Oh look, I have a blog!

Oh, whoops...

Howdy! Sorry to, uh, anyone who ever was interested in this! Even though I'm probably apologizing to nobody, I'll still say it; Sorry I haven't been active here, and sorry in advance for when it inevitably happens again!

So, what's going on? Well, not much. I have redone the blog a little to cover both pinball stuff and PTC/SmileBASIC stuff. I changed the url name from "mystman12pinball" to "mystman12games", and I put a new tab up there for Revenge of the Crazy Baby, the only game I finished for PTC. I've also done a little bit more work on Joe's Ultimate Bus Ride, and while it's still coming along nicely (And going through even more big changes), I've pretty much put it on hold for right now, in favor of another project I've code-named, uh...

Project... Project..! Yup, totally didn't come up with that right now! Project Project is a game for SmileBASIC, and I've had the idea in my head for about two years now I think. Which means it's had plenty of time to grow and evolve into a full game idea. Still though, it's all in my head and I need to actually program it.

Right now, all I have is an extremely basic dev tool for the game and the title screen (Filled with scribbly placeholder art!). I also made up that new nifty logo you see up there, which I gotta say I'm pretty happy with! Simple, sleek, blue, letters and numbers kind of mixed together (Which has always been a weird obsession I had whenever I made a logo of my name when I was little).

So, when will I finish it? Totally by the end of the year!

Haha no. While that would be nice, I've made it pretty obvious I can't keep release dates, even lenient ones. I want to finish this, for sure, even more than JUBR, but I can't devote all my time to it, and well, it'll probably be fairly slow going. We'll see what happens though.

And what is Project Project, you ask? Again, I'm not really going to say anything. I want to keep it under raps until I'm absolutely sure I can finish the game. I don't want to announce it and then realize I can't finish it, or announce it so early I end up losing motivation. I've learned my lesson on announcing too early. (And seen countless others fall into the same error. The Petit Computer Wiki is a prime example) I will say though, that it stars Joe Biggle and Aunt Mimi, those lovable characters, from JUBR and my PTC game Infinite Office, that no one has actually gotten to know yet because I never actually finished/released the games they're in!

So yeah, an update after over one year! I probably won't update again super soon, don't think I'll have much to talk about, but if you're interested you can follow me on Twitter or Miiverse and I'll let you know when I make any updates (Although Miiverse is really only focused on SmileBASIC). Thanks!

Status Update #4 - New Multiball!

Hello! Development is slower than usual right now, with school and Smash Bros. 3DS taking up most of my time, but still I have a few new updates on JUBR to share! So, let's get started with...

Biggle's Bagels Multiball

I've added some new playfield component's primarily used for a new multiball mode, called Biggle's Bagels Multiball. Here's a screenshot:

Wireframe kickout and hidden diverter

First off, the bumper area represents Joe Biggle's bagel shop, Biggle's Bagels, which is obviously where the name of the multiball comes from. This multiball mode is lit by hitting the bumpers a set number of times. (Probably something around 50 or 100, at least for the first time per game.) Once lit, shooting a ball into the bumpers will instead cause it to be diverted to a VUK in the upper left of the playfield, underneath the ramp. A new ball will be placed in the plunger lane and multiball will start the moment the ball is launched. The goal of this multiball mode is to shoot one ball towards the bumpers, where it will again get locked, but only for about 10 seconds. While it's locked, you must shoot the second ball into the bumpers, and each time a bumper is hit, it will raise a jackpot multiplier up to 12X. Once the ball leaves the bumper area. the jackpot will be awarded times the multiplier, the locked ball is released, and you simply try to repeat this process as many times as possible before one of the balls drain. The jackpot will be raised from bumper hits.

Other tweaks and improvements

Here is a list of some other changes and additions I've made:

• Greatly improved the pointed lights. Before I had shaped pretty much each one from scratch, but now each one is based off of one light, just rotated and resized accordingly. The ramp-Bus Stop combo value lights have been colored to look like a stoplight.
• I am working on an overhaul of the missions and rounds system. I got rid of the two seperate types of modes, and merged them into one set of five. These modes will be started the same way as missions, by lighting the four white targets. I hope to be able to program these modes in such a way that still allows people to be able to lock balls and other things while a mode is still active.
• Art is still a work in progress, but is a little closer to what it will look like when finished. Obviously the bus art on the bottom of the playfield will be adjusted to fit the lights properly.
• A little bit of programming and a little bit of bug fixin'!

Finally, here are some fresh pics of the game right now:

Close up on the new lights. Note the five lights in front of the bus that represent modes.

Entire playfield as of 10/26/2014

Twitter

From now on, I'd like to try and tweet a little more often and a little more pinball focused, maybe even an occasional screenshot of progress on JUBR, or some other table designs I have lying around on my computer. My twitter isn't ever going to be 100% pinball, but I'll try to make it more focused on pinball stuff and JUBR development.

Status Update #3 - Art!

Hey! I know it's been a while since I last updated here, so I've just gotta say, don't expect regular updates. From now on, I'm only going to update when I feel like I've done enough work on the game. Anyways, let's get on with the updates!

Development Update

First off, I've added some art to the game, some of which is probably final, and some of which is just placeholder art. Here are some updated screenshots!

Playfield (The playfield art is a placeholder)

Jackpot and Combo sign

Skillshot sign

I have decided to try and do the art myself. So far, everything I've done looks fine, but I haven't even tried drawing people yet, so I guess I'll just wait and see. Other updates include:

• Added some road signs (Seen above) to help guide the player and make more room for lights on the playfield.
• I have programmed a system which allows me to easily display text on the real display and the HUD display at the exact same time, without having to just use duplicate commands for each.
• I finally made a good system for the bus stop. A timer checks to see what's lit at the bus stop. It awards the player whatever corresponds with that light, turns it off, and then checks again, until all the lights are off.
• I've added a fully functional attract mode, with a small light show and information (Table name, high scores, credits, last score, etc.) on the display.
• Added a plastic around the ramp to keep balls from falling behind.
• A few more sounds added.
• Minor tweaks and adjustments

Game Rules: Stunts

I haven't programmed this yet, but it's an idea I recently thought of that should make it's way into the final game. Stunts will be a collectible, and you get one each time you knock down the set of drop targets. By reaching certain amounts, you'll earn different awards, like extra balls, relighting the ball savers, collecting states, etc. Just think robots from The Twilight Zone. Besides all that, something needed to add a little bit more "ultimate" to this bus ride!

Status Update #2 - Multiball Video!

I know it's been longer than a month since I last posted, so this time I'm going to do two months worth of content! First off, here's what I've done in the last couple of months:

• Improved bumpers. They were very far apart so I moved them closer together. I also added four spot targets with LEDs to the bumper area. Lighting all four advances a letter in MYSTERY. Before, this was done whenever the ball rolled into a hole in between the green and yellow bumpers. (Which I removed)
• Added lane changing to the JOE lights at the top of the playfield.
• (Probably) Fixed a few bugs. :P
• Moved the the lock trigger onto the wire ramp. This is more realistic than before and also improves the game by making it realize a ball is locked more quickly.
• Created and added multiball music, ball locked ditty, multiball start music, and super jackpot music.
• I tried improving the way to control how kickers work and how long it takes for them to release the ball, but it doesn't work super well. Instead, I'm going to try using a constantly looping timer to act as a ticker. With that I'll be able to have better control over timing of events. (Thanks to the VPForums for help!)
• Adjusted rubber placement and added a plastic cover behind the bus.

That's everything I can think of off the top of my head. Here are some updated pictures of the game:

 Updated Bumpers

Updated Full Playfield

Multiball Video!

Last night I threw together this video that guides you through the game's main multiball video. It shows off the rules, as well as the music and a few of the game's (still WIP) voices. Enjoy!

Joe: My First Future Pinball Game

I just thought it would be kind of fun to show the first Future Pinball game I made. (That I finished, anyways) I made this in early 2012. It has a similar theme, but isn't nearly as good as JUBR.

As you can see, Joe is a very fat person! :P

The rules were extremely simple. Shoot a spot target to light the ramp for a passenger. Shoot the ramp to pick up a passenger. Picking up four passengers lights two locks. Locking two balls and then shooting the ramp starts multiball. There were a few other game features too. It was definitely a good learning experience for me, though. It helped me get started with programming in Future Pinball. Then there's the art. I drew that on paper, scanned it into my computer, and then filled everything with solid colors. I'm no good at drawing though, as you can probably tell. I'm eventually going to look for an artist to do the art in Joe's Ultimate Bus Ride, but if I can't find one, the art in JUBR will look similar to this, just with more effort.

Status Update #1

Hello! Just a status update, with some news on development, a look at some of the games rule set, and I have a twitter account now!

Development Update

In the past month, I haven't gotten a lot of work done. School started up, and I played through a few games, and I haven't been as motivated to work on it. I did get some of the basics for the modes done, but only one is functional, and keep in mind I said functional, so it still needs some polishing. I hope to complete all the modes by the end of this month. Once I'm finished with those, the games basic code will be pretty much complete. By that I mean all the game's features will be programmed, and all that will be left is polishing, and adding display messages, light shows, art, music, and sounds.

Game Rules: Missions and Rounds

Every time I post on the blog, I'll try to post a feature of the game's rule set. This one is about the modes I was speaking of above. There are two types: Missions and Rounds, and there are four of each. Missions are more focused on accomplishing something, and you can actually complete missions, whereas rounds focus more on just hitting things to earn points, there's no way to complete them. There are a couple of exceptions to these rules, but that's due to the way certain modes work. One example of a mission is Passenger Panic. In this mode, you must transfer a certain number of passengers by shooting the ramp over and over to get them in the bus, and then shooting the Bus Stop. (The right scoop) to drop them off. (I'm pretty sure there's a mode similar to this in ST:TNG) An example of a round is Crazy Combos, which is just shooting the ramp over and over again to earn an ever increasing value. Another round, which is one of the exceptions I was talking about, is Risk and Reward. During this round, all targets raise the reward, which is collected by shooting the Bus Stop, however, shooting this once ends the round, so you want to try to raise the reward as much as possible without running out of time. Even though the round ends after shooting the Bus Stop, this is considered a round because it has a focus more on earning points than it does on accomplishing something. Also, after completing a mode, one of two hurry-ups will start, depending on which type of mode you finished.

Twitter

I have a Twitter account now! You can follow me for more updates on development, and be notified whenever I update the blog. Please follow me if you're interested! You can find my Twitter here, and there is also a Twitter feed at the bottom of the blog's widgets on the right.

Welcome to my new blog!

Hey, welcome to my new blog! I decided to make a blog dedicated to my pinball design. Hopefully, in the future, "design" will be able to become "designs", but for now, I will use this blog to talk about the development of Joe's Ultimate Bus Ride. I'm happy to say that I've really started working hard on it the last month or so, and I have gotten a lot of programming done, and shouldn't take me too much longer to finish the basic programming, then I can start working on the sounds and music, the display, and the art. Here is a picture of the table so far:

Joe's Ultimate Bus Ride playfield (All stuffs are subject to change)

The balls still lock in the bus, but now are released when the door on the bus opens up. The upper right flipper is used to fire at the drop targets. One example of this is in multiball. In multiball you have to knock down the drop targets, re-lock two balls in the bus, shoot the Bus Stop (The upper right kicker), and then hit the center drop target for a super jackpot!

Anyways, I will try to post on here on a somewhat regular basis, about once or twice a month. I'm really hoping I can finish this soon, since I've had this in the works since December 2012, and I really want you guys to be able to play it! Hopefully it will be released in 2014, but take that with a grain of salt, and don't get your hopes up (That is, if you even HAD any :P) that it will be released any time soon. In the meantime, you can check out the Games page for more info on Joe's Ultimate Bus Ride.