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

Amongst more level creating (they're nearly there ), more coding has also been done:

+ The enemy AI has been updated so that they can no longer freely walk out of the service duct sections, they have to use a ramp like the player does.
+ APD issue is fixed (the game would sometimes switch off during the menus, space pong, etc.
+ New episode epilogues are done.

I have 1 or 2 more little adjustments I want to make, then I'll be making a beta release available for anyone who is interested in having a play / test

Quote from: JamesV on January 14, 2015, 04:03:11 pm

+ 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

EDIT:

The beta version is now available for download here

There are a few restrictions in place in the beta, such as:
+ Only 1 player mode available at this stage
+ Cut scenes are disabled
+ Only the first two levels of Episode II are accessible.

I plan to release at least one more updated beta before the final release.

If you get around to having a play with this, please feel free to leave me comments, bug reports, etc
 

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!

It'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)
[/l][/l]

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

Thanks for taking the time to try this and for the feedback!

Really cool! That will make going through the levels a bit easier. The options screen is really nice, too

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.

Really cool! That will make going through the levels a bit easier. The options screen is really nice, too

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.

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 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

Maybe you should make it that if you like hold down 2nd it disables that feature
I did the same in reubenquest, and that made it hard to talk with NPCs

Do 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

In any case, once I release an updated beta in the next day or two, feel free to check it out and if you disagree with any of the above, let me know

I've put up an updated beta version, which you can download here.

Changes include those mentioned yesterday regarding the new "smooth walls"/"soft corners" feature, updated keymapping in the pause screen, and the updated Options menus.

The boss AI has also been updated to be more like the original Team 17 games, as well as bosses flashing when they're getting shot, and having a proper explosion animation when they are destroyed (screenshot below).

I love the flashing and explosion! I've just downloaded the new beta and will let you know my thoughts later. Great work

Thanks!

The last few days I've been sorting out the 2-player co-op mode (now on one calculator). It's coming along, and you can see it in action in the below screenshot.

Each player has their own health/lives, ammo & keys (the pause menu alternates between player 1 and player 2 statistics on the left hand side). Both players share credits and the weapons cache.



I'll release an updated beta soon with the 2-player mode available; there are just a few things still to take care of, such as level finishing (ensuring both players have reached the destination), handling 1 player running out of lives and the other continuing to play by themselves, adjusting the enemy AI to account for 2 players instead of just always chasing player 1, making space pong available between both players, separate scoring, etc.

Outside of this, there are a few other things to tackle to get the game finished. All level layouts are done, but there are still 4 levels that need items & enemies placed, a few achievements to be adjusted/finalised, and one or two other things that I want to experiment with, although I'm not sure if I'll implement them. Then of course plenty of testing!

The end is in sight though!

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.