AGS 3.3 Wishlist

[Monsieur OUXX]

(...)

I didn't mean to start a theoritical discussion.
But to address your points:
- Yes, you can add extenders to other objects... But then you have to carry around the data of those objects, even when you just want an empty container.
- Yes, C++ doesn't have a generic type "Object"... But alllows you to create your own. In AGS, you *have* to use the existing types when it comes to extenders.

EDIT: Cancelled my request, but for other reasons. It's really not critical.
EDIT: I'm not making any sense, I'd better shut up.

[Joseph DiPerla]

Well, I will start a small list of suggestions. Really though, there isn't much to suggest, being that AGS is awesome already. Thinking from a standpoint of newbies and also from developers who really just want to develop quickly without too much coding and use of other users modules, I think the following would work well to be implemented:

*This one I had suggested back since 1999, but now I even dare offer an advancement on how it should work: Inventory background with the option of it animating. Yes, I know, you can set a back drop. But wouldn't it be better if it could just use an inventory background image, rather than using another object?

*I suggested this one in January 2009: GUI Preview window. I use mouseover images on the gui and I would like to be able to see what it looks like when the mouse is over the GUI without having to test the game. Can this be done?

*Another one from the same time period: Choosing Random idle/Blink/Thinking view. Instead of having it scripted, can we just specify multiple idle views that are comma seperated and the idle view will play one randomly? Also can we have the ability to then say how much time should go by between different views?

*Views-- Can we just have an option to copy one loop to the next? Most of the time my Right loop is a copy of the left loop just flipped. So rather than have to put in all the frames, can we just have a copy function?

*Can we have an option for a character that allows his eyes to follow the mouse? I know, its stupid, but I feel it adds better user interactivity and makes it more fun. Basically an option called "UsersEyesFollowMouseCursor?" with a true or false option. And then you just create a view as normal. Then when you move your mouse to a certain part of the screen, the characters animation will play accordingly. Basically its just to draw the loops where the characters eyes follow the mouse.

*I always make this suggestion as it would simplify room area editing: Point Plotting. You click one spot, then you click another and a line is drawn from one point to the other and you continue until the last point meets the first and then fills in the area within the points. Gimp 2 has an option like this called "Paths Tools" only its for creating selections. Basically I want that concept, but to draw and fill in area's in the rooms.

*I dont know if this is possible at all, but it is a nice feature to have. Instead of just assigning an image to an inventory object, can we also assign a view to it so we can have inventory that animates? Good for carrying cell phones that ring, etc...

*Built in paralax scrolling support.

*I personally would like to suggest Inventory Categories where you can assign an inventory item to a category such as Magic, erbs, weapons, etc...Then you can choose what category the inventory window can display. This way the character can easily have multiple inventories rather than creating another character and displaying his inventory.

*Can we have a feature where we can have a video playing in a particular region? For instance, lets say there is a tv somewhere. We just draw a region on its screen and assign a movie to play on it.

*Video Dubbing and Text. Can we dub the video sound for game translations? Also can we add Sub-titles to a video?



I know this is jumping the gun, but perhaps for AGS 3.4 or higher:

*Bring back some sort of interaction editor. I miss that thing. It made my life easier when I was working on my Simpsons game.

*Patching system-- If I created a template or game, and I update it several times, I hate to have to upload it each time, or even to have to have my users download it again. If a file is about 100 megs to download, its a pain. Especially like games we saw recently updated like "Kings Quest 1". So this is an all around good feature for the developers as well as the gamers.

*This would be very useful to me, but at the same time I can see this being a pain in the butt to code. None-the-less, I am putting it out there as a suggestion at some point. Object and character scaling that is not specific to a region or hotspot. Perhaps in the character and object editor itself add an option to enter a scale size. Even a script that will change the scale size. Helpful to use rather than editing an image and shrinking it and useful to do a Sam and Max effect where they are in a house where they keep shrinking down and enlarging and so forth.

*GUI transitions: Similar to the rooms transition, only applied to how the GUI Shows up. A particular transition would be a SLIDE in from Top/left/bottom/right to X Y (Mouse coordinates valid too).

*New screen transition: SLIDE IN (Much like the IPhone). Screen slides in from left/Right/Top/Bottom.

Thanks again for listening.

[Atelier]

Really selfish of me, considering, but I think it could be useful for all people who use the text parser:

Could the word list be [optionally] organised into folders, in a way identical to the current sprite folders? That is, users can create their own sub folders for nouns, verbs, commands, adjectives, etc - or for whatever they want (words relating to cake!)

It would bring custom organisation to the text parser, which can quickly turn into a jumble, with verbs, nouns, and adjectives mixed in together as they are added. The way IDs work does not need to change - new words would still take the next free number. Something like this should be of lowest priority, but it would be a useful feature.

[abstauber]

A few minor requests of mine, I hope I don't re-request too much

- change hotspot names at runtime
- set /change custom properties at runtime
- folders for dialogs and characters in the editor
- *bump* refresh custom dialog surfaces

And of I course I second all the calls for full alpha channels on surfaces.

[Kweepa]

Phew! It took me an hour, but I read the entire thread.
You're a repetitive lot!

1. Variable display when debugging.
2. Shortcut to refresh the auto complete dictionary.
3. File.WriteFloat and File.ReadFloat.
4. When changing a game's colour depth, fix all sprites and room backgrounds.
5. Since a room script has no properties, it would be nice if the room properties remained in the property pane when editing room events.
6. Sprite original size preview pane for larger sprites (maybe split the sprite pane vertically, or arrange the sprites in a larger grid).

Oh... and 16:9 and alpha channels!

[subspark]

A few minor requests of mine, I hope I don't re-request too much

- change hotspot names at runtime
- set /change custom properties at runtime

Lol, Abstauber! I only just re-requested those things myself two nights ago!
http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=36284.msg544464#msg544464

We ARE a repetitive lot! Good to see most of us are on the same line of thinking though. It seems there are just some areas of AGS that we're all really seeking improvement on.
Sparky.

[Scavenger]

There's only one thing I'd ever want to be implemented at the moment:

Dumping sprite data into an array. So a 32x32 image can be dumped into image[1024] and back again. This will make pixelwise modifications, custom tinting, and palette changes a lot easier. Say, if one wanted to change every pixel in the palette to something on a blue gradient, ala Discworld I (In 256 colour!), or even to recolour or change a sprite totally. You know, some more grounded, low levels stuff. Either that, or making GetPixel a lot faster. It just seems to be more efficient to turn a sprite into a raw array. Just how slow IS GetPixel, anyway?

I got around it by making a plugin last time, but to be honest it was really inflexible and I'd like to be able to do things like that in AGS itself, rather than outside of it.

[Kweepa]

Just how slow IS GetPixel, anyway?

I can do ~1.3 million GetPixels in a second. Accessing the drawing surface of a background, or accessing the drawing surface of a 32x32 pixel dynamic sprite, it's all the same.
I can do ~2.5 million int array accesses in a second.
So it's about half the speed of an array access.

(These tests were done with an unrolled loop.)

[EDIT] Gilb, my point was that GetPixel isn't slow at all. I would guess it's about half the speed of an array access on any machine.

[Gilbert]

This also depends on the spec of the system running the game though.

However, I don't see a benefit in using arrays other than Get/Set Pixels, apart from easier coding. Chances are, it's equally slow in using either of these representations, as what I know is, the colour values used in AGS' colour system DO NOT match the raw graphics data (except in good o' 256 colour mode), as say there're the annoying reserved colours #0-31 and that even in 32-bit mode you can only set/get colours in 16-bit resolution (I'm actually planning to make a new thread about attempts to improve this without breaking the current system, but I don't have time yet), so when you access an element from that array it's not likely be a simple read or write from a normal array, but instead the engine has to do the Get/Set Pixel route to Get/Set the values.

[abstauber]

hehe, I've just read this thread so many times in the past, I thought I could get around with it this time

<offtopic> Why has the issue tracker been closed? It would make a decent job as a wish list tracker </offtopic>

And to make my reply not completely pointless:

Dear wishing well, I want break points in dialog scripts
(which of course is also a re-request)

[Gilbert]

The trackers actually has not been closed. It's just sort of abandoned and moderators who have access to update it are just too lazy to bother to do so.

[edmundito]

Not a wish, but a mistake in the manual (which is why we need an issue tracker guys...)

if you look for the entry for GetColorFromRGB it says:

"(Formerly known as RawSetColorRGB, which is now obsolete)"

That's totally not true at all! RawSetColorRGB is a completely different function. Though in a roundabout way it replaces the functionality of it with the new drawing system introduced in 3.0...

[Wonkyth]

Polymorphism?

[subspark]

Suggestion:
To avoid simpler users from confusing this with a bug,

In AGS 3.3, I would like to see better handling of mouse modes. Currently they are hard coded and we have to work around them by renaming the events in the events pane AND the script in order to customize the naming conventions. In our game, our events don't automatically line up well at all between the events in the events pane and the script.

Event: Open = PickUp() function for example

Cheers,
Sparky.

[barefoot]

Onion skinning... like drawing walkbehinds around and over Objects..

like walking over a steel brige with steel cables, have the object in view whilst drawing walkbehind.

-barefoot-

[DoorKnobHandle]

That thread is well over SIX years old. Is that some kind of new record on this forum? Has to be.

[Dualnames]

That thread is well over SIX years old. Is that some kind of new record on this forum? Has to be.

Just broken I'm afraid.

[Khris]

I want the interaction editor and the make my game menu entry back!!!!!!one

[barefoot]

Hi

Having a larger animation preview would be better for us with not so good vision..

and what about locking Objects...

-barefoot-

[Matti]

barefoot, why exactly do you dig up such an old thread instead of using the 'official' AGS wishlist? You know, it is on page one of the technical forum..

Edit by strazer:

Indeed. Split from this thread and merged into this one.