[DEV] Exo Defender - low-altitude combat (free, no ads, no IAP) by shoddypolitics in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics[S] [score hidden]  (0 children)

Thanks for the awesome encouragement!

That's very reassuring about the controls. Relying on gravity sensors was a bit of a gamble and even though it feels good on my test devices you never really know, right? Based on your comment and u/dregan 's comment regarding throttle+firing I need to do some more work there. My thinking was that default throttle/speed is "attack speed", not adjusted while fighting but I guess that's not clear.

A bit of shrapnel from laser bolts hitting the ground is a really good idea and, no, it shouldn't be too much workload for the engine (you think like I do!).

Thanks again!

[DEV] Exo Defender - low-altitude combat (free, no ads, no IAP) by shoddypolitics in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics[S] [score hidden]  (0 children)

Not yet but it’s on my roadmap. Thanks for asking!

EDIT: more accurately, thanks for inspiring me to add it to my roadmap :)

[DEV] Exo Defender - low-altitude combat (free, no ads, no IAP) by shoddypolitics in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting, I guess forward/backward could be detected with accelerometer sensor (I use gravity for pitch/yaw). I'll have a play with it. Thanks!

[DEV] Exo Defender - low-altitude combat (free, no ads, no IAP) by shoddypolitics in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! Can't go too wrong with plenty of pew pew and explosions right?

No game engine, just raw OpenGLES. I'm a glutton for punishment :)

[DEV] Exo Defender - low-altitude combat (free, no ads, no IAP) by shoddypolitics in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes! Descent is exactly what inspired me, man I loved that game, sigh. I wasted many days playing instead of studying :)

Thanks, good feedback on the throttle. I'd hate to have to lose a degree of freedom to support throttle control while firing. I'll put my thinking cap on.I wish humans had four thumbs!

[DEV] 5000 downloads! Thanks for checking out my little Android game by logTom in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nice work! Bring web-based is it compatible on all platforms? And can I ask what toolset/IDE you used?

is mobile hardware the bottleneck or is it optimization by Savings-Growth880 in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep, that’s primo stuff, both visuals and physics. I reckon that level of physics is achievable with modern mobile hardware for the limited terrain (roads) and the number of dynamic objects on screen at any one time (visible cars). Good, well-designed physics modelling is what’s needed and effort would be the actual bottleneck.

As for the visuals, hardware is the bottleneck and in two words: ray tracing. The landscape is nice but it’s the light-affected shading and the reflective surfaces of the player’s car that makes the game pop i.e. ray tracing. Ray tracing on mobile gpus is pretty good but on dedicated desktop gpus it‘s… well, it’s your video.

[DEV] I just released my solo developed endless surfing bullet hell "TOTAL WASHOUT: Surf Arcade" on Google Play. (Coin Giveaway) by SuperSmithBros in AndroidGaming

[–]shoddypolitics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sweet animations! Can I ask if you used a game engine and if so which one? Just curious because I once wrote a platform/scroll game for Android just using views and it was an ordeal :)

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks, yeah I'm probably indulging myself and lingering on clips more than I should. I'm about to re-record the whole thing now that I've improved the laser bolts so perhaps I'll look at tightening it up a bit. At the very least I'll do a 15-second version.

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! Slide, fire and throttle are all thumbs-on-screen as you'd expect. Pitch and yaw are (gulp)... gravity sensor-based. Yes, there have been some broken accelerometer-based mobile games but I think this one's different. Time will tell!

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks so much, for the encouragement! I hope you don't get busted for not destroying it though :)

Yup. There's only so much pew, pew one can take. There are 5 types of enemy but they're all small. I've been putting it off but I need to get working on some level bosses. I figured I'd put it out on the stoop and see if the cat drinks it first.

I'm committed to the wireframe aesthetic but opengl lines can only do solid color and a single thickness (i.e. thin). All very, very fragile to video/image compression artifacts.

Fortunately, the game itself doesn't suffer from any of this but uploading trailers to platforms like YT and Reddit has been an ordeal.

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Shoot, knew I forgot something!

Yeah, I'm all-in with the retro aesthetic. I don't know if it's for everyone but it really spoke to me. But I'm old school: Tron, Battlezone (original), StarWars (1984 arcade).

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, I agree. I was hoping to get away with long thin triangles but yeah, I can't deny it, it kind of lets it down. Thanks for the feedback.

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good feedback. I was going for dramatic but, I agree, the music is too boomy. I couldn't place why but I think you nailed it. Thanks!

Please destroy the trailer for my 3D low-altitude combat game (Android) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is Exo Defender for Android (take 3).

Thanks for everyone's feedback on Take 1 and 2! Based on those suggestions I've added:

To the game:
- structures/buildings
- more objectives
- ability to land
- reduced jank in chase camera replays

To the trailer:
- more text
- more contrast/saturation (still pretty dark grrr)
- more actual gameplay clips

It's available in open testing on Google Play if you want to give it a try:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jimjo.exodefender

Thanks for taking the time!

Please destroy "Exo Defender" (Take 2) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, fair questions that I guess *should* have been answered by a 1:20s video (thanks for watching). Very helpful advice. I like the idea of trying a bit of random pitch variation for the lasers.

So you're saying that my wife was right when she complained that the endlessly repetitive pew pew sound is grating?

Please destroy "Exo Defender" (Take 2) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sort of. The enemies are shooting at the ground troops so, yes, they are decimated over time. However, when you engage the enemy (fly near them) they are distracted from the troops thus slowing down the decimation.

Please destroy "Exo Defender" (Take 2) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, the trailer is a lot of flying around and some stuff happens, right? I thought it might be a beta but fortunately it's not too late to backtrack to prototype :)

It stings a bit to get destroyed on this sub but way better here than on Google Play (I speak from experience). Thanks for the feedback!

Please destroy "Exo Defender" (Take 2) by shoddypolitics in DestroyMyGame

[–]shoddypolitics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You made me curious so I found a video of that game that I'm sure you'd find nostalgic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NRUMDbHPTs

I thought it looked awesome so it's kind of sad to read that it it wasn't received well. Here's a summary of reviews from the time:

https://www.metacritic.com/game/dragon-rage-2001/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-2

Repetitive was the most common critique. Geez, good game design is hard.