Comments on: Invaders from Mars: Building a JavaScript Game http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game Cleaning up the web with Ajax Thu, 17 May 2012 07:43:39 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Sembiance http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267676 Sembiance Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:45:51 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267676 @jefposkanzer: You don't require Flash or Java for sound. Many browsers have built in support from sound. Opera with support for the Audio object, IE with the bgsound attribute, Safari and Firefox depend on the OS have version embeddable sound support. What you need is a nice easy way to automatically detect what's available and use it for playing sounds. I wrote up a little JS library to do this: http://www.telparia.com/browsersoundtest/ It will of course, fall back to Flash as a last resort if available. @jefposkanzer: You don’t require Flash or Java for sound. Many browsers have built in support from sound. Opera with support for the Audio object, IE with the bgsound attribute, Safari and Firefox depend on the OS have version embeddable sound support.
What you need is a nice easy way to automatically detect what’s available and use it for playing sounds.
I wrote up a little JS library to do this: http://www.telparia.com/browsersoundtest/
It will of course, fall back to Flash as a last resort if available.

]]> By: Joeri http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267621 Joeri Wed, 24 Sep 2008 09:22:36 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267621 @Jefposkanzer: what you call a problem, I call a benefit. First thing I do in every game I play is mute the sound. @Jefposkanzer: what you call a problem, I call a benefit. First thing I do in every game I play is mute the sound.

]]> By: jseidelin http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267619 jseidelin Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:14:21 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267619 While canvas is certainly great, it's not always the best route to take. It really depends on what you're trying to do. Nice game! While canvas is certainly great, it’s not always the best route to take. It really depends on what you’re trying to do. Nice game!

]]> By: Schill http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267618 Schill Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:59:45 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267618 This is pretty well-done. Firefox 3 renders slowly when compared to Safari, but it's still quite playable. It's possible (though I didn't dig through the code) that a lot of DOM property access, reading offsetWidth/height etc. could be quite expensive and slowing down the game. This is pretty well-done. Firefox 3 renders slowly when compared to Safari, but it’s still quite playable. It’s possible (though I didn’t dig through the code) that a lot of DOM property access, reading offsetWidth/height etc. could be quite expensive and slowing down the game.

]]> By: GMFlash http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267617 GMFlash Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:53:36 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267617 Why the low rating? This is one of the nicest games posted to Ajaxian yet! Why the low rating? This is one of the nicest games posted to Ajaxian yet!

]]> By: jefposkanzer http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267612 jefposkanzer Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:51:49 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267612 Certainly canvas is the way to go in the long run. Right now there are still lots of people running browsers that don't support it. The big problem with doing JavaScript games is sound. You have to add in a module from either Flash or Java for that, which sucks. Certainly canvas is the way to go in the long run. Right now there are still lots of people running browsers that don’t support it.

The big problem with doing JavaScript games is sound. You have to add in a module from either Flash or Java for that, which sucks.

]]> By: brianarn http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267610 brianarn Tue, 23 Sep 2008 16:08:52 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267610 I really dig the idea of canvas. A couple of months ago, I was trying to do a few things to learn a bit of Prototype and play with the canvas, and I wound up making Conway's Game of Life using Canvas, all in JS. http://www.randomthink.net/canvas/life.html The better the JS engine, the better it can run. I have it intentionally clocked down for now so it doesn't kill most browsers (I can make it absolutely choke FF2). Lately I've gotten a bit more excited about jQuery than Prototype, though, and so I'm thinking I might revisit it sometime soon and use jQuery instead of Prototype, and implement some user controls with jQuery UI, like some sliders and such so users can adjust the size of the grids, click cells on/off, etc. I really dig the idea of canvas. A couple of months ago, I was trying to do a few things to learn a bit of Prototype and play with the canvas, and I wound up making Conway’s Game of Life using Canvas, all in JS.

http://www.randomthink.net/canvas/life.html

The better the JS engine, the better it can run. I have it intentionally clocked down for now so it doesn’t kill most browsers (I can make it absolutely choke FF2).

Lately I’ve gotten a bit more excited about jQuery than Prototype, though, and so I’m thinking I might revisit it sometime soon and use jQuery instead of Prototype, and implement some user controls with jQuery UI, like some sliders and such so users can adjust the size of the grids, click cells on/off, etc.

]]> By: jbooth http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267604 jbooth Tue, 23 Sep 2008 13:21:36 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267604 There's an implementation of the original space invaders arcade machine, implemented using canvas, here: http://www.bluishcoder.co.nz/js8080/ http://www.bluishcoder.co.nz/2008/09/javascript-space-invaders-emulator.html It needs a recent browser and a fast js engine though. I think with cavas and fast JS engines you'll see more of this type of game in JS instead of flash/applets. That invaders from mars is very smooth! There’s an implementation of the original space invaders arcade machine, implemented using canvas, here:

http://www.bluishcoder.co.nz/js8080/
http://www.bluishcoder.co.nz/2008/09/javascript-space-invaders-emulator.html

It needs a recent browser and a fast js engine though. I think with cavas and fast JS engines you’ll see more of this type of game in JS instead of flash/applets. That invaders from mars is very smooth!

]]> By: TNO http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267603 TNO Tue, 23 Sep 2008 12:23:36 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267603 An event model is pretty easy to implement in the canvas. It surprises me that not many people have followed this route. An event model is pretty easy to implement in the canvas. It surprises me that not many people have followed this route.

]]> By: henrah http://ajaxian.com/archives/invaders-from-mars-building-a-javascript-game/comment-page-1#comment-267602 henrah Tue, 23 Sep 2008 12:15:58 +0000 http://ajaxian.com/?p=4570#comment-267602 Friday already? Friday already?

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