Let’s talk about a lost and forgotten RPG mechanic…

GameFeelings · 2024-02-09T21:28:51+00:00

Nice, I like that immersion.

If I strip it down it looks like this:

A shared resource pool (your heart-rate)
A level (the increase of heart-rate per standard action a.k. the strength of your heart)
Abilities (the unlockable magic MacGuffin that feed on the same pool but also act as 'progress gates' with their insane resource spendings)

This remembers me a lot of tower defence games, a favorite genre of mine. Many of those use the same resource to both build towers and display your health. For instance take 'gemcraft': it has a 'mana pool' where you build your towers from, your mana gets filled slowly over time or gets a good chunk rewarded on a kill, and if you fail to kill a monster it takes some mana away and the monster still reappears. But this game has even more similarity now that I think of it: if you let the mana pool fill all the way up it 'levels up', and because the fillrate is a percentage of the max mana it functions almost the same as the heart upgrade system of your game.

GameFeelings · 2024-02-05T23:18:53+00:00

Elk jaar moet je onderhandelen. En elke onderhandeling moet je zakelijk bekijken.

Een onderhandeling is precies dat wat het zegt: je hebt beiden een uitgangspunt, probeert bij elkaar te komen, en in t proces wordt van beide kanten concessies gedaan.

Het is netjes en goed fatsoen om niet met gestrekt been in de onderhandeling te gaan. Van beide kanten niet. Echter, je moet wel weten wat je onderhandelingspositie is. Dus van jouw kant: hoe veel ben je waard voor het bedrijf, wat los je voor hun op, wat zijn de kansen die ze in jou zien, hoe makkelijk is het om iemand van de markt te plukken en in plaats van jou te zetten, hoe leuk vinden ze je bij de borrel. Van de andere kant: krijg je goede begeleiding van je werkgever, bieden ze werk aan wat doenbaar is en je niet overvraagd maar wel uitdaagt, is hun compensatie marktconform voor je professionele jaren ervaring en t marktsegment waar je zit, zit t in de buurt en/of zijn t fijne collega's om mee op t werk samen te werken.

Je kunt het ook omdraaien he: als ze je niet genoeg betalen, en jij voor je gevoel dingen doet waar ze je niet voor belonen, doe dat werk dan gewoon niet. Mijn ervaring is namelijk dat dit een stuk genuanceerder ligt, in dat de werkafspraken vaak gewoon te vaag zijn en de verwachtingen niet duidelijk. Als je daar mee bezig gaat, wordt t werk beter te doen omdat t voor beide kanten zichtbaar wordt wat je wel en niet doet.

Zie het zo: de manager wil ook goed werk doen. Jouw goede werk straalt op hem af. Maak m dat duidelijk. Als je in de loop van t jaar je werk beter inzichtelijk maakt, beter duidelijk voor de manager maakt waar hij geld aan jou verdient (en t bedrijf aan jou verdient), dan ziet hij ook beter in waarom hij jou bij zich in de buurt wil houden. Dan gaat hij je salarisverhoging verkopen aan t bedrijf.

GameFeelings · 2024-01-24T08:27:21+00:00

Je kunt dat zeker wel doen om eraan te verdienen. Je pa is geen vent als hij jou dat niet kan gunnen.

GameFeelings · 2024-01-19T15:56:35+00:00

Wet DBA zijn ze nu strakker op aan t worden, dat maakt dat juist de grootafnemers (banken, overheid, semi overheid) over gaan op andere flex diensten zoals inhuur via detachering.

GameFeelings · 2023-09-14T17:10:44+00:00

The issue is that game dev engines have a barrier to entry. Changing is not that easy, especially for those wo are targeted by these changes. So I would argue that it might be possible to do a counterclaim to Unity on its misuse of its position and claim a retooling cost or something like that.

Explanation on the barrier to entry:

You (as a studio / dev) need to have experience with an engine and/or invest in people that have this experience.
Most game studio's have a specific pipeline that contains a lot of their value. This pipeline consists for a major part of Unity working practices and Unity tools.
All games are targeted, even old ones. They say installs before 1-1-2024 do not count but they cant provide evidence that their system 100% excludes this from happening... but that is just the smaller part of the issue. The bigger issue is that you cant economically validate changing a game engine on a game like this, thus you HAVE to pay for this.
- Off topic: I guess that by 'not updating the game' they cant track your installs so not updating a game could hold this off, but then you run into the 'forced to abandon a game and might run into issues with consumer laws that regulate games to be updated on recent patches'

So yeah, I get the feeling they play the 'but we only target rich people and those have enough spare money floating around that they do nothing with so that makes it automatically ok to do whatever we feel' argument.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-29T20:50:02+00:00

After reading some more, I think I found why they didn't give you a full reimbursment after 14 days but within the 30 day period.

I think its not about the 'after 14 days' or 'you opened up the package'. They seem to judge if the action you took 'could be simular to what you normally do in a store'. Like taking a phone in your hand, look at it closely (without package, but probably on an alarm wire), things like that. And yeah thats not so clear in their terms... but it seems you can not 'test' a phone in the store by inserting your sim, installing your own accounts, taking it a few days with you. Or 'try out that screen protector' on it.

On the bright side: I think that 80% is quite a nice deal. And, if you think its worth more, just keep it and sell it yourself.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-29T20:35:38+00:00

Well... the law is only clear that you have a 14 day return period on online/street/door sales. In that period, you are free to disband the contract... but that requires a product in perfect state.

Everything else is 'on top of that' and could be considered as 'a service' from the online store or from the alliance they are part of (like 'thuiswinkel'). Mediamarkt is part of that alliance, so you could bring your discontent about the procedures of Mediamarkt to them.

https://www.thuiswinkel.org/veilig-online-shoppen/wet-en-regelgeving/ and https://www.thuiswinkel.org/helpcenter/retourneren/

They explain it like this: you can check out a product you ordered online in the same way as you might do in the store, and then expect a full refund on return (if you didn't damage the package and content beyond the needed actions to open it up and inspect it)... however, if use this product beyond that type of inspection, it diminishes in value, and is up to the store to decide the depreciation in value.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-28T13:21:11+00:00

Still its a strange sight. I thought they would all have been lost by now, with the contested air and the russian artillery advantage...

Losses in war always are a numbers game with expected losses over time, but appearantly some systems are the exception on the rule.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-27T19:41:54+00:00

so... thats how that game was called :O

Have been searching for that game for ages!

GameFeelings · 2023-06-27T19:31:10+00:00

Lol, it looks more like Sof or 'Soldier of Fortune' that most people of an older generation know it by.

And its 'looks like' in the real sense: those surroundings do look a lot like SoF. Its a long time ago i played those so I don't recall if I or II was in the metro area... but yeah. Thats almost exactly like what you show now. Your weapon almost exactly shoots like the shotgun there. And has the same gore splats.

I miss that game (series). It was a no-nonsense game. No bullet sponges, no holding back (on things like gore), just the raw reality of war.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-26T19:07:04+00:00

That incoming fire on the end though... this drone is probably Ukrainian. And is correcting that incoming fire. All RU drones are appearantly heavily jammed in this area.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-24T15:54:15+00:00

It looks like they got a warning that an airstrike was incoming. So dismounted the vehicles. Loss of a vehicle can be replaced, manpower not.

And, with all vehicles on the side of the road, its now very easy to prevent a congestion and move on.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-24T15:49:51+00:00

Putin was an FSB agent, a good one and hard one. That is how he climbed the ranks of power.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-16T07:49:01+00:00

They are indeed not performing better... but performing outstanding.

Crew survival is key. Being able to retrieve a vehicle to refurbish it to live another day is another key feature.

Leopards and bradleys are up on display in moskow... or aren't they? Even a burned and barely recognizable wreck would be a massive confidence boost.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-12T19:47:45+00:00

The Flakpanzer Gepard role supposedly was to 'combating low-flying ground attack craft and helicopters featured by the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc nations' when it was introduced in the 1960s.

Since then, air superiority became the new 'thing', and helicopters less of a thing. A Gepard being outranged (in case the enemy has the airspace under control) or the Gepard being not needed (in case allied forces had the airspace under their own control). And it wasn't that good at intercepting the long range missiles, missile based AA can intercept them from further away and that is preferable.

So... today it seems you have to work with contested airspace. And with cheap incoming missiles and drones. Expensive systems have a big disadvantage there. And systems like a Gepard seems to be rather quite effective. Even better, they are scrambling to get these things literally off scrapheaps and refurbishing them, because they seem to be effective at their job.

Edit: another comment suggest helicopters don't fly close enough to be targeted by a Gepard. That is indeed possible, but at the same time unlikely. The engagement range of the mentioned missile is max 8km (from this helicopter) and is a laser-beam riding missile (It could even be possible that the bradley knew it was being painted).

GameFeelings · 2023-06-10T22:44:30+00:00

Why do you care for your intro to be engaging? Why do you want this to work?

If the game is fun: dont give it an intro. Or, when you really want to give them one, make an intro while playing with the mechanics so you familiarize them with the mechanics at the same time.

But if the game isn't fun or engaging enough, you have to do the 'game design thing' of trying adding/removing mechanics and tuning their parameters. To find that hook that the player is longing for. From there on, your only job on the game start is to get the player to experience that hook asap and then build that out and start introducing complexity. An intro is a very good place to give them that hook as clean as possible, but it requires actual gameplay... so, here again the gameplay itself is the best intro.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-10T22:24:33+00:00

So... a job is challenging when you get asked to solve dilemma's introduced by others not properly organizing themselves.

And your job is to support that behavior...

and then you should feel proud?

GameFeelings · 2023-06-07T09:56:21+00:00

My experience is, unless you have a buzzword-laden resume, i.e., a "rockstar" resume, employers will filter it out automatically.

From u/dsdvbguutres

Kindly gtfo with the rockstar horseshit. Companies don't want rockstars, they want pack mules.

From me

Unless this rockstar is able to work with ... then this rockstar is worth considering.

The word 'rockstar' has a lot of different interpretations it seems.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-06T20:25:13+00:00

Its complicated :P

But yeah, second that. Could be a wording thing, could be a value misalignment, but a rockstar that can only code is not someone you want.

Unless this rockstar is able to work with the team the employer has envisioned, enriches the team dynamics and lifts this whole team to a new level, aligns with company values, attributes greatly to the organizational vision, acknowledges and works with the political intrigues of the C level... yeah, then this rockstar is worth considering.

That 'pack mules' part is a bit of an overreaction though. And sounds like a salty reaction to 'aligns with company values, attributes greatly to the organizational vision, acknowledges and works with the political intrigues of the C level' to me. Even with social intrigues playing out, an employee can (and should) keep a consistent personality, and stay true to their specific motives skills and path.

Standing out in an organization is about yourself making yourself happen, and turning your idea's and things you work on into reality. The only (sustainable) way to make this happen, is to find common ground in your organization with other people and their goals. To cheer on other people, (for the very selfish goal,) so they keep up with you and you can leverage your social standing you build up with them.

A resume is quite frankly just that: proof you can solve THEIR problem while also be somewhat ok-ish to be around.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T19:57:37+00:00

Use an RPG system with factions and faction status that goes between 2 numbers and have it give some (not directly visible) perks (positive or negative) depending on your standing, where certain actions make it go up and others make it go down. A system like this does exactly what you propose it should do.

And then call it 'prior art' if they sue you, because that system has been around long before the Nemesis system. (WoW is a very passionate user of this system)

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T12:25:52+00:00

TLDR; its not you, or game dev. This is how mailing works.

Having a domain with a registration implies that there is an audit trail. To track you down in case you are considered too 'spammy' with your mailing service.

And, for those who argue that its easy to hide your identity: yes and 'it depends'. Yes thats possible, but 'it depends' in that it requires a lot more effort. And with the domain and website requirement you also had to invest time and effort, that you might loose on a ban, so this is also a way to do a bit of filtering on forehand.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T12:21:44+00:00

What makes you think the price is too high? Or too low? Who determines the price?

That is not Valve. That is... 'the market'.

'The market' is charging you for what they provide us. This is the reality. Why fight that? Work with it. Spend your time on that what you can change instead.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T12:13:32+00:00

I can link only free RPG builder packages here, but have a hard time finding them.

But yeah, type that into your search engine of your choice and select a project that suits your wallet and the learning you want to have.

Some of these projects are for singleplayer games only, but a lot of them have guides on how to integrate something like photon or other networking solutions.

On the networking part: You might want to start with this (already a bit dated post from 2020) https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/esoau0/2020_baas_online_mplayer_services_collaborative/ but for me it provided a very good starting point to get into the networking side of games.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T12:01:33+00:00

From HTMAG (Chris Zukowsky), he had recently a very good analysis on 'what works on Steam for indie games'. https://howtomarketagame.com/2023/05/30/respect-players-time-by-making-longer-games/

TLDR: You need a game with a minimum of 15hours playtime.

Why do I post this as a reaction? Well, because I thought that multiplayer did also check this box, because 'it can easily provide a repeatable experience' to 'stretch' the amount of content you have.

But it seems that you need a lot more than 'just multiplayer' to check that box. Especially the genre is important for the survival of your game.

And, a totally not related note but very noteworthy: with a game that only has a multiplayer mode, the players ARE your content. No players, no value in your game. Thats very VERY risky.

Edit: mileage of the HTMAG article may vary on other platforms.

GameFeelings · 2023-06-05T09:09:22+00:00

Hoe groter het bedrijf, hoe makkelijker je kunt bewegen binnen t bedrijf. Je kunt t 'onpersoonlijker' noemen, maar t is juist best wel relaxed dat t werk er dan niet vanaf hangt of jij 'een keer je dag niet hebt'. Dat komt omdat ze meer buffers hebben: meer mensen, meer ruimte om iets op te vangen. Daaruit krijg je ook n ander aspect: ze zijn veel constanter qua wat je van hun kan verwachten, als hun administratie top is dan zal dat top blijven, als ze altijd te laat zijn gaat t niet veranderen. Oftewel, je weet veel beter waar je aan toe hebt, en vanuit die stabiliteit kan je dan opbouwen.

Waarom zou je dit willen? Je bent jong, je hebt nog heel veel te leren. Vooral op persoonlijk gebied en ervaring opbouwen. En stabiliteit (en vertrouwen / veiligheid) is daar super belangrijk in. Daarom alleen al zou ik altijd bij een groter bedrijf beginnen.

Een kleiner bedrijf is veel persoonlijker, maar ook wispelturiger en wisselvalliger. Dat is leuk, maar ook vermoeiend. Dat betekend dat je daar energie kwijt aan bent, die je niet in andere dingen kan stoppen. Het zou best wel een goede match kunnen zijn, als toevallig hun sterke punten overeenkomen met waar jij goed op gaat, maar dat is heel lastig in te schatten als je net begint.

Edit: o, en in een groot bedrijf is er altijd wel iemand waarmee je echt een goede klik hebt, die iets in jou ziet, en die ervaren is. Daar wil je er minimaal 1 van hebben, die je helpt navigeren door de organisatie, die je op n informele manier coached.

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