User blog:C3PO the Dragon Slayer/Avian Hunt: October 15, 2007

October 15, 2007
I'm nearly finished with the basic engine. Having already programmed the basic drawing functions for the base, (showing different menus on what to do when something is clicked, etc), and I have been porting the programming to the shipyard object. The shipyard now successfully creates any type of ship (that isn't produced in a base). This week, I will be adding the finishing touches to both the base and the shipyard, and how they respond to being reinforced when squadrons are built. By Friday (October 19), I hope to be starting the actual programming of the squadron itself. Until the end of October, I will be finally finishing the basic units and buildings for the 1337 N00B5 on single-player mode.

I have a dilemma for November, though. I was originally planning to add the enemy units and objects to the game and work on adding terrains and weather, but a thought occurred to me. Currently, I have nearly 80 playable and non-playable ships that I need to put in the 3D portion of the game. This doesn't include scenery and obstacles, which are much easier, though still time-consuming, to produce. If I created 1 ship a day (a strained, but plausible, schedule), I'd only have a third of what I need in a single month. This doesn't even include programming movement, intelligence, response to controls, or the camera!

So I thought maybe I'd take a break from writing the hard-to-make strategy engine and start premature work on the 3D engine to get a head start and develop Game Maker Language skills in other areas. This idea comes with a really big plus: I'd be able to have a fully-functional demo of the 3D flight engine by some time in December. However, this also means that I'd have to put off work on the strategy game and it may be a bit slower to connect the strategy game and the 3D game.

In my indecision, I thought I'd ask the community of Star Wars Fanon: How should I use the time I have in November?

What should my priority be in development for Avian Hunt in November? Producing models for the ships, to get precious time in the winter and summer months devoted to more important things Developing the 3D flight engine, to give the public a chance to see what the 3D game will look like sooner Finishing up the strategy engine, to get that over with and tackle the 3D project all at once