Updating The Backgrounds

So, today, I felt like doing something about how this blog previously looked like; a tileable forest-green background image, with all these nice partially transparent gadgets. It just looked silly.

I really love partially transparent backgrounds and outlines for gadgets and different parts! It gives a smooth and easy-on-the-eye feeling for the looker. Still, I felt the background was overwhelming. So, I went at it! :-D

I decided to create a nifty fade-in effect, using a regular fixed (does not scroll) sky background, and putting a landscape photo at the bottom. Scroll down! See how they merge! I used a PNG image for the bottom, and to reduce loading times, I also used TinyPNG on it.

Thanks for good work and free service.

While going through the CSS edits, I decided to change some opacity values and colors. For example, I made it so the Header has a darkened background. Also, I gave those floating (backgroundless) texts a "text-shadow" CSS effect for an outline. There are a few more fixes implemented, and generally, I am very satisfied! Visual design is exciting!~

Comment, and tell me how you feel about the new-ish design!

Don't Hate The Troll, Hate The Trolling

"They see me trollin'
   They hatin'
   Patrollin' they trying to catch me writing dirty...
   Trying to catch me writin' dirty...
   Trying to catch me writin' dirty...
      Trying to catch me writin' dirty..."

So, I shall ask again, why have such annoying and rude people as Trolls in a virtual world?

The simple version of the answer is that Trolls are people, too, and whether anyone likes it or not, they compose of a big part of our online population. I will expand about Elves later on, but for now I would like to outline Trolls.

Love boxxy!

You got your annoying and uneducated junior Trolls. All those kiddos out there that do not know better, and intuitively feel that some things virtual are just not as real as reality. They are the most annoying, but least interesting kind of Trolls.

Then, there are the YA Trolls. While having more language abilities and sophistication over the juniors, they are still a menace to most people online. They put the Likes for Troll content and live the Troll way of life without shame. They are the young recruits in the holy war of Internet trolling.

And finally, we have the adult Trolls. Those with language mastery, philosophic education, and even capabilities in the different arts (images, videos.) These are the creators of Troll culture and the engine that holds the flag and then rotates it too fast for anyone to not feel sick about it. Adult Trolls are the actual community. Those who realize the power of collaboration. They are well feared and hated by the haters.

Represent! Trolls.

It is exactly this depth, organization and the hate people hold toward Trolls, that makes it sensible to have a virtual world in which Trolls are the enemy. It is to the benefit of everyone. Why have an NPC with a lack of AI as your enemy, when you could join your allies against the true virtual enemy? Right?

A Generation of Worlds

Open for 10mb 512p large version.

As I continue my journeys in the world of game development and 3D art, I noticed that my wiki, which I use to express my own ideas about game development, should have an actual game attached to it. That is to say, that while writing down technical ideas for games is great, it would also be better presented in the guise of a simple entertaining game world.

The idea came to me intuitively and by muse! Elves Versus Trolls. I have always wanted a game that lets not only all those cutsie gamer people enjoy playing, but a game world that encourages and works with internet trolls. Why? Because, I am one such troll! And I am not ashamed of it.

Internet trolling is an art form. Just like dance and reggae. It does not have to be insulting to anyone to be funny. Trolling can even be helpful, when touchy topics are highlighted, and nobody wants to get dirty, philosophically speaking. I have been active in trolling circles for many years, and I am proud of me and most of my fellows. We bring humor and joy and good company.

So, why have trolls in a game?

I would like to talk about this in my next blog post. In the meanwhile, let me tell you about http://donjon.bin.sh/world/. What an interesting world generator!!! Not only does it have many options to choose from, for your own totally unique world, it also lets you export the result in different ways, so you can have both an animated gif, an image, and a map! How awesome is that? :-)

I also noticed they have other generators in their website. Mostly fantasy gaming related, id est Dungeons & Dragons games. I have not really checked the other generators, so do share if you find anything interesting. Comment below! ;-)

Artology

What happens when an idea without boundaries is made into a framework?

It's Gantz. It's not supposed to make sense.

I am always surprised to find out there are yet more animes and mangas that I adore and have no heard of, before. A horror anime about life and death, as told in the story of Another. An amusing science fiction mecha futuristic alien bash down, as told in Gantz. And I still have more to check out!

Comment below, if you want series recommendations, or if you can share some lesser known animes and mangas. ;-)

Port à Folio!

So, I finally found FolioHD, a nice little website that does free and professional artist portfolio hosting. They let you add Youtube videos, and it all runs smoothly and looks good, too. I added some of my better looking renders/models and can finally attach it to e-mails, whenever I seek occupation in 3D art.

Portfolio.AssafKoss.com

Latest portfolio upload... Still honing those 3D skills.

Stop Copying WoW!

 It sickens me, the way developers copy WoW.

I like scripted effects.
I just don't like how they're being used.

The golden text in titles. The cartoonish looking characters that feel as if somebody just copy-pasted the same colors into their own models from WoW. To aim for the same style of items in-game with similar sets of gear. Making a game world without much sense of history or originality. Looking like WoW and giving off the same feel it has (or had, as WoW is already pretty aged, now.)

Seriously, people. Having another game as a reference, and even as a muse, is a great thing. But, simply copying what you like from another game is crap! And the results are crap, too!

I find this amusing... Image from IHateMMORPGs.com

Without a unique and well-thought of world and an original style of art, a game can not call itself a production. Without those, it would merely be a sort of practice in game making, or a bad mod, at most.