03/21/2013
Today I added code so that the skybox can be specified from the level builder and dynamically loaded based on the XML for each level. In doing so I went through and renamed the current skyboxes to be standardized.
I also updated the sarcastic dragon to use the same font from the Ninja scrolls. This alowed the text to be a little bit more readable.
Here he is mocking the player whenever he falls into the water:
Thursday, March 21, 2013
EAE Top Undergraduate Program in the Nation
03/21/2013
Recently our EAE (Entertainment Arts & Engineering) department was ranked by the Princeton Review as the number 1 Undergraduate program in the nation.
The Salt Lake Tribune did an article on the success of the department. I would like to say congratulations to everyone involved. I am just glad I was able to be a part of it.
Recently our EAE (Entertainment Arts & Engineering) department was ranked by the Princeton Review as the number 1 Undergraduate program in the nation.
The Salt Lake Tribune did an article on the success of the department. I would like to say congratulations to everyone involved. I am just glad I was able to be a part of it.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Normal Mapping, Particle Effects, Bugs, and Lava
03/20/2013
With the help of our level builder being updated to support exporting different shader types, as well as variables (lightPosition, lightColor, ambientLightColor, shininess, specularPower) for the Normal Mapping, I updated our DisplayModel.cs to dynamically set these for each model based on the level builder's exported XML file. Additionally I was able to also update the Particle Effects code to also take advantage of the level builder's XML file to dynamically place particle effects wherever they are listed in the XML.
Here are some examples of the ability to set dynamic lighting:
I have also fixed a couple of bugs. Normal Mapping was not set properly on our dragon, platform_squre_brickmoss, and wall FBX models. Here is the updated platform_squre_brickmoss:
There was also a problem where if one of our Ninja scrolls with text was displayed on the screen, any particle effects that were behind it were being seen through it. I updated the show and hide methods of the scrolls to also turn on and off particle effects as needed to fix the problem.
Another bug that was found was if a player exited game play and went back to the initial start screen, both the water and skybox would not unload and would be visible. I added code to unload both of these on the pause screen and upon exiting the level.
Lastly, I was asked to take lava textures created by one of our artists and implement it with the water effect. Here are some video and picture of the textures in game:
With the help of our level builder being updated to support exporting different shader types, as well as variables (lightPosition, lightColor, ambientLightColor, shininess, specularPower) for the Normal Mapping, I updated our DisplayModel.cs to dynamically set these for each model based on the level builder's exported XML file. Additionally I was able to also update the Particle Effects code to also take advantage of the level builder's XML file to dynamically place particle effects wherever they are listed in the XML.
Here are some examples of the ability to set dynamic lighting:
I have also fixed a couple of bugs. Normal Mapping was not set properly on our dragon, platform_squre_brickmoss, and wall FBX models. Here is the updated platform_squre_brickmoss:
There was also a problem where if one of our Ninja scrolls with text was displayed on the screen, any particle effects that were behind it were being seen through it. I updated the show and hide methods of the scrolls to also turn on and off particle effects as needed to fix the problem.
Another bug that was found was if a player exited game play and went back to the initial start screen, both the water and skybox would not unload and would be visible. I added code to unload both of these on the pause screen and upon exiting the level.
Lastly, I was asked to take lava textures created by one of our artists and implement it with the water effect. Here are some video and picture of the textures in game:
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Game Play Video and Pictures for GDC
03/19/2013
Last night and this morning I worked on capturing new game play video and pictures for the upcoming Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Our EAE department will have a booth and some of our team will be traveling out for the conference to show off our game.
Here are the videos I captured:
Here are the pictures I captured:
Here is the trailer that was made for GDC:
Last night and this morning I worked on capturing new game play video and pictures for the upcoming Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Our EAE department will have a booth and some of our team will be traveling out for the conference to show off our game.
Here are the videos I captured:
Here are the pictures I captured:
Here is the trailer that was made for GDC:
Monday, March 18, 2013
Sarcastic Dragon
03/18/2013
After a couple different iterations of size and textures, I have finished the animations for the sarcastic dragon coming in and mocking the player. The first scroll texture was a little to tall and not wide enough so it was shortened and widened. Here are video and pictures of the initial size and textures:
Here is a picture of the updated size and texture:
After a couple different iterations of size and textures, I have finished the animations for the sarcastic dragon coming in and mocking the player. The first scroll texture was a little to tall and not wide enough so it was shortened and widened. Here are video and pictures of the initial size and textures:
Here is a picture of the updated size and texture:
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Shaders, Normal Mapping, FBX Files
03/17/2013
Members of our team are running into problems when artists are submitting new FBX models, or when the level designers are selecting a shader type for a model that is not designed to be shaded that way. So I have gone in and updated our DisplayModel.cs to catch shader types that are not supported for each FBX model that is displayed. This is mainly for Normal Mapping, either when someone sets the shader type to normal mapping and the FBX model has no Normal Mapping, or when the FBX model is designed for Normal Mapping, but has not been set to be processed by the Normal Mapping Processor. This updated code will allow for the game to always build and run, but models may not be drawn as well as they could be.
In the process I have gone through and updated the following models so that our code recognizes them for what they are and will display them all the way they were intended:
Lamp_1, Lamp_2, Lamp_3, Lamp_4, Lamp_5, crate_max, fire_pit_big, lamp_short, pillar_short, platform_squre_brickmoss.
Members of our team are running into problems when artists are submitting new FBX models, or when the level designers are selecting a shader type for a model that is not designed to be shaded that way. So I have gone in and updated our DisplayModel.cs to catch shader types that are not supported for each FBX model that is displayed. This is mainly for Normal Mapping, either when someone sets the shader type to normal mapping and the FBX model has no Normal Mapping, or when the FBX model is designed for Normal Mapping, but has not been set to be processed by the Normal Mapping Processor. This updated code will allow for the game to always build and run, but models may not be drawn as well as they could be.
In the process I have gone through and updated the following models so that our code recognizes them for what they are and will display them all the way they were intended:
Lamp_1, Lamp_2, Lamp_3, Lamp_4, Lamp_5, crate_max, fire_pit_big, lamp_short, pillar_short, platform_squre_brickmoss.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Finalized EffectsManager, Shadows and Dragons
03/05/2013
Today I finalized all the standardized effects to go along with the new EffectsManager, which included the two new fire effects.
I am now looking into adding shadows into our world. I will be using the two Indie Game code samples from Microsoft as a base:
http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/shadow_mapping_1
http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/avatar_shadows
I will also be working on adding a sarcastic / funny dragon that makes fun of the player anytime he is unsuccessful.
Today I finalized all the standardized effects to go along with the new EffectsManager, which included the two new fire effects.
I am now looking into adding shadows into our world. I will be using the two Indie Game code samples from Microsoft as a base:
http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/shadow_mapping_1
http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/avatar_shadows
I will also be working on adding a sarcastic / funny dragon that makes fun of the player anytime he is unsuccessful.
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