Hacking

[ThunderPeel2001]

Hopefully we'll get to a point where a free and open source cross-browser JS library can compete with the flash player, but even if someone made one (and knowing open source I'm guessing there are hundreds of isolated little projects attempting this as we speak, and even Adobe is working on it) you'll never be able to compete on the author side. It's like Photoshop or World of Warcraft – the best you can hope for is to make a dent or scratch in their market share.

Well do sites really need beautifully scaled vector graphics? I'd say no, personally.

The fact that Flash content isn't SEO-able, is a massive pain in the ass to update/re-design, and doesn't work well on mobile devices are huge reasons why HTML/CSS mixed with libraries like JQuery, Prototype, script.aculo.us, etc., are way more desirable than Flash. Not to mention all the funky AJAX stuff that's become so popular. Add that to the fact that Apple are refusing to support Flash, and there's little or no reason for it to exist online anymore (outside of video players and movie and game advertising sites that are designed to die after a few months anyway). Thank god.

Some Rare guy explained to me at Eurogamer that all their huds, interfaces, etc are done in Flash — including in their flagship Kinect game, Banjo, and Viva Piñata. He said such practice isn't remotely uncommon in the industry, as many UI designers — who often handle interaction and animation too — can readily use Illustrator/Flash, whereas using other approaches requires more training, developer intervention (not who you want handling animation and visual effects, etc.

Wow, that's news to me. Like Toblix said, I guess it's more about people using it where it's better suited. That video he linked to really shows how far it's come (although they've added a lot to the basic functionality).

Personally I think Flash gets too bad a rap, largely due to Apple's self-centred smearing efforts. It's not nearly as bulky, inefficient, or bloated as many seem to think, especially in comparison to earlier versions. Granted it may not be the best long-term solution for the web, but its been incredibly useful for many things and has helped define modern web interactivity.

Flash not horrendous and inefficient? The last time I tried Flash was the MX version. It had the worst and most unintuitive interface I'd ever seen, and I refused to persevere on principle. It was far too painful. The idea that it's gotten better does intrigue me, although I'd never use it for a website that was planning to be around for a while.

[Thrik]

Oh yeah, Flash hasn't been a reasonable solution for designing an entire site for a long time. For any and all sites you can accomplish what you need with JavaScript and Canvas (if you have Chrome you might want to see what can be accomplished in a Flash-free future), but Flash does persist as a useful stand-in while such technologies continue to mature and become supported by the browsers people are actually using.

Specifically Flash is most useful right now for playing videos (HTML5 alternatives aren't really ready for prime time yet), producing games (it's possible to do this with JavaScript and Canvas but it's an incredible chore, akin to designing a website in Paint), and of course in non-web contexts where Flash's superb performance and range of visual interaction is useful. Game interfaces are a very natural fit when you think about it, as are presentations, interactive CDs, etc. The kind of things Flash's sister Shockwave used to be used for, actually.

I agree with you about the MX editing tools, though. Adobe have very much overhauled Flash and the interface and software alike are infinitely better than it used to be, with Flash now having a completely object-orientated scripting language and the ability to export directly to JavaScript and Canvas — which means that Flash or an Adobe-developed derivative of it is still going to inevitably be used for producing many of the interactive interfaces that'll succeed Flash itself, especially when you consider that Flash can now natively open Photoshop and Illustrator files.

So don't shed a tear for Flash, because it's going to simply evolve and live on.

[Nachimir]

While the rest of the world is moving away from Flash... games are starting to use it? Seems weird. Are you sure it's actually Flash? It'd strike me as an odd choice.

I met at least one company between 2007 and now that offered middleware for taking menu systems built in flash then recompiling them for the front end of a game. While some middleware doesn't necessarily make sense over something built in house, something like that really could streamline your UI process a lot. Just eliminating that one interaction between an artist and the programming team counts for a lot.

[Forbin]

Back on topic. I really enjoyed the hacking and bypass mini-games in ME2. The bypass game was actually enjoyable and felt thematically accurate, and while the hacking game was a bit more of a stretch I think it fit well too.

Writing code is often about picking the right design pattern or coding pattern from memory rather than just typing stream of conscious into a text editor. So the mix of grabbing code blocks without losing momentum felt somewhat correct. Also, you could think of hacking in the future (or even now) as a bit of a copy-paste affair. You're prodding the system and applying known scripts to breach vulnerabilities.

[Thompson]

You guys heard of that new game composed entirely of hacking into servers and stealing personal information and credit card numbers? You know the one where it's really, really easy because the information isn't encrypted?

I think it's called So Knee.

[mikemariano]

You guys heard of that new game composed entirely of hacking into servers and stealing personal information and credit card numbers? You know the one where it's really, really easy because the information isn't encrypted?

Yeah, I was surprised that Deus Ex hacking video was showcased on the PS3.

Too soon!

[ThunderPeel2001]

Yeah, I was surprised that Deus Ex hacking video was showcased on the PS3.

Too soon!

Lol. Whatever happened about all that, anyway? Was any real damage done?

[clyde]

My interest in Netrunner has made me start to compare hacking as a mini-game and hacking as a major mechanic.

I'm reading William Gibson's "Count Zero" right now (I haven't read any cyberpunk before) and I'm enthralled by the way that Netrunner's mechanics represent the particular take on hacking that Gibson presents. As a runner, the greed and curiosity that initially fuels your desire to install hardware and programs turns into a the desperation of survival. As you poke servers curiously, you inevitably uncover the Corporation's plans to win in a zero-sum game. Cyberpunk narratives seem to have a similar arc. I love that.

Anyway, breaking ice on servers is the main game-mechanic for the runner and it demonstrates the potential of a video-game with hacking as a major mechanic. Getting new icebreakers in an open-world has the potential to motivate me more than getting a more powerful gun. I'd love to do a run on a corp using an insider to stealth-in and grab some serious icebreakers and then give it to some wilson so I can find out if it fries his brain; it's better him than me. Oh man, never being sure that you haven't been tagged when you go searching for your contact. If that type of thing was done with systems in a game it would be SO COOL!

[tegan]

Oh hey, a hacking minigame thread.

 

Fucking Lego of all things did an amazing browser-based game called Spybot: The Nightfall Incident back in 2002 that was entirely framed around hacking. It had almost nothing to do with the actual toyline it was promoting, but man was it fun. I really wish it had been a standalone game so that it could have possibly escaped the promotional website ghetto it was sentenced to. You can play it here.