Game Update
Implemented some more art and did some work on cleaning up stages. Certain stages have artwork that is to sparse to fit with the others. I also tried to put together some skull art for our Lich in the game but I will likely get it contracted as well. Sometimes you get a good artist and it ‘s hard to go back to a lower standard.
That said my woes of finding someone to work on the key art continue as it seems like the person I was communicating with simply doesn’t have the time even to have a quick conversation about it. I’ll have to devote some time to looking for an illustrator that can do the job, or attempt to do it myself.
I spent some time trying to get my recording computer together this week as well. I was missing one of my components, but I think I have a replacement for it and so who knows I might be able to get a new video out to YouTube sometime soon. I should be able to build my own trailer for the game.
Chris is still tackling the database issue with the troops coming back after save processing. I have some new possibilities for what the problem might be however. Some of the functionality from the force organization screen might also be on the start screen which might be causing the issue as we reused some scripts. It would be a good idea to remove anything that’s unnecessary for the start screen instead of being lazy.
Another issue might be the fact that the CSV for the data isn’t opened placed in ram and then closed. Instead it is probably still open. This might cause issues if it’s being written to at different times. It would seem that it would be better practice to open the file, do the operation and then close the file unless we need to save data later. When that happens we should do the same process. In this way the data file should only be open when it’s being written to.
Personal Update
I got a bonsai tree, and I’m taking care of a friends dog for a little while this weekend. It’s afforded me some unplug time as both of those responsibilities need more care than everything else I own or do. I really enjoyed pruning my new bonsai back to create a nice look which shows off its trunk. It was kind of a metaphor for life in a way. We cut away those things that are hindering and leaching energy off to allow the more valuable things to grow. Leaves around the trunk don’t get much sunlight but still require energy to sustain them. By removing them the overall plant should be more healthy.
I had a rough week at work, probably one of the worst in years. It’s difficult when I try to do the right thing, and then it goes unappreciated or worse disrespected. I suppose that’s just how things work when you are in charge of something though. I accept that I could do better and I take the feedback with a grain of salt. I’ll grow and do better in the future. I have no doubt about that.
I started playing a new mobile game which has piqued my interest. I haven’t been this into a game since the time when I was playing Arena of Valor (which has become unplayable due to server issues). This kind of makes me think more and more about the fact that I need to bring Six Aspects to mobile devices. That might be a bit of a difficult thing however.
The new game I’m playing is Dicast. At first glance I figured this would be a typical pay to play mobile game with low substance. I was only half right. It has the typical monetization that we have seen with mobile games however the substance of the game is pretty solid. The best way I can describe it is that it is a PvP 1v1 digital dice board game. Some of the unique features are the manipulation of dice through game play.
It feels like the luck component is close to what you would find in Magic the Gathering. There are definitely games where I have a run of bad luck and there are minimal things I could have done to have fixed the situation. Games are about 10 minutes though and so they seem to have that right. They have skins for the various champions that are the primary focus for monetization, and the game is good enough that I could see myself picking one up in the future sometime.
The drawbacks are the monetization and the loot boxes coupled with the fact that the game drains my phone battery quickly. That said back in my “Dark Patterns” posts from a couple of months back I still have a stance that loot boxes/card packs are OK as they can present a level of excitement when the player receives the item. There isn’t anything quick like getting that mythic card out of a pack that I’ve been looking for. It just needs to be tempered with control as I also believe that loot boxes should not be accessible to children, or if they are allowed to open them an adult should be present and have full knowledge of what it is that is happening.
The World of Six Aspects
These stories set in the world of Six Aspects are not cannon but might become cannon in the future.
Two brothers grew up in the city of Kingsland on the eastern edge of the Zeteris empire. Marcus and Kyle were only a year apart in age which created an awful lot of competition between the two.
“Just because you’re older doesn’t mean I have to listen to you Marcus!” was something Kyle often said to his brother. “Oh yeah? Well then why did dad leave me in charge when he went off to fight in the revolution?” would always be Marcus’s reply.
Their mother Ivette would often say, “if you boys have so much energy why don’t you go and feed the animals?”
“Alright mom…”
“Race you to the fields Marcus!”
“I’ll get there when I get there bro, don’t rush me.”
They grew and grew and eventually their father returned home from the war. He was proud of what he had accomplished as the new Zeteris empire was finally going to unite the nation thanks to his efforts.
“I want to be just like you when I grow up dad!”
“Don’t worry you will be Marcus, you will be. What about you Kyle?”
“Gee I don’t know, I was thinking about going east to become explore the wilds out that way.”
“That’s so irresponsible brother! The empire needs us to make things better again. Why don’t you care about what our father did. It’s disrespectful.”
“I SAID I DON’T WANT TO STAY HERE I WANT TO GO FAR AWAY!”
“OK OK break it up you two! I think that the new empire will need both of you and that might look different.”
Years later the boys left home and they worked towards their dreams. They didn’t always agree on everything but they were brothers. They grew up sleeping 10 feet from one another, but it turns out that fate has a different path for them to tread.
To be continued…