Well, on HHGTG, there's the ability to drop your inventory items and the limit to carry a certain number of them (I have two dif modes, so it's quite flexible), thing is when you drop an item , the item due to my decision to have realism in the size is rather small. For example a toothbrush appears to have 8x2 dimensions in 320x200 bg. But I'm feeling it might end up as a pixel hunt, and I don't want this to happen. So, any ideas on how to fix this?
I'm thinking like adding a GUI that will show up an arrow with the name over an item. Something flashy. Or even have the image of the item in zoom view(like Loom) when over it, so you can pick it up easier.
Dunno about the best way to do this, but personally, I'm quite fond of the name of the hotspot appearing next to the mouse cursor... If you would also make it flash, that would also be an added bonus...
You could only allow the player to drop items in certain areas, like containers, dressers, etc. That way it could be a matter of a simple dialog listing the contents (I actually do this in a game I'm working on). Another approach you could take is a gui that lists all the items in the room that can be picked up, and clicking on one of the items in the list would have the player go over and pick it up. The gui could be considered a 'cheat' tool to some, so a preference setting to enable or disable it would work. The third (and easiest) option would be to animate each item you can drop to glint occasionally.
You can drop each item anywhere, and it remains that way. I have a hotspot label anyway.
Then consider not asking for input if you have no intention of listening to any of it. Alternatively, you could list all the things you're not willing to consider as solutions to save people some thought.
Curious question... what happens if an item is dropped while you are standing behind a walk-behind area? Does it check and place elsewhere, or does it still place behind the walk-behind, lost forever from your mouse?
Why would you leave your toothbrush on the ground?? Especially behind a walk-behind: nobody cleans behind there!
Quote from: ProgZmax on Tue 08/09/2009 23:35:55
Then consider not asking for input if you have no intention of listening to any of it. Alternatively, you could list all the things you're not willing to consider as solutions to save people some thought.
Misinterpreted what I said. In fact thinking over your idea, it seems to be the best. I just can't change the fact that you must be allowed to drop stuff anywhere. Putting a hotspot label would have the interface be overcomplicated (it seems to be complicated as it is)
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Wed 09/09/2009 00:34:31
Curious question... what happens if an item is dropped while you are standing behind a walk-behind area? Does it check and place elsewhere, or does it still place behind the walk-behind, lost forever from your mouse?
I barely do recall any walk-behinds, that cover your feet.
I think so far progz idea of having a list of items in a room and have player character walk over there when clicked on them, seems to be the best so far. So progressing more to that, how would you open the ListGUI? Middle mouse click is not used anywhere, TAB is used for inventory, space is not used anywhere as well.
I do remember, that the game "Elvira-Mistress of the Dark" had a room-inventory as well.
Although I don't like the idea of a limited inventory :P my suggestion is to add an option to flip the inventory.
In normal mode, it shows you own stuff, and after hitting "flip" it shows the room items. Or even more Sci-Fi: add a "Room Scanner" that highlights those items :=
A more common approach (at least in console RPGs) is, like ProgZ said, adding Chests or some other storage. And those chest all share the same content - so you don't have to travel ages to get an item ;)
I'd love to add storage but due to the must of sticking to the original, I can't. The inventory limit is quite flexible on easy mode. It just remains true to the original on "purist" mode. Still however more flexible than the original.
The storages are a nice idea but due to the not-staying-on-one-place too much of the game, they wouldn't work and would create dead-ends.EDIT: Read abs post, dead ends don't exist since they share the same content.
Perhaps a moving "chest" of some sort? But only on normal mode, so the "purist" mode remains as it is?
Sorry I misunderstood your wording above.
With a subject like Hitchhiker's Guide to work from I'm sure you could come up with some reason to drop items and have them turn up again just when you need them :). Perhaps a device that opens the 'Lost Sock Dimension' to store and retrieve any items at will. And lots of socks. If you don't want to go that direction, there's always the pop-up gui with interactable items approach. As abstauber mentioned, Elvira rather cleverly dedicated a section of the gui for items in each room, and you could select them inventory style to take or look at. This could also avoid the need to show dropped items on the background at all, saving you some time (and object/character spots).
I thought, you didn't want to limit the inventory in easy mode at all?
How about adding the hotspot/object finder by KhrisMUC and assign it to a GUI-button? That way, you see all the objects you need.
I'm using it and also like it a lot :)
It is limited but not that much.
Hotspot/object finder? Linky please?
I'm not sure, if Khris has released a stand-alone version, but it's included in his Monkey Island Template.
Meanwhile you could also take a look at my customized version:
http://shatten.sonores.de/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/showHotspots.scm
You need to put something like this in your game start section
// init showhotspots
ShowHotspots.SetKey('H');
ShowHotspots.Enable();
ShowHotspots.SetFont(eFontFont0, false, 5, 97, 167);
ShowHotspots.SetIcon(0, 6, 6);
Unfortunately, lazy as I am, I've hardcoded a GUI button into the code.
So if you like to activate the hotspotfinder via GUI click, you have to change line 174 to the correct button (in ShowHotSpots.asc).
If not, you can remove the whole repeatedly_execute section ;)
Ah, that thingy. Thanks, abstauber, but it will end up useless, if you can drop items behind walkbehinds areas, so I have to check it out, and will use it if there's no bug to that. If there's not, your thing will be useful. Though I'm thinking of the flip idea to be the best. And with Tween module which I'm using, will indeed end up really flashy.
As the interface is you can drop an item and pick it up. Much like Legend of Kyrandia.
BTW congrats to progz for his 4000 post!
Or you add a comment, that if the character's behind a walkable area and the player wants to drop an item there, that he'll never find it there...
Oh, and it's good to know, that I'm not the only one who has played Elvira. Is there a game you haven't played yet, Progz? ;D
Elvira is one of my all-time favorite adventure games, so mentioning it just shows you have good taste.
A possible solution is to have the items animate, glow subtly, or sparkle a bit. I'm sure you could find an excuse in HHGTG as to why a toothbrush would glow. This is probably the easiest way to attract a player's attention to it.
Quote from: Radiant on Wed 09/09/2009 19:15:28
A possible solution is to have the items animate, glow subtly, or sparkle a bit. I'm sure you could find an excuse in HHGTG as to why a toothbrush would glow.
Meh, one more parasite in the ear doesn't make that much difference. ;D
Dual, I think you're falling into a trap of trying to recreate the original exactly without taking due consideration for common sense and playability. Just recreate the intent, not the execution.
To that end, I suggest that you can drop an item in any room and pick it up before you leave. If you leave without picking it up, it vanishes, but 2 or 3 room transitions later, it reappears in the Weird Thing Your Aunt Gave You. Dropping the Thing Your Aunt Gave You causes it to reappear in a room 2/3 rooms later. This would be fairly simple to code, a function to act as a clean-up for items from rooms, checking if it's time to give them back yet, etc.
Unless you want to somehow allow items to be permanently lost to create dead-ends (you mean person) in which case you could prevent them from being re-added to the Weird Thing Your Aunt Gave You, either universally, or if the player goes far enough away from the dropped item to not be able to backtrack and get it. Although, since you're being mean enough to allow dead-ends, you could just leave the items on the ground in the Hard mode and bugger the player if they can't find it again.
Quote from: Mr Flibble on Fri 11/09/2009 13:29:33
Dual, I think you're falling into a trap of trying to recreate the original exactly without taking due consideration for common sense and playability. Just recreate the intent, not the execution.
To that end, I suggest that you can drop an item in any room and pick it up before you leave. If you leave without picking it up, it vanishes, but 2 or 3 room transitions later, it reappears in the Weird Thing Your Aunt Gave You. Dropping the Thing Your Aunt Gave You causes it to reappear in a room 2/3 rooms later. This would be fairly simple to code, a function to act as a clean-up for items from rooms, checking if it's time to give them back yet, etc.
Unless you want to somehow allow items to be permanently lost to create dead-ends (you mean person) in which case you could prevent them from being re-added to the Weird Thing Your Aunt Gave You, either universally, or if the player goes far enough away from the dropped item to not be able to backtrack and get it. Although, since you're being mean enough to allow dead-ends, you could just leave the items on the ground in the Hard mode and bugger the player if they can't find it again.
Sounds like a plan, but boy did I hated that part from the original. In fact the randomness of the thing, is quite a subject on its own. Now as I've scripted it you can drop any item (those that are needed aren't allowed to be dropped only in easy mode aren;t dropped , a funny msg is displayed), and either trace it with your mouse, or open your inventory and find it there.
I've decided to:
-The Thing returns to you when you enter a room, if you have dropped it.(happens in the original too) (Random(2)).
-It can contain an unlimited number of items(Original too)
Easy mode:
-All drop items instead of falling to the ground go there (when you drop an item an indication that it has gone to the thing appears)(non original)
Hard mode:
-Items fall to the ground (they can't go behind the walkbehind areas(did a fix)).(Original)
Comments people?
That sounds reasonably fair, but I would suggest renaming Easy and Hard Mode. I'd never play Monkey Island II or III on Easy mode, but I would never want to play your game on Hard Mode.
Adams boasted that the game was 'user unfriendly' and it really was. Many gamers including myself are less prepared to tolerate designers' cruelty nowadays and you wouldn't want to alienate people. Or Vogonate people.
Perhaps 'Normal' and 'Ravenous Bugblatter Beast' would put things in context for those unfamiliar with the original game.
The modes are named already. I just name them this way, so you can understand.
The modes are named: Strag(normal)
Hitchhiker(hardcore/purist)
If you see the demo, you can see how it appears.
Ah, I haven't played the demo. Those names seem much clearer!