Blog for Alex Stone at GarageGames.com

Introducing the Yack Pack

Alex Stone — 2007-05-24T22:51:54+00:00

Now available in the GG store!

I wanted to update everyone on the status of the new dialogue addon for TGE. I've changed the working title to Yack Pack to avoid confusion with the RPGDialog resource provided by Nelson Gonsalves.

Key Features

* 3-D sound and synchronized animation - NPCs look and sound like they are really talking to you.
* Multi-player enabled - Players can listen in on conversations.
* No new language to learn - All dialogue is written in TorqueScript.
* Multi-actor scripts - Scripts can utilize an unlimited number of actors for interesting conversations among multiple NPCs and the player.
* Multiple perspectives - View the action from a variety vantage points.
* Intuitive interface - Fast forward or activate dialogue branches with ease.
* Server-side actions - The player's dialogue choices can influence the rest of the game. Assign quests, exchange items, or influence the world through dialogue.

Scripting

You don't need to learn a new language to write dialogue for Yack Pack. Dialogue scripts are composed of ScriptObject constructors, similar to a UI or mission file.

    new ScriptObject(Stanley_Sunshine_Hello)
    {
        audioProfile = Stanley_Sunshine_Hello_Audio;
        caption = "<just:center>Greetings traveler.";
        duration = 2.361;
        verbalize = true;
        autoAdvance = true;
        actor = 1;
        postDelay = 1000;
        promptActor = 0;
    };
...

What You'll Get

* Script files - about 600 lines of extensible code
* Example conversations
* Interface art
* TGE integration directions
* Documentation

NOTE: Some of the customizations I made to the engine will also be released seperately as a resource.

Release Date

We have signed the contract with GarageGames and are setting up the product pages. Release Date is TBA.

Eye Candy (New!)

Watch the new trailer: XVid (13 MB) If you use Safari, right-click and choose Download Linked File.

Target identification.

Cinematic viewpoint.

FIrstperson viewpoint.

The main menu.

RPGDialogue Redux

Alex Stone — 2007-03-22T22:53:55+00:00

New eye candy coming soon...

Filament has been working on a number of cool projects recently. We wanted to integrate a number of new features into the TGE that would allow us to build a number of different adventure games without rewriting all the basic logic like dialogue, questing, crafting, etc. Out of this idea was born the concept of a new RPG Starter Kit. In the first step towards that effort, I have been working on a complete rewrite of RPGDialogue.

If you are interested in this project, please post your ideas and comments.

Current Features

* Audio support -- Player and NPC say their dialogue out loud (requires the audio to be pre-recorded).
* Stop-and-Talk -- When you initiate dialoge, the NPC will stop what they are doing and turn to face you.
* Cinematic mode -- Level designer can place a static camera that will be switched to when dialogue is activated.
* Server-side actions -- Dialogue triggers server-side script. This allows for branching, quest activation, and more.
* Text pre-processing -- Inline TorqueScript will be parsed to insert npc names and other properties dynamically into the written dialog.
* Target identification -- When the player's crosshair is on an NPC, the name will display on the HUD and the crosshair changes to a talk icon.
* Keyboard and/or mouse navigation

Planned Features

* Facial expressions
* Gestures
* Mouth animation
* Multiplayer-safe
* NPC-to-NPC conversations

Wishlist
* Expression editor ala HL2

How Much Will it Cost?
At this point, my plan is to release some parts of this project as a free GG resource like the new context-sensitive crosshair code (a bit more extensible than the AdvancedCrossHair resource). However, this project is big enough where I think it makes sense to charge a nominal fee for the full package to recoup costs and provide support. This way I can afford to develop thorough documentation to help developers use and extend the product.

Eye Candy