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[whilefun]

Hi folks,

Starting a new devlog for a project, which is basically amounting to a "shippable" version of my TigSource Sports Compo entry, Mini Golf Master: https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=29422.0

Key features mapped out so far

• Updated physics to remove glitches and allow for a more fun and better feeling game
• Tighter feeling controls (old ones were in the right spectrum, just janky)
• Hole/Course editor

Key items to fix up

• Improved controls (old ones were in the right spectrum, just janky
• Better sound and music, but similarly "realistic" style
• Improved graphics, screen management
• Camera system for better "follow the ball" feel
• More zazz, game feel goodness

The target audience for this includes me, as well as the casual "bejeweller" crowd, Golf Dads™, and anyone else who just wants to chill and take their time and have some fun on their computer.

So far, the editor has a mario-paint esque feel to it, which I want to drive for. Making holes should be as enjoyable as playing them.


I've got a prototype editor working now, which allows for basics saving/loading of files, painting/deleting tiles and placing objects. Working on more advanced things like undo, tile palettes, etc. next.

Will post more here in the coming days and weeks (and hopefully not years!)  

For now, here's a rabbit running away from the cursor inside the hole editor

[whilefun]

The hole editor allows for realtime editing/playing so you can quickly make changes to the level and try them out. Boring right now as there is only one kind of thing to paint with. But there are BUNNIES, so that makes it a bit better 

[whilefun]

Coding the undo function. It's not quite working yet 

[whilefun]

There we go.



(The pink is just a debug reference to show localized undo box. Makes things way more efficient)

[BomberTREE]

Oh heck yeah, I'm down to play some mini golf. 

[whilefun]

Oh heck yeah, I'm down to play some mini golf. 

This is what I like to hear! 

[whilefun]

So after some careful consideration, I have abandoned the "pink rectangle" method of undo



Now you can undo a theoretical infinite number of times, and it's not really any slower at all. Huzzah.

I was so proud of that pink method, too. Oh well. KILL YOUR DARLINGS! (as they say) 

still have to fix that bug where undoing "strange weird object" undoes a few at a time. That's today's task. 

[Cranktrain]

I like that the editor is baked into the game, and you can switch between them really quickly, that'll be a massive help later in development!

[whilefun]

@Cranktrain Me too! It's so far been super useful for tweaking tool functionality. It's actually fun to edit, which feels really weird! haha.

Here are the results of today's work:

-I got most/all of the tools and undo stuff working correctly.
-I added a few tiles and objects to the game, of varying types (physics based and not, one is just an environmental sound source, etc.)

Here's a gif of the action, but it might be slow since it's a few MBs:



Process is approximately: "Those rocks are not quite in the right spot, and that sound is a touch too loud when near the hole. And that hole could move down a bit"

Video Games! 

[whilefun]

This evening's focus is on Hole meta data.



Still have some work to do, as you can type outside the name field. But, the data saves/loads just fine. 

I also added a repeat button thing where you can change par quickly by holding down the button. Par range is 1 to 99, which should accommodate the most sinister of course designers. 

[whilefun]

Making some more obstacles, and tweaking editor GUI and usability.

Obstacles like this could be used to craft some easy levels that become hard if you don't shoot straight enough.



If you can think of any types of fun obstacles for Mini Golf, let me know!   

[whilefun]

Among other things, fiddling with Cup physics. I think it feels pretty crunchy and nice. Hoping to post a prototype build soon.


A sneaky hole in one 

[whilefun]

Today's work was boring and completely un-cool.

Working on basic Course Editor. Not pictured: the unfinished re-order buttons. Just using page up/down for now.



Now I can

• Make a new course/Load an old course
• Edit course name/difficulty
• Add/remove holes
• Filter/search for holes
• Re-order holes

Looks like Windows 95 for now, but snazzy graphics are for later. 

[whilefun]

Getting there.



Day 2 of GUI work has yielded a nearly complete course editor, including:

• Tooltips
• User-friendly add/remove re-order
• hole filtering, so you can have a bazillion holes and choose the ones you want for your course
• some check boxes for difficulty
• A save as + confirmation dialog (not shown above)
• Scrolling lists of holes for all + ones in current course
• Little buttons to clear text fields

While non of these are IGF Nuovo Award contenders, they are adding up to an almost done end to end workflow for creating holes, a course, and then playing the course you made. 

[JobLeonard]

For now, here's a rabbit running away from the cursor inside the hole editor

That is cool. More games should have editors that feel more "alive"

[whilefun]

For now, here's a rabbit running away from the cursor inside the hole editor

That is cool. More games should have editors that feel more "alive"

Glad you dig it. I hope more editors do this, too

[whilefun]

Teensy update this friday morning: Some new tile placement effects

• Cursor glows/pulses
• New placement animation
• New erase animation

Also fixed a couple of bugs related to Undo functionality, but those are hard to screen capture

Back to the course->Hole->Play workflow I go!

[whilefun]

Course Editor now works end to end. Can make a new course, change it's data, and save it or save it as a new filename. Not terribly glamorous, but it works.



Next up for editing workflow:

• Save/SaveAs on hole editor
• Main editor menu (New course, Edit course, New Hole, Edit Hole) that links to the existing independent ones

Then on to actual game playthrough flow (select a course, play an actual game on that course).

Once I have this basic workflow completed, I plan to upload a prototype build and start some play testing.

[Pal]

I know you said you want to change the graphics but I adore the Win95 aesthetic you got now.

Looks pretty great so far. Keep up the nice work.

[whilefun]

@Pal Thanks I like the win95 look too, but I worry it will turn some people away. In any case, I want to keep it simple and clean (straight lines, etc.), and definitely not any kind of rounded corner gradients or glassy stuff.