MentalPolyphonics » Games http://mentalpolyphonics.com Committees exist to share blame. Tue, 22 May 2012 19:18:25 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Engine Code http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/engine-code http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/engine-code#comments Thu, 10 May 2012 17:07:24 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17458 Code from our new game engine, for the lulz:

//TODO: powerhack below. will replace with working factory
// http://www.threadbombing.com/data/media/2/50smh.gif

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/engine-code/feed 0 HOWTO: Exploit Your Human Resources (Position) http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/howto-exploit-your-human-resources-position http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/howto-exploit-your-human-resources-position#comments Tue, 01 May 2012 14:43:21 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17443 When I got out of my contract trial period here at the studio I was promoted to Engineering HR Lead. It’s a nothing title — I’m the only person on the Engineering HR team. However, it did come with real power: I am now able to pick my coworkers, I’m working on revising the hiring test, and I’ve started an internal coder training program (which I’m trying to expand to the art department).

And I’ve just now been invited to sit on Humber College’s industry advisory board. When I was a student I thought industry involvement in post-secondary education was pretty evil, because academic institutions really should not be outsourced technical training programs. However, the Computer Science community in Toronto is, frankly, in crisis. Large corporations (no names) have pillaged the “industry advisory” process completely, leaving it almost-impossible for startups and small companies to find people trained in open, or defacto, standards.

The local institutions seem to be teaching XNA/C# and Java almost exclusively now, even U of T. When you sit grads from these programs down with a memory bug they are utterly helpless: “what’s a memory? I forget.”

Anyway, I can’t take credit for pushing open standards, which is the approach I’m going to take. The nature of those systems, combined with Apple’s (and to a lesser extent Google’s, Sony’s, and Nintendo’s) support makes them extremely useful and flexible.

The phrasing we’ve been using around the office is: “if you learn XNA, you might get a job. If you learn C++ you will have a career.”

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/howto-exploit-your-human-resources-position/feed 1 The Ghost in the Machine http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/the-ghost-in-the-machine http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/the-ghost-in-the-machine#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 18:59:44 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17420 We’re working on a port of a Japanese game. Here’s a comment the original team wrote in the late 80s/early 90s:

// hahaha!

I… I think they’re trolling us from 20 years ago? “Good luck debugging this!”

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/the-ghost-in-the-machine/feed 0 ING Direct’s “Forward Banking” http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ing-directs-forward-banking http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ing-directs-forward-banking#comments Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:57:01 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17393 The last bank I have any interest in is ING Direct. On Monday night they hosted a games industry event at their bricks-and-mortar location in Downtown TO. That was cool. Today I was part of an email blast about their new push (I’m a longtime customer — 10 years, maybe?):

I want email money transfers, the ability to use the debit system, and the ability to use debit online. Let’s hope all those nice sloplosions signify that.

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ing-directs-forward-banking/feed 0 Kinect + Kids TV = Future http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/kinect-kids-tv-future http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/kinect-kids-tv-future#comments Wed, 18 Apr 2012 18:04:19 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17372 I keep calling the Kinect a slow-burning revolution and using the phrase “that’s the future”, often in the same thought. Here’s a cool example:

As much as I am trying to switch to Sony, Microsoft has an amazing platform in Kinect+360. I just want to see them pushing “a gestural interface in every home.”

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/kinect-kids-tv-future/feed 0 Mixel as Visual Prototyper http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/mixel-as-visual-prototyper http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/mixel-as-visual-prototyper#comments Thu, 12 Apr 2012 04:29:47 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17344 Since writing UI specs is boring I’ve been using Mixel for rapid UI prototyping:

20120412-002403.jpg

The inability of the program to conveniently do text is a huge selling feature — it forces you into the grossly practical: what does it look like? I am thinking of getting Simple Physics to prototype with too — I heard it can do springs.

Thinking of gestures for menu access… Slide discs in to pause.

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/mixel-as-visual-prototyper/feed 0 iOS Game Announced http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ios-game-announced http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ios-game-announced#comments Fri, 06 Apr 2012 18:04:34 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17321 The game I’m on right now was announced at PAX this morning:

“We are extremely excited to work with Twisted Pixel in bringing splosions to mobile devices,” says Iron Galaxy C.E.Bro, Dave Lang. “Ms. Splosion Man has really deep gameplay that is born from deceptively simple controls, so it’s a great game on any platform.”

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/ios-game-announced/feed 0 Squeeze the Middle http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/squeeze-the-middle http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/squeeze-the-middle#comments Wed, 04 Apr 2012 15:26:32 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17268 Why hire a model, a photographer, and a shooper to get that super-unrealistic fashion look when you can just put famously unreal virtual people who are already digital in your clothes? I guess you’d have to digitize the clothes, but they’re probably designed in software now anyway — custom gown sewers are being replaced by small shell scripts!

Here’s Prada 2012 on a Final Fantasy model (meant in the technical and artistic sense simultaneously). Ladies:

Gentlemen:

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/squeeze-the-middle/feed 1 Overheard at the Studio… http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/overheard-at-the-studio http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/overheard-at-the-studio#comments Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:59:32 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17273 “Maybe we could treat wheelchairs as a kind of pants.”

]]> http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/overheard-at-the-studio/feed 0 Upcoming Project http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/upcoming-project http://mentalpolyphonics.com/posts/upcoming-project#comments Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:47:11 +0000 Jack http://mentalpolyphonics.com/?p=17264 In a couple of weeks I’m going to Chicago to get hands-on training with this, which I’m on next:

… which means I’m going to have to switch to Windoze at work (boo!) and get to work with kinect (yay!).

The game I’m currently doing is going to be announced at PAX East this weekend. Might be able to post something about that then.

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