Adventure Game Studio

AGS Support => Advanced Technical Forum => Topic started by: Goldmund on Sun 15/08/2004 20:04:36

Title: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Goldmund on Sun 15/08/2004 20:04:36
Part 1:

Is it possible to give the Designer more control over where character portraits in "sierra style with backgrounds" appear?
In some rooms I've got important stuff on the left side of the screen so I'd like character portraits during dialogs displayed on the right, and vice versa.

Part 2:

Is it necessary for RunDialog to disrupt the script it is called from?
I'm speaking about the instances when I'd like the script perform something after calling a dialog. As it is now, the RunDialog command executes the rest of the script first, and after it finishes, the dialog is called, so I'm using set-globalints in the dialog to be later checked in repeatedly execute, and according to them the game executes later parts of the script. This is a rather complicated and dull process.
Any chances on making rundialog behave like a normal function?

yours,
Blazej Krzysztof Dzikowski
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Skio on Sun 15/08/2004 21:06:29
About 2:

Under the interaction put the script that contains the dialog and UNDER THIS SCRIPT put another. This 2nd script will execute after the dialog finishes.

i.e.:

    Talk to character
             |
              --->  Run script
             |
              --->  Run script

Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Goldmund on Sun 15/08/2004 21:30:51
Aha, interesting!
I gather that you're talking about the graphical interface, yes?
I never use it (the habit from earlier AGS versions), so I'll give it a try...
Thanks for the tip - although usually my script's so full of conditionals that the execution may be a bit tricky...
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Pumaman on Wed 18/08/2004 19:53:29
1. Because the text and portrait is automatically positioned and sized to take into account the size of the portrait, it's difficult to make it more specific. Howver, allowing you to select Left or Right would be doable, if that would help.

2. Yeah, I understand what a chore this is. It's unfortunate but due to the way that dialogs work it's not very easy to change. The method Skio suggests should allow you to work around it to some extent.
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Radiant on Thu 19/08/2004 15:15:31
It might be cool to display the portrait in the top middle, with text underneath.
Or, to display two portraits (left and right) with text in the middle (Ultima VII does that).
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Goldmund on Fri 20/08/2004 00:12:02
Puma:
1. Yes, that would solve the problem completely! If I can express my opinion, I don't think it's necessary to make two separate commands for display left and display right, just some setting that the designer could change during the game at his/her fancy.

2. Hehe, well, it's still tons easier than making a game in c64 basic :)

thanks!
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Pumaman on Fri 20/08/2004 20:05:42
1. Ok, that sounds reasonable to me. There's already the game.swap_portrait setting so I'm sure that could be adaptd to allow you to specify to always have it on the right.
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Goldmund on Sun 22/08/2004 21:09:27
Beautiful! I'm looking forward to this. Thanks!
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Goldmund on Sat 28/08/2004 14:28:06
Now I thought about it some more, I think it would be very nice to allow yet another setting to game_swap_portraits: the one that takes note of the talking characters "x" position and positioning the portraits according to this.
As it is now, it depends on who starts talking first and it looks a bit awkward when a character standing on the left has their portrait displayed on the right and vice versa.
Title: Re: 2suggestions: speech portraits location / run dialog
Post by: Pumaman on Sun 29/08/2004 21:42:13
Good idea, I'll think about that.