MOW: Modules of the Week

Dualnames · Thu 01/09/2011 21:36:04

http://duals.agser.me/

selfless promotion.
Yes.
SUGGEST SOMETHING you'd use. Maybe I'll code it.

Eggie · Thu 01/09/2011 22:13:16

Widescreen resolutions

Ali · Thu 01/09/2011 23:49:06

One of those wire shocker games they had at my junior school fair where you have to move a loop of wire along another wobbly wire without touching it?

Scavenger · Thu 01/09/2011 23:55:46

A Mode 7ish type effect to project sprites as backgrounds so they scroll correctly in perspective? I'd definitely use it.

Like Street Fighter 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qAPbXNq0dc

Igor Hardy · Fri 02/09/2011 01:21:10

Quote from: Eggie on Thu 01/09/2011 22:13:16
Widescreen resolutions

The prototype for that is already working. Skygoblin did it.

Now, use the forum search to find it...

Jim Reed · Fri 02/09/2011 10:57:43

A*

Monsieur OUXX · Fri 02/09/2011 11:39:01

Quote from: Jim Reed on Fri 02/09/2011 10:57:43
A*

Hasn't that already been made? I thought it had.

The issue with that kind of stuff is that you need to intricate the (module's) code to crawl the tree of possibilities with your very own (game-specific) code containing the evaluation of the move's quality. Not to mention the structure that's supposed to store the entire game state.

It's not very handy... It can be done, but it's not very handy... I think we'd be better off with a module to build and crawl N-trees. Simply download AGSH.

Ali · Fri 02/09/2011 12:33:28

OR a module so that the angle of the characters' walking isn't calculated as if the game has a top-down viewpoint. It frequently looks wrong with larger sprites (walk around in Nelly Cootalot for many examples!).

Dualnames · Fri 02/09/2011 20:18:32

Quote from: Ali on Fri 02/09/2011 12:33:28
OR a module so that the angle of the characters' walking isn't calculated as if the game has a top-down viewpoint. It frequently looks wrong with larger sprites (walk around in Nelly Cootalot for many examples!).

Explain this plx.

Ali · Fri 02/09/2011 20:32:52

If you have a low vanishing point / horizon as below, then the character's diagonal view should be displayed when they walk at something like a 15 or 20 degree angle:

As it is, the diagonal view appears as the angle approaches 45 degrees, as if the character were viewed from above. This works fine for games with high vanishing points, like Ben Jordan, but it means that you hardly ever see the diagonal views in Nelly. After I spent ages drawing them!

Snarky · Fri 02/09/2011 21:07:29

And also it looks wrong in many situations.

While it'd be nice to get this fixed/worked around, perspective also introduces a lot of other issues that AGS ignores or handles "incorrectly", from character scaling to movement speed to pathfinding. Really the only way to do it "right" is to define walkable areas as 3D planes projected onto the background, and do all the movement logic on those planes. I recall screenshots indicating that the amberfisharts/FOA2 guys were building this into their engine, but it's probably too radical a change for AGS.

Igor Hardy · Fri 02/09/2011 21:48:52

If it will cheer you up, guys, modern commercial adventure games have far worse flaws built into their engines. Not too mention inconsistent, unnatural animations.

Ghost · Fri 02/09/2011 22:18:01

Quote from: Ascovel on Fri 02/09/2011 21:48:52
If it will cheer you up, guys, modern commercial adventure games have far worse flaws built into their engines. Not too mention inconsistent, unnatural animations.

~~harr*coughANewHope*ermm... (still a great game though).~~
[cough edit]
harr*coughANewBeginning*ermm... (still a great game though).

I'd love a module, an actual module, that allows me to animate the body and the head of a character separately. So that, for example, different facial expressions only need one body. Or that expressions and hand gestures can be combined on-the-fly. Yes, I know that's easy. But YOU started the thread

Igor Hardy · Fri 02/09/2011 22:24:25

Quote from: Ghost on Fri 02/09/2011 22:18:01
harr*coughANewHope*ermm... (still a great game though).

You mean A New Beginning? I haven't played it myself yet, but The Whispered World by same company is definitely a perfect example.

Monsieur OUXX · Mon 05/09/2011 10:54:59

@Duanames: What does exactly your "non-block sierra-style" module do? (I can't test it right now).

Dualnames · Mon 05/09/2011 13:29:54

Quote from: Monsieur OUXX on Mon 05/09/2011 10:54:59
@Duanames: What does exactly your "non-block sierra-style" module do? (I can't test it right now).

It's the sierra interface without blocking interactions. That's all.

Monsieur OUXX · Tue 06/09/2011 10:44:53

Quote from: Dualnames on Mon 05/09/2011 13:29:54
Quote from: Monsieur OUXX on Mon 05/09/2011 10:54:59
@Duanames: What does exactly your "non-block sierra-style" module do? (I can't test it right now).

It's the sierra interface without blocking interactions. That's all.

OK, but I meant: Does it include the Sierra dialogs with portraits?

EDIT: Thanks for the answer! (not polluting any further).

Dualnames · Tue 06/09/2011 13:36:06

Okay, let me re-state. It's the exact sierra interface, but now, walking to a hotspot walk to point, isn't a blocking function, and plus you can also set walk to points for objects and characters, also being non blocking.

hedgefield · Tue 06/09/2011 18:12:16

@Eggie - you can download a fairly stable release of AGS 3.2.1 with widescreen support from here. It's the latest Skygoblin build, and inside the /bin/ folder you should find what you are looking for. I tried it myself yesterday and so far zero problems with my new 1280x720 game.

Igor Hardy · Tue 06/09/2011 18:27:53

Quote from: hedgefield on Tue 06/09/2011 18:12:16
@Eggie - you can download a fairly stable release of AGS 3.2.1 with widescreen support from here. It's the latest Skygoblin build, and inside the /bin/ folder you should find what you are looking for. I tried it myself yesterday and so far zero problems with my new 1280x720 game.

Yes, it works fine for me too. Except no working full screen.

EDIT: Actually I got it working finally, so everything works alright in this release as far as I know.