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DarkBASIC Professional Discussion / How to approach a project

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entomophobiac
21
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Joined: 1st Nov 2002
Location: United States
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 02:05
Ok. Yet another question.

I know that this is very much a general question, but as I intend to be using DBPro (right now), I chose this forum anyway.

My question is how to approach the team issue. I am realistic enough to realize that a fairly big project requires an entire staff of dedicated programmers, artists, modelers and whatnot, but I also know that it is very difficult to get people working on a new project. So, really, how do you advertise a project in such a way that it seems appealing?

Current screens, background story, graphics, sample code or simply a neat outline for the project itself - what does people actually want to see?
rapscaLLion
21
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Joined: 29th Aug 2002
Location: Canada
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 02:07
all of the above sounds good

Alex Wanuch
aka rapscaLLion
Get the DB Weekly Newsletter at www.dbwn.cjb.net
Necrym
21
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Joined: 4th Sep 2002
Location: Australia
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 03:30
First put together a plan for the project. Break it down into segments like you have noted and what requirements there are for integration of files and software etc.
Also if this is a commercial venture put together your details for costs etc. and work out its viability.
Post in the team requests area here as well as other sites and sort out the people you need. Specify your team members requirements and skill levels.
Hope that helps a bit.

Be afraid..be very afraid were all being watched!!
Shadow Robert
21
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Joined: 22nd Sep 2002
Location: Hertfordshire, England
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 03:50
i'd suggest making a few friends out of the users and asking them to help out... i've noticed as far as communities go, coding wise everyone is really more out for themselves here rather than anyone else.
Personally i don't like to get involved in many projects, and usually very lightly involved because people oftenly expect FAR too much in almost no time yet not prepared to do a great deal of work themselves
( the main problem i have when Odd3D aka Flyer_Commander_Dude asks me for some help with code, last 3 times i've ended up coding most of it when all i want to bloody do is create a few game models for people )

Due to this being the current state of DB Community i kinda feel like i've been talking to a brick wall for those who want to actually finish titles

Not to put you off trying to get a team that is - hehee
just saying don't expect overwhelming support in that sence, too many teen users i guess

Anata aru kowagaru no watashi!
entomophobiac
21
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Joined: 1st Nov 2002
Location: United States
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 04:19
I can see the truth in most statements, really. Especially when you say that I shouldn't expect too much. Last time I tried, some year or two ago, it was like asking a wall to help you raze the building. I mean - there are so many projects out there that it is really impossible to differentiate yourself all that much without tremendous work.

And it is this tremendous work I am thinking about. No one, especially not lazy little me, wants to go through the quite tiresome process to create a first line of code, models and whatever else only to be met with "ok, that's nice... good luck!"

I want people to like the concept, why I have started working on backgrounds, themes and so forth right now, saying to myself that I will give all of this a few months before I share it with any communities. During these months, brainstorms, discussions with the current team and so forth will hopefully bring an outline and a basis of artwork and other stuff to show you all.

Thanks for the tips, by the way

entomophobiac
21
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Joined: 1st Nov 2002
Location: United States
Posted: 11th Nov 2002 04:20
By the way... you mentioned models - you into textures?

(Just asking - please don't flame me )

Matto
21
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Joined: 27th Aug 2002
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Posted: 12th Nov 2002 04:02
I would say your going on pretty much on the right tracks, what I have done is A, had a great idea for a game that I would like to see and that is reasonably newish in terms of idea's, I say new cause I havn't seen anything like it anywhere to date, so I am now B, (in sparadic instalments) bringing it to life in terms of an actual concept and am outlining the main tasks the game should perform how it would hopfully play or so far see it playing, and am now C, detailing it in the best way I can through revision of the certain area's it covers, like if it was a football game I would revise the intimate things of football for instance, I now D, start making and testing some of the more strenuous ideas that may be hard to deal with, here I am working on little test programs to do things like bulding the levels and how many levels will this thing take before being too repetative etc etc.. sorry a little vague but I have to conceal this idea too for the time being, but the tests help to desifer what you definatly can do, what you possibly can do and what you probably can't do and the test I do are really basic versions of what I might have done or might do if it works/would have worked (this saves lots of tiem down the line).. once I test a certain aspect that works, I deal with tuning it up and getting the areas related to the test written out in detail in a near as I can make "design doc" which probably looks like most peoples scrap books, but it works for me, and I get teh basic outlines for such things like design docs from kind poeple around teh internet that have given write ups on such things at places like the programmers vault or doctor dobbs as it is now known, gamasutra and other such places worthy of programmers worshiping time

As far as the actual final building of the game goes I would never beable to do it alone, so when I see poeple offering services on see offers of interest in certain areas here on teh forums that I think may like to help with this project down the road, when I am ready to have help with it in their area of interest, I contact them and let them see an outline of the idea or concept pages of the idea and see what they think, some reply and some don't, I let them know it may be a while until I need them but then I get people that are plain interested responding and hopefully will end up with good help, help that I can call on when the time is right rather than having 20 of us sitting round making a mess of soemthing that needs time to cook up properly rather than too many cooks to help burn it.

hope this helps, sorry if it doesn't

1ghz Cel,512 sdram 133,Gf2 MX 400 64,SBL 5.1,Win98
Best Upcoming MMOG - http://WWW.Atriarch.com
Project: Card Game with No Name
Shadow Robert
21
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Joined: 22nd Sep 2002
Location: Hertfordshire, England
Posted: 12th Nov 2002 06:27
that is a good point...
i think what most people here think is they can code an entire game in one go - it'll be perfect and bugless.
unless the game is as simple as pong then thats just wrong-didily-wrong-wrong

if your making a complex game the best thing to work on is rather than the game as a whole, make each component as a seperate program for testing - say if your making a BSP format and loader for the game, rather than making it and trying to plug it directly into the game ... develop some camera code and make sure the format is all sound works as it should under optimum conditions - then intergrate it.
you should end up with a series of stupid tech demos that won't seem that impressive on thier own, but once you put them all together will make an outstanding title

lastly... don't even look at me for help - you see how many projects i'm invovled with right now?
and unlike most of you urchin's i have to work 8-10hour days with only a few hours before i crash ...
in otherwords, sorry but won't will help

interesting to see what you come up with Matto, especially as DarkBasic's online capabilities require ALOT of practise and knowlage to use right

Anata aru kowagaru no watashi!
Matto
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Joined: 27th Aug 2002
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Posted: 13th Nov 2002 01:35


1ghz Cel,512 sdram 133,Gf2 MX 400 64,SBL 5.1,Win98
Best Upcoming MMOG - http://WWW.Atriarch.com
Project: Card Game with No Name

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