"A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

General discussion for topics related to the FreeBASIC project or its community.
Post Reply
Lachie Dazdarian
Posts: 2338
Joined: May 31, 2005 9:59
Location: Croatia
Contact:

"A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

Post by Lachie Dazdarian »

EDIT 19.12.18.:
Due the overwheling support for my idea, I'm officially starting the competition today. Please check my post below. You can use this thread to submit your entries all the way up to 4th of February 2019, 18:00 GMT, as well as the thread in FBGD forum.


EDIT 18.02.19.:
Round one of the competiton is closed since 11th of Feb, and currently the official entries are being evaluated. You can download them all here: http://games.freebasic.net/forum/index.php?topic=626.0

Hey! Long time no see, guys. Really sorry for disappearing.

This is a duplicate thread of a similar one in my forum.

Some of you remember me as the curator of FBGD and organizer and sponsor of cash prize FB game dev competitions from 2008 up till 2014.

I'm planning to organize one FINAL FreeBASIC game dev competition, at least one organized by me, and I would like to check out the pulse of the people who still linger around the community, if they would be interested to participate. It would probably last for about 3 months and be FREEBASIC themed. You know, like a FreeBASIC horse fighting C++ robots. It's up to your imagination and ingeniousity. In other words, it would be an hommage to FreeBASIC thematically, besides entries being programmed in FreeBASIC.

I am funding the first place prize with 200 USD, and second with 50 USD. If anyone is willing to beef up the prize pool, let me know.

Anyway, would love to hear what do you think of my idea. It's a chance for everyone to either give their final farewell to FreeBASIC (those who left or seldom visit, including me; like a farewell they always wanted to give but never saw a way to do it meaningfully), or simply express love for all FreeBASIC gave to them in the past, for how many years? You could call it "A Love Letter to FreeBASIC" game dev competition.

Would love to hear what you think about this guys.
Last edited by Lachie Dazdarian on Feb 18, 2019 0:25, edited 12 times in total.
Landeel
Posts: 777
Joined: Jan 25, 2007 10:32
Location: Brazil
Contact:

Re: Another game dev competition?

Post by Landeel »

That's awesome, dude. Of course you can count me in.
FreeBASIC itself as theme will be fun.
badidea
Posts: 2586
Joined: May 24, 2007 22:10
Location: The Netherlands

Re: Another game dev competition?

Post by badidea »

Three months is nice. This competition could be enough motivation for me to actually finish a game.
Not sure yet how to implement the theme...

Got my horse ready :-)
Image
anonymous1337
Posts: 5494
Joined: Sep 12, 2005 20:06
Location: California

Re: Another game dev competition?

Post by anonymous1337 »

I think I'll actually get in on this. I have PTO in November and December. I could dedicate a few full-time days to this compo. I like the theme. Whether we like it or not, a lot of the Qmunity has moved on. Even if it's not really farewell, it might be the last FreeBASIC-dominant compo we do.

I have some ideas on how we can re-ignite the fire, but honestly guys it's more likely to happen on FBGD. If you haven't signed up at FBGD yet, do so please: http://games.freebasic.net/forum/index.php?topic=621.0

Lachie has a bit more leverage to do cool things there, and he and I have collaborated on http://games.freebasic.net/ in the past. He definitely puts more time into it, and I'm thankful for that.

I'll add $200 to this if it continues getting good traction. I of course won't be eligible for any prizes if I contribute to the bounty - but I guess that depends on how many other people are willing to put in cash. We can probably setup a transparent voting system if it really comes down to that.

Anyways, an extra $200 would lead to a nice $250, $100, $50 split + two $25 honorary mentions. This is a compromise between Lachie and I. He wants a higher first prize (I assume to encourage competitiveness), and I want a wider prize pool (to encourage participation and feel-good vibes). If more cash comes in, we'll re-evaluate both the prize pool and voting methods.
BasicCoder2
Posts: 3906
Joined: Jan 01, 2009 7:03
Location: Australia

Re: Another game dev competition?

Post by BasicCoder2 »

Lachie Dazdarian wrote: It would probably last for about 3 months and be FREEBASIC themed. You know, like a FreeBASIC horse fighting C++ robots. It's up to your imagination and ingeniosity .
In the past it has been the inability to invent a game around the themes required that has inhibited my participation.
Lachie Dazdarian
Posts: 2338
Joined: May 31, 2005 9:59
Location: Croatia
Contact:

Re: Another game dev competition?

Post by Lachie Dazdarian »

The idea is for the compo only to be "restricted" thematically, not gameplay-mechanics wise.

So you will simply have to find a way to reference to FreeBASIC in your game, somehow, anyhow, to be eligible.

But compared to FBGD previous competitions, this one will be the most loose in that sense.
Lachie Dazdarian
Posts: 2338
Joined: May 31, 2005 9:59
Location: Croatia
Contact:

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 350 $ 1st prize

Post by Lachie Dazdarian »

The competition is officialy ON!

The competition entries should be developed as a homage, a love letter to the very compiler/community, or as a final farewell, depending on the sentiments of the entrant, both hopefully being accepted as legit, by all participants and followers of the competition.

A LOVE LETTERImageTO FREEBASIC

Summary:
The objective in this competition is to create a game that is your expression of love and appreciation toward FreeBASIC and the FreeBASIC community, as appreciation for the positive impact it had on you as a person.

Competition rules:
* the entry must reference FreeBASIC in some way, the FreeBASIC community, or its members (it can be more or less related to gameplay, a backdrop, a vague theme, you can toy with the horse mascot for example, make a cyberpunk RPG where you hack using FB, you name it, …)
* the entry must be compiled in FreeBASIC
* source code must be provided with the entry
* all libraries wrapped for FreeBASIC are allowed (FBgfx, GL2D, OpenGL, SDL, ...)
* the competition entries must be submitted via email or in this thread before the 11th of February 2019, 18:00 GMT
* the winner will receive 1000 $ cash prize paid via PayPal or Bitcoin or Etherium; the 2nd place holder will receive a 700 $ cash prize, 3rd 400 $, 4th 200 $ and 5th 100 $
* in case of donations during the course of the competition, prizes will be increased
* all entries will be evaluated by competition sponsors (those who forked their own cash), while one category will be based on community votes
* teams are allowed
* non-original work MUST be credited (music, graphics, story, ...)

Scoring details (as with the last competition):
Game design (35 points max): The emphasis in this category will be on how much the theme is expressed in the game overall.
Gameplay (15 points max): In this category I will evaluate how much the game is fun and challenging to play.
Progression (6 Points max): In this category I will evaluate the progression in the game (is it present and how much it enhances the play experience). This will be used to award the entries that feature more depth in comparison to those that don't feature it.
Replay Value (6 Points max)
Graphics (7 points max)
Sound/music (7 points max)
Personal likeness (from 4 to 6 points max)
Community vote (up to 10 points): Depends on the number of entries. I'll try to separate the entries with at least 2 points, depending on their final placement in community vote.

I encourage everyone to share their WIP, but if worried about sharing concepts/ideas before the deadline, I think all would appreciate at least some vague info on what you are working on and the progress.

We will also organize a second round for those who will not manage to complete their entries for round one. Round two will last until 18th of March, and the only condition is that you don't submit anything for round one. Round two first prize is 300 USD, second prize is 100 USD.

Official competition thread (entries posted in this thread will be accepted as well): http://games.freebasic.net/forum/index.php?topic=623.0
Last edited by Lachie Dazdarian on Jan 27, 2019 23:20, edited 8 times in total.
Imortis
Moderator
Posts: 1923
Joined: Jun 02, 2005 15:10
Location: USA
Contact:

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by Imortis »

I am going to try to participate here. I have never managed to finish any game I started working on but I want to try this. FB has been part of my life for a long time now, and I would love do this. I even have a simple idea that I think I can do. Always wanted to participate in previous compos but never had the time or energy.

Thanks for putting this on! I may also donate to the prize money if I can find it in the budget :-)
badidea
Posts: 2586
Joined: May 24, 2007 22:10
Location: The Netherlands

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by badidea »

Cool, can I contribute something that I already started on? It is probably less then 10% finished.

The weirdest ideas are popping up here.
Like a Mario karts / wacky wheels / SuperTuxKart game where the AI-drivers are freebasic members with a vehicle that matches their personality or activities.
Or a space game where you have to defend the tiny planet "Freebasic" against the huge "C++" battleships, old "QBASIC" space-junk and stealthy "JS" invaders.
Lachie Dazdarian
Posts: 2338
Joined: May 31, 2005 9:59
Location: Croatia
Contact:

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by Lachie Dazdarian »

I can't check effectively nor prevent people to reuse their old code and game engines.

I'll leave that to each of yours consciences.

Just be open about it, and I don't think anybody will have a problem with that.

Unless you skin a finished game with new FB themed assets, it will be ok.
BasicCoder2
Posts: 3906
Joined: Jan 01, 2009 7:03
Location: Australia

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by BasicCoder2 »

badidea wrote:Or a space game where you have to defend the tiny planet "Freebasic" against the huge "C++" battleships, old "QBASIC" space-junk and stealthy "JS" invaders.
Clearly you have more imagination than myself :)
The real battle with computer languages is being played out in the real world as they compete for programmer's language of choice.
BasicCoder2
Posts: 3906
Joined: Jan 01, 2009 7:03
Location: Australia

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by BasicCoder2 »

Lachie Dazdarian wrote:I can't check effectively nor prevent people to reuse their old code and game engines.
But isn't that how we all program, code reuse?
Aren't many different games produced using the same game engine?
Last edited by BasicCoder2 on Oct 11, 2018 15:37, edited 1 time in total.
badidea
Posts: 2586
Joined: May 24, 2007 22:10
Location: The Netherlands

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by badidea »

BasicCoder2 wrote:Clearly you have more imagination than myself :)
At least it does not take much imagination that 'you' will be driving a tank in my imaginary Mario kart game.

Now I start coding, already a few hours behind on the competition by now.
jj2007
Posts: 2326
Joined: Oct 23, 2016 15:28
Location: Roma, Italia
Contact:

Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition (Oct 2018 – Jan 2019), 250 $ 1st prize

Post by jj2007 »

badidea wrote:a space game where you have to defend the tiny planet "Freebasic" against the huge "C++" battleships, old "QBASIC" space-junk and stealthy "JS" invaders.
That sounds perfectly on topic ;-)
Post Reply