http://www.coolpowers.com/blog Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:05:22 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Oh, how many times has that predictable pun been used when discussing games and/or computer graphics? Anyway, I've been asked before why I decided to go 3D for FSU.  After all, when the game was conceived it was going to be a 2D beat 'em up in classic arcade style, so ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2009-01-20-2d-or-not-2d/ Another cross-platform release, another clear example of the PS3's graphical weaknesses.  Based on the demo, Mirror's Edge is a pretty awesome game that will hopefully provide an exciting first-person experience without being focused on combat.  It's also filled with lots of straight lines and outdoor lighting, which means it's easy ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-11-10-jagged-edge/ After finally getting it right (instead of the first two efforts, which were basically enhanced edge detectors) I'm unhappy with the speed hit I'm getting to keep SSAO enabled.  We're talking 20fps on the 360, which is obviously not good.  I managed to get it up to a stable 30fps ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-10-26-screen-space-ambient-occlusion-final-curtain/ I've moved to a 32-bit depth buffer packed into R8G8B8A8, and the increased precision looks to have helped.  It's still not perfect, but I'm reasonably happy with it for now anyway. http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-10-22-screen-space-ambient-occlusion-take-2/ As you may know, I'm developing an XNA game.  While originally a 2D game, I've embraced the advantages of 3D* and am currently attempting to do screen-space ambient occlusion (SSAO), a technique first shown off in Crysis. This is my first halfway-successful attempt, but there's quite a way to go before ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-10-21-screen-space-ambient-occlusion-take-1/ So with the addition of the Xbox 360, I now have every one of the current generation of game systems.  I don't know how I'm lucky enough to have these fall into my lap; I certainly couldn't afford the retail price for all of them! Anyway, because I'm in the minority ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-05-17-talkin-bout-my-generation/ Greg Stephens is gonna be pretty pissed off when he reads this. Hope you got your GTAIV from somewhere other than your usual Nottingham branch of GAME, Greg. Why yes, this is a sneaky attempt to get jbury's post to show up in a Google search for Greg Stephens.. http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-04-30-snatcher/ Play more with Konami ID hahahaha. LET ME IN DAMN IT, I WANT MY METAL GEAR ONLINE http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-04-17-irony/ Yeah, so that was a waste of time.  Trying to use MP3 audio, I mean.  It's just not suitable as game music if you want to give people the ability to use their own files.  So I went back to libmikmod, which is fine, especially once I realised you have ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-04-16-no-audio/ I had expected to get the first update to Puzl out by now, but I got a bit more ambitious with the music options.  See, everybody wants to use their own music, but most people don't have mods.  They do, however, have lots of mp3s.  So why not play mp3s? Well, ... http://www.coolpowers.com/blog/2008-04-08-faster-pussycat/