~ Novelty's December and plans for the New Year ~
I better do this now, before I get swamped later tonight when I do all the end of month things. This hasn't been a good month where my plans were concerned. The release of the new look of the engine has really thrown a monkeywrench in the works.
Shepherds
VTES shepherds are king of the hill here, all 5 slots being filled up, although I have to wonder why. Still this will be the first and last month they'd be around on the engine, since VTES will be winking off early next year for a while.
We lost Chodak and Spirit as shepherds as well this month. Shepherding does take a toll after a while.
gNet BOT
The gNet Bot got hit with a whole lot of questions due to two reasons - ignorant VTES players and the new build. The former was easier to handle than the latter. Hopefully the answers are up to scratch on all those questions
Forums
This has been the quiet bit. I moved out some of the forums from my section to the proper sections, they are hidden still though. Added game icon to Sideshow and changed the DoA icon on the forums, but otherwise things are going on quietly there.
Games
A number of games got updated this month, mainly for the new features of the new release. As usual, only games with changes are reported.
AVPVT Aliens vs Predator vs Terminator
The game needed a 4 player mode so this was done... at least for the contact scenario. Other scenarios are not available yet. This game is suppose to be "low tech" or light, but the contact scenario has 2 bits of automation now - autorotate and auto play locations.
B5 Babylon 5
This was one of the things that was scheduled this month and it was completed. The Vorlon cards have been updated and the looks are updated. The game has also been updated for the new engine.
BOWL Bowling
Each time I opened the file to work on this, I ended up doing MND work. Consequently nothing much has been done on this.
CHKRS Checkers
There was a slight defect in the game which made all black pieces belong to the wrong player. This was fixed.
GOFSH Go Fish
The Tournament's cardback was added to this game, and the plates were updated. Some minor logic upgrades were also carried out.
MND Magi-Nation Duel
The background change to Weave will be the last change for this year, it's a bit more cheery though. It's gonna stay as the background for at least 3 months next year. One more card was added - the version final version of Twisted Dreams. I moved the old version of Twisted Dreams to the Promo section.
GOFSH Go Fish
The Tournament's cardback was added to this game, and the plates were updated. Some minor logic upgrades were also carried out.
FB Fastbreak
There was a basic update to this to enable the card types to be shown correctly in the new build. Not much changed.
Portable Adventures
The major thing that was done this month on Portable Adventures was the fix for the next/pass system so that things handle even more smoothly. It's still a bit rough around the edges and there are still a million things to code for, but the basics are all there now.
WS Wildstorms
There was a basic update to this to enable the card types to be shown correctly in the new build. Not much changed.
January 2005 Plans
Well, I didn't get to finish one thing from last month which will be carried forward.
Bowling really should get finished this month. I have too many unfinished games on my plate as it is. I shall have to push myself to get this done. I don't want to carry this over to February. But I just can't work on it because each time I sit down and look at it, I end up working on MND, so that would have to be first.
MND needs an update for the final card text on EL as well as some image updates - Savannah Hyren and Wall of Dark Fire and Fiergo.
HumAliens needs its expansion added this month. The scans are all done, it's just a matter of adding cards.
Hyborean Gates should really go off optional to firm this month. The scans aren't done yet so that's a first.
The regular optionals - Go Fish cardback updates and scanning Triple Triad will still be retained for the month.
So, prioritised games for this month:
1. MND update - EL stuff by 7th January, custom cards ongoing.
2. Bowling - get playable 15th January, public by 31st January.
3. HumAliens - Second Order updates by 21st January.
4. Hyborean Gates - scan by 15th January, alpha by 31st January.
O. Add Go Fish cardbacks when available.
O. Complete Triple Triad scans.
Rest of the Year Plans
Aliens vs Predators (AVPVT) - Finish off next scenario - Countdown. Add Atmosphere cards and create the Planetfall scenario. Get Terminator scans from BugLaden, add it to the engine and create the 2 additional scenarios, as well as the Terminator scenario(s). Quite a bit of work here, but between Ravage and Ryan(Rekkon), I hope to get everything up and ready by the end of the year.
Babylon 5 (B5) - Bold text takes the next priority now that the images/icons are fixed. Still on the list of things to do is the automation for replacement and the automated influence tracking and automated initiative determination. Those would take quite a lot of time that I'll have to schedule to be set aside.
Borders (BORD) - Nothing more to be done in Borders. Ed has asked for icons on the special cards, so maybe those will get an update, when I get the time.
Bowling (BOWL) - There shouldnt' be much work on this once it goes public, but I won't know until then what has to be done on it.
Checkers (CHECK) - This is another "no frills", "low-tech" game at the moment. It would probably get upgraded once I have the time, motivation and ideas, but for now it's playable and that would have to do.
Elemental (ELEM) - The tidal wave automation has long been outstanding. I think it's possible to do this now, but the script is going to be rather complicated. No schedule for this. Not a high priority since the game works well without the automation and I don't want to introduce something that would introduce errors. It will be done when I can find the time and the motivation.
FastBreak (FB) - The game is beginning to feel a bit "low tech" now, eventhough it did have a few innovations (when it was first made). Could do with more playtesting and more inprovements, but until I find the time and the motivation, this isn't going to be done anytime soon.
Firestorm (FIRE) - New licensed game for me to do for 2005, for April public release, or at least that's the plan.
Go Fish (GOFSH) - What do you do when the game plays well and is bug free? Nothing I suppose. However, it'd be getting a minor facelift soon - a tiny crab will be added which will allow an 5 more players to play the game simultaneously. I doubt we'll ever get 13 players into a Go Fish game, but who knows? The schedule is undetermined at the moment, and it's not high priority. As usual, cardbacks will continually be added to this game.
Hamlet (HAMLT) - There really isn't much to do on this simple game except more playtesting... and perhaps a tournament or two. Hamlet is one of the few of my licensed games I'll consider ready for Now Playing status.
HumAliens (HALN) - The game is dead, but there's still work to be done. Hopefully, the New Order would be an Online only expansion to be added by January.
Hyborean Gates (GATES) - Hopefully this will go public in March. It's going to be another "no frills", "low-tech" game though so it might lie fallow until someone with more enthusiasm and ideas comes along to take it over.
Magi-Nation Duel (MND) - Custom cards are still ongoing and I think people are rather used to the gameplay. The only other thing that can be done is to track how energy is gained and used up. However that is a monumental task since every card does it differently and there are many modifiers... which means it's not going to get done. Tainted Glimpses will also be added sometime in the year. I think I might also add in something to shuffle all creatures back into the deck for Dream Rift. That's as much automation as I'd be doing...
Portable Adventures (PAD) - The other area to update would be the Encounter cards. I have a rough idea of how to automate these, but they seem rather inconsequential to the whole game, so they might not get done until I get the time and the motivation. In addition, there are two card sets that will be added near the end of the year so those will get priority when they are available.
Quartet (QUART) - More playtesting is needed on this game. Not much improvements will be made until further playtesting is carried out. The game seems stable though.
Reversi (RVRSI) - Since nipa added the left-click functionality and upgraded the images, it's done and has been upgraded to "Now Playing". No work required.
Triple Triad (TRIAD) - Scanning has started, but I have no idea when I'll have the time to do this. I only have 1 - 90, so if anyone wants to scan in the rest of the 18 cards, for me, they are most welcome. Please PM me for more details.
Urland (URLND) - It could use some scoring automation at some point in the future, time to be determined.
Wildstorms (WS) - Nothing much can be done to fully automate setup until after Bug has got the next build out the door. Also, there's the plan to add my custom StormWatch expansion sometime this year.
Wildstorms Legends (WSLS) - This game is going into the queue after Bowling, Firestorm, Hyborean Gates and Triple Triad. I guess that makes it a September public release game.
Wildstorm: Set 1 (WSS1) - The WSS2 update is still planned, although it hasn't gone ahead. The game also needs and auto-score if the defender wins. This will be done with the WSS2 update. Schedule: May - August.
You Need Drew's Truck (YNDT) - I'd like to automate moving the truck, and automate the initial placements of the donuts.
Yukk (YUKK) - This game feels rather low tech, but it works well. I think I'll leave it as it is.
I have way too many games on my plate. No new game announcements from me until at least 3 of them are cleared.
2005 Plans
February - FIRE, BORD, GATES, YNDT
March - B5, TRIAD, URLND, WS
April - MND, TRIAD
May - WSS1
June - WSLS, WSS1
July - WSLS
Shepherds
VTES shepherds are king of the hill here, all 5 slots being filled up, although I have to wonder why. Still this will be the first and last month they'd be around on the engine, since VTES will be winking off early next year for a while.
We lost Chodak and Spirit as shepherds as well this month. Shepherding does take a toll after a while.
gNet BOT
The gNet Bot got hit with a whole lot of questions due to two reasons - ignorant VTES players and the new build. The former was easier to handle than the latter. Hopefully the answers are up to scratch on all those questions
Forums
This has been the quiet bit. I moved out some of the forums from my section to the proper sections, they are hidden still though. Added game icon to Sideshow and changed the DoA icon on the forums, but otherwise things are going on quietly there.
Games
A number of games got updated this month, mainly for the new features of the new release. As usual, only games with changes are reported.
AVPVT Aliens vs Predator vs Terminator
The game needed a 4 player mode so this was done... at least for the contact scenario. Other scenarios are not available yet. This game is suppose to be "low tech" or light, but the contact scenario has 2 bits of automation now - autorotate and auto play locations.
B5 Babylon 5
This was one of the things that was scheduled this month and it was completed. The Vorlon cards have been updated and the looks are updated. The game has also been updated for the new engine.
BOWL Bowling
Each time I opened the file to work on this, I ended up doing MND work. Consequently nothing much has been done on this.
CHKRS Checkers
There was a slight defect in the game which made all black pieces belong to the wrong player. This was fixed.
GOFSH Go Fish
The Tournament's cardback was added to this game, and the plates were updated. Some minor logic upgrades were also carried out.
MND Magi-Nation Duel
The background change to Weave will be the last change for this year, it's a bit more cheery though. It's gonna stay as the background for at least 3 months next year. One more card was added - the version final version of Twisted Dreams. I moved the old version of Twisted Dreams to the Promo section.
GOFSH Go Fish
The Tournament's cardback was added to this game, and the plates were updated. Some minor logic upgrades were also carried out.
FB Fastbreak
There was a basic update to this to enable the card types to be shown correctly in the new build. Not much changed.
Portable Adventures
The major thing that was done this month on Portable Adventures was the fix for the next/pass system so that things handle even more smoothly. It's still a bit rough around the edges and there are still a million things to code for, but the basics are all there now.
WS Wildstorms
There was a basic update to this to enable the card types to be shown correctly in the new build. Not much changed.
January 2005 Plans
Well, I didn't get to finish one thing from last month which will be carried forward.
Bowling really should get finished this month. I have too many unfinished games on my plate as it is. I shall have to push myself to get this done. I don't want to carry this over to February. But I just can't work on it because each time I sit down and look at it, I end up working on MND, so that would have to be first.
MND needs an update for the final card text on EL as well as some image updates - Savannah Hyren and Wall of Dark Fire and Fiergo.
HumAliens needs its expansion added this month. The scans are all done, it's just a matter of adding cards.
Hyborean Gates should really go off optional to firm this month. The scans aren't done yet so that's a first.
The regular optionals - Go Fish cardback updates and scanning Triple Triad will still be retained for the month.
So, prioritised games for this month:
1. MND update - EL stuff by 7th January, custom cards ongoing.
2. Bowling - get playable 15th January, public by 31st January.
3. HumAliens - Second Order updates by 21st January.
4. Hyborean Gates - scan by 15th January, alpha by 31st January.
O. Add Go Fish cardbacks when available.
O. Complete Triple Triad scans.
Rest of the Year Plans
Aliens vs Predators (AVPVT) - Finish off next scenario - Countdown. Add Atmosphere cards and create the Planetfall scenario. Get Terminator scans from BugLaden, add it to the engine and create the 2 additional scenarios, as well as the Terminator scenario(s). Quite a bit of work here, but between Ravage and Ryan(Rekkon), I hope to get everything up and ready by the end of the year.
Babylon 5 (B5) - Bold text takes the next priority now that the images/icons are fixed. Still on the list of things to do is the automation for replacement and the automated influence tracking and automated initiative determination. Those would take quite a lot of time that I'll have to schedule to be set aside.
Borders (BORD) - Nothing more to be done in Borders. Ed has asked for icons on the special cards, so maybe those will get an update, when I get the time.
Bowling (BOWL) - There shouldnt' be much work on this once it goes public, but I won't know until then what has to be done on it.
Checkers (CHECK) - This is another "no frills", "low-tech" game at the moment. It would probably get upgraded once I have the time, motivation and ideas, but for now it's playable and that would have to do.
Elemental (ELEM) - The tidal wave automation has long been outstanding. I think it's possible to do this now, but the script is going to be rather complicated. No schedule for this. Not a high priority since the game works well without the automation and I don't want to introduce something that would introduce errors. It will be done when I can find the time and the motivation.
FastBreak (FB) - The game is beginning to feel a bit "low tech" now, eventhough it did have a few innovations (when it was first made). Could do with more playtesting and more inprovements, but until I find the time and the motivation, this isn't going to be done anytime soon.
Firestorm (FIRE) - New licensed game for me to do for 2005, for April public release, or at least that's the plan.
Go Fish (GOFSH) - What do you do when the game plays well and is bug free? Nothing I suppose. However, it'd be getting a minor facelift soon - a tiny crab will be added which will allow an 5 more players to play the game simultaneously. I doubt we'll ever get 13 players into a Go Fish game, but who knows? The schedule is undetermined at the moment, and it's not high priority. As usual, cardbacks will continually be added to this game.
Hamlet (HAMLT) - There really isn't much to do on this simple game except more playtesting... and perhaps a tournament or two. Hamlet is one of the few of my licensed games I'll consider ready for Now Playing status.
HumAliens (HALN) - The game is dead, but there's still work to be done. Hopefully, the New Order would be an Online only expansion to be added by January.
Hyborean Gates (GATES) - Hopefully this will go public in March. It's going to be another "no frills", "low-tech" game though so it might lie fallow until someone with more enthusiasm and ideas comes along to take it over.
Magi-Nation Duel (MND) - Custom cards are still ongoing and I think people are rather used to the gameplay. The only other thing that can be done is to track how energy is gained and used up. However that is a monumental task since every card does it differently and there are many modifiers... which means it's not going to get done. Tainted Glimpses will also be added sometime in the year. I think I might also add in something to shuffle all creatures back into the deck for Dream Rift. That's as much automation as I'd be doing...
Portable Adventures (PAD) - The other area to update would be the Encounter cards. I have a rough idea of how to automate these, but they seem rather inconsequential to the whole game, so they might not get done until I get the time and the motivation. In addition, there are two card sets that will be added near the end of the year so those will get priority when they are available.
Quartet (QUART) - More playtesting is needed on this game. Not much improvements will be made until further playtesting is carried out. The game seems stable though.
Reversi (RVRSI) - Since nipa added the left-click functionality and upgraded the images, it's done and has been upgraded to "Now Playing". No work required.
Triple Triad (TRIAD) - Scanning has started, but I have no idea when I'll have the time to do this. I only have 1 - 90, so if anyone wants to scan in the rest of the 18 cards, for me, they are most welcome. Please PM me for more details.
Urland (URLND) - It could use some scoring automation at some point in the future, time to be determined.
Wildstorms (WS) - Nothing much can be done to fully automate setup until after Bug has got the next build out the door. Also, there's the plan to add my custom StormWatch expansion sometime this year.
Wildstorms Legends (WSLS) - This game is going into the queue after Bowling, Firestorm, Hyborean Gates and Triple Triad. I guess that makes it a September public release game.
Wildstorm: Set 1 (WSS1) - The WSS2 update is still planned, although it hasn't gone ahead. The game also needs and auto-score if the defender wins. This will be done with the WSS2 update. Schedule: May - August.
You Need Drew's Truck (YNDT) - I'd like to automate moving the truck, and automate the initial placements of the donuts.
Yukk (YUKK) - This game feels rather low tech, but it works well. I think I'll leave it as it is.
I have way too many games on my plate. No new game announcements from me until at least 3 of them are cleared.
2005 Plans
February - FIRE, BORD, GATES, YNDT
March - B5, TRIAD, URLND, WS
April - MND, TRIAD
May - WSS1
June - WSLS, WSS1
July - WSLS
posted by Novelty @ 1:23 pm
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