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It's actually a bit simpler than you'd expect. although this probably isn't the best method.

In AGS, you would set the player characters view to something invisible (a blank sprite), and then add the following to room_RepExec()

cEgo.x = mouse.x;
cEgo.y = mouse.y;

AGS will automatically scroll the background so the player character (which is under the mouse pointer) stays centred.

The character image in the center of the screen isn't the one the player is controlling. It's a background object that looks like him (or her). For the sake of the example we'll assume it's object[0].
If you want to keep it centered, you'd add;

object[0].X = mouse.x;

You'd probably want a couple of hard caps on this too, to prevent the object running too far to the left or right. so add;

you might need to adjust a few things to fit your game, this example is for a game running in 640*480, with a background 1280 (2 screens) wide.

if (object[0].X < 960) { object[0].X = 960; } // right - stops the character moving above 960
if (object[0].X > 320) { object[0].X = 320; } // left - stops the object moving below 240

If any of the above turns out to be my usual nonsense, I apologize in advance.

Edit; - I forgot something. You need to factor in the width of your background object. So if he's 50 pixels wide, you need to subtract 25 to keep it centered.

http://www.filibustercartoons.com/index.php/2012/03/10/stopping-kony-is-for-dummies/

I think that pretty much sums it up.

A quick guess at Eric's

Spoiler

Khris?

[close]

You prove my point. Maybe if you guys in the beginning head not egged me on then I wouldn't act like this.....

It's never about you is it Icey? It's never your fault. It's aways someone else who's to blame.

Accept responsibility for your own failures.

I'm not acting any way truth be told, Im being me but most you just can't stand me so you give me and PMQ a bad name. Maybe if I had the right help then I could have been a little different. Can't you take a hint?

You've been offered help time and again by people on this forum, and every time you ignored their advice. You've burned soo many bridges, ask yourself; 'Why should anyone want to help me now?'[

I like Final Fantasy, I wanna make a RPG like FF, can I get some help please. Damn nobody could show me how to

That's because you don't listen to people when they try to help. You don't want people to help you make your game, you want people to make your game for you.

If you want to make a game like FF. Go use RPGmaker.

Wouldn't that basically mean I'm a troll? I rather have this stickied here. I like having just one thread that I can post in about my stuff. I just don't want someone to spark an argument.

No, it'd mean 'here be trolls'. Because everything isn't just about you.

If you had a subforum you couldn't bump for attention, and people could just ignore you. In here; you can kick and scream and post pipe-dream promises.

The one thing that annoys me more than anything, isn't the lying, the stupidity, the incompetent coding, the garbage spill of half finished projects that fill the forums, or even the attempts to weasel out of questions and play dumb. - Its the fact that you're giving the RPG genre, the AGS community, and people who code them a bad name.

EDIT: Khris beat me to it;-

XP for each level (roughly, since it'll be converted to an int):
level 2 : 15
level 3 : 15*1.5 = 22.5
level 4 : 22.5*1.5 = 33.75
level 5 : 33.75*1.5 = 50.65
level 6 : 50.65*1.5 = 75.9

XP after each fight
fight1 : 15 (requires 15 for level 2)
fight2 : 30 (requires 22.5 for level 3)
fight3 : 45 (requires 33.75 for level 4)
fight4 : 60 (requires 50.65 for level 5)
fight5 : 75 (requires 75.9 for level 6 - So no level gain.)

Another project? It would be cool if this topic was stickied here so Icey gets his own permanent thread to tend - not constantly floating around on the first/second pages of this board, then inevitably forgotten about, where it's back to square one again. It would keep it tucked away, but visible to those who want it to be.

We could get him a subforum?

(titled, 'under the bridge')

@Victor6: I don't really release sources not only cause I put the effort into my designs plus my code can be really messy and only I end up being the one who understands it unless I ask for help with "broken code".

FFS. Icey, nobody wants your source code. nobody wants you to do a 'helpful tutorial' or a 'how to' youtube video, because as recent events have proven; Your 'help' is frequently counterproductive or downright wrong.

IF something like AGSC was created in a swarm like way, then;- The entire project would be a group effort

You would only have control over the parts of AGSC that you directly contribute, and since you can't code without making loads of basic errors, you'd probably end up adding 0 lines of code (possibly a negative value, since someone would end up spending their time fixing your mistakes).

Having put a little thought into it. A simple example of how it could work would be DOTT. Each person controls a character simultaneously. The cast of DOTT don't directly interact except at the very end, however they do depend on the actions of the other 2 in order to progress.

Didn't we all establish months and months and months ago that DLC for AGS was pretty much a non-starter? Or did I miss something vital regarding changes to the way AGS handles sprites\rooms?

- Except when it's something that you've coded into the original in advance and held back until a later date for some stupid reason (such as: you want to say that your game has DLC).

It does strike me that something like AGSC, that uses assets from soo many people, would be far better handled in a swarm development style;

One person writes the battle engine, everyone else provides their character resources (art, dialogue, sound). that way no-one's in complete control of the plot, or the representation of character designs that they do not own. If Icey's character wants to have an emo moment, another persons character could just slap him, or provide a sarcastic commentary.

Once the game is done, you can release the code as open source (with paceholders to replace protected characters), and we might get a few less 'how do I do this RPG like thing in AGS?' threads in the tech forums too.

@Anian
Thanks man, that provided some excellent pointers. In this case I really wish I could get away with adding an extra frame or 2, but I've got to lock her to the same time format as everyone else for scripting reason, at least for the time being.

Is she throwing the knife, or just drawing it? If the former, maybe take a look at some pictures of baseball players throwing the ball (not pitchers, with the wind-up, but infielders).

It's sort of a combination of the 2.
I already have the base animations for a cross body throw (for stuff like shurikens), and a forward, overarm throw (for spears, javelins and the like), but both of those are used by mooks\redshirts.
I wanted to make her animation unique, so I opted for a sort of reaction throw, almost as if she's just spotted someone behind her, and pulls the knife out of no-where.

The full baseball pitch (OF DEATH!) I might have to used for someone else though....

Mark 2:-


I've tried tucking the arm back at the start as if it's at her side (so the view is block by the torso), raising it up as she turns until the snap of the throw, then letting it drop back

No, there's no filth here, well except for the unfortunate fact that when this animation is looped it almost looks like she's pulling knives out of her cleavage....

I've got a couple of things to fix on this animation before I apply any highlights or shadows which shouldn't be a problem (fringe, hair, skirt flow+shading), however I'm a little stuck regarding what to do with her left arm (the one on the left in the shot). Currently there's just a pace holder there, but I can't for the life of me work out what to do with it.

Actual size:
Double sized:

I do have a some limitation because firing animations have to use the same formula;

Frames 1-4 are the 'wind up' frames (so in another case it would be aiming a gun or drawing back a bowstring)
Frame 5 has to remain the 'action' frame, since the script picks up this frame and spawns bullet object(s) at this point.
Frame 8 is the 'wait' frame. The animation pauses at this point until the script calls another animation. So she won't actually loop like she does in the above image. Ideally the arm position in frame 8 would be close to the position in frame 1, to allow for loop,wait,loop scenarios.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

2 quick methods (probably full of coding errors)

Code: ags

// Insert this code when you award xp
experience+=15; // award the xp
if(experience > xpnext){
// Insert your stat changes here.
level++;
xpnext = (5*(level*level))+10; // sets the next xp requirement based on the current level. 
// lvl 1:15, lvl2: 30, lvl3: 55, lvl4 90, etc. levels become progressively harder to gain.
if (experience > xpnext){ experience = xpnext-1; } // not required, but this will prevent double levels.
}

This gives you a classic xp method (like dungeons and dragons). Monsters still award the same xp, you just need to kill more of them to level up again. You might want to introduce a level cap (i.e. if (level < 10){ .... ), to prevent things getting out of hand.

OR

Code: ags

// Insert this code when you award xp
int xp = monster_xpvalue-level // the amount of xp awarded decreases as the player levels up. so you can't farm low level mobs.
if (xp > 0){ // stops negative xp awards
experience+=xp;
}
if(experience > xpnext){
// Insert your stat changes here.
level++;
experience = 0; // set experience to zero again, and you now get less xp per mob.
}

The advantage of this method is that it automatically level caps the player. Players can't farm 6 million boars to reach level 60. Once they reach a certain point even the biggest monsters won't award xp.

You can also scale your stat changes rather than code separate entries;
something like:

Code: ags

int hpgain;
hpgain = 10-level; // so you gain 9hp at lvl 1, 8 at level 2, 7 at 3......
if (hpgain < 0){ hpgain = 0; } // stops negative gains, (maxhp loss).
player_maxhealth+=hpgain;

It's up to you to adjust the formulas to your own design.

Well, straight off your level up code is doubling up from level 4 onwards (4 > 2 & 4 > 3)

You really need an xpnext variable. check if xp > xpnext, if so increase stats, increase xp next.(or, reset xp to 0, and award xp based on level)

Trust me I have that well thought out. So that is why I

1) Need to find a animator. Maybe I will ask BigGC, hes great with animations.

2) Need to finish making a lot of other games before I go all in on AGSC. Because small games such as Treasure finder & Dreams PMQ will help me develop new skills and tactics. Everyone told me to start out with something small, so if I develop off of smaller games I can get new "abilities" when develop with big games.

3) The game will have have private beta versions that will be tested and then open beta versions like the one that the current one at the top.

You didn't really answer my question.

1. I didn't ask anything about graphics or animation. Hiring an animator will not help you code, design, write, or test a game.
2. Finishing your other projects will not guarantee you won't screw up this one.
3. Beta testing may remove some bugs, but ultimately you will be the one who has to fix them, and you will be the one who decides when it's ready for release. Your previous 'Completed games' suggest that you have poor judgment in this area.

An example of IP protection would be allowing anyone who allows their characters to appear in the game to veto it's release if they feel the game is not up to standard (at this point, you have the option of removing their characters from the game, and releasing it.)

Out of interest;- What steps are you taking to prevent damage to intellectual properties?

- If say;- AGS Colosseum turns out to be another badly programmed, poorly designed, bug filled game with appalling dialogue, and you decide to release it on steam, then characters appearing in the game will be tainted with the stench of your creation. Paying customers could be driven away from titles featuring those characters as a result.

I'm not saying this will happen, but you don't exactly have the most stellar track record for quality control.

I've overheard ( well, read in a magazine) that the upcoming Scandinavian MMO The Secret World(made by creators of the Longest Journey) is supposed to blend elements of RPG and adventure games with a multiplayer twist... From what they say it sounds like a pretty good idea- players teaming up to solve puzzles some of which are meant to take weeks to figure out.

Isn't there going to be a massive problem when someone solves the puzzle and posts the solution online? - You don't have to look at it, but someone in your group might, and then they'd spoil it for everyone else.

Wasn't there some murder mystery multiplayer game years ago? That was kinda like an adventure game.

Of course, this is the internet, so it was probably filled with people who ruined the plot every 5 minutes.

[XxSherlockxX]: ' teh butlar did it!!!11!!!!!1 '

It's not just the scripting, it's the testing too which could drive you mad.

Out of hand, I'd reject the idea, because I feel it would consume too much time and effort for a reward only experienced by a few. The time would be better spent improving the single player elements, which everyone can enjoy.

I'll admit I've been tempted to take a crack at recreating something like bloodwych in ags. Maybe splitting the controls so player 1 is on mouse, player 2 on keys, so that it could theoretically be played by a single player.

Assuming I read your post correctly. A really simple way around this would be to add a faction variable (1 = player, 2 = enemy, etc) for each character. then have the AI randomly pick targets until it finds on that is A. Alive, and B. belongs to the players side.

Something like

int aitarget = -1;
int roll;
while(aitarget == -1){
  roll=Random((insert max number of targets here);
    if (unithp[roll] > 0 && unitfaction[roll] == 1){
       aitarget = roll;
    }
}
** run attack function on aitarget **

the above code might be a little dodgy. It's getting late.....