MrBCut Blog

0 comments by MrBCut on Aug 11th, 2008 digg this super bookmark

1) Can I tell time?
Hey what's up all? I know, I know...I promised in my last blog I would check in every week and give you guys status updates, but I totally blew that. Sorry - believe me a lot has been going on. Some bad, but some really good. We just made a huge foundation change with our project by switching engines, which I'll talk about a little more in the next sections, work hasn't exactly let up - more OT., and I'm out of school for the summer like I mentioned before, but I got a couple of projects stretching past their deadlines and one team member is moving and we have another one joining, so things aren't letting up. Time is just not a luxury, so I have been swingin left and right trying to knock out as many things out as I can.

2)Project update
Ok, so here's the deal. This project has been established for three reasons. These reason are shared by each one of us in our group. A)We love video games, b)We want to prove our talent, c)we want to get out of QA and be involved with game development, d)we love unreal tournament and the unreal engine. So we've been making some great progress. Myself with engineering, was producing awesome results with the engine and runtime and proving the mod process is possible for a total game conversion, our level designer was producing cool stuff, our artists and animator were really proving what they knew and producing some cool stuff. So everything was going great right? Well, we realized that we had some high expectations for ourselves and the UE2 engine, while it was good, by the time we finish in Feb  2009, it would be outdated. Most of us on the team already have UT3 on PS3 or just about all of us have fondled with the idea of the next project or 2nd part of the story being done with UE3. So we decided, "why wait?" Officially:

WE ARE NOW CREATING OUR MOD WITH UNREAL ENGINE 3.

We are no longer creating any assets, ideas or gameply using the Unreal Engine 2 and our project will now be done with the Unreal Engine 3. While PS3 support is still in debate, the point is to create this mod with an up to date Engine and finish our mod goal using this engine. One key note, with this change, this also means that we will be moving our deadline back on year as well. Intentionally, we wanted to be
complete by Feb 2009 to participate in the GDC IGF, but now expect us to enter the 2010 GDC IGF.

I will update my profile header and all images and references and we have made preperations for this including purchasing the UT3 collector's edition, any PS3 owners have UT3 and out FTP is finally up! Told you I've been busy. So my ModDB friends, we hope you will continue to support us and give us feedback and rewarding resources  just as we contiune to lend our voice to the community as well. For example, for using muators and modding on UT3 while running on a PS3, I found a wonderful resource. It is here Ut3mod.com . I want to give a very special thank to a friend I have met on there HerbyG! HerbyG has been real supportive of UT3 modding on the PS3 and his site and forum is full of impressive modding and mutating examples you can do easily with the PS3 and PC as well. You can drop him a line and say hello and even add him to your friends list on PS3 :) Check out this post and look for my name, MrBCut, and check out the cool dialogue: Ut3mod.com Also, be sure to check out my website for additional info and resources too.

3)Show and tell - finally...
I'm a little regretful and excited about this change. Well, regretful because of the time and things we produced are not going to be used, but als excited because we feel we have the feel for the "Camaro" so let's wee what the "Corvette" can do. Well, I can share with you guys some of the past (obsolete) work we've done ( I don't think the guys will mind ) and give you guys a feel of what are game is going to be like and hopefully keep you guys checking in for more. So you'll find the assets attached, so enjoy! Sorry _ I am not including specific artwork for char's, level, weapons or any specifics. You'll have to wait for that. You understand, right? If not, suck it up.

As usual, I'll try to post again next week, and thanks for your support. And if you guys know some cool UE3 resources, please let us know and we will share too.

see ya'

MrBCut

0 comments by MrBCut on Jul 12th, 2008 digg this super bookmark

I)Our Mod is coming along great!
Hey everybody! Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have definitely been busy (haven't we all right?) School, work, other projects and the mod project have my summer booked! I was planning on enrolling for a summer quarter class, but a couple of things happened: First, I didn't like the class set up: no books only notes were provided by the professor and it was actually a tough subject: Software engineering: UML design and OOP design. Next, it was an online class. So this is a pretty important class and I wanted to get a lot out of it, but it didn't feel right. Then second, I thought, "have I really finished all my projects?" And the answer was no. Never leave a project unfinished. I wanted to finish completing all my studies with JavaScript, and I want ed to finish my project studying file server implementation with Apache, MySQL and PHP, and also Java Server pages, and third and more importantly, I want to finish this mod project before Feb. 2009. So, my mind is made up, my plans are set for summer and here's what's new. The cool notes and lessons the Epic UDN site are really great. A lot of progress is being made in the areas of mod configurations, the benefits of the runtime lessons and practicing and putting into implementation all the lessons and making things work are giving our mode vision and direction. I am pleased with the progress!

II)Thoughts on EA, PS3 and game development
Work is well, work :) I am part of the Sims 2 Internet group and we just succesful launched the Sims 2 store (http://thesims2store.ea.com/index.html) It was especially great to be a part of this project and I am very fortunate to have been around such talent and work closely with a development team from start to finish. I took very important lessons away form this experience and I think it will be successful over time. It's funny, the more you want to work in game development, the more work it becomes. The fun factor decreases a little, but the rewards and achievements of launch and success are memorable and really gratifying. At EA, it's tough to not feel like a target. I mean a lot of people, gamers, industry analyst and other developer and publishers don't like EA. But what people need to understand, is EA has been involved with game development for a long time and as a "business" they have the strongest, agressive and dominant presence that will keep them forging ahead for a long time. I'm pretty excited about the latest releases and upcoming titles: Battlefield Bad Company, College Football 2009, Madden 2009, Boom Blox, and more on the way! But my favorite company, Sony, impressises me daily. I just downloaded the latest frimware 2.41 and I think it shows the support and direction that the PS3 will take in the futrue. My favorite game right now is Metal Gear Solid 4. I play a lot of multiplayer and if you do as well, add me to your list. It would be cool to play with you guys sometime. I heard a quote on an game industry analyts blog, and he mentioned that the game indstry is recession proof. That' a strong statment and I won't necsessarily disagree with it, but let's just say the best season, summer of the game industry is ere andit will be exciting to see th returned profit resuts.

III)What's planned next?
     Well a lot. I plan to update my website comprised of a lot more functionality by design of Javascript. I have some new content to add, some stuff that will blow you guys aways including new slide shows game reviews from PS3 and EA pictures from work and a special documentary about my attendance of the Kojima a signing that I attended. So stay tuned! And last but definitely not least, additional implementation of the mod  screenshot of pawns, HUD's, pic's of images and whatever else the team will agree too, lol ;)

See ya next time!

MrBCut

0 comments by MrBCut on Apr 26th, 2008 digg this super bookmark

-Whoa! Do I have some explaining to do...
Been gone a long time right? I'm sorry. For a while it was hard to keep up with the blogging. Man, I work, I go to school, and I'm working on this game. So excuse me! Things have been going very well. To all the young and inspiring people out there - Hard work does pay off and it has it's rewards! Trust me!

-E.........A........work........ - it's like your a slave
No. Just kidding. but let me shed some insight about working at EA and maybe this is perhaps true in any game company. If you are a new and budding tester, it will be a lot of fun at first. Yay! But if you want to really be a part of game development and have more responsibilities and display your talent and what you're capable of, work goes up and fun comes down. It become a job. But a rewarding job. I remember when I first started there it was great. I pursued programming any way I could with any task. I bugged the hell out of managers and other engineers and was always nosey. Then I finally got my chance performing automation scripting. From their, I gained the respect of my coworkers and mangers. Since then, after being laid off(thanks Microsoft for the crappy launch of your Xbox 360 that cost people their jobs - Kotaku.com)
I hate Microsoft now. Go PS3! Wii is a gimmmick) I went back to school worked toward finishing my degree and worked at Sony for a while :) .Then one day got a call from EA to come back home. The second time around it was much easier to kick a$$ because some of my friends already cam back and remembered me and some friends survived the cuts and not only that, it kind of felt like I came back like a Jedi - I kicked a$$. So to make a long story short, congratulations are in order for me because after hard work, persistence, and acquiring knowledge and showing it, now I am  a permanent employee working with the biggest label there under EA as part of the internet group. So that's what's been going on friends...

-Uhh...yeah that's great. Aren't you working on a game or something?
So all that has been going on, which brings you all up to date and what's going on with our mod project Harmonic Illusion. Yes, it is still in progress and I am very happy to say that and even happier to announce that great progress we've made. We started with 3 guys and now we have 6 and maybe a 7th on the way and we cover all the appropriate disciplines we need to: art, animation, level design, engineering, and we are working on sound. I take on the engineering responsibilities and let me say I am really glad to work with the other guys. They are super talented and I could never do what they are doing. But as the engineer, everyday i appreciate the Unreal Engine more and more. We have a new team member the was part of a team that created a Mod with the Steam engine, and I remember in the very beginning we were discussing design implementation and planning we considered using it, but I think we made a good choice with this engine. I have some great screenshots and artwork I would love to post, but let me get permission from the other guys and see how the feel about it, okay?

-Until next time. No I promise this time!...
My next blog, I'll try to write tonight. I got a long day ahead of me, but I want to talk about the things I've been going through with the tutorials for the Unreal Engine, the pros' and con's of the success of the launch of the first prealpha runtime and where we are at now and what to expect next.

Until then guys have a great day . And stay out of trouble and work hard. Damn it! ;-)  j/k, lol.

0 comments by MrBCut on Dec 21st, 2007 digg this super bookmark

-Finally going to go pick up my copy of UT3-.

I have a PS3 ( say what you want, but this is an awesome machine - trust me. i have the first gen PS3  plus I was working at Sony at the time of development and launch so I know all the ins and outs of it) and I can't wait to play it on there. Found out that any USB or Bluetooth keyboard is compatible with it for gameplay so that's great. Hopefully this means no matter if you're playing on PC or console you're skills will continually get better because of the familiarity with controls.

-PS3 + UE3 = Uber UT3-

I  can't wait to see how the Unreal Engine 3 performs on the PS3 with UT3 (say that 3 times fast, lol ) Now there are other games out there that have the Unreal Engine 3 used on it, but this is my personal benchmark standard for the machine and I can't wait to play it. Although I have already seen gameplay footage of UT3 at the 2007 GDC, this time it';s different of course because it's the finished product and it's my personal gameplay experience and I hope to find some familiarity between it and UT 2004 /UT2 engine. I have a feeling it will be hard to notice.

 -UT3 anyone?-

So if anyone out there in ModDB land plans on playing it on the PS3, my gamertag is going to be MrBCut and if you are planning on modding or are currently modding some stuff with UT3, or if you know of some good resources on here about any of that for the ps3 or PC, I'd love to hear from you! It's going to be cool to discuss the technology, ideas and capabilities of how the PS3 and UE3 are going to work together in the future.

All right see you guys then. Stay Tuned for more updates about our mod too...

MrBCut 

0 comments by MrBCut on Dec 11th, 2007 digg this super bookmark

I'm supposed to be pretty frequent with these blog postings, but I am stretched thin, let me tell you! Then it doesn't help that Christmas is around the corner. Everyone in the way on the roads and in the mall, just slowing my commute time trying to get home. Please people , learn how to drive! lol.

    Well if you observed the time of this posting, you'll notice that I'm up pretty damn late for a guy that has to be up at 6:30 a.m. But it's cool - I learned a lot tonight and it was definitely worth it. You know, I'll tell ya': those guys over there at Epic have things really figured out. I don't know if anyone else has noticed, but a lot of developers are coming out with their own engines ( LucasArts, DICE, Crytek, etc. ) not just for their games but for licensing too, and I think that's cool, but I really appreciate Epic really opening the indie development support of their engine to n00bs even like me. Thanks guys! You are helping me make some important steps as I continue my pursuit in the game industry.

So I was studying some info from their UDN site and it's has been the most resourceful of all info. Hey no offense to my ModDb community! lol You guys are great and you have really pointed me in the right direction and I really appreciate that. However, I'm going right to the source, so you can't fault me for that right? I learned a lot in regards to UE2 definition of mod support and really defining how to set up a mod project and using the -mod command line prompt in the Systems folder and how to set up your packages and configurations files so they are available in game. I even utilized our generic logo for the game through these settings and it was pretty cool!

I really appreciate their exampled and I hope I get a chance to share with you all soon!

Damn I 'm tired - I'll talke to you guys later! :)

MrBCut 

0 comments by MrBCut on Nov 30th, 2007 digg this super bookmark

- My head feels like a bruised piece of fruit- 

Well its not that bad of a headache - it's actually a good headache from taking in so much stuff about the Unreal Engine. Everything from understanding the syntax and different implementation forms to reading Tim Sweeney's concept of the engine andthe design decision he made when he came about creating it. And I have to admit Tim Sweeney is an awesome guy! The Unreal Engine is awesome and I am really starting to fall in love with it.

- Our team (Name pending...) -
So as a group, our team meets every Friday and we talk about the things we learned and what we want to implement and we give each other assignments and deadlinedsand we think it's important to constantly put pressure on each other. lol  - No it works!

In fact, if you a look a blog I posted a few days back, you'll see that one of my friends working on the project with me  named flipart, replied to my comment. Way to go man! Generate the buzz and introduce yourself! If this game is  going to be awesome and reflect all the hard work that went into it, it's going to be because of him. This guy is talented and very artistic. I envy him...grrrr!! lol No, but seriously he is good. Hey check out his website, www.asylumartistry.com see for yourself 

 - ModDB: "You don't have videos for us" -

I keep seeing this little FYI thing on this page about "you haven't posted any videos". Well, you are in luck ModDB friends! I have recorded/documented so many cool things in my career in the game industry ( which can also be found on my website( well once I finish paying for a service provide, but actually I was trying to host myself here at home) that I would love to share with all you guys from veteran professionals to noobs!  I'll post it in the vidoe section.

 - Packers lose, Cowboys win -
Time for sleep. Work will be here before you know it and big meeting tomorrow. I got a lot of explaining to do. lol

See ya'

MrBCut

www.asylumartistry.com

0 comments by MrBCut on Nov 27th, 2007 digg this super bookmark

Hey what's up Mod DB!

I never written a blog before, but for this project, it's worth it. This project has been an idea for a long time. Almost a year now, and we are now putting together a lot of assets. My responsibilities include the programming. It's something I'm good at. I take Software Engineering classes at Cal State University East Bay. They don't offer any courses in game programming, but I've taken all my programming fundamentals and practices and applied it towards my passion and that's the video game industry!

So I don't know how long or how detailed a blog is supposed to be, but I'm going to stop here. I have a lot too talk about, but a lot of work to do too. But I hope if you're reading this, that you get inspired and follow our Mod progress and process development.

And I want to thank mod DB for having this. I'm starting to see the usefulness of this thing. Thanks guys! I'll try to enter one every day - but I don't know...

Mr. BCut