Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

See, this just goes to show what an elitist, noob-unfriendly bunch we folks at t.m.o. are. ;)

Thanks, "gurus", for your patience. This is how I like to see our community working*.

EDIT for noobmonkey:

* "working" as the opposite of "broken", not the opposite of "playing" :D

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

we're working? - i'm herding backwards-sheep! :) and they're loving it! :)
:D:D

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Thanks for this and it works but why do all sheep want to go to the left of the screen? Is there something attractive?

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Kathy had Hopbeat holding her hand (and lcuk holding her other hand) to scare away the Devel-Monsters. But you're right. Mo and I both survived.

I agree the sheep could be a bit smoother and more responsive. Mine behave more like Texrat's donkeys. I'm honestly not sure how much of that is the engine and how much is user-incompetence though. (Oddly I do actually have experience wih real sheep and they're not much better!)

But it's incredibly wonderful to actually see the concept turn into something real and useable. Don't think I can ever thank you guys enough for that.

The bad news for you is that I have a head full of ideas and no ability to create them: a flash game with a kitten, a whole multi-level thing for lunux users called 'Repository' where you have to go get apps and escap the Devel-monsters...

The patience you people have with a n00b is astonishing.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Sheep 0.0.1-1 should appear in extras-devel soon (remember, extras-devel can kill you).

Short changelog:
-0 level for accelerometer (y-axis) is set upon start of application. Then the spot should follow the rotation correctly.
-Spot speed depends on rotation level.
-The spot is now a repeller.
-The screen shouldn't go blank anymore.
-Tap on the clock to exit.
-Gameplay should be more fun now (may be more challenging though), it encourages using spots created by touching.
-Sheep should be more responsive now, still some work to do.
-Package is optified (can someone check if I've done it correctly?)

Probably this week I will move to Qt 4.6 to check the animation framework. We should have the sheep moving their heads and tails next weekend :)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Ooh! Exciting!

I had an idea of using an icon over the spot so you could tell when it's an attractor or repeller: shepherd's crook for attractor, wolf for repeller... though I believe we had issues with a drawing of a top-down wolf?

Love the idea of them nodding and wagging! :D:D

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

loving the latest update! :)

Exiting on the clock is alot better for me :)
The game moves the right way now, so up is up, down is down.

Not sure what the touching screen/green blobs actually do! But the red one works great for me :)

Finding it very hard to get a sheep away from the edges of the screen, almost needs a "Shake" function to scatter the sheep a bit :) hehe

Well done!

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

been playing all day its fun. I love to see my art used in it. Do you need anything else for it yet?

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@noobmonkey, the green spots are for attracting sheep, just make a bunch of them and the sheep should follow.

@andrewfblack, thanks. I will ask for some more art soon, when I figure out the animations that we can have.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Ok, dumb non-devs question. I have the original build working: if I enable 'extras devel', can I update to the new one? And if I do, can I update just my sheep and not anything else? I'd like to try the nnew build. :)

(I have only ever used testing - though I have devel ready cos General Antilles loaded Xchat for me in Barcelona)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@RevdKathy, yes, you can enable extras-devel, update only sheep and then disable it again. Just remember that using extras-devel can kill you and burn your house.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Oh I know about the Scary Monsters in Extras-devel. I have an idea in my head for a game in which you have to enter into a 'code environment' with Big Scary Bugs which will eat you to get your app: level one, get an app from extras, install it - small bugs come out an nibble at you. Level two, get an app from testing: moderate bugs, with claws. Install your app and give feedback. Level three, get an app from devel - and all the dependencies: dirty great bugs with claws and fangs - if you get bitten you have to reflash... install your app, run it and enter a bug in game-buzilla... My head's a strange place to be sometimes.

However, you will be pleased to hear I have avoided the Big Scary Monsters and updated the game. First look suggests I still can't shift the sheep whether I push them up the bum with a red hotspot, or lead them by the nose with a blue one.. but that's almost certainly user-incompetence. I'll play properly in my lunch hour! Thank you!!! :D

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@RevdKathy, don't be shy to start a new thread about this monster game. It may actually have educational value for the users :)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

I was thinking more about it having amusement value for maemo devs... but I'll start a thread with a full concept this evening if you think it worth it. I have a pretty full idea of the levels, goals, environments etc.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Note that I haven't tried the sheep application.
But I have a small general request for games using the accelerometer: It would be good to have a way of defining 'origo', i.e. where the reference is, in order to easily change between playing the game sitting upright vs. playing when on the couch.

It's because I found that it's not really possible to play bounce evolution while on the couch (the squashing apples part. The race part works fine because it doesn't care (much) about forth/back, only left/right).

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

ta-t3

in onedotzero, in the tilt interaction, i do something slightly different.

when the interaction is opened, i make a note of the accelerometer readings.
those are used as the plectrum and 0 point. all future accelerometer readings are relative to this point.

therefore it works equally well lay flat, tilted or even upside down

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

That sounds good. That's what I've would have done too (it's what I was hoping or assuming bounce evolution would do, but it didn't).

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@TA-t3:

-0 level for accelerometer (y-axis) is set upon start of application. Then the spot should follow the rotation correctly.

Do you also feel it is needed for x-axis (left right)?

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

hopbeat, start of level or game would be more representive i think
its quite feasible to shift positions waiting for the next level to load

and yes, it makes sense to store all 3 axis

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Wow this is such a cool project. And a great example, of how awesome the Maemo community is for taking an idea and starting to implement it.

I can't wait to test this game :-)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Sounds good!

Not really. My accelerometer seems to be off by 8-9 degrees relative to the horisontal, but I don't really notice that while playing e.g. bounce evolution.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Anyone care to gather some sounds together? I have basic baaah (or whatever the English sheep do) when they are penned. It would be nice to have some various quiet baahs that could play randomly in the background. mp3 preferred (any others formats I will simply convert).

Thanks.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Current version moves the accelerometer blob more accurately now, but it doesn't seem to do much, if anything at all. The sheep all used to turn and follow the accel. blob, but now they ignore it. The temporary touch-blobs are really the only effective way for penning the sheep at the moment for me.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Someone said upthread that there's a website the supplies open source sounds. Or it may have been in the design thread. I'll see if I can find it. Baas would be good!

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@qole, now the blob scares the sheep away and the power is reduced, so you need to get close to the sheep to influence it. It is more effective with touches, for me it is necessary to use both. I think it works fine, but give me feedback if it needs to be adjusted :)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Texrat suggested the sheep here: http://www.freesound.org/searchText.php

I'm not sure about the license: people who understand these legal things better than I might want to cast an eye. Great collection of baas, though. :)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

hopbeat, the accelerometer blob works OK when far away, but when on top of a sheep, or when the sheep is against a side or corner, the blob is not effective (the sheep seems to back into the blob, instead of run away). The sheep should move very quickly away from the blob when it is very close to them, as if it were a loud dog nipping at their heels. :)

Other odd behaviours: The sheep tend to drift to the corners, the "penned" position seems to be too specific, and the sheep can move through the fences. I've had several sheep in the pens that are never registered as penned and then they somehow escape through one of the fences...

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

The game itself runs smooth but sheeps are stuck sometimes when they are to close to the green attractive points and they make a step forward and backwards all the time which is annoying.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Hello Herders,

a little news from our fields.
I have decided that this a good point to move our sheep from poc/prototype to a real application. This means that at the moment I'm rewriting and fixing most of the things. I have moved to Qt 4.6, it has some nice goodies for writing stuff like this (proper collisions detection, yeah!).

When I'm finished, we should have a simple but real game. It may take a while (this is my first Qt 'project', the development you see is my learning curve :) ) but I hope to be there next week. So stay tuned for sweet baahs.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

It would make sense (and probably save a lot of headaches) to prevent the blob from going over sheep. If the user tries to press-place the blob on top of a sheep, just display a big X instead (which of course fades quickly)
Also, perhaps introduce a border around the edges of the play area where the blob can go but sheep can't, to help weed the out of corners

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Hopbeat, when this gets to extras, I will shear those sheep, hand spin the wool and personally knit you a jumper. You are a star!

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Anyone could help me by testing the basic engine? No package, just an archive, I would like to get some feedback on sheep handling, collisions etc.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

hopbeat, wheres the new one then
ill try to get it on tonight, though my heads a bit meh and ive got a stack of paperwork to dig through.

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

@lcuk, great thanks.
The snapshot is here http://www.student.dtu.dk/~s081608/sheep.tgz (all dirty just, untar and run ./sheep_0 )

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Hello,

some news from our fields. The sheep are still alive and doing pretty well. They are happily running in Qt 4.6, with some proper collision detection and snappier control.

All the basic mechanisms are in place. I have asked my artistic friend to do some graphics for us, so hopefully our sheep will get a bit cuter :)

I'm leaving for my skiing holiday soon, I'll be back next week. By this time I should have the graphics ready, I will put them into the game. Then testing in extras-devel, bugs fixing and hopefully the game will be ready for extras-testing.

The next bigger step planned is adding logic of levels and actually making some.
I have added initial mechanism for objects interaction and that's where I would like to see the game to go: you need to put and keep two sheep in certain place to open a pen, go to A to open path to B etc. Sheep logical game if you wish :)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Bumping this so Hopbeat doesn't think we've forgotten about sheep while he's away ski-ing. Do sheep ski?

(Now there's an acceleremoter game too... downhil slalom...)

Are we going with the GNU baas? Or do we need some? Anyone care to pick up a microphone and 'baaa' into it for us? Could make a competition for the most sheepl-like baa!

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

Well, there's http://www.freesound.org.
I'm not sure about the legalese on that site though. I assume this game will be free (as in open-source, not 0$), so it should qualify as non-commercial use. Then again, it is something organized, so some lawyers may well prove there is a touch of commercial.
Is there a lawyer in the house?
(also, i might be able to help a bit with sound editing should it be required; i have no musical sense or anything of the sort, but i can use the software :D)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

he he he

I'm more than willing to make some sheep sounds.
I'm African and I've lived on a farm before he he he
I'll record some homemade sheeps sounds tonight .

P.S I've been practising all week-end in the Shower.(my gf thinks I'm crazy)

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

We look forward to beta-testing your baaas later then! :D

Re: Accelerometer game proposal: sheepdog
 

he he he I may have last a gf after last nights sheep sounds.

How would you like me to share the sounds.
I have a bout 3 10-20sec clips with gaps betweens sounds.
I've lambs, maaaaas, baaaas, and even threw in a cow clip for good measure :-)