Marks Universe

A few things have been settled upon; namely, a name (!), the domain name, and a few game-specifics. The server will be the C++ server I wrote, and the front-end is Flash Player 9 using Actionscript 3 with Flex 2.0. That’s what this Blog will continue to focus on, so stay tuned!

As it happens, I’m now looking into previewing the Flex 3.0 pre-release beta. I was reluctant - mainly because I’ve only been learning AS3/Flex 2.0 for a few days - but figured that it could be benefitial to move over now, rather than trying to port a mammoth application later on! I will keep you posted whether or not I am successful!

I’ve fixed a huge memory leak in the game - which was causing IE or Firefox to crash, at worse case, or use up vast amounts of memory (and swap file, of course) at best. That means that the game no longer drastically slows down after a short while of scrolling around the map. Plus, a clipping problem where stars overlapped planets is now fixed, and shouldn’t come back again.

The chat window has been officially (and probably permanently) scrapped - it didn’t fit, and doesn’t fit the logic of the game, either. That’s not to say there won’t be communication - in fact it’s one of the biggest factors - but not in a ‘chat room’ sense. Imagine broadcasting messages to nearby ships, and communicating directly with single ships or planets - that’s where we’re going. A full chat room doesn’t fit - plus opens us up to moderation, advertising, etc etc. I want the game to be very ‘natural’ inside - so, punishment will be dished out by the games Police, an actual set of units operating within the game like everyone else. Plus, there’ll be mercinaries available to hire to carry out your own dirty work, and I’d imagine there’ll be a fair few interesting characters to meet along the way.

Lest we not forget - this is an MMORPG but with a few significant twists.