Dieu Tran's Blog

Gaming II: Testing & Debugging

2010-04-05T09:01:00.000-07:00

Testing & Debugging is useful because it does what it claims; to debug any errors within the game; if any code errors are present the output during testing will show up in the errors of the actions window which then can be corrected at its given location.

Gaming II: Coding Enemies

2010-04-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

Adding enemy AI is very important. As the name states it adds artificial intelligence to an enemy to allow for attacks and even run away from incoming projectiles. Enemy coding is very useful in my game because a game such as mine has many enemies on screen at one time so being able to code enemies properly is a crucial part in gameplay experience.

Gaming II: Running&Jumping

2010-04-05T08:11:00.000-07:00

Running and Jumping plays a huge role in my game; my game requires jumping and running to gather power-ups, attack enemies and traverse levels. Jumping may also be used to stomp on enemies a-la Mario Bros.

Gaming II: Platforming

2010-04-05T07:49:00.000-07:00

Platforming will be used greatly in my game because my game is primarily a platform type game. Platforms will be used to create jumping ledges, barriers and other useful "stepping stones". Platforms create levels which enlarges the game world; it is useful to create muliple layers and dimensions.

Gaming II: Drag and Drop

2010-04-05T07:26:00.001-07:00

Drag and drop is useful in games such as RTS or puzzle type games and can be incorporated in my game; i may include drag and drop in instances such as grabbing keys to unlock bridges or to bypass doors but that may be the extent of its use.

Gaming II: Character Effects

2010-04-05T07:15:00.000-07:00

Character effects is a very crucial part in my game as it adds special effects; for example using alpha and rotation in unision can add a blinking effect for a propelled projectile or a spinning blade. These effects will add a visual and gameplay experience unique to platforming; power-ups can be shown blinking on screen and when added with a timer can boast many different options for the power-up.

Gaming II: Timer

2010-02-25T21:09:00.001-08:00

A timer is a great way to implement timed sequences to initiate frames or power-ups; i will use this in my game because i have power-ups that can be collected which has a time limit usage.

Gaming II: Sound Effects

2010-02-25T21:07:00.000-08:00

Adding sound effects is a great way to add depth, variety and realism to a game; my game will have plenty of sound effects that is beneficial to the game which will enhance gameplay.

Gaming II: Learning from Others

2010-02-25T21:03:00.000-08:00

Learning from others is substantial in my gaming techniques because getting help is never a bad thing; my peers have to taught me better coding practices a great sites to work on actionscripting.

Gaming II: Preloader

2010-02-25T21:00:00.000-08:00

Preloader is a unique effect because it enables files to be uploaded so the end-user won't have to wait on the flash game to grab files. I may have to implement this because i feel my file is quite large and may have to pre-load them in.

Gaming II: Finding Solutions

2010-02-17T08:19:00.001-08:00

If i'm lost and not sure of what i'm doing in Flash i typically do online searches but i mostly use my instructor Patrick for help. Being able to download a Flash file from globloria has also been very helpful because it shows exactly what code is written for the game to work.

Gaming II: Collison Detection

2010-02-17T08:16:00.000-08:00

Today i learned how to code collision detection and projections; i will definitely use it within my game because my game features a lot projectiles and with it collision detection is a must in order for it to work properly.

Gaming II: Score Keeping

2010-02-04T08:13:00.000-08:00

Score keeping is a valuable asset to have; i plan to use it somewhat to keep track of health but i don't plan to use it primarily for score. Also, the health will be implemented with collision detection to better make use of the property.

Gaming II: Navigating Timeline

2010-02-03T10:02:00.000-08:00

An issue that i encountered was keeping multiple symbols on 1 layer. i finally realized what i did and made sure to make several layers for all of my symbols.

Gaming II: Scrolling Background

2010-02-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

Scrolling background is very essential part of my game because it's a side-scrolling platformer. I will use code to manipulate each symbol to move as the character moves left or right accordingly. A Scrolling background is a very useful mechanic that i will be using often.

Gaming II: Special Effects

2010-02-03T09:58:00.000-08:00

Special effects add variety and pizzazz to a game; i will incorporate these effects via frame by frame animations and coding. I intend to incorporate sound effects/special effects with jumps, deaths, power-up pick ups etc.

Gaming II: Moving on a Path

2010-02-01T10:07:00.001-08:00

This will be beneficial to me in regards to background animations that i will incorporate into the game that will make the game seem alive. I will add special effects and other motion add on's to make the game more livelier.

Gaming II: Learning From Others

2010-02-01T09:43:00.000-08:00

Being able to join mulitple files together is very helpful in organization of all flash files that deliver what i'm expected of in my game. I was using mostly my own files and adding or deleting them into the actual game that i'm developing. I don't have an actual system more like a habit of cutting and pasting files that I need in my game.

Assembling the game

2009-12-15T08:41:00.000-08:00

it was a blast to see my final game come together; it looks great but definitely needs work. i am looking forward to seeing this through to Gaming II

Adding all 3 elements

2009-12-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

I feel that i have learned so much after learning how to implement sound, interaction and animation. Those three elements truly benefit how game design can be managed and added to help stimulate the human psyche.

Adding Interaction

2009-12-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

I was able to add actionscript onto a graphic and allowed the character to move on the screen. It allowed me to add functionality and movement on the screen. It was very cool to see movement across the screen using complex coding and processes.

Adding Sound

2009-11-11T08:30:00.001-08:00

Adding sound into flash was simple; it utilizes simple midi or even wav music into the game. i was able to have background sounds as well as sounds played when initialized. the only concern is that once a sound is placed it is hard to manipulate the sound to match the entirity of the clip.

Adding Animation

2009-11-11T06:21:00.000-08:00

Adding animation using the tween aspect was neat; it allowed for frames to be aligned in order for an animation to occur. I was able to control the speed and direction of the object. Animation is definitely a huge step in making a game come to life. However, a complaint that i have is that it is very tedious to keep the animation fluid which requires adding layer upon layer in order for it to look realistic.

Adding Buttons

2009-11-09T08:33:00.001-08:00

In flash we were able to incorporate buttons into flash; it was very easy to convert ANYTHING into an interactive button; it will help the game navigate through the game such as from title to options and back

Re-Creating Paper Prototyping

2009-11-09T08:18:00.000-08:00

i re-created my paper prototyping in Flash and was able to make the title page and a few options screens with interactive buttons; i really enjoyed this experience because it allowed me to give me a glimpse of what my game can become and how it can be improved;

Paper Prototyping

2009-10-21T08:06:00.000-07:00

What did i think about paper prototyping? well, first off i was not given artistic talent so that wasn't too much fun! however, the project turned out very well. it allowed me to put my ideas and thoughts onto paper and "show" my game concept in real visual print. it gave viewers as well as myself an image or an overall display of the game.

My Favorite Game of All Time

2009-09-21T08:42:00.000-07:00

it's hard to say which game is absolutely my favorite of all time; it's a close three-way race between Resident Evil 4, Final Fantasy 7 and the Metal Gear Solid saga but i believe RE4 slightly takes the cake.

To begin i love Resident Evil 4 (RE4) because the gameplay was revolutionary in terms of fluidity; the over the shoulder camera aspect was brilliant and was the first of its kind. if you notice, many other games took this camera angle into their own games such as Gears of War, Uncharted, Batman Arkham Asylum, and many other 3rd person games. RE4 was a roller coaster from beginning to end and offer a different challenge than its predecessors; instead of going with the survivor horror aspect it decided to lean more towards action horror. in the first few installments, ammo was hard to come by so it 'felt' like survival whereas in RE4, ammo was aplenty but survival felt more user friendly. it also allowed for weapon customization which allowed any gun in the game to be upgraded via money. specs such as reload speed, gun power, capacity or aiming speed could be altered to ensure better zombie killing. the pacing of the game was great and the boss battles were epic and allowed for tactics. the game was first released as a Gamecube exclusive but its success earned it a release on the PS2 and Wii later on.
However, the heat that i give on the game is the story-line; some people don't really care too much about story but i'm an avid fan. not saying the story was absent but it doesn't hold up to the awesome gameplay, visuals, sound and ambience of the game.

My First Experience with Flash

2009-09-16T08:46:00.000-07:00

Was it hard to make your mini game? Somewhat difficult being my first time with any sort of Animation program; the coding aspect of the whole experience is something i need to practice with in order to better my spectrum of writing code
What was the best part of this topic? The idea that everything is written in code and that what i wrote and how i wrote the code affects the entire project. the best part is seeing for the first time actual parts/symbols mover
The worst part? The worst part to say the least is making 1 mistake and messing up the whole project; also, understanding the code and manipulating the symbols/characters is something that can get frustrating but it takes a lot of practice in order to master it
Do you play games in your free time? YES!!! that is my hobby that i do most of the time with my life; being able to develop and to play around with games allows me to finally understand all the small details that go with gaming
Which ones do you play and why are they your favorite? i play every genre of gaming except for MMORPG's; the reason for this is not the fact i do not like it, but rather it is because i have not yet given it a chance. i absolutely love Japanese RPG's!! The Final Fantasy series has always been a favorite of mine. i also enjoy great action/adventure games such as Prince of Persia, Ratchet and Clank, God of War series, DMC, Ninja Gaiden etc. I'm also an avid player of FPS only because of it's multi-player aspects.

Playing to Learn: My Thoughts 2

2009-08-31T08:56:00.000-07:00

* Name and purpose of the game: Teenage Pregnancy; purpose of the game is to deliver facts, do's and don'ts about teenage pregnancy.
* Describe it from a learner's point of view and a developer’s point of view: from my point of view it is a game that trys to deliver a fun game through education but it lacks the fun for sure. the developer wanted to create a "board game" and the concept of the game is really educational first and game design last.
* Design Analysis (Does it look good? Does it clearly illustrate the scientific the concept?): the game looks AWFUL, the colors are everywhere and the "baby" is downright scary!!! the concept is there; the reason it is ugly is to show teenage girls that pregnancey IS UGLY!!!
* Usability Analysis (Is it clear what you need to do as a user? Does it work well?): the game has instructions but if someone doesn't know how to play it then somethings wrong!! it was clear to me that abstinance is the way to go or wrap it up lol.....but in regards to game design, it's simple, pick a card, answer the question; if you're right, move forward, if you're wrong move back; all questions have an "educational facts" answer regardless of right or wrong. It works okay, it's a matter of answering and selecting choices.
* Suggestions for improvement: Well pretty much everything, but for an educational game it hits the nail on the head; as of a gaming perspective, i would re-create and re-design the entire project.
* 2-3 things that you would like to learn how to do (in terms of functionality, design or content): as i said before, pretty much anything gaming; i cannot wait to learn about physics and textures.l

Playing to Learn: My Thoughts

2009-08-31T08:18:00.000-07:00

* Name and purpose of the game: September 12th , the purpose of the game is to kill as many frigging terrorists as possible; there is no plot, learning curve, beginning or end.
* Describe it from a learner's point of view and a developer’s point of view: it's pretty much a simple top-down first person shooter that utilizes a simple aim and shoot/deploy. there really isn't any skill involved and can be played by anyone and doesn't require any learning curve. the developer wanted to create a game that is utilizing the Sept. 11th bombing as an amusing way to "get back" at the terrorist that bombed us; the developer gave us infinite weapons and infinite amount of enemies to kill.
* Design Analysis (Does it look good? Does it clearly illustrate the scientific the concept?): the game, being simple in nature, looks good. it uses recycled character models but it's not asking for much but simple shoot and click gameplay. As for the concept of "shooter" it IS that but it lacks depth which the developer probably knew when making this game.
* Usability Analysis (Is it clear what you need to do as a user? Does it work well?): it is VERY clear what i was supposed to do; the initial start screen displayed: "There is no beginning", "There is no end"; the simplicity of it is amusing. It works well; when a bomb is deployed and manages to "kill" someone, other citizens will kneel down and pray to the dead body!! hilarious!!
* Suggestions for improvement: have different levels with the same functions; have different weapons with pros and cons such as overheating, time limit, limited ammo or/and special weapons; incorporate a point systems such as: single, double, triple kills and/or building damage. Put in enemy inforcements that "fire" back at the user.
* 2-3 things that you would like to learn how to do (in terms of functionality, design or content) s: since this is my first class in gaming, i want to learn EVERYTHING: anti-aliasing, hit detection, frame rates, level design, bit mapping etc.

Gaming 101

2009-08-24T09:01:00.000-07:00

Yo!!! this is Dieu Tran aka TrAnZ4m3R and i'm digging this class and i'm super duper excited to start making games....!!! Granted i may be a "noob" but that doesn't mean i'm short on skill and ideas!! Can't wait to start creating some cool flash games and to start taking my ideas and bringing them to life....CANNOT WAIT!!!