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It's the end of January and I still haven't heard anything about the AGS Awards... are they still happening. Shouldn't nominations have happened by now? I'm all a-confuzzled. If I'm wrong, sorry, I'm only going off when they happened last year.

Is it just me, or has there been a severe lack of activity in the beginner's/tech forums lately? Is it because fewer people are asking for help or are all the people who used to give help on these forums dead, or getting lives or something? Not that I'm demanding activity or anything, but it just seems to have been a sudden change that happened just about after the forums moved o_o

I'm trying to create a little text damage report that appears underneath said damaged character everytime it takes damage. Most people familiar with RPGs will get what I mean here...

Using this:

Code: ags

function DisplaySpeechBackgroundAt(int charid, string message, int x, int y) {
  int overlay_id = DisplaySpeechBackground(charid, message);
  MoveOverlay(overlay_id, x, y);
}

I've managed to get part of the way there, but there are still a couple of things I'd like to do and I'm not sure if they can be done. Say, I have character MOLERAT take damage. After calculating the damage into dmgreport, I'll use this line:

Code: ags

DisplaySpeechBackground (MOLERAT, dmgreport, character[MOLERAT].x, character[MOLERAT].y);

At the moment, this text appears over MOLERAT, and stays in that screen position even if MOLERAT moves elsewhere, until the text disappears. I'd like to be able to have that text sort of glued to MOLERAT so it's constantly checking MOLERAT's x and y positions, and ... being there.

Another thing I'd like to achieve (IF it's possible) is to have the text "fall" a little after it appears, which again means altering the y position of the overlay, WHILE still following the x and y of the character. I figure that if I can achieve the first thing, I can work out how to do the second.

Given that this is going to be a blanket code for all damage reports, I was thinking of creating a string or an int identifying the CHARID of the damaged character at the time of damage, and inserting that into all the required lines of code in the function. That way, I hope, the function will work seperately for multiple characters on screen at a time.

Can anyone offer any advice on this?

[adventure game]

Just wondering how many people here, and I do realise this is an adventure game community, play RPGs? I'm making an RPG with AGS and I wonder how many people from this community would play it. Do you play your western Ultima style RPGs or Japanese RPGs more? Or both?

What's the deal, people? 

I play Japanese style RPGs mostly, like Terranigma, Secret of Mana, etc. That's the style my game will be in. So who would actually be interested in playing it?

I remember talk of modifying DisplaySpeechBackground to include x and y positioning (so, possibly a DisplaySpeechBackgroundAt?) and automatic removal after a period of time. If these haven't officially been added to a suggestion list, then I'm doing so now ^_^

Joystick/controller pad compatibility - Because I don't really understand how it works, I'm only suggesting it if it's not something incredibly complicated. It's not necessary at all but just something that I think would be a nice feature. I notice only one person (that I can find) has asked about it before and only got a very short answer so I didn't know if there was any particular reason this wasn't implimented yet.

Can I use SetAmbientTint or any other function to get an object to be completely white? I'm trying to get a kind of saturated sunlight effect and at the moment, I've had to animate the object going from completely white to partly white on my own, and then use SetAmbientTint at full blast to carry it on from there. I realise it's a -tint- and probably shouldn't saturate full white anyway but... is there a way around this?

Also, is there any way to get a white fade in/out room transition?

Who's coming??

Supanova for those of you who don't know is a sci-fi/cult/comic/anime/geek convention held one or twice a year in Australia. This weekend (18th and 19th) it's in Brisbane for the second time ever and for the second time ever me and a very talented friend have a table (The Corner of Awesomeness) in the artists' alley. I encourage all in the Brisbane vacinity to get your butts down here and visit for at least one of the days ^_^

Mikey from the Goonies is coming! Also some other semi-famous people who want to make money by signing their names, like Gimli and Denethor. (Last year we had George Takai who was surprisingly charismatic.) You can get stuff signed for like $40! WOW!

Better yet, you can see me and buy one of my awesome comics. Yeah! Fuckin' A, man. Unlike those other knobs, I sign for free XD

I think the webpage is www.supanova.com or something like that. DG, you at LEAST should be there!

I don't know whether this is a suggestion or a question. If it isn't currently possible through "backdoor" scripting, then it's a suggestion for DisplaySpeechBackgroundAt, I guess. (Perhaps removing the CHARID parameter).

Is there some relatively simple way to specify x and y coordinates with DisplaySpeechBackground?

Does anyone remember the game (or it's sequel) "It Came From The Desert"? I was just reminded of it and wondered if people would consider that an adventure game? I'd never thought about it before but I most certainly would.

It had a really great non-linear storyline and an original interface. It was even quite thrilling in places. I have only fond memories of it. Trying to go out on a date with Dusty from K-BUG. Finally managing to shoot the antennae of ants in the action sequences. Ahh, it was fun. I especially loved escaping from the hospital and hiding in rooms, scaring other patients and whizzing around in a wheelchair. Hmm, a lot of the things I loved best about it were indeed the action sequences (some of them anyway, some others were hideous) but it really did have just a -great- adventure feel to it.

I'm having a bit of trouble with a piece of code I'm written and I'm not sure of which direction to take it in...

Basically, I have a character that I'd like to do various actions in a loop. This is to be triggered with a GlobalInt, so I've put it in repeatedly_execute. There are a few random numbers involved to change the actions slightly but I want it to generally move in a back and forth loop between GlobalInt(9, 1) and (9, 2).

Code: ags

if (GetGlobalInt(9)==2) {
    if (randthree<2) {
      SetCharacterViewEx (MOLERAT, 21, 2, ALIGN_CENTRE);
      ccExecuteCommand (MOLERAT, 2);
      SetGlobalInt(9, 1);
      }
    else if (randthree==2) {
      SetCharacterViewEx (MOLERAT, 24, 1, ALIGN_CENTRE);
      ccExecuteCommand (MOLERAT, 3);
      SetGlobalInt(9, 1);
      }
    else if (randthree==3) {
      SetCharacterViewEx (MOLERAT, 21, 0, ALIGN_CENTRE);
      ccExecuteCommand (MOLERAT, 4);
      SetGlobalInt(9, 1);
      }
    }
  
else if (GetGlobalInt(9)==1) {
    if (randtwo<2) {
      if (randthree<2) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 80, 90);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 2, 5, 0);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 3, 5);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 90);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 2, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
      else if (randthree==2) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 80, 120);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 2, 5, 0);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 120);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 2, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
      else if (randthree==3) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 80, 150);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 2, 5, 0);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 150);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 2, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
      }
    else if (randtwo==2) {
        if (randthree<2) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 240, 90);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 1, 5, 0);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 3, 5);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 90);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 90);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 1, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
      else if (randthree==2) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 240, 120);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 1, 5, 0);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 3, 5);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 120);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 120);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 1, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
      else if (randthree==3) {
        SetObjectView (0, 25);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 240, 150);
        ObjectOn(0);
        AnimateObject (0, 1, 5, 0);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 3, 5);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 220, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 200, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 180, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 160, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 140, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 120, 150);
        SetObjectPosition (0, 100, 150);
        SetObjectFrame(0, 25, 1, 1);
        ObjectOff(0);
        SetGlobalInt(9, 2);
        }
    }
} 

The CCS commands are just basic moves back and forth, but of course aren't blocking. Given that I can't use any blocking functions in repeatedly_execute (and I don't want to because this should all be happening without influencing the player character), everything just flies by and loops instantly.

Is there some way to achieve this without using a thousand SetTimer scripts between each SetObjectPosition etc? I can't have it simply move because I need the object to move to precise spots instantly.

I just remember this while thinking about webcomics and it occured to me that Kid Radd is so cool he deserves his own thread. Anyone that hasn't read this is missing out, and I'm sure being fellow gamers you'll all be able to appreciate this ^_^

http://home.att.net/~miller.daniel.r/index.htm

I've just noticed that some characters are being detected in rooms they don't exist in. This will happen in any room, even a newly created one.

I have 3 static characters in room 1, and one character (controlled by the Character Control System plugin) in room 6. In room 6, the 3 characters from room 1, even though they don't visually appear to be there, can still be interacted with. This really screws up with one of the interactions which includes a FaceCharacter line, which shuts the game down telling me the character isn't in the room.

It seems to be a bug/problem with the Collision Detector Plugin (v1.10) as all of these characters have collision detections assigned to them.  Has anyone else experienced this? The plugin hasn't been updated since 2002 so I guess it could be incompatible with current AGS versions... It's worked beautifully up til now so it's a pity.

I just thought I'd share this because it makes me feel gooey inside (and by that I don't mean the way acid makes you feel after you drink it).

I was recently emailed by a lovely man in the US who told me he'd played Cirque with his two daughters and they all thoroughly enjoyed it. So much so, that he's buying a copy of my comic and giving me a considerable amount extra as thanks for the game. He was so utterly lovely about it, I regained a lot of my lost faith in humanity.

AWWWWW!

I was rather surprised he didn't find it offensive...

Since I'm not sure what the progress on the new suggestion system is, and this still seems to be the place for suggestions, I hope I'm doing the right thing here.

I've already brought this up once but I thought I'd submit it officially. Wondered if anyone would benefit from an increase in the number of allowed characters in AGS. I know I most certainly would (in fact, to do what I want, -some- increase is necessary).

Most people will be doing adventure games and probably won't need this, I realise... I do know that quite a lot of us are trying our hand at RPGs right now. I don't think we should be given any priority or anything, but... would anyone else find this useful?

I was thinking of an increase to a neat 200 characters or something.

I need to increase the speed of my game to at least 200fps. I read in the manual that a 486 won't be able to handle 80fps. That doesn't bother me too much, I doubt too many people are running their games on machines like that, but I wondered about what speed do people think is the limit while still keeping the average computer user able to run the game? I'm hoping to go to about 350, but I don't want to stop too many people from being able to play the game.

I have a bunch of GUIs that I want to sit roughly in the middle of the screen. I know I could manually enter the x and y position to centre them, but I used CentreGUI for ease of use, and I've now realised that it only centres the GUIs x position. Fair enough, I tried manually changing the Y position in the editor - no effect. Is this a bug or is it supposed to work like this? I can get around this by specifying the positions manually, but I was just curious. It doesn't say anything in the manual about only centring horizontally.

If I use "IsKeyPressed" in a piece of code, it will run that code over and over if the key is held down. What can I use that will only run the code once each time the key is pressed (ie. To do an action over and over, the key must must be pressed over and over)?

A couple of questions actually.

Firstly, using (character[EGO].view==20) doesn't appear to work in a statement like this:

Code: ags

if ((moleret == CD_COLLISION) && (character[EGO].view==20) && (GetGlobalInt(6)==0)) {

blah blah blah...
}

I'm not sure why or what I can do instead.

Secondly, I have a collision detection set up to, once detected (and if GlobalInt 6 == 0), run a function which like this:

Code: ags

function InjureMe() {
Ã,  if (GetGlobalInt(6)==0) {
Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  
Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã, SetGlobalInt(6, 1);
Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã,  Ã, ...blah blah...

	Ã,  SetTimer(2, 80);
	Ã,  }
Ã,  }

...and in the repeatedly_execute section:

Code: ags

if (IsTimerExpired(2)==1) {
	Ã,  Ã,  SetGlobalInt (6, 0);
	Ã,  Ã,  Wait(1);
	Ã,  Ã,  }

I have it set up this way so that, if the character's collide and if the player isn't currently "being injured", he will get injured, and for 2 seconds afterwards, will be "invinsible" and unable to get harmed again. I have to use a Timer function instead of Wait so it isn't blocking.

The problem is that after being injured once, if the character just stands still, the interaction won't happen again at all. I have to have the character moving (or something updating the script) for it to allow him to get injured again. That's why I put the Wait(1); in, but it doesn't seem to do anything.

I'm pretty stumped on this... can anyone help?

For some reason, after a bit of scripting in my save/load screen, all the lines like:

ListBoxGetItemText (11, 26, 1, desca);

...have stopped working. The error is "invalid item specified" but this makes no sense because it's the right GUI/object number, and there most certainly IS one item in the list box. I'm stumped. I can't see how any of the scripting I've done recently would have affected that, seeing as everything I changed was related to after a save game is loaded, and this particular line (and all related) only runs right at start-up before any loading has been done.

EDIT: It's okay, I think I have it working properly now. I didn't realise it started counting items from 0. Is that mentioned in the manual because I didn't see it. If not, maybe it'd be worth adding it. If so... I'm an idiot.