Update

Now that Alpha has been out and of course bugs were found, we are now working on the commercial release.  At this stage we will need all of the bug testing we can get as the releases will be frequent so that we can properly test all aspects.  Based upon our road map and end user feedback, here is what will be new.

-Go back and clean up the “sloppyness” of the game, and stabilize weak code.  This was due to planning alpha release along with my wedding day…this kind of went bad because I cut corners to deliver for our planned alpha launch date.  Now I am learning to code with a ring on.
-Game Shop to purchase parts
-Building systems from the ground up
-Licensing
-Ton more random scenarios
-Ton more staged scenarios
-The Lab (a place where every tech goes to experiment)
-Partnerships with companies in the business (we advertise for them by using their branding)
-Extension into IT equipment
-Software Scenarios (BIOS, Network configuration, OS install)
-Multi-level game play (you are working on a desktop computer, but remove the video card and begin tearing that down)
-More skills, that actually can do things
-Achievements (unlock in game CRS bucks by playing and completing missions and use to purchase “player” upgrades)
-Story line (you work to unlock the next level and so on, also good for teaching players how to beat the more difficult levels later)
-Implementation of basic tools (battery chargers, basic hand tools, diagnostic hardware)
-Customized scenarios (player made, player shared)
-Enable networking for multiplayer (earlier versions had an issue so it was disabled, alpha has it disabled, but I found the problem and fix this up)

 

Keep on providing feedback in the forum, and valuable bug testing!

Good Things to Know about the game

After watching several players interact with the game, here are a few notes for the game play:
-In the options, you can change your movement speed, this includes when holding shift.
-In the options, you can change your pan/tilt mouse sensitivity
-If you prefer to have pan/tilt linked to different keys (like on a laptop), go into options and change your mode to “Euthemis” mode.
-In the options, you can change your base fee rate in General.  If your fee is low, you will get more calls quicker, but the higher your fee, it will take longer to get a call
-Skills get exponentially more difficult to gain, its impossible to reach 100.  Skills go from 1 to 100, the better skill you have, the faster the timer / countdown will go (for later releases when real time is implemented)
-If you have a catastrophic bug, simply restart the game.  If restarting doesn’t help, please try running the game in “Administrator” mode.  If this doesn’t work, uninstall / reinstall the game, this will clear and rebuild all of the data structures within the game.
-Store will be added later so parts can be purchased
-There are only 4 scenarios right now
-There is only 1 random scenario, but failure is random
-Training was not developed enough, it is only enough to get the controls / basic game play down.  This will be broken down into libraries later (game tutorial, training, troubleshooting, hardware, software, etc).
-Difficulty has no effect on anything today, it was only coded for future use.

Married / Honeymoon

Hello all.  I wanted to announce that I will be getting married tomorrow, and will be gone for about a week in the Great Smokey Mountains with my awesome fiance (who has been very supportive).  I know we have had a lot of feedback and suggestions, and several bugs have been discovered…but once I get back I will begin to work on them.

Thank you for your support.

Garrett

More Bug Fixes!!!

Just cleaning up loose ends. Here is the current list:

Known Bugs:
-When placing the last component down, there is a small window that a player can click on a component and have it placed in their inventory if they time it perfectly. Temporary workaround now is that I have a random wait, so a pattern cannot be detected.
-Inventory still flashes slots when opened.

Fixed Bugs:
-Closed all shortcut keys that were irrelevant with the new version of the game
-Fixed main menu Intermission where a user would click to start the game, and the flashlight / thermal paste shows for a few frames.
-Fixed going from Scenario to Random where the cell phone would just keep ringing while playing
-Fixed countdown bar. When a user began performing a long task, and then cancel the Work Order / Go to Main Menu, the counter would get stuck. The only way to reset it was to restart the game, this is now fixed as I have added a watchdog.
-Structered the recently added code so it was designed to be future proof.

Major Bug Fixes!

1
I spent this evening playing the game and found a handful of bugs. Once they were cleaned up, I then played the game trying to break it! I also found a handful of bugs…now they appear to be fixed.

-Fixed “pointer” crashes in between scenario modes / main menu
-Fixed a mode switch bug (between random / scenario mode)
-Fixed an issue when going from Scenario mode to Random mode where the cell phone would ring as soon as the Random mode is loaded
-Fixed some checks / balances in the scenario
-Fixed inventory flashes (when opening the inventory you would see all slots flash for a few milliseconds)
-Fixed overlapping scenarios (if you started in Random mode and right before the models begin to load, you go to the main menu and change to Scenario mode, the Random objects would still be present which created an overlap. I added some code to address this problem and I can’t replicate it anymore)
-capacitors now count towards a completed scenario
-Added a level / money indicator on the main menu
-working in full screen 1920×1200 now, may use that as default (may need to make a VB script to change it prior if having video resolution issues)
-pressing B will begin to set your electronics on fire

We officially own Computer Repair Simulator

 

Word Mark COMPUTER REPAIR SIMULATOR
Goods and Services IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: video game computer software for entertainment purposes. FIRST USE: 20150222. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20160100
Standard Characters Claimed
Mark Drawing Code (4) STANDARD CHARACTER MARK
Serial Number 87137802
Filing Date August 14, 2016
Current Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Owner (APPLICANT) Swindell Garrett Wade INDIVIDUAL UNITED STATES 129 Thompsonville Rd McMurray PENNSYLVANIA 15317
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE

 

Type of Work: reregistration
Type of Work Preregistered: Sound Recording
Musical Composition
Computer Program (may include a videogame)
Preregistration Number / Date: PRE000008898 / 2016-07-22
Application Title: Computer Repair Simulator
Title: Computer Repair Simulator
Copyright Claimant: Garrett Wade Swindell. Address: 129 Thompsonville Rd, McMurray, PA, 15317, United States.
Creation of Work Began: 2015-02-22 (Approximate)
Date of Anticipated Completion: 2017-12-01 (Approximate)
Projected Date of Publication: 2018-01-01 (Approximate)
Authorship on Application: Garrett Wade Swindell.
Description of Work: Computer video game, Computer Repair Simulator to teach / enjoy tech. Purpose to educate on hardware/software. With underlying code of project, can handle detailed scenarios. Run endless scenarios for players, online/offline. Code snippets used from previous unreleased projects ie Isle of Polm, Blades of Blood. Comments the code personal thoughts during development. Uses 3D Game Studio (by Conitec) Game Engine but with A7 outdated / EOL ver. GSge now supports Lite-C, but game coded w/ C-Script. Contains functions that depend on each other over thousands lines of code, but know where everything is,can quickly find source. Chat code used from previous projects which when put side by side resemble each other (files can be presented as evidence). Code structure compared to projects I created show resemblance. Availability for online distribution.Play scenario, or answer question. Complete scenario/answer question respectively, earn money, xp. Progression brings purchasing of tools/hardware/building upgrades. Market for video game enthusiasts, engineers, hardware/software, IT teams, and educational facilities.Will incorporate sound effect files, all using .wav formats for project. Common theme Video Game/Information Technology. Created using Music Maker 17, by creating a basic sound wave, and modifying it then combining with other sounds. Garrett Swindell created / engineered sound files. No genre to sound, they are short and mimic actions taken when using video game. Sound files currently supported within the project are titled “cell_ringtone2.wav”, “snd_options_tick.wav”, “sndButton_Click.wav”, “sndCPULatch.wav”, “sndRamTab.wav”, and “sndWorkOrderDone.wav”, recorded at 129 Thompsonville Rd., McMurray, PA 15317. Folder structure resembles other projects made.Music Compositions don’t contain lyrics, only rhythmic beats/riffs by drums, guitars, bass, keyboard, piano, and violins which resemble that of classical, metal, rap, and dub-step genres. Garrett Swindell composed three (3) musical compositions for which include “All Around”, “The Best Yet”, and “Inline Sight” which were all created w/ Music Maker 17 at location 129 Thompsonville Rd., McMurray, PA 15317. No record label.All can be proved by witnesses, writings, log files, source files, and how generated.
Copyright Note: C.O. correspondence.
Names: Swindell, Garrett Wade