On skinning, I'm not going overboard on this - just allowing customisation of the simple stuff. My thinking is that you should be able to have multiple games installed at the same time and use the same engine for all. To do this, you need a definition file that tells you which title image to use, rather than just over-writing the image file. But yes, they are all likely to be in a very similar sci-fi style (although I reckon you could make it gauntlet style fairly easily by having a hand-to-hand weapon type).
I actually added the game definition file just to specify the worldmap and first level - I could have hardcoded these, but thought I may as well soft code them from the off. Whilst there, I added the title & choose player imagery to show how skinning might work, if we decide to go for it. I certainly don't plan on trying to hard on that front, but it's something self-contained that other coders could help out on.
Maybe the best thing to do with weapons is to have them hardcoded in the engine, but allow the game / level / map /player definition to dictate which ones are available. The only thing you may want to be able to change are the weapon images and names. Their behaviour can be hard-coded.
As for the comments - pfffft. If this person is such a great artist, why not help out? We know the HUD needs work. And other than that, his comments seem to focus on "lighting" and "edges", whatever that means. Useful!
(And if anyone out there reading this agrees on the graphics, and reckons they can do better, give us a hand! I *really* cannot draw to save my life)
I actually added the game definition file just to specify the worldmap and first level - I could have hardcoded these, but thought I may as well soft code them from the off. Whilst there, I added the title & choose player imagery to show how skinning might work, if we decide to go for it. I certainly don't plan on trying to hard on that front, but it's something self-contained that other coders could help out on.
Maybe the best thing to do with weapons is to have them hardcoded in the engine, but allow the game / level / map /player definition to dictate which ones are available. The only thing you may want to be able to change are the weapon images and names. Their behaviour can be hard-coded.
As for the comments - pfffft. If this person is such a great artist, why not help out? We know the HUD needs work. And other than that, his comments seem to focus on "lighting" and "edges", whatever that means. Useful!
(And if anyone out there reading this agrees on the graphics, and reckons they can do better, give us a hand! I *really* cannot draw to save my life)