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Profile: Dracis
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UsernameDracis
Rank: 76/100Rank: 76/100Rank: 76/100Rank: 76/100Rank: 76/100
Real NameChris Harpan
RankHard Core Member
JoinedJanuary 12, 2006
GenderMale
Age35
LocationKingsford, MI, United States
Last VisitMay 11, 2008
Post Count387
Biography

I''m a cofounder of DNA Studios Online. We''re a small independent game development company. Visit us at http://dnastudiosonline.com.

 
Quote

"Ideas are bulletproof"

 

5 Most Recent Threads by Dracis [more...]

Latest Blog Entry - Learning the trade: An ongoing blog on becoming a game developer
From my blog The joys and pains of being an "indie"... [Dracis]

I"ve been meaning to do this for several days now, I've just had a hard time deciding where to start.

 

One thing I see here on MMORPG.com in the development forums is alot of people wanting to become a developer. Most just have an idea, some have a bit more, but it's alot harder than it looks.

 

As with most developers, I've been playing video games for years. Nearly most of my life actually. I just never knew how to get started. I first started off trying to make Flash games, but I'm no artist by any means. Then I found a lovely little program called Game Maker that wet my appetite. I've made quite a few games on that, most just for friends and family. Game Maker wasn't enough for me though, so I enrolled in some classes and learned C++ and DirectX programming.

 

Now let me say coding isn't for everyone. You need math skills and good ones. One thing I've tried to instill in my daughter. It's been hard for me to learn, because I'm more of a hands on type of person. That and I guess I have the old dog/new tricks thing going on at times. You're brain really does turn to mush as you get older. Alot of time I can see the code in my head, but I just can't translate it from thought to the computer.

 

Another thing to know about becoming a developer is finance. Let me state for the record, I'm no financial genius. There have been very few times in my life that I haven't been in debt, so going into game development wasn't much of a stretch for me. I can say that right at this point I've spent about ten thousand dollars on our little company. All of that coming right out of my pocket. A good chunk of that money is on our game engine and on various programs for our artist.

 

We went with a game engine, just because it was easier to actually adjust the engine for our needs than for me to code the whole darn thing myself. I'm pretty good, but I'm no coding genius either. I plod along and take my time. If I can find a code snipet here or there that some one is willing to share, I'm more than happy to use it instead of trying to figure it out myself.

 

There's alot more to it than just this little bit I'm writing here, but I guess I'd like you folks to tell me what you want to hear. Is there some question I can answer? Is there something about coding you want to ask? Do you want to just hear about the day to day things that I go through?

 

Let me know and I'll bash it out for you folks here.

 

Read more from my blog [Dracis]

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Recent Forum Posts [more...]

    • Would you pre order a mmorpg game without trying beta first?

    • No, I won't buy any game unless there is a trial and, yes that includes MMO's. I'm tired of being taken by these companies, paying for beta tests (ie when the game is released unfinished), and basically being lied to. I don't think any of us deserve to be lied to intentionally, but these companies do it all the time.

    • Posted: 5/06/08 5:54 AM
      General Discussion
    • Free/low cost 3D MMORPG engine, help please
    • Originally posted by Jamaludin

      If you have a little cash to spare I really would recommend the Torque X engine its XNA game studio integrated and only costs 149,95 US Dollars which is a nice price tag for a complete Game Making Studio that has everything in one. It is what I am going to buy a License for.

      http://www.garagegames.com/products/torque/x/

      Actually, to make an MMO with Torque X would be rather difficult unless you want it to be 2D. I know the 3D version is in the works, but you're still better off with Torque Game Engine Advanced (TGEA) than Torque X. Even TGE, which Minions of Mirth was made with is a better choice for an MMO than Torque X.

    • Posted: 5/02/08 10:13 PM
      Developers Corner
    • No legal action re. the NGE, means no wrong was done--untrue.

    • You know what, and I really mean no offense by this guys, but I call BS on this one. Over a month ago I offered to pay for an attorney and had no takers. I did the same today and not one comment. I've already shown legal precedence in this case, but I'm ignored.

      Sorry guys but I've been honest with you all, brutally honest, about my situation and profession. I've been patient and tried to educate and let us ex-players have some focus. I've even offered my own money, which seems to be in shorter suppy every month. I just can't do it anymore. I can no longer try to be the voice of reason to the deaf. This is one vet who's had enough of the hate and I just can't justify coming here anymore. Good luck guys, you'll need it...

      Dracis Draconian ( and Dreen/Dagothos/Darla/Dooncan), formerly of Euro-Chimaera, signing off.

    • Posted: 4/18/08 11:11 PM
      Star Wars Galaxies
    • No legal action re. the NGE, means no wrong was done--untrue.

    • Originally posted by miagisan

      and for all this hate talk towards me and my view that legally SOE has not done anything wrong (morally is another question), not one of you can provide solid proof that it is illegal. Immoral maybe...but thats it. The sheer fact that you AGREED to the EULA which states "GAMEPLAY MAY CHANGE" void any argument that you could have against legal action. Would be like signing a contract with a painter who states "Color may change during painting" and he uses 15 colors instead of one.


      Actually no where in the EULA does it state "Gameplay may change". I've read the whole thing. The statement " Gameplay experience may change with online play", for the eleventh time, only covers that any company can not control what others do, say, or how they act online. If anyone remembers, we just went through this last month. Here's a link to that thread: http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/168839/page/1

      Let's be honest folks, any judge, at this point ( 2.5 years later) , is going to wonder why it took you so long to bring a class action lawsuit against SOE. Then the judge will look at or an SOE attorney will bring up the previous lawsuit involving UO, in which there were many similarities and does set a legal precedence. I'm not condoning anything SOE has done, nor am I trying to defend them, I'm just trying to be realistic here.

      Also, my offer still stands, as I stated in the previous thread. If you folks seriously can find a real attorney that has a history of winning these cases and will accept the case, I will pay the retainer fee out of my own pocket. Just contact me via PM and I will send you my irl info and get the lawyers phone number, so I can know where to send the check.

    • Posted: 4/18/08 4:23 PM
      Star Wars Galaxies
    • Ummmm help......
    • Originally posted by Krayzjoel

      I played it for about 5 hours..in some station....doing one quest after another.....i just cant get into this game. I have a lvl 6 jedi. I flew around a little........


      Unfortunately no, there is no light at the end of the tunnel.

    • Posted: 4/17/08 5:44 PM
      Star Wars Galaxies

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