Sunday, 26 April 2009
A quick change
I've decided to change the name of the game from MiiFarm to WiiFarm as it fits in more closely with other Wii games currently in the market. I've also given the game a few changes cosmetically which I think has spruced up the game. I managed to tweak the game to run faster as well by not updating a few movieclips on every frame. I just need to add in a objectives menu and hopefully a markets menu although one isn't really needed for this demo of the game as there is no A.I to go against.
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Bug Testing & Trader screen
I decided to get some general bug testing done and smarten things up a bit. A lot of current images are just place holders and I can easily update them with better images nearer the end of the semester but I decided to do a few now. I also update the intro screens to explain the game a bit more and I've added an objective.
A lot of the bugs that were in the game before like it scrolling when it shouldn't be, popup boxes not popping up after certain events, money getting added on properly but not showing up etc, these are all fixed now and the game runs a lot smoother.
I'm happy with the progress of the game at the moment, I wasn't sure if I would be able to get the money and time right but it seems to of worked pretty much perfectly. Time seems a bit slow at the beginning but I you have to remember this is for people who haven't played the game before so it helps that its slow. It also seems gets better the more land you have, and theres some skill involved at the end by actually plotting crops of the same type in the same area, so you don't have to go looking round your whole field to see when a crop is ready to be harvested. Live stock also work very good now with the upgrades that you can have. I've also make the upgrades interchangeable so I can add more in the future, which I probably will do.
I've also added in a trader screen which now makes the game work. Before this you could build and buy anything you wanted but this makes it so you level up your farm. You start off with the smaller crops and work your way up, unlocking the bigger and better stuff which in turn bring in more money. I think I might have to up the initial prices though because you can currently buy the best crop very fast and so there is no need to buy anything else.
You can also buy upgrades for the farm here like less tax, more income etc. These really make the game more exciting.
I could do with a way the player loses the game because right now all you can do is win and that doesn't seem very exciting really.
A lot of the bugs that were in the game before like it scrolling when it shouldn't be, popup boxes not popping up after certain events, money getting added on properly but not showing up etc, these are all fixed now and the game runs a lot smoother.
I'm happy with the progress of the game at the moment, I wasn't sure if I would be able to get the money and time right but it seems to of worked pretty much perfectly. Time seems a bit slow at the beginning but I you have to remember this is for people who haven't played the game before so it helps that its slow. It also seems gets better the more land you have, and theres some skill involved at the end by actually plotting crops of the same type in the same area, so you don't have to go looking round your whole field to see when a crop is ready to be harvested. Live stock also work very good now with the upgrades that you can have. I've also make the upgrades interchangeable so I can add more in the future, which I probably will do.
I've also added in a trader screen which now makes the game work. Before this you could build and buy anything you wanted but this makes it so you level up your farm. You start off with the smaller crops and work your way up, unlocking the bigger and better stuff which in turn bring in more money. I think I might have to up the initial prices though because you can currently buy the best crop very fast and so there is no need to buy anything else.
You can also buy upgrades for the farm here like less tax, more income etc. These really make the game more exciting.
I could do with a way the player loses the game because right now all you can do is win and that doesn't seem very exciting really.
Thursday, 5 March 2009
A Big update
I've been working a LOT lately on this game. I spent 17 hours yesterday on it with breaks for eating and pooping only. Today I spent a good 5 hours on it, bringing it into a playable state. At the moment its not very fun as theirs no objectives or functions other then planting crops and harvesting them. I'm hoping by next tuesday to have done the following:
#Completed the achievement system (I broke it last night :( )
#Add in the trader screen and disable crops and livestock at the beginning allowing the player to buy them.
#Add to the trader screen options to buy upgrades for their livestock, allowing livestock to bring in more money ( I had problems with making the livestock income change depending on the quality of the land).
#Add objectives
#Make sure all menu's are working.
#Completed the achievement system (I broke it last night :( )
#Add in the trader screen and disable crops and livestock at the beginning allowing the player to buy them.
#Add to the trader screen options to buy upgrades for their livestock, allowing livestock to bring in more money ( I had problems with making the livestock income change depending on the quality of the land).
#Add objectives
#Make sure all menu's are working.
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Thursday, 26 February 2009
Achievement Screen
I started work on the achievements today, beginning with the actual achievement screen and the movie that pops up when you unlock the achievement. Im not completely happy with the movie, but the achievement screen looks very good. It will have a slide tool for you to scroll your achievements, it will tell you which was your most recent and what it does. Also when you scroll over an achievement it will you give you some info on it such as what it does etc.
New Direction - New Title
After a quick tutorial session yesterday I've decided to change the direction I'm heading in. Instead of making it a PC game I'm going to make it a Wii only game. I believe the target audience would be perfect for the games context and also the graphics. It would be easy to play with the Wii remote as everything its quite big on the screen, no small icons to press anywhere.
I'll need to design a new cursor though as the current one would be a bit hard to follow on a TV screen from a few feet away. I also need to keep on making sure buttons are big and far enough apart that the natural shaking from the Human body wouldn't make it awkward to hit what you were aiming for.
I've also decided to go back and change the title from El Farm!, which I didn't really like in the first place, to Mii Farm, which is much better fitting with the game and the console. I want to actually incorporate Mii's into the game, I'm not just ripping off the name Mii! There isn't really another game out like this at the moment, Harvest Moon is more of a simulation then a construction manager game, and the main thing I have to deal with at this point is making and keeping it fun!
Quick show of the new title:
I'll need to design a new cursor though as the current one would be a bit hard to follow on a TV screen from a few feet away. I also need to keep on making sure buttons are big and far enough apart that the natural shaking from the Human body wouldn't make it awkward to hit what you were aiming for.
I've also decided to go back and change the title from El Farm!, which I didn't really like in the first place, to Mii Farm, which is much better fitting with the game and the console. I want to actually incorporate Mii's into the game, I'm not just ripping off the name Mii! There isn't really another game out like this at the moment, Harvest Moon is more of a simulation then a construction manager game, and the main thing I have to deal with at this point is making and keeping it fun!
Quick show of the new title:
Monday, 23 February 2009
Click Menus
When you click on a plot of land, depending on whats currently on or not on it will bring up a different menu. This is my current design and ideas for them.
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