I’ve spent a while looking for a decent, low-cost obfuscation tool for .NET applications. It’s not that I don’t want people looking at my code; more that a few of my projects send and receive data over the Internet, and one of the easiest and secure ways to do that is with a shared key. Not so good if someone can just open your executable and find that key, no matter how hard you make.

Obfuscation isn’t the perfect solution, but it will stop the casual observer, and those determined to find it will have to spend some time figuring out. All you can hope is that the time it takes overrules the benefits.

Anyway, after trying a bunch, I found one that works flawlessly – at least for my needs. It’s called Babel, and you can grab it from Google Code.

babelobfuscator [Google Code]

Posted in Programming

Tags: .net, babelobfuscator, code, google, obfuscation

Create custom 4th Edition D&D powers and classes and upload them for the RPG community at large to use! The latest version of the 4e Power Toolkit allows you to do just that. It’s available, right now… so what are you waiting for?

v0.6.0 also removes the minimum size on the creator windows, allowing the program to be used on small screens, and I’ve fixed a problem that would prevent secondary and tertiary attacks from appearing on power cards. Otherwise, v0.6.0 is a lightweight update… but one you can’t do without!

You can download it from here, and all custom classes and powers can be seen at dnd.playwrite-blog.net.

Posted in 4e, 4e D&D, Advice/Tools, Dungeons and Dragons, Role playing

Tags: 4e, 4e class creator, 4e power toolkit, d&d, rpg, vb .net

It’s the late 90s. Reeboks are all the rage, your Dad’s buying you pogs and for some reason, no one can stop dancing the Macarena. And, hiding away in the Amiga CD32‘s modest catalogue of games is Psycho Killer – an interactive FMV survival horror title. I never finished Psycho Killer on its native platform (I got perhaps half-way through), but I felt compelled recently to give it another crack, arse-painted graphics be damned.

So, Rob and I went a little video crazy over at Up Up Down Down, our alternative gaming blog, and recorded the entire, hilarious, experience. Somehow, we make Morgan Freeman creepy, bring back the Reebok, and learn just how deadly a blunt machete can be.

Survival Horror 101: Psycho Killer Amiga CD32 [Uudders]

Posted in General

Tags: amiga, cd32, fmv, humour, psycho killer, survival horror, up up down down, uudd, uudders

I don’t have anything super huge to divulge this update, but I can say that, after many requests, I’ve added outside movement to Zafehouse 2. This means instead of taking a turn to move from one edge of the map to the other, it’s looking closer to five or six turns, as you dodge between buildings and the inevitable (and darn hungry) undead.

Currently, you can only move to entrances and zombie “hotspots”, as I didn’t really see the need to position survivors outside in the middle of nowhere. If someone can give me a really (really) good reason why it should be any different, I’ll think about it.

Implementing outside movement required me to confront my fear of A* pathfinding and, while it was a tortuous and many times frustrating endeavour, my work paid off.

I also took the opportunity to give the underlying graphics engine (which isn’t so much an engine as it is one of those tiny electric motors you get in a toy racecar) a boost. The game now supports double-buffering of the pixel kind, which has improved drawing performance by a metric arseload. Scrolling around the map is now smooth as buttery silk, even considering the sledgehammer-like approach I have to 2D visuals (read: amping the crud out of GDI+)

It’s time now in Zafehouse 2’s development for me to work on the meat and potatoes… or the “actual game” as it’s called in some parts. Which means details should get juicer, and the gameplay videos tastier as time goes on.

Again, thanks for bearing with me. There are moments when I wish I had whole days (weeks even) to commit to the title, instead of the couple of hours a night I have now. I’m not at the point yet where I’m willing to sacrifice my social life. :)

Posted in Zafehouse 2

Tags: a*, Game design, pathfinding, strategy, survival horror, vb .net, Zafehouse, Zafehouse 2, Zombies

The headline says it all, really, but to get into the specifics – Steam has the price of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 set at US$59.99 for US customers, while the Oz version is at US$89.99.

Put simply, you’d have to be high or stupid to buy Modern Warfare 2 off Steam if you live in Australia.

While I was on Kotaku AU I reported a similar pricing disparity with Call of Duty 4. Before you get angry at Steam – don’t. This is Activision Blizzard’s way of playing nice with local retailers so, if you have angst (which you should), be sure to direct it at the publisher.

If you must have the game, buy it from Play-Asia.

Posted in Industry news

Tags: activision, activision blizzard, australia, call of duty, call of duty: modern warfare 2, pc, steam

A fellow by the name of Mr. Bagelman has uploaded the “Gunslinger”, an interesting ranged martial striker created using the 4e Power Toolkit. Here’s the official description, as well as one of the class’ powers:

Gunslingers are ranged fighters who wield alchemical implements called “guns” and “pistols” and “rifles” to hurl projectiles at their foes (although there are some who use one or two crossbows). Their weapons do great damage at long range as well as close-quarters, but come to a disadvantage when it comes time to reload, given their early and experimental nature. Some Gunslingers take the time to make alchemical bullets, with special abilities, such as fire or acid. Gunslingers prefer to slide around the battlefield, keeping their enemies at a distance.

The Gunslinger [4e Custom Classes]

Posted in 4e, 4e D&D, Dungeons and Dragons, Role playing

Tags: 4e, 4e class creator, 4e custom classes, 4e power creator, 4e power toolkit, d&d, gunslinger, rpg

A new custom 4e class made with the 4e Power Toolkit was submitted today, and it’s packed full of tasty, much like a chocolate croissant or dinosaur kebab. Called the “Transmuter“, this class combines the versatility of the wizard’s utility powers with nifty polymorphing abilities. Here’s the class description:

There are many different styles of shapeshifting to be seen. One is the literal bodily alteration where the body physically changes, this is the path of which you chose. Your spells hamper your enemies and strengthen your allies. When pressed you shift form and stirke at your enemies with newly gained claws, and breath of fire. Ever changing and adapting, this is your magic, this is your life.

And a sample power, copy-and-pasted directly from the Power Toolkit:

Posted in 4e, 4e D&D, Dungeons and Dragons, Role playing

Tags: 4e, 4e class creator, 4e power creator, 4e power toolkit, class, custom class, d&d, dragons, dungeons, Dungeons and Dragons, Role playing, rpg, transmuter

I’d like to thank everyone who has so far provided feedback, comments and praise over the Zafehouse 2 gameplay video. Honestly, I was very reluctant to post it as it’s, well, incomplete. But I also realised that, if I didn’t put anything out until the game was almost ready, expectations would be super-high, and I don’t think they would have matched the scope of the game.

With the video out, everyone has a more grounded view of what will be in the game and its presentation.

There’s so much I’d like to do, but the video has really made the issue of feature creep hit home. It sneaks up on you so easily. You get into a pattern of putting a feature in, adding a new one to the list… but not making any actual progress. I think everyone would prefer if Zafehouse 2 was a complete, polished game, rather than a heap of disjointed, unfinished chunks that simply “showed potential”.

There’s also all the time in the world for expansions and patches. :)

Posted in Zafehouse

Tags: undead, Zafehouse, Zafehouse 2, Zombies

Okay, so today is actually Saturday, not Friday. But only by a little!

Here’s the first of what I hope will be many videos demonstrating Zafehouse 2’s gameplay. The focus this time round is combat, of which you’ll get a quick glimpse. The video isn’t hosted here because the dimensions don’t fit on the page, so clicking the image above or the link at the bottom of this post will take you to my sister site, Uudders.

I’m sure the video will bring about more questions than answers, so don’t hesitate to ask away. A few notes:

* The game is played at a resolution of 1024 x 768 so the video didn’t turn out massive, which means the controls are a little cramped. The game supports any resolution a monitor can produce, so don’t worry about that.

* The text might be a little hard to see, but should be readable.

* Yes, these guys are firing weapons with no ammo. I didn’t think the combat video would be very fun if everyone was running out of ammo. :P

* Nothing in this video is final! Weapon damage, zombie strength, all that stuff is undergoing a lot of tuning!

Can’t think of anything else right now, but I’m sure things will come up. For now, enjoy the vid!

Zafehouse 2: Gameplay video #1 [Uudders]

Posted in Zafehouse 2

Tags: clips, combat, Zafehouse, Zafehouse 2

Smart’s studio 3000AD has announced Galactic Command Online. Going by the feature list, GCO is essentially Smart’s last 100 games condensed into MMO form.

You can’t argue his style of game is ripe for an MMO treatment, though the man himself is reluctant to place Galactic Command Online in the same genre as the likes of World of Warcraft. In his words: “…The game isn’t really an MMO in that sense of the word (it’s not more an MMO than APB, Global Agenda, Crimecraft etc) but unfortunately thats the terminology the industry seems to have stuck with – as are we”.

With the amount of support, updates and expansions MMOs require these days, it’s been stipulated that GCO could be 3000AD’s last game. And it could be. But, judging by the (lack of) success of recent MMO launches, it might not be for the reasons the company has stated.

What Smart has going for him is his unwavering passion and vision, even if these qualities put him on the wrong side of the flame-proof fence in many an Internet forum. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s these very qualities the genre needs to kick it in the dice bag and get out of the exhausting cycle of pumping out endless WoW-clones.

I guess we’ll see how GCO stacks up against EVE and Infinity: Quest for Earth. My guess is, like Smart’s other games, it’ll cater to the exquisitely niche audience of gamers that love Battlecruiser, and perhaps the much larger group stuck on the never-ending geas for an online version of Bell and Braben’s Elite. As long as 3000AD keeps this in mind when it comes to the pricing micro-transactions and server costs, there’s no reason it can’t be sustainable.

Posted in Industry news

Tags: 3000ad, derek smart, galactic command online, mmo, space