Does anyone use Game Maker?

Also, my method (to be honest, it's not my method, just one of a few common ones) is really very easy to use.  Perhaps I didn't explain it flawlessly, but anyone with even basic programming experience would find it very easy to implement.

Well, they're both really easy to implement.  Admittedly yours is even easier.



As far as keeping track of large areas, and all that...nobody said game making was easy, did they?

As far as keeping track of large areas, and all that...nobody said game making was easy, did they?

Agreed. And if it is, you're probably doing something horribly, horribly wrong.

EDIT: Just a minor thing here, you've got me as saying

Also, my method (to be honest, it's not my method, just one of a few common ones) is really very easy to use.  Perhaps I didn't explain it flawlessly, but anyone with even basic programming experience would find it very easy to implement.

when it was in fact you who said it. I accidentally quoted it, but removed the quote tags by mistake. My method was invented by me sometime last year; it's certainly not a common method. I just want that to be clear.

I guess that Minmay's method should be easier for a GM newbie, although it does require more work. But sometimes we need to get started with easier yet more tedious stuff, in order to understand basic concepts of a program we're using. I'm not saying that this is the case for everyone though. (I've never used multiple rooms or views).

Now, I might sound like an idiot, but the best way to design levels is to design your own level editor. It will be hard and tedious and will require lots of testing, but it will reward you afterwards. Most people frown upon the idea of literally abandoning their game for creating a level editor like the one of Knytt Stories, but seriously, after finishing the editor, it's all peanuts from there on.

What's the catch? Only 1 room is needed, at the size of 1 screen   You can eg create a screen in the editor and save it as room07_06.txt (this is not the time to discuss about encryption). The screen to the right will be named room08_06.txt . So, in this singular room in Game Maker, when the hero entity touches the right edge of the screen, all instances currently in room[7,6](except those you need to keep) will be destroyed, the roomx variable will be increased by 1, and the data from room08_06.txt will be loaded. If the screens are not bloated with objects, transition is practically instant.

Also, Game Maker allows on-the-fly execution of string variables, so in the level editor you can add objects with the following structure:
Object ID
X-coord
Y-coord
Code to execute upon creation
Code to execute upon death
Conversation to execute upon getting close
etc...

...and let's say that, while the level editor is running, you set Code to execute upon creation for a particular instance as this:
code_start="show_message("I am ready");

In the Game (not the level editor, but the game file you make in Game Maker) , you should add the following line in the Object's Create Event:
execute_string(code_start);

And so, in the game screen, for example, you can have 10 identical instances of an object (eg a cave stalactite), and you want only 2 of them to fall while the player approaches. In the editor, you set the "code to execute when player approaches" to an "entity_fall()" script or just a variable or true or false or whatever will be interpreted in the game engine into a command to drop those specific stalactites. Voila! This technique smoothly blends level design with game events and object behavior.

Sorry for poorly elaborating on a quite "difficult for beginners" concept. If anyone needs more info, we could continue this conversation.

PS I have used this method in a game I'm working right now, and it does work smoothly. So let's not focus on whether it works or not.

@vdweller: While a good idea in theory, trying to make a level editor before you have a system for actually making the levels work (which is what this topic is about) is like swimming the English Channel in order to learn how to swim.

Well, I believe that the method described above dictates how the game engine would be.

Minmay: Multiple 1-screen rooms
PYP: Large rooms with views
vdweller: 1 room, load data externally each time the screen changes

So this involves the game engine itself as well. There's no point in making 100 separate rooms and then making a level editor.

As far as I know, one should work on both the game and the level editor simultaneously and add few stuff at a time, see how these 2 programs communicate.

Well, I believe that the method described above dictates how the game engine would be.

Minmay: Multiple 1-screen rooms
PYP: Large rooms with views
vdweller: 1 room, load data externally each time the screen changes

Oh, I'm sorry. I must have misread your previous post; I thought you were saying that a level editor is a good tool to design levels, not build the engine. My bad.

Hey guys. I appreciate all the feedback given (and the fierce argument that went on!). I am just a noobie at GM, so I think I will use Pick Yer Poison's method, which seems (for now) easier. When I am more advanced and confident, and perhaps with more time on my hands, I will start a new project with it's own editor. Thank you minmay for your contribution, but I have tried that and the room transitions were not as smooth as I wanted them to be, eg, the character started a few too many pixels into the new room, which looked odd. Though I know that this can be refined and perfected, I know I don't have that level of expertise to do so.

 So, thank you to everyone who posted and helped and hopefully I can show you the finished product one day!

the character started a few too many pixels into the new room

What?  This shouldn't be happening with any method, unless your movement code is really weird.

If you can't figure out the code to do it with, then maybe the room system is better. Now that I think of it, my code may use more higher-level functions than the room system, making it less noob-friendly. On the other hand, if that explanation is insufficient, please tell me and I'll post a tutorial.

A tutorial would be great!   I looked at the GM help and other tutorials, but I still couldn't figure out anything. I am willing to learn, but please make sure that there are some comments with explanations. Thanks! (Wow, my is actually shaping up! Yay!  )

I know that the character shouldn't come in a few pixels, and not all of them do (I've looked at a few tutorials...) but even if they don't do that, there are still other glitches with a system like that. PYP's way, in my mind, is smoother....

If you can't figure out the code to do it with, then maybe the room system is better. Now that I think of it, my code may use more higher-level functions than the room system, making it less noob-friendly. On the other hand, if that explanation is insufficient, please tell me and I'll post a tutorial.

Actually, yours is probably easier to do in GM; all you need to do is use the view snap function.  Just set its threshold to the same as its size.

Actually, yours is probably easier to do in GM; all you need to do is use the view snap function.  Just set its threshold to the same as its size.

That would result in a standard moving view.

Anyway, here's that tutorial. Let me know if it doesn't work.

Thank you, I'm downloading it now. I'll let you know how it goes!   (excited!)

Quote from: minmay on September 27, 2009, 00:06:17

Actually, yours is probably easier to do in GM; all you need to do is use the view snap function.  Just set its threshold to the same as its size.

That would result in a standard moving view.

I phrased that wrong, I guess.  It's not actually called "threshold" - I forget what it's called and can't check because I don't have GM on this computer.

But I'm referring to the option that makes the view move in increments of multiple pixels - I'm referring to the use of that option with said increment as the same as the view's size.  It's very, very simple to do; alas, I cannot be specific for the aforementioned lack of GM.

Said option is in the room properties; no GML is required, though you could use the GML method detailed in your tutorial, as well.  You could do it with drag and drop for that matter, but it would be kind of pointless.

Edit: YES! This works great! One thing that I noticed... if you go left, then the character appears half on and half off on the next screen, but when you go right, the character appears half his width into the screen... How would I make it so that the character doesn't do this?

You centered the origin of the player's sprite, right? I think that may be the problem.

Said option is in the room properties; no GML is required, though you could use the GML method detailed in your tutorial, as well.  You could do it with drag and drop for that matter, but it would be kind of pointless.

There is no option in the room properties to do this; I'm 100% confident of that, since I went and checked when I saw your previous post, and again when I saw this one. The only thing room properties can do is set the max step size, not the minimum step size or the only step size.