[#PROTOSHI] Prototyping competition - 8 March 2020

Pierre

#PROTOSHI is a set of 4 game jams, that will push you to create games with fresh ideas and mechanics.
Each week is a new theme with a new Game Camera type.
Also, there will be cash prizes awarded to the winning entries.

The jams will start at 9:00 pm on Sunday the 8th.

With a little more than 1 week to go, Please let us know in the comments below if you are keen on participating.
If there are enough takers, then we will go ahead.

Pierre

I haven't seen much interest in this event.
This might have been due to the GIANT monolith of text we had up. (Sorry about that)
If you guys are keen to participate in the above then please give a shoutout below. :)

iamdavidnight

I'm keen Pierre.

I'm guessing we can work on these game at home, correct?

Tuism

DavidKnightRedDawn said:

I'm keen Pierre.

I'm guessing we can work on these game at home, correct?

Yeah, this isn't an on-location event/jam.

Pierre

DavidKnightRedDawn said:

I'm keen Pierre.

I'm guessing we can work on these game at home, correct?

Yep. We don't have a dedicated space. Of course people are welcome to meet up amd jam together via their own arrangments.

Pierre

Hi all. We need more participants!
Please let us know in the comments if you are up to this fun challenge.

Remember that you don't need to commit to all 4 weeks.
This is about a personal challenge to yourself, to make something bigger than a jam game, and to try out new ideas. Spread your horizons. Broaden your wings. :P

krazysh01

I'm definitely willing and interested in participating

Pierre

krazysh01 said:

I'm definitely willing and interested in participating

AWESOME! If you have any game dev friends then rope them in and let us know!

VMASTER

I am definitely interested! This will be a nice change of pace from the weekend jams and it also gives me something to keep myself busy for the rest of the month.

Pierre

VMASTER said:

I am definitely interested! This will be a nice change of pace from the weekend jams and it also gives me something to keep myself busy for the rest of the month.

Wonderful! "Change of pace" that's what I like to hear. Jams are cool, but this will give you more time to make something with more meat and completeness.

Who else wants to join us? We need more. Moooaaaarr! :D

KleinM

I'm keen on doing this

iamdavidnight

Can my friend in France compete as well? He's South African but is currently that side for now.

Pierre

iamdavidnight said:

Can my friend in France compete as well? He's South African but is currently that side for now.

He is welcome to take part in the challenge regardless.
But
to be eligible for the prize money, he will either need an SA passport, or he needs to reside in SA.

Pierre

The itch.io jam page is up
https://itch.io/jam/protoshi
You can join the jam there if you like.
However we still require at least 5 more participants before the prize money becomes available.
Otherwise it will just be an informal 4 session jam.
If you want to join in then let us know before the end of the week.

Tuism

This got onto GIA (Game Industry Africa): https://gamesindustryafrica.com/2020/03/04/protoshi-prototyping-competition/

:)

TheCorinthian

I'd love to take part. Sounds like a blast.
Not in SA anymore, but still have the green mamba :) Looking forward to it.

Pierre

TheCorinthian said:

I'd love to take part. Sounds like a blast.
Not in SA anymore, but still have the green mamba :) Looking forward to it.

That's great. Welcome aboard the most productive month of the year!

Pierre

#PROTOSHI starts on Sunday night and I am super excited!

A whole month of fast and furious prototypes! I can't wait to get started.

If you are like me, then you also hate THAT nagging feeling.
You want to create and build and innovate, but life holds you back and stops you from doing what you love.
PROTOSHI wants you to escape that mental prison; To kick open the door and step into fresh open skies of unlimited ideas. All it takes, is a single post on this thread.

6 of us have already answered this challenge!

Don't miss out on a single day.
Let us know that you stand beside us on Monday morning!
Don't be scurred. Be bold.

You already know you can do it! Just do it!

Isyx01

Can count me in as well.

Pierre

You may use one or both of the Themes above.
Submissions are due by 15 March 9:00 pm.

SUBMISSONS
First upload your game on https://itch.io/
Then Create a new Discussion at makegamessa.com
Use the following subject line...
[#PROTOSHI] 1 ADVANCED NameOfYourGame
or
[#PROTOSHI] 1 BEGINNER NameOfYourGame

CHOOSING A CATEGORY
Choose either ADVANCED or BEGINNER.*
If you decide later to submit another game as Advanced, then all of your previous submissions will be considered ADVANCED as well.

* Provided we get enough submissions, "Advanced" entries are eligible for a R4,000.00 prize.
and
Provided we get enough submissions, "Beginner" entries are eligible for a R2,000.00 prize.
This separation is intended to give young developers a fair chance at winning against peers.

Cyberwiz

After some consideration I'm definitely in! I don't think I'll be able to do all 4 weeks, but I'm going to give my best stab at each one.

Elyaradine

I doubt I'll be able to participate every week, but I think I'll have something this week. :)

TheCorinthian

Pierre said:

I am also making my own non-compete submissions, and with Eskom, and dayjobs, 90% of my effort falls on Saturdays so the scope of my prototypes are quite small to match my time.

Dayjob, toddler, 5 month old and trying to manage a team from home now that Ireland is in lockdown leaves me with only Saturdays as well. As long we get something done that's a win right? :)

krazysh01

Just uploaded my entry.
Still working on updating it but the base is complete:
http://makegamessa.com/discussion/5901/protoshi-1-advanced-5-second-survivor

krazysh01

Spent some time on polish and balance, even managed to add a basic soundtrack and sound effects (yay hoarding humble bundle Game Dev bundles xD )
I just uploaded what is likely going to be my final build.
I really enjoyed making this concept though so I think I might flesh it out in future into something more fully fledged.

iamdavidnight

Uploaded my entry - Brave Bomb

https://makegamessa.com/discussion/5903/protoshi-1-advanced-brave-bomb

Cyberwiz

Well it seems that lessons had been learned. I think I pushed submitting way too late. Struggling to upload a build at the moment. Not too sad about it, it's currently just a toy demonstrating a game mechanic. I had tonnes of fun though. 3D meth seems to be much less daunting than I used to think. I've also fallen in love with ProBuilder as a whiteboxing tool.

Pierre

Submissions for Week 1 were amazing! Mad respect for the peeps that submitted!
If you didn't make it, then don't stress, because WEEK 2 is officially starting NOW!
Here we go!

You may use one or more of the Themes above.
Submissions are due by 22 March 9:00 pm.

SUBMISSONS
First upload your game on https://itch.io/
Then Create a new Discussion at makegamessa.com
Use the following subject line...
[#PROTOSHI] 2 ADVANCED NameOfYourGame
or
[#PROTOSHI] 2 BEGINNER NameOfYourGame

Pierre

Cyberwiz said:

Well it seems that lessons had been learned. I think I pushed submitting way too late. Struggling to upload a build at the moment. Not too sad about it, it's currently just a toy demonstrating a game mechanic.

Go ahead and upload it anyway. I will mark the time, and since you announced it, I think it should be fine.

Cyberwiz

If I can manage to get a build I'll still upload it and list it. I might've made a mistake using a bunch of bleeding-edge tech from Unity, but I still feel I learned a lot.

Cyberwiz

My very late submission for week one is up.
makegamessa.com/discussion/5906/protoshi-1beginner-stupid-bullet-time

Pierre

So Brackeys posted this video less than 1 hour ago and I am stumped by the coincidence.
A nifty service to bring the real world into unity... It is very much on the nose considering the theme for week 2
https://youtube.com/watch?v=mZcLKcyHWDs

I'm not sure how feasible it is, but it sure looks interesting.
I couldn't resist sharing it with you peeps here.
Regarding how close it ties in with one of the themes. That is honestly coincidence.
The themes were decided over a week ago and this Brackeys video only released after we revealed.
lol.
Enjoy.

Fengol

I'm hoping to participate in Week 2!

Pierre

Fengol said:

I'm hoping to participate in Week 2!

For me. The part that is most challenging is starting. Once I get past that hurdle, it is easier to build momentum.

krazysh01

Pierre said:

A nifty service to bring the real world into unity... It is very much on the nose considering the theme for week 2
https://youtube.com/watch?v=mZcLKcyHWDs

so much for my plan to make a simple sidescroller with pico8... 2.5D here I come xD

Pierre

krazysh01 said:

so much for my plan to make a simple sidescroller with pico8... 2.5D here I come xD

Lol. 3d scanning is just one approach to "real world" it can also mean many other things, such as using photos, voice, eye tracking, email content, social media posts, meta rules. Ar.
The list is endless.
Also... "real world" is an optional theme and you can leave it out entirely if you like. The themes are there to spark ideas, not to force you into having one. :)

That said. If you are feeling inspired for 2.5d then go for it!

TheWrittenMephisto

Joining in on week 2. Just focusing on character controller at the moment since no real idea has popped out yet.

Pierre

TheWrittenMephisto said:

Joining in on week 2. Just focusing on character controller at the moment since no real idea has popped out yet.

Getting a base game up and running first, is probably more important than anything. Glad you are on board for week 2. Shout out to the rest of us if you are having trouble thinking of an idea... sometimes it helps to bounce things off of other people.

TheWrittenMephisto

Would a "stationary" side view camera still count? I mean stationary as in the game rakes place in a single room and the camera only rotates slightly to follow the player from one of the walls

Pierre

TheWrittenMephisto said:

Would a "stationary" side view camera still count? I mean stationary as in the game rakes place in a single room and the camera only rotates slightly to follow the player from one of the walls

Yes. It counts. Anything that can conventionally be considered a view from the side. It doesn't HAVE to scroll and it doesn't have to be EXACTLY flat either. In many ways, a "side view" camera is the same as top down.

Pierre

EASY SIDE VIEW CAMERA WITH FANCY FEATURES.

If anybody is interested or unfamiliar...
UNITY Cinemachine offers a great method of applying a side view camera with all kinds of modern fancy features.
Check out this video for more info.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=2jTY11Am0Ig

Don't break your head trying to make a camera if Cinemachine has already accomplished the camera you need...

Fengol

I'm sorry, with work & school quarantines my week didn't go as I expected and I got next to no game development done. I'll have to try again next week

Pierre

Fengol said:

I'm sorry, with work & school quarantines my week didn't go as I expected and I got next to no game development done. I'll have to try again next week

No worries. The Rona panic has disrupted a lot of our daily life. And this must have increased the burden of life management for many, especially those with family.
I hope #PROTOSHI gives people a creative outlet to distract them from it all.

TheWrittenMephisto

Pierre said:

EASY SIDE VIEW CAMERA WITH FANCY FEATURES.

If anybody is interested or unfamiliar...
UNITY Cinemachine offers a great method of applying a side view camera with all kinds of modern fancy features.
Check out this video for more info.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=2jTY11Am0Ig

Don't break your head trying to make a camera if Cinemachine has already accomplished the camera you need...

I thank you kind sir

TheWrittenMephisto

I made a game but I can say with all honesty that it is garbage. Was good exercise since I haven't built a game in over a year, so hoping my next attempt will actually be something I won't be embarrassed to death by.

Cyberwiz

Sadly no entry for me this week. For some reason, the motivation to build was just not there (most likely because of this week's struggles with Xcode at work).

krazysh01

I couldn't manage to pull anything together this week, everything just played against me the most I have is a little robot that can ride left and right on the screen

Pierre

WEEK 3's THEME!

You may use one or both of the Themes above.
Submissions are due by 29 March 9:00 pm.

SUBMISSONS
First upload your game on https://itch.io/
Then Create a new Discussion at makegamessa.com
Use the following subject line...
[#PROTOSHI] 3 ADVANCED NameOfYourGame
or
[#PROTOSHI] 3 BEGINNER NameOfYourGame

Notes from the host:
Week 2 was a bit quiet. Admittedly these are trying times, but if you want to turn your 'RONA downtime into something productive, then jump in and join us!

Pierre

I'm thinking of trying a Multiplayer game.
I've only tried this once before using Unet and it was... it was pretty crap.
So I'm going to try MULTIPLAYER again using PHOTON this time.

If you are also keen on this then try the following link.
https://raywenderlich.com/1142814-introduction-to-multiplayer-games-with-unity-and-photon

This tutorial assumes that you are familiar with unity.
The tutorial takes about 1 to 2 hours to complete and tells you everything you need to get started.
Here's hoping the lag from South Africa won't be too bad.

krazysh01

I think I'm going to try learning how to make a player ghost (in a racing game where you can race against your best time) If I've got some extra time I might try implementing multi-player as well, I got some cool snowboarding assets today with my credit from the latest humble bundle so this is going to be heavily inspired by SSX from my childhood

Cyberwiz

krazysh01 said:

I think I'm going to try learning how to make a player ghost (in a racing game where you can race against your best time) If I've got some extra time I might try implementing multi-player as well, I got some cool snowboarding assets today with my credit from the latest humble bundle so this is going to be heavily inspired by SSX from my childhood

You could cheat the player ghost by capturing position and rotation data on a regular basis, then just tweening between the values when you replay. If the data size explodes doing a delta-compression will work just as great. Shout if you want to bounce some ideas around.