In my previous 2 posts [The Great Cul-De-Sac Problem] and [The Liquid Grid Street Layout] we discovered that people LOVE living in a cul-de-sac (dead end street). There’s no traffic on your street except locals, it’s just you and your neighbors, it feels safer, more hidden, more maze-like for strangers, and gives off a “cute little village where everyone knows each other” vibe that us white people of European ancestry subconsciously crave. We also discovered the downside. Cul-De-Sacs use up massive amounts of land, promote car use over walking and biking, create traffic bottlenecks, and while they do reward some neighbors with less traffic, they severely punish all other neighbors with heavier traffic and pollution. read…
One day, decades from now I will release a horror game. The temporary artwork is below. I can’t reveal the name because I want to trademark it first so it doesn’t get taken. It will be a story based, emotion driven, survival horror themed zombie game. The budget won’t allow for high end graphics or production values, but it will have soul, as creating emotions will take precedence over everything. I will probably be 43 years old by the time I save up the money and make the connections but I’m ok with that. Good things take time, and big things have small beginnings. I will not complain about piracy, or desperately try to get it into Steam’s Marketplace or Microsoft’s Games for Windows store. Instead I’ll take the same route some app developers take: read…
I believe in 2012 we’ll see the rise of the ‘Scooter Commuter’. At least that’s what I want. We’re sitting here, talking about global warming, the rising cost of gas, pollution, traffic, and how badly we need electric vehicles. Little do most people know, we ALREADY have tried and true electric vehicles, the batteries don’t explode, they don’t cost a fortune, and pretty much anyone can afford one. I bought one and used it shortly before having to return it due to a local ordinance in Orlando making it illegal to ride them on the street or sidewalk. read…
Why do we play games? “For the challenge!” said early developers. Not for emotion, nor for socializing, not for fun or enjoyment or exploration, or even relaxation. Before sandbox and social games, developers had the idea that the only reason why you would want to play a game is to be challenged by its gameplay, forced to practice to get better, and overcome the challenge. And so we begin our journey into paradoxical gameplay mechanics that have kept casual players (the majority of market) out of games for decades. read…
Reversing urban sprawl and bringing back city living is going to take some major changes. Once people discover the joy of a suburban neighborhood, despite some serious drawbacks, it’s hard to make them go back to living in the city. So the city must change and evolve and adapt in order to compete with ‘Orange County’. And I believe, it all starts with a new street layout. read…
“Why are we so damn stupid?”, that’s what you’ll ask yourself after you see what I’m about to show you. Now, I’m not entirely against suburbs, cul-de-sacs, and curvillinear loop street layouts. I can see why people (myself included) like them and what they find attractive about them. But, things have gotten so out of hand, that the damage they cause never be fixed and is permanant. Still, there something we can do to alleviate their side effects. read…
You’ve seen them on the side of buses and building windows. ‘Window perfs’ allow ads and art put on windows to be seen by people outside yet is see-through to those who are inside. So what if we took industrial strength vinyl used for billboards, made millions of golf ball sized holes in it, printed forests and rivers on one side and printed a black backing on the other side? You’d give everyone living in high-rises a beautiful view (and everyone below a tiny bit of shade from the sun). And let me not remind you how important greenery is, the more you see it every day the healthier, happier, and less stressed out you are. We can also cover up all those ugly parking lots, power stations, and junk yards. read…
People “pet” the gas pedal when they drive so they never travel at a constant speed. This constant speeding up and slowing down wastes gas, and with 140+ billion gallons used each year by the US alone, millions of those gallons can be saved by using cruise control and traveling at a constant speed. Unfortunately, if you’re using cruise control and the person in front of you isn’t you’re constantly having to slow down or speed up because of their varying speed. And matching the cruise control speed of someone in front of you isn’t easy either. So here’s my solution… read…
The problem with voice chat in multiplayer online games is that everyone on your team can hear you. And as maps get larger and teams get bigger a new set of communication problems have developed. It becomes difficult to strategize and warn players on one side of the map when team members on the other side of the map are sharing their strategies and warnings. When you hear “ENEMY DOWN THE HALL!” or “I think there’s someone behind you.” or “ok you guys stay here”, or “follow me” you’re not quite sure who the message was meant for. Many times it’s so distracting you end up getting yourself killed because you were confused. read…
A few ideas I had to fix 6 online shopping annoyances: Not seeing enough of the product, Lack of instant gratification like retail shopping has, Missing package deliveries because I’m not at home, No where to drop off my used packaging for someone else to use, Forcing me to register for an account, and Making me enter my personal info (address, credit card detail, confirmation) on multiple pages. read…
This article “Why Don’t We Video Chat More Often?” really made me think… “Ten years ago if someone had told you that in 2011 everyone would have a webcam in their home or in their pocket, and that the cost of video chat was going to be zero, how many of us would have predicted that people still wouldn’t use it?“. Powerfully true. Despite web cams being embedded everywhere, we just don’t video chat the way Star Trek, Back to the Future, and all the other futuristic films of the past thought we would. This has been on my mind for 2 days now, so here’s what I came up with…
Massive asphalt parking lots in front of Walmarts and Targets might be full during the holiday season but are usually half to 2/3 empty during the rest of the year. And they’re also a huge waste of space and lack greenery. Yet at the same time, there aren’t enough parks around our neighborhoods, and the ones we do have are usually… not very well maintained. So what if businesses set up and maintained parks in the middle of their mostly un-used parking lots? Not only would it fulfill a need for more greenery but when park visitors need to go to the bathroom or eat, they’ll head straight for the store and become customers who would have otherwise never been. Also park visitors might curiously wander into the shops to see what’s on sale. read…
I like having multiple computers but I HATE maintaining multiple computers. I wish I could completely sync my desktop and laptop as if they were the same exact computer just in a different form factor. I want the same files, same updates, same account, same settings, same software and games on both computers. I want them treated as if they were one. So here’s what I propose: read…
This may or may not speed up funding but it’s worth a try in my opinion. Basically show ads until you reach your funding goals, while enabling donations to speed up the process. Theoretically, users will get sick of the ads and will donate to get them off the site quicker. Either way you reach your goal. read…
People have to take a $10 gamble every time they see a film, so if you take the risk out, they’ll be more willing to spend the money on seeing your film, and afterwards buying the DVD or digital copy. Because honestly, movie trailers suck and do a terrible job of summarizing a film, let alone getting me to watch it. So much so, that I and many others don’t trust trailers in any way. Most of the time the trailers actually deter me from wanting to watch a film. They’re cheesy, shallow, and showcase the most unemotional aspects of a film (random explosions, gunfire, sex scenes, and cheesy one liners). And to top off my whining, I’ll say this. Nearly all of them look cheesy and laughable, especially the ones that try to take themselves seriously. read…
First, I did NOT draw the box art, I photoshopped 3 other talented people’s creations together to make a temporary box art mockup (see credits section). You know what’s missing? Good games for kids. Games for kids that are calm, relaxing, completely non-violent, adventurous, and open. So I came up with “Rabbit Tales”. Far from my usual zombie slaying, I know.
You play a grey rabbit on a calm, relaxing island who can transplant various plants by eating their seeds and pooping them out in another location. That’s right, you’re a natural rabbit gardener. There are no humans in the game but there are lots of derelict ghost towns and junk heaps that humans left behind. As the rabbit you can transplant trees, bushes, grass, and vines near or inside buildings until the plants overtake and destroy the structure completely, making it disappear. Thus returning the site, the city, and eventually the entire island back to nature. Different buildings require different plants to destroy them. The more plants you eat the more you level up, getting faster, and being able to eat more. You can also attract animal friends to help you by planting lots of their favorite type of flora. After you return an entire island to nature, the moon disappears and creates a low tide, thus revealing a sand bridge onto the next island which will be randomly generated to have more buildings, larger cities, and different plants, environments, and animal friends. Because the “island worlds” are procedurally generated, the game could go on forever, with larger and larger cities as you progress.
2 months ago I had a radical idea, which today I’ve learned Valve has already been working on. If it’s what I think it is, it will change everything. I don’t think the majority of people want another set top box like GoogleTV and AppleTV? And what if everyone was wrong about the PC dying out? I think the PC is just getting started and I’m sure Valve does too. Just 1 hour ago I read about Valve working on “Big Picture” mode for Steam which will allow Steam games and content to be played on any TV in the house. So they beat me to it. Damn, lol it would have looked amazing in my portfolio. I think we’re both talking about the same technology. Here’s my version anyway. read…
Sometimes you want to create a community exclusive for a certain group of people like video editors, film makers, web developers, product designers, actors, UI designers, lawyers, game developers investors, etc… A place where people who think alike can come together and support each other without getting spammed by recruiters, affiliate advertisers, and the dreaded “social media experts”. The problem is, once these communities get popular, they get bothered, harrassed, annoyed, and spammed by people who don’t belong there. So to prevent this from happening sites have come up with authentication methods. Things like confirming each and every person’s identity and credentials one by one, all done by staff. Or through invites that members can send to other people. This is just innefficient. So lets crowdsource authentication a bit more. read…
If it’s one thing that humans love it’s simplicity. The easier you make it for customers to give you money the more likely they are to buy your products and services. Public transit fails this simple rule. Tickets, transfers, passes, expirations, exact change, closed platforms, turn stiles, all make for a terrible user experience. So here’s my idea, use facial recognition as a speedy payment and verification system for mass transit like subways and trams. read…
I can’t tell you how many countless accidents have happened in my old neighborhood because of blind spots for left turners. When I lived near UCF in Orlando, Florida one small intersection would cause a traffic accident nearly every week. It happens when cars queued in U-turn or left turn lanes face each other in intersections and block each other’s view. Next time you pass one, look near the ground and you’ll usually see broken glass near many of them, even with traffic lights. And these types of accidents could all have been avoided if only someone had made one little change to the intersection’s design. Here’s the right way to design left turning lanes… read…
Hello. I'm a User Interface Designer & Inventor from St. Louis, Missouri who's also into film making and game design. I worked a bit in film & commercials, freelanced shortly as a web developer, and now I'm working on my own projects. read more...
