more videos throughout the day to ease the pains. I should be done with the updates by the end of the day.

Thanks for your patience.

Politico

I would rather not turn this into yet another blog ranting about politics, so instead I’ll just embed videos. Fault Lines: The Top 1% via AlJeezera:

Short break

Sew buttons… Ok, well I really wanted this latest version of Kaizer out by now, but I’m in the middle of moving and will have to put off working on it for a week or two while the actual move goes down.

It’s also taking so long because:

A) I won’t release a version that has not been properly tested (which, given the amount of changes and possible captain combinations, can take a while);

B) There are a lot of little bugs to fix and fine tuning-ings to do;

C) It’s incredibly difficult to accurately gauge how long things are going to take, wish I was better at it, but, again, I’m still learning.

The good news? Apparently Kaizer works fine under Linux (with the aid of Wine).

Granted, there are a few quirks, but nothing killer.

Hazzah!