I'm taking requests for any specific topics anyone might be interested in. I'll be focused on text & screenshots but if a topic is good enough I'll make videos explaining as well.
I've been making games actively for around 8-9 years now and I'd like to help any newer developers or people just curious about the field! If you're interested in what I've already worked on my github is open for all. I recommend reading over an incomplete game I worked on called Bear Quest.
I'll also be fixing up a few of my projects to make the more approachable to developers interested in making their own engines.
If you're interested in my sort of day-job project I'm working on a game called Beyond the Void. It originated here a good while ago! More about the game here.
This is rather specific. I am adept at 3D solid modeling for engineering but I can't seem to figure out 3D wireframe modeling for animation and games. I have PTC Creo, Unreal Engine 4 and Sculptris.
I have a brilliant billion dollar game idea that I know I can't do, but I was trying to make a demo. I made a model in Creo but even though it can save in almost every 3D format, I could not figure out how to translate engineering CAD to gaming CAD.
Is that even possible without spending a lot of money on a special program?
AI... I know, it's too generic. Here are more specific parameters... This is what i am working on...
Off and on, it's not really a serious thing, more like a hobby. Don't need to read the entire thing, Check out the first post and that's basically all... Here is the thing. I need to wrap my head around a world AI, that basically controls the world, all the factions, their behavior, etc. I know what i want to do with the questing, but that would require the other factions to compete with the player, meaning go for it's goals, if they are able to... Stuff like that. I want them making alliances, based on different criteria, waging war against each other, etc. My goal is, if the player does nothing, the world still needs to progress no matter what. I'll say this. I don't want specific code or anything. I just need to wrap my head around the idea of how to make that complex of a relationship without making enormous data bases for each faction with cross references between the databases, to determine the actions one faction will take towards the other one. Because that is basically where I'm at in my head. Huge data base for each faction with positive and negative effects and cross referencing between the databases... My guess is there is simpler way? I just need to understand the logic of it, cause i can't think of it myself. Thanks in advance and sorry if this thing sounds like incoherent gibberish. Not sure i know how to properly express what i want.
I guess I should specify I'm not really good at the creative 3D Modelling really. I'm definitely a programmer first. However I have a good few friends that are and I know about the subject since I have to implement it into games.
If you're interested in getting into game 3d modelling you'd want to look into blender. If you're in school autodesk often does free educational licenses.
I wouldn't really know if engineering cad translates to game models. There are a wide variety of specifications game models should generally adhere to. One of the more important ones is polycount.
I'd say if you're wanting to get into game modelling you'll probably want to focus on some of the sub topics related. The important topics include: topography, rigging, texturing (uv / materials), normal mapping (related to texturing), and so on.
I'm by no means an expert in the creative process of 3d modelling but here is a guy that is somuchmonsters (he's really good). He doesn't really do tutorials but he's formed a good community of creative people that you'd be able to sort of pick their brains if you get stuck on something.
If you need some further assistance feel free to message me!
Right, so AI is sort of a thick topic for games. Lots of games really are just "large" databases that reference each other. An important part of a so called world sim would be the unique characteristics of each faction. So with that in mind there are some pretty easy ways to streamline most of the decision making. You can look into the topic of Alpha-Beta Pruning for extended decision making. Or you can just write a fairly straightforward weighting system. The weights (or preferences) of each Actor (AI) is what determines the personality and how each can become a unique faction. This sort of gives way to a more predictable pattern of AI called Finite-State Machines. By no means is it the most unique but with some good tweaking of factions, the player won't really see. More complex systems usually give way to more dev time.
I'll actually make a whole article on this and maybe a paired video. I'm going to be doing a small repository on my github implementing the tutorials in real code.
If you need further help / guidance feel free to message me. I'll be up for a good while.
My main problem is that I am a software snob. I got a Master's just to learn Creo that is a very expensive pro (it used to be called Pro/Engineer) software that one can use to design and test fighter jets or cars.
When ever I try something free like Blender or AutoDesk 123D, I always say 'this sucks compared to what I paid $30,000 to know how to use". I don't know how to use the tools and I think Creo is more powerful. As they say "when all you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail".
I'm going to have to bite the bullet and learn Blender or UE4.
Yeah blender can be frustrating. But the software itself is insanely powerful once you learn it. If you want the best of the best in terms of sculpting you can look into zbrush but it's not free. 3DS Max & Maya are both really good tools for game modelling as well. Often times the older versions go on sale for heavily discounted rates.
The finite state machine is.. interesting concept, that I have planed already without knowing it have an actual name. However I don't see how I can use that for an entire faction. I mean I can use it for an NPC in a specific situation. That is what I will use for the different champions in the game, but I don't think the same behavior can be implemented for an entire faction, especially keeping in mind it needs to communicate with many different factions, so I may need to use one of those for each faction in relationship with every other faction... Man, it's procedural generation all over again. Once it clicks in my brain - it's game over, I know it. But until it clicks, I may bang my head against the wall for a long time. Or I can really just cross reference a few databases...
You can setup a sort of global database. The way finite state machines would work with multiple actors would be dispatch. So your faction takes into account any specific resources and decide what's best based on predictive elements (units made/possible war/resource levels), then dispatch resources based on those elements (or new ship, more units, building) Most of the generic behaviors would be hard coded but called by the state machine. My messages are open if you need help with specific implementation stuff.