Confession, Since the last update I have not started on a single math topic. Yes I know i'm a lazy person. Shortly after typing out the blog update, I decided to get back to programming and I decided to mess around a little more with map generation and I got so absorbed in it that time flew by so fast. You can check out my map generation blog 2 on the game development blog page if you so desire! What Now? Now I am taking a short break from programming while also preparing for the reopening of school. As of now I am delving a little into sketching in hopes of being able to make my own simple art for my game(s). I know most people would advice against it as programmers tend to not create their own art and vice versa, however I am just doing it for fun and the experience. I have decided to use the software Spine to animate my characters. In a way it is easier then drawing frame by frame pixel art, and also opens up other possibilities art wise. The catch is that I have to get my art assets from somewhere. So I thought why not just try creating my own? My strategy thus far has been to search up sketching tutorials of simple chibi art styles to emulate while also practicing and experimenting on my own. For some reason most tutorials I have watched on YouTube draws them front facing which would not be ideal for an in game animation. However I came across one tutorial by Nautica Williams where she drew a chibi by mapping out the "skeleton" which I have adopted. Adopting this method I trialed and erred my way to slowly mapping the body sideways to suit a side-way movement. The skeleton method is also great because in the Spine software it also uses a "bone" mapping mechanic, and having it in drawing makes it easier to visualize the movement of my characters. Below are some of my progress attempts to draw my friend Richard as an NPC in the game. Usually I write myself some notes below each iteration which I try to correct in the next, I have found that to be a very effective method for me to create more natural looking characters. Conclusion
So it is obvious I still have a long way to go, but it is kind of fun sketching random characters letting your imagination go while practicing. It also feels really relaxing for some reason. I will keep practicing and maybe one day be able to relatively effortlessly draw some characters for my game(s)! Thanks for reading! And stay tuned for next update where i'll probably share my progress sketches, also hopefully in-game art concepts!
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I haven't updated my blog in awhile since 26 August which makes it around 22 days? The reason was that after successfully creating some of the game mechanic systems for my second game (2D Monster Hunter, still needs a name), I got kind of lost. I realized that since the beginning, I was so caught up into coding what I wanted, do this do that, and it was fun, and I learnt a bunch of new things, but I had no end goal. Yes I wanted randomly generated monsters (which was accomplished), yes i wanted players to be able to have a skill system where they could create their own skills (also accomplished). However I had no direction for the game, I had a just fragments of things that I wanted to do, I didn't know if it was going to be an RPG, a platformer, a top-down shooter. I didn't even have a map built. After jumping straight into the fun of creating these skills and monsters, I had nothing to implement it on. So I took a short break from coding to try to visualize the game I wanted to create. And let me tell you it wasn't easy. I wanted to create something probably all game developers wanted, something NEW, something FRESH, THE BEST GAME EVER. But realistically I am still a beginner in programming and development, I had to take some time off to find my goals, and set realistic expectations for myself, I had to reground myself if you would so call it that. I started browsing the various forums, watched videos of other more experience game developers and software engineers in general to broaden my perspectives. From doing this, I found that there was still so much to be learnt. So I asked myself. Did I really want to create a game when with just the knowledge I had now? No doubt it is possible to create a great game based on the basics depending on the the game design. But personally I feel no excitement in that, applying the same concepts over and over again kind of gets boring after awhile. Cutting to the chase, I wanted to learn more before delving back into the development of this game. I had to know more before creating this game. This does not mean that I will be totally stopping development of the game, I have decided that I will just be working on the world generation aspect of the game which, the environment etc. Stuff that has more limited options in terms of programming. As for game mechanics, I have yet to think of anything set in stone, but I have some ideas floating about. Stuff that I have plans for! Delve into Machine Learning. Since its the holidays I figured I might as well make good use of it. I'll have to learn the basic Math first, or re-learn (kind of forgot all my JC Math): - Vectors (Linear Algebra) - Vectors (Pre-calculus) - Matrices - Sequences - Derivative Rules Somewhere on the internet it was recommended that these were the basic Math required to start machine learning. All these I have already learnt while taking my A-Levels, but that was 6-7 years ago, and I barely touched Math since. Hence i'll be spending some time relearning these using the free source khanacademy. After that if I feel up to it. (i'll have to see then) Math that would help! - Algebra Functions - Quadratics - Irrational - Analyzing Categorical Data Some Stuff also learnt during A-Levels. (Curses! Why didn't I pay attention then D:) After learning all these Math, I will then begin dipping my toes into machine learning. I will be updating my blog on my math learning progress of course! With Machine learning, I hope that I can maybe incorporate it into my game development. Plus it is also always good to learn new things. In conclusion, that is a tonne of Math that I have to self study, hopefully I am not in over my head. With confidence that I have learnt them before, I believe somewhere deep down in my subconscious that it will all click somehow. Fingers crossed! All future generic programming/update blogs like these will be posted here in the general updates section! |
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AuthorZachary Tay, some random guy trying to learn. ArchivesCategories |