Unnamed Scrolling Game - Work in Progress

[+Random Terrain]

. . . there could be times where there isn't a force field on screen yet and you will lose a sense of movement. There needs to be stuff on the edges to give a sense of movement. I recommend trying small "spikes" of force fields. That way there would always be a sense of movement and speed. Something kind of like this:

 

Except at the very beginning, a force field or wall or whatever we want to call them will always be on the screen. And later in the game, they will also get closer together.

 

Since this game will be made without using the DPC+ version of bB that has the 10 multicolored sprites and other goodies, all I have are two sprites, a multicolored playfield, a ball, and no missiles. Thanks to a trick that MausGames told me about, although I can't have a normal missile, I can have an invisible missile that is as high as the playfield and displays the colors of the player's sprite. The bonus item you see in the test version is actually a very tall missile that is showing the colors of the player's sprite. If you could move the sprite up and down, you'd see that the bonus item would also seem to move (it's as if there is a mirror at the side, reflecting the colors of the sprite). So, I'm using a missile trick for the bonus item and another trick for the thin lines on the screen.

 

As you can see, I have nothing to make small spikes with. All I could do is turn on the PF0 side borders, but it wouldn't look very pretty, especially when the bonus item appears and makes part of the border disappear. Here is an example:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0106t_pf0_test.bin

 

 

 

 

Since speed is important, how about rewarding points for each time you go through a hole and the faster you go through the higher the points?

 

Sounds like a good idea if I could figure out when the player has successfully moved through a hole. I almost broke my brain trying to figure out how to make collision detection work with the icing on the cake trick as the screen is scrolling. Although you're only seeing a thin line, the sprite is actually hitting a thick playfield pixel.

 

If pfread works correctly with a scrolling screen, maybe I could have a collision bit that turns on if the player hits a wall. If pfread sees that a wall is at a certain spot below the player and the collision bit is not on, I could give the player points based on speed. (If pfread sees that a wall is at a certain spot below the player and the collision bit has been turned on, no points will be added and the collision bit will be cleared.)

 

 

 

 

Could the force fields change colors? I was thinking that maybe you could use the lines as the bonus item/s based on the color and/or flashing. That way you don't have to worry about the bad guy interfering with the bonus item and can always have the bad guy on screen chasing you at the bottom. You could have it that the faster you go the farther you are from the bottom and the slower you go the closer you are to the bottom so, if you just stop you will go down and the bad guy would get you. If you go as fast as you can then you would be near the top. That way you have to manage your speed by deciding if you want to be near the top and have less time to maneuver when you see a hole but get more points or be near the bottom and have a greater chance of the bad guy grabbing you.

 

The way the program is now, the rows flip colors at a specific time to keep the illusion of smooth movement. Here is what it would look like if I didn't flip between black and whatever color I want to use for the walls:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0143t_pf0_test_illusion.bin

 

 

Here is another test where the color flip uses different colors:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0115t_pf0_test_with_color.bin

 

 

 

Speaking of changing colors, here is one where the wall/force field flashes red when you hit it:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0205t_collision_flash_test.bin

 

 

If I want to keep that last change, the player won't be able to move up or down the screen. The player would also need to stay at the same position on the screen if I want to be able to know if he or she moved through a hole without colliding.

 

 

 

 

That's funny you brought up Fantastic Voyage. I was thinking about that game when I was writing about nanobots. I can't wait for the Video Game Critic to play this for five seconds and then compare it to Fantastic Voyage. Eventually he will compare all your games to every Fox game.

 

I wouldn't doubt that.

[Schizophretard]

There isn't a way to just make the walls one after the other but have the ones for the border tiny? In other words, make a border out of force fields that have really big openings?

 

Could you make different colored walls? Like right after a blue wall there is a black wall with no opening touching it so, it would be invisible but there will be something to hit to detect that you went through a hole? You could make the blue wall subtract points and the invisible black wall add the same points so, if you hit both no points are gained but if you hit just the invisible black one you gain points?

[+Random Terrain]

There isn't a way to just make the walls one after the other but have the ones for the border tiny? In other words, make a border out of force fields that have really big openings?

 

Remember that I'm using the icing on the cake trick, so there has to be a black row for the icing to sit on (to create the illusion that there is only a thin line). Although I'm using a multicolored playfield, I can only have one color for each row. I just put playfield pixels on the side and made the black rows white so you can see what I'm talking about:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_10d_1345t_collision_flash_test_with_sides.bin

 

 

 

Could you make different colored walls? Like right after a blue wall there is a black wall with no opening touching it so, it would be invisible but there will be something to hit to detect that you went through a hole? You could make the blue wall subtract points and the invisible black wall add the same points so, if you hit both no points are gained but if you hit just the invisible black one you gain points?

 

You can't detect collisions using colors. You either hit a playfield pixel or you don't (whether it is 'invisible' by making it the same color as the background or not). The collision that is happening when you hit a thin line is a trick. You are actually colliding with the black playfield pixel below the thin line and I'm ignoring it until playfieldpos equals 8.

[+Random Terrain]

Hey R.T. Long time first time.

 

I gave your game a run. Did you know that once the force fields are just about directly even with the yellow part near the top of the bug, you can pass through them? I found this trick to be an easy way to grab the prizes on the sides, even when I'm going pretty fast. I'm guessing you want it this way?? XD XD Looks good!

 

Yep, it's kind of on purpose. It's a side effect of how I'm doing the collision. If you're not having a head-on collision, it doesn't count for the most part.

 

Since this has been brought up, I've been thinking about making this more of a game that I'd want to play. I like speed and I hate to be slowed down. I've been thinking about having the game scroll at full speed (without letting the player speed up or slow down). The bonus item will appear at the side for some reason to be determined later and it will probably give the player energy. Other items will drop from the top of the screen (some will be bonus items and others will cause damage if touched and it will be obvious at a glance which ones are good and which ones are bad).

 

It won't be a complicated game. You'll just go through the holes in the 'walls' while also avoiding some items and trying to get whatever bonus items you can grab. And over time, the holes in the 'walls' will get smaller and the placement of the holes will become more random.

[Schizophretard]

. . . there could be times where there isn't a force field on screen yet and you will lose a sense of movement. There needs to be stuff on the edges to give a sense of movement. I recommend trying small "spikes" of force fields. That way there would always be a sense of movement and speed. Something kind of like this:

 

Except at the very beginning, a force field or wall or whatever we want to call them will always be on the screen. And later in the game, they will also get closer together.

 

Since this game will be made without using the DPC+ version of bB that has the 10 multicolored sprites and other goodies, all I have are two sprites, a multicolored playfield, a ball, and no missiles. Thanks to a trick that MausGames told me about, although I can't have a normal missile, I can have an invisible missile that is as high as the playfield and displays the colors of the player's sprite. The bonus item you see in the test version is actually a very tall missile that is showing the colors of the player's sprite. If you could move the sprite up and down, you'd see that the bonus item would also seem to move (it's as if there is a mirror at the side, reflecting the colors of the sprite). So, I'm using a missile trick for the bonus item and another trick for the thin lines on the screen.

 

As you can see, I have nothing to make small spikes with. All I could do is turn on the PF0 side borders, but it wouldn't look very pretty, especially when the bonus item appears and makes part of the border disappear. Here is an example:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0106t_pf0_test.bin

 

 

 

 

Since speed is important, how about rewarding points for each time you go through a hole and the faster you go through the higher the points?

 

Sounds like a good idea if I could figure out when the player has successfully moved through a hole. I almost broke my brain trying to figure out how to make collision detection work with the icing on the cake trick as the screen is scrolling. Although you're only seeing a thin line, the sprite is actually hitting a thick playfield pixel.

 

If pfread works correctly with a scrolling screen, maybe I could have a collision bit that turns on if the player hits a wall. If pfread sees that a wall is at a certain spot below the player and the collision bit is not on, I could give the player points based on speed. (If pfread sees that a wall is at a certain spot below the player and the collision bit has been turned on, no points will be added and the collision bit will be cleared.)

 

 

 

 

Could the force fields change colors? I was thinking that maybe you could use the lines as the bonus item/s based on the color and/or flashing. That way you don't have to worry about the bad guy interfering with the bonus item and can always have the bad guy on screen chasing you at the bottom. You could have it that the faster you go the farther you are from the bottom and the slower you go the closer you are to the bottom so, if you just stop you will go down and the bad guy would get you. If you go as fast as you can then you would be near the top. That way you have to manage your speed by deciding if you want to be near the top and have less time to maneuver when you see a hole but get more points or be near the bottom and have a greater chance of the bad guy grabbing you.

 

The way the program is now, the rows flip colors at a specific time to keep the illusion of smooth movement. Here is what it would look like if I didn't flip between black and whatever color I want to use for the walls:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0143t_pf0_test_illusion.bin

 

 

Here is another test where the color flip uses different colors:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0115t_pf0_test_with_color.bin

 

 

 

Speaking of changing colors, here is one where the wall/force field flashes red when you hit it:

 

gyvolver_2011y_12m_09d_0205t_collision_flash_test.bin

 

 

If I want to keep that last change, the player won't be able to move up or down the screen. The player would also need to stay at the same position on the screen if I want to be able to know if he or she moved through a hole without colliding.

 

 

 

 

That's funny you brought up Fantastic Voyage. I was thinking about that game when I was writing about nanobots. I can't wait for the Video Game Critic to play this for five seconds and then compare it to Fantastic Voyage. Eventually he will compare all your games to every Fox game.

 

I wouldn't doubt that.

 

I like the one that flashes red when you hit it.

 

Could you make it that he can only move back and forth so, he is always vertically in the same position? Then to detect if he went through a hole you just program the force field to reward points when the force field passes his fixed vertical position but don't reward points if it passes his fixed vertical position and detects that he hit the the force field? In other words, the force field just detects it's own vertical position and rewards points if it detects it wasn't hit when it scrolls to a lower position?

[+Random Terrain]

I like the one that flashes red when you hit it.

 

I like that one too.

 

 

Could you make it that he can only move back and forth so, he is always vertically in the same position? Then to detect if he went through a hole you just program the force field to reward points when the force field passes his fixed vertical position but don't reward points if it passes his fixed vertical position and detects that he hit the the force field? In other words, the force field just detects it's own vertical position and rewards points if it detects it wasn't hit when it scrolls to a lower position?

 

After I redo the code so it's more up-to-date, I'll probably be able to do anything I want. This was started in 2008 when I knew less about making better bB code.

 

I'm thinking about reversing how the fire button works and making it act like a brake. Using the brake would use up a little energy, but if you slow down to get the bonus item, you'd be getting more energy, so it would be worth it.

[Schizophretard]

I like the one that flashes red when you hit it.

 

I like that one too.

 

 

Could you make it that he can only move back and forth so, he is always vertically in the same position? Then to detect if he went through a hole you just program the force field to reward points when the force field passes his fixed vertical position but don't reward points if it passes his fixed vertical position and detects that he hit the the force field? In other words, the force field just detects it's own vertical position and rewards points if it detects it wasn't hit when it scrolls to a lower position?

 

After I redo the code so it's more up-to-date, I'll probably be able to do anything I want. This was started in 2008 when I knew less about making better bB code.

 

I'm thinking about reversing how the fire button works and making it act like a brake. Using the brake would use up a little energy, but if you slow down to get the bonus item, you'd be getting more energy, so it would be worth it.

 

Can you explain more about doing whatever you want and making better bB code?

[+Random Terrain]

Can you explain more about doing whatever you want and making better bB code?

 

I don't know what I can say. I just learned better ways to do things from better programmers over the years and learned some things from trial and error. My code from 2008 is more primitive and messy.

[Schizophretard]

Can you explain more about doing whatever you want and making better bB code?

 

I don't know what I can say. I just learned better ways to do things from better programmers over the years and learned some things from trial and error. My code from 2008 is more primitive and messy.

 

Can I try it out after you clean it up?

[+Random Terrain]

Can I try it out after you clean it up?

 

Everybody can since I'll put it in the first post. After I get done updating my web site, I'll see what I can do.

[+Gemintronic]

Are you the type that can optimize old code R.T.? or, do you take what you've learned and start from a clean slate?

[+Random Terrain]

Are you the type that can optimize old code R.T.? or, do you take what you've learned and start from a clean slate?

 

All depends on how large and mangled the code is. I think the code for this is fairly short, so it shouldn't be too hard to update it.

[Schizophretard]

Can I try it out after you clean it up?

 

Everybody can since I'll put it in the first post. After I get done updating my web site, I'll see what I can do.

 

That's good. I'm just trying to help you get motivated and get you brainstorming. When you were working on Seaweed Assault you said something about you get less done when you are just talking to yourself in your blog and that it is helpful when you can bounce your ideas off of others. I can't remember exactly how you said it but that is the spirit of it. You got Seaweed Assault done(Which reminds me. Any update about it going into the store?). Now you got this and your platformer game to finish. You got to get them done before Dec. 21 because there is no guarantee that the aliens won't eat you after they use you as a sex slave.

[+Random Terrain]

That's good. I'm just trying to help you get motivated and get you brainstorming. When you were working on Seaweed Assault you said something about you get less done when you are just talking to yourself in your blog and that it is helpful when you can bounce your ideas off of others. I can't remember exactly how you said it but that is the spirit of it. You got Seaweed Assault done (Which reminds me. Any update about it going into the store?). Now you got this and your platformer game to finish. You got to get them done before Dec. 21 because there is no guarantee that the aliens won't eat you after they use you as a sex slave.

 

Thanks. It helps to have reminders because I can get distracted and work on things that aren't as important. I have to do this web site stuff, but I hope to be done with it in a few days.

[Schizophretard]

That's good. I'm just trying to help you get motivated and get you brainstorming. When you were working on Seaweed Assault you said something about you get less done when you are just talking to yourself in your blog and that it is helpful when you can bounce your ideas off of others. I can't remember exactly how you said it but that is the spirit of it. You got Seaweed Assault done (Which reminds me. Any update about it going into the store?). Now you got this and your platformer game to finish. You got to get them done before Dec. 21 because there is no guarantee that the aliens won't eat you after they use you as a sex slave.

 

Thanks. It helps to have reminders because I can get distracted and work on things that aren't as important. I have to do this web site stuff, but I hope to be done with it in a few days.

 

Which part of the site are you working on?

[+Random Terrain]

Which part of the site are you working on?

 

Unless I missed something, I finished Futuristic Inventions and Cool Stuff, Favorite Quotes, and Game Design Depository. Now I'm working on the Atari section. After that are the personal pages.

[+Random Terrain]

The holes could fill in after he passes through them to show that he fixed it . . .

Before I start upgrading the ancient code, I thought I'd see if Gyvolver could fill in the holes and it seems to be working:

 

gyvolver_2016y_03m_19d_0454t.bin

 

 

There are two more changes. I added borders. Don't know what color they should be. I chose gray for now. The walls (or whatever they'll be called) randomly flash lighter blue to simulate an electrified look.

 

Remember, this isn't even close to being a finished game. It's more of an experimental mess until more work is done to it. I'm going to try to keep it within 4k and see if I can finish it by July of 2016.

 

 

 

 

[YANDMAN]

this looks really coool already, love the player sprite, looks like a classic 81; arcade machine up in here

[+Random Terrain]

this looks really coool already, love the player sprite, looks like a classic 81; arcade machine up in here

Thanks. I just added an animated sprite to my post for people who can't get to an emulator.

[Mr SQL]

Gyvolver is a cool game RT, particularly the latest version Somehow I never saw it until now.

[+Random Terrain]

Gyvolver is a cool game RT, particularly the latest version Somehow I never saw it until now.

 

Thanks, but it's not a game yet. I hope it will turn into an actual game worth playing pretty soon. The first job is to give the code an upgrade. Then it will be easier to add sound effects and other things the game will need.

[YANDMAN]

Thanks. I just added an animated sprite to my post for people who can't get to an emulator.

Love it, it looks awesome, you should make it so that as you close each gap the screen flashes blue along with a satisfying sound, think you have a winner on your hands already.

[Mr SQL]

Love it, it looks awesome, you should make it so that as you close each gap the screen flashes blue along with a satisfying sound, think you have a winner on your hands already.

X2! I think a red flash would also go good for when you miss the gap. Pretty sure RT will not implement flashing though

 

 

Thanks, but it's not a game yet. I hope it will turn into an actual game worth playing pretty soon. The first job is to give the code an upgrade. Then it will be easier to add sound effects and other things the game will need.

 

You're welcome You had a cool soundtrack you posted recently that would go great in-game with Gyvolver.

[+Random Terrain]

Love it, it looks awesome, you should make it so that as you close each gap the screen flashes blue along with a satisfying sound, think you have a winner on your hands already.

Pretty sure RT will not implement flashing though

 

Yep, there will be a sound effect for closing the gap, but no screen flashing.

 

 

[+Random Terrain]

The old code is updated. Now I can work on getting this thing finished. I spent around two days on a gap filling sound effect. Everything I tried was irritating after hearing it multiple times. So far this is the only thing I've come up with that doesn't make me want to punch myself in the face:

 

gyvolver_2016y_03m_30d_1749t.bin

 

Does the sound you hear when you close a gap irritate you? If not, is it fine the way it is? To me, it's not a satisfying sound, but at least it doesn't irritate the crap out of me. I'd like to use something that is satisfying while not being irritating when hearing it over and over and over and over, but I haven't been able to find it so far.

 

If you tried an earlier version, you might want to know that I changed how the fire button works. Instead of speeding up when pressed, the fire button now slows you down.