Bit2Productions

Metal Gear Update!

2011-10-09T18:43:00.001+08:00

Metal Gear subtitle shall be renamed because the term OPPOSITION has been used by other fans. From now on, we refer this project as Metal Gear X.

The level has been completely designed. However there is lack of environment feel. Therefore, I've overhaul the spriting technique.

Storage Room

Tank Hangar

The memorable environment and moment of Hideo's Metal Gear Solid inspires my spriting technique. Therefore, for those who has played Metal Gear Solid will feel familiar about the level design.

Do not worry, I won't fully copy Hideo's. It's just because I missed Metal Gear Solid so much.

- Akubi.

Mikro is having a break!

2011-09-11T23:41:00.000+08:00

=O=
*yawn*

Oh well. I am so exhausted from developing the new Mikro... furthermore, with such a long term-break which will last until the end of the year, I just couldn't resist the temptation of watching animes and other series! >< I don't think I'll start working on Mikro again until I've become bored with watching these things. But... don't worry, I will get bored soon enough, perhaps just two more weeks before the enthusiasm to continue developing Mikro re-ignites, LOL!

A scene from the game with "hand-drawn" graphics.

This time, rather than using MSPaint to draw cutscenes (like in Tales of the Maguse), my sister is kind enough to lend me her iPad and that allows me to draw with my fingers! ;)

For now... I have all the important game areas designed already, and the current phase is monster design and AI programming. Furthermore, I have also programmed some of the minigames, and refined some core systems and game mechanics ;)

Signing off for a break now~

- chicken

Land of the Elads: Video Trailer

2011-08-18T22:00:00.001+08:00

Somehow this blog needs a bit of publicity. As such... I've made a trailer for my previous game Land of the Elads, while I was having a break from the new Mikro project. ^^ Here's a short trailer for the game. Hopefully I will be able to make trailers like these after the new Mikro has been completed ;)

Enjoy!

- Chicken

"Mikro and the Lost Remnants"?

2011-08-17T22:43:00.000+08:00

I was thinking about the main title for the next release of Mikro... and I needed a unique title that will appear as the first link in Google when people search for it.

I thought that "Mikro: The Lost Remnants" will be a good name. However, apparently it turns out that there's another game by the name of "The Last Remnants" which is very similar to the name I was thinking of. =(

If "The Lost Remnants" is the subtitle of the main title, gamers would usually search for "Mikro" instead. And the thing is... the name "Mikro" has already been occupied by many other things, ranging from music bands to business organizations! So... by merely searching for the word "Mikro", the first installment of the game will most probably not appear in the first page of the search results.

Therefore... on second thought, I might use the name "Mikro and the Lost Remnants" instead. This will make "The Lost Remnants" be part of the main title, and perhaps gamers will be able to remember it easier.

Or will they? Sigh. ='(

Anyways.........................

The level design of 19 out of 24 major areas have been completed! All that within 2 weeks time. Not bad for me. Gotta keep working on it now, hehe. Here's a sneak peak of the project!

Click to enlarge :)

- chicken :)

Progress of Metal Gear: Opposition!

2011-08-15T23:52:00.003+08:00

Here's another game under development by Akubi!

Akubi presents... Metal Gear: Opposition.

Basically this is an overhead stealth game, and is Akubi's another attempt on making a stealth game completely on his own from scratch-- coding, graphics... well... except sound effects. Hahaha. Here's a preview of his game in development:

See it? Definitely better-looking than the NES one! I'd say that judging by the screenshot, the game looks promising!

Snake's in another stealth action!

Here are some of the information that he has provided me with:

Current Development Progress:

- 45/75 Areas developed.

- 6/8 Boss completed.

The game also features fully directed cutscenes, nostalgic boss fights, classic MGS weapons and equipments, and of course, 'the best is yet to come'!

Wish him luck and hopefully this will be his third released game after Starship Alpha II!

---------------------

Here's an obvious distinction that I've found between Akubi and I: Akubi absolutely loves futuristic/modern themes while I love the theme on Fantasy. Seems like Akubi lives in the present and looks into the future... while I daydream a lot! ;)

- Chicken

Mikro II Development Progress ^^

2011-08-15T20:45:00.000+08:00

Phew, it's been more than a week since my last update. Just to let you all know, Mikro II is still in progress... at a very good pace!

For those who didn't know, Mikro II will be a direct sequel to Mikro I, with events taking place 10 years after the death of the Evil Sorcerer from the predecessor.

Since I am having a long holiday while waiting to advance my tertiary studies to the United States (end of this December), I have lots of free time now for developing Mikro II! ^^

Here are some screenies for the current version (ignore the FPS and INST values for now, they are for debug purposes xD):

This is one thing I love about Fantasy RPGs: It allows me to unleash my creativity by designing magical worlds and magical effects!

Improved World Map navigation: Smooth-scrolling views and better level selection mechanism!
(In contrast to Mikro II, in Mikro II you'll have to scroll the map up to the mission you've just completed everytime after finishing a level. This time, the bug has been eliminated!)

A bit more "action" feeling in this newly-revised melee combat system. One note though, Mikro II's primary controls will be based on the Keyboard. The days of using mouse controls are over. This will enable more people with Laptops (but without mouses) to play the game. ;)

More varieties of skills to be upgraded. For now, I have 25.

I am so excited to have this game released as soon as possible. My goal is to make this a staff pick, and probably (if possible), turn this game into a game where people will write a walkthrough about it LOL. Hahaha. It's a rather big dream, yeah?

For now, I have employed a different system of game development. Back in the Mikro 1 days, I used to do everything simultaneously, and design each level (with monsters and stories) altogether at the same time, from the beginning until the end of the game, without much planning. However, this time I've gone more systematic:

Core Game Mechanics -> Story design -> Level Design -> Enemy Designs/Placements -> Fitting stories into the levels (cutscenes/triggers) -> Sidequests/minigames -> Graphic upgrades (Those graphics from the screenshots are from Mikro I) -> Refining -> Beta-test -> RELEASE!

All according to the sequence shown above. This has proved to make my "motivation" last longer... and that my fire of motivation will not die off that soon and turn this game into an unfinished project like most of my other games. Believe it or not, I have like 20+ unfinished game projects, which I think that the mechanics are all set but I'm just too lazy to design levels and add stories to them.

Another thing I want to mention are the features (and expected features) for the game:
- Melee combat system instead of the usual shooting system
- Quick access to special skills
- More than 25 skills to master and upgrade
- Better randomly generated dungeons
- Weapon customization system
- Multiple "overdrive" modes
- Weapon inventory system (Storing up to 5 weapons in inventory and 12 weapons back in Town)
- (expected) 5-10 hours of gameplay minimum, hopefully...
- (expected) Minigames and more sidequests
- (expected) More challenging bossfights and optional superbosses
- (expected) Multiple endings. (I have this planned already in the story.)

What features would you like to see in this version? Feel free to leave me some comments and wish me luck in successfully releasing the game ;)

- chicken

Let's Reminisce: Realm of Monsters I & II

2011-08-06T19:21:00.000+08:00

Warning: This post contains materials produced 4-6 years ago. The games mentioned in this post will be definitely... unappetizing. But if you are a curious fan of RoM3, this is a post you should read!

At least 7693 gamers played Realm of Monsters III on YoYoGames up to this date, and that amount will continue to increase if the players who downloaded that game from Softpedia and other websites are taken into account!

I have been receiving many private messages from forums and YYG asking about the existence of RoM1 and RoM2:

"If Realm of Monsters III is on YoYoGames, I bet there will be RoM1 and RoM2 too! But I couldn't find them anywhere on the internet!"

- Some Gamers

If you were once a member of my fallen internet forum that I've made about four years ago, I believe you guys might have already played these two installments because I have uploaded the game there. But since the fall of the forum, the links have all been dead, and their traces have gone as well. So now... I'll be reuploading the two versions for you curious RoM3 gamers to play ;)

Ugly Paint-created Title Screen from RoM1

Another ugly screen with WordArt for RoM2 =_="

Please be aware that RoM1 is my first-ever created RPG. So basically... you shouldn't expect too much from the game!

Download Link

This links you to SkyDrive. In that folder, search for "Realm of Monsters I" and "Realm of Monsters II", then click on them to download. Now be prepared to puke at their ugliness ;)

- chicken

Mikro: The Journey is re-released!

2011-08-06T11:43:00.000+08:00

Howdy guys! It's a very good day that our associates Akubi and Tolich worked on the old version of Mikro: The Journey and made it a better one than ever before! This time, Mikro: The Journey will be equipped with improved graphics, a more balanced gameplay, and most importantly...The Lag Issue has been solved! Thanks to Tolich from Moonlight Entertainment for fixing up the issue and Akubi for producing improved graphics! ^^

This version has been uploaded to YoYoGames at http://sandbox.yoyogames.com/games/66119-mikro. Click on the link to go to the YoYoGames page for the download link!

While they worked on this version, of course we will never forget that Mikro II is also currently under development! Stay tuned for more updates! :)

Have a nice day!

- Chicken

Integration Successful ^^

2011-08-02T20:33:00.000+08:00

We were experimenting a feature to connect the blog with the Facebook page.

To all the fans of the Bit2Productions page on Facebook, we're sorry to have a bunch of wall posts posted on the wall out of a sudden (which happened around 30 minutes ago)!

However, the set-up has been successful via the help of NetworkedBlogs, and now the posts on the Facebook page will be in-sync to the blog updates!

Hopefully we will get to pull more fans of Bit2Productions! :D

- Chicken

The Chamber of Maguse

2011-08-01T22:46:00.003+08:00

A blog is, ultimately, superior to a Facebook page.

Therefore, we're back from Facebook and will be updating the blog as often as possible! ^^

Even though it's already one and a half year since the release of Tales of the Maguse, I'm still so high in the TotM mood.

Perhaps it's because TotM is one of the most successful games I've ever made that has received many positive recognition by players (despite some negative comments about it!)

Here's a video made for Tales of the Maguse, featuring the MP3 version of the soundtrack "The Chamber of Maguse" composed by Bit2Productions!

Indeed, it is the first time that I composed my own music for my games, and personally, that's a big achievement for me!

Enjoy!

- Chicken

We've moved to Facebook!

2011-06-14T23:03:00.000+08:00

We've launched a Facebook Page!
I'm sorry for the inactivity... been busy with schoolworks and stuff :)
But since I'm usually on Facebook, therefore I decided to make a Facebook page and keep that updated instead :)

Here's the link!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bit2Productions/223038137715420

See you there! ^^

Land of the Elads

2010-10-22T14:03:00.003+08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates...
Oh about two months ago I've already completed the game Land of the Elads. Remember the WIP I mentioned in one of the recent posts? Yup that's it! Prince of Persia + Shadow of the Colossus = Land of the Elads!

Oh, if you don't know which post I'm talking about... refer to this link!
Click here!

Alright. I shall requote the game description here...
Again I shall mention that this is an action-adventure-platform-puzzle role-playing game. =D

In this game, you explore a huge world on your horse or rather, on foot. As the story progresses, you are required to slay monsters which varies in sizes, called the Elads. But defeating the Elads are not that simple. You have to travel to certain areas, solve puzzles, defeat tiny monsters in your way to reach the area where the boss is. Unlike Tales of the Maguse, my previous game, in this game you are armed with only a sword and a bow, and you must utilize the environment to your advantage in order to strike on the Elad's weakpoints. From small but swift Elads to huge flying Elads, your task could be challenging.

Download here!
Yoyogames Download Link

Tales of the Maguse Artwork

2010-05-12T18:08:00.002+08:00

Before that...

I added a shoutbox here for the visitor's convenience.

However, if you do have some constructive criticisms and opinions regarding a specific game or post, kindly use the comment feature which comes with Blogger instead of using the Shoutbox.

Thank you ;)

...and here's the artwork. LOL.

Yeah it's quite pathetic, you know, making a "Fan Art" for your own games. LOL.

Remember, you can always revisit the link if you haven't played this game =).
Click here to Download Tales of the Maguse.

Shadow of the Colossus + Prince of Persia + 2D = Title Pending

2010-05-12T15:46:00.009+08:00

I don't feel like updating this blog because... my ideas for my project-in-progress might get stolen ;)

Just kidding... But I really do hope that no one steals my sprite or some other stuff like game mechanism etc. I wanna make a game which is quite a breakthrough in Yoyogames!

Yup, here you go, a hybrid of Shadow of the Colossus and Prince of Persia made with Game Maker, but with only 2 Dimension (2D) and the camera is in a Top-Down perspective. Yep, that's right. I proudly say that Top Down Adventure RPG is my field of expertise. Muahaha.

The development is currently in progress. Bonus items have not been implemented yet, but the mechanisms and several bosses are already programmed. So far so good. I'm planning to make 10 bosses only, which is less than Shadow of the Colossus by 6 bosses. But yeah. Programming bosses is tough. I'm out of ideas as well. =/

In this game, you actually explore a huge world on your horse or rather, on foot. As the story progresses, you are required to slay monsters which varies in sizes, called the Elads. But defeating the Elads are not that simple. You have to travel to certain areas, solve puzzles, defeat tiny monsters in your way to reach the area where the boss is. Unlike Tales of the Maguse, my previous game, you are armed with only a sword and a bow, and you must utilize the environment to your advantage in order to strike on the Elad's weakpoints. From small but swift Elads to huge flying Elads, your task could be challenging.

For now, don't mind the sprites first. I'll update when the game is done ;)

Below are the screenshots from the game.

It's Back: The beam from Shadow of the Colossus. Subject to change for the sake of originality.

Obstacles: What can be utilized to stop that giant over there?

Killing Spree: Crushing tiny bugs are much better than trying to kill the big giants.

Puzzled: Yep. Puzzles.

Differences: Look at the difference in size of the flying Elad and your character on horseback. And a problem here... how are you gonna reach the weakpoint on top of this flying Elad?

Platforming: You can do platforming even if the game is in topdown perspective.

Amigo: Your horse is your best friend.

Wish me luck =D
This game needs to be completed as soon as possible!

- Chicken

Pentatonic Music Generator

2010-01-31T20:47:00.006+08:00

All musical notes from the Pentatonic scale are in harmony with one another regardless of their combinations. Try to place a few random notes within the Note Area and the program will play the tune for you. Surprisingly, no matter where you place the notes, it somehow forms a music ;)

This program is purely for fun. The music cannot be saved as a Midi file, but it can be saved in a ".pmf" format =D
UPDATE: You can now copy the melody code to the clipboard and load it directly ;)

Screenshot

Download
YoYoGames (1.3Mb

Using the Program

- Left Click on the Note Area to place a note.
- Right Click on a note to remove it.
- Notes increment per measure: The number of notes to add when the green line reaches the end and jumps to the beginning position.
- Tempo: Adjusts the tempo of the generated music.
- Note Limit: The maximum number of notes allowed to present in the Note Area.
- Saving: Saves the melody. / Save Melody Code into the clipboard
- Loading: Loads a melody. / Load Melody Code
- Clear Melody: Clears the Note Area.

A Demo on Loading a Melody Code
- Press the Save Melody Code to copy the code into the clipboard.
- Press the Load Melody Code button.
- Paste the Melody Code into the box. It must contain 224 characters.
- Done =D

Example Song:
00000100001000 00001000000100 00000010001001 00000100000100 00000000101010 00000010000100 00001000001001 00000000000100 00000001001010 00000100000100 00000010001010 00010000000100 00000000001010 00000001000101 00000010001010 00000100000100

Example Song 2:
00000000010000 00000000100000 00000100000010 00000000001000 00010000000000 00000000100000 00000010000010 00000000000000 00010000100000 00000000000000 00000100000010 00010000001000 00000000100000 00010000000000 00000000001000 00000001000000

Credits

- Producer: Chicken (Lore Kin Gwn)
- Programmer: Chicken
- Sounds: Chicken
- Tools: Game Maker 7
- Publisher: Bit2Games

A Brief History and Uses of the Pentatonic Scale

A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five pitches per octave in contrast to a heptatonic (seven note) scale such as the major scale. Pentatonic scales are very common and are found all over the world, including Celtic folk music, Hungarian folk music, West African music, African-American spirituals, Jazz, American blues music and rock music, Sami joik singing, children's songs, the Greek traditional music and songs from Epirus, Northwest Greece and the music of Southern Albania, the tuning of the Ethiopian krar and the Indonesian gamelan, Philippine Kulintang, melodies of Korea, Japan, China, India and Vietnam (including the folk music of these countries), the Afro-Caribbean tradition, Polish highlanders from the Tatra Mountains, and Western Classical composers such as French composer Claude Debussy. The pentatonic scale is also used on the Great Highland Bagpipe.

The pentatonic scale plays a significant role in music education, particularly in Orff-based methodologies at the primary/elementary level. The Orff system places a heavy emphasis on developing creativity through improvisation in children, largely through use of the pentatonic scale. Orff instruments, such as xylophones, bells and other metallophones, use wooden bars, metal bars or bells which can be removed by the teacher leaving only those corresponding to the pentatonic scale, which Carl Orff himself believed to be children's native tonality. Children begin improvising using only these bars, and over time, more bars are added at the teacher's discretion until the complete diatonic scale is being used. Orff believed that the use of the pentatonic scale at such a young age was appropriate to the development of each child, since the nature of the scale meant that it was impossible for the child to make any real harmonic mistakes. UK based schools started using a hank drum, an instrument demonstrating the Pentatonic scale, in Summer 2008.

Enjoy :D
- chicken

Starship Alpha

2010-01-30T14:16:00.003+08:00

Akubi's First Game

I feel awesome that finally Akubi actually managed to complete a game and release it all by himself. I only helped him when he got stuck with the programming stuff and such, frankly speaking. Oh well, it's about time to present:

Starship Alpha.

"You are a new recruit in a starship flagship and help the FEDS to fight against the rebels. Battle your opponents strategically and grow more powerful as you modify your starship via the Starship Modifying Program. 10 story-based missions to accomplish."

Try it here (1.8Mb, Zip), and please do comment or report bugs if there's any. It's quite good for his first released game. =D

Chicken: "What is your vision?"
Akubi: "To make this game a staff pick... hehehe."
Chicken: "WOW, do you have confidence that this will become a staff pick?"
Akubi: "Uhhh, yeah.. *laughs* I certainly hope so."

- Chicken

Genre: Exploration

2010-01-23T20:48:00.004+08:00

After the completion of Tales of the Maguse, I'm already out of ideas. What'll be my next project? What's the game genre? What's the objective? What is the game length? Well.. without much consideration, I tried to lay my hands on platform Exploration-type games, as shown below.

The picture above is a screenshot of my 1% developed game, title pending. However, I don't think it will be completed... as I just wanted to try out a new style in game creation instead of just shooters/RPGs.

In an exploration-type game, the key aspects include graphics, detail, background, smoothness of gameplay, and puzzle elements. I kinda hate spriting, and kinda fail at designing good puzzles. So... well, I guess this project may be abandoned soon. Hahaha.

And just ignore the Ninja. I just took the sprite from another game of mine to test out how it feels to make an exploration game.

- Chicken

Bit2Games Logo/Artwork

2010-01-15T17:01:00.003+08:00

Thanks to Yih Tang for making this logo!
(By the way, it's Bit2Games with the "S" at the end =D)

This picture is hosted on DeviantArt. To visit Yih Tang's dA profile, please click here.

- Chicken

2nd Featured Game!

2010-01-06T11:55:00.011+08:00

Tales of the Maguse!
This is my second featured game, the first being Math Magic.

A moment to remember ;)

06.01.10, 11.55AM: 165 plays / 4.1 out of 5
06.01.10, 11.27PM: 250 plays / 4.1 out of 5
07.01.10, 04.06PM: 374 plays / 3.9 out of 5
09.01.10, 09.32PM: 651 plays / 4.0 out of 5 / 33 votes
12.01.10, 10.35AM: 862 plays / 4.0 out of 5 / 37 votes
15.01.10, 05.06PM: 1088 plays / 4.1 out of 5 / 42 votes
17.01.10, 12.25PM: 1220 plays / 4.2 out of 5 / 45 votes
24.01.10, 10.38AM: 1563 plays / 4.2 out of 5 / 48 votes

- Chicken

Tales of the Maguse

2010-01-05T20:10:00.004+08:00

I'm sorry for the lack of update here...
In fact, I was busy making this game, right here.

Tales of the Maguse
Project Begin Date: 22 December 2009
Project Completion Date: 5 January 2009
Producer: Chicken (Lore Kin Gwn)
Developer: Bit2Games
Programmer: Chicken
Graphics: Chicken
Design: Chicken

Synopsis
You're a Maguse, a title given to the protector of Kimvasdear. You are summoned into the Dungeon of Trials and is given an important task -- to neutralise the Demon Seal. What's up with the Demon Seal? Play to find out!

Information
This game is the successor of Realm of Monsters III and Mikro. Without them, all the programming will be a pain. In the contrary to ROMIII and Mikro, this game fully uses the keyboard instead of the mouse.

Screenshots

Features
- Diverse dungeons to explore
- 14 magics to master, each with different usage
- Numerous rare equipments with special abilities
- Multiple Endings
- MSPaint-drawn Cutscenes
- 1.5 Hours of playtime (minimum)
- Multiple Bosses and Monsters
- Small filesize for an RPG =)

Reception
Tales of the Maguse scored a 4.0 out of 5 based on 34 ratings in Yoyogames (As of January 10th, since the first day after the game is released). It had received several positive comments at the moment, and is now featured in YoYoGames.

Author's Note
Proud to announce that I finally used 100% original graphics instead of ripping! =D
Also composed my own MIDI music for the Chamber of Maguse. Feels like some accomplishments, (lol).
This can be said as a Top Down Cave Story (or CaveStory) clone, by Pixel.

Download Link
Yoyogames Download Link, 2.9MB

Enjoy the game!
- Chicken

Life as a Game Developer

2010-01-05T17:20:00.005+08:00

Sorry for the lack of activity. For the past few months I tried working on this so-called "Realm of Monsters IV" game but it turned out to be a failure due to complicated codes. As such, I abandoned the object and transferred all the in-game resources to a new project-- which does not even have a title. I call it, NEW RPG LKG lol. LKG is my initials. Hahaha.

Ok after some time of development I kinda got bored in designing that game. Everything seems to turn out even more complicated beyond expectation... Yes, the system behaves according to my command BUT adding new equipments/areas/cutscenes is such a pain in the [WHOA]. Hahahaha.

So... I gave up everything, and concentrated on my studies instead. For four months I was idle from game creation, as I needed to sit for a national examination on November. Lol. So after all that, I resumed playing the PS2, and somehow got plenty of inspiration from what I've experienced in the game. Then, I started this project: Tales of the Maguse.

-------------------------

Here's some of my opinions on game creation, copied from my original blog, Twilight Rainbow:

You have plenty of ideas. You may let your imagination run wild, create your own world, controlling every aspect of a game, setting up your own rules and possibly thinking of plenty of features to be added to the gameplay to keep the players cry for more. Well, planning is easy, but actually doing it is... really tough.

Game designing is tough. First, if one decided to make a role-playing game, he must plan a good non-cliche story to keep the player absorbed in the game. It's kinda hard for us non-professional game developers though. We always end up with "save-the-princess" or "save-the-word-from-calamity". Well, whaddaya expect? We aren't final fantasy story designer haha. There's still a lonnnnggggg way till that standard.

My personal experience... Well, I'm quite ashamed to say that though. For the past few years I tried to develop the fourth installment of my RPG series "Realm of Monsters", ultimately ended up deserting the project lol. Well the name sucks seriously. But haha, some people still liked ROM3. xD Ok, the main problem for not being able to complete ROM4 is due to the story part. I actually got everything nicely programmed (gameplay, battle system, inventory system) BUT the story is just too... childish, i guess. Lol. Once I planned a long story with lots of plot twists... but, ended up every part of the story contradicting the other. WHADDAHECK. So in the bottom line, getting an interesting story done do need serious efforts. And time, add that.

Shown above (and below) is a picture of my design document. Yeah. Written in it are my ideas, story, system, location names, features, etc, etc. Sure, planning is easy, but programming is another problem. How do you program a smart AI? How do you make a user-friendly interface? Here's the challenge! The friendlier the user interface, the more complicated your programmings would be. Tough job. Especially in RPGs, an ideal control scheme is using the least number of buttons on the keyboard. For example, you can't assign a button, say, Q for health potion, W for magic potion, E to equip this, R to equip that whatever. What happens if you have 100+ types of items lol like in Final Fantasy/Diablo/Grandia/Tales of the Abyss/.Hack/Persona whatever RPG you can name it.

Plus, some crucial elements in RPGs. A large number of triggers and commands are required for dialogue boxes, area transitions, battle systems and other stuff. Always ends up using a bunch of variables, placing burden on the computer's memory. That's why, besides trying to program an "OH-SO-FLAWLESS-AND-FULL-OF-SYOKNESS" gameplay, the speed factor is important. Once I played a game, Magna Carta, oh damn-- the loading time is AWESOME. I mean, you gotta wait 10 seconds during room transitions. That seriously killed the fun of it!

Balancing the game. Another hard part. Take RPGs for example *again*. Too fast a character develops will make the game easier and lack challenge, too slow a character develops will make the game frustrating, too repetitive a gameplay will make the player bored and eventually quit playing. For strategy games like Warcraft or Command and Conquer, too strong a faction will overpower the other, making the inferior one less preferred AND thus making the game imbalanced. I often need to test my game several times using different strategy to make sure the player won't find it too easy, or too hard. Argh.

Below: A picture showing an incomplete world map of my current Work in Progress. Without it, I will be facing a bunch of problems planning locations and stuff for the game. So, whenever I make a map for the game, I'll refer to this document. Really helps a lot, yeah. It helps a bunch too when I test the game and find random programming bugs lol. Just jot 'em down, and fix 'em later, voila.

With all the ideas ready, it's time to put them to practice. It's like REALISING YOUR DREAMS, I would say. The hardest part. Programming. DUH. AIs. Triggers. Systems. Side Quests. Animations. Main character dies. Main character craps. Ahhhhhh. A mistake in programming might end up making the game impossible to beat, or sometimes Syntax error, leading to Fatal Errors plus killing the game. Duh. In less serious cases, a glitch is formed, and players can then exploit them to do certain stuff such as "unlimited gold" or "unlimited stats". Sweet, though. Hahaha.

Oh, by the way, I'm using GML. Not C++ nor Java. Because it's so easy to make games with that.

Game developing is my hobby. I love turning my ideas into real stuff. Even if it's tough, but when you look at your own work after you have done every single bit of the game with your own hands from scratch-- including graphics, sounds, programming, it feels really awesome. The feeling of satisfaction and triumph is really really really awesome. It is quite difficult I admit, but making games IS great fun!

Chicken a.k.a.
Kingwn. =D

Recent Activities of Bit2Games

2009-06-01T15:17:00.003+08:00

Updates on 3013 Soldier
The attempt to enhance 3012 Soldier failed. It seems that we've lost interest in continuing the project even though we've implemented many new features such as the Combo System, Level Scoring, including new weapons like the Charger for Blaster Pistol plus a more variety of monsters. However, to Akubi and I, the efforts put on this game wasn't totally wasted. Instead, we got to know a better way to program and code the combo system and much more stuff that we never knew previously.

Bit2Games' latest project: Realm of Monsters IV (Name Pending)
This game is a blend of Real Time Strategy with Role Playing Elements. In the beginning of the game, you must decide the class of each party members and then name them. The player is given four options: The Fighter, The Archer, The Mage, and The Boxer, each with distinct abilities as they grow stronger by gaining experience from slaying the monsters while completing quests.

The game system isn't completed yet though. Inventory has not been done, and the story has not been made. I was thinking whether to make a clear, simple goal (e.g. defeat the final boss) or a story with plot twists. In game design, a good story is vital and that determines the fun rating for RPGs. However, designing a good story is very tough, and usually requires cutscenes which is hard to be made even by using Game Maker's timeline functions. For now, I should complete the game system first and make sure it's free of bugs before moving on to story design.

Don't put your hopes too high, this game might end up unfinished if I lack motivation ;)

Teaching Akubi the basics of Game Maker
Akubi is no longer just a spriter, for he has started learning the basics of Game Maker. To begin, I've taught him how to use events and variables and stuff, and he finally came up with Space Invaders.

Things learnt in the making of Space Invaders: Moving the spaceship by keyboard keys, shooting, alarm events, simple AI, scoring system, taking advantage of the Grid System.

Then, we moved on to two-player Pong. Initially the game objects consist of only two bats and a ball. Later I told Akubi to "evolve" the game into "Battle Pong", where one bat can shoot the other while trying to save the ball in order to reduce the opponent's HP to zero. Sounds easy, but it isn't.

Things learnt in the making of Battle Pong: Precise Collision Checking, Ball movements and physics, player health, several new motion planning functions.

Looks like Akubi's getting better and better in making games. To gain experience in game creation, we remade retro games. SpaceWar is one of them. After completing the game, it is unbelievable that we had so much fun playing the game due to its simplicity. We even named it as the Game of the Day. LOL.

Things learnt in the making of Space War: Transforming the Sprite, Randomizing events, manipulating several variables, several new motion planning functions, friction, direction of movement based on quadrants 1-4, pre-game configuration (setting the number of asteroids, number of wins etc).

At the moment Akubi is developing a split-screen racing game which requires the use of codes because the desired effect cannot be achieved by using the Drag and Drop method.

P/S: If anyone of you wanna ask me something about game maker, please email me at lorekingwn92@hotmail.com. I might be able to help =p

FAQ: Mikro

2009-01-24T20:56:00.010+08:00

Warning: Spoilers.

How do I defeat the red rapid-firing Krads in The Plains without grinding?
To beat them easily you will need to learn Binder and Dissolver. Use Binder when you encounter a red Krad to immobilize it, then shoot at him and be sure to dodge its projectiles. For safety, you can activate Dissolver to nullify its attacks. Using such combination will surely let you eliminate it in no time. Actually, it is possible to defeat it without using both of these skills- just pay attention to its movement and you'll know.

Help, the game lags for about 3 seconds and I died!
This may be due to the summoning of more than one binders. For now this is a bug, so try not to use binder if possible. This issue is currently being fixed, sorry for any inconvenience caused.
*Updated in Mikro 1.8*: Issue solved

What caused the lag?
I'm not sure yet, but I'm sure it's caused by casting Binders. Apparently when you notice that normal attacks start to trigger a frame skip, and if you cast Binder at the moment, the game will lag.
*Updated in Mikro 1.8*: Apparently the inconsistent usage of the particle system caused memory leaks and eating up the internal memory, thereby resulting in the lag and... kaboom. You're dead (in game, of course) due to the lag!

3012 Soldier

2009-01-22T20:33:00.010+08:00

Synopsis
Having destroyed the alien infestation in 3011, the alien is now gathering a large force awaiting you at the outer rim of the galaxy. The destiny of humankind in 3012 is now at your hands...

Information
This is the successor of 3011 Soldier. It was released in two weeks time after redesigning 12 levels and adding new features. The aim of the game is to beat all levels, earn cash from the remains of defeated foes, and upgrade your weapon.

Screenshots

Features
This new version, the successor of 3011 Soldier, features a new weapon: the Frag Grenade, more than 10 distinct levels with several bosses, and 3 different themes to please your eyes. Overall, this game is harder compared to the previous game, 3011 Soldier. Prepare to face the challenge!

Reception
3012 scored a 4.1 out of 5 by 31 ratings in Yoyogames (As of January 29th). Until now, there are insufficient comments posted regarding the game so we are unable to know the opinions about the game from different perspectives. However, one member claimed that the game concept appears frequently in Newgrounds although Bit2Games did not refer to any of the games from that website.

Download
Click here to download.

3011 Soldier

2009-01-22T20:25:00.008+08:00

Information
This is the first game released on Yoyogames with the participation of AKUBI. AKUBI did most of the sprites, planning the concept of the game, while chicken helped out with the programming. This game is not story-driven, but rather focused on the gameplay. The aim of the game is to beat every level, upgrade your weapons, and "cleanse the universe".

Screenshots

Reception
3011 scored a 3.4 out of 5 rating in Yoyogames (As of January 22nd). Yoyogames user enjoyed this game but it will be even fun if some aspects are improved, especially the graphics. Some even claimed that they just got better in this game although they thought that the game was too hard previously.

Download
Click here to download.

Mikro

2009-01-22T20:19:00.010+08:00

Creator's Forewords

Well... it's been a while since my previous RPG, Realm of Monsters III.
I promised to release ROM4 to those who liked ROM3, unfortunately the project was cancelled due to unstable programming, complicated codes, not-that-original battle system (heavily inspired by Magecraft) and insufficient sprite resources (Well, the ROM series usually contain ripped sprites). Therefore, I've decided to sprite on my own, change the whole battle system, hence my fourth RPG, Mikro.

Synopsis
Under the reigning of the Sorcerer, none can live in peace. The Sorcerer deployed many mindless Krads around the world and tormented the lives of millions to protect his throne. The Sorcerer must be vanquished.
In a small village, a young Mikro somehow possessed the power to cast magic. He decided to make good use of this endowment to exterminate the Krads as well as the atrocious Sorcerer.

Can he make it till the end?
His fate is up to you to decide.

Gameplay
Mikro enables the player to learn and master up to 10+ abilities with 5 distinct levels, each with unique effects and requires different strategies to make the game easier. Also featuring 3 different basic attack types for a more strategic gameplay. The Random Generated Dungeons pose interesting challenges to the player, fans of dungeon-crawler games will probably like Mikro.

Reception
Mikro scored a fairly satisfying rating of 4.1 out of 5 by 41 members on Yoyogames. Users from the GMC (Game Maker Community) commented that the game is fun and addicting. Other members from Yoyogames said that the daynight effect looks good, and game can be more than just a little challenging. Several members from the GMC recommended this game too.

Notes
There are bugs in this game, such as the "fatal bug" Lagging After Summoning Binders. Apparently the game will lag after summoning a certain amount of Binders and cause instant death to the character. Some users said that the game is overly difficult plus the graphics are not charming.

Download
Here!
(Sept 11, 2011: We are sorry to have provided a non-working link before this!)

"Unknown Application" takes off to a new level

2008-12-24T22:41:00.006+08:00

For those who know me in person, I believe they've read my old book entitled "Unknown Application". Written in this book were all the Game Maker Creation Experience since the beginning of my game creation hobby. There's been some ups and downs throughout the journey in pursuing success in game development, and that can be seen when most of my projects got abandoned due to lack of gameplay elements.

Back in 2005, December. I was actually trying to find some animation programs using the Internet. That's when I accidentally came across a neat software called Game Maker, which claims that users will be able to create games in no time even without programming experience. I found out that's rather interesting, therefore indulged myself into game creation.

To be successful, one shall copy others. Indeed, copying examples and modifying it proved to be a stepping stone to further achievements. By using examples such as Hit the Ball, or the advanced version of Hit the Ball called Catch the Clown, I've understood the mechanism of Game Maker. Then, I modified 1945 into Ball vs Plane, Platform Example to Bounce etc. Seeing that I was able to handle events nicely, it's time to create games from scratch. Hence the lousy version of Metal Gear: The Stolen Plan, B'ng Invasion and LKG PGA Tour 2005.

Playing RPG then inspired me to create a dungeon crawler, hence the Realm of Monster series. By using pre-made sprites, I was able to program the game all by myself and believe it or not, it's quite entertaining as well. It involves the extensive use of variables and more understanding towards the Events Mechanism.

Paperstory? Like the name suggests, it's based on MapleStory. It's an epic failure as the sprites are tremendously large and the game play is not amusing at all. So, the project was stopped immediately. Followed up by a VirtualME clone with a little bit of RPG elements. Unfortunately it failed too, the repetitive gameplay just won't keep the game alive.

A major milestone in my game development is the creation of Realm of Monsters II. In this RPG, I've learned about how useful scripts can be. Followed by Adventure of Ninja Redbox and Falling Gems. Realm of Monsters III, the third installment of the ROM series, was the first RPG to be shared with the world.

War of the Ancients was my first attempt in the Real Time Strategy genre. It turned out pretty good, but I refused to release it due to excessive ripping of sprites from Warcraft. Medieval Conquest, a spinoff clone based on War of the Ancients, enables the player to drag-select and features a score screen. Unfortunately, both versions were never released into the net.

Now, the 4 failed attempts in making games of different genres other than RPGs. Ball Invasion, a platform shooter; Invasion in Space, a space shooter; and Turnbase Battle, as the name suggests it is turnbased. Although all of them were never completed, but they improved my programming skills.

Covert Agent: Burton's Legacy is a stealth game near completion. A demo was out too. However, the storyline isn't solid enough and the characters are also quite inconsistent. The gameplay, on the other hand, is very very satisfying. This is the first game to use a lifelike AI, which responds to the environmental changes and the interaction from the player.

Then... Math Magic. A game created initially for school project purpose. It turned out pretty well, so I uploaded it on Yoyogames. Out of expectation it got became a Staff Pick. In this game you play as a magician, killing foes by entering correct answers corresponding to the equations displayed on top of the target.

Realm of Monsters 4 undergone major changes for 6 times. First, Vran, the main character seeks the truth behind his father's death along with his friend Camelia. The other version is more like a freeroam RPG but with Grandia style + Realtime battle. The third version, Leon, a determined warrior tries to receive quest while go-with-the-flow of the story featuring town-to-town travelling. The fourth version, no different than the third version, features a teleportation system instead of going from town to town, while having the inventory system added. The fifth version, changes were made to the story. In search for his missing friend, Leon accidentally wandered into a thick, mysterious fog which brought him to another realm. In the sixth version, a character named Amon travels into the Forbidden Lands, hoping that he'll find a way to resurrect his deceased girlfriend. Eventually none of these spurred the development of the game and ultimately the project ceased.

Some old screenshots of it...

To enlarge thumbnails, right click on the picture -> copy image location/adress and paste it in the URL bar. It looks better in full size.

Eclipse Productions then changed it's name to Bit2Games, and started a new project featuring 100% self-made sprites and new system different than the Realm of Monsters series. Mikro, the name of the RPG, is on it's way now.

Downloads
Realm of Monsters III: http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/9345
Math Magic: http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/31401