May

It has been a long time since I actually wrote anything for this....

So! The last few months have been fairly hectic, I've had a lot of coursework to get done and of the coursework that needed done I can quite happily say a lot more time was spent on making a working game. For the most part, I was working on the games physics which could be a major pain at points and although i eventually got it working with the help of the other two guys in the group, we unfortunately couldn't get it working in the final build. This was due to me working mainly using separate objects for the walls, floors etc. while testing and the final build using a mesh for the level. Of course, we found out nearly straight after the hand in that there was an easy fix for the problem.

Although this piece of coursework in particular was very stressful and had us working nearly to the last moment before the deadline, I had a great time. Despite all the problems and frustrations and having to run the game and do the same thing over and over again to the point I was running on automatic most of the time, it has made me realise that this is definitely what I want to do for the rest of my life. The satisfaction and happiness achieved just from getting a simple thing to work in your code is unbeatable.

Spurred on by this, I am now working through more tutorials but this time on C# as opposed to C++ and will hopefully have my own fully working game by the end of the summer. Alongside this, our year group may be adventurous enough to try making a game together over the summer, if we don't get too lazy.

In other news, I'm building up a horrendously large collection of games on Steam, much to the dismay of my bank balance. On the plus side it does mean I've had a lot more games to play, and most of them are worth the money. My only regret is that it took me so long to get back into PC gaming, it does mean having to spend a whole lot more on upgrading my PC though.

Anyway, now that I only have one exam left it frees up a lot of time. So alongside personal projects I am hoping to come back to this a bit more as well as the game review side of things, gives you lot something to look forward to, doesn't it.


X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Steam: ikasukiller
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 
Follow @L_Norton_

Camera Work

Today, after milling around on Steam wondering what games to add to my wishlist for when I actually have money, I buckled down to some work.

For the most part I was working on Uni stuff, some of which involved building cameras. This is part of our on-going practical work to build a game engine for use in our project.

This doesn't show the camera actually working but I'm sure you get the idea.

I'm still finishing off this part but will have it finished by tomorrow night, then I can play around with a 3rd person camera which we hope to use in our game project.

I'm still trying to find time to write a review for my other blog but feel free to have a look at the ones already there if you haven't already. The last one I put up was on The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, which safely gets my vote for game of the year.

Time to sleep now!

X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Steam: ikasukiller
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 

Follow @L_Norton_

Global Game Jam, PC problems and more!

First post of the year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How bad am I at updating this?

Anyway, a few note-worthy events have happened in the last month or so. Firstly, a few of us from my uni class decided to take a risk and enter the Global Game Jam with very little game coding skills to help us. Secondly, I have started trying to make some mods for various games in order to increase my skills and lastly, but most importantly, I have gotten my hands on a better computer so I'm back on the PC gaming scene after a large number of years.

The a-MAZE-ing Caterpillar! Our Game Jam project was brilliant fun to make and, although there was a few things we wanted to change, we were all very pleased with the end result, especially as it was our first attempt at making a proper working game.

Screenshot from the 3rd level of our game

Unfortunately we didn't have the time to learn how to code a game within the 48 hour time-limit so we decided to use Gamemaker, a game making program designed for those who don't know how to code or who only know very little. You still have to have a basic understanding of various logic methods but for the most part it is a fairly simple program to use. Next year we hope to improve by writing our own code and making our game without the help of such a program, and I can't wait for the large amount of stress it will bring. For those who missed it here's the link again: http://globalgamejam.org/2012/maze-ing-caterpillar. Just scroll to the download part, download, un-zip and play.

I also mentioned i had started modding some games, by this i mean i have started learning the basics of Minecraft modding and, now that i have a better computer, i am looking for more games that i can add my own ideas to.

A very simple block mod in Minecraft

In regards to Minecraft, i have gotten my head round the block images and creation, as shown above, and i am getting used to the crafting system (The block above was made by making a 4-square of dirt blocks). Unfortunately it has been a few weeks since i last touched on modding but i hope to make some time for it soon, especially since now I have......

A NEW PC!!!!!! (sort of). My little brother (who at one time had more money than sense) has lent me his PC, which although a few years old can still run new games with minimal effort. Thanks to this I have a much better work station for uni work and any modding I decide to do. Previously when building a very small Space Invaders game as part of a university practical exercise, my PC took just over 5 minutes to build and run the game (my laptop takes at least double this despite being only a year old). Now, I can barely blink before the game is up and running.

Main Hard Drive failed on my old PC

Another upside to having a much better PC is that I can finally play PC games again so I am now playing Star Wars: The Old Republic, which i can highly recommend, and Civilizations V, which has already sucked 8 hours out of me despite only being installed yesterday. So if you're on Steam I can now officially say that you can add me (ikasukiller) and recommend any and all PC games that are worth playing.

I WILL update this tomorrow again, i promise this time. So stay tuned for more and remember to add me on whichever social network you like, you can never have too many friends.

X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Steam - ikasukiller
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 
Follow @L_Norton_

Christmas Plans

This holiday season i am planning to get a lot done, assuming I can keep away from the new Star Wars MMO. Firstly I want to really get to grips with Unity so I can try making some prototype games from some ideas I have, I also want to re-read my notes on C++ so I'm ready for the next semester at uni because, being the geek that I am, I want to do really well in this year and so far I could have done better. Lastly, and most importantly, I want to complete all these games that have been stacking up. For the last month or so I have been collecting these great games that have been coming out but have had no time to play them and this holiday is the perfect chance.

On top of all that I've found an interest in Bleach (the anime not the liquid) which is slowly sucking most of my time away for the moment but luckily I'll have ran out of episodes soon and can continue with my plans. Unluckily however, play.com are selling the next few seasons I want for under £10.

Time to make some harsh decisions.

While I'm here, we have made a facebook page for MercuryForty4. There isn't much there at the moment but it'll do until we get the actual page up and running so feel free to "like" it if you want to give us some moral support.

X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 
Follow @L_Norton_

All Night Long

Enough with the promises, I'll just have to get round to updating this whenever I can.

At the moment it is 5:50 AM, and my plan to stay up until at least 6 PM is going well, I foresee an hours nap or so around noon but that shouldn't hamper my progress. I should mention that I'm doing this because I have trouble waking up at a reasonable time due to my late nights at work so I am resetting my body clock so I can actually get up for my exam on Thursday.

In other news, this staying up all night business has allowed me the time to finally write my Skyward Sword review which is now available on my review site: A Game Developer Reviews:. Hopefully this large amount of spare time will also allow me to get some other work done and possibly even revise for the aforementioned exam.

For the meantime, however, I shall be collecting star coins on various levels of Super Mario 3D Land.

X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 

Follow @L_Norton_

Mobile Blogging

Today marks the first time I try to write a post away from my laptop. Despite the negative reviews for this iPhone app I wanted to give it a try, not least because I tend to have 0 time to sit down and write proper posts that you are all no doubt used to from me. A couple of points I've noticed already from a brief once over of the app is the lack of a landscape view which would have been much more comfortable to write from. Apart from that it seems fairly simple but that is not necessarily a bad thing. You don't get the option to read other peoples blogs but that doesn't concern me as much, it also lacks the ability to post links as I usually do but I can live without for these short mobile posts. Overall I would say that the Blogger app is very simple in what it can do, but for the average blogger such as me it's enough to get by on.

The photo options are also hidden by the keyboard so I nearly didn't notice them. They are the usual options you would expect in an app: take a photo or select a photo. For the purposes of a full review I will now post a photo of my girlfriends flat:



Well that's 2 days in a row I've posted now, that must be some sort of record.

Weekly (Maybe)

This blog is quickly becoming the Weekly (Maybe) and I have no one to blame but myself.......and 9gag.

BUT on the upside I have a lot of free time now that the semester is all but finished and I will be trialling the Blogger app to see if that helps me update this more often.

In the meantime I'll be starting to design my own website to go alongside MercuryForty4's site, you know so I look a bit more professional but it more than likely won't go live for some time. On top of that I have started getting to grips with Unity, a game development tool, although this will mainly be used for prototypes as I've been told, quite rightly so, that developing games directly from the code allows for much more freedom and greater control over the final product. That being said, it is a useful tool for using during development challenges such as the Global Game Jam as it allows for quick development of ideas. So I've been told, as I said I'm still getting to grips with it.

In other, more personal, news, my room is a state once again and I intend to restore it to its former glory again tomorrow and keep it that way....for a few days. After that's done and I've done some revision AND I do some work on personal projects I can start getting into Skyrim again and Saints Row as well. Might even  get a review on one of them for you after I get the Zelda one out the way as well as a few that I've had planned but never got round to.

Okay, how many things can you find to insult me in this picture?

Here I had a short review of Resistance: Fall of Man but it became slightly longer than I thought (I was expecting a few lines but ended up with a decent paragraph) so I've moved it over to A Game Developer Reviews: but don't worry, I'll have a bigger review for you to chew on later on.

You stay classy, Internet.


X-Box: IkasuKiller
PS3: Ikasu-Killer 
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LeighNorton88
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/leighnorton 
Follow @L_Norton_