I'm Back Kinda

I'm back and half-running. After a string of bad luck, including not having the internet for 3 intolerable weeks and a serious bout of sinusitis for a week and a half (for which I finally relented and went to the doctor's for some antibiotics) - things should get back on track.

Another serious problem is Heliohost. That's where I hosted The Gladiator Project and co-hosted the RPG Maker Times Windowskins. The trouble is that it's proven itself as reliable as a chocolate fireguard. So I'll be terminating my account there and looking for somewhere else.

What I'm hoping for is to find somewhere reliable where I can host all of my projects and subsites. I've been using Wordpress for the majority of these side-blogs because of the additional versatility. However, RPG Maker Times will remain on Blogger, as I've been using it practically since its inception and it's still my favorite.

While I was "away", I did create a few more scripts - primarily while experimenting with a few things - which I'm hoping to put on another subsite along with the other scripts.

I'd like to put a load of tutorials online as well, but we'll have to see how that goes.

Extended Hiatus

I'll be taking off for a while - an undetermined amount of time, in fact. Fate can be a fickle mistress at the best of times, sometimes more so; she can be gracious and forgiving, rewarding greatly, or she can be cruel and unforgiving, taking things away. She has delivered the latter, so I'm taking a "timeout".

This means that, for a while at least, all projects and blogs, all RPG Maker updates, has had to be put on hold. At least until I've sorted through these vicissitudes.

Thanks go to all visitors, and thanks to all whose unswerving support and encouragement has meant that the following (and the other RPG Maker projects) can continue:

• The Gladiator Project
• Ars Mechanicum Genesis
• RPG Maker Times Windowskins
• RPG Maker Times FAQs

Be back soon.

Windowskins Repository Complete

The "Windowskins Repository" is now complete (or at least it will be today), containing all of the windowskins on RPG Maker Times.

This means that, while I will still feature some windowskins on RPG Maker Times, in the future most of the windowskins I create will be updated on the RPG Maker Windowskins repository blog, so be sure to either check the "Sister Blogs" section in the sidebar or subscribe to the newsletter to keep up to date.

I realised something, though: There are more RMVX windowskins than RMXP windowskins, so after today's update to transfer all of the windowskins here, I'll aim to implement one per day on RPG Maker Windowskins, this time for both RPG Makers.

Windowskins Repository

All of the windowskins for RMXP and RMVX have been collected and placed on the RPG Maker Windowskins blog. As more are available they'll also be added to here, conveniently in one place and categorised accordingly.

I expect to have a few more windowskins by the weekend - time permitting - for both RMXP and RMVX, once again using the nonpareil Hiper Windowskin Maker, which will create windowskins for both RPG Makers simultaneously.

The Gladiator Project - Redux Update #1

The official The Gladiator Project site has had a redesign - be sure to check it out and for all the latest updates as well.

Although progress has been slow, it's been steady. I started work on the actual gameplay already, including some of the minigames, and the flow doesn't stop there. To quote Jack London:

You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

So, beating this inspiration with a clava, stabbing it with a pilum and hacking at it with a gladius, TGP is going at full speed and it seems - for now - there's no stopping it.

This also means that I'll be dedicating a lot more time to it and its development, but will only be posting updates on the "official" site, with brief details here. To keep updated, as always, not only with updates on TGP but RPG Maker Times as well, interested parties can sign up for the regular newsletter.

The Gladiator Project - First Screenshots

Regular visitors will know already that The Gladiator Project Redux is underway, this time for RMXP. Progress has been slow but steady, so here are several screenshots. In time, I'll also have a video demo too when there's much more content and gameplay available.

Introduction

This is the introduction page, which uses Moghunter's Animated Title Screen (basic version). The current layered images are from the movie Gladiator but will change later. The menu commands are in Latinesque (the term I coined for the pieced-together Latin words), but moving the cursor up and down will display the English translation in the "help" box on the right.

Read more »

RPG Maker Times May Be Relocating

This is a notice to all visitors to RPG Maker Times. I may be relocating the blog to Wordpress. This is in light of the recent "Stop Badware" alerts, which have become the bane of my life and which are unfounded for this blog.

I've been using Blogger practically since the beginning and have had NO major problems with Google or Stop Badware in the past with this blog. So why now? Even with "cleaning" it and then waiting for another review, it will still not be resolved quickly or efficaciously.

I will "remove" the offending "badware" and reconfigure the widgets they link to, but if nothing has changed within a week from this post, then RPG Maker Times (and its companion sites) will be ported over to Wordpress, and in time the Blogger ones will be closed!

Most likely it's just my end and I'm the one being paranoid, but I may port over to Wordpress anyway, since Wordpress is much more versatile and is fast becoming my preferred bloghost now. If this is eventually the case, then this blog will most likely only contain resources - as those in the "Popular Posts" tab on the right hand side.

In The Name of Internet Paranoia

It seems that in the name of internet paranoia, this blog has been flagged as "badware" by Stop Badware, which is ABSOLUTE CRAP! There IS NO badware or other malware on here!

The culprit is apparently a group of Javascript files (used for some of the widgets) that apparently link to "flagged" sites. I am NOT responsible for links actually on that site, only for the content contained in the JS files, which only contains the code for the widgets.

I've submitted a review, but that'll take time. This happened last year as well but to my "business" website and as a result, I lost business. There was NO badware on that site either. By the time it was all cleared up, I closed the site; it had been "flagged" for too long.

Meantime I will be disabling that damn option in Firefox and keeping it off. And I'd recommend others do the same, since some of the sites that shouldn't be flagged are being flagged, simply because they contain a link to a link to a link that has some semblance of badware on it. And the badware message that is displayed because of it with the legendary "Get me out of here!" button is enough to place the fear of God into the nescient! It's just freaking ridiculous that they don't actually check the site FIRST before placing that overbearing, scaremongering message!

Ok, rant over! Hopefully it WILL be resolved soon, otherwise there will be hell to pay...again!

Tempus Fugit

I'm still around, though haven't been active with RPG Maker. I've been commissioned to design some websites, which has taken up most of my time. And so with deadlines looming, it's a race to get them finished before the end of the month.

In the mean time, here's the official Enterbrain RPG Maker site (in case you didn't already know about it): RPG Maker Series Official Website.

From here, you can purchase all three of their Makers:

• RPG Maker VX - $59.99
• RPG Maker XP - $29.99
• IG Maker - $59.99

I'd absolutely love to purchase the IG Maker but don't have enough funds yet. Since they accept Paypal now (they didn't in the past), I'll be saving up just to see what that's about.

And here's their official Facebook page.

I'm there too, if anyone's interested: Companion Wulf at Facebook or RPG Maker Times on Facebook.

That's it for another update, such as it is.

RPG Makers Update

I will no longer be supporting RM2K3 as actively as before, as the main focus will now be for RMXP and RMVX. Although I may still produce tutorial demos and mini-games for RM2K3, there won't be as many RM2K3-based tutorials; these will be primarily for the other RPG Makers.

I'm in the process of compiling the windowskins on RPG Maker Times and placing them on a separate blog. This will allow for easier access, including specific search keywords. Then, in the future, most of the windowskins will most likely be developed for both RMXP and RMVX. To view the windowskins at a glance, you can visit the RPG Maker Windowskins blog.

Since both of my projects are being developed simultaneously, updates are available on their separate sites and they will be revamped over the next few weeks. To keep up-to-date with the projects, click on the links below (and update any bookmarks accordingly):

• The Gladiator Project (Arena Gladiatorium - Projecta Gladiatore).
• Ars Mechanicum 1: Genesis (formerly Ars Magia)

Yes, Ars Magia has been officially renamed. This is to better reflect the nature of the game. It's actually gone back to its "grass roots", based on the previously named series of short-short stories I wrote, but integrated into the novella and game.

As always, to keep abreast of developments with the projects and blog updates, don't forget to subscribe to the newsfeeds or newsletter.