Small fixes9:10 PM 1/3/2013

A small update released that should fix crashes related to full inventory. Crash dumps as well as some network logs are now saved to Corneroids folder /User/AppData/Roaming/. Thanks to your feedback I have identified a lot of bugs and will now start fixing them! :)

The next big update is all about space! I'm going to rework how space is implemented in Corneroids to allow bigger distances, bigger asteroids/planets and to remove the speed limit!

Mikko

Corneroids 1.2.0 released!5:42 PM 12/31/2012

Corneroids multiplayer update is finally here! Installer is not available yet so please check that you have XNA Framework redistributable 3.1 and NET framework 3.5 installed.

Old saves are not compatible, but dont delete them yet since I'm planning to create a converter to update them!

Disclaimer
Please keep in mind that this is the very first release of multiplayer mode. The game is everything but bug free so it really is an alpha release :)! Here is a list of known issues:
1. Network connection fails somehow and game fails to receive any updates from other players. I haven't been able to reproduce this in a long time.
2. There is a chance that container falls out of sync if it is being used by many players simultaneously.
3. "Player * has connected" notification shows a wrong name for the new player.
4. Projectiles are not synchronized at all between client and server.

I also made some small bug fixes:
- Items are being thrown in stacks now (so it is feasible to shoot containers)
- Input is not being updated anymore if Corneroids is not active
- Unsupported characters (letters) wont crash the game anymore
- Center of mass fixed for blocks with bigger bounds than the actual model
- Beacons wont disappear anymore - Players can fit 1x1x1 areas now

Please keep sending me feedback to feedback(at)Corneroids.com! I still haven't had time to answer all emails but I will evantually do so :).

Mikko

Tomorrow is the day!11:42 PM 12/30/2012

My initial goal was to release the first version of multiplayer mode this year and I'm going to keep it! So tomorrow somewhere around 18.00 (CET+02:00) I'm releasing version 1.2.0 which contains the brand new multiplayer mode and some other bug fixes.

Please keep in mind that this is the very first release and it has a lot of bugs. I did final tests today and everything went great, but it is still possible that the game will crash and you will lose hours of work!

Here is a short list of main features:

- Works exactly as the singleplayer mode but without enemies
- Custom itemsets and textures are supported. No predownloading required!
- No registeration, accounts nor active internet connection required!
- Some features such as enemies and beacons remain unimplemented in mp mode.
- Collision detection and response improved but ramming can still send you spinning around.
- No dedicated servers yet :(. Its not difficult for me to implement one to work in windows environment, but support for other OS requires a lot of work.
- Player cap is soft-limited to 8 players for now.
- Many known issues and bugs!

Overall I'm satisfied with the code I've written although it requires a lot of optimization. I'm mostly concerned about the memory usage and the pressure put on garbage collector since I didn't have time to implement proper data pooling. That's why I'm going to spend next few weeks fixing bugs and improving performance.

Please check out these few screenshots I took during last tests. Player model is still missing so I used that purple thingie as a placeholder :).

I met few of my friends.
We gathered some materials for new space ships.
Anamana managed to build a quite good looking (but not agile) ship.
You shouldn't stare at the eyes of Jusa's ship for too long x)
Head to head collision is first thing to do of course. It didn't end up too well.
The only space battle took only few seconds...
...because Anamana gave up after few hits took out his ship's ability to rotate.

Happy new year!

Mikko

Twitter account11:26 PM 12/17/2012

Now it's possible to follow me on twitter for latest updates and developement progress! (The developement is doing fine, dont worry!)

I'm also trying to answer all emails as soon as possible!

Mikko

State update4:54 PM 12/4/2012

I've been quite busy for last few weeks. Yesterday I managed to finish the entity transaction from server to client operation which means that only core feature left is the enemy management. I'm still having some strange synchronization issues with player state updates and consistency of projectiles needs some additonal work too, but otherwise the multiplayer mode is actually playable already :).

I try to answer all emails I've recieved as soon as possible!

Mikko

The future11:40 PM 11/19/2012

The update frequency of Corneroids has been really slow since the multiplayer mode requires so much work. I want to make it as bug free as possible before releasing it to public.

But what happens after the multiplayer patch? The answer is: MUCH more content and more frequently! Corneroids is just a sandbox game atm but I want to make the space worth exploring! Artificial gravity and more diverse space are my top priorities for the first content patch.

I will upload some new pics soon! =)

Mikko

Few thoughts on the upcoming multiplayer mode12:47 AM 11/13/2012

Programming of a multiplayer game is a real challenge. Suddenly everything becomes asynchronous but it has to work in sync with other machines across the network. I never thought it would require this much work, but this is why love programming: overcoming obstacles, learning new things and creating great games! :)

The multiplayer mode of Corneroids is coming along really well. I just finished the first iteration of method for transferring entity data over network. In the end of this week I will most probably have entities with working consoles and guns transferred over network!

But I'm still struggling with the greatest challenge of network programming: how to keep things synchronized? For example entity data is outdated the very moment it arrives to a client. Making a stable and robust base for multiplayer requires a lot of work so I cant give any dates yet, but I'll keep you updated. :)

Mikko

Feedback email is working again!12:31 AM 11/5/2012

Mikko

New version released (1.0.5)9:02 PM 11/1/2012

Fixed beacons, new container block type, easier crafting and some other small fixes. Unfortunately old save files are not supported in this version :(. Itemsets can remain unchanged. Only binary version updated!Mikko

Beacons are bugged, dont use them!4:00 PM 11/1/2012

There is a serious bug in the game which duplicates your beacons every time you load a game. Fix is on the way!Mikko

Email problems and few pics8:48 PM 10/30/2012

Feedback email is not working at the moment, I'm working on it.
Meanwhile... New block typeMikko

Some lifesigns after a long period of silence!10.28.2012 01:38

Hello! It is great to hear that so many people have enjoyed the game so far! The latest version of Corneroids was finished to meet the deadline of Assembly 2012 GameDev competition which means that many gameplay features were done in few weeks. But dont worry, the developement is doing great even though I haven't been able to update these websites in a looooong time! In next few patches I'm going to concentrate on improving gameplay elements, for example crafting system is getting reworked completely. I'm also planning to release a some kind of multiplayer mode before the end of this year.

I've spent so much time tracking down bugs in Corneroids, but I've heard that there are still few of them left. I'd like to hear any game breaking bugs you have encountered so far, especially ones that have appeared after hours of playing or after loading an existing world. You can report bugs by sending me email feedback (at) corneroids.com. You can also send me a compressed version (*.zip) of your save file (please dont send very large files!) that is unplayable because of slowdowns or other crashes.

Thank you for playing Corneroids! I'll be uploading new pics and features soon! :) Mikko

Header1.1.2012 13:37

ContentMikko