Whew

May 31, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

Whew. Yesterday was fairly busy. I caught up on my various corrispondences, from e-mail to bulletin boards. I signed up with a new "custom content creator" group that Obsidian is putting together. Hopefully we can start gearing up for getting our assorted models into the game.

In terms of the module itself, I continue to tweak and debug. I ran a spellchecker on half the module, hopefully finishing today. It's embarrassing how many typos there were. I finally got the exploration theme into the game. It turns out NWN doesn't like variable-rate mp3s. I also forgot to properly set up some of my stores, which caused one of the islands not to sell anything. There's still a bunch of "nice to have" things I'd like to add, though I'm starting to lean towards packaging up what I have and shiping it off to QA.

I'm itching to start on the next module, which hopefully will be much smaller in scope. The fourth module is already starting to write itself in my head. Should be fun.

I'm learning all sorts of wierd scripting det...

May 30, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I'm learning all sorts of wierd scripting details while debugging HighSeas. For example, it turns out that GetIsValidObject isn't the same as comparing it to OBJECT_INVALID. It also turns out that if you pull a variable from a database and put it in a local variable, it's not actually set instantly. When you use ForceMoveToObject, it'll follow the object to the ends of Hell, or at least to another area. That's how I ended up with a sailing ship wandering around on the docks.

Needless to say, I'm slowly making progress with the High Seas system. The really glaring bugs are gone and now I'm tracking down the more mysterious ones. I'm also working on finishing up some things I left hanging. It seems that "wishful thinking" doesn't magically finish up dialogs with other sea captains.

There's always more I want to do and fit in, so we'll see how much I can manage today. I'd love to get in some kind of crew experience system. It would also be neat to record your wins and losses in your captain's log item. We'll see how far I get today.

"Badgers? We don't need no stinkin' badgers!...

May 29, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

"Badgers? We don't need no stinkin' badgers!"

It's amazing just how many things can go wron...

May 28, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

It's amazing just how many things can go wrong in a module this size. I'm getting a vague sense of accomplishment squashing them all, but more seem to pop up after each one.

The latest issues are around the High Seas mini-game. I need to figure out how to deal with captured pirate ships and the patrols around Port Brighton. It wouldn't do to get slapped with a fine just because a captured pirate ship had slaves aboard.

I've been making some progress in other areas of the game. I added in some telepathy options, letting you probe the minds of commoners for fun and profit, though your telepathy skill needs to be raised. I also worked on the dialog for the third module as I was stuck in the car with my sleeping daughter for awhile.

Fun, fun, fun!

I worked a little on one of the quests for th...

May 27, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I worked a little on one of the quests for the third module, mostly dialog but a little area creation as well. Now that I know what's possible in NWN2, I groan every time I have to make due with NWN's tile-based exteriors. Outside areas are going to look so darn good with the new game. I can't wait.

I used up a little development time last night on Infinite Dungeons. The technical aspects of the game are pretty neat. I admire all the work it took to dynamically crank out dungeons by the truckload. On the other hand, it's essentially all about combat and collecting loot, which has gotten a bit old for me. For those who enjoy a good dungeon crawl, though, it might be right up your alley.

I just finished fixing one of the more annoyi...

May 26, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I just finished fixing one of the more annoying bugs I've come across. My henchmen suddenly became lifeless when I started the second module. They wouldn't speak up when desired and generally lazed about. It turns out that it had to do with my module-to-module transfer code. When going to a new module, their "OnSpawn" script doesn't run and no variables are transferred between modules, so all sorts of important things weren't set. I was able to rerun the OnSpawn script manually after they came across and all was good again.

I went to the NWN2 chat last night, though due to technical problems, the developer's couldn't show up. Rob over at DLA showed off their stuff, however. It looks like there's amazing things coming out of that group come July. Can't wait.

I think I've recovered just about everything

May 25, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I think I've recovered just about everything. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought, and I ended up having to recreate only a single dialog.

Now I'm getting into some of the more bizarre problems. The most recent involves transferring henchmen from the first module to the second and their scripts seemingly get completely screwed up. I still can't figure it out.

I might get a chance to work on the third module a tiny bit, mostly mostly I'm in debug mode these days, trying to get things at least somewhat presentable for QA. I was able to make it through the Chronomancer quest this morning, at least mostly. I did have some really odd problems getting the henchmen to do my bidding. Fortunately I have a Plan B.

It was a good news/bad news sort of day

May 24, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

It was a good news/bad news sort of day. I made tremendous progress with the breaking and entering script, getting two places working just great. It's fun watching the residents wake up, run for weapons, or flee when there's only one of them left. If you let any go, you'll be wanted for murder as well, so be warned. At this point, I'm considering it done.

I also did my first full debugging pass through the game, finding all sorts of horrible problems. I wasn't able to play all the way through, but I managed to get through a couple of the main quests before running into game-stopping bugs. Most were easily fixed, but I still have to investigate some others

The most frustrating thing was realizing that I'd overwritten a week or so worth of work on the henchmen dialog. I carefully went through my backups and found most of it, but I think I'll still have to recreate some things. So, that's what I'll be doing today.

I normally have a hard time playing an evil c...

May 23, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I normally have a hard time playing an evil character in computer games. It's funny how morality spills over into an activity compeletely without consequences. Still, as a designer I feel obligated to provide the full range of opportunities for players.

Today I wrapped up the "break into a home" quest. Well, it's not much of a quest, really, more like a little side area to fiddle around in. A non-evil rogue could slip in, steal everything while the residents sleep, and slip out again. Of course, evil rogues or other players could just break in and kill everyone. If you leave anyone alive, the guards will be alerted.

I might tweak the AI a little more and add in a second, similar, adventure area. Other than that, I'm feeling pretty happy with the way it turned out. I'd like to do one more thing to the commoners in town, but then I think I'm done with every little side goodie that I ever wanted to stuff into the game.

I'm getting very excited about the first big quest for the next module and want to get started on it soon.

The last of the toolset articles is out, show...

May 22, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

The last of the toolset articles is out, showing off yet more fun features of the game. Now we likely get to quietly wait four more months until the game is actually released.

In some ways, this is a good thing, as I'll need all the time I can get to polish up what I've got. Yesterday I worked on getting more developer's commentary in, as well as polishing bugs that I uncovered. I penciled out the scripts I needed for a "breaking and entering" side quest. I find there's few opportunities for stealth gameplay in NWN modules, wo hopefully this is a treat. Of course, you can always crash through the window and kill everyone, but where's the fun in that?

The amazing videos continue

May 21, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

The amazing videos continue. I'm loving all the details that are coming out about the toolset. Today's little Flash thingie shows off some of the house placeables we'll see in the game. I even noticed a little rural lighthouse, which looked like a promising addition to the mix.

As for yesterday's work, you can see the I've added in a section for each module of the campaign. Even though a lot of story details haven't been finalized, what you see is my overall plan for things. I'll try to put up some "extras" on each page, such as renders, maps, or whatever I can throw together. It may be awhile, as I do have a campaign to build. Making pretty web pages is just an occasional distraction.

I started putting developer commentary into the second module. I also started spec'ing out a solution to a little problem I have. In order to make areas feel like a big city, I want to have a fair number of houses scattered about. On the other hand, I don't want them to be entirely useless "off limits" houses. I'm leaning towards creating a few little adventure areas for players who favor rogues, and putting in some deliberate stealth gameplay. The tricky part would be the resident AI, making sure they behave in a somewhat expected fashion when their house is being burglarized.

There were some amazing toolset videos releas...

May 20, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

There were some amazing toolset videos released on the Vault yesterday. If you haven't gone there yet, head on over and take a look. It looks like creating areas is going to be surprisingly easy to do.

I continue to polish away. Nothing too dramatic, mostly just making sure that QA staff can do what they need, normal people see normal stuff, and information gets passed between modules as appropriate.

I fixed a bug where the final scene wouldn't work. I fixed another where the transferring companion was automatically added as a henchman and thus followed me around at inappropriate times. I was hoping to start adding in some developer commentary for the second module, but haven't gotten there yet.

I've been doing assorted odd polishing, going...

May 19, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I've been doing assorted odd polishing, going through the final part of the game over and over again. I think the final battle is just hard enough. The traps are pretty nasty, but you can avoid them with care. The most comical deaths are when I forget that bombers are sneaking up and taking position while I'm engaged in a heated melee. Sure enough, they'll lob in a fire bomb and my entire party will be engulfed in flames. It's fun.

One of the things that I need to get things to a "final" state is to make it so that our QA folks can troubleshoot, while letting normal people simply play the game. What I do is that the first time in, the player gets handed a "Game Option" item that lets them control a few global things. They can also turn on debug mode, which gives them the ability to tinker with things. If a character already has the "Game Option" item, the game will start out in debug mode and people can jump right into testing.

I also decided to add a "Developer's Commentary" option. If you turn it on, you'll periodically find a glowing little guy that you can talk to. I decided that was a good place to put in thoughts and tidbits about the game for folks who end up playing through a second time. Hopefully people will find it interesting.

There's a funny thing that happens when I've ...

May 18, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

There's a funny thing that happens when I've been knee-deep in bug fixing for a month or more. I get so frustrated with the whole process that I start pretending bugs don't really exist and that it's time to start in on the next module. Anyway, when playing through the final part of the first module, I uncovered all sorts of bugs that I either carefully ignored or they somehow slipped through the cracks.

I'm nearly done with the thing. Today I was balancing for difficulty. I took in a typical 3rd level character with a fully party, armed with all the things you'd expect to find at this point in the module. It was difficult, but not overwhelmingly so. The most annoying part was trying to keep the party together, which should be much easier with NWN2.

The best part is still the unique AI for the enemies. I loved having the trap-setting rogue lay traps everywhere. If you don't kill them quickly, the room can fill up with all manner of obstacles. The fire bombers can be pretty entertaining too, often doing more harm to their own team.

Fortunately this morning's testing was fairly fun and an hour and a half went by before I even noticed.

I walked over a big red square on the ground,...

May 17, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I walked over a big red square on the ground, got hit by a spike trap, and giggled in glee. The last of my problematic troops, the rogues, were going around setting traps on the battlefield for an unwary player to run into.

I think the final battle is actually working again, made far more interesting than the simple brawl it was. Smart players can carefully use the battlefield to their advantage. What I like the most about the AI is that it doesn't simply run up and attack. Archers hide behind fortifications for cover, rogues sneak about setting traps, and if the player tries to lure them away from their duties, they'll turn tail and return to a safer place. I still want to add in a cutscene, but otherwise I think I'm slowly approaching completion.

Next on my list is to formally start testing the second module. There's a lot wrong with it yet, and endless details to polish, so it'll likely take a month or so to get "good enough" for a prototype.

Maybe, just maybe, I'll start in on the third module. Even if it's incomplete, it might be helpful to have a framework there so that we can test the transfer of variables and equipment from the second module to the third.

I think I write code for the same reason that...

May 16, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I think I write code for the same reason that people do crossword puzzles. It's soothing, in its own way, and I get a feeling of satisfaction when I'm finished.

I've been reworking the final battle of the first module. Of course, when I say "reworking", I really mean horribly screwing things up. Well, it's not that bad, but it current isn't functioning properly. I have multiple types of attackers, each with their own strategy, and it's not quite working the way I want yet.

Oh, some parts are amusing. The little critters throwing the fire bombs are a laugh a minute, especially when they miss the PC and set their friends on fire. Oopsie.

I'm horribly behind my various correspondences. Mondays are typically really busy for me and yesterday was no exception. Hopefully I can find a moment to breathe and get to that today.

The Portland trip was surprisingly good, from...

May 15, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

The Portland trip was surprisingly good, from a module building perspective. Long drives with no book and a blank notebook really help.

I think the second module is at a rough state of completion. All the extra dialog I wanted to fit in is done and in the game. Your two main companions feel like real people now. I'd like to schedule a full run through before I turn it over to QA, but I'm feeling fairly good about things. I did some more tweaking as a result of the patch, this time working in some palm trees on one of the tropical islands. There's some housekeeping to do, but that's about it.

I also laid down the framework of a fairly elaborate end battle in the first module. Hopefully today I can start in on the scripting, which is pretty complex. I think I'm going for five or so different AI scripts for different types of attackers. We'll see if I can pull it off.

Finally, I spec'ed out the first main quest in the third module. By now, the quests are becoming increasingly combat oriented. The player should be fifth level and able to handle some fairly major encounters. I'm trying hard to make them all varied and interesting and not just an endless parade of creatures to destroy.

If I was going to guess at this point, I'm hoping I can prototype the first three modules fairly well. Based on NWN2's release date, that should give me four months to QA what I've got in addition to finishing the third module. I'm not introducing any major systems such as high seas, so it should just be traditional quest building for me.

The drive up to Portland was incredibly produ...

May 13, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

The drive up to Portland was incredibly productive. I filled up several pages with tiny scribbles, which pretty much finishes up all the henchmen dialog. I even went through and added various options to use telepathy, which is specific to this campaign.

This morning I typed up some of my writing as well as working on the high seas coding a bit more. There were some things that I'd left as "to do"'s until the 1.67 patch was released. Now it's done, so I'm doing things like displaying the ship name when you get ready to leave an island. I've also made sure you don't leave your companions behind, as they're fairly critical to your success.

I'll be doing family stuff today, but there's a good chance I'll get a little time here and there to work on things.

For those who had problems getting to this si...

May 12, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

For those who had problems getting to this site yesterday, sorry about that. The electric company decided to cut power to our house for most of the day.

I'm heading off to Portland soon, hopefully downing a mocha before I leave and bringing along a bunch of paper to scribble on. I'd like to start laying the groundwork for the third module, even though I still have lots to polish for the second one.

I'm pretty close to done with the henchmen dialog. I think I've got some more scripting to do, but that's about it. I'd still like some periodic quips or conversations between the two of them. Hopefully the long car ride will spur some thoughts. After that, though, I think things are basically ready for testing. I know there's lots to polish yet, but we're slowly getting there.

Yesterday was mostly planning work, as I was ...

May 11, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

Yesterday was mostly planning work, as I was otherwise pretty busy. While bathing the kids, I scribbled down some plans for the final battle in the first module. It's nice being able to go back and tinker with things, but I suppose that's the reason for doing a prototype. I was also in an incredibly dull meeting and wrote out Daniel's second flashback dialog, which was surprisingly involved.

Finally, I put in yet another treasure map. In a pirate game, you just can't have enough of those.

I decided to forgo the fancy Flash animations...

May 10, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I decided to forgo the fancy Flash animations and latest screenshots, instead giving everyone a picture of me with my Bioware writing contest loot. It was a fun day yesterday, filled with the announcement that Jade Empire was coming to the PC, the trailer, and new screenshots.

As for the module itself, I finished up half of Daniel's dialog, with one more flashback to go. I'm hoping to tie the past to the present somehow, though I'm still working out options to do so.

I'm having thoughts about redoing the final battle for the first module. After reflecting on it, it's not as "epic" as I'd like. I'm leaning towards something more heavily scripted and involving a number of skills the player will have picked up along the way. We'll see.

I keep hoping to see more of NWN2 at E3 this year. Supposedly Thursday is the big day for demos, but we might see more before then.

Well, the official trailer has been posted

May 09, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

Well, the official trailer has been posted. It's not in-game footage, so it's primarily just setting the mood for the single-player story. Pretty, though.

I slowly worked away on Daniel's dialog. I went through multiple iterations in my brain until I settled for the proper set of flashback sequences. I've typed up one of them, but still need to script it. Hopefully I can do the second as well.

I have fond memories naming my decks back in my collectable card playing days. There was "Death from Above" and the "Bruise" deck. With this latest NWN patch, it's now possible to change the name of your decks, so I worked that into the Pirate Cards game this morning. It should minimize confusion when selecting decks from a list. Still, the biggest benefit is probably the "cool factor" of being able to name the deck you've carefully built up and tested.

Yesterday was very productive

May 08, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

Yesterday was very productive. I worked hard on the Pirate Card game, adding in some improvements that were made possible with the latest patch. When clicking cards, you no longer need to walk over to them. Instead, they're played instantly. You can also take henchmen into the game. Before you had to tediously leave them behind and tell them to join you again. Finally, you can give your henchman a deck and ask them to play with you.

I think the last is my favorite feature as it lets you build a couple decks and then try them out against each other. Admittedly the AI isn't smart enough for really complex strategy, but it plays well enough. I ended up getting beaten multiple times even when trying hard. It was fun.

I worked more on the henchmen dialog in the second module. It's not much, as I was distracted, but I've thought things through and generally know which direction I'm going in. So far I'm feeling pretty good about the amount of time I'm spending on the two main companions.

I think I've sorted out the Flash issues and ...

May 07, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I think I've sorted out the Flash issues and it's working the way I'd like. I had to pull out all sorts of funky Javascript skills to get the cross-browser stuff working. This is a voice clip from the first module. It's pretty low quality, due to the nature of the tools I'm working with, but hopefully gives you a feel for how it's coming together.

I spend much of yesterday, last night, and this morning, putting together the last of the Heather dialog. I'm looking forward to the new cutscene camera system NWN2 users. Right now the camera is in weird places and not particularly dramatic. Still, I'm happy with the results and think it will be a worthwhile addition to the game. Next stop, doing something similar with Daniel.

I've been focusing on Heather for the henchme...

May 06, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I've been focusing on Heather for the henchmen dialog and am pretty happy with what I've come up with. There's the usual "how's it going" sort of dialog, but I've also added in a remembrance system. Essentially it allows the player to experience flashbacks and backstory. As a side effect the henchmen get boosts to skills as they remember things.

I finished my first one, which took awhile to script properly. Still, I'm happy with the way things are going and will likely introduce similar things for Daniel, the second main companion. It takes awhile to put each together, but I think the results are worth the effort.

Update: Danmar continues to do some very cool work with his lighthouse. It's been fun hearing his ideas for a side quest and seeing what sort of things he comes up with.

I'm doing a little experiment with Flash, try...

May 05, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I'm doing a little experiment with Flash, trying to see if I can convert some of the latest videos and put them up on the site. I'm not sure this will be a regular thing, but it's fun to fiddle with.

I'm looking forward to the new lip synching and animation. When we couple that with voice, I think it'll make a huge difference in the emotional impact of the game.

Yesterday I hunkered down and started writing more dialog for Heather. Some conversation options will always be available, such as asking Heather if she misses home. Others show up depending on the state of the romance or quests. I have more of this to do today, and need to work on Daniel as well.

One of the things I want to do is give the player the opportunity to "unlock" new abilities in the companions, similar to Planescape. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do this. It won't necessarily be tied to the romances, but instead has to do with resolving internal struggles or fixing mistakes they made in the past.

Today's picture is of Danmar's latest lighthouse

May 04, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

Today's picture is of Danmar's latest lighthouse. In theory we have three light houses in the game, though only one is textured. For a seafaring game, three seems like a nice number.

I finished attaching Heather's voice clips to the dialog yesterday. It was a fun experience and I can't wait to see what else magically appears in my in box next. Last I heard, Daniel's dialog was recorded, but not yet processed. It's terribly exciting.

I worked on the module myself, mostly on dialog and a bit of scripting. I'm thinking the two henchmen romances (with other NPCs) is essentially finished at this point, as are the endings (minus some necessary scripting). Next on my list is to work more on the player romances. Right now there are "romantic moments", but they're not tied together particularly well. The two main companions also have no non-triggered dialog to speak of. After the first module, they clearly need many more opportunities to interact.

Update: As an aside, I put together a little analysis of the newly released movies. It's mostly technical, picking apart the game engine a bit, but might be of interest to folks.

I finally got a chance to start attaching the...

May 03, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

I finally got a chance to start attaching the dialog for Heather and was simply blown away. It's amazing. Allyndyn did a great job technically, and the quality of the recordings is very professional. His wife did an amazing job as an actress, bringing life to dry words. I'm going to try to finish attaching the dialog today. Usually such tasks are a chore, but it's so much fun to hear her speak that I'm eager to jump back into it.

I finished typing up the last of the dialog I'd written on my trip. The main quests in the module should essentially be finished. I still need a fair bit of polish and would still like to throw in a couple minor adventure areas. The henchmen need lots more to say, for example. Still, I'm pretty happy with the direction things are going.

Today's picture is again from NWN2. I find myself imagining some of the areas and characters I've prototyped in NWN redone for NWN2. With luck, Dark Waters will be better looking than I'd hoped.

A ton of information is starting to be releas...

May 02, 2006 by Adam in NWN2

A ton of information is starting to be released about the game, which has everyone in a tizzy. Over at the the official site, they've released some new screenshots, including a bunch with water. I did a little analysis on them, finding a few interesting tidbits.

Even more exciting are videos over at IGN. It looks like we get our first peek at the GUI, character creation, and more.

As for me and my little project, I continue to be insanely busy. Marque, one of the team's artists, wrote an article for Gamasutra. Danmar is working on some custom content for his part of the game. One of the team's musicians was recently hired by Ubisoft. Life, as usual, continues to be exciting.