FuncWorks, LLC

GameMarx EP77 – Heads Up Displays And In Game UI

Mike — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 18:57:11 +0000

This week we talk about what makes a good HUD and how to communicate game status to the player. We also talk about the effects of the Double Fine Adventure kickstarter, and what Gatekeeper from Apple might become.

Kickstarter of the Week: Code Hero: A Game That Teaches You To Make Games

Show Notes:

AppHub Forums: Recent Dashboard Update
Official Xbox Magazine: Dev: Indie Games channel won't survive the death of the Xbox 360
Destructiod: A countdown for MechWarrior Tactics appears
Official Xbox Magazine: Next Xbox will reportedly have HD touchscreen-traditional controller hybrid
Zeboyd Games: So You Want to Be an Indie Game Developer?
Ars Technica: Mac developers: Gatekeeper is a concern, but still gives power users control
Develop: Zynga MyFarm source code row heading to courts
Destructiod: Ubisoft's PS Vita bullsh*t is truly incredible
Official Xbox Magazine: Epic: There are too many platforms
Destructiod: 'Double Fine Adventure' going DRM-free for PC, Mac, Linux
Develop: Tim Schafer: Console patches cost $40k
The Escapist: JIMQUISITION Welcoming A Digital Future
Develop: Obsidian considers Kickstarter game
Destructiod: Brian Fargo may attempt kickstarting a Wasteland sequel
Develop: Unity CEO backs Kickstarter for gamified dev tool
CodePlex: Windows Phone 7 Ad Rotator

GameMarx Special – Developer’s Look at EvilQuest

Mike — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:00:17 +0000

Mike, Dylan, and Cicelie take a look at EvilQuest from a game developer's perspective. EvilQuest is an RPS available on Xbox Live Indie Games.

GameMarx Special – Indieview – Chaosoft Games

Mike — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:12:21 +0000

Interview with Chaosoft Games at the release party for EvilQuest

GameMarx EP76 – Decoding Feedback

Mike — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 20:39:57 +0000

This week we discuss Double Fine's crazy successful kickstarter, some other news, and how to handle feedback during game development.

Show Notes:

Develop: XBLIG isn't growing, developer claims
GiantBomb: Blizzard Disputing Valve’s Trademarking of DOTA
D'Arcy from Winnipeg: NES Fanboi’s Dream–Ryu in Super Mario Bros?!
FastCompany: "Words With Friends" Board Game Coming From The Makers Of Scrabble
Develop: Apple ban on counterfeit and clone apps
Develop: VIDEO: Stand-up comedy on Zynga cloning
Kickstarter: Double Fine Adventure
Twitter: @TimJustRaised
The Bottom Feeder: Now You (Yes, You!) Can Design Dungeons and Dragons!!!!!!!
Amazon: A Theory of Fun for Game Design

GameMarx EP75 – Developer Tools

Mike — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 18:02:25 +0000

This week we cover current news, tools every game developer should be using, and what project scope should be for small development team.

Show Notes:

Official Xbox Magazine: Harmonix's CEO top contributor to Stephen Colbert's Super PAC
GiantBomb: Mass Effect 3 Demo Provides Temp XBL Gold Access
Destructoid: Humble Bundle comes to Android (plus PC, Mac, and Linux)
Tested: Windows Phone 8 "Apollo" Features Revealed in Insider Video
Window's Azure Blog: Windows Azure Toolkit for Social Games Updates
Gamasutra: Talking Copycats with Zynga's Design Chief
Develop: Triple Town dev sues over 'blatant plagiarism'
Ars Technica: Parcel Gamer wants to share used game profits with publishers
Ars Technica: My life as a cat: an hour with Terry Cavanagh's ChatChat MMO
DIY Gamer: IGN’s Indie Dev Reality Series Returns; Go Lazy 8!

Forum Question: Project scope when you have one developer

Tools Mentioned:

Source Control / Mercurial (Hg): Bitbucket | TortoiseHg | VisualHg
Asset Backup: Dropbox
Project Management / Kanban Board: AgileZen | Trello
Measurement Tools: XNA Timeruler | DirectX PIX | Visual Studio Performance Profiling | XNA Framework Remote Performance Monitor

Facebook Group

admin — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:47:49 +0000

I’ve setup a Facebook group for Knoxna: http://www.facebook.com/groups/knoxna/

I’ll post the meetings as events to the group as well. Please feel free to join the group and pass around the link to anyone you think may be interested in Knoxna.