Latest WIPs
ColoursXNA started
I have started to play around with Microsoft's XNA Framework in C# and, as a first project, started porting my old puzzle game "Colours". I created that game 1992 on my Amiga in AMOS Basic and have ported it successfully to HTML/JavaScript round about 2004. Several attempts to port it to the PC in Blitz Basic / DarkBasic Professional failed because the languages were a little bit to basic for my likeing (and because I accidently deleted a prototype version that was quite close to getting finished).
Starting with C# wasn't quite as easy as I had hoped because I am used to PHP and doing everything myself. C# has load of features for handling variable scopes and breaks pretty fast if you try to be smart and ignore all that, which is what you can do in PHP. Also, the XNA Framework is huge and does loads of stuff for you, but if don't know what structure it expects then you're a bit lost.
There is a very good list of tutorials and websites for XNA and the basic things are very easy to understand. But some of the more advanced examples work very differently and aren't documented very well which leaves you out in the cold as soon as you have understood the basics. Maybe the Creators Club is better but I haven't yet decided if I will manage to keep going long enough so that the 100$ membership fee won't be wasted.
At the moment I have the blocks, playfield, gravity, colour reactions, cursor movement and score counting running. I still need lots of graphical effects (such as exploding blocks, score overlays and the whole gui) on my todo list as well as everything outside of the actual game. I also have lots of ideas on how to extend the game from it's 1992 feature set so that will be quite interesting to see those coming along.
lychesis | 24 February, 2008 21:05
WIPs, Colours |
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Rez HD - Xbox360
I already had Rez on the PS2 and loved this little gem. When I heard that is was going to be released on the Xbox360 in HD (720p) I was quite excited to see what they had made of it for this new iteration.
The graphics look wunderfull and the sound is great. The game has been converted very faithfully to the Xbox360, including the controller rumble which you have to enable the first time around.
Improvements to the original are mostly with it's enhanced resolution although there are also a couple of minor details that seem to have been added including some extra effects (one spectacular glare effect that makes fighting the area 4 end boss quite taxing).
Overall the game seems a little bit more difficult than the PS2 version (having not played the DreamCast version I can't really tell how faithful it is to the original).
I am not sure that it is worthy it's 800 Microsoft Points pricetag having already bought the PS2 version (although it would have been terrible if it had been a full price game). It does have a limited long time playability with only 5 levels to unlock but it also has a uniquely fun gameplay that just works wonderfully on HDTV with a good surround sound setup.
For a rail-shooter remake this is very good (I don't think we stand a chance of Starblade or Starblade: Operation Blue Planet getting released on any next-gen console) and if you haven't had a chance to play this one before it is certainly a recommended buy. If, like me, you have the old version this still is nice to have, but just keep in mind that this is only a remake, not a second part.
My Achievements
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The EARTH Play mode area1 cleared! Area 2 unlocked! |
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The MARS Play mode area2 cleared! Area3 unlocked! |
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The VENUS Play mode area3 cleared! Area4 unlocked! |
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The URANUS Play mode area4 cleared! Achieve 100% analyzation in areas1-4 to unlock area5! |
lychesis | 02 February, 2008 11:32
Games |
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Who am I?
Hi, my name is Daniel Kluth and I'm a 3D artist and web designer currently working for Capture in Düsseldorf.
I work with Lightwave3D, Autodesk XSI and several other tools.