I wanted to post all the pictures and metrics and stuff from today’s PAX booth #1133 insanity, but I figured it was better to spend I-should-be-sleeping-time to fix all the bugs and usability issues I noted during the playtests, so instead of fun pictures (although the Fire Hose guys posted some) and stats, you get a bzr changelog since GDC:

------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1326
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Fri 2011-03-11 21:50:32 -0800
message:
  prevent escape from auto connect
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1325
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Fri 2011-03-11 21:43:52 -0800
message:
  - chooser mucking
  - reduce priority on briefcase
  - fix ambassador in different group but close bug
  - "You are the Sniper."
  - fix straight arm bug - wasn't clearing that cycle group
  - yes/no text
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/chooser.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/briefcase/briefcase.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/bug_ambassador/bug_ambassador.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/inspect_statues/inspect_statues.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/sniper_client.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1324
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Fri 2011-03-11 20:33:14 -0800
message:
  exit -> quit practice
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1323
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Fri 2011-03-11 20:28:43 -0800
message:
  - help text under all titles, ugly
  - fix laser in practice after playing
  - don't display game type if only one
  - finished -> continue...
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/chooser.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spy_server.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.h
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty_lobby.cpp
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1322
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Fri 2011-03-11 19:57:03 -0800
message:
  clear pathing info for dynamic objects (like briefcase) when deactivating level
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/level.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/object_system/subsystems/pathing/pathing.h
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1321
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Thu 2011-03-10 21:33:51 -0800
message:
  - fix chooser stuff
  - check into lookat bug
  - fix server to not freak quite as much
added:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/content/levels/ballroom-newb.png
modified:
  spyparty/notes/marketing.txt
  spyparty/notes/sound.txt
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/chooser.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/object_system/subsystems/animation/animation.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/object_system/subsystems/animation/animation_cal3dutils.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/serving/serving.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/content/levels/ballroom-newb.prop
  spyparty/worklog.txt
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1320
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Wed 2011-03-09 17:10:40 -0800
message:
  display help text in chooser
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/chooser.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.h
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty_lobby.cpp
  spyparty/worklog.txt
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1319
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Wed 2011-03-09 16:51:23 -0800
message:
  - asserts in output format for msvc
  - unify HandleAttach and HandleDetach, hopefully floating be gone
  - s/casted/cast/g;
  - don't crash in various places if not enough chars
  - last sip event
  - if ai spy picks up briefcase, set correct state
modified:
  spyparty/lib/checkerlib/misc/checkerassert.cpp
  spyparty/notes/design.txt
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/character.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/character.h
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/chooser.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/object_system/subsystems/animation/animation.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/object_system/subsystems/animation/animation.h
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/round_events.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/bookcase/bookcase.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/briefcase/briefcase.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/bug_ambassador/bug_ambassador.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/double_agent/double_agent.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/drinks/drinks.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/pedestal/pedestal.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/situations/seduction/seduction.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spy_server.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
  spyparty/worklog.txt
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1318
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Wed 2011-03-09 14:53:58 -0800
message:
  directly attach objects to hardpoints to avoid floating stuff
modified:
  spyparty/notes/design.txt
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/character.cpp
  spyparty/project/spyparty/source_content/maya/objects/pedestal.mb
  spyparty/worklog.txt
------------------------------------------------------------
revno: 1317
committer: Chris Hecker
branch nick: spyparty
timestamp: Mon 2011-03-07 16:41:47 -0800
message:
  replace Disconnect with Quit on game menu if autoplaying
modified:
  spyparty/project/spyparty/code/spyparty.cpp
  spyparty/worklog.txt

I’m sitting here in the Fire Hose Games offices, trying to stay out of the way1 as they do interviews about Slam Bolt Scrappers, which is shipping on PSN on March 15th,  getting ready for PAX East, and I realized I still hadn’t posted the new manual!

So, here’s the pdf, ready for half-fold double-sided printing:  The Updated SpyParty Manual

Here are some rasterized images:

So, study up, and hope to see you at PAX East!

1. okay, I actually was so exhausted I took a nap on their couch [↩]

As expected, SpyParty lost to Minecraft for the IGF Seumas McNally Grand Prize, but we had a great time at the show and have lived to tell the tale (or at least blog about it)!

First off—and most importantly—I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the incredibly awesome SpyParty booth volunteers:  Chelsea Hash, Heather M. Decker, Roger Hanna, Tim Fowers, and Dan Alongi!  You can see them helping out in some of the pictures below, and they totally saved me from death-by-overcommitment!

Next up, come play the game at PAX East!

I’m mostly going to throw some pictures up in a gallery, but I figured this one would have some comedic value by itself:

This was the kiosk when we arrived for setup. I think this configuration might be biased towards the Sniper.

We were super lucky to have a line most of the time, so people could read the new manual1, and everybody seemed to have a good time with the game.  There were a few different video interviews that will be going up over the next couple months, and I’ll link to those when they’re available.

Did you spot the ringer, Alex Baard, from the PAX West tournament?  He didn’t tell his opponent he’d played before.  Not nice!

And, finally, here is the excellent Daniel Benmergui, who stayed with me after GDC for a couple days, gazing into the future, thinking artistic thoughts.

1. which I just realized I haven’t posted yet, I’ll do that tomorrow [↩]

The always awesome Ben Gilbert at Joystiq just broke the news:  SpyParty is going to be at PAX East, March 11th through 13th in that city whose streets were designed by cows, Boston, Massachusetts!

As I say in the article, I’m super happy about (at least) two things:

1. The Fire Hose Games guys for being so incredibly awesome to let me crash their booth (#1133) at the last minute.  They’re shipping Slam Bolt Scrappers in March on PSN, and it’s going to be insane crazy fun.

2. That fans are going to be able to play all the cool stuff going in for the GDC build, which is now officially the GDC & PAX East build!  Check out the article for a list of stuff going in.  Here’s a teaser for the Steal the Plans mission:

So, come play SpyParty and Slam Bolt Scrappers in Boston in March!

Update: two more articles in this week’s Joystiq series have been posted! The first is an interview recorded at NYU last November about my thoughts on quality for SpyParty, and the second is a video walkthrough of the new maps!  Here it is embedded, but it sometimes starts with an advertisement, sorry!

A video used to be embedded here but the service that it was hosted on has shut down.