(http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/6971/s4zl.gif)Okay, I'm a bit late, but this looks really cool.
So [Alpha] is essentially a "strafe" button?Pretty much yeah, although you can only strafe backwards, not side-to-side.
Okay, I'm a bit late, but this looks really cool.There is no support for USB linking at this stage, perhaps in the future though. I still need to work on getting the I/O linking to sync correctly on hardware; it works fine on WabbitEmu but on actual calculators it tends to drop out a bit, although I haven't tried it again for a while. I've been working on other features such as the retreat mode and more - I'll get back to tightening up the linking soon.
Will it also support USB or will it only work with the I/O cable? USB would be awesome since most people that have an 84+ don't have an I/O cable.
As for your vid it's fun to see the evolution of a game series over the years. I should try to do one with Illusiat series one day. However, I wonder how does someone merge multiple videos together to show them side by side with free softwares?That sounds like a good idea! I just compiled it using Windows Movie Maker, nothing fancy :P
That looks really nice :) Does every animation have the same number of frames?Thanks! Not necessarily; whilst each animation uses the core frame counter to determine which frame to show, the method of calculating the frame to show is different for some of the animations.
The moving beams give the level a lot more life.
Oh look it's a JamesV! Welcome back, great to see this project still alive :DThanks! Hah, I have NO idea what you're talking about.... [-.-]~
Remember that you only have 1.5 months left to finish epII:evolution according to your signature :P
I really like both of those! The vent suckers are a really cool idea. For the crushers, will they crush you even if they are opening? They look really great (though really annoying)!Thanks! No, they only crush you if they fully close on you :)
I'm fine with no coop mode, it just looks too fun to not be tried even in single player. Regardless, good luck! Glad this is still alive. :)My current thinking is to release v2.0.0 just as single player only with the other new features, campaign, etc., and then tinker with co-op again possibly for a v2.1.0 update if I can get it working :)
It just gets fancier and fancier! Those pop-up menus are really nice, though in my opinion the full screen text ("SHUTTLE LANDING BAY TWO", etc) still doesn't seem to quite fit in with the rest. Everything else is so pretty.Yeah I do agree - I've been thinking about this for sometime but yet to come up with a solution that I'm happy with that doesn't restrict how much screen room I have available for the mission text. I'll work something out eventually though. Actually I do have a perfect solution but it means re-writing a bunch of stuff that I'm not prepared for (yet.. :) )
Ooh I like the tips idea. Just make sure to not overdo them like in Hyrule Warriors, though. I hate when I start playing a game and every two step I make there is a pop up appearing that says. Tips should only appear when necessary (eg when you get near a door or something).True. There are only 8 tips, although they all do appear relatively early in the first level of the game (and they only appear the one time each unless they're reset from the main menu). Having said that, I might be able to condense/remove 1 or 2 of them.. Or as Art_of_camelot has suggested below...
This looks really nice James. Also, is there a option to turn hints off if the player doesn't want them?There currently isn't, but this is a good idea and I have enough room on the options screen to add this, so I think I'll do so. Thanks! :)
I wonder how difficult it would be to just use another calculator as a second controller, not updating the screen, just sending across key presses and doing all the other calculations on the host calculator? I've never done anything with the linkport so i'm not sure what sorts of problems you might have. Either way, multiplayer co-op play on one calc sounds great, too, though i've got to admit i'll probably only ever be able to use the single player mode ;)That's an interesting suggestion. I think at this stage I'll be running with the single calc co-op option, but I'll keep that in mind to experiment if there are any future versions.. :)
We're now into 2015 so the deadline's getting closer! ;) The cutscenes sound like a nice touch, too.The pressure is on! ;)
That all looks a whole lot better in my opinion. It's simple, but fits in a lot better with how polished the rest of the game is.Thanks - it does make a difference for sure :)
+ APD issue is fixed (the game would sometimes switch off during the menus, space pong, etc.Don't tell me you were using _GetKey :O
Heh oh no it wasn't that. It was just something I hadn't taken into consideration when using the APD sub timer as a frame limiter :)+ APD issue is fixed (the game would sometimes switch off during the menus, space pong, etc.Don't tell me you were using _GetKey :O
Ok, i just loaded this up. I'm really impressed with everything so far, though one thing that would be nice to have is "soft corners". I'm not sure what the right word is, but basically if i'm trying to go right but there is a ledge in front of me, automatically move up (or down) so that i can get past it more easily. Basically, it helps you get around corners so that you don't have to be exactly aligned.I guess this is a possibility, yeah! At the moment the player/wall collision is based on a 6x6 hit box for the player, so there is a bit of tolerance when walking into narrow corridors. You can also for example hold up & left at the same time to slide along the walls manually. I might either reduce the player hit box to 4x4, or implement the automatic sliding type mechanic that some top-down games use when walking into a wall.
Another thing is that the keys are a bit inconsistent at times it seems, sometimes [2nd] is used to advance, sometimes [Enter]. The same with [Mode] for going back. On the ingame menu screen it might be nice to have a confirmation before quitting, since i hit [Clear] a couple times to get back to the game (:cry:). I really like the flashing text at the bottom of the menu, though i think it could maybe be a bit slower.Mmm yes all very good points :) I can address these fairly easily!
Haha thanks! I did actually experiment with really basic sound on a version of Alien Breed about 15 years ago, but it didn't seem worth it. Could be food for thought for the future though :PIt's really great, it's fast and smooth, really pretty (i especially like the animated tiles), though i have a tendency of continually respawning enemies. It feels like i should be playing a GameBoy (sans sound) :P
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Really cool! That will make going through the levels a bit easier. The options screen is really nice, too :)That is a cool idea definitely, although yeah it would mean re-writing a considerable amount of the menu code, which is quite modular at the moment but limited to single page menus. I can't imagine it would take a super long time to sort out a new menu system, but I'm not sure it's worth it. That 2nd page of options would very rarely be visited; it just contains the "reset achievements", "reset in-game tips", "disable in-game tips" & "reset high scores" functions :P If I procrastinate on coding other features or doing level design at some point, I might update the menu backend, otherwise I'll probably leave it, at least for the time being :)
Also, a suggestion which might be more of a headache than it's worth, but the options screen would look nicer in my opinion if you got rid of the "MORE OPTIONS..." option and had it scroll up/down. Another alternative which would be easier to program in is to have a right arrow to show that there are more options, then pressing [ Right ] or [ Graph ] or [ Alpha ] or something would take you to the next screen of options. Pressing [ Left ] would take you back to the first set of options.
To give you an idea, i've attached a screenshot from one of my projects. There's a right arrow to see the next set of data, then a left arrow to return back to the first set.
Maybe you should make it that if you like hold down 2nd it disables that feature :PDo you mean hold down [2nd] to temporarily disable the "wall sliding" mechanic? I could do something like this (although [2nd] is already the shooting key), but I don't think it's necessary. The only solid tile that you need to face in this like you would for NPCs in Reuben Quest are the Intex terminals, which are already 2 tiles wide, and the terminal doesn't even need to be directly in front of you; there is a fairly good tolerance with where you can be standing :)
I did the same in reubenquest, and that made it hard to talk with NPCs ;)
Oh, in that case you would probably be fine just leaving that on all the time :)Maybe you should make it that if you like hold down 2nd it disables that feature :PDo you mean hold down [2nd] to temporarily disable the "wall sliding" mechanic? I could do something like this (although [2nd] is already the shooting key), but I don't think it's necessary. The only solid tile that you need to face in this like you would for NPCs in Reuben Quest are the Intex terminals, which are already 2 tiles wide, and the terminal doesn't even need to be directly in front of you; there is a fairly good tolerance with where you can be standing :)
I did the same in reubenquest, and that made it hard to talk with NPCs ;)
I love the flashing and explosion! I've just downloaded the new beta and will let you know my thoughts later. Great work :DThanks! :)
I just noticed the timer that pops up after beating the boss. I think it could use a box or something around it rather than just an empty mask. Also, the smooth walls feature makes a big difference, in my opinion.Hmm yes good idea, I'll look at implementing something like that to make the timer stand out more :)
Wow, that looks really cool, i like it! I always thought that the screen was small enough without limiting the range of view even more, i think the new darkness looks better and will be a bit less frustrating ;)Agreed - it was very limiting. Now it's just a good challenge (and it's only 1 level per episode, just to throw something different into the mix).
Yeah, i think your version looks even prettier :)I went a step further and put square top edges with rounded bottom edges, which I think I'll stick with :)
TBO I prefer the previous version :PHeh, well that would be right :P It's easy to change again, although I think I still prefer how I've got it, but I'll experiment some more :)
Wow, tons of changes. I wish you'd released this a week earlier as i've had several long bus rides the past couple weeks. Anyway, congrats on the release!Thanks man! Took me long enough.. ;)
I just downloaded Alien Breed and I really like it! I just wish it saved instead of using passwords.I have a "quick-save & exit" type feature on my to-do list for the next minor update, which I expect I'll get around to doing in the next couple of months. However I don't plan on having multiple save slots (like RPG type games).
I just downloaded Alien Breed and I really like it! I just wish it saved instead of using passwords.I have a "quick-save & exit" type feature on my to-do list for the next minor update, which I expect I'll get around to doing in the next couple of months. However I don't plan on having multiple save slots (like RPG type games).