From a coding point of view it's mostly finished. Just a couple of tweaks, a handful of additional "goodies" (powerups). Then the bugs that people will no doubt discover...

It needs more/better wall designs, but that part's easy. Currently it has three wall patterns (just test ones). Some bricks take multiple hits, some break with a single hit. If you get to level 3 you'll see steel bricks that can't be broken. Although none of the levels use it yet, bricks can also have armour on one or more sides (meaning you can only take them out from particular angles).

Currently there are three goodies (multiball, +500 points, free life). I have a list of about 15 more I'm adding.

It has sound effects. Some of these I'll keep, some need replacing.

It has a demo mode - when it gets to the title screen just don't do anything. It will (after about 30 seconds) start playing by itself. It will toggle back and forth between demo mode and the title page until you hit a key to start your game.

Press a key/mouse button to launch a ball. Move the paddle with your mouse. Hit 'p' to pause/unpause the game.

The biggest thing it needs is better artwork. The title page is nothing more than text at the moment. It has a single lame backdrop for the levels (there needs to be more of them). The bricks are just rectangles right now, I'd like to replace them with images that look like rocks/bricks/etc. I think the balls are ok (they are music notes). The paddle is a little lame - it's supposed to be the bell of a trumpet. Goodies need tweaking, etc.

Anyway, here's the URL:

http://christian.net/games/jericho

You'll need the Java 1.4.x plugin. Your browser should prompt you to install it if you don't already have it.

Mark

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

Or, if you're an artist I could really use a few graphics. Mainly the title screen and a few backdrops. These can optionally have animated parts (like a waving palm tree, moving clouds, whatever).

I'll accept level ideas/designs from anyone, but I want the graphics to have a consistant look to them so I'll probably have to restrict it to a single artist (I haven't got anyone yet though).

And of course I'm interested in ideas (special brick types, ideas for more powerups, etc.).

Mark

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

How did you do your colision detection? Do you monitor every block or only those that are posible to colide with?

Love in Christ
Gift

quote:

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Originally posted by Insanepoet:
I can make you some bricks if you need them.

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I'll be uploading an updated version (better bricks, some more levels, and more powerups) tonight or tomorrow.

Mark

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

quote:

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Originally posted by Insanepoet:
Hey, I think i can improve the horn a bit.

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Mark

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quote:

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Originally posted by Gift:
how is 1.4?

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quote:

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How did you do your colision detection? Do you monitor every block or only those that are posible to colide with?

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When I move a ball, I check to see if it's within the large rectangle that encompasses all the bricks. If it is, then I divide the X by 15 and the Y by 10 to get a specific brick in the 2d array, then I check to see if that brick has any hits left. If it does then it's a hit. Never need to test more than one brick (unless there are multiple balls of course).

Mark

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

quote:

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Originally posted by Insanepoet:
1. Ok, i can get you cooler bricks if you'd like

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quote:

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2. Bug #1: if you move the mouse of the game screen, you can't move the paddle until you go back.

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quote:

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3. I'm gonna modify your horn.

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You can grab the horn at http://christian.net/games/jericho/paddle.gif

Mark

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Still needs better artwork (including the new powerups, which are just blue squares right now).

Mark

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"I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world!"
-C. S. Lewis

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:-)Boss Benz:-)

Gift: Java 1.4 includes "assertions" that I've yet to try out. They've improved the runtime speed somewhat also. I'm not sure how much faster than 1.3, bit it's defnitely much faster than 1.2 and below! You can probably get a more complete list of changes at java.sun.com .

Unfortunately a lot of people might still be using 1.2 and below and not know it - detecting the Java version is always a good idea for any program.

quote:

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Wouldn't know what to compare it to since I've never used Java before, but I kind of like it. It's perfect for web games like this. Don't think I'd use it for a "serious" stand-alone game (not one that needed any serious speed that is).

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You'd be surprised. Tried the hotspot VM yet (if you're using JRE 1.3 or above or the Java 2 SDK 1.3 or above, you've got it)? In any case, most of the graphics stuff should be done using hardware if possible. I'm not sure what Java does for 2D, but 3D using Java3D or OpenGL for Java is hardware accelerated. Using threads might help - this way something that's processor intensive need not interfere with something that requires little processor time. You will have to watch for things in one thread that affect the other one, though . . .

Later, after some research:
-Java 2D in 1.4 and above is much faster, and includes hardware acceleration - see http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4/docs/guide/2d/new_features.html

Sun has a few articles on optimizing Java programs, and other articles are available on the Internet. I forget where they are, though - I'll have to do some more research.

Good programming practices, good data structures, and good algorithms are always better, regardless of programming language! I'd rather use an algorithm that runs O(n) time in BASIC than an algorithm that runs O(n^2) time written in fully-optimized ASM!

quote:

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Hey, I thought that JAVA was a Web based thing. Info please!

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Java is a full-fledged programming language, just like C/C++. Initially, it was interpreted, but now it's compiled at runtime (static compilers are rare, but available). Modern VMs, such as Sun's hotspot VM, will even do optimizations while the program is running.

Although you see Java in applets a lot, its true power lies in the ability to make standalone applications. With the standard libraries alone, you can easily make any type of application you want.

Applets are limited compared to apps, since they have extra security measures to protect the user's machine from potentially harmful applets.

. . . although it makes it easier to cheat - you can make the trumpet move instantly by sliding the mouse off the bottom and back on somewhere else . . .

[This message has been edited by CobraA1 (edited December 22, 2002).]

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It's not seeing is believing, it's believing and then seeing.
http://www.twoguyssoftware.ca