A New Toy

Welcome, Welcome to my not so humble abode. There is surely but one reason you have come to see me. You have heard about my new toy. I am right? Then come, let me show you this marvelous creation of geek-kind. Behold Game Maker!

I finally got this downloaded on tuesday, didn't have a chance to play with it till today (still haven't really messed around with it). Yes, this is my fabulous new toy. It has difficult to restrain my excitement and actually get some schoolwork done. But everyone needs a break, right? So in my "downtime" I checked out a few videos about GameMaker. The one featured below talks about how to program a pacman game. I've already covered how to make sprites, and objects and whatnot, but I know that barely scratches the surface. So I thought, PacMan, simple enough. Well I was not right (the All Powerful ect.. Jack D. is never wrong, just occasionally not right). Obviously there is a lot more in even a simple game than you would expect. Yet it seems that these are still basic functions, ones I'm going to use over and over again as I work with this tool. As soon as I get a real chance to play with GameMaker you can bet I'll be right back watching this tutorial. So, if you too are looking to learn some basic aspects of GameMaker, or just in the mood to watch a random tutorial, enjoy:

Seems I still have a long way to go before I subdue the Nerds from their Parents Basements and take over the world.
Until then,

Jack D.

The Epic History of Jack D.

   This is the much better Gaming History of Me. 

   I most definitely fall into the category of casual gamer, if even that.  While my brother, father, and even mother, are rather into gaming of different sorts, I generally prefer hobbies and activities that don't involve looking at a screen.  That being said, I have and still do play the occasional video game. 

   Looking back most of my gaming experience (and, in consequence, my favorite games) has been on the PC.  I remember playing EverQuest sitting in my mother's lap and to this day have an illogical preference for it over other mmorpgs.  Actually I think my preference is due to its more classic fantasy aesthetic. 

   Around the age of seven my family bought a PS2, like any little girl (who so happens to play video games) the first game I played on it was the PowerPuff Girls:Chemical X-traction game.  That is when I discovered that I was not very good at video combat.  My console experience continued into Barbie:Explore and some obscure game where you had to build dams, none of which I had any skill in.  Meanwhile on the PC, I was introduced to the Oregon Trail, Veggie Tales: Mystery Island, and strategy games such as Mother of All Battles and Minesweep.

Mother of All Battles

   As a PC gamer I don't have the joy of reminicing over different consoles and controls, though I did use my brothers Gameboy until I eventually recieved my own Gameboy Advanced which in turn was upgraded to Nintendo DS.  Personal preference is in favor the Gameboy Advanced due to the fact that I can play it with one hand whereas the wider layout of the DS requires two hands.

While I didn't anticpate the newest console coming out, I did have the joy of picking from a far deeper array of genres and games than any (single) console can boast.  I've played games as simple (and casual) as Don't Shoot the Puppy, as classic as NetHack (and no, not the "3D" Version), and as Intense as...well I really don't play intense games. 

Im the type of person who enjoy's a wide variety of games (I have been tempted to try both Half-life and Portal just round out my meager repitour).  Trying to decide what kinds of people like the same sorts of games as I do is difficult.  Definitely not hard-core gamers, I don't have the patience to master or even surive the sorts of games they play. 

 

  I think there are two types of people who play the same sorts of games I do: those who fall along the lines of fantasy geeks and those with a programmers mindset.  I say fantasy geeks because I myself have a deep affection for the genre which shows in my mmorpg choices as well as my enjoyment of NetHack and text based rpgs.  On the other hand, my dad is a programmer and I was raised with that mindset.  I enjoy problem solving and strategy games such a Sim City 2000 and Escape the Room games. 

 

  While I may not be an intense gamer with a long and deep history of conquered games, I do have a well rounded experience and indeed enjoy casually gaming my free time away.

 

Until Further Plans to Conquer the World are Agreed Upon,Jacqueline 

Hello World

In true programmer's style I'll start with a simple Hello World, or in other words, a short, sweet introduction.

As my true name is unutterable in the mortal tongue, you may refer to me as the All Powerful, Legend...(wait for it), Champion of Everything, Omniscient, ...Dary, Jack D. (if that is too much for your mere mortal mind to manage you may call me simply Jacqueline).  I have come, in my All Powerful wisdom, to seek out and conquer the far reaching lands of Video Games and Programming Magic.  From there I shall bring together all the Nerds from their Parents Basements and form them into an unbeatable army of programming sorcerers!  (For little did you know that in this age of Technology it is the very geeks you once scorned, the Nerds from their Parents Basements, who secretly run the world using their ninja programming skills).  These Programming Ninjas will do my bidding, hailing me as the Indisputable, All Powerful, Legend...(wait for it), Champion of Everything, Omniscient, ...Dary, Jack D. allowing me to easily take over the world and subdue all man-kind! Muhahahaha!

Of course you didn't hear any of that, did you?

So to sum up, I, Jacqueline, (in my All Powerful wisdom) am taking a video game design course and will be posting all sorts of awesome stuff over the next three odd months.  I would advise you stay tuned.

Until Further Plans to Conquer the World are Agreed Upon,
Jacqueline