Game File: 

my browsing history.html

This is a slideshow of images I have browsed online recently

Game File: 

Exposure_PirateKart.rar

The title pretty much says it, a game about how depressive the situation is in the Arab world.

Game File: 

Neurozone.zip

Two pages I made for my Neocities page for the WOO WOO WOO Let's Make Webpages!!! Jam
I was gonna do more but been doing other stuff, so here are a couple of strange, minimal, photobash pages
You can see the rest of my website which I remade recently, before the jam!! please do!!

During a Twitter conversation about the current state of Glorious Trainwrecks, an idea suddenly dawned on me: if the site, as it is, is badly designed, and this is hurting site participation, why not just go ahead and do a rewrite?

While we could just upgrade to the latest Drupal, there are several reasons why that is a terrible idea:

- Drupal is written in PHP. PHP is a terrible language.
- Drupal has too much complexity, and this bleeds into both the user experience and site maintenance. A lot of Drupal's abstractions are aimed at trying to be useful for many different configurations, but makes managing all of them more confusing.
- Despite these abstractions, Drupal doesn't provide what we need out of the box. There's already a significant amount of hackery in this place to incorporate a list of registered games, and it took multiple attempts to get it working with events. This would have to be done all over again if we were to upgrade to a newer Drupal, and this is made harder by the fact that, again, PHP is a terrible language.

Instead, I would like to focus on creating what I'd like to call a "creative content system". This will be a CMS-like system where everyone can participate by default. While typical CMSs like Drupal allow for this, it seems like they are primarily aimed at things like organizational websites rather than open participation communities. This will be software that anyone can install on their web server, especially since SpindleyQ has always wanted something in the form of a "Glorious Trainwrecks kit" for other gamedev groups to set up and host their own Klik of the Month Klubs or whatever. However, I would also like to design this around Glorious Trainwrecks and its needs.

Additionally, when I refer to "creating content", I mean all kinds of media, including art, music, games, or whatever. Hence when I talk of functionality you'll see me refer to "creations" rather than, say, "games". I want to make something that artists working in other mediums can use, too.

For the sake of ease of use and cleanliness, I am going for a simpler design. I can always add more bells and whistles later, but this way we can start off on a clean slate. Here is what I currently have in mind:

- The main page will be the Activity Stream, even when browsing as a guest. This will be similar in function to the "Recent changes" page already on this site (for those who prefer "Recent posts", I might add a "new content only" toggle or something to that effect). Only here, it would be much richer, since it would provide image previews and a synopsis of each post inline. In fact, think of it as a combination of "Recent changes" and the Newest Games list currently in GT's sidebar, or a combination of a community hub and a social network (except not really). You will be able to filter by different types of content, or switch to an index list view for archive viewing purposes.
- All content is created in the form of a "Post". A Post may either be a "Communication" (which I need a better name for) which serves as a blog/journal post, a "Creation", or an "Event".
- A "Creation" can be media of any type that the site provides. For example, a site might choose to support both "Music" and "Game" type Creations, and the user would select which one to use. While I am not aiming for a very pluggable/customizable system for version 1.0, I would at least like to make the Creation types customizable.
- Events are displayed at the top of the main page, above the Activity Stream, to draw attention to upcoming and current Events. In the case of lots of Events, the system will select a few at random, and provide an "All Events" link to view the rest.
- Site staff can "pin" posts to the top of the Activity Stream for site announcements and the likes.
- All Posts can be assigned to one or more tags/categories. The site configuration can define one or more "categories" for each post type, which are like "official" tags that are always presented to the user during post creation.
- Users get basic profiles including username, avatar, homepage link, and a list of all of their posts.
- Users can also send private messages to one another.

Because I am aiming for a relatively simple system, there are some features that won't appear. Namely:

- There is no wiki, or at least there probably won't be a wiki in the initial version. If at all. I just think a lot of CMSs try to do everything and end up only doing a few of these things well. This project is not like that. I'm not even sure how a wiki would fit in with the user experience I have in mind.
- There are no forums. If you think about it, Communication (blog) posts are basically the same thing: a user can post something to start a topic, and assign it to a tag/category and it will show up if filtering activity by tag/category. Users can comment on it like one would reply to a forum topic. So really, I think it makes all the sense in the world to not have forums. It would just be pointless duplication.

The project itself will be a webapp written in Python. I think I should be able to handle it - I'll be using a "microframework" with extensions for things like SQLAlchemy for DB access (I kind of doubt this project will see any deployment on sites large enough to need something as scalable as a NoSQL-type DB), and OAuth (so that users can log in with Twitter).

Also, I really enjoy designing things and I think this is a pretty good design so far, but I'm worried the UX might be too radically different from what GT currently has. Also, I might have missed a thing or two. Please provide some feedback, if you can. Again, I want to base a lot of the design off of GT's needs, so it's important that I get to hear some opinions from other GTers. I do not currently have any UI mockups, but I'd like to make some soon so that I can better illustrate the design I'm going for.

One last thing: Since this is software that I don't intend to be limited exclusively to Glorious Trainwrecks, we'll have to think about other sites as well. GT has a super great community full of nice people, but not all communities are like this. Much of the design revolves around assuming good faith instead of expecting people to misbehave. I have been thinking of adding in admin-configurable limitations (such as each user only being able to host three events at a time, etc.) as well as the ability to remove EG. posting permissions from problematic users. Right now I feel like I'm trying to straddle the line between creating something aimed at super nice communities like GT vs increased adoption elsewhere in not-so-happy climates. Thoughts?

Game File: 

zzGhostieGoesToHeaven.zip

Ghostie is finally at peace, and is on his way to Heaven! Enjoy the afterlife, friend!

Controls: Arrow Keys

Game File: 

badpirate-macpc.zip

Bad Pirate is a game about being piratey for high score!

Mac and PC builds are included.
You can play the browser version here: http://deadpanda.com/badpirate

OH HELL YES

Lots of good stuff in this latest update! Try it out!

1. Project support! This is an important step to keeping all of the drawings for a particular game together.
2. ANSI animation editing! You can now create a second type of drawing, called a "sprite", which is a small animation. It's still a bit rough, but it's already buckets of fun.
3. Smiley faces! Because they work with SyncTERM, and I'm long past caring whether this stuff works with clients that aren't SyncTERM.
4. Some small usability improvements in the drawing selection lobby.

I've been very fortunate in how I make a living. I am paid by my day job to develop custom curriculum, and then teach others what I've designed. As time has gone on, I've been able to integrate game-making (both tabletop and video games) into the curriculum I develop, resulting in some interesting - and still effective - methods of teaching. I wanted to briefly showcase some of that work here, roughly in chronological order.

1. Street Sign Bingo

It all started here. As part of our CDL training module, I created a "bingo caller" focusing on the different street signs one would encounter on the road, some of which being of greater significance for those driving the larger, heavier commercial vehicles. We played this in the classroom. I facilitated the calling while clients each had their own unique bingo card with phrases that matched up with the images displayed on-screen.

2. Pre-Trip Inspection: Front of the Bus

Then the pandemic happened. In order to keep our training going, I scrambled to find ways to adapt the curriculum to an online, "virtual classroom" format. This was my first attempt. It contains a rudimentary menu interface, full voice narration, and a graphical point-and-click display.

3. Virtual Self-Paced Lectures

I also digitized many of the classroom lecture elements. Although there were hands-on activities interspersed with the lectures, I had to cut many of them out (until I could develop their online versions). The good news is that most of the lecture materials were relatively brief, and when the user can control the pace of the lecture itself, they can speed-through or repeat segments as desired.

4. Virtual Port Tour

Our organization also does industry training for material handling and logistics. I pivoted from the CDL training into our warehouse and logistics training due to time constraints: CDL companies weren't hiring at the outset of the pandemic due to most public transit and schools being temporarily shut down. On the flip side, mail order and shipping of manufactured goods comparatively skyrocketed, and we wanted to make sure our clients could still find some kind of work to help make ends meet. This activity was an orientation to the various shipping terminals found in the town where we operate (Baltimore, Maryland, USA).

5. Cars Versus Forklifts

I started having a little fun with this one. It's also the most arcade-like game I've created to date. There are two stages, each one featuring a different vehicle the player must navigate around a course of traffic cones with a birds-eye view. The goal is to help the player internalize the different ways to pilot both a car and a counter-balanced forklift: each having different methods of control. We don't have a vehicle fleet available for our clients to train with, but this was my attempt at bridging that gap and preparing them as best I could.

6. How to Get It There

In addition to material handling, we provide an introduction to freight forwarding and route-planning. This is, in essence managing how goods are moved from one place to another. This activity allows the player to consider various modes of transportation, and which would be most-effective for their current cargo. Shipments can range from hundreds of tons of coal, to live animals, to industrial-size rolls of paper, and even an emergency human heart transplant.

7a. Alan and His Broken-Down Bus

With most of the material handling & logistics curriculum sorted, I shifted again to the CDL training - which is experiencing limited re-opening and hiring. I developed this particular activity to allow a player to test their knowledge on where to place emergency signal devices (like flares and emergency triangle signs) on the road when their vehicle breaks down. There are three scenarios, each with different placements required. I provided full voice narration and even hints to assist the player - as this is rather dense, industry-specific information.

7b. Screenshot of Alan

Here's a small piece of art I included in the emergency triangle game, to set the scene. I use this character a lot in the games I make, and I grin every time I'm able to sneak it in somewhere. For some foggy reason, I think the character design (at least the face) is actually inspired - if not outright stolen - from a comic strip in "Cracked" magazine, which I read a lot in my youth. The name "Alan" is my personal default name for any random guy, and has now been immortalized here.

8. Passcode Interface

Finally, I wanted to include my "passcode" screen (I've omitted details of my day job with those black squares). This was one of my first developments when assembling even the concept of online training. I wanted to be able to "lock" the training away from the general public when required. The coding here (or rather, event structure, as I use Clickteam Fusion and not an actual coding language) allows me to use any six-digit code I want as a pass code to the software. Unless someone inputs the proper code, they won't have access. I'm surprised this actually works.

I'm surprised at my output and the end results of all of this actually, and I'm proud of what I've done so far. I stress that I am not a trained programmer, I am not a trained artist, and I am not even a trained educator. At the same time, I am technically considered a professional in all these areas, because I am paid to do them.

It was only opportunity that granted me license to do this. Looking at it one way: I had to learn it "on my feet," as curiosity and necessity provided. I also had to learn to use and implement the Moodle "virtual classroom" on the fly, and found ways to integrate lectures, quizzes, videos (some I made, some copped from YouTube), and these online activities in a package that covers a broad range of industry knowledge, while keeping things engaging by providing a variety of different methods.

My main point in mentioning all this, I suppose, is to invite you to do the same thing with your own skills and talents. I'm confident in my belief that, if someone like me can be fueled and fortified primarily by "gusto" to take care of business, then those of you who are not just curious, not just driven, but actually trained to use software tools can certainly thrive in times like these.

Take it from one no-talent white guy in his early 40's who - by stumbling from one minor success to the next - has helped hundreds of people and their families: go do the thing. You'll be surprised by what you can accomplish.

PS: I'd be completely remiss if I didn't mention Eric Matyas at SoundImage. He provides 2,000+ high quality music files for use in your projects, with no cost required. His music is sprinkled liberally through nearly every single project I've done since December 2019. I strongly recommend you check him out, and support his work with financial contributions.

https://soundimage.org

Game File: 

letters.zip

Letters to the editor are annoyingly predictable.

also: you can change the text config files if you like

The Klik of the Month Klub meets right here on this very website on the third Saturday of every month at 4pm Pacific Time (taking daylight savings into consideration) for a two hour Klik & Play Showdown. Everyone who participates gets two hours to create something from scratch in Klik & Play. Abusing the stock objects is encouraged. If you really loathe Klik & Play you can use whatever game development platform you want. Two hours is a pretty tight time limit, though, so choose wisely!

Klik & Play is absolutely free to download, and learning it takes minutes, so everyone can get in on the action.

Want to talk to your fellow Klikwreckers? Join us on IRC -- server irc.freenode.net, channel #glorioustrainwrecks. We've also got a Mumble voice chat server -- just connect to glorioustrainwrecks.com using Mumble and you can talk to us like real human beings! Join the mayhem!

After you've made your game, you should upload it here!

For more information, check out the KotM N00B FAQ.

Sign up below if you want to get reminded by email the day before the klikkening begins!

Games made for Klik of the Month Klub #48

9 games made!
View a random selection
RSS Feed

Name	Created	By	Screenshot	Comments
Ax Relax	06/18/2011 - 18:22	ExciteMike		4
Beautiful Experience Harder: Beautiful Glacier Experience	06/18/2011 - 18:09	Zecks		4
Billy and the Cloneasaurus	06/18/2011 - 23:55	Rynen10K		5
Daddy I'm Scared	06/18/2011 - 11:05	L		9
defective	06/18/2011 - 18:43	sergiocornaga		6
Diamond Snake Jogger	06/18/2011 - 20:00	Danni		3
learnworms	06/18/2011 - 18:17	kirkjerk		2
PACE DANGER DELUXE	06/18/2011 - 17:48	genericusr		4
paintworms	06/18/2011 - 18:14	kirkjerk		3