Scripting help: Dialogue without blocking script?

[GazingAbyss]

The basic problem: I'm trying to make a game that imitates real time, with certain events only happening at specific times, but dialogue always makes it crash.

I've got the game keeping track of time using a counter that's in the global script, under repeatedly_execute, like so:

Code: ags

Seconds++;
  if(Seconds == 100){
    OneMinutes++;
    Seconds = 0;
  }
  if(OneMinutes == 10){
    TenMinutes++;
    OneMinutes = 0;
  }
  if(TenMinutes == 6){
    Hours++;
    TenMinutes = 0;
  }
// If you're curious, the OneMinutes/TenMinutes thing (rather than just Minutes) was so that 
// the time displays correctly if the player checks a clock
  if(Hours == 12){
    if(AnteMeridian == false){
       Seconds = 0;
       TenMinutes = 0;
       OneMinutes = 0;
       Hours = 7;
       AnteMeridian = true;
       PartOfDay = "AM";
       NewDay = true;
       DayCount++;
    }
    else{
      PartOfDay = "PM";
    }
  }
  if(Hours == 13){
    if(AnteMeridian == true){
       Seconds = 0;
       TenMinutes = 0;
       OneMinutes = 0;
       Hours = 1;
       AnteMeridian = false;
    }
  }

It works pretty well so far, but now I'm trying to have an NPC enter a room at a specific time (which works), and then say something (which doesn't). The problem is that dialogue is a blocking event, and it's making the whole game crash if I put the command to have the NPC speak under repeatedly_execute_always, but if I put it under repeatedly_execute, it just seems to skip over the command entirely.

I've read through the description of the Display command and a few other questions on the forums, so I know there's no non-blocking version of Display, but is there some kind of work-around I can use? IIRC, I'm pretty sure at least one adventure game I've played had text pop up to indicate sounds effects without interrupting the gameplay... Any suggestions?

[Secret Fawful]

There are a few QueuedSpeech modules out there. The one I use is by monkey_05_06.

You can find it here.

[Khris]

Is it deliberate that a minute has 100 seconds?

[Calin Leafshade]

(unrelated : http://clientsfromhell.net/post/50742608650/our-company-works-with-thousands-of-vendors )

[GazingAbyss]

@Secret Fawful:

Thanks! I'll try that out!

@Khris:
Yes and no... Technically, each 'second' is only 1/40th of a second on normal speed, since the Second++ command happens once per cycle. Right now I just have it set to something short enough that I don't have to sit around waiting for hours when I'm play testing, and I'll set it to take longer once the game actually works, but I still don't want each 'day' of game time to take a literal day.

[Khris]

I'm not really trusting my brain at this hour of the night, but wouldn't using 60 seconds make game time pass even faster...?

[GazingAbyss]

@Khris:
It would, but for what I'm trying to figure out right now, I need a little extra time to interact with a few different objects and hotspots to make sure it's all working the way I want it to. I'm pretty much constantly adjusting it based on what I'm doing at the moment.