So apparantly I had forgotten about the nasty message the last file version of The Sandwich Shop Ninja gives when it detects that it's not on the right server, and it had been giving that message ever since I merged the TSSN website with the main BoogaTech website. It should be playing correctly now.

Bridges of the Mertynn has been coming along gradually in the free time I've had alongside school. The List has been updating as I progress, and I'm getting closer to getting the game engine finished so that I can start getting levels and tile sets done.

I'll probably take a break from working on Bridges in November so that I can get something out for the International Day of the Ninja on December 5th.

This is a sort of progress list of things that need to be done before I can work on releasing "Bridges of the Mertynn." The items will be color-coded as to their completion, and this list will be updated regularly.

Programming:

• Menu screen
• Game engine
• "Challenge Mode"
• Level encoder/decoder
• Level editor
• Level editor main menu functions
• User-made-level browser (9/18)
• Doors, levers, linkage system
• Tiles, basic and puzzle: 1 - 61 (10/21)
• Other puzzle tiles: 62 & 63 (10/3)
• Other puzzle tiles: 64 (10/3)
• High score/level submission scripts

Tile Sets:

• Tile set 1: tiles - sides - backgrounds (8/15)
• Tile set 2: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 3: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 4: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 5: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 6: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 7: tiles - sides - backgrounds
• Tile set 8: tiles - sides - backgrounds

Player:

• Walk cycle animations (8/15)
• Death animation
• Turning animations
• Misc animations

Other Graphics:

• Menu GUI
• Menu background (10/5)
• Level editor GUI (10/10)
• Game GUI

Levels:

• Tutorial levels
• Chapter 1 levels
• Chapter 1 cutscenes
• Chapter 2 levels
• Chapter 2 cutscenes
• Chapter 3 levels
• Chapter 3 cutscenes
• Chapter 4 levels
• Chapter 4 cutscenes

Music:

• Menu
• Track 1 ?
• Track 2
• Track 3
• Track 4
• Track 5
• Sound effects

Server Side:

• Database updates
• User groups
• User permissions
• Various category updates
• Level decoder
• Level preview image generator
• Level/score validator
• Level database website
• CMExpress installation script (9/25)
• CMExpress template system rewrite (9/28)

Legend:
Started
In progress
Mostly done
Finished

I wanted to show this video a week and a half ago, but a few things came up, such as moving to a new apartment for school, working on other small projects that needed to be done, and dealing with video codec issues.

Concept art for "Bridges of the Mertynn"

Watercolor on resume paper.

I've been quiet since returning from Comic Con late July, but that doesn't mean I haven't been doing anything. The last two weeks were spent working over the database and admin panel for the backend systems of this website. I managed to cut out over 1200 lines of old, redundant code. I also made it so that some pages will display any tags a content item has if I want them to (see bottom right of this post).

Also dependent on the updates to the site is "Bridges of the Mertynn." CMExpress, the system that keeps this site running, will be used to develop the website and database that will store the user-made levels and high scores. There's still a lot of work to be done, but for your benefit and my own, I am working on a list of things to be done and will be posting that shortly.

Still making progress on my game project. The graphics are turning out nicely, though what you see is scaled down to about 75% so that it will fit in this little box thing. Drawing all those trees and grass is surprisingly time-consuming, though. It's definitely easier to draw them from a side-on perspective rather than a top-down.

Next week is the San Diego Comic-Con. This will be the second time I've gone. I leave early Thursday morning for an 11-hour drive, check in to the hotel, and hopefully get on the tram going towards the convention center and not the one that's going to the Mexico border.

Last month's search engine queries were unfortunately more of the same, for the most part. Just lost people looking for sandwitches, sandwishes, and a "ninjasandwich" stood out from the countless people on the search for sub shop designs.

So I guess someone came here looking for "the sandwich shop Utah" for some reason. I don't know how someone could employ an entire state to work in a sandwich shop, but whatever.

Progress on the game has gotten a bit slow as I try to get some of the graphics done and try to figure out a style that works. I tried to fake perspective on the cliff edges and pillars, but it doesn't look very good, and to make it look good would take a few months of drawing every pillar and edge at multiple angles.

Recently I've been working on a new game on my own. In heart, it's a remake of OSGWTTFWYSOTTM with more puzzle-type elements, a story mode, and a level editor that will allow people to upload their personalized levels to an online database for people to browse and play. I've been calling it "Terrestrial-Based Game With Tiles That Fall When You Step On Them Too Much" since it will be based on land instead of outer space, but that's just the working title and will change when I think of something better.

Once I get everything finished and working, the next thing will be to figure out how Flash game licensing deals and MochiAds work so that I can sell out make money and keep doing this stuff at the same time.