vbProArcade Beta 2

vbProArcade Beta 2

1/5/03: Beta 2 released
9/12/02: Beta 1.03 zip updated to include safe mode fix
9/3/02: Beta 1.03 released -- small bug fixes, see below
9/1/02: Beta 1 of vbProArcade has been posted. Please see below for installation instructions.


Background Information

vbProArcade is a fully-customizable Flash arcade add-on for vBulletin, complete with game-by-game scoreboards, forum integration, a "champions" system, statistics, and more.

This is an extensive hack that is still in BETA form, and I don't recommend installing it if you are not willing to work through potential issues and future updates/upgrades! I am working on making the installation instructions as easy as possible, but it will probably be some time before it is perfect.

Watch this post for updates as they happen, and check out screenshots from the list below. If you would like to see the hack in action, you may visit my Shadows of Namek forums. You will need to register to play, but you can view the scoreboards and the arcade itself as a guest.


Credits

This hack materialized thanks to work and help from a number of people and forums. Here they are:

• Original vbTetris Hack by Erwin Loh
• Original vbTetris Leaderboard Hack by John Warwick (john.eovie)
• One of my users, Simon Steel, for work on Flash coding/recoding
• The users of one of my forums, Shadows of Namek, for their extensive testing of the system
• And The Kryptonian for pre-release and release candidate installation testing.

Games

So far, there are FIVE GAMES that work correctly with this hack. They are:

Breakout
Pacman
Snake
Space Invaders
Tetris

All five .SWF files are included in the release archive.

There is now a Flash Games Development Thread for the purpose of modifying existing games to work with vbProArcade, or for creating new games to be compatible with vbProArcade. If you have a game that you wish to see modified but don't know how, post the .FLA source in that thread and hopefully somebody can assist you.


Installation Instructions

Download the file attached to this post, unzip it and familiarize yourself with the contents BEFORE doing anything.

There are TWO separate files worth reading, the Documentation and the Installation Instructions. I recommend that you read both BEFORE doing anything else.

Once you have done this, the instructions to be followed are contained in vbproarcade-install.txt. Follow them as precisely as possible. If you encounter an error somewhere, it is likely that you missed a step or made a small error. Please double-check your work BEFORE posting about problems here.

And it cannot be said enough: read that file before you do anything, and if you are unsure of something, please post your question(s) before attempting to install the hack.


Problems and Fixes/Workarounds (as of 1/5)

• None

Known Bugs/Limitations

Here is the list of stuff that I know does not work. I will be working towards correcting these bugs BEFORE adding new features for the next release.

• Netscape will allow you to play the games but not record scores
• If a user uses the "Back" button to go to the game screen, and does not refresh before playing, the score will result in a Security Violation. This is by design.

Screen Shots for Beta 2

Here is the list of posts from this thread that contain screen shots for the new version. Check them out!

• Main Arcade Screen: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...106#post292106
• Game Screen: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...107#post292107
• Game Over Screen: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...109#post292109
• Scoreboard: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...110#post292110
• Top Score Board: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...111#post292111
• Admin Modify Game: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...112#post292112
• Who's Online Display: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...113#post292113
• User Detail Screen: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...811#post337811
• Admin Score Editor: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...736#post338736
• Champ System in Postbit: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...745#post338745
• Modify Games in Admin CP (contracted): https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...858#post389858
• Modify Games in Admin CP (expanded): https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...859#post389859

Upcoming Features

This is the stuff that is in progress for future release:

• Complete Admin Panel Scoreboard Editor
• Additional integration with vB
• Even better Who's Online screen

Some have emailed or PM'd me asking if I would accept donations for my work on this hack, and yes, I certainly will, and any and all support is greatly appreciated. With over 2,000 lines of original PHP code, in addition to HTML and Flash work, I have spent a great deal of time developing and debugging the source for this, and it is a great feeling to have people like it so much that they want to give something back.

All donations received go directly back into supporting my websites and my design activities. You may click here to donate via Paypal. Note that donations are by no means required, and not donating does not mean you won't get support for the hack.

Last but not least, thanks for checking this out!

[Apok2002]

Well...I can wait until the next version if it's in the works.

[futureal]

Yea, that was definitely one of the more requested features, along with different crown icons for each game. It is probably the next thing I will work on, now that the safe mode stuff and top score board stuff is all fixed up.

[eckels2]

eh... you missed my post, i think

https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...022#post298022

[garoboldy]

well, I have it installed and everything but it doesnt want to load the game. it just sits there like its loading but never does....any idea???

[futureal]

eckels2: Do you have your account set to browse board with cookies? That is the first thing I can think of, that might be a difference between you and your users. Having cookies "on" should eliminate most problems of that nature.

garoboldy: Do you have a link I could look at (with a test account)? Thanks.

[eckels2]

Originally posted by futureal
eckels2: Do you have your account set to browse board with cookies? That is the first thing I can think of, that might be a difference between you and your users. Having cookies "on" should eliminate most problems of that nature.

Nope. Tried it both ways, with cookies off and with cookies on. I even deleted all my cookies and logged in fresh to try it that way, no dice.

[futureal]

Originally posted by eckels2
Nope. Tried it both ways, with cookies off and with cookies on. I even deleted all my cookies and logged in fresh to try it that way, no dice.

Man, I can't think of what might cause that. I created an account on your site and was able to play/record scores just fine. Does it happen with all games?

[eckels2]

Originally posted by futureal
Does it happen with all games?

Yup. just tried them all again to make sure. Any idea at all?

[futureal]

I can't think of anything at all that might cause that. I haven't seen that behavior yet anywhere.. I have to think it's some sort of browser issue, since it works fine for most of your users, but I still can't put my finger on what might cause it. I'm not even sure how it could know to send you back to the scoreboard...

[eckels2]

wait. not the scoreboard. it sends me to the games listing. The screen where it shows the different games you can play, the high scorers, your score, and the game description.

I just tried setting up another administrator username, and playing using that name, same problem. De-adminned the name, and STILL got the same problem. I imagine it's got to be some sort of thing about how it connects to my pc... but i dunno. wait a second....

What version of flash do all the games use? Is it a command in the flash game that redirects the user to the comments screen?