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I currently use libGDX as my framework of choice. It has some downsides in relation to XNA, including:
- Java instead of C# (lets face it, C# > Java most times)
- Not as featured in some areas, specifically in the 3d department
- Y-up coordinate system, however it's really easy to fix
- Of course, does not run on Xbox

However, it comes with several upsides:
- TRULY cross-platform: runs on Android, Windows, MacOS, HTML5, iOS and Linux with exactly the same code and same calls. You only need like 5 extra lines of code for each platform. Comes with a setup utility which sets up Eclipse projects automatically: Creates a project for the game which practically contains everything, and one project (that you won't need to change in most cases) for each platform, which simply calls the main project.
- Open-source, 100% free
- Is under constant development and improvement
- Good helper classes like a superior AssetManager (granted, I dislike some of the helper classes so I had to create my own)
- Other benefits I haven't explored yet, like a physics wrapper

XNA dying saddens me as well, as I did use it for the development of two games. But libGDX might be good news to some of you, particularly if you don't care about the more advanced 3D features of XNA. No, I don't work for libGDX nor have I any affilations with it

http://libgdx.badlogicgames.com/

Tetsuo: The Iron Man
[embed=425,349]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uROMTzJsfOI[/embed]

You're welcome. There are also two sequels.

It boils down to this: Prevent the users of your classes from making mistakes. Even if the user is just yourself. Always assume that he is a horrible human being who never reads the manual.

Now, you might be absolutely certain that a special attribute is safe without the need of a getter/setter, especially when it's a primitive type (e.g. an integer that holds the age of a person). Even so, using getters/setters is a good idea because not only does the code look more uniform, but you might need that functionality later. If you are using the member "age", but finally decide that you need accessors for safer access, you will have to change that everywhere you reference that. True story, it has happened, and it will also happen to you eventually.

Other languages like C# or Ceylon offer the ability to use Properties, which act like getters and setters except they are used like normal members. However, since the creators of Java assume that most Java developers are horrible human beings who hate the users of their classes, it doesn't support that feature so that it can't be abused.

To my experience, when someone self-proclaims themselves or their work as funny they fail to amuse me in the end. After 2 minutes into the video I saw that this is not an exception. I don't know how much I'd enjoy it if it wasn't advertised as funny or if I'd enjoy it at all, but it certainly doesn't help.

Anyway, why would you need $6,000 for this when a domain costs only a fraction of that money and you don't really need special hardware to do the job? Haven't you already been doing this for a while without the need of funding?

Well, if it helps, you could try out Connectify. It's a very handy software which converts your laptop into a wifi hotspot easily. If your laptop gets signal and it's near your desktop, you could use it as a hotspot and connect your desktop to it. I use it all the time in my university's labs where the ordinary signal is too weak for my phone.

I can be a girl if you want me to

I suppose my trolling detection sense was obscured by my passion

The main difference is that that C# is shit and C++ is not.

Why is it shit exactly? Have you ever seriously tried it, or are you prejudicial against it like I used to be?

On a related tone, having .h files, too many pointers, 3 different operators for scoping (".", "->" or "(*x)." and "::") and generally uglier syntax does look like shit scattered all over my otherwise sexy code.

C# is truly the greatest thing that ever happened to me.

I cannot hate Microsoft anymore after this.

It's not even just the dynamic memory allocation, there's a lot of things that come with it. It allows for amazing code design and abstraction among other things. And, if you are up to it, you can even have some manual control over memory allocation. I never actually tried it, so I don't know if you can overload the new and delete operators as well (as in C++).

Oh, and if you are familiar with the mono project, it IS cross-platform.

However, if you are serious about learning programming, I believe learning C++ is also essential. It helps you understand better how things work in the background and also lets you appreciate the magic of C# even more.

This is the kind of thread that I'm not sure whether I'm trolling or I'm being out-trolled.

[C:\My AGS Games\Journey of Iesir.zip]

Hey guys, can you tell us how our game plays? We could really use some feedback.

C:\My AGS Games\Journey of Iesir.zip

I like the music, but I can't figure out how to get past the demon chicken. Also, I find that the reference to tapestries is totally uncalled for.

Tip: Talk to Dr Fichstvelswagen for a hint! However, you have to get him to talk to you first Focus on finding his missing marble statue. I think the game is programmed so you can't defeat the chicken unless the good Dr tells you hoe to.

I am enjoying this thread too much. A huge thank you goes to veryweirdguy and everyone else who is contributing.

Keep it up everyone. Amuse me further!

Also, would it be better if this was moved to the Competitions & Activities forum? Just a small thought.

I'm stuck in the trophy room. What do I have to do?

I tried using my wand with the gargoyle statue and Dumbledore says "I should ask Grindelwald first." Ask him what? Whenever I speak with him there's not a new option or anything...

This is quite honestly the best game I've played since "Harry, Ron and their Stiff Wands".

Not my style of music, I'm afraid. Nor do I know anything about Indie Rock to know how it stands among other bands. However, as a musician-wannabe, I can try to provide some feedback.

General: Overall, I didn't like the production. I know this is just an EP and it is to be expected, but I feel it could benefit a lot from it. Besides that, I can't think of anything specific I'd want to change. At least it's not horrible or too loud or something like that, it's just that it could be much better if the instruments had more presence in the mix.

I like Sometimes and Spooks the most, but can't decide which is better. I feel they are the more unique songs from the list. I think I like them probably because they feel less linear than the rest. Obviously, I like the few progressive elements thrown around. My least favorite is Buy the Ticket, but I don't know why. I guess it's because it sounds more "normal" to me As for I Will Forget You, my criticism is that I feel like the vocals are harsher than they should be for that song.

I can at least tell that the songs aren't "cheap" like much of the music around. I like the riff duo between the guitar and the bass. It's very well done, especially in Spooks.

I wish you and your band best luck!

I never actually had a lot of fun with Duke Nukem 3d.

I liked the design of the levels and stuff like that, but the actual battle wasn't fun. I don't know how to describe it exactly, but it wasn't as challenging and rewarding as Quake. In D3d if felt like the enemies were just there to fill space. Evading enemy projectiles or the enemies themselves, how they reacted to your ammunition etc worked much better in Quake, which has much better action.

As for DNF...
I tried it out, and I didn't like it. I wasn't even prepared to not like it, I lowered my standards to a realistic level and I still expected more. The battle is just crappy and boring. Maybe I'll play a bit more and see if it gets better.

Also, maybe it's just me, but a lot of the interactivity that comes in games like this (such as being able to pick up poo and throw it around) is totally unnecessary and gimmicky when it doesn't add anything to the gameplay.

Edit:

I finished it today. The problem with the game is not that over 12 years of development are unjustified, but because it's, at best, a mediocre gameplay experience. There weren't any memorable moments... Winning fights wasn't satisfying and the fights themselves were repetitive and challenge-less. Well, I admit I did have fun eventually. I even chuckled at a few jokes .

I've not seen this in any review I've read, but I have noticed elements of conflicted design. The whole thing about recharging health seems to have been added much later in the development. For example, in some levels there were things like electricity jumping that you had to time to pass through... Getting hit by electricity costed health, sure, but why should I care if I'm still going to recharge? Note that there weren't any enemies whenever you had to go through things like this. These kinds of damaging obstacles were boring because they were there just to be there.

Being able to carry only two weapons is more annoying than I thought, but most of the time I was carrying the shotgun and the ripper because they are the only weapons you actually need in this game (aside from the RPG/Devastator which are the only weapons that can be used against bosses). But you rarely get a chance with the shrinker  or the freeze ray.  The fact that I couldn't save up the 10 shrink bullets for later because I could only carry 2 weapons made the weapon seem like it was there just for nostalgia value. Same goes for the freeze ray. It actually recharges but it's too short and depletes too early for large fights, so it's actually quite useless.

I did find the shrink parts interesting. It was probably the only unique thing about the game, even though it also existed in D3d. Fighting behind cans and sauce jars or using toasters as a means to jump and reach a high shelf made me wish the whole game was like that.

To sum up, the game felt rushed (!) and that it wanted to be much bigger. It's lacking what the developers themselves actually wanted, but they wrapped it up in a lesser package and shipped it away. However, it does provide some fun and it's worth playing just for nostalgia and curiosity.

The game being released is different than the game they've been working on for over 15 years. Not only has it been restarted multiple times, but a different company took over its development about a year ago. I assume the game we'll get now has practically been in production for only two or three years or something like that.

If you had tried it before, then most likely yes. The link is STILL there, but I don't know if it still works.

I'm saying this because when I ordered it the remaining time was -17 hours. Of course, I didn't notice the '-' sign and proceeded with the purchase. I only noticed it when I visited the same link later to show someone and it said -40 hours left. However, I now have a valid pro license!

It looks like it's specifically geared towards character modelling and animation, so I don't think it will be very useful to an architect. However, $10 is not a big deal and there's little to lose. I threw in $40 for the Pro version, and I'll probably not regret this.

Metal wins!