Volume 3, Issue 1 - September 14th, 2008
irc.windfyre.net #zfgc
This week's banner courtesy of Mamoruanime and icon courtesy of Zidane
Hello members, and welcome to another issue of ZFGC Weekly! Here's what's in this week's issue:
1. Community Announcements (Ctrl+F CA2)
2. Best of the Forum (Ctrl+F BF2)
3. Weekly Awards (Ctrl+F WA2)
4. The Big Question (Ctrl+F BQ2)
5. Featured Project:
Animal Crossing Neighbourhood and an interview with its creator, Knighty. (Ctrl+F FP2)
Community Announcements (CA2)Dantz Steps Down to Pursue an Upbeat Life.http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30996.0Sweet can i be an admin?
I'm joking don't worry.
Sorry to see you step down man. You were a fine admin. At least you are doing it for reasons to better your life. Good luck in school bud.
The Ambiguity of Scappersa's Identity Increases.http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30999.0This topic is shocking.
Please let me sit down before you say something like that.
Infini Proclaims his Manhood through Vulgar Words and Action.http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31025.0Just me being a DICK I'm afraid. I'm tired of looking through the staff lists and seeing members who haven't posted for weeks at a time, or through the mod logs and seeing that nothing has been done in days. I felt rather than pruning moderators its easier to just clear all the access lists and start from scratch so to speak.
The Age of Darkness Ends, yet ZFGC Gets Darker (AoDC/Direct Leaves).http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31029.0Sorry kiddos, but I don't have time for ZFGC anymore. College is sucking me hardcore. The only reason I had been (barely) coming to ZFGC was because I was a mod and it felt my duty. Well I've been demodded so see you in hell ZFGC.
- Aaron out.
Illegally Immigrating Back into Our Hearts and Minds, Aliento Returns!http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31030.0So yeah guys! I'm back! At least for a while.
Hmmm....things seem...less lively than last time I was here :/ OH well. Still, nice seeing all the familiar (and also often rather handsome) faces from way back!
The Best of the Forum (BF2)Here are some of the best quotes of the past week or the most relevant topics of the moment:
Spore is NOT for everyone.http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30995.0Someone should make a Jesus creature.
Crowbar anyone?http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30993.0OMG SO THIS WAS THEIR PLAN FOR HALF LIFE 2 : EPISODE 3! THEY'VE MADE IT REAL LIFE!!!
Have gamers given up on the Wii yet?http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31036.0I got sick of the Wii a looong time ago.
Drinks are on Pyru.http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31034.0After drinking my way through a reasonable portion of Jose Cuervo Especial tequila and Sailor Jerry rum this evening, the question occurs to me:
What are ZFGC's favourite alcoholic beverages?
You can list cocktails or mixers if you like as well, but I'd like an ordinary liquor/liquer/ale/whatever listed from everyone.
For me? I'm particularly fond of the afore mentioned Sailor Jerry's, but I also have a soft spot for Southern Comfort and Disarrono Originale (amaretto, basically), which leads to my current favourite cocktail: Amaretto SoCo Lime. Basically, Amaretto... Southern Comfort... and a squeeze of lime, on the rocks.
Marvel... Apes?http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30979.0hopefully next they make marvel pirates.
Got a topic you think should be featured? PM 4Sword or Zidane!
Weekly Awards (WA2)A section for handing out awards to screenshots, graphics, projects, and other various things depending on what's happening around the forum.
'Whoa, Something Different!' of the WeekDarunia
http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31003.0Moldrill's Fire truck Preview:
Fountain:
Any comments? Suggestions?
Completed Project of the Week - When Friends Attack!Kylink
http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=30997.0This is a game I've worked on yesterday, and today...so it hasn't been very long. Basically, you shoot my friends, who have their heads put on stick figures. You go through rounds trying not to die. You can left click to shoot and right click to drop a bomb. Shoot me (the red one) to get extra health.
Honestly, this is the first game I've ever truly created. I think it's because I spend years honing the graphics, music, etc. but the task of actually completing it eludes me. Hopefully you aren't turned off by bad graphics and bugs.
Yeah, by the way, characters get stuck in walls, deal with it. I might make another game with better programming one day, but probably not.
DOWNLOAD:
When Friends Attack
WTF of the Week4sword
http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31035.0http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/09/invertebrate-as.html
Meh, I thought it looked like a wang. Anyway, beyond that bout of my stupidity in thinking that everything looks like a wang, the creature is actually pretty remarkable. It existed in a vacuum with radiation pelting it, and it survived it.
Discuss.
Got a recommendation for a Weekly Award? PM 4Sword or Zidane!
The Big Question (BQ2)In this section, we'll ask a relevant or interesting question to the community each week, which everyone can discuss, comment on, and generally go gaga over.
This week's question:
What would you like to see the next forum theme be based around?Join the discussion at
http://www.zfgc.com/forum/index.php?topic=31058.0Got an idea for a Big Question? PM 4Sword or Zidane!
Featured Project (FP2)This week 4Sword stepped outside and to his shock and shigrin found himself amongst anthromoripic animal creatures. To his relief though, he was not at a furry convention, but talking with Knighty about his ongoing project, Animal Crossing Neighborhood.
What is it about Animal Crossing though that inspired you to make a fangame about it?Well, Animal Crossing is just a relaxing and carefree game. I used to play Animal Crossing on Gamecube with my brother and sister, and it was great. But then they moved away, and it wasn't nearly as fun to play alone. Even though Animal Crossing is really a one-player game, it just seems like it's meant to be played with other people. I just thought it would be really awesome to have an online AC game where you don't have to mess with friend codes or stuff like that.
Plus, there aren't any other AC fangames that I know of, so thought it's about time one gets made.
Wow, your project appears to be in 3D, how did you accomplish this in Game Maker?It's not too complicated, if you just read a few tutorials you could learn it if you tried. It did take awhile before I actually got the 3D stuff working right, though. Also, I'm a lot better at creating 3D models than I am at spriting.
The stylings are really close to the original, how is it that you are so attentive to detailI don't know, I just am, >_>. If I'm trying to recreate the look of another game, and mine doesn't look exactly like the original, it bugs the heck out of me. I may redo something over and over again until I think it's good enough. Like the model for the male player that you can see in the screenshots, I have remade that multiple times, and I may redo it again because it still doesn't look perfect enough.
It may look okay in the screenshots, but if you zoom and look at it at certain angles it looks a bit strange to me.
The official games have extra places to go like an island and a city, do you have anything special like that planned?Yes, there will be a few places like that. One idea I've had is a Cafe, similar to the one in Wild World but much larger; A place outside the towns where everyone can go to just relax and chat. Also a place similar to the house on Animal Island, where everyone shares a house and can alter the furniture. Although if I did that, I would be easy for some random person to run in, steal all the furniture and mess up the whole house >_>
What about tree fruits, anything new with them?I might add a few new fruits. Maybe a banana?
Would it be a little wacky to suggest that there should be one lone tree with the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil?Yeah, that's a little wacky. But there may be some weird things like that which are related to some quests.
The official games also have some Nintendo classics embedded in them. Since this is a fangame, will you possibly include some of your earlier works to play inside your project?Nah, I don't have any plans for that right now.
Although I am planning to put in some in-game minigames, such as Soccer or Racing, where you run around a track with a shovel and try to mess up the other players by digging holes or
burying pitfalls.
You have said once that you just have a dial-up connection. Does this mean that your project will work for users who have dial-up as well?I don't know. The only tests I've done so far are with the server and client on a single computer. Even so, it's not like this is an action game, so even if it is a little laggy on slow connections it shouldn't really affect the gameplay too much.
Because your game includes many features, have you thought about integrating it with the ZFGC-API to garner interest for it on the forum?Yes, although I haven't really thought up any goods things I could use it for, though. I'll think of something.
Is there anything more that the community here could do for you to help you out with this project?There's nothing I can think of right now, but later on I'll probably need some help.
Thanks and nice talking to you, Knighty, but before we wrap this up, is there anything else that you want to say to the community?I hope everyone will continue to watch this game and play it when it's complete!
Know a project you think should be featured? PM 4Sword or Zidane!Authors of this week's issue: 4Sword, Zidane