A new game in HLO

[manchuwook]

We're forming up a new game publishing company in the near future and would like to have an official release for HLO. I'd like to know if you have documentation for a developer (like me) so that I can get familiar with the API/SDK. I'd also like to know what kind of information we'd need for an officially licensed product. We had released 3 editions of our game and are working on a more comprehensive 4th ed.

I come from a C#/Javascript background and have tried messing around with the HL product, but it was fairly difficult for me to do some of the basics. Is the API wildly different from HL -> HLO?

[ShadowChemosh]

Originally Posted by manchuwook

I come from a C#/Javascript background and have tried messing around with the HL product, but it was fairly difficult for me to do some of the basics. Is the API wildly different from HL -> HLO?

No.

The underlying scripting language of HL is not changing. The UI components/scripts will be different for HLO. Hopefully they are much improved but no one in the outside world has seen it yet.

My advice is to start getting familiar with the authoring kit and ignore allot of the UI logic. But everything else will pretty much be the same. In other words needing to understand scripts, gizmos, picks, things, bootstraps is still 100% required to make a game in HL.

[MNBlockHead]

Or hire ShadowChemosh. :-)

[Roadie]

I think something to keep in mind is that current HL doesn't seem to really do "officially licensed" stuff. There's content distributed and maintained by Lone Wolf, but the there's no special legal difference between that and the content directly maintained by publishers (like the Spheres of Power HL content).

I'm sure the online stuff will complicate the process some, since for third parties there will have to be some way to upload/sync data files to their server, but I haven't seen anything that suggests that the legal status of stuff will change.

If you want to get Lone Wolf to do the data file creation/maintenance directly for the game system, you'll want to check with their sales people (sales@wolflair.com) but keep in mind that they're probably in "running around like headless chickens" mode right now because of HLO and because of a big Realm Works update that's supposed to be coming soon.

There will probably also be a lag with any kind of additional content for HLO because after Starfinder I'm sure their priority will be Pathfinder (which seems like one of the more reliable sources of sales for HL stuff) and everything else will be second fiddle after that, unless the game you want to get implemented has a huge customer cachet.

[kbs666]

I doubt a startup will be in any position to pay LWD to produce HLO file(s) for their game.

Using the authoring kit and producing the file(s) themselves is likely their only viable option.

[ShadowChemosh]

Originally Posted by MNBlockHead

Or hire ShadowChemosh. :-)

He can't afford me!

On the serious side I don't do paid HL work. Just not fun.

But you could check out the authoring kit forum and see if any of the guys doing current projects are interested.

[BoomerET]

If you want to take a look at some code besides the Savage Worlds sample code, all my code is available, take a look at the link in my sig.

[Duggan]

You could probably advertise for people to work on it. Do you have a budget?

[BoomerET]

What does having a pet bird have to do with this?

I may be able to work out some sort of trade, my cat needs a playdate.


Dave

[Duggan]

Originally Posted by BoomerET

What does having a pet bird have to do with this?

I may be able to work out some sort of trade, my cat needs a playdate.

^_^ That's a budgie.

But, admittedly, "What's a budget have to do with this?" is often a component in non-commercial products too...