This Blog Is Dead

Really. It's not just that I haven't posted in nearly a year. It's that the reasons that I was posting are not here anymore, and there are no new ones. So I'm going to give anyone checking this place out the courtesy of knowing that this blog is officially dead.

    --LazerBlade

EP's

I'm not dead! Really, I'm not!

The reason there weren't any updates last week is that I've been super busy studying for a big test I have coming up. I had time to do a little though, including making a bit of headway with Infiltrator and producing this track.

Those of you who don't know or haven't guessed: I'm working on a Chiptune EP. This will be interesting, because I'm also working on another EP titled "Epic Cyberfunk," AND starting a new album. I'm hoping to finish Epic Cyberfunk soon, and then work on the new album while doing chiptunes in my wiggle time.

I've played me several games I want to discuss as well, so I should be able to get together some content for you guys for/during the next few weeks.

    --LazerBlade

Old Infiltrator OST

Wow, it's been awhile since I had time to do a game design article or other article proper. Life can basically call upon me to use all of my time for weeks on end without notice, and that is what happened. I'm unrealistically optimistic that I'll get back on track soon, but please take this music upload as a token of my still trying to provide content.

It's from the old Infiltrator OST, which was abandoned to be entirely redone using my modern skillset.

    --LazerBlade

Infiltrator Part 44 - Picking Back Up

Well it's been months since the last Infiltrator update, due only in small part to my own laziness. At the moment, due to the usual internal scrambling and re-installing of my system, Infiltrator isn't even running for me. I do have some small updates completed, but most of them are just new art assets for the level editor.

What it comes down to is that I need to get my momentum back on this project. I've been cherry picking easy features because I haven't had time to put in many consecutive hours of work. As of recently I have come into a bit more free time though, so I've been trying to get the workflow going again.

I've decided to put more concentration into perfecting the level editor before I move on to creating the next enemy, so that will be the topic of the next Infiltrator update. Until then, enjoy the videos and comics I put out.

    --LazerBlade

Come Pray Shin

This video was a total bundle of fun to make. Starting Tuesday, I'll be trying to get the content going again on this site. I've been tremendously busy with school and other things, but my schedule is becoming a bit more flexible and open. As a result, I'll probably have time for more regular posting. Infiltrator progress has slowed down a lot as well, but again I'm hoping I'll be able to re-balance my schedule and get back in the groove. More updates as they come...


    --LazerBlade

Music And School

You may have noticed a lack of regular deep game design content this month, especially where Infiltrator is concerned. This is due to the fact that this is hopefully my last month of school(I don't have all of the details figured out yet) and I've had very little breathing room or free time. The truth of the matter is that music takes less time and commitment to regularly update. I can give you guys a few minutes of cool music I threw in a week with ~ 4-6 hours of work, but at this stage a notable Infiltrator progress showcase would take a lot longer than that to put together. Hopefully this is a temporary setback, and I can get back to both regular music and game design content within a month or so.

    --LazerBlade

Infiltrator Part 43 - Sights On Editor

Do you think this blog is becoming an Infiltrator dev journal with random game design articles and music updates popping up every once in awhile? Then congratulations, you passed the being observative test! Now shut up and read this Infiltrator dev update because I'm already spreading myself thinner than the peanut butter on your sandwich when your little sister Julibop who prefers Jam makes it for you just to get the giant stack of ridonkulous things I do done.

Fun Times

So this week got interesting. School decided it hated me on the same week I decided that, ready or not, I was going to finish my next video tutorial.

The upshot is that you guys get a new kind of rushed tutorial, but no game design content because I was busy making said tutorial and handling school. Enjoy.


        --LazerBlade

More Revisions to the Posting Schedule

Looking back over this blog after I discontinued Cognitive Observations, I see a lot of filler posts. I see posts that are more updates than entertaining content, or posts that are basically quickly scraped together excuses for content. This was never what this blog was about. I think this may become an even bigger problem once I stop doing Music Hacker.

*gasp*

Yes, I'm going to be discontinuing my webshow once I finish season 2. The reasons and everything will be discussed in the season finale. The point is that webshow updates made up a  little over one sixth of the posts here, and that kind of content being removed doesn't magically make up for itself. After a lot of analysis, I arrived at the conclusion that I want to choose quality over quantity. That means I want to chisel my posts down to two per week. Where will these posts go in the week? One of them will go on Saturdays, obviously, and the other will be moved from Wednesday to Tuesday.  That way my terribly busy Wednesdays will get a little slack, and there will be new posts for you to read in your spare time on the weekend.

These changes are effective tomorrow. That way I don't have to have anything ready until Saturday. ;P


            --LazerBlade

Hecticity is not a word

This week/weekend has become excessively hectic. Please accept this Hard Trance release as a symbol of my willingness to do a proper game design article, even if I ended up not having time.

Thinking About Advertising

So I've been running this blog for awhile, but only recently have I thought about getting some Google AdSense in here. My primary focus will always be to provide you with free, interesting, and entertaining content, so don't think this a step toward the dark side. I would like the opinions of my readers on this, as you will be the ones who see the ads. Obviously, I would still get money even if you ignore them and don't click on them. But if you feel that ads would in some way ruin this site, please discuss in the comments. If you think I've waited to long and you're just filled with joy that I'm thinking about advertising, also discuss in the comments. I think you get the idea.

 Also, if/when I setup ads on this blog, feel free to complain if they seem too invasive or obnoxious. As previously stated, ads take the back seat in the automobile of priority.

    --LazerBlade

Posting Schedule and Review Format

I like writing. It's the type of delicate blend between science and art that always rubs me in a special way. Unfortunately, I don't practice it as much as I once did. Upon considering why this is, I noticed something rather interesting about the way I handle game reviews/analysis. I can't seem to make up my mind about whether I'm doing the normal consumer advice game review thing, or whether I'm analyzing and commenting on various aspects of a game.

Upon reflection I think my preferred choice would be game analysis. This means away with review scores, and away with a hastily scraped together paragraph at the end of every game analysis set attempting to explain who will and won't like the game. Rather than taking entire games or entire concepts, I will free myself to discuss, comment, and analyze whatever game related subject I find intellectually stimulating at the time. This will probably result in more entertaining and enlightening writing because I write best about a topic when I find interesting and stimulating.

Another topic that's crossed my mind is my posting schedule. After my comic strip went on hiatus I pretty much stopped posting on Mondays. I plan to change that ASAP. Either this Monday or next I will again start posting content on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. If I find time and inspiration to do a comic every once in awhile it will be posted on a Monday as another Cognitive Observation.

Let's see what kinds of interesting things get cooked up within the next few weeks. ;)

    --LazerBlade

Infiltrator Part 13

Yoinkers! Last month was the first time ever that this blog clocked(or whatever you call it) over 1,000 page views. Yay, and thanks for reading!

Anyway, I'm not here to ramble on about stats. I'm here to talk about Infiltrator.

The coolest new change is an important one. I finally added features that allow the player to place enemies of any type in the level editor. I still need to set this up for barriers and finish adding in a feature to export level files though. At least this is a good baseline.

You might also note that I created a new sprite for the player, based on my beloved Xt-mk3 ship. Here is a clearer picture of it in action:

From a programmers perspective, I've also done some cleaning up. I cleared out a lot of unnecessary code, added or improved comments in some sections, and went through a few really messy sections of code to make them neater. It's still teetering on the edge of being a really huge and unintelligible kludge, but at least I'm doing something to try and keep it from falling.

        --LazerBlade

SOPA & PIPA

Blacking out(all posts reverted to drafts) today.

Crysis 2 review part 2 will be up tomorrow(with the rest of the posts) if things go smoothly.

2011 retrospect

I was going to do a write up about site stats. Then I decided to turn it into a 2011 retrospective. Then I noticed that this will be the 100th post on this blog, posted on my birthday. Crazy how things work out huh?

So what did I accomplish this year? I finished a 3D screensaver, reviewed a number of games, started a webcomic, created two music albums, started a webshow and finished the first season, moved to this new blog, and made quite a bit of headway in a new game project.

Now the stats are interesting. Things started pretty slow, with a normal build. Then, two months ago, traffic started climbing like crazy. I have about 1000 views a month now, and still climbing. The one thing that orks me, is why I have so many silent viewers. I get comments from time to time, but yeesh. Talk about the silent majority...

Now I have to look back and see what I learned I guess. After all, what is age, if not a measure of experience? No, I don't make resolutions. I'm already more awesome than the average person the way I am.

So, I learned many things. The first thing I learned is not to start a project without being willing to commit serious amounts of time to it. Something that just takes an hour a day is a huge investment. Secondly, try to make very specific goals about the end product of any project at the beginning, to avoid confusion later on. Third, try to be realistic about what projects you choose to start. It's okay to be ambitious, but make sure you have the time, skills, and resources to complete your project before you start. It seems generally  best to choose a project that's just a bit out of your comfort zone. Something where you'll have to learn new things, but something you can still finish. Fourth, school should NOT be taken for granted. It's not safe to assume that your school will take care of itself while you work on something else. Last, under promise and over deliver. I've never been 100% accurate on how much time or other resources it would take to complete a project. It's much better to assume it will take more than you think. That way if it does, you''re ready for it, and if not, you just come out ahead of schedule(which is a good thing.)

I'm sure I've learned plenty more, but these five seem to stick out the most. Anything else I need to mention that's important... Oh yeah. Start writing blog posts early so they don't have to cut o-

    --LazerBlade

Updates and Observations

Here is Cognitive Observation #13:

I missed posting to this site this weekend because of the holidays. Blllleeeeeeehhhhh! :P

Cover based shooting

"Oh look, LazerBlade is coming out one last time to cover a pop buzzword before heaving his final breath and turning to the dark side of only doing music." If you have just said this, you may get in line at my vaporizer ray, near the volcano entrance. Otherwise, you can except the fact that I still do game design.

So, let's start flapping gums about cover based shooting. I'm not sure where this mechanic originated, but it was certainly popularized by games like Mass Effect and Time Crisis. In the case of Time Crisis, cover based shooting added more depth than the usual rail shooter perpetrated by the novelty value of a light-gun.

As time went on, PC and console games began playing with this mechanism as well. It's definitely an interesting idea, and it's a good thing that some games like Mass Effect 2 have taken the time to expound upon it. However, I think that one or two games are enough. Cover based shooting is really interesting, for about 30 minutes. After that, it becomes a boring ritual.

Step 1:  Wait for enemies to stop shooting.
Step 2:  Pop up and shoot at enemies until they start shooting.
Step 3:  Hide again.
Step 4:  Go back to step 1.

This is actually kind of interesting. But I find more depth, challenge and enjoyment in the old school, unrealistic, free-roaming, run n' gun game.

This problem is worsened by many games, because your health recharges at a rate prone to boredom. Mixing this with cover based shooting is going to make your job as a game designer quite difficult. Oh wait, I'm assuming your job is to make a fun game. I guess this was what you had in mind:

Step 1:  Shoot enemies until you're almost dead.
Step 2:  Hide for a few seconds until your health recharges to max.
Step 3:  Go back to step 1.

Now don't misinterpret me. I actually liked Mass Effect 2 from a game design perspective. It was a game that managed to work cover based shooting in with recharging health with a minimal amount of boredom. I still think it could have been better though.

Take this into mind. If you want player to take advantage of cover, why not just add in some chest high walls and a crouching button? This may seem like a bad idea since everyone is shunning FPS games, but what's wrong with it really? The only advantage of slowing the player down to the speed of a snail with a broken leg, and then taking away his crouching and jumping abilities, is that you as a level designer and programmer don't have half as much to worry about the player doing, since the player can't do half as much.

        --LazerBlade

Fun in craziness

Between studying full-time and being in a wedding recently, my schedule has maintained a constant state of flux and unpredictability. I unfortunately haven't had time to write up any cool articles or anything for you, so this time around I just have a quick update.

The tracks on my new album are pretty much finished, with October 22nd looking like a probable release date. That's only a week away, so I'm scrambling to get things 100% ready. Track listing art looks good, so here's a preview of the more or less finished version:

The idea started as being themed after the Synth1 Virtual Synthesizer. Then it morphed it's way from being based on LMMS plugins to a cyberpunky imaginary synthesizer that was drawn completely by me. I like the outcome, so I hope you enjoy it.

So yea, nothing much else going on. The reason I haven't been doing a lot of game related stuff is because this music is part of my official education, giving it priority over the more fun things like programming. Hopefully I will soon have more time to spend on programming and games, but we have yet to see what the future brings.

        --LazerBlade

New posting schedule

As I write this, I'm on break from cramming for school. As much as I'd love to keep posting as often as I was, I don't really have time anymore. So the new posting schedule will be changed to Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday from now on.

    --LazerBlade

Music: tastes, habits, and talents

I've kind of been letting my Youtube channel and blog separate themselves. I tend to discuss and post music on Youtube, and mostly have game, programming related or techno-geek content on this blog. I'm going to try breaking that up, starting now by discussing music here.

Just don't get lost in here, I still like programming better.

Let's start with my musical history. As a young kid, I heard all kinds of stuff. Nursery rhymes, hip-hop, punk, rock'n'roll, classical, country, folk, gospel, and more. I didn't really care much for composition, I just liked certain sounds of certain instruments. I happened to like electric guitars a LOT, giving me a sweet spot for punk, metal, and rock'n'roll.

As time went on, I kept acquiring new tastes. My love for instrumentation stayed, but composition started playing a bigger role in defining my taste. I took a liking to blues, jazz, and classical. I especially liked piano solos of these three. Eventually, I started some piano lessons. Here I learned about theory, composition, and a lot more. I still take lessons from the same teacher, and I'm sure there is still more to learn.

I eventually learned some improvisation. Although I'm still new to it, I can lay down some blues in a fashion I quite enjoy. I composed a few of my own pieces, mostly to play at yearly recitals. My new ability for composition, despite being quite simple, still ushered in a desire to make music myself.

I kept doing piano, but started experimenting with guitar and electronic music. I never really could play guitar much, but had a kind of perseverance for electronic music. I started on the only machine I owned at the time, which was only powerful enough to run DOS. I couldn't even afford that, so I went with FreeDOS. Although primitive, this operating system came with a program that would compile text files into MIDI which could then be played through the PC speaker. I contented myself playing around with this until I got a slightly less obsolete machine which I ran Slackware 10 on.

On this machine, I experimented with Audacity. I generated tones and whitenoise, then applied effects and pitch-bend. This didn't work so well, but it didn't last long either. I finally got a machine that was barely obsolete, allowing me to get some real music software. I didn't know where to go at first, but eventually ended up spending quite some time playing with BEAST. It was here that I finally gained some knowledge of electronic music, and picked up a lot of experience that traveled with me to the next stage.

As time continued to pass, I eventually got a modern machine. Determined to find some real software, I came across FL Studio. I messed around with that for a couple months, but pretty quickly discovered LMMS. LMMS was perfect for me. It was there that I built my musical home, and have used LMMS for almost a year now.

So, about four and a half years after my first piano lesson, here I stand-erm sit. In a chair. In front of a cutting edge machine. It wouldn't seem so weird if I didn't consider what I might think of my music five years from now. Music that I thought I had made awesome back then, seems really terrible now.

Anyway, now I've got a really weird set of tastes. To explain what I mean, I like really hardcore and grungy punk. I also like me some uber-happy drippy and stupid pop. Did I mention Gilbert and Sullivan make really awesome music? I love Hardstyle, Trance, House, and many other forms of electronic music. Opera, classical, and ragtime also sound pretty good. Actually, there are very few genre's I don't enjoy, and even fewer that I don't respect. There's just a few, but they're there.

So yeah, that's pretty much all there is to it. It's also why you'll hear one style on my album, and then a totally different one in the next track. I don't really like to listen to one sound for too long, I get board fast.

Rock On, opera fans!


        --LazerBlade