I know Tyr, it's so awesome. I like the odd games you can find. And browsing games with friends is also a blast. Even the lame levels are amazing when you're with friends. It's sorta like going into a bad store and watching the expression of your friend's face as he/she bust jokes.

Also Safer


Edit: Actually I think this bundle is Europe onry, heh.

Also if I get the beta code, I'm giving it to Oraphin. Only for UP. Screw ora (jk), I bet UP will love this, and Ora will too XD.

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Took some mobile phone pics...



The body is made of Pink Foam, which floats in mid-air, so it will float there until you pick it up. The weapon is light enough to run with and jump, but being foam it has the tendency to fly into mid-air and out of reach. To counter this I made a weapon spawn switch (simple emitter pops out a weapon when activated).




Here's a close-up of the item from the construction screen. Three main components...

* Projectile: in this case, a golf ball which has been electrified. Make up the projectile first and save it as an item so you can easily call it from the emitter. I tried experimenting with other materials, but the golf ball worked the best for what I wanted. Another thing I tried experimenting with was attached invisible magnetic switches to the projectiles; could be useful for something in the future.

* Emitter: Only function is to shoot out the projectiles. Various things you can fiddle with... I set the fire rate to one projectile per second, linear velocity of ~30, and set to invisible.

* Grip sensor: As soon as the weapon is gripped with R1, it switches on the emitter. Once again, this is set to invisible. Only issue I've had with the grip not working is when you grab the weapon from the wrong end, but I think that's actually because of the emitter (it can't spawn the projectile if you're standing in the way).




The real fun happens when you get get packs in the mix. I set it up so that the weapons and projectiles are all on the same layer, which means any other player holding a weapon can be hit by friendly fire. i.e. mid-air dogfights, trying to shoot each other down with golfballs. (The golfball projectiles were too fast for me to catch on camera)


So yeah, that's my weapon. It's offered as a reward for completing my little weapons demo, so anyone is free to take it and adapt on it. Would love to see it in a proper level.

Ok, story time. Hope this isn't too long. :p

Way back when I was a kid in elementary school, I was a doodler. Still am actually. What I would doodle were these intricate mazes...they had tunnels and spikes all around it, with a start and the finish. I’d write down on the piece of paper how many lives you had, maybe add some 1ups on the page, then I’d give the piece of paper to someone and stand behind them. You had to be precise and draw a line from start to finish...without hitting the spikes or walls.



My friends really liked them...oh how we were easily entertained back then in a private Episcopalian elementary school...and I made hundreds. I even had my own little logo for each of them (seen in the lower right, called MazE).

I had no real idea at the time, but I was essentially making games in concept. And it was a fun little diversion. I was always tinkering with stuff...making Lego contraptions (nothing amazing, just...things, I guess), playing in my sandbox, creating things out of seemingly nothing and having fun. Unlike others though, I never really grew out of that. I still look at Legos and find myself wanting to dig in and build away, but what for? The purpose now isn’t so much to satisfy my needs, but to satisfy my needs that would satisfy others too...maybe like, hey, why ISN’T there a game like this? Someone should make that!

Game Maker 3 was out about the time I was in Junior High, and I was finally able to make games. I was still limited by my art and programming skills, of which I have none, but I was actually creating. No, I couldn’t do everything I wanted to, but I was still able to make games that others would be able to enjoy. I fed off the criticism and comments...I still have a printing of some choice comments way back in 2002 that made me feel good. I don’t think this was a way of feeding my ego; it was a way of confirming that my hours of work weren’t just for my benefit...they would be for others too. And it kept me going.

I’ve dabbled in a few other areas. Journalism was fun, as I wrote a few articles for IGN and was the official UMD reviewer for a few sites. Animation was interesting, as it got me a college scholarship and gave me the drive to make about three eight minute shorts, but I came to realize I was working for months on something that a person might slightly enjoy for a few minutes, then not come back to. I kept coming back to game making.

Oddly enough, I’m not much of a game player. My Xbox gamerscore was laughable, I rarely play online, and much of the games I buy (Half-Life 2 eps, Shadow of the Colossus, God of War PSP and many others) go unfinished. And yet I can’t imagine not making games for a living.

Game making is a culmination of everything I love; making things out of nothing, having other people enjoying it, getting feedback and comments, and maybe even make a few bucks off of it. It’s a long process, but in the end it can be worth it, and I want to make it a career. But it’s far from easy.

LittleBigPlanet makes it easy. I am gobsmacked, awestruck, stupefied, everything you can think of, I’m it. As a game, I was anticipating it but not really hyped all that much. But then I got the beta, and went through a few hours of tutorials. Then I set out to create.

I had some wild ideas a few weeks ago...say, what would happen if I was flying around and had to rescue people from a burning mine? That’d be cool. But even with Game Maker, which cuts down the game making process about 75%, I’d need the art, the engine, the audience, the sounds, and the time. So, it would just be that...an idea.

Unbelievably...no, wait. UNBELIEVABLY, LittleBigPlanet is a door to dreams I never thought I’d be able to conceive. I was able to draw some sketches at work, fire up the PS3 in the evening, put in a good twelve to fourteen hours, and be out not only with a finished product, but the feedback and comments to go along with it. I’m able to watch others play my level, even play with them myself. I can create nearly anything, do anything. I’m no longer tied down by my limitations as an artist or programmer...because LBP has all that ready to go. I’m free.

I don’t think I’m the best LBP creator out there...far from it judging from some of the levels I’ve seen...but I can safely say I’ll be among the most passionate out there once it’s released. I simply shake my head in disbelief that I finally have no limits to my creativity, aside from what little creativity I have currently, heh. This game is the tool I’ve been waiting for, and I didn’t even realize it until a few hours ago after playing these last few days.

I don’t know how review outlets will score LBP, or if it’ll sell thousands, or if it’ll die down by next year, or if everyone will enjoy the title as much as others do. What I do know is that LBP is the most finely crafted piece of game making I’ve ever played, and that this game marks the first time in history where the line of game making and game playing has been completely blurred.

This is the best title I’ve played in my life.

Winners of the Parson's LittleBigPlanet 24-Hour Game Jam, Team Good Sportsmanship took first prize with this custom level reminiscent of one of the PS2's greatest hits.