BYOND Action

BYOND Action dons a new look

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:41:28 GMT

BYOND Action now has a new layout (and it's about time, too!)

Hope you guys and gals enjoy it. It should display fine in both Firefox and IE. If you have any problems with it or have a suggestion, you can comment with it or post it in the forums.

Infected Cell Review

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 13:52:27 GMT

I'm very happy to say that this will be the first review for BYOND Action, and I have many to come. Since I did an interview with Calus CoRPS not so long ago, I felt like making a review for his so popular Infected Cell while I was at it.

Infected Cell is like most of the Zombie games you may have played, but adds a more horror style aspect. When the host starts the game he can choose between 8 maps or you can load a custom map. All of the maps are placed in different areas such as farms, inside buildings. When you start there is normally a lot of weapons for you to choose from, a lot of the weapons would not be used as much since some are I think better(such as the a9machinegun). Once you get equipped with maybe two guns, some grenades and mines. You wait for the the silence of the storm is to end, and for the possessed to rise,
Quote"The silence of the storm is now over. The possesed have now risen..."(Infected Cell, Calus CoRPS)
That is when the monsters such as wolves, zombies, giants, and more come. You can team up with players to try to fight them off and kill them. Unlike most zombie games, when you die, you die. You do not turn into a zombie, which adds the twist for people to revive you. The reviving of the game makes it possible to go on for longer. Once all the players or "possessed" have been killed the game is over. Once the game is over you gain money mattering to how good you did which you can use to buy weapons, barricades, health packs, or upgrade your health.

Graphic Rating: 8/10
All of the graphics inside Infected Cell are made by Calus CoRPS and they all have a nice look. They're not top notch, but they fit in nicely. The mobs and items is what stick out the most. There is three different characters to choose from(Farmer, Cop, Super Soldier) that all look nice, and there is many enemies and some are overlaid or multi-tiled which look very nice and suit the game. There is many guns which all pretty much look different and there is also mines and grenades which also look great.

Sound - Music Rating: 9/10
The music inside Infected Cell will get you creeping on the edge of your seat. It is all horror style, and there is 3 songs currently in the game which all sound good. The sound effects are nicely placed too, and there is even sound effects that say things such as "Double Kill", "Killing Spree", etc. Which makes you feel happy while you blow off some zombie's heads. All the guns have sound effects which are also placed in nicely, and all the monsters have sound effects too(Zombies moaning, dogs whining and growling, etc.)

Game play Rating: 8/10
The Game Play is not the same as most Zombie-Horror style games. There is new types of monsters and there is some cool weapons that are Infected Cell only. Unlike most zombie games, when the players die they stay human other than turning into a zombie, and can be revived back so they can get back and fight off the hordes of monsters. There is many different guns to choose from, and grenades and mines help a lot if you want to score some double kills, or higher. The interface is nice to look at , and has buttons for your help guide, and information. It has a grid inventory which works nicely, but does not show what you have equipped. Although you can look on your character for this, I would prefer to be able to see it there too. There is an on-screen Players online to show all the players online, and on top of the map it shows who is joining the game. There is also two outputs(information and the talking window).

Multi-player Rating: 8/10
The multi-player is needed a lot for playing. If you play alone, you are likely to die and having noone to revive you, you lose. Since you need multi-player, it is nice to team up with a group of people and maybe set some mines to trap some enemies. If you do not team up, it is a lot more dangerous since you can be trapped by a bunch of zombies and have no one to revive you.

Fun over time Rating: 7/10
There is 7 maps to choose from which add some game play to Infected Cell, and there is a custom map maker which is a bit outdated, but works fine. You gain money when you win a game, but it is not needed since there is nothing very important to buy. The items that you can buy are mostly all already placed on the map(The Guns, Barricades). If you want, you can buy a health pack, or upgrade your health/ammo for a weapon, but it would be nice to upgrade your gun's damage. More things inside the shop would add more game play/fun to Infected Cell.

Overall Rating: 8/10
Infected Cell has excellent sound and great graphics, and is a very fun zombie-horror shooter to play. It has many weapons/maps to choose from, and you can create your own maps for fun.

Interview of Calus CoRPS

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 19:32:27 GMT

Well today I came across a well-known BYOND Developer we all know as "Calus CoRPS". I asked a few questions to learn more about this developer. Well, here is what he had to say:

Flame Guardian: Well hello to you Calus CoRPS, may I ask you a few questions for the community at BYOND Action?

Calus CoRPS: Sure, go ahead.

Flame Guardian: Well, to start it off. Are you currently working on any projects that we might want to know about?

Calus CoRPS: I work on many "test" projects in which I test different game systems such as air flow and in- game scripting. But am I working on any real games? Not really.

Flame Guardian: I see, but are you thinking about adding anything new to any of your old projects? Such as your very popular "Infected Cell"?

Calus CoRPS: Every now and then look back at my older projects and be inclined to work on it again since I've put so much time and effort in it. But I barely have the time or inspiration to do so. But if I ever was to work on Infected Cell again I would most likely remake the game since the code is extraordinarily disorganized.

Flame Guardian: Question, when you create games are you making them to benefit yourself, or to benefit the players?

Calus CoRPS: Sadly, the only reason why I like creating games is to see people play and enjoy my game. Which is my downfall; if no one was to play a game I created, I tend to lose motivation.

Flame Guardian: Would that be one of the reasons why you stopped working on Blubomb?

Calus CoRPS: Pretty much, a lot of the BYOND community are either immature or hypocrites in my judgment. I created a game that I enjoyed and I thought others would too, but when I go and release it so the community could test it out they go and say, "So this is a Lode Wars rip?" Or something to that extent. I still like the concept of Blubomb but I rather bring it to a more mature community which is not BYOND.

Flame Guardian: Interesting, did you ever think of remaking Blubomb using LUA or another style of coding?

Calus CoRPS: I would never want to use Lua ever again. PSP Lua is like the DM for creating games for the PSP, but it is even less powerful. Though, I've thought about creating Blubomb and or Infected Cell using C++ but I just don't have the time.

Flame Guardian: I see, is there any games or people(BYOND Developpers, or others.) that inspired you to create any of your projects?

Calus CoRPS: Not inspired, but there have been people who've motivated me to continue working on numerous projects. I would name them but the list could get long and I would be afraid to fail to remember someone.

Flame Guardian: Ahah, alright.

Flame Guardian: Out of all the BYOND Games that you have played, what would be your personal favorite?

Flame Guardian: Also, what would be your favorite genre of games?

Calus CoRPS: Hmm, that is a hard choice. I presume I would have to say Space Station 13 would be my personal favorite game, though the game's community ruins it. My favorite genre of games would have to be either shooters or sports.

Flame Guardian: Another question about Infected Cell. Why did you start making it? Was it because of your previous game "Living Survival"?

Calus CoRPS: I almost forgot about that game, I guess Infected Cell could be called the "spiritual successor" of Living Survival. But what really got me working on this game was I started watching a bunch of zombie movies and then I saw the trailer for Left 4 Dead, an Xbox 360 game. I thought about the concept of the game for a while before I started working on the project. There are 2 other versions of the game that have never been released during the production of Infected Cell. One was with vampires and zombies, the other was where one player is infected with the virus and is slowly turning into a zombie, and you must find who it is.

Flame Guardian: I will be looking forward to the day that you release those two versions. They both sound like a lot of fun.

Calus CoRPS: Thanks

Flame Guardian: If you were to create a new game on BYOND, what do you think it would be, and of what genre/guild would it be under?

Calus CoRPS: I think it would have something to do with in-game scripting, an air circulation system, and maybe the setting would be in outer space. It would most likely be put in the action guild as it should be a fast pace hacking game set in outer space.

Flame Guardian: Sounds original, and BYOND likes original.

Flame Guardian: So, what is your major long term goal?

Calus CoRPS: It was to create a fun zombie shooter in which players can mod the game. But I've stopped production on the game and I doubt anything special will ever come up.

Flame Guardian: Mod the game?

Flame Guardian: Were you thinking about releasing the source?

Calus CoRPS: No, a while ago I created a test demo in which you could use in-game scripting to create your own firearms and you could also add in your own graphics without ever seeing the source. The only two things that stopped me was that the custom scripting language I created was unattractive and it would take some time to add this test demo into Infected Cell since the demo wasn't as simple as a "plug n' play."

Flame Guardian: I'm looking forward to the day that you make that usable.

Flame Guardian: Well, I'm out of questions. Anything last words you'd like to say?

Calus CoRPS: If you like mindless zombie killing then you should check out Infected Cell.

Flame Guardian: Ahah, well thanks for your time. BYOND Action will be looking forward for any new projects you will be making. Good bye.

Well thanks for reading the interview. If you don't know what Calus CoRPS's great game known as Infected Cell is, well you can read the review to learn more which will be posted on March 2nd.

BYOND Action: Looking for Holiday Event!

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 19:02:19 GMT

BYOND Action is currently looking to do some sort of event for the Holiday season, most likely over Winter Break. However, we can't decide on what to do, so we're turning to you, the players.

What type of event would you like to be held?

Do you care if it has a Holiday theme or not?

What days are best for you?

We will then take the suggestions you provide and make a poll to vote for the most popular one. Depending on the event you guys choose, there will most likely be membership prizes involved!

On an unrelated note, I posted some Submission Guidelines in our forums. If you're planning on submitting games to BYOND Action in the future, please take a second to read through them.

BYOND Action Guild Tournament Results!

Sat, 07 Jul 2007 21:52:13 GMT

The first BYOND Action Guild Tournament is over! The points have been counted, and the winners chosen. Instead of the planned one membership, three will be given out. The winners are: Blue5472, Calus CoRPS, and Shadi. Please find a way to contact either me or D4RK3 54B3R with the key you want the membership for. The results for the entire day are below. The winners were the top players for each game.

Tournament Results

We'd like to thank all the players who stopped by today, and the creators of the games we played! Hopefully the next tournament will be even more intense!

If you have suggestions for improving the current system, or games you would like to see in a tournament, please feel free to post here or in the forums.

Let the games begin!

Sat, 07 Jul 2007 17:07:30 GMT

The tournament for a prize of a BYOND member just started! The first game is Darkness Falls!

Join quick! See this post for information about the tournament.

*Event one is over!*

The next game is Evil Residents!

*Event two is over!*

Next game is Antlion Troopers!

*Event three is over and the tournament is ended!*

You're still welcome to join Antlion Troopers if it's still up.

Thanks to everyone who played!

BYOND Action Guild Tournament Today!

Sat, 07 Jul 2007 11:21:13 GMT

The tournament will be held at around 5:00 PM BST*. The prize is a BYOND membership, and there will be three events. The events are: Darkness Falls, Evil Residents, and Antlion Troopers. Each event will consist of four rounds.

The top players at the end of each round will receive points toward the prize. A player who finishes in first will receive 5 points. Second place will receive 4 points, third--3 points, and so on down to fifth place with 1 point. The player with the most points at the end of the day, wins!

We hope to see you there!

*BST (Byond Standard Time) is equivalent to PST, and can be found at the top of the developer forums. To convert PST (and thus BST) to your local time-zone, you can use the Time Zone Converter.

Upcoming BYOND Action tournament!

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 19:31:45 GMT

The BYOND Action guild will be holding a tournament this Saturday, and we want YOU to be there! The prize is a BYOND membership, and there will be three events. The events are: Darkness Falls, Evil Residents, and Antlion Troopers. Each event will consist of four rounds.

The top players at the end of each round will receive points toward the prize. A player who finishes in first will receive 5 points. Second place will receive 4 points, third--3 points, and so on down to fifth place with 1 point. The player with the most points at the end of the day, wins!

The exact time for the tournament has yet to be decided. This post was just more of a heads up. If you really want to win, I would suggest at least familiarizing yourself with the controls and layout for each of the games before Saturday.

Action Games Guild Day Recap

Sun, 18 Mar 2007 21:52:44 GMT

After five grueling hours of shooting and fighting, the Action Games Guild Day is over! Thanks to those who participated! It was great fun! I hope to see you in future guild events and in the community forums(which need a revamp anyway)

Action Games Guild Day!

Sat, 17 Mar 2007 23:28:14 GMT

That's right! From 1 PM PST to 6PM PST, the Action Games Guild is going to host a variety of action games in the following order!

1. Proelium
2. Scream of the Stickster
3. Scarey Game 2
4. Vengeance 56
5. Lode Wars

Hope to see you there!