tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56579099123172472862024-03-12T18:07:31.363-07:00Spore Tipson how to make and find good content for your galaxyParkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-50237025146063312292010-08-28T16:01:00.000-07:002010-08-28T16:18:18.971-07:00Creator Tip: Tricking Miss ComplexityMany creators out there are always angry that Miss Complexity won't allow for decent vehicles or spaceships. The spaceship editor already allows more, but that still isn't enough. Despite that, since patch 5 there is a trick: asymmetry.<div><br /></div><div>Once you have your core game all patched up, all you have to do to is hold down "a" and select a base part. This will remove the base part's double as well as all those from the detail parts attached to it.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warning: This will make all new parts attached to it asymmetric.</b></div><div><br /></div><div>When you start hitting it high on the complexity meter, just do that and you should get it down a few notches, ready to add more to your vehicle or spaceship.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you still need to add a symmetric part, you can still use a flat, square block and move that into the already asymmetric base part, but don't forget to hold down "a" first to get even more out of Miss Complexity.</div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-48744004624524029112010-08-27T22:52:00.000-07:002010-08-28T00:16:16.279-07:00How to draw in Spore: Moogle<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiicQ10Tfug8OrFS5tCjT89hlS6eA4BXhmHOhsYy4OISUqBm6zxeqEpst2zEOXGi31AFhqJ2tJalTveLKhbghsUi9k4U8DA3aKrIJa8kqlAoLzjLexE4DKVUCMvR2Fu2FerdjeG5U2aKVc/s1600/moogle.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 98px; height: 142px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiicQ10Tfug8OrFS5tCjT89hlS6eA4BXhmHOhsYy4OISUqBm6zxeqEpst2zEOXGi31AFhqJ2tJalTveLKhbghsUi9k4U8DA3aKrIJa8kqlAoLzjLexE4DKVUCMvR2Fu2FerdjeG5U2aKVc/s200/moogle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510343663374883378" border="0" /></a>So for this tutorial, I’ve selected a simple line art – a moogle from Final Fantasy. I know it’s cute, but you creepy creators don’t have to share it :P It may look daunting at first, but hopefully I can help you out with that. The easiest way to figure out how to make it, in my opinion, is to look at in the editor and take it apart. But here’s a hopefully detailed and easy to follow tutorial. To the right is the moogle we will be making. This is also posted in my <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/39172.page">All About Buildings</a> thread too.<br /><div style="text-align: left;"> <div style="text-align: left;"> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> </div> </div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Step One:</span><br /><br />The first thin<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYoI0DFBiuiQPLBf94c5EOOyekrQFODCXERpqvLyuiOkS-Wv5S-yJplqeem2NyhjWICpAfke32jw3XXBvLbK_5wleMQaowmcvxM0pf73uRVj8eU1NzvWFBfXxN42ZMSKoOl-8NY6B_JmA/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+1.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 176px; height: 215px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYoI0DFBiuiQPLBf94c5EOOyekrQFODCXERpqvLyuiOkS-Wv5S-yJplqeem2NyhjWICpAfke32jw3XXBvLbK_5wleMQaowmcvxM0pf73uRVj8eU1NzvWFBfXxN42ZMSKoOl-8NY6B_JmA/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510338676097975730" border="0" /></a>g you should do is place a block, or whatever you’re making your picture on (I’m going to refer to it as the backdrop), in the center. Turn it to face the screen, raise it up using Ctrl, and make it as big as you see fit. You should probably make it as big as you can so you don’t have to squish everything together or fix it later. The next thing is to make your border. I usually just do a simple rectangle-ish one with a little color. You can go as extravagant or as simple as you want, but you have to take complexity in mind. I make the border first so I don’t have to worry about adding one later.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><br />Step Two:</span></span><br /><br />Now we will start making the image. When I make line art, it is almost entirely made of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span> part. Since the moogle’s pom pom thing is at the top, start with that. Grab a <span style="font-style: italic;">Candominium</span> base part, turn it with a connector (you won’t need to if you have <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/57715.page">DVDMaster’s mod</a>), and put it near the top and a little to the right of the center. Make the rim black and the inside red. Then take an <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span>, turn it so it’s smooth against the backdrop and sink it into the <span style="font-style: italic;">Candominium</span>. Next take another <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span>, make it bigger with the mouse wheel and extend it a bit. As you can see in the diagram, I circled it in red, the base part of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span> is outlined in white. You’ll have to turn it a bit using the axis, and sink it into the backdrop using Shift. I turned the screen a bit so you can get a view. This is how I actually make the pictures, they stick out a bit :( The first image is looking at it from the front making sure that the placement is right. The second is from the side.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JeC7voWL0CKM_hLz4onlKvRXt5Rcrh-Y3jt2huIsXNdvKfFPVfvThjVJEApavPRHlWp-QK2hWChuJpCfKRc8ShqA7bt8zwNVrPtRzAMX7v1bruPlZY3u1EcPhWisCrZgJpQdasF2BeE/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+2.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 178px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JeC7voWL0CKM_hLz4onlKvRXt5Rcrh-Y3jt2huIsXNdvKfFPVfvThjVJEApavPRHlWp-QK2hWChuJpCfKRc8ShqA7bt8zwNVrPtRzAMX7v1bruPlZY3u1EcPhWisCrZgJpQdasF2BeE/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+2.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510340377530895090" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr9CWFXjdbCMxvaSn1BUq6yN72d-o8PkYm6yqiJXQ5kRwepj02Tnp2ZEAHXB-kNX0x7RwWsiAFBo7uczEc9zdlDXpJNwMFDyu3oSYh_0a6WbVUpjDfvj4YBAxHmFKU7-eHtmbyDnMMR8/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+3.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 115px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMr9CWFXjdbCMxvaSn1BUq6yN72d-o8PkYm6yqiJXQ5kRwepj02Tnp2ZEAHXB-kNX0x7RwWsiAFBo7uczEc9zdlDXpJNwMFDyu3oSYh_0a6WbVUpjDfvj4YBAxHmFKU7-eHtmbyDnMMR8/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+3.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510341195045667410" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br />Step Three:</span></span></span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ12nLUUaQuA32j1DCHjWgoJweXgt3qeo-nRcwnrvQJ-ax2grJ_iDRdkdUoZ9_bK48np5XuZxCrY3qTVbDLtR6QMI6vpIFtXlVc185ywjTIEERSDckbE5_lVlqtZqI5Qm-a99GY3Vbd1o/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+4.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 139px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ12nLUUaQuA32j1DCHjWgoJweXgt3qeo-nRcwnrvQJ-ax2grJ_iDRdkdUoZ9_bK48np5XuZxCrY3qTVbDLtR6QMI6vpIFtXlVc185ywjTIEERSDckbE5_lVlqtZqI5Qm-a99GY3Vbd1o/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+4.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510342089539164658" border="0" /></a><br />Now do the ou<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4bMjm2DUoU_omnBR1lEIyfbVAaR5RjmW_HlXLzj8k-gQ9FvAPJ_Z3m74Fb3aObPHtiPZx9VqMfWuDpSLdIbJdXzFzBrGcQ-V2KZCN1wdIPoSMk091V5YGWVqUDj2EWetWZwbwzrxZNU/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+5.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 184px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4bMjm2DUoU_omnBR1lEIyfbVAaR5RjmW_HlXLzj8k-gQ9FvAPJ_Z3m74Fb3aObPHtiPZx9VqMfWuDpSLdIbJdXzFzBrGcQ-V2KZCN1wdIPoSMk091V5YGWVqUDj2EWetWZwbwzrxZNU/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+5.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510344765486257490" border="0" /></a>tline of the face. At first it might look not so great, so don’t get discouraged. Trust me all of mine look horrible until I’m almost done. When looking at reference pictures, look at the lines and different angles. Don’t look at the image as a whole. Every line or curve makes up one <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span>, sometimes if the line is pretty long it will take two. Here’s how many Epees you need and how to make them (sorry that they aren’t exactly straight, but you get the idea I hope):<br /><br />The rest of the outline is composed of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Epee</span> part. I used two <span style="font-style: italic;">Pointed </span>triangle detail parts – a black and a red – for each ear. Try to just get theoutline of the head done, and then readjust after. As you can see from the first image, this should take up about half of the backdrop now.<br /><br />There's also a video of what I have so far found <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJUtrvvQptg">here</a>.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Step Four:</span></span><br /><br />Now fill in the face. The eyes are two <span style="font-style: italic;">Epees</span>, one on top of each<br />other. The nose <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLVWxbCXw-s4IUZQvv5MLytMCHgQoZr_wAuQtK63SA7-Z_KbtPIh65253q5Zx_M2WpcK92s9O5kJOgpQJTeFUnyJXULTHIfUY_CofR342Qv-NfIgvz-jP-I69LyZdZFhemu_w4yfacL8/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+6.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 112px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLVWxbCXw-s4IUZQvv5MLytMCHgQoZr_wAuQtK63SA7-Z_KbtPIh65253q5Zx_M2WpcK92s9O5kJOgpQJTeFUnyJXULTHIfUY_CofR342Qv-NfIgvz-jP-I69LyZdZFhemu_w4yfacL8/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+6.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510346427981852946" border="0" /></a>is an <span style="font-style: italic;">Esphereal</span> as well as the mouth. The whiskers and chin are Epees. For the nose, make the red part as big as it can get using the arrows. I had to use four black <span style="font-style: italic;">Esphereal</span> for the outline to fit around the big red one. To make the chin, make the Epee as small as it can get and sink it into the backdrop. For the tongue, I made it a little smaller then the black <span style="font-style: italic;">Esphereal</span> for the mouth, turned it a bit and painted it pinkish.<span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Step Five:</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi03VueKyITWKRb7mMgDdwtnYSqzDW5vgDUYqfqEN4qQIK0q9NTURJKbddMSk37AxKHUiEHAy3sIlYVU_B2r1rgsg6c4iq_prAjaiPWNUWBu1r_dlCDGZ9AmVthY1Wn6jRujD63eydCVGo/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+7.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 261px; height: 241px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi03VueKyITWKRb7mMgDdwtnYSqzDW5vgDUYqfqEN4qQIK0q9NTURJKbddMSk37AxKHUiEHAy3sIlYVU_B2r1rgsg6c4iq_prAjaiPWNUWBu1r_dlCDGZ9AmVthY1Wn6jRujD63eydCVGo/s320/How+to+draw+in+spore+7.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510347950992211474" border="0" /></a>On to the body! This is entirely made of <span style="font-style: italic;">Epees</span>. Make the body first starting with the right arm. The wings come last. I hope you guys can see all <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_bZp2r69CodT2MjGrFj_Z58YHp7yKuyR6lsr7aVR6yXqPOra8m1vOS0p2dkgBHSpQhBxLOktt7GigUkZvG-3OmMubmrdx96lHX8i-6dNkzGvPTl_dHyQyfcH0aTu7wMXl3F2A6kf5WQ/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+8.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_bZp2r69CodT2MjGrFj_Z58YHp7yKuyR6lsr7aVR6yXqPOra8m1vOS0p2dkgBHSpQhBxLOktt7GigUkZvG-3OmMubmrdx96lHX8i-6dNkzGvPTl_dHyQyfcH0aTu7wMXl3F2A6kf5WQ/s200/How+to+draw+in+spore+8.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510348246784046994" border="0" /></a>of the numbers and figure out the order. I started with the right arm, then went to the right leg, next was the left leg, then the gut, the left arm, and lastly the wings. It looks like there should be 30 <span style="font-style: italic;">Epees</span> for the body and wings. I included a side image too, to show you what it looks like at this point.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >Step Six:</span></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7sVIG_l3d1S4UzfHwBI_uBE0Kd_ITp9Kcm9YibOWv5lonNXYG5kV_KxyPDSeS8vv_H9DTtzAc5gQjvUd5p62gDFp-X4BaDrUz8Wn8Yn9iwxJ8WIhSO46uOs_uVJip3H9gNsX-6_Vo1U/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+9.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 255px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7sVIG_l3d1S4UzfHwBI_uBE0Kd_ITp9Kcm9YibOWv5lonNXYG5kV_KxyPDSeS8vv_H9DTtzAc5gQjvUd5p62gDFp-X4BaDrUz8Wn8Yn9iwxJ8WIhSO46uOs_uVJip3H9gNsX-6_Vo1U/s320/How+to+draw+in+spore+9.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510349635558565826" border="0" /></a>Finally fill in the wings, add color, and smooth everything out. For the right wing I used two <span style="font-style: italic;">Boxy</span>, one <span style="font-style: italic;">Pointed</span>, and two <span style="font-style: italic;">Tear Dropped</span> parts. Make sure that all of these parts kind of flow together as best as you can. You’ll have to sink them into the backdrop using Shift. Refer to the image for where to place these parts. The <span style="font-style: italic;">Tear Dropped</span> parts go in the tips of the wings (numbers 1 and 2). The <span style="font-style: italic;">Boxy </span>parts go in the top angle of the wing and by the arm and shoulder (numbers 3 and 4). The <span style="font-style: italic;">Pointed </span> part goes in the second corner thingy where the wing and fur meet (number 5). The left wing is made of two <span style="font-style: italic;">Hanging Fangs</span>.<br /><br />I added a pink <span style="font-style: italic;">Esphereal</span> to the nose and another to the pom pom. I also added cheeks made of <span style="font-style: italic;">Dollop Habitat</span> base parts. You don’t have to add cheeks, but if you do you have to adjust the whiskers. Lastly I made the backdrop a light brown. Make it whatever you want or just leave it white. There’s a little complexity left, so add more details if you want or make a more extravagant border.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" >And now for the final image!</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBJU1WMZoPDVq2N2bFwk68sCJDym3_wmU0nO0HlLnwOa5ASwHsBxy11cYtcvXlwnsf3JJrX5QjcAIe-ph6EJ0gUEGvGfoaDjHBrCcW0JOlIg0vB5yKrh3Yuk4fJfTvwpAQo7H1ZTRoKA/s1600/How+to+draw+in+spore+10.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 304px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBJU1WMZoPDVq2N2bFwk68sCJDym3_wmU0nO0HlLnwOa5ASwHsBxy11cYtcvXlwnsf3JJrX5QjcAIe-ph6EJ0gUEGvGfoaDjHBrCcW0JOlIg0vB5yKrh3Yuk4fJfTvwpAQo7H1ZTRoKA/s320/How+to+draw+in+spore+10.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510349964963590914" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">I hope this made sense. Just ask if you want anything cleared up or you want any additional information :D!</span>Sakiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02385818393369577933noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-79229233204731474762010-08-19T22:52:00.000-07:002010-08-20T05:58:24.520-07:00CreatorTip: Color<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyykdwjgLXzZr6q1ElD185DltBjzsOL-2PI2vDEU2sH_hChheFd3Pp08C-UavNE9OK_dc-pux6_ggPe2ZcaiC9pfoDr2CzbaPnx-uhG-YXsBTeO2RIsD963BM7lEMgF6KNzLlSRxZ2YtE/s1600/SporePaint.bmp"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyykdwjgLXzZr6q1ElD185DltBjzsOL-2PI2vDEU2sH_hChheFd3Pp08C-UavNE9OK_dc-pux6_ggPe2ZcaiC9pfoDr2CzbaPnx-uhG-YXsBTeO2RIsD963BM7lEMgF6KNzLlSRxZ2YtE/s320/SporePaint.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507372283319137650" border="0" /></a>I have gotten many questions on some of my creations asking me how I do this. So, I decided to make a short guide on how to manipulate color and limbs to make the body seem like it's two different colors. There is one color scheme in particular that allows you to do this. It is found in the detail section, first page, 4th on down on the far left. (See in the screencap to the left)<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy35-jyD_mnUJHyKzhTm4fBx-FKXQDQQdE47J0kx6PS5J7-IPgSIahoJ-LgU3p7mNxCdLRo9SbRYbiKJOuu7mXJkGyjtGBNqckRKIx1_IhUQHKdfEZHjCe0ZwhBqGkLTEIlxtVfnjSsgw/s1600/Spore_2010-08-10_01-22-03.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy35-jyD_mnUJHyKzhTm4fBx-FKXQDQQdE47J0kx6PS5J7-IPgSIahoJ-LgU3p7mNxCdLRo9SbRYbiKJOuu7mXJkGyjtGBNqckRKIx1_IhUQHKdfEZHjCe0ZwhBqGkLTEIlxtVfnjSsgw/s320/Spore_2010-08-10_01-22-03.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507379257340184402" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This color choice only covers the knees or elbows of the limb, this allows you to push limbs together to make it seem like a solid color and a part of the body. The best limb to use is the slackwrist arm, as this makes it flow more smoothly with the normal body, however it works with any limb. The screenshot below shows how you have to push the limbs together to get this effect.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Shape the limbs anyway you want to, however make sure they are sized correctly so they flow together. The result should look somewhat like this:<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9otmfPPThviTV8qIjK3jsMb88ribbDYqRpAhgG5WeoeB7gtTSjtsZWnbhT5xyLvRTsVqMT2E8vh_P0Aw6TJPa02ag_3W8ojykKsUjJuIyRPKyL2eJZoryoYJ1yuKEc8stxXIY1bAF43o/s1600/CRE_-0a8a9cbe_ful.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9otmfPPThviTV8qIjK3jsMb88ribbDYqRpAhgG5WeoeB7gtTSjtsZWnbhT5xyLvRTsVqMT2E8vh_P0Aw6TJPa02ag_3W8ojykKsUjJuIyRPKyL2eJZoryoYJ1yuKEc8stxXIY1bAF43o/s320/CRE_-0a8a9cbe_ful.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507382628657867026" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Part of the body is the base color, but the other part is the detail color shaped to look like it's part of the body color.<br /></div></div>CopperLouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06674626325398205284noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-72501352840589890952010-08-19T16:04:00.000-07:002010-08-20T06:01:16.257-07:00Check Out: CopperLou<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWF8ykt7U2I_9M1QGIEKT9dMaryL6ZeI-fId85sguIEb34pVSt5d37xXUIjQrgj7uJuTXu9qjioP1qFrmUclmhiyd30XNCHP1yzIMHRBqXcjDxn5oRX_NLgD2D4E3pZsQrFblTta-7z3I/s1600/SporeWall.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 308px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWF8ykt7U2I_9M1QGIEKT9dMaryL6ZeI-fId85sguIEb34pVSt5d37xXUIjQrgj7uJuTXu9qjioP1qFrmUclmhiyd30XNCHP1yzIMHRBqXcjDxn5oRX_NLgD2D4E3pZsQrFblTta-7z3I/s400/SporeWall.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507264848048553490" border="0" /></a>Greetings my fellow Sporeans. Like Rebecca1208, Sakiara, Andeavor and techno605, I was invited by Parkaboy to assist in adding entries to his fantastic blog. Compared to the other authors here, I'm somewhat new to Spore. I've been creating since September 2009 and have yet to stop loving Spore. I look forward to making entries in this blog and hopefully assisting others with the tips I have to offer.<br /><br />I specialize primarily in creatures, however I also use the building editor a lot and occasionally the vehicle and space ship editors. I try to make all types of creatures such as fantasy, mythological, mechanical, artistic, realistic, and horror.<br /><br />On the Sporum, I'm primarily known as SporeMasterCopper one of the moderators of the forum. So if you ever have a problem with the game or sporum(or just a question,) feel free to shoot me a PM and I'll help you out best I can. Once again, I look forward to helping out with this blog, I know I have a lot of tips I can't wait to share with the community!CopperLouhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06674626325398205284noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-13264060159679062142010-08-08T12:25:00.000-07:002010-08-08T12:44:25.225-07:00CreatorTip: Rotating Roofs and Bases<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_0Yms3v4z_is/TF8HfT7K_XI/AAAAAAAAAAM/zx91BSFG3bk/s1600/Spore_2010-08-08_21-08-21.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 284px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_0Yms3v4z_is/TF8HfT7K_XI/AAAAAAAAAAM/zx91BSFG3bk/s320/Spore_2010-08-08_21-08-21.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503125504175832434" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">I've been asked many, many times how I manage to rotate roof and base parts since all we can do is swivel them around. There are two easy ways to do that:</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" ><br /><br />Using Connectors</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Place a roof or base part on any connector attached to another basic part. Then rotate the connector until you've reached the desired angle. Now you have two choices, you can either drag the base/roof far enough away with the shift or alt key and delete the connector or simply copy the base/roof and a copy will be left in place. You can then move the connector again and place another tilted roof/base to create more advanced creations</span><span style="font-family:arial;">. This technique allows for creating circles, arches and spirals using nothing but base blocks.<br /><br />Note: Doors are considered detail parts and will automatically reset their position when you accidentally hover the mouse over an arrow of the base part.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" ><br /><br />Using the Rotation Mod</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />DVDMaster was kind enough to make a <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/file/mmiojn2kiqm/dvd_BuildingRotation_v2.package">Building Editor Mod</a> adding an additional rotation ring to the base and roof parts when you hit the tab key. You can <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/47391.page">install</a> it like other mods by placing the .package file into the Data folder of your Spore installation directory.<br /><br />Note: Currently, the mod only works on the PC.<br /></span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-14515173544332702212010-08-06T13:23:00.000-07:002010-08-06T16:38:32.123-07:00Sporing for Dummies<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://static.spore.com/static/image/500/635/801/500635801511_lrg.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 256px; height: 256px;" src="http://static.spore.com/static/image/500/635/801/500635801511_lrg.png" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">by <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/myspore/Andeavor">Andeavor</a></span><br /><br /><hr /></span><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chapter 1 - Becoming a good Creator</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Each editor has its own secrets, which are ready for you to explore. Many of the successful creators have been with Spore since the beginning two years ago and naturally have progressed so far to know their favorite editor inside out.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />If you like a particular creation, don't hesitate to take it apart in the editor to see how it was done. In the beginning it can be hard to even retrace the steps but with enough trial and errors you'll eventually get the hang of it.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />If possible, get the most out of your creations by reaching the complexity meter limit, carefully choose the textures and colors and don't be afraid to take your time. The more you spend in the editor the better you'll get.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><hr />Chapter 2 - Getting on the MPN</span></span><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Being on the <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=view-top_rated_new">MPN</a> is a great feeling, especially if you're new to the game or haven't been in the spotlight before, but remember that nobody will notice your work unless you make them aware of it.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Several times a week, go on the MPN and comment on (and uprate) anything you like. Don't ask to have your creations looked at, just leave a nice comment or a creative suggestion. Other players will enjoy that more than needy-sounding comments.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><hr />Chapter 3 - Increasing Subscribers</span></span><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />The same rules apply to the subscriptions as to being on the MPN, but additionally you can ensure someone coming to your page and buddying you for a few reasons.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />You could either specialize in themed sets, specific artwork or make highly detailed props that other players could use or be exited about seeing in their game. With enough practice you should get together a nice portfolio that could attract a couple subscribers every week.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><hr /><br />Chapter 4 - Treating other Creators</span></span><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Spore is a game with an in-game networking system. Since Maxis and EA can't or won't censor your speech in comments you should watch your potty mouth. Too much foul language can get you reported enough to being banned.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />If you want to be treated nicely you should do so, too, since what you give is what you get. And who </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><hr />Chapter 5 - Dealing with Downraters</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />If another creator maliciously puts down your work and constantly harasses you, immediately report their nasty comments and then block them from commenting. It is best to ignore downraters as all they're looking for is a reaction. This also means actively going against one or more downraters.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />If you keep giving them the attention they will have won long before your newest creation has a red face.<br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" ><span><hr />Addendum</span></span><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Have patience and keep creating, Rome wasn't built in a day either. :D</span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-16570546548858835032010-08-06T13:01:00.000-07:002010-08-06T16:29:59.598-07:00Check Out: Andeavor<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRon-Xesdhg8IFp28eys4A868_aCGKh7FO3yOp-tJIgy_9H_HMlkX6WHriPqSa_uouAkGXiZTv64uelLCOK1mpi3zSWpMF7Z07palj8qjqnn81-4gDVQAMBojtuVevSjiYk_pkwqkjos/s1600/pblog2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRon-Xesdhg8IFp28eys4A868_aCGKh7FO3yOp-tJIgy_9H_HMlkX6WHriPqSa_uouAkGXiZTv64uelLCOK1mpi3zSWpMF7Z07palj8qjqnn81-4gDVQAMBojtuVevSjiYk_pkwqkjos/s400/pblog2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502443030429309314" border="0" /></a><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Good morning sunshine, the earth says hello!</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> I've been invited to co-author this blog a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far a- wait, I digress.<br /><br />I've been with Spore since the beginning and have garnered quite some experience. When I started in Spore two years ago, I was appalled at the lack of proper building sets. I started to make my own complete set and the rest is history.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />I have specialized in the building editor and I'm famous for my realistic buildings and large collection of themed sets. Before GA came out I also started making props and later have started making the one or other adventure template.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />I've been involved in several organizations within the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/forums/list.page">Spore community</a>, from the now defunct TCP and Spore TV to the Euroclub and for a short time I was also behind Spore Uni which has closed its gates for a while now.</span><br /><br />Anyway, check out <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/myspore/Andeavor">my profile</a>!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-44276467737662022492010-07-31T01:46:00.000-07:002010-07-31T17:15:00.806-07:00Check Out: techno605<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1191ByIrrbbnw0fM9PSJ_DIpa8rkqpz3311DrRVTroOpFgnV6FxXyaH20_d-QetegjIqGq5_Mh_ePkRCvPCNxiucWdaYMl4REyq2Pudr77SS45QpsdCoNkG63qK-xYv9Y6GttO2KlzPlT/s1600/pblog1.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1191ByIrrbbnw0fM9PSJ_DIpa8rkqpz3311DrRVTroOpFgnV6FxXyaH20_d-QetegjIqGq5_Mh_ePkRCvPCNxiucWdaYMl4REyq2Pudr77SS45QpsdCoNkG63qK-xYv9Y6GttO2KlzPlT/s400/pblog1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500034254966966018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="boardtitle" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="">Hi everybody! Just like <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/myspore/Rebecca1208">Rebecca1208</a>, <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/myspore/Sakiara">Sakiara</a> and <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/myspore/Andeavor">Andeavor</a> i was one of the lucky ones that Parkaboy asked to join his Blog as an author. So i'd like to take this opportunity to introduce myself for those that don't know me i've been creating since Jun 21, 2008 and i've become well known for my Artwork with the Building Editor. I've been told my artwork has inspired many creators and i'm always willing to share my knowledge and answer any questions concerning the Building Editor.<br /><br />I've also held a couple of Building Editor Art Contests in the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/forums/list.page">Sporums</a> that inspired a large number of creators to try out their art skills with some amazing results that can be viewed in my <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-techno605%7C2263381019%3Assc-500304675907">Techno605's Art Gallery </a></span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="boardtitle" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="">Sporecast alongside with many other top quality Artwork that i have selected from the Sporepedia.</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />So feel free to ask me any questions concerning the Building Editor and i'll be posting some tutorials here soon.</span><span class="boardtitle"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:85%;" ><br /></span></span>techno605http://www.blogger.com/profile/03012920839852499091noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-53703046125625216262010-07-28T22:54:00.000-07:002010-07-29T17:59:06.086-07:00Check Out: Sakiara<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-hDbgPbPEWHTHvI64VYt25pCMivLnHar_beqxiuH1M4n2wuyDHQ3NpJsozjkFeENr8O7QjsR6M8BTtpvpDpcA-BXbhXuCsGNVVtJ5j3O4se9wfin5Cw2vRi_LJ8op3xY3aDerWCrC7g/s1600/Image+of+my+creations.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 284px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4-hDbgPbPEWHTHvI64VYt25pCMivLnHar_beqxiuH1M4n2wuyDHQ3NpJsozjkFeENr8O7QjsR6M8BTtpvpDpcA-BXbhXuCsGNVVtJ5j3O4se9wfin5Cw2vRi_LJ8op3xY3aDerWCrC7g/s400/Image+of+my+creations.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499497380172136834" border="0" /></a><br />Hello <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Sporeans</span>! I've been invited by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Parkaboy</span> and will be an author here. I'm a veteran in Spore and have been creating since the Creature Creator. So I hope I can help out with some tips and tutorials.<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />I for the most part specialize in buildings. Lately I've been making silhouettes and line art. I've made some actual buildings including a few sets, and art buildings as well. I also have some props, a couple of adventures, and a few creatures as well. I typically create cute and beautiful creations that are filled with detail and color.<br /><br />I've also been involved with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">TCP</span>, Spore TV and I've held a few contests. I'm all about the community and helping people out. If you need any advice, tips, critiques or whatever. Be sure to let me know! You can also find anything building related in my <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/39172.page">All About Buildings</a> thread on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Sporum</span>. Oh ya, here's my profile if you want to check it out, talk, or have any questions: <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/profile/Sakiara"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Sakiara</span></a>.</div>Sakiarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02385818393369577933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-31538972321260807292010-07-23T10:50:00.000-07:002010-07-23T13:51:17.334-07:00Check Out: Rebecca1208<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimEo0Nq57sdfQRX2Y75vJTiWgQ5zz-mhMk7ulgU0YYwYO1iKECErPiNSt_Q5W9qdwZyykI-S22svCCZsiecfHxacOgRClFYsBE_vQV2AEvOVtmujl1dT89ZL1ICkjCNomUaid2OtLoqeOn/s1600/Rebecca1208-Creatures.png"><img style="text-align: center; margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 400px; display: block; height: 298px;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497165321025527074" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimEo0Nq57sdfQRX2Y75vJTiWgQ5zz-mhMk7ulgU0YYwYO1iKECErPiNSt_Q5W9qdwZyykI-S22svCCZsiecfHxacOgRClFYsBE_vQV2AEvOVtmujl1dT89ZL1ICkjCNomUaid2OtLoqeOn/s400/Rebecca1208-Creatures.png" border="0" /></a><br />Hey guys! As you may have heard, Parkaboy has invited a few more creators to help out here and post their own content. As well as checking out Parkaboy's tips, I hope to provide help and advice on creations as well, specifically creatures and adventures, and maybe make a few reccomendations and spotlights on some fantastic creators, too.<br /><br />I also have a collection of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_playlists&search_query=darkedgetv+spore&uni=1">tutorial videos</a> on YouTube, under <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/DarkEdgeTV">DarkEdgeTV</a>, which shows play-throughs on how I create creatures, different commands in each editor, and how to make certain environments or play with props in Galactic Adventures.<br /><br />Now, to start with, a little self-promotion, to help introduce myself. For those who don't know me, I'm mainly known for creating Dragons and other fantasy creatures in a variety of designs and styles. I try to vary in creating and step away from Dragons by creating spaceships, horror-designs, sci-fi characters and realistic or prehistoric animals. Some of my more well known creations includes "<a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Rebecca1208%7C2267320113%3Asast-500618561808">Eden</a>", my "<a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Rebecca1208%7C2267320113%3Asast-500610714115%3Apg-20">Aquatic Stage</a>" adventure, and my "<a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=advssrch-Valley%3Afi-title%3Aidx-12">Valley of the Dragons</a>" adventure series.<br /><br />While I mainly create for art, recently I've been more concious of how the creations act in other peoples' games, so I'm beginning to be a lot more careful in my designs by testing animation far more often. I try to give all of my creations a sense of realism to begin with, since I'm very fussy over anatomy and proportions. So hopefully, I'll start creating content with a far better performance than last time.<br /><br />I'm also helping out in a couple projects or clans/fanclubs with a variety of creators, including Vektrix's EuroSpore forum, Piratenori's Civilised Sporeons forum and Hilight's SNS (serious noise shipyards) in the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/">Sporum</a>. I've also taken part in other groups, such as the Knurldown Clan, The Golden Spotlight and the Darkened Abyss Clan.<br /><br />So feel free to find me in the Sporum, or drop by at my Spore page, <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/profile/Rebecca1208">Rebecca1208</a> to see more creations (:Rebecca1208http://www.blogger.com/profile/16081131990072807962noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-89127737490917734262010-07-21T10:17:00.000-07:002010-07-21T10:21:19.504-07:00SporeTips AnnouncementHey, folks! I know the blog has been pretty slow for some time now... The last couple of years I've had a job taking most of my time, so I've finally decided to invite a few talented and experienced creators to come on board. On the next few weeks you'll start to see new faces (or rather new screen names) popping in. Stay tuned for new posts and check out the "Authors" sections on the sidebar for updates!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;">Cheers!<br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">Parkaboy</span></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-41270184462297184792010-07-21T05:28:00.000-07:002010-07-21T05:44:40.899-07:00"Darkspore" Announced!You guys know I usually don't do news, but it's exciting to finally have something new to talk about in the Spore community: Darkspore!<br /><br />We've known very little about Darkspore on the last few weeks: a couple of trademarks filed by EA, a few concept art pics leaked from the website hile in construction... We didn't even know if it was going to be a standalone game or an expansion...<br /><br />Now we know! Yesterday the <a href="http://www.darkspore.com/">Darkspore official website</a> came online with details and a teaser trailer, which you see below.<br /><br />This was timed with July 20's EA Studio Showcase, where they revealed a few new titles. The Showcase, transmitted live via web, had a little gameplay footage for Darkspore, which you can also see in the video:<br /><br /><object width="500" height="301"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ywzuKKAUBk&hl=pt_BR&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ywzuKKAUBk&hl=pt_BR&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="301"></embed></object><br /><br />So there we go! Schedule for release in February 2011, Darkspore is going to be a multiplayer action RPG for the PC, with a creature editor similar to that of Spore. Don't forget to check the "Living Weapons" page on the official website for a sneak peek of the new creature parts!<br /><br />Also, as MaxisCactus (the Spore Community manager) have stated on the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum">Sporum</a>, while we won't be able to export Spore creatures to Darkspore, we'll have the opportunity to create NPC enemies for the new game, possibly through the Template Contests that have been going on already on the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/forums/show/6.page">Community Showcase section</a>.Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-91612216574619081862010-05-30T11:26:00.000-07:002010-07-20T11:20:40.306-07:00Adventure Class - Lesson 1Since my adventures have been rather successful during the last few months, many people have been asking me for tips on adventure-making. Because of that, I decided to start a feature on SporeTips very much like the <a href="http://sporetips.blogspot.com/search/label/Building%20Class">Building Class</a> I started some time ago.<br /><br />But first I must warn you that this is not a simple tutorial. I'm not going to teach you the controls, the shortcuts, or anything like that. I'm assuming you are already familiar with the Adventure Editor, and only needs tips to increase the quality and, consequently, the popularity of your adventures.<br /><br />Also, I warn you that these tips aren't a sure formula for success. The results will always depend on how well you apply the tips. Also, whenever I tell you to avoid doing something, you should not take that advice as a rule: you can probably do the opposite of I tell you to and still make a good adventure. The tips are supposed to be guidelines, not commandments written in stone.<br /><br />So shall we start?<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UhQ3LcVNyrBZEgRoNJCL9L6KFpHrJ54VA_Wz_Ig3qkN3ZqwGZ2N1W3uCFRWxkD4r433MbJ6GBqeHPZin3mI-G6UBAzwEb5j_PQLJSWIKL6qd9FvAq8ZIb4X7eLOErVY9t1i0J4s5Fs0/s1600/adventureclass1.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UhQ3LcVNyrBZEgRoNJCL9L6KFpHrJ54VA_Wz_Ig3qkN3ZqwGZ2N1W3uCFRWxkD4r433MbJ6GBqeHPZin3mI-G6UBAzwEb5j_PQLJSWIKL6qd9FvAq8ZIb4X7eLOErVY9t1i0J4s5Fs0/s400/adventureclass1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496054867107054930" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">LESSON 1: On making your adventure attractive for players</span><br /></div><br />Okay, let's begin with a topic that's almost entirely ignored by newbie creators, causing their adventures to go unnoticed for a long time: the preview images.<br /><br />A preview image is like the cover of a book. You know the saying "don't judge a book by its cover"? Well, a lot of people do judge the adventures from the preview pics. You have to understand that for most people it takes a couple of minutes to download the assets and load a mission, and they don't want to waste that time unless they have a reason to believe the adventure is going to be cool.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-saYA_ucryNR1WuoX8WQmqqz_aR7aDkL5H5JzZu0Myj6nyiV10eUOQlQjnPieYYWDsuGWj207nBglTqt78sL7ZdNSQA07mqyIHkBB-WhL-lkxZCMgdoB71nYtECxAwdkCKFRt2ii_7OI/s320/goodpreview.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496052957829097378" border="0" /> <img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_WDmqKmrORWDgXJQo57TKLNLAqmHMjrBV24wqIiBufYhXsNUUK-Oh1oPKdSrxAcAIMBIo7pzFPPgFnrGrXMtsYJ5s5M1tpGu2DL_AJs1QHUcbY5sO9Bb-Xcpy_9DuHOknmu4rjuc_1jY/s320/badpreview.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496052944487652274" border="0" /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Which one would you rather play?</span><br /></div><br />So you need at least four preview pictures to capture the player's interest. The first pic is the most important of all, since that's going to be the thumbnail of your adventure. A good thumbnail is the difference between getting on the Most Popular New shortlist and barely getting any plays. To take a screenshot you only need to click the "C" button once on your keyboard, and then sort out the four preview images you want for your adventure on the central panel where you also choose the name, genre, description and tags for your adventures.<br /><br />Here are a few tips for getting good preview pictures:<br /><br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't leave the "default" planet picture on any of the preview slots</span>, specially the first one. Unless you're making a planet template, that's pretty much the worse mistake you can make.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't take your screenshots from the editor!</span> You can enter the Test Drive Mode and take the shots from there. That way you won't end up with the handlers and team identifyers (those green, or red squares under each creature) showing up in the image. Those are visual aids for the editor, they're not part of your adventure!</li><li>I know the Test Drive Mode has an important limitation on camera angles. But <span style="font-weight: bold;">you can use the "freecam" cheat to allow you the freedom of choosing any camer angle you like</span>. That's important, because <span style="font-weight: bold;">you don't want the default captain creature to show up on the picture</span>! Unless you're making a locked-captain adventure, the captain you choose on the editor is just a placeholder, and won't even show up in the adventure! So why should it be front and center on the preview?</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">You can put together a scene specially for taking a picture.</span> Remember you can delete the creations after taking a screenshot, so you're not constrained to taking pictures of events and places that actually happen or appear in the adventure. Try to create a scene that's descriptive of the whole adventure experience: put main characters in there, even if they don't appear together in the adventure; use effects to make the scene cooler and use gates to carefully place vehicles and creatures wherever you wish (check the <a href="http://sporetips.blogspot.com/2009/12/creatortip-how-to-disguise-gameplay.html">How to disguise gameplay objects as creatures post</a> if you need).</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Try to learn how the rectangle screenshot translates into a square preview pictures.</span> You have to understand that the sides of the image will be cut off in the preview, and compensate for that. Take many screenshots from slightly different angles and positions, and choose the ones that look best. That way you'll learn by practising how to choose the best angles and layouts.</li></ol>While getting good preview images is important, there are other tips that will help your adventure get more attention from players. Here are some of them:<br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't make locked-captain adventures.</span> Unless you have a very good idea for a new game dynamic and you need control over the player stats, you have no reason to force the player to use a specific avatar. If the player can use his own captain, then he'll be awarded experience points for playing your adventure. That's an extra reason to get his/hers interest.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Get your adventure to be worth more points!</span> Sure, you can't control the value of your mission in experience points, but there are a few ways to make it a little bit higher. The main ones are: make your adventure harder (try to make the player die a couple of times before completing it); and make your adventure longer than a couple of minutes.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Choose an interesting title.</span> Good titles often sound cool, or have a good <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliteration">alliteration</a>. Or they may be a reference to a famous work, a movie, a book, a play, a game, or even just a quote. And remember to capitalize your titles!</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Give the player a good idea what's the adventure about in the description</span>, without spoiling the ending, of course! Look at the Maxis adventures for a model on good uncomplicated descriptions. Try to avoid breaking the fourth wall by adding "I made this adventure because I watched movie such-and-such" or "technical" info such as the adventure version. Leave those kind of comments to brackets, such as this: [adventure made from John Doe's template].<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Add good tags. </span>Tags are important, but not essential. You can get a few extra plays if you're careful about choosing proper tags. Add stuff that the adventure has that may be of interest to players, such as: mystery, murder, explosion, love story, robots, zombies, etc.<br /></li></ol>That's all for now, folks! I'll be back soon with more tips! Stay tuned!Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-82639450428706553562010-01-25T05:45:00.000-08:002010-07-20T11:32:04.046-07:00CreatorTip: Advanced outfitting techniqueI have always been unhappy with how some of the outfitted creatures turned out: most of the time, your alien species' suit or armor ends up looking as if each part was glued on the being's sking. Of course, that's how the editors work: you attach stuff to a creature's skin.<br /><br />But I'm going to share today a technique I have developed to help create outfits that are a lot more convincing. There are a few limitations to this technique, and it takes a lot of practice to create suits that animate properly, but here it goes...<br /><br />This is what we're aiming for. This technique allows you total control over where you place an outfit part, and it's used mainly to let you place rings <span style="font-weight: bold;">around </span>a creature's limb or body.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/Spore_2010-01-25_11-46-54.png" /><br /></div><br />This is how you should start: add a <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">Snokelicious</span> part and place a <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Ring</span> part carefully on top of the Snokelicious. You can only place one part on top of another if you have installed Galactic Adventures or one of the latest patches. In earlier versions of the game the outfit parts can't be stacked.<br /><br />Hold the "Tab" key while selecting a part to access more handlers and position the parts as shown below:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/Spore_2010-01-25_11-48-56.png" /><br /></div><br />Now here comes the tricky part: select the snokelicious, NOT the ring, and hold "Tab" for the advanced handlers. As shown below:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/Spore_2010-01-25_11-49-07.png" /><br /></div><br />You can then rotate the snokelicious - NOT the ring - 180°, so it now points to the inside of the creature's limb or body. You may have to resize and move both parts to get the proper placement.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/Spore_2010-01-25_11-47-22.png" /><br /></div><br />This technique can be used with any parts, though you will find out that not every part stacks on everything. Parts such as hats can be only placed on top of certain types of parts, such as shoulderpads or chest parts. With training you'll learn how to get the best combinations of parts.<br /><br />Another combo that looks pretty good is the <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Bolt</span>/<span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Tinker Ticker</span>. I use that a lot, and it helps create some very cool spacesuits. You should start with the placement of parts shown below, and follow the same steps as shown above.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/Spore_2010-01-25_11-50-14.png" /><br /></div><br />Practice this technique and soon you'll be making outfits like this one:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/CRE_Parkaboy-09842d0a_sml.jpg" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Update:</span> Rebecca1208 has created a video tutorial based on this technique. It might be easier to learn from it, so here it is!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/AFssD-eWaIk&hl=pt_BR&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/AFssD-eWaIk&hl=pt_BR&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></div></div></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-44850888378701828892010-01-07T18:27:00.000-08:002010-03-25T12:21:14.033-07:00Attack of the Spores!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=ast-500521809495"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLMdxC058SWvNvchVRg5rEY-BLKhSTJdEtBkbnzc9o4pFpN6SPBrwupqa_sn72K8cjd2iHeaX1qPjoRc3gVnN4-ENZIzh9IhbuM5Mq9BsbcG6jv6l9zQynJ_Im0TgvvrTPTrLxIVf_vX0/s320/Spore_2010-01-07_23-54-38.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424192501843453330" border="0" /></a><br />I just finished my biggest adventure so far!<br /><br />In "Attack of the Spores!" your captain must help the human crew of the Starship Leviathan get rid of the threat of face-hugging, mind-controler alien spores - and without killing the human hosts! Get ready to explore the entire interior of this big vessel - there's even a hangar and escape pods!<br /><br />Seriously, folks... this took me nearly 20 hours of work to build. I hope you guys enjoy it! I tried to make sure that there would be no bugs, and I hope you can appreciate the extra effort. If you play it, make sure to rate it up!<br /><br />Click the image on the top for the link, or check more screenshots below:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9mhdnhvS1JRLPWysRJNfz1gVa2J6WQjE5wU5VJHajlziTWn0kR69aOfcS2iggLkh6QgWBu06l4UyNZ2bLM9qx0xYCIxtxrpW7-RXcsZLuMY55saaM7EGAZbdfxxCcx3sr8mvinvr2v9I/s1600-h/Spore_2010-01-07_23-48-54.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9mhdnhvS1JRLPWysRJNfz1gVa2J6WQjE5wU5VJHajlziTWn0kR69aOfcS2iggLkh6QgWBu06l4UyNZ2bLM9qx0xYCIxtxrpW7-RXcsZLuMY55saaM7EGAZbdfxxCcx3sr8mvinvr2v9I/s320/Spore_2010-01-07_23-48-54.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424193410193225218" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKDjudFG-LC2QxfG7fRUbEuH1Dpq8bCxGZbv4IJpIcwnxGM1Ku_dXYxoM2oojNX0fyPAMB9T1YjMRcVz0KucQlrNRLgYQZ5zkQkQJtSTfkARjUtW0fvd8OF_Ods_hR1IdVQBG5q75RQqA/s1600-h/Spore_2010-01-07_23-50-40.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKDjudFG-LC2QxfG7fRUbEuH1Dpq8bCxGZbv4IJpIcwnxGM1Ku_dXYxoM2oojNX0fyPAMB9T1YjMRcVz0KucQlrNRLgYQZ5zkQkQJtSTfkARjUtW0fvd8OF_Ods_hR1IdVQBG5q75RQqA/s320/Spore_2010-01-07_23-50-40.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424193411308925058" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7MqkwLZLhCK-6lmZsc6q7hLTJn1kVfvdbh50ma6XmhDjFoS9OV1SzShdoc3UZymTenzL6rYcT0TFrheVZ6OMGrKFI8y4lYNBcw7lYIDxQaMqVgq6NLd17Hxkh30VVDKpRCNqziQ6E8_o/s1600-h/Spore_2010-01-07_23-50-05.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7MqkwLZLhCK-6lmZsc6q7hLTJn1kVfvdbh50ma6XmhDjFoS9OV1SzShdoc3UZymTenzL6rYcT0TFrheVZ6OMGrKFI8y4lYNBcw7lYIDxQaMqVgq6NLd17Hxkh30VVDKpRCNqziQ6E8_o/s320/Spore_2010-01-07_23-50-05.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424193416720048082" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuCzw5SSa1U84cA1f-PKXmAQMMDXeeLfS6W7z9N-yXIX75vtCL8przQFYFqV9yfoS1rV7B9OdNQqMv42FlxnzURSyz_gqlQ36oQtO9qSBfhzkg5u7mAV79WAgAo6V0Q6RSPiZlZDpAKAA/s1600-h/Spore_2010-01-07_23-55-20.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuCzw5SSa1U84cA1f-PKXmAQMMDXeeLfS6W7z9N-yXIX75vtCL8przQFYFqV9yfoS1rV7B9OdNQqMv42FlxnzURSyz_gqlQ36oQtO9qSBfhzkg5u7mAV79WAgAo6V0Q6RSPiZlZDpAKAA/s320/Spore_2010-01-07_23-55-20.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424193422900513890" border="0" /></a>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-43178847125379189112009-12-14T13:56:00.000-08:002009-12-14T14:05:37.641-08:00CreatorTip: How to disguise gameplay objects as creatures<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ITYgKI9Z4fRu_CZp6618htF72wpxw1axrkIRoueeDUyhZq7t2dYAeXAFTLOyNNUuWXISgMXEoenQWqOu2dWByuRHLbEj4Gx3yVfprXYPdOPw3FreqMUzpLnVHMFJSpIt04NfDnUVsMU/s1600-h/Spore_2009-12-12_11-40-17.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ITYgKI9Z4fRu_CZp6618htF72wpxw1axrkIRoueeDUyhZq7t2dYAeXAFTLOyNNUuWXISgMXEoenQWqOu2dWByuRHLbEj4Gx3yVfprXYPdOPw3FreqMUzpLnVHMFJSpIt04NfDnUVsMU/s320/Spore_2009-12-12_11-40-17.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415214535999428674" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Many people keep asking about how to do this, after I created an adventure that feature "statues". These were actually Blue Gates disguised as creatures. You can disguise almost any object as a creature if you follow a few simple steps.<br /></div><br /><ol style="text-align: justify;"><li>Add a gate (or another disguisable object) to your gameplay objects page.</li><li>Click on the option to disguise it.</li><li>When the editor opens up the Sporepedia, instead of selecting a building or vehicle and clicking OK, choose a creation and click the <span style="font-style: italic;">edit </span>option (one of the bottom right buttons on the Sporepedia).</li><li>Inside the edit mode of the building or vehicle, click the Sporepedia button on the bottom left of the screen.</li><li>Use the Sporepedia filters to find the creature you want, choose it and again click the edit option.</li><li>Inside the edit mode of the creature, just click OK (the green "V" option).</li></ol><br />Voilá!Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-63317518688602420862009-09-08T17:24:00.000-07:002010-01-23T10:23:42.274-08:00F.A.QSince I keep getting the same questions on the comments for my creations, I've decided to post all the answers here. So here are the Frequently Asked Questions from my profile:<br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q. </span>"Can I edit this creation / Can I use this on an adventure I'm making?"<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">A.</span> Sure!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Q.</span> "How do you get that part on one side / How do you get it to be asymmetric?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A.</span> If you don't have patch 5.0 or a later patch, you will need a mod or a hacking program to do it. I don't have a link, but you can google it. If you have patch 5.0 or a newer one, you can do it by holding the "A" key on your keyboard and dragging a part to the creature or vehicle.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Q.</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"> "How do you get that mouth / How do you deform cell parts?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A.</span> There's a mod created by DarkDragon that lets you do that. It's called "cellparts xtended", and you can find it at <a href="http://www.sporemods.org/">sporemods.org</a>. I'm not sure if it's compatible with the latest patches. I haven't used it for a while...<br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q.</span> "What is that part?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. </span>If you really want to find out, just open the creation in the editor. You can find new uses for existing parts by distorting it to its limits or rotating it with the help of the "Tab" key.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q.</span> "How do you place that part inside the creature's body?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. </span>After GA and the recent patches, outfit parts started working differently. We can now stack parts on top of each other, meaning you can use a small part to position another pretty much anywhere. Try placing a ring on top of a "screw" part and rotating the screw so the ring appears to be around a creature's limb or body.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q. </span>"How do you make building parts float?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. </span>Just hold the "Ctrl" key and drag a part. Try the "Shift" key also, it's useful. While you're at it, check the in-game guides and the official video tutorials at the website. After that you'll probably stop asking questions that are common knowledge.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Q. </span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">"How do you tilt main building parts?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. </span>This one is a little harder. Place the part you want to tilt on top of a connector part, and rotate the connector by selecting it and holding the "Tab" key. Then you can move the part away from the connector (try dragging it while holding "Shift" or "Ctrl"), and you can delete the connector.<br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q.</span> "How do you access the Advanced A.I. options on the Adventure Editor?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A.</span> Open a creature's behavior panel by double-clicking it. Hold "Ctrl" and click one of the "personality buttons" (peaceful, neutral, mindless, territorial, aggressive). Voilá!<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Q.</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);"> "When I try to play one of your adventure it says I don't have the parts, but I have all the expansions, patches and packs. Are you using a hack or a mod?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A.</span> No, I'm not using any mods. It's just a bug. Try downloading the adventure again, I guess. I really don't have a solution for this.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Q. </span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">"How do you increase the points awarded by an adventure?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. </span>You can't. The game calculates the value by measuring how difficult (how many times people failed it) and how well rated it is. Try making short, hard adventures (so people can try it several times until they finish it), but make sure you have some plot and don't make it so hard it's frustrating for the players.<br /><br /><br />I'll add more answers whenever I remember more frequent questions.Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-23029126893286417952009-07-27T16:27:00.000-07:002010-03-25T12:21:47.445-07:00CreatorTip: Fooling around with 3d spore models<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3rcPrFkzPazg7UImBsy0cLC_xu4f0-cENiKR3LpHfNkxG0pkvHTZT4xGn9J7QU4xUfiANItVV3A6Em8LGY08xO86utO4JyUYYR42GkPhLUXdufMdPWJaf7awRMEsfW3O2xcR-ObQ1wxA/s1600-h/bauder.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3rcPrFkzPazg7UImBsy0cLC_xu4f0-cENiKR3LpHfNkxG0pkvHTZT4xGn9J7QU4xUfiANItVV3A6Em8LGY08xO86utO4JyUYYR42GkPhLUXdufMdPWJaf7awRMEsfW3O2xcR-ObQ1wxA/s400/bauder.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363286076577839282" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br />As everyone should know by now, the latest Spore patch added several new features to the game, such as the possibility of riding vehicles in adventures, in-built asymmetry for all editors, and a cool cheat that exports 3d models of your creatures in a format readable by most 3d modelling programs.<br /><br />You can get more detailed info <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/37155.page">here</a>, but to make it work you just need to enter the creature editor, go to Paint Mode and type "ctrl+shift+c" to enter the cheat "<span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">colladaexport</span>".<br /><br />That saves a collada file of your creation in the same folder your creatures are saved. You can then import it into a program such as Autodesk Maya. For those of us that don't have the skills to use or the access to Maya, I highly recommend a little program called FX Composer, that can be downloaded <a href="http://developer.download.nvidia.com/tools/FX_Composer/2.5/FX_Composer2_2.52.0319.1250.exe">here</a>.<br /><br />The FX Composer isn't as good as Maya, but it does let you do some cool stuff, like changing lighting effects...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVumXa9XboqQG_sQo5fXLveOMJTHPLjO-xyoXKrf3Q3888GhnhcfxhYLn4sug4BZ-p6o8TOFTQBDT1D9sREL30ouxTUZZMmp4QBMZDIKq-dv-oCsqf-jpURe6WH8tGKCNvdtiy7D2vZqk/s1600-h/kartikovian.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 299px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVumXa9XboqQG_sQo5fXLveOMJTHPLjO-xyoXKrf3Q3888GhnhcfxhYLn4sug4BZ-p6o8TOFTQBDT1D9sREL30ouxTUZZMmp4QBMZDIKq-dv-oCsqf-jpURe6WH8tGKCNvdtiy7D2vZqk/s400/kartikovian.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363286088056575298" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br />... switching textures ...<br /></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdCVWEtf3ErCcn0aPQPAKcus-8zsyH_xBBcBFAKopfsW-EgqOmiOkiOp6Z0dmrjb_FMujNWVgAFSymy-7VEffXwkUkzCyKFkWvvXmIiJ-WUV1UVqixiU2VXrOIspjchIxIfjRlbvFGL4A/s1600-h/metalbauder.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdCVWEtf3ErCcn0aPQPAKcus-8zsyH_xBBcBFAKopfsW-EgqOmiOkiOp6Z0dmrjb_FMujNWVgAFSymy-7VEffXwkUkzCyKFkWvvXmIiJ-WUV1UVqixiU2VXrOIspjchIxIfjRlbvFGL4A/s400/metalbauder.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363286091450397042" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br />... and placing several models together:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDqxcy8oN2wSnit0UjBSi-e1jWX41BzitCHkgzVImAhfkP2wNhdd7ZJClMr2Lm_wqWgyOJaHmSBfjfCcOl9yfURJwIDhVjsf5xk5eC3GzL0RdpjZH5_Pu01b_C1VMX9wSg_Gruwsi2rM/s1600-h/allies.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDqxcy8oN2wSnit0UjBSi-e1jWX41BzitCHkgzVImAhfkP2wNhdd7ZJClMr2Lm_wqWgyOJaHmSBfjfCcOl9yfURJwIDhVjsf5xk5eC3GzL0RdpjZH5_Pu01b_C1VMX9wSg_Gruwsi2rM/s400/allies.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363286077071139874" border="0" /></a></div><br />I'm still learning how to do the most basic stuff with the program, so I'm not sure if it's even possible to animate or to export a movie, but at least you can create some cool pics such as these:<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuJAcq0XfuPB-psyOefW7OhDH7Dj5MPwPBa6t46s3IQl9eVb5gT1lLJ2_y7ujr2B4ZqHnqQfvJP_iDXlFxV30yF_bnsY0_OiZHnFoiygHC88DKjP9ff7a9tpbZm13Uda0WAeycRrlLvHY/s1600-h/bot.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuJAcq0XfuPB-psyOefW7OhDH7Dj5MPwPBa6t46s3IQl9eVb5gT1lLJ2_y7ujr2B4ZqHnqQfvJP_iDXlFxV30yF_bnsY0_OiZHnFoiygHC88DKjP9ff7a9tpbZm13Uda0WAeycRrlLvHY/s400/bot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363286082582196994" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMi-1VaD666sVcYOU1MTl295Lv-vrF-FfiRO_HX6wDvjR0YTU6SoSuQDxPyLqXyZAsSD2Sk9s2axSq2cg1wBwP5XOCBAZtzHsqUA4RKwkv3mODVbQeneZAFxZV71XYFHplkijbNiKWNhQ/s1600-h/metallotron.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 367px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMi-1VaD666sVcYOU1MTl295Lv-vrF-FfiRO_HX6wDvjR0YTU6SoSuQDxPyLqXyZAsSD2Sk9s2axSq2cg1wBwP5XOCBAZtzHsqUA4RKwkv3mODVbQeneZAFxZV71XYFHplkijbNiKWNhQ/s400/metallotron.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363289388991870594" border="0" /></a></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-44752843637690434082009-07-09T14:36:00.000-07:002009-07-09T14:50:07.630-07:00Creator Tip: How awareness works with buildings<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytr3vRjtU6u-roNLj5RvoFWB_MHyZd30cHhux-d_HauXQnGTWqXjbH-m6Ftq-z2hVMFpHR1GX4SejI7_rsecjsCt3J4PPSEi3dlKh3nHgKOkhwZCAwxjqb12H94RajLUE08rOCfHtxK0/s1600-h/awareness1.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytr3vRjtU6u-roNLj5RvoFWB_MHyZd30cHhux-d_HauXQnGTWqXjbH-m6Ftq-z2hVMFpHR1GX4SejI7_rsecjsCt3J4PPSEi3dlKh3nHgKOkhwZCAwxjqb12H94RajLUE08rOCfHtxK0/s400/awareness1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356577657402853826" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br />DVDMaster at the <a href="http://forum.spore.com/jforum/posts/list/35255.page#1069941">official Spore forums</a> has made a discovery about how the awareness system of NPC creatures works with buildings in the adventures. Check the picture above. Numbers 1, 2 and 3 are buildings created separately. As should be expected, most of the creatures on the picture are able to see one another, with exceptions: A can see only B, because the buildings are on the way, for instance. But let's move to another example:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3pvlQYe4Dkla1czCbM9N47qRT9KA033PuhCJHhG-vcfOd-nY_p561Y8DnAXrotURm5B2xuX6fZ7wXepVJRbczxo1SBI_owdkZTrbQQARW-YLE739haYywgPafHOapLwe5sschPOPpYY/s1600-h/awareness2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3pvlQYe4Dkla1czCbM9N47qRT9KA033PuhCJHhG-vcfOd-nY_p561Y8DnAXrotURm5B2xuX6fZ7wXepVJRbczxo1SBI_owdkZTrbQQARW-YLE739haYywgPafHOapLwe5sschPOPpYY/s400/awareness2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356577658176237938" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />Here the building 4 is only one building, despite having the same shape of the two buildings from the previous example put together. There should be no change, right? Wrong!<br /><br />Now the creatures B and E can't see the C and D guys, and vice-versa. In fact, C and D can't even see each other, despite being side by side!<br /><br />DVDMaster has thought of an explanation for that, and his finding has been confirmed by the developers:<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0zaek3LpRsrFYVeplZI7vBvBUvLvzIK4bON9qWsPJ1nqr9bRjQZ1Ov34qbnjG5AJgyCVrWKC0Jj0wIOruCg8TFLJCmwQyUNP3aiIlVf7XDhRsXi7zhDTnx65pUQtSFmUtCAGuSR5NLPY/s1600-h/awareness3.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0zaek3LpRsrFYVeplZI7vBvBUvLvzIK4bON9qWsPJ1nqr9bRjQZ1Ov34qbnjG5AJgyCVrWKC0Jj0wIOruCg8TFLJCmwQyUNP3aiIlVf7XDhRsXi7zhDTnx65pUQtSFmUtCAGuSR5NLPY/s400/awareness3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356577665346989538" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br />Imagine there's an invisible box around each building, and that these boxes actually hide stuff that's behind them or inside them. It would explain why the C and D creatures are practically blind in the case shown.<br /><br />This happens because the game computes a bounding box that encases each building and uses it to determine awareness. The line-of-sight checkings are expensive, and Spore uses this solution in order to avoid taxing the machine's processor.<br /><br />This means that if you're planning to build interior spaces, you should create floors, walls and ceilings separately, or any creature put inside it won't be able to interact with objects or other creatures.Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-45405819074816845752009-07-09T13:51:00.000-07:002009-07-09T14:10:47.147-07:00Creator Tip: a few tips on making adventures<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/bigpic-1.png" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">1.</span></span><br />There's more to goals than just "kill N creatures". Make sure you experiment with the different kinds of goals. Extermination missions can get really boring, especially if there's no challenge, or if it's too challenging. No way to defeat that big boss other than getting all upgrades for the captain? Then your mission will be left aside until the player gets the upgrades, by the time he'll probably have forgotten it.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">2.</span></span><br />If you want to make your mission hard, make it short. That way, the player can try a few times before getting bored. It's highly frustrating to play a mission for 20, 30 minutes, and then be killed by an overpowerful NPC.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">3.</span></span><br />A longer mission can be hard, as long as the player can figure out a solution after playing and failing. Just making the enemies epic, with high attack and health points is pointless, unless you also give the player the tools to finish it, and ways to find out how to do it.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">4.</span></span><br />Remember that gameplay objects can be disguised - in other words, replaced by buildings or vehicles. This allows you to disguise a gate as a UFO, and have a parked spaceship, for instance. Also, remember you can set any object to appear/disappear only in certain acts, allowing for story development as the adventure progresses.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">5.</span></span><br />You may want to use the first act for a "talk to" goal. That way you can have a character explain what the mission is about. You can also give tips by the speech boxes on the behavior panels. This allows for some cool detective work, where the player clicks on an object on the groun and gets some info, without having to sacrifice a goal for that. It's very rewarding for the player when he can put together the pieces of a mystery.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">6.</span></span><br />Finally, remember to tag your adventure creations GAprop! That way they won't show up in the stages of the core game. It's really annoying to meet alien species called "The Mayor Bob Empire", and even worse to find cities made of wall parts and giant keys. Also remember that you can change the name of the creation in the adventure editor, without really affecting the creation outside the adventure. That way you could get one of your alien species and rename it to "Mayor Bob", for instance.<br /><br />Well, that's it for now, folks! More to come soon!<br /></div></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-83061224205542131532009-06-17T16:12:00.000-07:002009-06-17T16:22:29.093-07:00My first adventure is online!Last month I was invited to the Maxis Studios along with other 9 creators, and we had a chance to create our own adventures, as I've already talked about.<br /><br />And today the folks at Maxis uploaded the stuff we created to the online Sporepedia, meaning everyone can already check it out (though everyone will have to wait for Galactic Adventures to actually be able to play it. So far only Maxis employees and testers have their hands on it).<br /><br />Anyway, just click the image for the Sporepedia link. And be sure to check out the adventures created by the other campers!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Parkaboy%7C2262785743%3Asast-300001064913"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 322px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR6YTeCgH2-VxF5yejb8n2pfyHkqgjyxZwc2IItountt5x3w6bDvP6Fs8vCVITAG-PAxg2aIVi6B7II3BJjgSf7TBOXG7zrhcNJG4XoMKCFonfWSxdKA8FhPufq26J936vOEevktkZVR0/s400/Untitled-1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5348440501068860066" border="0" /></a></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-89573827784608972812009-05-18T06:21:00.000-07:002009-05-18T11:42:12.872-07:00Galactic Adventure Camp - mission log<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d175/CeeceWOW/Spore/thewholegroup_01.jpg" /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 1</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" >Goals: talk to MaxisCactus </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" ><br /> get a passport and a visa </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />So a few weeks ago I got an e-mail from MaxisCactus inviting me to join a few other creators for a 2 day event at the Maxis Studios in Emeryville, California, where we would play the upcoming Spore expansion pack Galactic Adventures, talk to the developers behind the game, and eat pizza. After I got over my initial reaction - thinking it was all an elaborate scheme from an international gang to steal my kidneys - I got really excited, and started making arrangements so I could attend and still keep my job (and hopefully, my kidneys).<br /><br />I'm from Brazil, so there was some stuff I had to take care of, such as getting a passport and an american visa. Thankfully I managed to get everything I needed on time - though the people from the U.S. consulate had a hard time believing that I was going California just to play a videogame, and I feared they would deny my request for the visa.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQzBz8rP1gpIXfSItLeUTMa3LnBMm8QKNjRD_TNNPA_SNjH3-CjSGRIfzyzbHQ09yHkaZloEWz2lGdrqupYgx4SIMLMjDsyQg1jnGhWTMLxjmIqTuzJMownvXnkuCKCWG4BXfMHeREuoc/s1600-h/sanfran.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQzBz8rP1gpIXfSItLeUTMa3LnBMm8QKNjRD_TNNPA_SNjH3-CjSGRIfzyzbHQ09yHkaZloEWz2lGdrqupYgx4SIMLMjDsyQg1jnGhWTMLxjmIqTuzJMownvXnkuCKCWG4BXfMHeREuoc/s400/sanfran.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337213729617286082" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 2</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" >Goals: get to Emeryville alive</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />Then I went on a 26 hours journey (counting all the waiting hours at airports, flight times and waiting for my baggage to appear). Unfortunately the EA travel coordinator had me booked on a fligh that would get me to San Francisco late for the first day of the event, and a few more delays (such as the shuttle from the airport leaving without me to Emeryville, but it eventually got back) meant that I would only get to Maxis by 2 PM, instead of 9 AM.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d175/CeeceWOW/Spore/Maxisofficedoor.jpg" /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 3</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" >Goals: get to the Maxis offices </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> get a sandwich</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >x</span><br /><br />So I arrived at Maxis, where I was greeted by Tammy (their sweet receptionist), MaxisCactus and Aaron (who were in charge of the event). They took me to the Aquarium, where the other 9 guys were already playing on neat Asus* laptops (oh, the blinking blue lights!). G3NJI, Fotosynthesis, Shattari, Masscolder, Gryphon57, dananddna, Slartibartfast38, Terry from TnT-Productions and Ceece were all there. They barely moved their eyes from the screens to greet me, but I guess that's easily understandable. I myself couldn't wait to get my hands on the Adventure Editor. MaxisCactus gave me a sandwich because I hadn't eaten anything since breakfest on Miami time, but I only ate half of it - that's how axious I was.<br /><br />* Well, I got an Asus poster and a t-shirt, so it doesn't hurt to advertise a little.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d175/CeeceWOW/Spore/DemofromKipKatsarelis_14.jpg" act="" 4="" my="" adventure="" login="" game="" play="" adventures="" at="" maxiscactus="" they="" re="" m="" itching="" load="" maxis="" made="" start="" twitching="" on="" editor="" bit="" different="" from="" what="" slight="" change="" tools="" are="" actually="" brushes="" be="" moved="" resized="" distorted="" wish="" had="" because="" take="" couple="" of="" hours="" get="" landscape="" feel="" real="" it="" s="" we="" probably="" make="" some="" loking="" planets="" using="" just="" sculpting="" the="" planet="" painting="" is="" a="" lot="" more="" complex="" yet="" not="" so="" hard="" than="" i="" choose="" colors="" for="" stuff="" like="" ocean="" and="" but="" you="" can="" also="" create="" very="" cool="" gradients="" that="" vary="" according="" to="" terrain="" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">Act 4</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Goals: create a planet for my adventure </span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> place down buildings, creatures, vehicles and other stuff </span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> use effects, sounds and behaviors</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />I login to the game and play a couple of adventures at MaxisCactus' suggestion. They're cool, but I'm itching to create. I load a Maxis-made planet to the editor, and start twitching it.<br /><br />The planet editor isn't exactly as I expected, so I have to make a few changes on my plans. The sculpting tools are actually brushes that can be placed, moved, rotated, resized and distorted - much like detail parts on a creature's body. It's all very versatile, but I wish we had more time, because it would probably take a couple of hours to get the planet looking like I wanted.<br /><br />The coloring options are a lot more complex (and yet easy to use) than I anticipated. Sure, you can change the colors of stuff like the ocean, atmosphere and beaches - but you can also create cool color gradients that vary according to terrain elevation. I think I could probably make a Death-Star-looking artificial planet just with the scuplting and painting brushes.<br /><br />The building placement is exactly what I was dreaming it would be. You have all the freedom you could wish to create detailed cities, placing things anywhere (the tab, ctrl and shift keys work just like on the building editor), resizing and combining stuff. I made a city inside a dome and a drilling camp that had cracked ice with real water inside the crack.<br /><br />The effects and sounds make it all even better, allowing us to create awesome visuals and ambiences. Oh, and the building textures may look blurry from far away, but as the hero approaches the stuff, it gets as detailed and clear as in the editor*.<br /><br />BTW, it's crucial to place the hero near the buildings and check them out in the Test Mode. For instance, we're placing buildings that have a flat base on a planet with a spherical surface - that creates a gap that you can only see from the surface, and you have to fix it by either creating a flat surface or by sinking the buildings on the ground a bit (holding shift).<br /><br />Every creation has behaviors that affect how they're going to, uh, behave during the adventure. You can set a creature's team or level of aggressiveness, you can change a building's hit points or set it to invincible, you can disguise game objects as any other stuff, and a lot more. What's coolest is that you can set the behaviors according to each act, wich means you can change behaviors from act to act, and even set a creation as invisible and effectively non-existent during some acts. The possibilities that smart combinations of behaviors offer is practically infinite.<br /><br />* that may vary according to your graphics card, though. Did I mentioned we were playing on awesome Asus laptops? Okay, enough advertising...<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3CQHSep4W8SrNV35qLf3WnaHJCJXIDSApxk1B-bK15U6rIREPplfGzlfCbLXkU91jn2qGxSmMckYVC29j-6KqpWqGOs4TlmiOO7i4hVZcni7En-rz-FBvtW6-45KcdMjDfOEVS5dbWk/s1600-h/welcometocamp.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3CQHSep4W8SrNV35qLf3WnaHJCJXIDSApxk1B-bK15U6rIREPplfGzlfCbLXkU91jn2qGxSmMckYVC29j-6KqpWqGOs4TlmiOO7i4hVZcni7En-rz-FBvtW6-45KcdMjDfOEVS5dbWk/s400/welcometocamp.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337213727751256642" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 5</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Goals: eat some mexican food </span></span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >X</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> chat with the campers and maxoids </span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> get some sleep, for Spode's sake!</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />By then the first day of the event had ended, and the Maxoids invited us to grab some mexican food with them. MaxisCactus drove me to the hotel first, so I cold check in and freshen up a bit before going to the Fresh Mex restaurant. It was awesome talking to the Maxis folks, they're really great people and they truly love this game as much as we do. i chatted a lot with Kip, Guillaume, Aaron, MaxisCactus - and also with Shattari, who kept drawing a creature during the dinner (I guess that's like a nicotine patch for editor-addicteds like us...). I actually forgot to eat, really (only had a couple of chicken wings). I finally crashed in the hotel room, and slept like a baby, or a rock, or like a baby rock. Or a rock baby. Sorry, I'm still a bit jetlagged...<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d175/CeeceWOW/Spore/OutsideMaxisOffice_03.jpg" /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 6</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Goals: walk to Maxis with MaxisCactus and the Adventure Campers </span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><span style="font-size:85%;">finish my adventure</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> eat a big chocolate chip cookie!</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />On the second day of the Camp we met at the entrance of the hotel and waited for MaxisCactus to arrive and guide us to the offices. We stopped to take a few pictures on everyone's cameras (check the one just above*). We arrived at the offices and had breakfest. We really didn't stopped for breakfest, we just grabbed all we could carry and went to the laptops.<br /><br />I put the finishing touches on my adventure (I had planned a simple one, so I was able to finish it on time), and played a few of ther Maxis adventures. Kip tested my adventure and was able to play it all the way through.<br /><br />We had sandwiches for lunch, and I ate a big chocolate chip cookie for dessert. I love cookies! I messed a bit with the advanced AI options and checked what other people were making. MaxisCactus showed us an adventure she had created, about "what really goes on in the Maxis offices at night", and showed us a few neat tricks with the image filters for the adventures.<br /><br />*I'm using mostly the pictures taken by Ceece or on her camera, since my camera is a bit old and my pictures didn't came out very good.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 465px; height: 465px;" src="http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/parkaboy/bauderfigurine.jpg" /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 7</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Goals: Watch a presentation by Chris Hecker </span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><span style="font-size:85%;">show off our adventures to the developers</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> have pizza and beer</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />By then MaxisCactus had announced we would have a surprise presentation by Chris Hecker. Too bad we can't really talk about it... We also got tons of gifts, such as a Maxis cup, a couple of t-shirts (including the "Made of matter, anti-matter and it doesn't matter" one I always wanted), and a poster with a rendered version of one of our creatures. But wait, it doesn't stop there! MaxisCactus had us follow her to a desk where little boxes were waiting for us with little figurines of our creations inside! You can check mine on the picture just above. And they also let us take home the spore mousepads we were using. Oh, and MC announced that we would receive the game at the release date! Come on, Maxis, you're spoiling us!<br /><br />A few of us showed off our adventures on the big demo screen. Shattari created a high-tech scenario (I believe it was called "Power Down"), where the hero had to jump between platforms to collect power ups. Looked good, but also pretty hard. I showed mine, and played through it with a captain made by Kip. Then dananddna used the captain I created to play his adventure called Mesocity, wich was awesome and really funny. And then Ceece showed off a colorful quest for her Floone. At the same time we were having beer and pizza with the developers.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Act 8</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Goals: eat some chineese food </span></span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >X</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><span style="font-size:85%;"> go to Telegraph Hill to take some pictures</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >X</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> fly back home</span></span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:arial;font-size:180%;" >v</span><br /><br />We tried to resist, but finally the Maxis people had to get rid of us, so we went back to the hotel. Those of us who weren't flying home that night went to the city by subway. There were four of us: Photosynthesis, Slartibartfast38, Shattari and me. Slarti got a map from MaxisKane, and we went to Chinatown to find him some chineese food. Unfortunately the restaurants that MK had suggested were all closed, so we kept walking. We got lost and couldn't find Telegraph Hill, so we ended up going back, grabbing a bit on a McDonalds, and riding the subway back to the hotel.<br /><br />And then the trip was over. I had to start another day long trip, arriving home in time to prepare for another day of work...<br /></div></div></div></div></div></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-18629114451298512152009-05-05T13:25:00.000-07:002010-03-25T12:22:07.757-07:00Galactic Adventures Challenge: Props for the upcoming Maxis Adventure Camp<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://ll-317.ea.com/spore/static/image/500/333/317/500333317068_lrg.png" /><br /></div><br />Next May 14th I'll be joining some of the top Spore creators on the <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Maxis Adventure Camp </span>at the Maxis studio, where we'll have the chance of creating our own adventures!<br /><br />I've been creating stuff in advance, but I'd like your help creating props for my first adventure! Create props that match the theme of my <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Parkaboy%7C2262785743%3Assc-500321907085">Red Planet Adventure Sporecast</a>, and tag it "gaprop". Submit by leaving a comment <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=sast-500333317068">here</a> with the link for the creation.<br /><br />I'm looking for props for a Mars like planet. Stuff that mach the theme ad style of the props I've created already. Here's a few examples of what I'm looking for: city props (garbage cans, lamps, decoration) matching the Bauder Red Stone buildings; sci-fi domes, also matching the Bauder set; other sci-fi props for a red desert planet with barely breatheable atmosphere; drilling equipment and arctic stuff for my Permafrost camp; etc.<br /><br />I'll choose a few and add to the Sporecast by next Saturday, and those props will be used on my adventure!<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">UPDATE:</span><br />I've chosen a few of the props peopel sent me and I added them to the sporecast, but unfortunately none of those (and a few of my own creations) were missing on the laptop they had reserved for me at the Camp. I ended up not being able to use those props on my adventure. I apologise to everyone that took part on the challenge, and hope they'll still be able to enjoy my modest adventure when it's uploaded by the time of the game's release.Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-54522905968802021322009-04-22T04:57:00.000-07:002009-04-22T05:43:50.349-07:00Parkaboy's building class: lesson 2<span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" >As I've said on the previous post, this is the "class" I'm teaching at the <a href="http://www.sporeuni.com/">University of Spore Creations</a> forums. Here goes the second lesson:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); font-family: arial;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" ><b><div align="center">LESSON 2: On styles, </div></b></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); font-family: arial;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" ><b><div align="center">symmetry and the basic building shape</div></b></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" >Let's move on! The main reference for this lesson is going to be this set, the Logian set:<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jn8q3i9MB7uCsgU84xVIUapuE5EJSq3TRhZGQoFwhe9ESrSUzN0PNA4SVBk4aLrqR_tLdyyUopjl9AupUQ714n660Ua-mk81k1OJtnX2oTBaUxD2NvlbNWD-KcdE-qMndJ2eZgcSEao/s1600-h/logiancity.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jn8q3i9MB7uCsgU84xVIUapuE5EJSq3TRhZGQoFwhe9ESrSUzN0PNA4SVBk4aLrqR_tLdyyUopjl9AupUQ714n660Ua-mk81k1OJtnX2oTBaUxD2NvlbNWD-KcdE-qMndJ2eZgcSEao/s400/logiancity.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327492372527081602" border="0" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" ><br />Shall we start?<br /><br />First of all, I must confess something. I'm an advocate of what I call "playable content". That means I like the content in my galaxy to make sense in the logic of the game. I usually only download creatures that look like creatures, buildings that look like buildings, and so on. I know there's a lot of laughter on flying around in a UFO shaped like a wheelchair, but I'm a sci-fi fan and I like to keep the nonsense to a minimum.<br /><br />That also mean I worry a bit about stuff like <b>scale</b>. I usually do this: whenever I create a new set of buildings, I test it on a saved game (on Civ or Space Stage), and check if the average creature could actually fit in those buildings, as well as how the set fits together. When making matching sets, this is very useful, so test before uploading (you don't even have to save the game, after all)!<br /><br /><b>Creating Matching Sets:</b><br />Well, there's at least four things I take into account when making a set:<br /><b>1-</b> Try to use the same style of parts on all buildings (we'll se more details on that below);<br /><b>2- </b>Try to use the same textures and colors, or use the "Paint Like" option;<br /><b>3-</b> Try to keep some variation. Use variations of the same shapes, or add specific details so we can tell the buildings apart, such as chimneys for factories;<br /><b>4- </b>Try to organize the buildings according to <b>size</b>. This depends on how you usually create the layout of your city, but the average Spore city will look better if the center buildings are taller than the peripheral ones. The City Hall is always in the center, so it should be taller. I normally put factories and entertainment in the middle and houses around the rim, so the houses should be shorter.<br /><br /><b>Styles:</b><br />Certain parts fit better together; a certain door is a better match for certain windows than others, for instance. Pay attention to the details on each part: some are kind of medieval, others are futuristic. Here are some examples:</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1fKfW4w48QklgolK0e1n4ofD1AYqKpJVbAIxsXO7S1M_REzSaC33dgvj53d4yjSW1UivBgQBMusuVeFcnLD0VcWOXYupNgowU1o67I80O5YTq9SQHsLc0VvNROde5mndmfXHrvyyehtg/s1600-h/user112_pic368_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1fKfW4w48QklgolK0e1n4ofD1AYqKpJVbAIxsXO7S1M_REzSaC33dgvj53d4yjSW1UivBgQBMusuVeFcnLD0VcWOXYupNgowU1o67I80O5YTq9SQHsLc0VvNROde5mndmfXHrvyyehtg/s400/user112_pic368_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327488877604995218" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjslomQ8E3mjAKv8ShCqKsNtnRlseYKd_MYOHLuUdEHEv4oenyEccvmeoqULslcu3iBk3EMC6XYCLA29hf2azeRkSpFLI5xb2gpBu9ifAEJ37EEqCpCJwjK3aAVdglR9ZSFjtx-0sbdcCc/s1600-h/user112_pic369_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjslomQ8E3mjAKv8ShCqKsNtnRlseYKd_MYOHLuUdEHEv4oenyEccvmeoqULslcu3iBk3EMC6XYCLA29hf2azeRkSpFLI5xb2gpBu9ifAEJ37EEqCpCJwjK3aAVdglR9ZSFjtx-0sbdcCc/s400/user112_pic369_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327488875827159122" border="0" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXI8rqH6fINTHVYH9Adb4T-QJ9kezAUD0VlDidgG8cf8S7BG0-pmc3AkFxZyYFKxEaTBvs9SzUsa4kQSl775UsmKDEji35jGfQ1tyqz2S86XZhkybu56mMVKG70H6JCy9TB5NSjm5aiA/s1600-h/user112_pic370_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXI8rqH6fINTHVYH9Adb4T-QJ9kezAUD0VlDidgG8cf8S7BG0-pmc3AkFxZyYFKxEaTBvs9SzUsa4kQSl775UsmKDEji35jGfQ1tyqz2S86XZhkybu56mMVKG70H6JCy9TB5NSjm5aiA/s400/user112_pic370_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327488878138951458" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1fKfW4w48QklgolK0e1n4ofD1AYqKpJVbAIxsXO7S1M_REzSaC33dgvj53d4yjSW1UivBgQBMusuVeFcnLD0VcWOXYupNgowU1o67I80O5YTq9SQHsLc0VvNROde5mndmfXHrvyyehtg/s1600-h/user112_pic368_1231868974_thumb.png"><br /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" >If you can't see it on the thumbnail, open it on the editor. There are many good combinations, so trust your gut. If you use the same types of parts for the entire set, you will increase the chance that the game will recognize those buildings as a set and use them together for NPC races (Matching colors and textures also help). <b>Symmetry</b> Notice the how the examples above are uninteresting as buildings. Well, they could look slightly better if I placed more details on the other faces, and not only in the front. This is very important when making City Halls; you don't want the centerpiece of your city to look dull from some angles. There are 3 main types of symmetry you should use:</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQmuHkIHznllkM-1x6jkriWrzjFBA9645d1T4kQ_FgoLFXaVnjB3Z1dbgAwmVttcOOCQTb_wWZYEAzlqiHFcDCEVFBVh8EE2VtA5yo3kui6R4bWpCPFMt8Cbi1CUJRFvupB5Z-7Kxuek/s1600-h/user112_pic371_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQmuHkIHznllkM-1x6jkriWrzjFBA9645d1T4kQ_FgoLFXaVnjB3Z1dbgAwmVttcOOCQTb_wWZYEAzlqiHFcDCEVFBVh8EE2VtA5yo3kui6R4bWpCPFMt8Cbi1CUJRFvupB5Z-7Kxuek/s400/user112_pic371_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327489794395868450" border="0" /> </a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNtI0Ug2TTmmPM-A5d52-jAOOXly1k_4RkepTH6xs6a3F9hTdFeElSou0sKMIHu3bRpsDFTGCaAe8fbYnPPpbP1Ybmwrr9sC157j5oZvWRv3pAp35KWbvQHCnXoW0hFPLkj1KfBTRWMw/s1600-h/user112_pic372_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNtI0Ug2TTmmPM-A5d52-jAOOXly1k_4RkepTH6xs6a3F9hTdFeElSou0sKMIHu3bRpsDFTGCaAe8fbYnPPpbP1Ybmwrr9sC157j5oZvWRv3pAp35KWbvQHCnXoW0hFPLkj1KfBTRWMw/s400/user112_pic372_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327489799009137346" border="0" /> </a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqorDKGSkZfIoCwnYNmUHnelVQQdIkQ-2Uwn9rHMVUOKSxIshXORgLpOqxSHTLYxLdi-qmHUJ7VtcPdBGcb2nxQyy0y15um8VUAvt1sLmUjQ1zQBO_1Y0kB_4ZL6pohN9nsUZ0RId-5A/s1600-h/user112_pic373_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqorDKGSkZfIoCwnYNmUHnelVQQdIkQ-2Uwn9rHMVUOKSxIshXORgLpOqxSHTLYxLdi-qmHUJ7VtcPdBGcb2nxQyy0y15um8VUAvt1sLmUjQ1zQBO_1Y0kB_4ZL6pohN9nsUZ0RId-5A/s400/user112_pic373_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327489797696082594" border="0" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" >The first one has equal opposite sides, meaning it has two types of faces. The second one has the front equal to the back, but different sides; it could also have equal sides, but the front different from the back; it has 3 types of faces. The third has only one type of face, meaning all of them are equal. All three types can be good choices, if you keep the building balanced. A version with four different faces is not recommended; usually it won't look good. It's not hard to make equal opposite sides, since parts like doors and window will "snap" to the opposite side of an already placed part, neatly aligned. <b>The basic building shape:</b> A good, conventional building often has 3 parts: a base, a "body" and a roof. You don't literally have to use roof parts to make a roof, for instance, but adding some details to the top of your building will improve it's appearance. The shape we were using in this class is kind of dull, though:</span> <span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp3zP9rtmfbCX-m74XNIR5b641R2l0j_wUQfxwMbZSgJobe6CpTOrO_4uCcXhRBVi2vsex87WJb7JtEfiIwwLOpdzJUSR5NTK4c2wVlmd5anIuCOj_cA-ytZR-grPU22odhTj6xJyjCdY/s1600-h/user112_pic374_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp3zP9rtmfbCX-m74XNIR5b641R2l0j_wUQfxwMbZSgJobe6CpTOrO_4uCcXhRBVi2vsex87WJb7JtEfiIwwLOpdzJUSR5NTK4c2wVlmd5anIuCOj_cA-ytZR-grPU22odhTj6xJyjCdY/s400/user112_pic374_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327491010436610786" border="0" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" >Of course some body parts or blocks are more detailed than this simple cubic shape. But we can make more interesting shapes if we don't stick with only a single block for the body. If you use several blocks of different heights and lenghts, and align them on the center of the original block, you can make something like this:</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-x5d5ZLPBUdm_lCbnQmGpflukknkLMFDXUezsey9xS3E0K4WW-fC3yLo4jJVv6h6feGAGJu0YZG5-ivhemx90BcI891j7vA9QS90t0i1Lw6tkFkxWq1vQ4Qcujo-0K5a9xfM4yzVbwi4/s1600-h/user112_pic375_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-x5d5ZLPBUdm_lCbnQmGpflukknkLMFDXUezsey9xS3E0K4WW-fC3yLo4jJVv6h6feGAGJu0YZG5-ivhemx90BcI891j7vA9QS90t0i1Lw6tkFkxWq1vQ4Qcujo-0K5a9xfM4yzVbwi4/s400/user112_pic375_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327491012180766482" border="0" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" >Looks already a bit better, doesn't it? You can improve it by using different types of blocks, though simpler ones are more easily combined. Just remember that the prettier buildings in real life aren't cubes. The building will look even better when windows and details are placed. But you can also use stacked blocks as pseudo windows (see the red parts on the picture below), just remember to use the "Ctrl" key for more control:</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0ZvfW9yf9EUPJ94GrXmI9vFJx-1mNa6hkfzvAupCi8YTnqr0erY792ezcUOwZ1qDhHf2JLw4t0RJHqqEZRvg6aqETQErGm04Xw2glBYuOtAcInZLdfwZ9jJQ7uucGkE_wRK7jZZRDIU/s1600-h/user112_pic376_1231868974_thumb.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 128px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht0ZvfW9yf9EUPJ94GrXmI9vFJx-1mNa6hkfzvAupCi8YTnqr0erY792ezcUOwZ1qDhHf2JLw4t0RJHqqEZRvg6aqETQErGm04Xw2glBYuOtAcInZLdfwZ9jJQ7uucGkE_wRK7jZZRDIU/s400/user112_pic376_1231868974_thumb.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327491011118591714" border="0" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">That's it for now!</span></span>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5657909912317247286.post-53393269920698861182009-04-15T09:09:00.000-07:002009-04-22T05:45:20.068-07:00Theme Set: Andeavor's Great Wall<span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" >In a couple of months the Galactic Adventures will be released, and players will have acess to the Adventure editor, wich allows you to place, resize and rotate any creation in scenarios called "adventure planets". That means creators can create complex structures - such as long walls - by combining buildings together. <a href="http://www.spore.com/view/profile/Andeavor">Andeavor</a>'s Great Wall is one of the best examples of the props being created in advance by the community. Check it out, end click the thumbnails for Sporepedia links:</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318759378"><img src="http://ll-759.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/759/500318759378.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318759420"><img src="http://ll-759.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/759/500318759420.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318760471"><img src="http://ll-760.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/760/500318760471.png" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318644926"><img src="http://ll-644.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/644/500318644926.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318760538"><img src="http://ll-760.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/760/500318760538.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318759445"><img src="http://ll-759.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/759/500318759445.png" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318760444"><img src="http://ll-760.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/760/500318760444.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318759463"><img src="http://ll-759.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/759/500318759463.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.spore.com/sporepedia#qry=usr-Andeavor%7C2260696154%3Asast-500318760498"><img src="http://ll-760.ea.com/spore/static/thumb/500/318/760/500318760498.png" /></a><br /></div>Parkaboyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10061645206614186095noreply@blogger.com0