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[Corpus]

 

 

[Rostiger]

Oh GAAWWwwd I can't even look at the original Bonesaw graphics anymore now.

Aaaw, no - I actually really like them! They are great because of their simplicity and go together really well! It is a good example of how to use "simple" graphics efficiently. I admire how you used easy methods to add a feeling of depth, like using a darker shade of the foreground tiles in the background and putting bushes and those tube like things to fill up mid-layers, leaving small holes to still see some of the parallax scrolling.

Those things may seem really obvious to you, but for me I learned a lot by analyzing screenshots and stopping during play to observe how the background graphics act together in motion.

As said before I'm still not happy the way the level background transitions form the cave to the sky - you avoided the problem by combining the area through entrance parts that make the transition much smoother. Having it all on one screen is a little tough, but I'm sure it could be done a bit better than I did (maybe using dark brown blocks instead of the horizontally growing bushes).

[Rostiger]

I had an idea on how to improve the background today afternoon and I still had to try it tonight:



Still not done yet, but I think the transition works a lot better now with the darker blocks as a sepparator.
Oh and -small detail- the bomb blocks have been updated - instead of a dark grey outline, it's black now for better contrast.

Also, in case you want to rotate the cannon, it's made of two parts:



Alright, time for bed now... 

[Soulliard]

YES

[Rostiger]

Alrighty, I've been tinkering with this now way to long and it's time to put a stop to it.
Here's a final version of the stage for the time being:



And here's the whole thing without objects:



I wanted to add some more Bonesaw "unique" objects like the green and brown columns that are rounded on the top, or warning signs with arrows and such, but the stage is crowded already as it is, so I took them out completely.

Hope ya'll like it. 

[EDIT]
Nightshade, I'm currently putting together a graphics pack with all the graphics sepparated, so no need to slice everything apart.
[/EDIT]

[The-Imp]

 

[Rostiger]

Just bumpin to show off a fance little block explosion:

[Valter]

The mid-level platforms should be thinned a little bit, so that people can jump up from lower down even if the bridges have all been destroyed. Currently, if a person were standing on the permanent platforms on bottom, they wouldn't easily be able to reach the middle and upper ones, since they would essentially have to jump around the platform.

[Rostiger]

No worries, the plattforms can be jumped through from underneath. 

[Hideous]

Kovski, want a collaboration on the next compo?

[Rostiger]

 :D Sure, why not?
Depends if I have time though - coming months look like they're full of work and moving into a new appartement and things like that.
But let's talk again once the next compo has been officially announced.

[Valter]

No worries, the plattforms can be jumped through from underneath. 

Ah, good. However, I think there currently isn't anything that tells you that currently. The blocks certainly look solid, even if they aren't. There should be some kind of indication that you can jump through them.

[Rostiger]

Hmm, I wouldn't know how to make this visually more obvious. I suppose the player will realize as soon as it happens accidentally which I think will be farely early.
But if you have have any particular ideas, you can surely anounce them! 

[medieval]

So is anyone already doing this one / is it already finished? I think it would be a good challenge for me if I tried coding this, and I want to help out on the project anyway. Character programming is probably beyond my abilities, and this stage looks like something I'll be able to do.

[Rostiger]

Yay! Yama, you be my new hero if you pull this one off! 
I've sent all the necessary data to le Soupe de Brain (or Souper Brain, whichever you prefer) and it should be farely easy to put everthing together. If you want, I can send you the package or just talk to the master himself to get set up.

[Soulliard]

The main problem with coding stages is that GM isn't good at importing rooms. To import a character, I just need to copy a few scripts and graphics. To import a room, I basically need to tile it from scratch. You could try to program the bomb blocks or bombs, but I don't think that would be any easier than coding a character. 
Still, I'll work with anything you give me.

I'll try to finish some sort of framework for coding items soon. That would be another area where coders could contribute.

It really won't take me too long to make the stage, anyway. I'm just really busy. I hope to get more work done this weekend.

[medieval]

What about I give you a piece of code where all the tiles and instances are automatically placed?

EDIT: I just realized a second after I posted this that GM doesn't support tiling through code.

EDIT2: I think it wouldn't hurt to post some of my thoughts on how I'm gonna do this here.

Cannon object
I think it would fit if the cannon only fires straight forward and diagonally up (thus no precise angle). The cannon will fire only if a player comes close enough, and if it hasn't fired for a certain time already. If both of these factors are true, the fuse will ignite and a second or so later it fires a bomb (depending on the angle of the cannon, which is determined by any player being above the cannon or not).

Tip: I would use one object facing right and another one facing right. This will make it easier to determine the direction the bomb should go.


Bomb object
Pretty straight forward. After it is fired it will bounce around. A player attacking it will give it force in a direction determined by the player's used attack (is there any variable saying which direction the target goes to? It's probably handy to define one). After some seconds, or after hitting a player without the player attacking it, it explodes.


Bomb block object
Destroys or creates objects when it is destroyed. A pre-defined variable determines if it's a creating or a destroying block. Also pre-defined is an array of X and Y positions of where the existing blocks are, or where the blocks are to be created. When hit, the first position in the array is destroyed or created. An alarm is set, and it continues on the next block. Etcetera..

Tip: What I'd do with creating blocks is this. Since there might be some awful collision issues, it'd be best if you first create invisible collision objects at all positions at the beginning (if nobody is in that position, otherwise wait). Create the real blocks one by one (as I said earlier), destroying the invisible objects as you go.


This should be detailed enough for you to program it, right Brain Soup?

Of course, I will be the man who programmed it. ehh. Just kidding.

[Soulliard]

What about I give you a piece of code where all the tiles and instances are automatically placed?

GM does support this, actually, but I don't really recommend it, since it's kind of a pain.

Cannon object
The cannon will fire only if a player comes close enough, and if it hasn't fired for a certain time already.

I thought the cannons would just fire automatically every so often. Otherwise, they'll probably never fire because the players will be smart enough to stay away.

Bomb object
Pretty straight forward. After it is fired it will bounce around. A player attacking it will give it force in a direction determined by the player's used attack (is there any variable saying which direction the target goes to? It's probably handy to define one). After some seconds, or after hitting a player without the player attacking it, it explodes.

This is easier said than done. The easiest solution is probably to make the bomb a character (so it would be affected by knockback). Not exactly elegant... but I think it would work.

Bomb block object
Destroys or creates objects when it is destroyed. A pre-defined variable determines if it's a creating or a destroying block. Also pre-defined is an array of X and Y positions of where the existing blocks are, or where the blocks are to be created. When hit, the first position in the array is destroyed or created. An alarm is set, and it continues on the next block. Etcetera.

Each bomb block actually creates a platform and destroys another platform.

Also, I wouldn't use arrays in GM. Use other data structures instead.

Tip: What I'd do with creating blocks is this. Since there might be some awful collision issues, it'd be best if you first create invisible collision objects at all positions at the beginning (if nobody is in that position, otherwise wait). Create the real blocks one by one (as I said earlier), destroying the invisible objects as you go.

The bomb blocks will create one-way or two-way platforms, not solid walls, so there shouldn't be any collision issues. If there is ever a situation where we would need to create solid walls, this is what we would have to do, though.

[medieval]

I thought the cannons would just fire automatically every so often. Otherwise, they'll probably never fire because the players will be smart enough to stay away.

Ah yes, I suppose. Autofire it is, then. Just make sure it's not both at the same time.

This is easier said than done. The easiest solution is probably to make the bomb a character (so it would be affected by knockback). Not exactly elegant... but I think it would work.

I haven't had a look into the engine yet. I'll do that tomorrow and see what your concern is.

Each bomb block actually creates a platform and destroys another platform.
Also, I wouldn't use arrays in GM. Use other data structures instead.

I don't see a big problem with arrays, and I uh.. have never tried using any other data structures.

The bomb blocks will create one-way or two-way platforms, not solid walls, so there shouldn't be any collision issues. If there is ever a situation where we would need to create solid walls, this is what we would have to do, though.

Right, I forgot about that.

[William Broom]

I'm pretty sure you can transfer resources like rooms if you use File>Merge Game. That just bungs all the resources together. So what you would have to do is get the version with the new room and delete all its elements except for those that are new in that build. It might still have problems but it would be better than re-tiling by hand, right?