Twenty Sided

By Shamus Posted Sunday Nov 21, 2010

Filed under: Notices 39 comments

Next PostReginald Cuftbert Smashed My Computer 

Desert Bus is underway. I’ll be calling in to the show today at 4pm EST, 1pm PST. I have no idea what we’ll talk about. I was pretty relaxed about this until I saw the guest lineup for the last 24 hours, which included Penn Jillette, Yahtzee Croshaw, and Jerry Holkins. The LRR crew have mistaken me for a real celebrity, and we must make every effort to prevent them from discovering their error.

They might have a post up on the official blog where you can leave questions for me in the comments. I don’t know how it will go. But I hope you’ll watch.

UPDATE: All done. Fun interview. I’ll have a wrap-up post along with the interview in the morning.

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Full DisclosurePrevious Post

Next PostReginald Cuftbert Smashed My Computer 

39 comments

Spoiler Warning S4E3: I’ve been working on the Railroad…

By Shamus Posted Saturday Nov 20, 2010

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 280 comments

 Spoiler Warning S4E2:
Kill Ten RobotsPrevious Post

Next PostSpoiler Warning S4E4: Consequences! 

Link (YouTube)

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Spoiler Warning S4E2:
Kill Ten RobotsPrevious Post

Next PostSpoiler Warning S4E4: Consequences! 

280 comments

Experienced Points: Difficulty is Hard

By Shamus Posted Friday Nov 19, 2010

Filed under: Column 102 comments

 Shamus Plays: What Happens in Goldshire...Previous Post

Next PostStolen Pixels #243: Keep on Bussinâ€™ 

My latest column looks at difficulty in games by examining the various and wildly divergent entries in the Prince of Persia series.

Also: This weekend is Desert Bus for Hope. Never heard of it? I forgive you. Just read the FAQ.

I’ll be appearing (call in) on the show on Sunday at 4pm EST. We’ll do some sort of interview-type thing. I will try very hard not to ask any members of the LRR cast to marry me, but all bets are off if Paul answers the phone. Just warning you.

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Shamus Plays: What Happens in Goldshire...Previous Post

Next PostStolen Pixels #243: Keep on Bussinâ€™ 

102 comments

Let’s Code

By Shamus Posted Friday Nov 19, 2010

Filed under: Links 15 comments

 Archi AlternativePrevious Post

Next PostLet's Code, Part 2 

I’ve been corresponding with Michael Goodfellow, a fellow coder who had recently begun a blog detailing a game he’s working on. If you enjoy the coding write-ups that I do around here then do make sure to give this a look. He’s actually working on an MMO. A few people have nudged me to talk about the technology behind Minecraft, but his post explains the core concepts. Pay special attention to the stuff on Octrees. An Octree is just a three-dimensional version of a quadtree, which I wrote about way back in February 2006. (Hey! This site turned 5 years old back in September and I didn’t notice!)

I’m a big fan of “coding in public” like this. When you’re working on a solo project you might have to plow months into your work before you even have something playable enough to show off, and those months of working in the dark can be disheartening. I’ve found writing about my work also helps to to organize it in my mind. And it makes for an entertaining read for everyone else.

Do check out Let’s Code and let him know what you think.

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Archi AlternativePrevious Post

Next PostLet's Code, Part 2 

15 comments

Spoiler Warning S4E2:
Kill Ten Robots

By Shamus Posted Thursday Nov 18, 2010

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 239 comments

 Spoiler Warning 4x1:
Death is CheapPrevious Post

Next PostSpoiler Warning S4E3: I've been working on the Railroad... 

Link (YouTube)

The re-launch of the show went well. The changes seem to have paid off. We didn’t explode into a viral sensation of instant fame and stardom, but we did see a nice increase in viewership and nobody issued us a cease and desist over Rutskarn’s singing. I don’t know what success feels like, but I’ll bet it’s probably a lot like this.

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Spoiler Warning 4x1:
Death is CheapPrevious Post

Next PostSpoiler Warning S4E3: I've been working on the Railroad... 

239 comments

Project Hex Part 5 – Growing Grass

By Shamus Posted Wednesday Nov 17, 2010

Filed under: Programming 74 comments

 Project Hex Part 4 - 8 Bits is EnoughPrevious Post

Next PostProject Hex Part 6 - A Comment on Comments 

Last time I created a texture for the world. It was okay.

The next step is to give this texture a bit more depth and to make it less rigid and mechanical. The first thing I want to do is make the grass edging a little more interesting. I’m going to be basing my efforts on this tutorial. (Halfway down the page.) It shows some grass hanging over onto some dirt. Two things I’m taking away from this:

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Project Hex Part 5 – Growing Grass”

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Project Hex Part 4 - 8 Bits is EnoughPrevious Post

Next PostProject Hex Part 6 - A Comment on Comments 

74 comments

Shamus Plays: What Happens in Goldshire…

By Shamus Posted Wednesday Nov 17, 2010

Filed under: Column 31 comments

 Experienced Points: Know Your Gaming RootsPrevious Post

Next PostExperienced Points: Difficulty is Hard 

Part 4 of my journey into the absurd.

Q: Hey Shamus, where the heck is Stolen Pixels?

A: I’ll let Hamlet answer this one for me:

HAMLET: I have of late,â€"but wherefore I know not,â€"lost all my mirth…

I really don’t know what my problem is lately, but I’m not able to write jokes. I’ve got several more weeks of Shamus Plays World of Warcraft written, so we’re good there. But I can’t do anything with my comic. I’m just not feeling it. So, we’re taking a break until I can recover my mirth.

Shamus Young is a programmer, an author, and nearly a composer. He works on this site full time. If you'd like to support him, you can do so via Patreon or PayPal.

 Experienced Points: Know Your Gaming RootsPrevious Post

Next PostExperienced Points: Difficulty is Hard 

31 comments

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