- What?!? Legacy GameMaker Version Updated - 24 September 2020
Lead developer here. I bit the bullet and purchased a copy of GameMaker Studio 2. It's something I vowed never to do, but I got curious and, well, that lead to my wallet being drained once again by YoyoGames. After I bought it, I got curious if I could even load up the old version of Fringes with it. Indeed I could! But it was brokey-wokey :( As always, new version of GameMaker = new bugs and changes have to be made. Sooooooo... I spent a couple of weeks tracking down bugs and updating functions, removing some problematic DLL files, and voila! we've got the latest version of Fringes of the GameMaker (Version 89). The previous releases before this update came packaged with version 71, the last known somewhat working copy I could find since GameMaker 1.2 was completely broken (which is why I feel I deserve a refund of $500!!). For those of you who aren't familiar with this project's histo…
- Is this project dead as a dodo? - 16 February 2019
I started working on this game about 4 or 5 years ago. I made it in GameMaker and it could only go so far before I couldn't deal with GameMaker anymore. Prior to working on Fringes, I was making a procedural space exploration game called Empire in the Sky in 2.5D. When that got too crazy to work on, I stopped and took a pause to learn more about graphics and game engine programming. I also thought it might be easier if I used a third party engine so I didn't get bogged down in "engine design" rather than "game design" ... Fast forward 3 years and I promised on the Space Game Junkie podcast #134 that I would be translating the GameMaker version (which you get along with the Lost Astronaut Game Engine version when you buy Fringes) into my own engine and start from scratch. Well, progress has been made, but the game isn't finished yet. What was done ? After appearing on the podcast, I spen…
- July 2018 Release - 8 July 2018
We've released a patch to speed up text display in the editor and overall game.
- Fringes of the Empire - Responsive Update - 31 May 2018
I'm pleased to announce a May 31 2018 Technical Update to Lost Astronaut's Fringes of the Empire on STEAM. Changes to the game itself: Character and away team members now have their names appear ALL CAPS What was done to the engine: minor cosmetic improvements to Interior Game View minor performance boost of Interior Game View the completion of updates to our 2d shader pipeline elimination of some crufty old GL code, and The game now properly renders at most landscape resolutions in 1920x1080 "retro" pixel depth. While the Game Framework can handle higher resolutions, we are already doing a lot of pixel doubling and don't want to waste screen bandwidth supporting modes directly at the wrong size. Update to responsive scaling method: 4K displays should be able to handle the same game as a 1K. I should also note that non-HD resolutions UHD, 1920x1200 and others should be just as fine as 1…
- Fringes of the Empire: April 2018 Update - 25 April 2018
This update of Fringes of the Empire is a maintenance release that enhances the experience for GPU users (required). Full screen anti-aliasing which was previously disabled has been fixed. Please let us know if performance has changed. We can only make this game great with feedback from our users. ːsteamsaltyː https://cdn.steampulse.org/steam/asset?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsteamcdn-a.akamaihd.net%2Fsteamcommunity%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fclans%2F10315354%2Fef6cdba5e63be734e679f4cb5edec7606fa88305.gif
- Version 0.5 STEAM SALE UPDATE - 1 June 2017
Version 0.5 Update has been pushed to Steam. What's new in this release: 6/28/2017 - STAR MAP - HYPERSPACE! - TRADE SCREEN - Updates to scripting language - Mouse bug fix when game was windowed - Trading Screen (works but doesn't actually trade) - Atlas Tileset Editor, a new way to make tiles quicker, without involving too many texture maps. This was the major editor feature. Atlas tiles are a way to generate VBOs of 2D tiles by using only grid geometries. Instead of needing to use an image editor to create a new tile or tile heightmap, you can now remix tiles from atlases -- so modders, and of course myself, can make tiles without needing to leave the editors - Major bug fix to prior data loading sequence - New data loading sequence with progress bar - Added our first alien character - Visual enhancements and bug fixes to Away Team screens - New font! (I know, I know, fascinating...)
- Version 0.5 STEAM SALE UPDATE - 1 June 2017
Version 0.5 Update has been pushed to Steam. What's new in this release: 6/28/2017 - STAR MAP - HYPERSPACE! - TRADE SCREEN - Updates to scripting language - Mouse bug fix when game was windowed - Trading Screen (works but doesn't actually trade) - Atlas Tileset Editor, a new way to make tiles quicker, without involving too many texture maps. This was the major editor feature. Atlas tiles are a way to generate VBOs of 2D tiles by using only grid geometries. Instead of needing to use an image editor to create a new tile or tile heightmap, you can now remix tiles from atlases -- so modders, and of course myself, can make tiles without needing to leave the editors - Major bug fix to prior data loading sequence - New data loading sequence with progress bar - Added our first alien character - Visual enhancements and bug fixes to Away Team screens - New font! (I know, I know, fascinating...)
- How to track this project as it develops in Early Access - 3 January 2017
Visit this Trello https://trello.com/b/u3pVj7hC/fringes-of-the-empire Our website http://lostastronaut.com/ Twitter http://twitter.com/LAGameStudio Where I will update you regarding various development aims. Things are progressing, but not everything can generate a .GIF on Twitter. Thank you so much for supporting this project in Early Access.
- How to track this project as it develops in Early Access - 3 January 2017
Visit this Trello https://trello.com/b/u3pVj7hC/fringes-of-the-empire Our website http://lostastronaut.com/ Twitter http://twitter.com/LAGameStudio Where I will update you regarding various development aims. Things are progressing, but not everything can generate a .GIF on Twitter. Thank you so much for supporting this project in Early Access.
- Just in time for Autumn and Winter Sales - 7 November 2016
Q4 2016 Update Hello everyone. Just in time for this Holiday Season, we're getting ready to see an update to Fringes! The new engine is coming along and I've almost made my goal for the year of having all of the editors complete. Things are evolving in the development pipeline. Why just a few weeks ago I was embarking on the Location editor, and now I've got that in the rear-view, and I'm happy to announce that the scripting language is nearly complete. Once that's done, we can make strides toward a better single player experience. It feels historic. Today was the day I began making the Title Screen. This is the first step toward New Character Generation, and the rest of the game. I've made exactly 3 presentations (the title intro, title screen loop and new game cut scene) entirely using the game itself. What before was a bunch of uncertainties is now a concise list of goals which will…
- Just in time for Autumn and Winter Sales - 7 November 2016
Q4 2016 Update Hello everyone. Just in time for this Holiday Season, we're getting ready to see an update to Fringes! The new engine is coming along and I've almost made my goal for the year of having all of the editors complete. Things are evolving in the development pipeline. Why just a few weeks ago I was embarking on the Location editor, and now I've got that in the rear-view, and I'm happy to announce that the scripting language is nearly complete. Once that's done, we can make strides toward a better single player experience. It feels historic. Today was the day I began making the Title Screen. This is the first step toward New Character Generation, and the rest of the game. I've made exactly 3 presentations (the title intro, title screen loop and new game cut scene) entirely using the game itself. What before was a bunch of uncertainties is now a concise list of goals which will…
- Falling into Outer Space - 20 August 2016
Autumn is around the corner and Lost Astronaut wants to thank recent purchasers of Fringes over the summer, without whose support this project would not be possible! Also, here is an update for the entire Lost Astronaut gamer community as to what's in store for Q3 and Q4 of 2016. Dev Diary: Making a game on your own is difficult and a lot of other things get in the way -- like your day job -- however I've found a little extra time over the next few weeks to take a look into the growing number of editor features. Basically, to build a game like this, you have to make the editors first, as a sort of plan or basic outline. Later, when developing the engine, the game itself, and its content, you can exploit data provided in the editors in predictable or unpredictable ways that allow for an interesting experience. My goal for 2016 is still firmly in developing additional features for these e…
- Falling into Outer Space - 20 August 2016
Autumn is around the corner and Lost Astronaut wants to thank recent purchasers of Fringes over the summer, without whose support this project would not be possible! Also, here is an update for the entire Lost Astronaut gamer community as to what's in store for Q3 and Q4 of 2016. Dev Diary: Making a game on your own is difficult and a lot of other things get in the way -- like your day job -- however I've found a little extra time over the next few weeks to take a look into the growing number of editor features. Basically, to build a game like this, you have to make the editors first, as a sort of plan or basic outline. Later, when developing the engine, the game itself, and its content, you can exploit data provided in the editors in predictable or unpredictable ways that allow for an interesting experience. My goal for 2016 is still firmly in developing additional features for these e…
- Charting the Route: Fringes March Madness Update Coming - 24 February 2016
Hello, my small but loyal fanbase... Fringes of the Empire is undergoing many exciting changes under the hood. This post is all about what it means for you. In March, I will release a new update that includes two options when starting the game: a) Play Game - which will play the game that has been available since launch date, made in GameMaker. b) Try out new engine - which will let you open up the new engine and editor. This is not the finished game! What's exciting is the "B" part, above. This means you are going to be able to -- SPOILER ALERT -- see the inner workings of Fringes of the Empire's vehicle system and "campaign editor". It won't be a finished game, and your work will probably not even save, but you can at least try it out and see how slow or fast it is going to be on your system. If you have feedback -- did it crash? was it fast or slow, did you see something you liked or…
- Charting the Route: Fringes March Madness Update Coming - 24 February 2016
Hello, my small but loyal fanbase... Fringes of the Empire is undergoing many exciting changes under the hood. This post is all about what it means for you. In March, I will release a new update that includes two options when starting the game: a) Play Game - which will play the game that has been available since launch date, made in GameMaker. b) Try out new engine - which will let you open up the new engine and editor. This is not the finished game! What's exciting is the "B" part, above. This means you are going to be able to -- SPOILER ALERT -- see the inner workings of Fringes of the Empire's vehicle system and "campaign editor". It won't be a finished game, and your work will probably not even save, but you can at least try it out and see how slow or fast it is going to be on your system. If you have feedback -- did it crash? was it fast or slow, did you see something you liked or…
- SpaceGameJunkie #134 - Trying out Fringes of the Empire - 31 December 2015
Hi! Fringes of the Empire was featured on SpaceGameJunkie Podcast #134 and I want to give a big THANKS to spacegamejunkie.com for covering my game. I had a really great time talking to the guys and there are some spoilers in there but it will help those who want to get more out of the Fringes Early Access release. I'm working toward an upcoming release in 2016 that will be with an entirely new engine! Expect more features, an editor, a way to mod, and just better stuff. I'm hoping this update will be in March, but it may be later in 2016. You know "when it's ready" -- this one will use a custom engine I've been developing for the past 8 years for the Windows API. Well, we had some video problems, but feel free to listen to the podcast! Watching it will be painful, but we talk shop, games, space epics and all sorts of fun insider gamer stuff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STXqTU8YOeI
- SpaceGameJunkie #134 - Trying out Fringes of the Empire - 31 December 2015
Hi! Fringes of the Empire was featured on SpaceGameJunkie Podcast #134 and I want to give a big THANKS to spacegamejunkie.com for covering my game. I had a really great time talking to the guys and there are some spoilers in there but it will help those who want to get more out of the Fringes Early Access release. I'm working toward an upcoming release in 2016 that will be with an entirely new engine! Expect more features, an editor, a way to mod, and just better stuff. I'm hoping this update will be in March, but it may be later in 2016. You know "when it's ready" -- this one will use a custom engine I've been developing for the past 8 years for the Windows API. Well, we had some video problems, but feel free to listen to the podcast! Watching it will be painful, but we talk shop, games, space epics and all sorts of fun insider gamer stuff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STXqTU8YOeI
- From the Developer: About this game and what's in store for Steam Early Access - 30 September 2015
Of course I'm writing this because I'm the lead developer behind Fringes of the Empire. But, I want to share with you, the gaming community, why you should support this game on Steam Early Access. First and foremost, this game is developed solely by one person, with the help of community members and close friends who test the game, all of the sweat is put in by me and me alone. And no, I don't work in the gaming industry right now, my day job is very different: I work in 3D Printing for Retail. Why support this game? Well, if you like 2D retro games, this is one. But moreover, this game is the artifact of my love of gaming and an attempt to bring it back to the classic games that I love. I will let you know though that as long as it remains Early Access, there will be bugs. Please don't fret! I will be updating the game at least once every month or two, and each time I'm going to focus…
- From the Developer: About this game and what's in store for Steam Early Access - 30 September 2015
Of course I'm writing this because I'm the lead developer behind Fringes of the Empire. But, I want to share with you, the gaming community, why you should support this game on Steam Early Access. First and foremost, this game is developed solely by one person, with the help of community members and close friends who test the game, all of the sweat is put in by me and me alone. And no, I don't work in the gaming industry right now, my day job is very different: I work in 3D Printing for Retail. Why support this game? Well, if you like 2D retro games, this is one. But moreover, this game is the artifact of my love of gaming and an attempt to bring it back to the classic games that I love. I will let you know though that as long as it remains Early Access, there will be bugs. Please don't fret! I will be updating the game at least once every month or two, and each time I'm going to focus…
