Last push...

A few days away from pushing the Epic Frontiers demo out to our prospective publishers, so I figure that I will do one more blog before I report on our level of success. So... What to blog about?

Teamwork: The demo is less about me and my idea as much as it is about my team. Currently, there are about 11 of us in total. There is myself: programmer, scriptor, designer, writer, and some art (mostly placeholder stuff). Then I have a lore master, who does writing and design contributions. There are also two art teams: Concept Art, with four people including the other designer/lore master. And the other team is 3D, with a character artist/animator, three environment artists, and a texture artist.

Because of the fact that I wear so many hats and the fact that we're still finding our stride, I've found myself doing a huge amount of team management. From creating color palettes for the texture artists to discussing scales and building functions with concept and 3D artists, to finding motion capture solutions for the character artist, to scripting content creation tools for the writer for the Interrogative system and then sitting down every Wednesday with as many of the team as can make it either face to face and/or over Ventrilo to tie it all together. Then there is handing out tasks, evaluating the work to ensure consistency, and then coordinating with outsourced contractors.

It's enough to drive you mad. Especially when you're also doing database work for the game, scripting AI, gameplay, and coding things like mouselook and overhead maps, and dealing with things like the desktop-used-as-a-server puking it's liquid cooling all over itself (Murphy and his laws had fun with me on that one), causing a run around the boroughs of New York trying to find a bracket and CPU fan to replace it, then replacing the CPU fan because I forgot to make sure it was for an ATX motherboard instead of an AT. And then I relax by sitting down and doing 10-hour marathon terrain sculpting/painting sessions.

None of this is a complaint though. Especially when it comes to the team. The quality of work they're turning out for the demo is just what we wanted- stylized low-poly models with nice textures. We've suceeded in bring on board very mature team members with a high level of talent, and it shows. Having brought a new 3D artist into the team a few days ago, I'm seeing the 3D art team start to manage itself in small but important ways. The Concept team has been faster to coordinate like this, which is a Godsend, and resulting in great cohesiveness. This is not to say that the groups don't talk- we're striving for whole-team communication and collaboration, and I encourage modelers and texture artists to talk with concept artists, and us designers talk with all of them, and they with us. It's very organic, and results in things like this:


The caravan marketplace of Ris'Hebbik. Not a lot of business going on yet though...


The caravan marketplace with a placeholder of the Meeting Hall in the background.

So yeah, my team rocks... ;)

Gameplay: I was killed by an NPC the other day. Of course, the action that NPC took was so nerfed that I sat and read a page or two of my book while allowing it to happen. It seems like such horrible combat AI, and the I think you know, this is how MMOs do combat AI. Well, we're working on that...

In the meantime, I have weapons available for crafting, including the DX11 Rifle (Bill Gates was said to have wielded this fabled weapon in battle himself). Crafting is a big deal for a lot of players, and we're pushing to make a very simple interface for them to work with, while not taking away from the complexity of what they can create:


We're missing some icons here, but you can read the output (maybe) and tell that I crafted a rifle from some steel and molds and plastic and recipes. The recipe system checks for the proper tools and ability levels, and you just drag and drop the materials you're crafting with into the appropriate slots in the recipe panel and click Create, and you've got either a material, an item, or a component. A material can be refined or alloyed or turned into an item or a component. Components can be assembled into items. And items... well, they're itemized, I guess. You can use them. On people. About the head and neck, like. It's a very simple system that gives players a fun way to craft. But there's another level to it, but we're not going to talk about it just yet- not until I have the screenshots.

Team Leadership and the Law of the Jungle:

Circling back around to leadership, I've noticed something while reading a book about Percy Fawcett's expeditions in the Amazon, which ultimately culminated in his final expedition where he, his son, and his son's best friend were all (probably) murdered by a hostile indian tribe. What's that have to do with Indie game development? Glad you asked...

Many failed leaders of Victorian Age expeditions into the jungle were victims of mutiny. Mutiny is the act of the lower-ranked members of a team either resting control of the expedition from the previously established leader, or a coordinated mass desertion of that leader while the leader attempts to carry on. This kind of action, when combined (and usually caused by) the extremely adverse conditions of the jungle against those who did not possess the skills to survive led directly to tens of thousands of deaths. The fact was that the leaders that suceeded had very fine leadership skills as well as practical skills that allowed them to set the example for their men. Men like Fawcett were able to pull off difficult expeditions due to an indomitable force of will which his men tried to match. Likewise, other explorers such as Rondon and Roosevelt were famed for their leaderships skills (though Rondon was also famed for losing huge numbers of men in some of his expeditions).

It occured to me that Indies need to leverage some of the same skills. No, not being able to spot snakes, build boats, or pee in the Amazon without getting that crazy little fish lodged you-know-where, causing doctors to cut of your you-know-what. I mean skills in leading and forging ahead. The ability to not only know the destination, but also the course, how to get around obstacles, and communicate with the men involved in getting you there.

A great many wannbes come through the forums looking to make the next MMORPGFPSRTSOMGWTBBQLMAOROFLCOPTER, but they do not possess the skills neither to reach their destination, nor to lead an expedition to it. They do not understand the terrain, nor how to use the environment to survive. Their leadership fails when confronted with obstacles, they lack endurance, and they lead their teams through volume rather than example. Much like the hundred-plus people who entered the jungle in search of Fawcett in the decades after his death, only to be found later with insane thoughts scribbled into diaries as they died.

There is a direct link here. As technology promises "easier" ways to accomplish difficult tasks, people who have no business attempting the task set out with less skill and planning than ever before. You can see it in the adventure world whenever you see a news report of ill-prepared hikers being eaten by Mt Hood, and you can see it here in the forums as you see ill-prepared developers being eaten by their project.

At least here you're not dying, and that's about the only consolation you get for trying. But likewise, in both things the leader of the expedition is responsible for those that are in his charge, and careless leaders in the wild throw away people's lives like a careless developer throws away people's time and effort.

It's not just skills that gets things done, but leadership.