Feedback talk:John Stumme/Archive 4

Small scale game development

My answer: Only a very tiny bit. I got multiple game engines installed on my computer (Game Maker8, Unreal Developer Kit, Quake3's engine kit, among others) and have dabbled into GameMaker, but never got time to create a full-fledge minigame. GW community eats up too much time. Q_Q But I shall thank you for directing me to even more programs to use! *_* -- Konig/talk 23:30, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

I've played around a bit with RPG Maker. At university I had an XNA course for one semester. We programmed a sidescrolling space shooter with multiplayer mode as semester ending project. But I didn't like the XNA framework that much so I've never used it outside the course. Games I've actually finished (and programmed from sratch) include Hangman, MineSweeper and (of course) Conways Game of Life. --195.202.166.190 23:55, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Lol @ Spore being in that category but not Valve's SDK... --ilr 00:09, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

GM7 was the shit. The new one is meh. — Raine Valen 0:36, 22 Feb 2011 (UTC)

I apologize in advance for how long this is. ^_^; I've done a very, very, very small bit in game development. Really, just creating a scene (what I made was definitely not an actual game, but I still used a game creation program to make it). I had an assignment in one of my college classes several years ago to "do something" with a play written by some students a few years earlier (some people turned it into a picture book or gave it other visuals, some people changed the dialogue a bit to fix grammatical errors or make it easier to understand by a wider audience, etc). I chose to turn it into a game scene. I had to figure out how to work a couple art programs and how to use the game design resources I had access to be able to do anything with it. Since it was just a scene, I fortunately didn't need to come up with combat systems or character stat growth charts or skill lists or anything like that (which was good, because we weren't given that long to do the assignment and I was the only one in my "group"). Making the sprite sheets and repeatedly fixing the timing were the two most time consuming aspects of my assignment, and they were enormous time sinks.

The teacher, of course, was completely unimpressed since 3D technology was available and I did it with sprites, but I had absolutely no experience with 3D art programs and this wasn't an art class, anyway. He complained about the voice acting, too, but I wasn't going to hire professionals to do it when the assignments weren't funded. I just used people I could grab who had some free time. The teacher loved the work that another group doing a similar thing had done (just they used a 3D game's built-in mod tools to make the scene, so they didn't have to do some of the things I had to do, like the art. And their group was large enough to handle the voice acting themselves.) But, he didn't really stop to think that that was done by a group and I was doing it alone (aside from the VA.)

I had to work my butt off just to make the same grade as someone who doodled a few fifth-grade level pencil drawings on the play. The teacher had no appreciation for how many drawings go into making the sprite sheets (guess he didn't realize sprites don't draw their own frames themselves), or the amount of time and work that goes into fixing the timing. And I had to repeat the whole timing process over when I added in the VA--which I originally didn't intend to have in the assignment, but when I showed him what I'd done with it to get his feedback, he asked for it so I had to include it--since it threw all the timing off. I had to make some of the text boxes scroll automatically in the cases where the sentences were longer than what fit in just one text box, time them so they scrolled at the exact right time, and make sure none of the clips overlapped or cut each other off. Including the VA also meant that I had to rewrite some of the lines so that the people doing the VA didn't run out of breath before the end of some clips, which again meant that I had to redo the timing of the sprite movement relative to where they are in the dialogue, when shots of the charts and diagrams they were talking about appeared, etc. Fixing the timing might have taken even longer than redoing the sprite sheets so many times to live up to his standards (I often went to his office to show him where I was in creating the scene to get his feedback on it. Oh, and, redoing the sprite sheets meant redesigning the area, which again meant redoing the character movement and timing).

Even though it was a far cry from being an actual game, it still gave me a new perspective on the amount of work that goes into at least a few aspects of game-making, and what it feels like to spend so much time working to make something for even a small portion of a game just to have it criticized so horribly. He even said that I had so little to show for how much time I'd put into it just because it was 2D! Seriously, his primary complaint every time I went to his office was the fact it was 2D. He kept asking me to make it 3D, which I repeatedly told him I couldn't do; the program didn't support it to my knowledge, and I had no way to make 3D models, anyway. The VA was a far lesser complaint, and, aside from asking me to completely rewrite the original dialogue for the play later on to "make up" for the fact that it was 2D, he didn't tell me about any issues with absolutely anything else. It's kinda funny to think about now, but it was so stressful then.--Res 07:13, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

tl;dr cool story bro.- Zesbeer 07:52, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

I've done some small game development stuff. I started with C# and XNA (which I still try to learn more about it when possible) but I've moved onto using Unity3D with scripts being done in C#. I'm also a member sponsor on a site (3dbuzz.com) and was able to get into a class which will show you how to make your own MMO in Unity from Scratch using stuff like Photon for the server, Unity3D as the main game engine, RavenDB as the database, etc, Hopefully if I can stay a member sponsor til it's done, I'll learn some valuable stuff in terms of MMO development :).

I do however have a bit of a side project I want to start doing at some point in C# and XNA (not Unity since Unity would require models and me to work with it in an Orthographic view). Basically make a small scale (even just one level as if it was a demo or something) bullet hell game similar to Touhou, DoDonPachi, and other ones like that. I think it'd be a nice learning experience :) --Stu 15:24, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

Not a lot, once made a maze game with a lot of obstacles using Game Maker. And made Pong using processing and once again using C and openGL. Anbu 22:59, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

Making games sure is fun, if you are the only one developing one, you get to do a lot of everything, like a Renaissance man. Rules, mechanics, Physics, literature, painting, dubbing, music... I personally enjoy designing rules and writing story, every time I helped in one, I secretly added one of my characters as an easter egg in some hidden room (and sometimes without being caught! XD). I wish I had more time for that, but it can't be more than a hobby for me right now. MithTalk 00:17, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

I have done a lot in RPG Maker 2k3. AS Mith says, you get to do everything: artwork, concept, even music (In MIDIs! That was interesting). But the plan was too ambitious and it was only 2 of us. Real Life got in the way. -- Large 04:47, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

I remember my days of making music with trackers. The unreal engine could use those, and most tracks in Unreal Tournament are Impulse Tracker files... now I feel old. XD MithTalk 13:52, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Speaking of small scale game development, I am now working on a 2D Side-scrolling beat em up (ie streets of rage) for the dream. build. play contest (so it's using C# and XNA). I have a few months to do this in but I hope to do it since it will be my first fully completed game rather than just a tutorial or me trying out some things (ie trying to figure out how to make UIs or texture animate or stuff like that). --Stu 18:08, 3 March 2011 (UTC)

Hi.. John can you post here the link that you've posted at your shout box about this topic?! i wanna give it a try :) Eu Sou Deus 11:24, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

pet evolution

could you confirm or give us the correct info seen here Animal_companion#Evolution its been disputed for a long time and it would be nice to feature that article, were that is the only stumbling block that we are running into. anywho any help or redirect to the person who has said info would be greatly appreciated.- Zesbeer 01:30, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

paragons, smite monks, and rangers, oh my

the dervish update is awesome and I am really having fun with it. the greatest thing is the shiny new feeling that everything has, and realizing that i have to delete all my derv builds because everything works differently now... in a good way! however my paragon is quite jealous and wonders when he might get the kind of love that the dervishes have received. I know that there are zillions of things on your plate, but you did tease us with this last year in the Mesmer update. Khomet 12:56, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

The live team is changing gears towards content updates. There won't be anymore derv/mesmer scale skill updates/class redesigns. Sorry pal.--TahiriVeila 23:08, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

Good. And I'm going to keep saying this: Fixing the para for PvE is a lot easier than most ppl think. It could even be done without touching a single Skill by copying GW2's boon duration stacking balance-model . (The problem is the Echoes are just a waste in PvE. So make a cheap wood-and-bones Consumable that fixes the problem) --ilr 00:07, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Can you confirm or deny

The statement as to the weekend events Lack of double faction points for turned in books? Why are we not getting double faction for books, this is the real question. 108.75.73.62 20:06, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

"[...] you will receive double points for exchanging 5,000 faction for Jadeite or Amber, for exchanging 3,000 faction for an alliance skill, and for transferring 5,000 faction to raise your alliance's reputation." - The double points is triggered by taking stuff from the faction bars to the title itself. Books bypass this and thus are unaffected. -- Konig/talk 20:09, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Yes, I did read that Konig. However, last time the bounty came around, I got double faction for turning in books. So I wanted to know what changed it this time around. 108.75.73.62 20:15, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Hm... If you did, that was a bug, and you should report it as such. MithTalk 20:31, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

I remember ppls from my guild experimenting during each dbl-point weekend; I don't remember anyone saying they got the 2x bonus for books. (Doesn't mean IP108 is wrong; could mean I can't remember correctly.)  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 20:35, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Guys I appreciate your input. I am neither saying we Deserve x2 faction for books nor not. What I am asking is why this time we are not.

Whether it was/is a bug or not I am unsure, but finding out why this has been but is not now was the purpose of this posting. 108.75.73.62 20:50, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

My question is are you sure it's the same kind of faction weekend? By looking through weekend events and the archives, there's 3 faction events. The last time this one happened was August 2010 (and prior to that was February 2010). I think any gain via the book is a bug, as even the EN rep weekends state "Points for completed books are unaffected." -- Konig/talk 22:47, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

The question as to why there's no double points for books has been answered before, but I can't remember who answered it. The book exclusion is to keep people from stocking up on finished books, then using the double weekend to turn them all in at once.-- Pyron Sy 23:25, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

Make a comment about a possible bug and everybody wants to argue. 108.75.73.62 00:20, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

A word if you don't mind

I'd just like to thank everyone for the awesome dervish update. I'm a dervish primary, and not only did the update make me far more interested in the game, but I also started playing pvp because of it. I'd also like to apologize for all the people that are burning you for a job well done, calling it a "nerf" because they're old builds don't work anymore. You and I both know within a month these people will have realized that these new builds are just as powerful if not moreso, at which point they will pat themselves on the back, forgetting to properly thank you. But the point is, job well done! I look forward to what's to come! Btw still can't vanquish the hidden city, any hints? ;) jk.Indigo121 00:07, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

The hidden city? A stack of Powerstones might help. :) I still can't vanquish Joko's Domain; my last for Elona. --'Mai Yi' talk 00:46, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

I did Joko's during the one of the Halloween quests because the candymen made it a little easier. Still had to slug around trying to find enemies but it worked. Maybe try it next Halloween? If not, 7 heroes is bound to make Vanquishing way easy. Katherinezoltin 19:12, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Yeah, Hidden City is a tough one with all the elementals. I suggest taking a nice punishment hex, like pain inverter, for the high damage foes such as flame djinns and roaring ethers; and an earth ele with ward against melee and ward against elements or even a water ele with ward against harm to mitigate some of their damage. A paragon with some armor increasing shouts would help as well. But the best help might just come from a conset. --Musha 21:59, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Why not just wait till the 7-hero update and have them all run so you can ignore the shitterflame spammers and just kill the newly buffed water djinn first? ...not much you can really do about the Roarings though, but w/e. Mesmer mobs were always a joke for most of this game's lifetime, it was nice to see them finally get some respect this past year. --ilr 22:34, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Panic. Panic and Psychic Instability. No amount of armor in the world will help you against the armor-ignoring AoE from Roaring Ethers. You must bring some heavy interruptions, and keep them shut down. With Norgu and Gwen, that area was a breeze. After the 7 hero update, you'll have more freedom to choose the other 5 heroes, and it will be even easier. MithTalk 22:35, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

I must agree. The most dangerous foes are the Roaring Ethers. Very large spikes. I vanquished the city with a stack of candy canes and PI. (Run at Ether;cast Pi;die;res;cc;repeat) --'Mai Yi' talk 22:38, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Lol, if you're just gonna /headwall it like that, then why not just go all out with Sin'sPromise+BUH? --ilr 22:50, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

It took quite a long time true. I vanquished this a month ago or so. The new BUH would have been very helpful. I have used the new BUH many times since it has been "nerfed" (buff to me) and I love it. --'Mai Yi' talk 22:56, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

>picturing J reading that /w a <just-as-planned> grin --ilr 23:09, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

I haven't had a chance to try the new Asuran Scan as I'm drowning in candycanes for my Sweet Tooth; don't play eles so I haven't used Intensity; and Have never gotten a dervish past Kamadan. --'Mai Yi' talk 23:18, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Lol, I was just congratulating John on a job well done with the derv update, made a slight joke about what's currently causing me the most frustration in the game, and you guys gave me not one, but ten different ways to deal with it. Thanks everyone :DIndigo121 00:18, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

Feature build and PvP

Hello, John. With the many things the upcomming build is bringing to the table, and more yet to be announced (I think?), I'm curious about one thing. Will it also affect PvP, or is it a purely pve update? --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 84.91.205.232 (talk).

It's mostly a PvE update, with some UI related things that could benefit PvE/PvP. The PvP feature we've been working on will likely have its own build release. John Stumme 16:59, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Thanks a lot, John. Can't wait for it! I supposed the UI stuff will be related to the 7 heroes feature. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 84.91.205.232 (talk).

Dungeon Siege-like interface for the win! (but make sure it's not only 2 active spells we are having in GW!!!) --Boro 19:00, 2 March 2011 (UTC)

Hello

Since I represent the gw community. I wanna know why Nightmare Weapon only last 3 attacks and can't be kept up infinitely when it's perfectly balanced to steal up to 40 health with every attack through a whole match. I know you're aware of RA being the top PvP arena, so do something, at least try it out once and you'll see 2 avatars of grenth on both teams. Can you help me figure out how come? -Cursed Angel 12:06, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

D/ differs from /Rt, Nightmare can be used on others, different attributes and stuff like that.--83.82.62.210 12:24, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

And D/ can hit up to 3 foes... Waar Kijk Je Naar 12:56, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

If he does that in RA you're clearly doing something wrong. Lou Wolfskin 13:42, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

I loled purple gatorade all over myself. Fucking hilarious ^____^ --TahiriVeila 16:46, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

@Lou: Point is that it's happening in FA too. Note how I said foes, not players. Kurzick Dervishes are solo'ing Luxon Warrior npc's + turtles. Luxons can't do the same to Kurzick gate npc's since those have all kinds of anti-melee stuff (Ward against Melee, Reckless Haste, Sliver Armor, Unsteady Ground). It requires 3 average players to stop 1 Dervish from capping a mine or command point. Everyone who disagrees with this is probably playing a Dervish in Kurzick FA right now. Waar Kijk Je Naar 10:27, 26 February 2011 (UTC)

The player mentality in Fort Aspenwood and Jade Quarry is that melee classes suck for those areas. Casters mostly play those areas, and the melee classes that do mostly bring some specialized shrine capping build. While I agree with your point, mostly because I do the same on the Luxon side, I think we've yet to wait and see how the role of the Dervish affects PvP after all the Dervish rush goes down if it has not already. MrDark 13:15, 26 February 2011 (UTC)

^wut TV said ... "Since I represent the gw community" <--> i lol'd almost as hard as: "I'm being serious for once, I really really hate you." :D --ilr 22:17, 26 February 2011 (UTC)

Sorry for the extra clutter on your page John. You know talkpage editors.^

I figured I'd make a great candidate for the next skill balance team, I have some smiting prayers ideas:

Smite 1 ¼ 2 Super Powerful Enchantment (see what I did there?) For 60 seconds. Anyone casting a hex on target ally gets teleported to the underworld, takes 100 damage every second for 10 seconds and you get 1...4...5 uncommon minipet(s).

Forget about splitting it for PvP: It's cool, interesting, powerful and fast paced! Haters gonna have to adapt, give it a few months! -Cursed Angel 21:12, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

It's a bit too underpowered, IMO. Drop the recharge time completely, and have it max all your PvP titles instantly. Zetta 21:19, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

I have to agree with Zetta. In this version it's hardly better than Smiter's Boon (PvP) --195.202.166.190 13:19, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Sorrow's Furnace

← moved to User talk:109.67.22.16

Mr Stumme

Do you mind if i ask a question? Why do players still have the option to unlock heroes for PvP at the Priest of Balthazar if you can't use heroes in PvP anymore?--83.82.62.210 09:18, 27 February 2011 (UTC) because there's no need to remove them and they're a mule ^^ --The Holy Dragons 09:59, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

You can still use them in the Isle of the Nameless, the Zaishen Menagerie and the Training arenas. MithTalk 13:41, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

I see, second question: Are there any ideas to update rangers? Currently you can only like run one or two builds in pve and only 10 skills in pvp.--83.82.62.210 18:52, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

That is not a fault with rangers, but rather your idea of a good build. It is like saying Necros can only do SS or MM. --'Mai Yi' {TC} 19:01, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

Blood, Necrit, N/Mo healer, tons of builds in pvp (each elite has its use).--83.82.62.210 20:20, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

that wasn;t the point... --The Holy Dragons 21:45, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

inAfter Sway3.0, inb4 Sway4.0. -- beast mastery still smokes pole btw. so does traps. If Linsey ever comes back I gotta ask her why Energizing Wind never got a PvE split... As for the rest of you, check this out ... every single page has multiple Assassin primaries but not one (non-Splinter) Ranger. Infact half of those now have every single slot going to assassins. Don't you think it's noteworthy that the Class that was originally designed with +30 armor against spells has been replaced by a single elite that gives Infinite armor against spells? ...who ever could have seen that coming?? --ilr 22:11, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

My ranger is a beast master. Well, she was. Now she just holds all my stuff. Same with my ele, my para, my sin, my war...--'Mai Yi' {TC} 01:39, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

IMO sf should just be removed from the game, there is no use for it in normal playstyles.--77.61.129.90 12:47, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Anyway, anything rangers do in PvE is subpar. Heroes interrupt better, every profession deals better damage.--83.82.62.210 16:14, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Rangers make solid pseudo sins in UW, FoW, and DoA ^____^ --TahiriVeila 16:18, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

they might be solid terras but it costs like 20k/run.--83.82.62.210 17:04, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

On that note somebody smiters boon shadow form until John comes up with a decent role for it (I'm sure he will, eventually). Also for the game's sake let's hope Linsey won't ever get back to such a responsible position (no offense meant, but she simply isn't cut out for it). --Boro 19:52, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Isn't Linsey one of the lead designers for GW2? xD--TahiriVeila 20:23, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

If so, then our wiki page on her is unnecessarily vague about it. --ஸ Kyoshi 22:28, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Hey guys, I heard insulting someone's coworker will make him like us more. Izzy smells trololo elix Omni 22:34, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

[1] Did the mystery project die? 24.197.253.243 23:47, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Maybe she just finished and worked on something else? --'Mai Yi' {TC} 23:49, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

I was referring to this page, actually, which just says "a new position at ArenaNet." As far as the present situation, *shrug*. --ஸ Kyoshi 23:55, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Looking back at it I can't figure out why I wrote that. Still she couldn't handle the head position (made obvious by nerfing around problems (see flail, distracting strike, and other skills I don't remember by now), then admitting the problem, then forgetting it completely sometimes). Fact is people there figured that out and got her into the gw2 story team where she will most probably excel (judging by the M.O.X. quests and some norn ones, all of which she did decently). --Boro 15:24, 1 March 2011 (UTC)

As always with any job, there are hits and misses. I liked the update she gave to the Kurzick and Luxon Titles, with the vanqs and all, and the Zquests. -- Large 15:32, 1 March 2011 (UTC)

The problem with the titles was that they did (and unfortunately still) promote speedclearing and grinding, and she did little to ease the fact that title skills' powers improve based on the amount of grind you have put into the game (into a supposedly game of skill). While it was indeed a good step in the right direction, she didn't press it further, she didn't address the actual issue. Without actual solutions to the actual issue, she got the backslash from those who liked easening the titles' completion, and from those who wanted the titles to stay super-hard to aquire. --Boro 17:51, 1 March 2011 (UTC)

QB is Evil

Yes/no? --JonTheMon 17:02, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Unmitigated evil, and creepy to boot. John Stumme 17:22, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

You've watched episode 8, right? (*CoughAnimeListCough*)--JonTheMon 17:25, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

ffs spoilers I'm caught up. If you do make a MAL, you can find me off Jon's friends list or search Felix_Omni. elix Omni 19:14, 1 March 2011 (UTC)

I've actually got my account working there now. Maybe I'll start filling it out tonight then post it later, things have been pretty busy lately (as people might imagine...) John Stumme 01:12, 3 March 2011 (UTC)

Nick,

Hey there, I was curious if you could you fix him so the average player doesn't have to portal jump to reach him? 108.75.73.62 18:26, 28 February 2011 (UTC)