Mobile Ideas (Mad Scientist Stuff)
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PeckerWoods
Peckerwoods was my first idea after the popularity of Creepy Ouija. It's theme I have to leave you to guess from the title. So far it has involved research into complex game AI and further into multi-level AI with an aim to give a better player experience. I then became distracted by testing the limits of interactive 3D, I like most people thought that it would not work so well on mobile devices. And I like most people was wrong. Testing showed me that performance while having a limit is just as good as 2D and user interaction within the environment you create works well. The 3D community has exceptional tools going under-utilized. But this is when I had to call a halt to Peckerwoods as it was obvious that I would be heading down a rabbit hole of information I sadly did not have time for. It is still on my wish list and will hopefully be resurrected in the not distant future.
It has lead me to looking into low cost quick development commercial uses for 3D mobile apps in Education and Sales.
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The Galley Drummer
Ah another App idea that I thought would be something quick and easy I could do in my spare time as it was using knowledge I already had. The funny part was not the build taking up time but the research into Ancient Mediterranean History, ports, cultures, timelines, galleys, music etc etc etc. I thought I knew enough to gloss over the details but I was wrong :) It's probably because of a career in education that I could not sell out the details to what is to be as much a story driven game as the mechanics. But again this project while having the core built had to go on hold so I can build up funds to do it properly.
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Astral Plane
Learning from the above two projects I decided that I'd flesh out the concept of Astral Plane a lot more. I guess I was learning what it was truly like to be a client for the first time. I did identify some tech I could have a little fun with, server to mobile communication. I did research Socket Connections and still think they would be the best solution however due to server costs resigned to standard server communication. Which made me modify gameplay in a way that if the funds became available it would be a simple switch over.
The next technical challenge was how to have the server and server based AI know where everyone was, I devised a collapsing grid format so all connected players are pushed towards the center of the grid(Where the AI is ) as the AI while not the primary part of the game it had to fill the gap for low user counts and initiated events. Still in the concept stage and holding off on going beyond that until I can address the above and as always commercial comes first :(
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Familiar Voices
Another concept idea came about as many of my friends start to have children. I was at first shocked that young children were using mobile devices, but on more thought realised mobile is just replacing the TV. It came to me first that early educational tools would help children greatly and prepare them for formal education. What really inspired me was considering the work I had done with Creepy Ouija(Dynamically loading audio and attaching it to user events) and Free Deck(Loading and storing external data sources from a server onto all mobile devices and desktops then reloading them) that a parent could record their own voice to replace the in App default audio the child could learn with the voice of their own parent(s). I am yet to test the idea, but everything I have researched says audio recording has long be solved only the amount of data stored has to be tested. I love this idea but it sits 4th on the que.
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Clock Builder
Ok this just came to me while sourcing artwork for this page and maybe because I wanted to be a jeweller when I grew up. I have no confidence in anyone else liking the idea, but personally think the building of a clock movement in an App would be so much fun and so frustrating. You could start off building a very simple movement and get more advanced. The payoff would be when you are finally successfully hearing the first tick-tock :) Then seeing it actually keep time. Eh the title of this page does say "Mad Scientist Stuff" maybe do this one in the future when I'm in a retirement home :)