I have also updated a "Testing" version of Anomalies for anyone interested in some of the new features I'm working on.
If you click on "Anomalies > Properties > Betas" ad select "Testing" from the drop down menu, you will be able to download the newest, experimental version of Anomalies.
Features
Number Keyboard - this is the most prominent new feature so far. When you play Anomalies, you will now be able to use your keyboard's number keys (across the top, not the side one) to play notes in real time with your anomaly. This will enhance Anomalies in its capacity as a musical instrument of the future.
This keyboard automatically plays note in the same scale as the current Anomaly. For those who don't know, there are different musical scales controlled by the anomaly's segment texture.
Sound Type - the type of sound the keyboard plays is controlled in the options menu with the "Sound Type" slider. Sound types are numbered 1 - 13. Anomalies automatically play sound types 1 - 12, depending on which segment type is being used. 13 is the sound of nebulas.
Toggle Segments - Now if you have an anomaly active, you can actually use the mouse to click on one of the segments, which toggles its sound on and off. In theory, you will be able to tweak the sounds made by an anomaly, and turn off any notes you don't want playing. The segment will change colors slightly to show whether it is on or off.
M-Toggle - Pressing "M" will toggle all the anomalies segments either on or off. If you don't want to hear any sounds from an anomaly, or if you mess around with toggling on different segments, simply press m to reset all the sounds on or off.
Microtones - If you unclick "Harmonious Sounds Only" in the options menu, Anomalies has a new way of choosing what notes it will play. Previously, these unharmonious notes were based on the size of the segment being played. Now they actually create a unique musical scale based on the color, number of branches and branch distance parameters. These unique musical scales have notes that do not appear on a piano keyboard, and they are known as microtones, since they represent smaller steps than those available on most instruments. I plan to add some kind of display that will show you what sort of musical scale is being used. Try this out, it sounds totally different than most other forms of music.
Random Rhythms - When you have "Fixed Angles" set to 0, the anomaly will play its sounds in a random fashion. This experimental version of Anomalies uses a different algorithm to play these random notes. Notes are still either harmonious or microtonal, depending on your settings in the options menu.
Anyway, I hope you guys and gals enjoy the new features. Note: If you do download the testing verison, you previously saved anomalies will not work. However, if you reinstall the default version, they should be able to load again.
If you like Anomalies, you might also like my other generative game Star Explorers: http://store.steampowered.com/app/502720/Star_Explorers/
Star Explorers is still in Early Acces, but it allows you to travel through and explore a randomly generated galaxy!
New DLC on the Way!
I am releasing my Anomalies albums here on Steam. They should be up sometime next week. They consist of generative music produced with Anomalies, and edited with Audacity. All I did with these "songs" was record them directly from the game, then edit the beginning and ending. All the sounds, rhythms, melodies come directly from Anomalies.
For anyone who uses Anomalies, please feel free to use the game to write / record your own music. I'm not a musician or songwriter, but I can envision someone out there using Anomalies as a base, and writing music over it, or just using it to get inspired to write a "real" song. Feel free to use it however you want. I think of it as the musical instrument of the future, it writes it's own music...
No need to reference the game if you actually produce anything, but a nod would always be appreciated.
Anomalies: Volume 4
Anomalies: Volume 4 is now available for listening:
mkschmidt.bandcamp.com/
It's the fourth album of songs generated by Anomalies. Ambient / Generative / Electronic music for aliens. I'm planning on including all these albums in an upcoming DLC, so keep on the look out for that!
Anomalies - Sights and Sounds Now Available - FREE!
The first DLC for Anomalies is now available for free! Check out "Anomalies - Sights and Sounds" to see and hear some updated content for your game.
This is the first DLC available, and it consists of a new array of background images, as well as new sounds for Anomalies. Sights and Sounds delivers more spacey weirdness to your Anomalies, and it comes at no extra cost.
Tests have confirmed that you should be able to reload previously saved Anomalies, and they will appear with the new content.
Removing the DLC package is also easy, and it will revert your game back to the original state.
Enjoy!
DLC Coming Soon
I have created a small, free DLC package called "Sight and Sound", which should be available for download soon (waiting for Valve approval).
It's my first DLC package, and it's fairly small. It includes some new spacey backgrounds and new and improved sound effects, the same ones I posted about in the latest "Modding" announcement. However, this way, it is easy to install/uninstall right through Steam.
If you do install it, your saved anomalies may not load correctly while it is installed. However, they should work fine if you uninstall the DLC.
I do have some more ideas planned for the future of Anomalies. Right now, I am working on finishing my other game "Star Explorers," which is currently available in Early Access.
I have uploaded some new sounds for anyone interested in modding the game further. In order to replace sounds, simply copy the contents of this zipped folder into your Anomalies folder.
Find your Anomalies folder by right clicking the game icon, and selecting properties. On the "Local Files" tab, you'll find a "Browse Game Files" button. Unzip the new notes ,and paste them into the Anomalies fiolder, allowign it to overwrite the original files.
Most of the notes have been updated with some effects, like vibrato and reverb, to make them sound more spacey. Some are brand new sounds.
To create your own sounds, you can use any audio editor to record sounds from your computer ,as long as it can export Ogg Vorbis format. I use Audacity (because it's free). I recommend using samples under 3 seconds or so, and they should be in the key of "D" if you want them to match the exsting notes. Just name your newly created note to match the existing name, i.e. Note_001.ogg, Note_002.ogg, etc... and it will replace the note for that segment number. Note_000.ogg is the opening note that plays between Anomalies. I don't think 14 or 15 are being used...
Once again, enjoy modding Anomalies!
Anomalies Modding
Thanks to a curious player, I have realized that Anomalies is modable. Here is a quick tutorial on how to modify the background image...
If you access the "Anomalies" folder under your Steam Account, you can modify the "Space_Background_0xx.bmp" files. They are numbered 006 - 010 (replacing the 'xx').
In this way, by replacing bitmaps, the game is "modable." You can download a different set of "spacey" backgrounds I made here: Space_Backgrounds.zip
To find your "Anomalies" folder, right-click on Anomalies in your Steam Library, and click "properties."
In the "Local Files" tab, click on "Browse Local Files."
You may want to make a backup of the existing "Space_Background" files before doing the next step.
Copy and paste the contents of the "Space_Backgrounds.zip" file into this folder, and allow it to overwrite the existing files.
Run Anomalies after the files are over-written.
For making custom backgrounds, I would suggest the following:
They should be 2048 pixels wide by 1024 tall. ( they could be different sizes, but the 2x1 aspect ratio should be preserved and they should be powers of 2, i.e. 128, 256, 512, 1024 etc...)
The top and bottom colors of the image should be some flat color (mine are black), as any image details will get stretched in this region.
Follow the above procedures with your custom images
Make sure they are named the same as the original bitmap files (they need to be .bmp file format too)
Share your screenshots! Tell your friends how awesome Anomalies is, and don't forget to upvote or comment on other people's screenshots as well.
Thanks for playing Anomalies!
Anomalies in 3D!
Anomalies in 3D!
I can now confirm that Anomalies works in 3D. If you have a simple pair of red/cyan 3D glasses, and an Nvidia GeForce graphics card, you can activate 3D mode with Anomalies. This is not an update, it actually works with most DirectX 3D games, but it is very cool! Go to your Nvidia Control Panel, and click on "Set Up Stereoscopic 3D" to see if your computer can do this.
Check out some of the screenshots...
The Future of Art
If you believe, as I do, that the future of art lies in video games and generative design, then please let your friends know about Anomalies.
I love art in all its various forms. I paint, I draw, I have worked as a professional sculptor, and more. However, 3D design and games are dominating the culture in terms of advances and public interest. Some people try to shrug this off as mere "entertainment" but I think those people are missing the boat. What's happening is that people, artists, are exploring the potential of these newer forms of art, and of course a lot of it is going to be commercialized and used as entertainment. There's nothing wrong with that at all. However, that does not diminish the potential artistic value of these new media.
In their time, great artists like Da Vinci, Michelangelo and others were very much commercial artists, who used their particular skills to make money. Does this diminish the value of their contributions to art and culture?
While traditional arts will always have their place, it's exciting to see all the new ideas and dimensions that are allowed through the use of technology. Anomalies is my first foray into the vast universe of generative art and game design, but it will not be my last.
Of course it helps if people like what you are making, so I'm asking you to consider helping out. Sharing with your friends is one great way to help spread the word, but here are a few other ideas you might consider.
1. Play the Game - Set the auto-timer, hit randomize, and watch it do it's thing for a while ... or just let it run in the background while you do something else. I find it soothing and it still occasionally surprises me with an anomaly that I never anticipated.
2. Write a Review - every review helps, even if it's short. Reviews also help me as a developer to see what people want, or don't want in a game.
3. Buy Anomalies as a Gift - it's not too late to give a small token of your friendship to that special person. Why not give the gift of art?
4. Share a Screenshot - Hitting F12 will allow you to easily upload a screenshot of your anomaly to the Community Hub. Other users can see your work, and comment on it. Check out the screenshots that are already up there and feel free to like, dislike or comment on them: http://steamcommunity.com/app/546780/screenshots/
5. Record an Anomaly - the game does not have this as a built in feature, but running a screen recording program like Camtasia or Bandicam will allow you to create a video of your Anomaly and share it on You-Tube or on the Steam Community Hub. Again, likes, dislikes and comments are always welcome: http://steamcommunity.com/app/546780/videos/
6. Record a Song - I have recorded many of the "songs" generated by Anomalies, on two albums (so far). Mostly, anomalies produce somewhat random sounding effects, but with the right parameters, things can get pretty musical at times. Feel free to use the resulting songs for your own purposes ... in a game ... in a video ... heck, write lyrics for it and sing along if you want :) Please do mention Anomalies if you end up publishing it anywhere though. Here's are my examples: https://mkschmidt.bandcamp.com/
Anyway, I hope you are all enjoying the holidays!
Final Update
Anomalies has been updated one last time before I continue on my other Greenlit game Star Explorers.
This "final" update includes the following:
Updated Randomize
The Old Randomize Function was Limited - it tended to sort between just a few basic anomaly types
The New Randomize Function takes slightly longer to run, but it generats a much wider variation of anomalies ... try it out!
More Particle Options
More Particle Types - 10 in all
Particle Size
Particle Shrinking or Growing
Particle Color
Flower Options
1 New Flower Type
Flower Rotation - with Wiggle Active (previously flowers only rotated when Wiggle was set to 0
Flower Particles - if flowers are active, particles will now spawn on flowers, adding rotation to the particle movement
Flower Symmetry with Orbit - activating flowers along with symmetry and orbit caused problems before, now they will all work together
German Update
The German version of Anomalies will be up to date as well
Enjoy the new updates! I do have a bunch of other ideas that I'd like to implement eventually. New improved segment types and textures, the ability to export both 3D models of anomalies and MIDI files of the songs they produce, and other tweaks and changes are all ideas I am considering, but they fall somewhat outside the original idea of a simple generative art game.
However, as I mentioned, I have a whole other game I need to get finished, and I can't work on both at the same time effectively. I will be updating Star Explorers and trying to get it ready for an Early Access release next month. However, I might take longer than that, depending on other factors ... we'll see.
Anyway, it's been a pleasure working on this first released game of mine. If you do like it, and I hope you do, please consider voting for it on the Steam Awards and tell your friends to try it out too. Keep sharing screenshots, I love to see the stuff you guys come up with! Also, make sure you try the new randomize function, it works much better now.
As always, let me know if you have any problems or issues running the game.
