I think you should allow people to free their keys if they don't want them anymore. This can help keep the namespace clean and perhaps reduce the number of GOKU32494752's around. I know I have quite a few old keys I never plan on using again I'd rather someone use them than allow them to waste namespace....
~X | |
Wow, I figured this was just a discussion about the number of keys... I had no idea it had quickly turned into a business model discussion.
My thoughts: Money for Dantom == Good. Barrier to getting new keys == Good. $5 == less than the cost of a supersized fast food meal, a movie in a first-run theater, or a paperback book. If extra keys actually are needed for development (They're not. They're convenient for initial testing, but nothing more.), then this will give people motivation to get serious about developing before they "take the plunge", which is also good. | |
If extra keys actually are needed for development (They're not. They're convenient for initial testing, but nothing more.), Yep, I agree wholeheartedly (or at least threequartersheartedly). If you play your cards right, you can make a temporary "AI" that simply runs the things you want to test on another mob -- for example, if you want to test a party system, it's a really easy matter to make a small verb that you can run to start the AI, which runs some verbs of its own (people need to remember that verbs can be called like procs) that test it joining your party and leaving your party. | |
And of course, for actual multiplayer testing, there's no substitute for actual multiple players. Other people don't know how the game is supposed to work, making them more likely to find bugs caused by players behaving unpredictably.
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You both make good points...but I still think that testing with several keys is critical.
Takikng Spuzzum's route would be a hassle, and still wouldn't work to totally replicate a player's behavior. I wouldn't be able to tell what they are seeing onscreen etc. As far as what Lexy (or Lesbian Assasin...I don't know what to call you!) said, I always do open testing before I release (as a matter of fact, this weekend I'm finally hosting an open beta test of the final version of DWO which I've been working on for the past few months). But there is no way I'd want to put up with having three other people to mess with when I'm fixing small problems and recompiling to test the battle system again every 30 seconds. Perhaps it's just that my coding habits/methods are way out of the norm...but if you want to see what I'm talking about, try and replicate the Dragon Warrior 4 battle system without using multiple keys for testing. (Now I'll wait as Spuzzum throws it together in less than an hour) | |
Personally, I feel you need to have multiple keys so you can test it all. But the battle system I want is rather difficult. And to do everything I really "want", I'll need extra keys. (By the way, anyone want to shell out $15 for me or give me old, unused keys?) My work may not be going well, but I've been very diligent. Maybe after going onver the demos and tutorials again I can succeed. But in any case, I wouldn't have been able to do it without haveing several keys and may have trouble continuing without getting more. (Also, does anyone know how you can add dimes to your accound without having a credit card?)
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Star313 wrote:
(Also, does anyone know how you can add dimes to your accound without having a credit card?) Click the Wallet link in the left-hand frame. Then choose the Fill Wallet option. There is a popup list with the many ways you can add money. Choose the one you want. | |
Not only is creating AI going to be a pain for different projects, but it doesn't help test multiple /clients either. It's not as if most BYOND testers are being paid. They are not going to wait around while the developer figures out how to get them on to test the actual game.
As Foomer, I would like a version of Air Mapster's idea of a testing key ([link]). At least one key different from the host would be a good thing. Tie it to the host's key and don't let it join any other games or post on any forums. Perhaps it could be limited to a local host. | |
*shows the calendar with the word "conquer"*