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!

[Deska]

I'm waiting....

[scottct1]

I am sure it will be out by VB4.

Looking forward to playing with it!

[yabba]

Originally Posted by KuraFire

Would you expect "very soon" to be < 1 week / 1-2 weeks / 3-4 weeks / more ? :squareeyed:

I think he will release the hack "yesterday" .... :banana:

[futureal]

Less than a week from now. To answer another question I received, no I have not converted the hack to phrases yet -- but I will eventually.

str8ballin, I will see if I can come up with something.

[Oblivion Knight]

My hat is off to futureal for creating seemingly one of the most wanted modifications for vB3, and for how well he is coping with the HUGE demand for the mod's release.. Top stuff.!

I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of the newer vB2 version..

[str8ballin]

Yeah, I can see how much pressure he has now vb3 is out.

^^ Im also just looking foward to when he finishes the new vb2 version.

futureal: thanks I hope it isnt too much trouble if you help me out and Id really appreciate it.

[PixelFx]

wonder if we will get new vb3 art with vb3 RC3 ? I can help with templates for arcade in vb2 & 3 again if needed, ...

[Wolfy.2k]

hmm that hasnt work mate, i tried that and no difference, still lots of Xs and now of the scoreboards will load up, even thought i kno the templates are there!!

please help :P

cheers

------------------

i have a feeling that my skin mite be doing it, i am using a vbskinz plasma skin, i also have vbportal on my site.. any ideas mate?

[futureal]

wolfy.2k: If the scoreboards themselves will not even load, then it sounds like either your templates are messed up, or the hack was installed incorrectly...

...and a quick update for vB3:

I am working on the hack whenever I have the chance, and I am honestly pretty happy with how this is fitting into vB3. Now that I have taken the time to actually try and integrate it, a lot of the code is smoother and really just that much cooler.

After further study, I've taken the plunge and begun to implement phrases for everything that is hardcoded into the Admin CP. I will deal with phrases in the templates at some later date (most likely -- I want to get this released).

I also spent the evening playing around with the bitfield permission model in vB3, and this is going to make it much easier to configure things like which admins can edit stuff in the arcade, which users can use the arcade, and whether or not the champions stuff is displayed.

I am hoping to post screenshots tomorrow or Monday.

Thanks.

[Oblivion Knight]

One question futureal, it was suggested a few posts back that the Arcade could have two types of scoring systems with a switch in the admin cp game settings, the higher the score = the higher the rank (current), and also the lower the score = the higher the rank (for turn based games such as "Pairs"). Will this be implemented into this release or will that be an optional addon later on.?