2010-03-06, 02:15 PM
I am planning to take a break from Sword of Moonlight Ex for my next feat, and focus on some tools that integrate with the KF Making Tool side of things (ie. so far Ex is a post-build only paradigm, and will stay that way for a while if not forever)
I've decided I'm going to build three stand-alone tools in tandem all basically related, geared toward really cracking open the custom modeling side of Som. One tool will be for models, another for pieces (map tiles), and the last for generating and manipulating the .prf asset instantiation files. I've decided the model tool will be called Somimp in honor of the Assimp project which it will rely upon in order to be able to import as many types of graphics file formats as possible. The map piece tool will be called Somcat (cat in tool names is short for concatenation) and will do basically all that Somimp does for models only for pieces, including piece synthesis as the name implies...
So we have an Imp, and a Cat, I see mascots developing here. So for the third tool I want another such name. I've three candidates thanks to looking thru Wikipedia for animal ideas (I admit Imp is not an animal, so I could probably broaden the search to unreal creatures if necessary) ...I really want help here, I'm not just grandstanding, these will be important tools and I'd like for them to be fun to talk about and work with. Anyway the three animal candidates I have in mind (please provide alternative monster names or whatever if you can think of anything with three letters) ...A) Ape, B) Ass, C) Asp (all As for some reason)
I think my favorite atm is Ape. Ape also means to mimic (probably the animals name came from this word) and .prf files basically mimic the resources they're pointed to or the .prf file they're copied from, or just general templates in general. Ape does subtract from the witchy gothic theme you get from imp/cats, I might've gone with bat, but a bat is too much like an imp. Although I do want to submit a wider mascot for Som stuff that is an apelike skeleton with a spider shield (a less appreciated hallmark of KF) and the ML Sword... basically as a mascot the skeleton would be a silent jester like character "aping" different KF tropes. Anyway if Somape becomes the name the mascot will be a skeletal ape etc. The name I have for this ape is "spider monkey" btw, named for the spider shield and being a monkey... or a very ape-like skeleton.
The next candidate is Ass. Ie. a donkey. An ass has the benefit of being more gothic than an ape (apes aren't gothic... though skeletons are) ... the pun is ass is short for asset, which is essentially what a .prf file represents. Asset is an industry term, and appropriate, so I wouldn't write ass off so quick. It does have the downside of being a little juvenile (still a far cry from assimp in possibilities, but you won't have to be aware of the assimp library to use these tools)
Lastly is Asp. An asp is a snake, so it's closest to the witchy/Halloween vibe. Though I dunno if going that far with it is really befitting of KF. It's not an overly vampish / goth series, and neither am I personally (as the principal author) ...Asp I guess being short for aspects, which is basically what the tool itself will be used for, ie. changing the aspects of assets.
Anyway this is what I plan to work on. And I want to keep it in a set of three at least for this leg of the SOM historical timeline.
Also as for the future. I'm pretty sure it's technically possible to put a Som game on the Xbox. If anyone would like to help me borrow an XNA account or kit on the sly, or would fund an XNA membership for me. I can look into this. I'm pretty sure I can at least make it technically playable on the Xbox. Whether or not we could get permission to make it downloadable on Live might be a different story. I'd think as long as a game felt like quality, and possibly if permission was granted from all parties involved (From' and possibly Agetec etc if your game is literally KF based) there is a chance. I mean I'd think it would be good press for From' and bad press if From' blocked such a thing.
Furthermore, it might be too soon to say, but chances are I'm about to win an auction for a standard definition head mounted display. I decided to pick one of these up for playing the PSOne games while I'm in the midst of reliving my youth. In which case I will probably pick Ex back up long enough to implement stereo vision (3D) ... which should be pretty easy to do, unless DX7 doesn't support it. In which case it may have to wait a little while. This is interesting of itself, but I think Som graphics are a little too hi-resolution for HMD technology. So I'd like to start talking about developing an alternative set of pieces and objects that are lower poly / more abstract, probably beginning with copying the style of KF2... I've also been in talks with Todd about eventually revamping Dark Destiny if we can get support from others... ie. make it a community initiative. Part of this will involve rebuilding the first map of DD to match KF2 as perfectly as possible, which might also present an opportunity to develop a side by side map set that looks just like KF2, which will be made easier with the Somcat tool I will develop, which should make it possible to accomplish many of KF2s overlapping map sections fairly accurately.
PS: By KF2 I mean KF (US) ... which I might as well stick in my signature
I've decided I'm going to build three stand-alone tools in tandem all basically related, geared toward really cracking open the custom modeling side of Som. One tool will be for models, another for pieces (map tiles), and the last for generating and manipulating the .prf asset instantiation files. I've decided the model tool will be called Somimp in honor of the Assimp project which it will rely upon in order to be able to import as many types of graphics file formats as possible. The map piece tool will be called Somcat (cat in tool names is short for concatenation) and will do basically all that Somimp does for models only for pieces, including piece synthesis as the name implies...
So we have an Imp, and a Cat, I see mascots developing here. So for the third tool I want another such name. I've three candidates thanks to looking thru Wikipedia for animal ideas (I admit Imp is not an animal, so I could probably broaden the search to unreal creatures if necessary) ...I really want help here, I'm not just grandstanding, these will be important tools and I'd like for them to be fun to talk about and work with. Anyway the three animal candidates I have in mind (please provide alternative monster names or whatever if you can think of anything with three letters) ...A) Ape, B) Ass, C) Asp (all As for some reason)
I think my favorite atm is Ape. Ape also means to mimic (probably the animals name came from this word) and .prf files basically mimic the resources they're pointed to or the .prf file they're copied from, or just general templates in general. Ape does subtract from the witchy gothic theme you get from imp/cats, I might've gone with bat, but a bat is too much like an imp. Although I do want to submit a wider mascot for Som stuff that is an apelike skeleton with a spider shield (a less appreciated hallmark of KF) and the ML Sword... basically as a mascot the skeleton would be a silent jester like character "aping" different KF tropes. Anyway if Somape becomes the name the mascot will be a skeletal ape etc. The name I have for this ape is "spider monkey" btw, named for the spider shield and being a monkey... or a very ape-like skeleton.
The next candidate is Ass. Ie. a donkey. An ass has the benefit of being more gothic than an ape (apes aren't gothic... though skeletons are) ... the pun is ass is short for asset, which is essentially what a .prf file represents. Asset is an industry term, and appropriate, so I wouldn't write ass off so quick. It does have the downside of being a little juvenile (still a far cry from assimp in possibilities, but you won't have to be aware of the assimp library to use these tools)
Lastly is Asp. An asp is a snake, so it's closest to the witchy/Halloween vibe. Though I dunno if going that far with it is really befitting of KF. It's not an overly vampish / goth series, and neither am I personally (as the principal author) ...Asp I guess being short for aspects, which is basically what the tool itself will be used for, ie. changing the aspects of assets.
Anyway this is what I plan to work on. And I want to keep it in a set of three at least for this leg of the SOM historical timeline.
Also as for the future. I'm pretty sure it's technically possible to put a Som game on the Xbox. If anyone would like to help me borrow an XNA account or kit on the sly, or would fund an XNA membership for me. I can look into this. I'm pretty sure I can at least make it technically playable on the Xbox. Whether or not we could get permission to make it downloadable on Live might be a different story. I'd think as long as a game felt like quality, and possibly if permission was granted from all parties involved (From' and possibly Agetec etc if your game is literally KF based) there is a chance. I mean I'd think it would be good press for From' and bad press if From' blocked such a thing.
Furthermore, it might be too soon to say, but chances are I'm about to win an auction for a standard definition head mounted display. I decided to pick one of these up for playing the PSOne games while I'm in the midst of reliving my youth. In which case I will probably pick Ex back up long enough to implement stereo vision (3D) ... which should be pretty easy to do, unless DX7 doesn't support it. In which case it may have to wait a little while. This is interesting of itself, but I think Som graphics are a little too hi-resolution for HMD technology. So I'd like to start talking about developing an alternative set of pieces and objects that are lower poly / more abstract, probably beginning with copying the style of KF2... I've also been in talks with Todd about eventually revamping Dark Destiny if we can get support from others... ie. make it a community initiative. Part of this will involve rebuilding the first map of DD to match KF2 as perfectly as possible, which might also present an opportunity to develop a side by side map set that looks just like KF2, which will be made easier with the Somcat tool I will develop, which should make it possible to accomplish many of KF2s overlapping map sections fairly accurately.
PS: By KF2 I mean KF (US) ... which I might as well stick in my signature
