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- Erebus
- Registered User
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Member for 15 years, 1 month, and 23 days
Last active Sat, Jun, 5 2010 21:28:46
- 3 Followers
- 91 Total Posts
- 3 Thanks
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Jul 14, 2009
Erebus posted a message on New Blizzard Contests- You Could be a Winner!I am considering entering the fan art contest.Posted in: News -
Jul 10, 2009
Erebus posted a message on A bit of cool info about loot systemPosted in: NewsQuote from "24Seven" »I guess I'm in the minority in thinking that party globes are a good idea. Imagine you have a party with a couple tanks and some range players. If the globes are distributed evenly, how do the tank characters heal themselves? The problem with party globes is that damage is not going to be even distributed so making health evenly distributed creates a problem.
(Plus it sounds very pinko commie ;->)
I think that may be why they are experimenting with skills for the tanks that will allow them a slightly better chance to survive a bit longer in close range ie: On death hit gain 30 health for Barb. -
Jul 10, 2009
Erebus posted a message on A bit of cool info about loot systemPosted in: NewsQuote from "edwith" »One last note, if you are in a group kill the boss and say an item drops for your friend, he happens to not pick it up for some reason, he doesn't want it not enough room etc. but you want it, youll never no its there. It would make sense if it would become a 'global' item after a certian amount of time regaurdless of whether it has been picked up or not.
I like that idea of having an item become global to all players after a specific amount of time, however we aren't sure how the inventory system works exactly right now and they have suggested giving the player a more flexable system that doesn't require "tetris" space organizing so I can't say if it would ever really be a problem that a player can't pick up an item. I'd imagine in D3 there will be a much larger "economy" online and that no matter what drops players would be able to sell the items for cash to an NPC etc and then it would become open to the global market for a price anyway. In that case, like everyone before has said, if you are playing with a fair minded friend it shouldn't be a problem for them to share if something comes up that could help you along. -
Jul 7, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Win A Trip To BlizzCon!I entered a few days back when I saw it on the front page, thanks for the heads up. I hope I win too, but odds are none of us will :/ I hardly ever win anything. lolPosted in: News
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Mar 3, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokYes, most likely they would have to alter the engine, if it all characters were going to all of a sudden have to be a combination of several different meshes to create a character, not only that, but all the characters they have made up to this point would have to be scrapped or they'd have to cut them all up into pieces and hope it worked out. Plus they would have to go back and rework the animations to be applied to the new divided mesh. There is no reason to make Diablo this way...it doesn't make sense for what it's supposed to be doing. Having characters be a combo of meshes is the exception to the rule not the standard practice by any means. It only makes sense to complicate things like that if it makes sense to game play, as I mentioned Quake works this way so that the head can be looking one direction, the hands and torso can play a shooting animation and the legs can run all independent of one another.Posted in: News
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Mar 3, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokI don't think anyone is arguing that "It can't be done.", by going back and reading all the previous posts you can see clear examples of why the process of RANDOMLY generating spikes on this creature would be a task that is more indepth than simply clicking a few buttons or typing a few lines of code.Posted in: News
Yes indeed you can theoretically script something that would randomly generate spikes in designated locations on a mesh, but why would you do that? Why wouldn't you just edit the mesh by hand, it would end up taking less effort. The thing is though that you'd still have to take the time to retexture the new meshes anyway. The whole work flow you are suggesting would take more time than actually just making a new variation on the character. The reason Spore was brought up was because people are assuming that it's easy to drag one part of a model and place it in another position. You CAN detach part of mesh and then weld the points to another part of a mesh or another mesh all together, but from an edgeflow point of view and with polycount in mind it would make more sense to make a new character from scratch if you wanted pieces of a character in different positions. We've already brought up the topic of bones etc. You'd have to re-weight the new mesh to make sure it deforms correctly regardless of how it's created. You can't leave these things up to pure computer generation. Why take the time to have the computer make something then go back and test it and tweak it to make sure it's right when you can just make it right the first time yourself?
I don't think we need to accuse each other of not knowing what we are talking about, but I think a reasonable person will conclude that it will take a large enough degree of effort to warrant the original response by Bashiok that we are discussing. -
Mar 3, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokThe weapons and shields of creatures and players are in most cases separate objects in order to aid in collision detection. Also, for the specific case of the skeleton's they are symmetrical and randomly selecting different objects for them to spawn with on attachment points is a lot easier than rearranging a characters base structure. In theory the skeletons can be set up in the exact same manner as the player characters and have any armor/weapon placed on them in the same area as the avatar characters, although they most likely have a selection of only a few items designated for them.Posted in: News
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Mar 2, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokI think you guys are thinking that this is something that can be solved solely by a programmer. While programmers are without a doubt very important to game development, it's not just a matter of a guy sitting at a keyboard and typing some code to get what you want. Give some credit to the hundreds of artists who design and create by hand every model in the game from scratch. A lot of the discussion here is based purely on imagination. Can what you guys are talking about be done? Surely. Can it be done easily to a game that is already in progress and wasn't planned from the start of the modeling process to function that way, thats a tad bit harder than you are suggesting.Posted in: News
All the characters are a SINGLE mesh, you don't put them together like Spore animals. The creation of the models in the game and how they are arranged is not a code intensive process in and of itself. Even the randomly generated environments have walls that are pre-modeled and just arranged in different configurations by the game engine. Having all the spikes as different meshes could work, but it on the most basic level would take more polygons and thats just a waste when you are trying to make an efficient model unless it's something that HAS to be done. -
Mar 1, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokMost likely all the meshes in the game aside from MAYBE player avatars for armor attachment etc. are a single mesh, meaning that the parts aren't separated. The game engine would have to be designed from the start to handle different mesh parts and combine them in game for example like Quake, where the models are divided into head, torso, legs so that all the parts can play animations at once, ie: a walk/run cycle and a shooting animation. Diablo III does not look to be constructed this way therefore it is not a simple task to randomly place objects on characters bodies as some of you are suggesting. It just doesn't work that way.Posted in: News
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Mar 1, 2009
Erebus posted a message on Mobs that looks slightly different by BashiokHonestly, I think that the comment that it would take a lot of work is quite accurate. Think about it, anyone who plays the game for more than a few hours and pays attention will surely be able to notice 3 variations on monsters as easily as one. While it would be nice to have that I agree it would be difficult to "rearrange" this particular monster without creating an entirely newly designed mesh due to it's lack of symmetry and organic placement. As a artist leaving the generation of monsters to chance is a lot harder to swallow if you want perfection. The best thing to do from a design perspective would be to create multiple versions by hand. Obviously it would need to be a number higher than 3 to make a large difference to the average player. I'd say 10-15 variations, to take that concept and apply that to every character in the game (They are already creating multiple variations most likely, ie: Diablo was different for the different levels of Diablo II.) then you are definitely looking at multiplying the work load for the team by A LOT. I'd think that you'd want to have the game as far along as possible then attack it again and again and again to refine it. So what someone said about them possibly reconsidering doing something like this in the last polishing phases of production is the most reasonable if they wanted to do it. Thats just my opinion. I haven't posted on these forums yet, but I felt compelled to add my two cents on this topic. I think the game is shaping up nicely.Posted in: News
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The game is finally out on PC and iPhone and coming soon to Mac! I'm really excited to hear what you guys think! The game has been getting great reviews so far on the iTunes store and around the web. It's taken about 5 months work to get this project onto the virtual shelves and I'm pretty proud of the end result. Please check it out, the support of this community has been a big help to me and I look forward to sharing the next title I'm working on with you!
iTune App Store:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-hockey-experiment/id369225815?mt=8
PC Version:
http://games.gs1.net/games/the-hockey-experiment
All the Best!
-Jon
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GAME FEATURES
• Fast-Paced 3-on-3 Arcade Style Hockey Simulation
• Full 3D Graphics
• Motion Captured Animations
• Classic 8-bit Style Music
• Exhibition and Tournament Game Modes
• Two Difficulty Settings: Novice and Advanced
• 6 Uniquely Designed Preloaded Teams
• 2 Achievement-Based Unlockable Teams
• 4 Additional Teams Available For Purchase
• Over 20 Humorous Achievement-Based Trophies To Earn
• Totally Radical Power-Ups for Shooting, Checking, and Skating
• On-Ice “Clutch-Shot” Positions Score 2 Points
• Ability To Pull Your Goalie
• Win Fights To Gain The On-Ice Advantage
• Career Stats Keeper
• OpenFeint Enabled
We will also be releasing a PC/Mac version with upgraded graphics etc. We'll be posting some screens of that version if you guys are interested in the next few weeks hopefully. iPhone version is due out early May. Really glad to have all your support since the very beginning, hope you all enjoy the game as much as we do!
More Info On Our Website:
Ninth Dimension Studios.com
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Also, I'll try my best to get a small update on the old site, however Dynasty is waiting in the wings for now. I'm really dedicated to bringing my vision for Dynasty to fruition, it will have it's day.
I hope that when I can get some stuff to you guys on the new title, that you'll love it just as much as I do.
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Just wanted to drop by and say Hello. We've been really busy lately working on our first title, but everything is looking great so far. Hope everyone is having a great holiday season!
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Hey guys, just wanted to let you know that the companies official website is now up and running as well if you wanted to find out a little more about us. Stay tuned for more updates in the coming days. I always appreciate your support. http://www.NinthDimensionStudios.com
-Jon
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Dynasty is definitely going to be continued as an IP at Ninth Dimension. We are currently working on a project that may proceed that titles release, so Dynasty may be "delayed" in terms of what I had tentatively projected in my mind for a release date when I was working on the project on a solo basis, but it will live on, hopefully with many improvements to what I initially had planned, especially if you guys continue to express interest in it.
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I just wanted to give you all a little update on Dynasty as I haven't posted anything in a little while. In the last couple months I have gotten an opportunity to found my own independent development studio (www.NinthDimensionStudios.com) and my team and I are currently in the process of finishing setting up our new studio/office! I just wanted to thank everyone for their support and I hope that you guys continue to follow these updates as I am able to make more announcements on our upcoming titles in development.
All the Best,
Jon
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I've tried to accommodate some of those questions you are having as to why some of the things might be a certain way in my previous posts. Beyond that I have to again say that NONE of us know what's actually in the game or what work they've put into the game until they explain and show it themselves. There are valid technical reasons why they might choose to not have cross character armor, but I wouldn't lose hope in that happening until someone from Blizzard tells you it wont be in there. I am just going by what I know from experience, what can see in the footage and what I've heard in vague answers from other posters here sourcing Blizz and direct info from Bashiok.
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Every game you have ever played has barrowed and been inspired by what has come before, even the first video games were inspired most likely by board games such as dungeons and dragons. You realize I hope that Diablo I and II both barrowed heavily from mythology, popular culture and literary artworks (Such as Lord of the Rings) as well as previous games. Just because it was probably one of your first introductions to some of the concepts does not mean that the game existed in a vacuum impervious to outside influence. Everything ever created in a way is in a cause and effect pattern even games that try to be the exact opposite of what's come before are in fact just mirroring something that has already happened. At this point in time having such a rich history of culture and games to barrow from it would be absolutely foolhardy to think anything you make doesn't have a connection to something else. A good creator would look at what's come before and utilize that to the best degree to move the genre or craft forward no matter what the medium. Again like I said as a consumer you have a right to say that you don't like the colors, or you don't like a feature or choice for the game and NO ONE has to agree with you for you to have a valid opinion. It's just odd to me that you think everything in life is an original idea without precedent. While that is theoretically possible, I think it would be nearly impossible to realize considering the conditions. Many of the newer things that we see in games now are due to the fact that they weren't possible earlier on, but that doesn't mean that they weren't thought of in another medium. You need to remember that just because something has been done before, does not mean that you shouldn't try to make it better or can't. I think it's extremely disadvantageous to look at the situation and truly believe that the people working and Blizzard are anything, but hard working people trying to do their best. They may make a game you personally don't like, that's fine I'm sure they can live with that as you can never make everyone happy, but do you really think that they are sitting at the job thinking, "Hey I am going to purposefully set out to ruin someone's day!". Very little in life, if anything is perfect.