Java
Joined: Jan 27, 2018
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 Posted:
May 01, 2025 - 16:37 |
 
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Good afternoon
I wanted to put down some ideas and considerations regarding a question that routinely comes up regarding the client
How cool would it be if/when will FUMBBL be adapted for 7s/DB/etc.?
I'm not a coder. I haven't written code from scratch in a long time. But I have a very, very, very, very vague idea of the inner workings of the client and I might shed a little light on the answer to that question.
First of all, the code is Open Source and therefore YOU, yes, you can have a pop at adapting it to variant rules, if you have the time and skills necessary.
Secondly, in a very simplified way, every part of the code has to "link" to something else, a failed pickup leads to a bounce, a scatter outside the pitch leads to a throw in, a knockdown to an armour roll, and so on and so forth. Any change to anything must be accounted for, therefore any group of changes increase the amount of "fixes" to other parts of the code, exponentially. Anything that has no clear outcome, results in a bug or even a game crash.
How far is SEVENS
1) The standard pitch is 26x15, the sevens pitch is smaller. Everything that is built upon pitch size needs to be adapted or rewritten. For example, surfs and throw-ins.
2) Setup is different. Some League settings already allow for some semblance of Sevens setup but there's currently no way to have two lines of scrimmage or the different kickoff/scatter/etc.
3) The kickoff table is different. Every result needs to be redone and re-tested.
4) Site-side, the Sevens skillup system needs to be rebuilt from scratch. Client-side, I don't remember if SPPs even exist when playing sevens.
5) Graphics need to be adapted. The client window is tailored for the current pitch size, so probably a new set of assets (dugouts, pitch, bars, etc) needs to be made or resized from old ones.
6) game duration is different. Currently the client only supports 8-turn halves.
This list is non-exhaustive. Once all of that is done, thorough testing has to be done for all possible interactions that might "break" (i.e. interrupt, sometimes irreparably) a match.
How far is DUNGEONBOWL
1) first of all there is no "standard pitch" so it must be decide if there's going to be ONE dungeon (it makes every other step easier) or multiple dungeons
2) introduce the event of a player being pushed into a wall, throw away all the code about surfs (and halves, and kickoff table, etc). While you're there, make sure no player can ever walk into a wall voluntarily or cross walls (the "modified pitch" needs impassable areas)
3) ball interacting with walls, statues, teleporters and bottomless pits
4) players jumping over (or into) said bottomless pits; players entering a teleporter; players coming into play from the dugouts
5) a whole list of new skills that only work in Dungenbowl
6) teleporter and treasure chest placement, be it random, fixed, or with some coach input, needs all the guidelines and limitations built in
7) if there's only one Dungeon (heck, even if there's multiple options!) be prepared to be the arbiter of balance. Does this map allow for big guys walling off the endzone? is one of the two endoznes harder to reach? people will have opinions.
The same caveats given for the sevens process apply here too.
Finally, bear in mind there's no estimation of how long will this take to write, and test, and combine with site infrastructure.
Well, hope you enjoyed the ride. If someone has been moved to "trying", that's probably a miracle. It's understandable (if a bit optimistic) when the first impression one gets is "how hard could it be"  but the answer is "all I've listed above, and then some"  |
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Vlad Von Carstein's door-to-door evangelist |
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koadah
Joined: Mar 30, 2005
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| Posted:
May 01, 2025 - 17:25 |
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Drrek
Joined: Jul 23, 2012
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May 01, 2025 - 20:00 |
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I've given consideration in the past to trying to implement 7s on the client, since it is open source, and I do code for a living. But then whenever I start looking at it, I run into the problem I often do with coding in my free time - that is, I already spend 8 hours a day doing this, do I essentially want to be working a second job during my nights with the same thing? And personally I find the (necessary) part of understanding the existing codebase larger and less fun than implementing new bits in. |
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quix
Joined: Jun 04, 2024
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| Posted:
May 01, 2025 - 22:03 |
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I've also given some thought into 7s. I have poked around the code some, just not in the areas that would need to change to fully implement 7s. There are 7s leagues in fumbbl that get by with these limitations but it would be nice if it was fully supported.
How close are we to a new platform? It might be easier to retrofit our current client than waiting for a new one. Sure it will have to be ported again but I don't think that is the end of the world.
Like Drrek eludes to, it is a large code base and there is the task for getting familiar with the scope of the changes before trying to even writing a line of code. |
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