Begin 4

[pinback]

Let's start a new thread.

Directional shields, bitches.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Is Begin in real time?

[pinback]

Turn-based, though I'm primed to make it real-time-pausable! Taking votes now!

Also you've never played Begin? After all we've been through?

You think you know a guy. Next thing you're gonna say you've never seen Airplane!

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

I will play Begin if - some day, some night - you are on a stream so you can answer interface questions for me. That is all I ask. Just to save me the trouble of looking stuff up.

Is Begin 3 the best one to start with for someone like myself, a special-needs gamer that likes EGA?

[pinback]

I will do this. I have a NEW BUILD of Begin 3 that Tom Nelson (fuck Tom Nelson!) sent to me, so I can both teach you, and playtest the new build at the same time.

What night works for you? It'd be about 7 PM your time.

(If Tom Nelson googles his own name and finds this page, I'm just kidding, man. Lighten up already.)

[pinback]

Development resumed this morning.

1. Pausable real-time!
2. Torpedoes now cause directional damage to shields. (You must hit a shield that's down now to blow up the ships instead of just hitting them with anything anywhere.)
3. Basic (very) AI for the enemies -- they'll navigate around randomly and constantly shoot at you.

With #2 and #3 above, it's now technically a "game" with win and lose states, and the tiniest bit of strategy (maneuvering to hit their exposed hulls). It is the worst game ever, but I mean, do I put it on Steam now? Get this baby into early access, get all them pre-orders and then bail for Aruba?

[AArdvark]

It has a Star Castle feel to it. Can you use a spinner to control the direction and a thrust button to go forward move ahead try to detect it?

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Can I play test this game?

[pinback]

Yes, just download it (https://github.com/joltcountry/begin4) (and install Love), go into the directory, and type "love ."

@Aardvark right now it defaults to real-time, with the space-bar pausing it, but ultimately it will be the other way around. The point is to be a slow, semi-turn-based naval-type tactical game, not a spinneroonie action game. Think Battlestar Galactica Deadlock (which you don't know what it is), but in 2D instead of 3D.

It is about 10% done, I would guess.

[pinback]

Hold on but there is a bug right now where you explode as soon as you fire torpedoes. Okay, 9% done.

[pinback]

Okay, should be working now. Quick tips --

Spacebar (when held down) pauses.

Mouse (or whatever) right button sets direction and speed.
Left button fires volley of torpedoes at pointer
Middle button drags map
Mousewheel zooms
Q quits

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Hold on but there is a bug right now where you explode as soon as you fire torpedoes. Okay, 9% done.

LaForge's VISOR has been compromised!

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Okay, should be working now. Quick tips --

Spacebar (when held down) pauses.

Mouse (or whatever) right button sets direction and speed.
Left button fires volley of torpedoes at pointer
Middle button drags map
Mousewheel zooms
Q quits

Which button is quicksave???????

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Also, yes, if you finish it I'll pay the Steam fee.

I worry we might get cease and desisted if we put Pinneroids up, but I'm a man with experience getting cease and desisted. That should have been our video game company name. Cease and Desist Wares.

[AArdvark]

C&D Warezhouse, your one stop no-cop shop.

I forgot about the turn baseed aspect. Been playing a lot of Mame lately. Will there be game videos when it's at 100%?

[pinback]

I've switched it back to defaulting to pause so it doesn't give off action-game vibes. Hold the spacebar for HOT SPACE ACTION!

[pinback]

Got up this morning and rolled my own little windowing system! Cool thing is when you resize the main window, all these windows resize themselves to maintain the same relative dimensions.

Love/Lua doesn't come with anything like this built-in, so everything is home-grown. Love gives you "draw a line here, draw a rectangle there, draw an image file here." For the rest, you're on your own.

[AArdvark]

I picture a girl's head in the pop up window saying: "Your forces are under attack."

What kind of audio can you implement in this?

THE
BEEP BOOP
AARDVARK

[pinback]

It'll play whatever sounds you got.

[AArdvark]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iHKKq7kMF8w