1 Sep 2010 - 14:49
Runescape Notifier For Chrome - Updates
Posted by Neo Avatars, Aug 26 2010, 05:23 AM in Coding
I've made a number of updates and improvements to the RuneScape Notifier for Chrome in the past week or so including speed improvements, news and notifications which can be seen in the comments.
Today's change brings another change, this time to the way in which the GE offers are displayed. Rather than being lines of text, it's been changed to be more visual and easier to pick things out at a glance. I'm not totally convinced about the colours myself (I've tried taking them from the in-game GE), so if anybody has any suggestions please say! 
The current UI - hovering over the GE status bars changes the displayed text
Notifications when it updates
Get the RuneScape Notifier for Chrome
Telmomarques Getting 120 Dungeoneering
Posted by Neo Avatars, Aug 22 2010, 05:24 PM in Big Achievements
^Followed by all 1200 people running to the south-west and causing the most epic lag I've ever experienced^ 
(note how there are so many people that I can see nobody who isn't on the same square as me)
The below pic was taken ~10 minutes later once things had calmed down a bit, I'd picked up to 5spf (seconds per frame) and people started picking on the various JMods around (Mango, Hayley, Spider, Williams, Alena, Scorpion, Mat K).
Pic of the cape (via @yakhunta and @Steve20058)...
Runescape Notifier For Chrome - Initial Release
Posted by Neo Avatars, Aug 20 2010, 04:07 PM in Coding
Yesterday Jagex announced a RuneScape Game Bar - a toolbar for IE, FF and Safari. Although there's the usual problem that it's a toolbar and toolbars always take up too much space for the functionality they provide, it does provide some interesting data relating to the GE and Activities. It also spawned a number of 'y no Chrome, u fail!!!' posts.
Well, toolbars are ick and us Chrome users have no desire to have an icky toolbar ruining our minimal UI. The Jagex devs realised this, so didn't give us the silly 1.7mb of bloat. 
They did, however, provide access to the data through the authorisation system and Chrome extensions have access to it, so I've spent the last day working out how to create Chrome extensions, the result being the...
RuneScape Notifier (for Chrome, not at all finished and contains known issues) 
The popup window (old pic, now also includes the latest RS news)
Notifications when things update
It's a Chrome extension that allows you access to the data that Jagex has provided for the other browsers. To get started, click 'Authorise' and follow the steps to allow your browser access to the data.
I've noticed that the data can be very slow to update (half an hour to say I killed Bork, 3 hours and waiting to tell me that Maple Logs have bought), however this is a problem at Jagex's end.
The extension fetches GE data every 5 minutes and will add a notification to the icon to say if any offers have completed. It will also fetch GE and activity data when you view the popup, meaning you may get blocked by Jagex for a few minutes if you open it up too regularly (causing things to look odd).
This initial version is designed to get the new data across and not a lot more, so there will be problems. If you do encounter anything odd, or think something could do with improving / adding, please leave a comment and I'll do my best to see what can be done about it. I think auto-updating is working, but I may be wrong.
Get it now (for Chrome, not at all finished and contains known issues)
Treasure Trail Update
Posted by Neo Avatars, Aug 17 2010, 03:01 PM in Observations
I've been doing a few Treasure Trails since the update to check how things are and whether the update achieved everything it should have done. I've killed Bork daily and had a single level 3 clue and the Skeletal Horror has dropped nilch, meaning I've not had a chance to try the elites, so this is my experience from a few level 3s and a level 2.
First off, I love how they send you off exploring into random locations. There have been a couple of clues where I've been wandering into the Wilderness or Kharazi Jungle (I can now find my way in without a guide 
) and been going to myself "this is actually pretty awesome". The landscapes in RS aren't at all epic, but a bit of imagination takes you part of the way there.
Next, some of the Uri (emote) clues are silly, requiring you to wear reasonably expensive items that you don't generally have knocking around your bank. Rune Platelegs, fine, but a Rune Warhammer? Have a couple of these clues in a trail and you've probably spent half your reward on things to take up bank space. I will mention that I like how the Gnome Robes, a required item, have the colours in their name, but other items such as a 'round red and black snelm', 'purple gloves' or 'green gnome boots' are hellish when considering abysmal name choices and undescriptive examines.
If there's one thing 'good' about Emote clues it's that the GE price limits mean many items are unbuyable and you have to find out how to make things yourself. (no that isn't good, and yes I do have a Splitbark Helm in my house!)
Reward-wise, I've had a few trails which have provided alch fodder, then one with gave an Addy Helm (g) and one with a Bandos Page plus Court Summons. Giving me 14 Meerkat scrolls and saying 'you get a TTrail item every time!!!!' is silly - they're not even alch fodder and are worthy only of the floor. I understand that the market shouldn't be flooded with nice things, but even Guthix Pages at 12k a pop were more exciting than a pile of Scrolls or arrows that I'll never look at.
Looking at the new rewards, I'm of the opinion that the new Rune God Armour should have been made F2P since otherwise it's fit for little other than storing in people's Costume Rooms. The masks look nice and the Blessed Dragonhide probably looks amazing (all the old sets did, so I'll keep this thought even though I've not seen any).
The big issue is that none of these are the big problem for me. If you do TTrails for the reward rather than as a distraction or diversion, you're silly, so the reliance on luck for rewards is a bit of a non-issue. The Uri clues are a pain in the backside, but learning how to make Snelms and other random items because the GE doesn't work as it should is kinda interesting. Begging for F2P things (as a P2Per) is also fairly pointless, so what's the big problem?
You can still get the same clue multiple times in a trail! 
It really ruins a trail when you get the same clue multiple times in a and leaving this in is plain irritating. The ability to get the same Slayer task twice in a row was removed because people complained and I really can't see how this is any less annoying. 
Treasure Trails are kinda fun, but getting the same clue multiple times in a trail can ruin it.
Europa
Posted by Neo Avatars, Aug 3 2010, 03:41 PM in Video and Music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fc56moy0poA (Europa ~ Globus)
Amazing.
Q&a Summary - Mods Ash And John A
Posted by Neo Avatars, Jul 25 2010, 07:16 AM in Forum Posts and Quotes
Two Q&A sessions in a week?
This is a summary of the, longer, forum Q&A session with Mods Ash and John A which happened on the 23rd July on 13-14-820-61340061.
The questions are in roughly the same order that they were answered, with a few moved around. I've also tried to leave out answers that were already known or any details relating to specific plot points.
Ash: For what it's worth, there are gazillions of things we could be doing at any moment, and many of them would be extremely popular but just won't happen because we were doing something else instead. Sometimes it's about which one got into development before a better idea came along, sometimes a job would involve getting Game Engine and Graphics to do lots of work too, etc. So when I say we've no plans to do something, I'm not trying to fob you off; it's generally the most honest answer that I can give.
Ash: We're very much aware that RuneScape's clan support is... lacking, to put it mildly. The Game Engine team is planning improvements, although I don't know exactly what. ...but it's a pretty high priority for Jagex.
Ash: They're extremely unlikely to be optional. Making a piece of kit appear differently to different players is rather hard, and causes more work for your computers trying to decide what to draw. The game engine doesn't even support it at the moment. So if some kit gets updated, unless it comes as two interchangeable items, I'm afraid you're going to have to get used to the new look. The GFX guys will try their hardest to make it awesome.
Ash: The plot wasn't concluded at the end of that quest, so it's definitely got to have a sequel. I don't know when that'll be, but I think Mod Tytn will be delighted to get his teeth into it. He likes writing epic quests, and I think he's rather good at them.
Ash: Our combat systems pick your readyanim based on the type of weapon. It doesn't have any flexibility about checking "but if it's a scimitar, and the player has this option enabled, use a different readyanim instead". While I could write such a thing fairly easily, it's an extra pile of checks to run every time you switch weapon, plus other times, and that's really bad for efficiency.
The good news is that the graphics engine is being updated in a way that will - among other changes - probably help with that bug where the tip of the scimitar kept vanishing. So it might be possible for an artist to put the animation back, once the engine change has happened.
Ash:Yes, they're all my ideas. Also the monkfish (although they were going to be haddock until Mod Mark asked for something more exciting).
John A: Actually I think the quest that most stressed me out was The Blood Pact. It's a small, simple quest, but it's also got to function as both a quest and a combat tutorial, and it might be one of the first things a player sees after starting the game for the first time so I felt it really had to sell the game.
Ash: More concerningly, it's very hard to do that kind of thing unless you have a computer that's responding REALLY well with a good connection. I prefer not to create content that's so prone to issues like that.
Actually, trolls are going to be involved in the next dwarf quest!
Earlier today I wrote some chat where you can try to argue with a crowd of angry dwarves...you'll find out why when the quest comes out.
The dwarf quest *might* come out near the end of this year, but it might not be until next year, it depends how things turn out.
Right now I'm working on the core quest code, getting the skeleton in place, which I'll add the polish to later.
The current plan (I don't know 100% this will happen) is for the troll rework to go out with the next dwarf quest. Because the next dwarf quest also involves trolls!
Ash: It was originally meant to be a goblin. Actually, it was originally meant to be a normal goblin wandering around his bedroom, but the GFX guys thought it'd be funnier if it were under his bed. I'm aware that it looks nothing like a goblin.
Ash: I think my best update is the ability to right-click on private messages you've received in order to reply to them. Not very exciting, but it's really useful to me. Mind you, I'm proud of monkfish and the Love Story quest too.
Ash: We're redesigning the player design screen that newbies see when they first create their accounts. The existing one is a bit plain, and Mod Massih R has designed something better. I'm helping him implement it. I guess that's not very exciting for you, but it's all I've got at the moment
Ash: Coming soon. Although there's not a lot of point in wandering around in casual clothes.
Ash: I'd expect so. Quests needn't always be happy-happy stories. I'm quite keen on getting the player emotionally involved in the game. Mind you, the player would have to be familiar with the deceased character for that to be effective, so it can't be done lightly.
Ash: Quests often appeal to the more solitary players, and people who don't have time for clan-activities and I would hate to see us alienate them with a quest they couldn't do.
John A: We're not planning this, no. I personally don't think the 'group quests' work very well. The game engine just isn't well suited to it. I'd rather write quests with companion NPCs.
Something like FTP3 feels like a good compromise since most of the quest is open and allows you to work with others if wanted. It's only once you reach the final battle that you enter an instance and are alone to face the final battle.
Ash: Oddly enough, hiring more staff is a right pain because you've then got to train them, and supervise their first couple of projects, and that takes up the time of experienced developers such as Mod Maz. Jagex is certainly happy to look at other ways of making money without squeezing RuneScapers (War of Legends?) but strangely however fast we hire developers, more are needed. And we're doing quite a lot of stuff that isn't so interesting, such as technical overhauls and newbie updates, and those occupy developer time too. Actually, I think QA is in even more dire need of extra staff than we are.
Ash: I must admit that most of it was not planned. He was originally going to be a retired, pious Saradominist who gave advice and mini-tasks. However, Paul Gower pointed out that his telescope was pointing at the bank - which just happens to be the way the window points - and that he looked like he was spying on the bank. So a few months later I did the bank robbery update.
The rest of his personality came from that, since he clearly isn't a good guy even though he looks a lot like one and talks like one. So while he may claim to be a Saradominist, he's clearly got his own interests at heart instead (and he possibly hasn't realised it).
John A: I personally would love to add a quest-replay feature to the game, and this is something I've pushed for within the team, but it's unlikely to ever happen. It would be quite a lot of work and there are lots of other things we think would be a better use of our time.
John A: Well...I'd like to say something, but I'm not sure how much I ought to say. I won't say anything about the requirements, but the current planned title is 'Tome Raider', and the quest involves breaking the white knight hero out of prison.
Ash: YES. And the Graphics team started already. I think they all got moved onto other projects though, such as Dungeoneering.
Ash: Not soon, no, but the storyline needs continuing. So one day it'll have to be done. The slightly embarrassing truth is that the code for Monkey Madness is so blinkin' complicated that no-one dares go near it.
John A: I hope it'll be unlocked someday, but I don't think it's in the near future, sorry.
Ash: He knows she doesn't take it seriously. (You can ask her about her religious tendencies if you like.) You, on the other hand, are rather more likely to get heavily involved with scary things like Zaros returning. Ahem.
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This is a fairly drastic summary, with a lot of things left out, so if you want to read the full Q&A, head over to 13-14-820-61340061 and enjoy lots more interesting information.
I'll end with a link to a song that provided inspiration for Zanik and is how John A imagines her voice to sound: Us ~ Regina Spektor
Twitter Q&a Summary - Mod Mark - Dungeoneering 1.5
Posted by Neo Avatars, Jul 22 2010, 01:03 PM in Forum Posts and Quotes
Today saw a Twitter Q&A session with Mod Mark. The main basis was supposed to be the Dungeoneering 1.5 update, but it naturally progressed slightly off-course and meandered onto other interesting subjects. As always, I've tried to keep the quoted sections to things that haven't been said before and / or are interesting. For a full transcript, see 16-17-381-61353070 where Moe Is 4210 has been awesome and posted one.
A: What do you mean, real bosses? My bosses are pretty darn tough! There are many more in the pipeline and the biggie on 60
[Mark]Q: when i say real bosses i mean ones out of daemonheim... bosses that drop naice st00fz
A: (Mwahahahahahahahhaaaaa) Yes!!! [Mark]
As for non-Daemonheim bosses, help me!
A: I hope so, but its not looking likely. Myreque is something I really wanted to update yearly too
[Mark]A: Good question! The answer is no, there are no links planned between the QC and diary gear [Mark]
A: Bankable monkeys! You rule! I haven't forgotten about you my beloved bankable monkeys. One day!! [Mark]
A: Were concepting some cool smithing things right now, but I have no idea when it might be ready for release. [Mark]
A: Hi, good question. We do have plans for a universal grouping system to cover all of the RS group activities in the future [Mark]
A: Dungeoneering is "The knowledge of the magiks used to create Daemonheim". Those magiks exist elsewhere
[Mark]A: (SPOILER ALERT) We are working on a quest that has monkeys in it! [Mark]
The next elf quest will probably take a while to appear. Firstly, the whole area needs a giant graphical overhaul like Zanaris had to make it look all sparkly and such. Prifddinas is also that giant project which will be done 'when graphics has time'. As well as needing graphics, it needs a content developer and it seems that Chris L is currently distracted by Dungeoneering. It appears that he's not quite as crucial to the project as Mods Trick or Liono (I'm probably wrong), so may be able to creep off and work on other things, but it's still something to delay the next elf quest by a few months.
As for a quest with monkeys, I have no idea what it'll contain. There have been a few quests involving monkeys, so it really could be anything.
A: The Dragonkin are coming and their vengeance will be mighty... [Mark]
Is Runescape Gameplay Engaging?
Posted by Neo Avatars, Jul 18 2010, 04:19 PM in Observations
I've been watching through the TotalHalibut Cataclysm videos and found them interesting. Yes, the commentary is fantastic, but the key point is that the gameplay itself is very watchable. I hadn't really picked up on this key point until watching the, rather dull, Dwarf starting zone video and the following came up in the commentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoNBCKwwHD0#t=14m01s
"I'm gonna speed up most if this and I'll let you see the little bits of storyline that are dumped in it otherwise there is nothing to watch. Use the Total Biscuit method of measuring whether or not a starting zone is any good. How much do I have to speed it up? Because if I have to speed it up a lot like this, indeed this segment right here, is a good 5 minutes or so.
If I have to speed it up that much then something is wrong with your starting zone. It is not engaging, it is repetitive and it's dull. Ideally what you'd want in a game like this is for every quest to be something that people would enjoy watching ie. it's got sufficient storyline, gimmicks or excitement to be watchable in video form. Now, of course, that's never gonna be the case, but it's something that you should aspire to."
Thinking about it, this quote is extremely true (replace 'starting zone' with 'game' to make it more generalised). Good gameplay is great to watch. It doesn't matter if you've never played a game before, good gameplay is exciting and makes you want to join in.
Looking at it from this angle, Runescape is horrendously dull. There are few who would sit through a 20 minute video of somebody doing a typical skilling activity, so it indicates that the core gameplay itself isn't as interesting as it should be. Quests and bosses, fine, they're a bit more interesting to watch, but the typical player doesn't spend the majority of their time doing these activities.
Set up a screen recorder. Log into Runescape, start doing something and record the game window until you log out. Come back the next day and watch through what you recorded. When you become bored, that's when you started grinding. Was it fun?
Epic Runescape Videos
Posted by Neo Avatars, Jul 16 2010, 10:55 AM in Video and Music
I've blogged about a couple of WoW videos that fall directly into the 'epic' category since they have a feel about them that makes you go 'omg, awesome!' at first sight. Since then, I've been looking for any Runescape videos that are truly epic and haven't come up trumps.
Does anybody know of any truly epic RS videos, bearing in mind the following...
- In general, rap or metal makes for a terrible soundtrack.
- Boss fights where people are standing still the whole battle are boring.
- Crashing other's events is not epic. It's idiocy.
General Graardor wants to be awesome!
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In other news, the new Jagex careers page has tabs that work like tabs!
...could use of location.hash so that the back button works and it's easier to link to specific sections be the next innovation?
on Runescape Notifier For Chrome - Updates