Two Men Enter, One Man Leaves

Greetings everyone! It's not what you think. Despite my X-treme ladder match skills, I did not battle in a dome of steel with a chainsaw. My showdown was against documentation deadlines, and it felt like a battle to the death.

Something different...

I've broken my usual behavior pattern of posting multiple blogs in a single month. Additionally, my presence in the forums has been very light. If you have been following the major announcements you will know there have been three documentation releases in less than a month:

TGEA 1.8 - With the release of TGEA 1.8, a new set of doc covering GFX2 and other major changes was necessary. The scheduling was a bit tricky, as two other engines came rushing out the gate concurrently.

iTGB 1.1 - iTGB 1.1 was released with multiple bug fixes, improved usability and speed enhancements. However, the iTorque docs are still in a fledgling state. I was able to get the TDN section for iTorque started and add some new information to the offline docs.

The major issue I tackled was getting iTGB integrated into the Doc System, which was a success. I can now generate iTGB documentation much easier and faster than before. I have also started working on video tutorials series which will launch at the end of January if all goes well.

TorqueX 3.0 - Finally, I wanted to have a new set of docs ready to go before the new version of Torque X made it out the door. I've already uploaded the revised form of Torque X docs to the site. This new set is a unified framework of TX Core, 2D, and 3D systems, sporting some new content.

Post-Mortem

While it was not quite as strenuous as a Full Sail Final Game Project, the November and December deadlines for updated documentation was an endurance test. However, I managed to push through each release and came out with a new strategy for docs.

2008 In Review

It was a huge year for me. I was able to attend my first GDC and land a job at GarageGames. Presented my plan for documentation and have maintained its transparency (multiple links in that sentence).

Additionally, I met some cool people (Leba, Apparatus, Tim), turned 26, and completed some of my side projects.

My favorite two events include being Photoshopped multiple times in a single thread and producing my first cardboard fort and video

Plans For 2009

The year will redefine the terms "EPIC" and "AWESOME." A new trend of mine is making bold statements, because I like the challenge. I do not make New Year's Resolutions, but I do have a laundry list:

- Release my first game
- Launch a new page for Torque Video Tutorials
- Complete and deploy Doc System 2.0
- Produce more documentation content in 1 year than all of the past documentation effort combined
- Create a polished framework from scratch for Torque3D
- Complete my iPhone Pipboy 3000 project
- Attend GDC 2009

Documentation Rock Stars

Normally, I highlight community members who have been rocking the documentation front. However, this time I have to shine the spot light on employees and associates. I could not have made it through these past 3 engine releases without their help:

- Lara Engebretson: Lara has been developing GarageGames' first video tutorial series. She is currently focusing on TGEA's world editor, by releasing videos that show you how to replicate an Oregon coast. She is the one who inspired me to jump on the video tut train, so I will be releasing my own videos for our other engines. You can find these awesome videos on Vimeo HERE

Videos Made By Lara Engebretson

Videos Made By Lara Engebretson

Kenneth Holst: In a shining example of impromptu team work, Ken and I have been working together quite a bit over the past two months with TorqueX and iTGB. I've been helping him QA the two engines, and he has been providing me with documentation feedback. I see the two of us teaming up quite a bit over the next year.

David Montgomery-Blake: Let's get down to it. David is just awesome. There is no denying his skills as a communicator, moderator, and ambassador. On top of helping me spread the documentation word around our forums, David is an active member in other communities. He isn't a viral marketing guy, he actually owns multiple game engines and advocates them all. His efforts to defend my documentation and spread the good word have been a huge help.

Team X-Treme: Yeah, I'm stealing this from wrestling. If you can post the reference, I'll include you in the betas for my games this year. For this blog, I'm referring to the above two guys. I plan on working closely with Ken and David in 2009 to deliver a an unrivaled community experience. We will be targeting Indies, Pros, and Hobbyist alike, even if you do not own Torque.

John Kanalakis: Master and lead developer of Torque X, John has written a fantastic book: The Complete Guide to Torque X. If you want immediate learning results for TX, pick this book up NOW. John was generous enough to lend me passages from his new book to include in the new Torque X documentation. Having him develop the engine as well is like a double-bladed sword of awesomeness.

Please join me in giving a huge thanks to the above people for there help in getting new documentation to the community!

My Ultimatum

Finally, I've been saying it around the office and I can now say it publicly: Torque3D will launch with the most polished and useful set of docs you will have ever seen for a Torque product.

Before 2009 even gets close to ending, no other game engine will offer the level of documentation that our Torque products will have.

Happy New Year Everyone! You'll be hearing more from me soon!