Messages

All I have to say, is drawing sprites first is stupid (like room objects and what-not).

You really don't know what your backgrounds will look like until you make them.  Well you may have ideas, but you don't know exactly the colors, angles, etc.

I draw my backgrounds first, always planning ahead, thinking about my storyline, where objects/puzzles/characters/etc will be placed.  Then once the background is complete, you can get an idea on what colors and lighting will look good on your object sprites.  Is the light coming from the right/left/front/back, what angle is the room at; you don't want to draw a box on the floor with only a front view (looking paper thin), if your perspective suggests the camera is higher off the ground.  This way you can match perspectives when you draw the 'box' or whatever sprite afterwards.

If I were making graphics for a game I would agree with you but I am just learning and practising how to draw both so it doesn't matter, they wont both be used in a game together.

Well I think sprites for me, so I'm going with backgrounds for now and maybe also some sprite practise.

I find drawing BGs a lot harder myself.

Okay, now you're just confusing me, one more person should tip the balance here for me, so can someone please say whether they find backgrounds or sprites harder to draw? Whatever there answer is means I'll practise on the other one.

Now I have only seen this question asked a few times and for goodness sake I asked it twice but because it was within almost a year between both posts I had forgotten about the first one or more likely didn't think it was the same problem. I read the solutions suggested for the issue and they work but I have found an ideal way of solving this problem, now firstly would I be allowed to post this, being just a regular member and all and considering the other solutions came from more senior members? Secondly, if so, should I post it in the area the threads relating to it are or somewhere else, if the answer is the latter, where?

There are a few reasons I will not go(please don't get offended).
1. I live in Australia and simply don't have the cash to travel to England
2. Even if I did have the cash I only know a few of the members on this board and only briefly for them, so I would simply not feel safe and I have social phobia so I would make a really crappy guest. Now I'm not accusing anyone whose going that they would attack me but I am somewhat street smart and it's better to be safe than sorry. Also the social phobia thing could lead to an embarrassing panic attack.

However if neither of these issues were a problem for me I would gladly go, seriously! I hope all attendees have fun.

I would suggest drawing backgrounds first and only when you are comfortable with drawing BGs then move on to sprites. They are LOT harder stuff.

Good point even though you did say my game story concept was a cliché(hey that's ancient history).

Now I'm going to use GIMPShop I should be able to follow those many tutorials that use Photoshop, but like I said before I wont rely on them only. And if I eventually get a at least decent at drawing backgrounds, maybe one day I'll have the confidence to a enter a Background Blitz competition.

Thanks for the advice, I'll take it on board and eventually try and improve the image but it might not be for a week.

Next challenge, drawing a sprite, now that is going to be really hard!

Well as a beginner myself I would be interested in hosting such a completion, however as the host I would not be allowed to enter and since I am merely a beginner I question whether I would be qualified to pick the winners. On he other hand, who better to pick beginners entries for winning positions than a beginner themselves. Also if the idea too off, the winner would be encouraged to start another event and I would be allowed to enter.

I'm gonna have to go with CJ on this.  I find the best way to learn is to dive in head-first.  There's nothing like a dead-line to make me learn things faster and keep me focused on it!  That's just my two cents.

For some that is very true for others a deadline leads to stress and can make someone rush an entry(therefore entering an entry not as good as it could be, especially when it comes to beginners).

Actually no, bi-monthly means every other month (6 times a year).

So says wikipedia so say we all

That's no different than what I said, 6 times a year would mean one every 2 months considering there's 12 months in a year. In fact here is a quote from the wikipedia article you provided a link for that says almost exactly what I said.
"that is published every two months, that is six times each year." The article you linked 2 referred to magazines but the same principle would apply to other things.

However I still feel the MAGS competition is a bad idea for a beginner's competition(I can already imagine people rolling their eyes and thinking I'm going to go on with the Sprite Jam again but I can surprise too), sure sprite jam is a good example but so is the colouring ball and the background blitz. Any of these for beginner's would be a better idea than a beginner's MAGS competition.

Nothing is stopping you from starting an unofficial competition for example here in the Adventure chit-chat forum. But still, the whole point of every contest in the Competitions forum is, aside from having fun, to learn how to do these things.

And no, I did not bother to read the ridiculous amount of text in this thread so someone probably mentioned this already. In that case, consider this post a backup for those arguments.

I didn't think such a thing was allowed and despite not reading all the text in this thread your idea had not already been brought up. However even if it were allowed, wouldn't it been seen as offensive to CJ or other mods and possibly lead to conflicts?

i was just wondering if anybody here would be interested in or consider taking part in a monthly ags competition, (mags), for beginners only??

I don't really see much point in having a separate competition for beginners. There's nothing to stop you entering the normal MAGS contest, and whilst you probably wouldn't win to begin with, it would give you the practice you needed to improve and then be able to win later rounds of the contest.

CJ(I have no idea why you choose a different username on these forums) only a very small handful of beginners like myself would bother entering such a competition for the reason I mentioned earlier on. The evidence can be found in looking at many previous competitions and the quality of the entires and who entered, how can you be sure such a thing is a key reason why beginner's would not bother entering? A beginner's competition, a trial and for just one competition, a drawing based one, at least would give you and others a chance to see if that is the case. If it attracts few to no entries I'm probably wrong and you're probably right and you could scrap the whole thing but if a whole new bunch of people came out of the woodwork and submitted entries(given that seasoned artists were not allowed to submit entries, however there's no reason why they'd want to) then there just may be something to what I was saying. All I'm asking is you give the idea a chance.

Rock Chick,

I suck at drawing on paper. I've been practising a lot lately, but the honest truth I am awful at it.

How did I manage to do it before the critic's lounge?

Badly .

But I stuck with it. And wasn't afraid to ask for help, and more importantly, listen when help was offered. To my eternal shame, I still ignore good advice to this day, although not if I can help it. I'd like to think that if I listened properly every time I was offered advice, I'd be good at art by now.

I've drawn my fair share of absolutely horrible sprites - still draw plenty of them. But the more I tried, the easier I found it to make them a little less horrible. I'm not ashamed when I draw something bad. I see how far I can take it on my own, and when I cannot take it any further than that, I ask for help. I keep in mind that nobody can draw well overnight, but a bit of advice from someone more experienced can help me step in the right direction.

Never mind about appearing condescending - you've a right to say how you feel. If you want help, I sincerely recommend the critic's lounge, once again.

Oh - just noticed CJ posting while I was typing this. I agree - enter the MAGS competition. The time I did it, I had loads of fun and emerged with a great deal more experience.

Sorry if I seem to be dragging this thread WAY offtopic.

Well I did a very simple graphic in MS Paint the other day and have just posted it in the critics lounge but it was mainly made with the straight line tool and the shapes tools, drawing sprites for example seems almost beyond my reach, I feel it requires the ability to have a very steady hand with the mouse whilst using the pencil or a similar drawing material and I don't seem to have that. I think a mixture of tutorials, competitions, the critics lounge and obviously and I have known this the whole time, regular practice, if you don't practice regularly at something, especially something you're only learning or are not very good at you might as well not bother. I learnt that lesson in training for certain things and in high school(btw, in Australia our high schools have years 7(usually 12 year olds) to year 12(usually 17 year olds) students and no middle school like the USA. I sometimes wonder what it might have been like to attend a middle school but since I hated school(for social reasons, I have a social phobia so I was considered a freak and therefore ending up wagging school lots) if I attend Middle school I would have probably found a way to drop out before I even got to high school. I dropped out of high school without even completing year 8 but a few years later I was allowed to do correspondence work and eventually finished high school with average results, yes this is off topic and now people may think I'm a freak but if that's the case I don't care, I am who I am!

Also since I can't even draw a sprite entering a MAGS competition would be pointless.

I never intended to use this graphic in a game nor show anyone just yet but I suppose that's what the critics lounge is all about. Let me first say I can not draw anything decent hardly at all, either on paper nor a computer. I managed to perhaps pulls this one off because I was using MS Paint to make it and I was able to mainly use the line tools and the shape tools to make it.


So first what do you think, considering I'm a real newbie at this? Even though it's kinda obvious, it's a small, portable tv.

If anyone has suggestions to improve it and I'm almost sure someone does, please let me know but don't merely use the image to demonstrate how it can look different because I also want to learn to make things better myself, by all means you can but either way I ask that you tell me what program you used to make the changes and go into brief detail of how you were able to accomplish the changes.

@RockChick

I feel that I have never actually seen a tutorial on how to draw a sprite that has helped me draw a sprite at all. The times I have improved have been through practising and through posting work on the critics lounge, and then listening to people's advice. This hasn't made me into a pro artist, but it has taken me further than just looking at tutorials would have.

With regards to drawing in the Gimp and such - it is rarely your equipment that holds you back. I use the Gimp and GraphicsGale, and hey, I love those programs, but when I draw sprites, 90% of the time I draw them in MS Paint. I have no idea why, either. But I cannot draw better in the Gimp or Gale, so I don't feel that MS Paint (as annoying as it can be at times) should ever hold back the quality of your sprites.

With regards to being embarrassed to enter a competition - why? Your art, if you put the effort in, is a representation of your current skill, and people will respect that. They might offer criticism, and that can seem harsh at times, but generally we all want you to get better. If you truly want to get better, I strongly recommend the critic's lounge. I learnt pretty much everything I know when it comes to graphics by posting in there.

Mods: If this seems inappropriate or offtopic, I'll gladly take it into PMs. Just say the word.

I shall ask you a question, can you or could you ever sketch on paper or on a computer an even somewhat decent looking image that included more than straight lines, shapes that are offered with MS Paint, etc? If the answer is yes then while I understand you are trying to help me you can not compare yourself to me as I can do neither. If the is no, then please enlighten me as to how you first(before any critic lounge posts) did you manage to do so without using any tutorials? Because that would certainly put us in the same boat at one time. Please note while this post may sound condescending and perhaps a bit antagonising, that was by no means my intention, I am a wannabe writer and sometimes my dramatic flare can surface in forum posts.

[Andorxor]

doesn't bi-monthly just mean twice a month?

Not trying to be a smartarse here but you are spot on correct and silly of me not to notice it before, I don't know if there is a term for what Andorxor was referring to but it's obvious he meant once every 2 months.

I just checked and for some unknown reason the scripting part where I added the inventory item has disappeared from the script! What the f**K is going on?

You have indeed found the right place for the code. But what's "names_numbers"?
I can't seem to find anything in you're code that tells me what it is.
In my example I've used the inventory items script name when checking the players activ inv.

names_numbers is the name of the inventory item.

Well if someone knows of a tutorial for drawing computer sprites and/or images using GIMP I'd love to know because most are Photoshop based and without the program how can I follow them properly. I know GIMPShop is designed to emulate Photoshop's interface but I don't know if it'll work well enough to work with the tutorials. Also I don't have a scanner, not to mention the fact I draw at least just as bad on paper as I do on a computer.

One a more relevant note, in the last Sprite Jam, the only competition here I ever entered, someone said it was mainly based on graphic quality as to who wins or get 1st or 2nd runner up. If this is really the case in general with Sprite Jam than beginner's haven't a chance because I've looked over many of the former Sprite Jams and most of the entries were done by people who could draw on a computer really well. Of course it's not just about winning but let's get a little bit real, human nature means we want to win, if only a little bit. It doesn't take away from the fun but you can't have a competition without people wanting to win, as I said human nature.
All I'm saying is by introducing perhaps just one trial beginner's sprite jam where anyone who has proven they have fairly good computer drawing skills are ineligible to enter can entice those that would perhaps otherwise(like myself, yes I do admit that) not dare enter such competitions usually, not just because they probably wouldn't win but because(and again this goes for my entry in the previous sprite jam) be embarrassed to submit, essentially beginner's work, especially when the skill and talent of the other contestants is not intentionally but realistically right in front of them in the thread. It could encourage people who have wanted to learn to draw on a computer or are just learning and suffering from low self esteem a reason to keep going, you can forget the trophies and just say who the winners are, make it more about the person who looked like they tried their best regardless of how crappy their image looks rather than how wonderful it looks but may have been easy as to do, example I drew a sprite of a portable TV the other day, passable and nice but easy to draw because of the design, mostly straight lines and round patterns, I did the whole thing in MS Paint.

I thought I'd found the right place in the global script to place the function and how I've listed the inventory name but it's not working. The game runs but even after I've taken the item in question it says my inventory is empty. I know I am probably trying people's patience here but I am terrible with almost any type of computer code.

Code: ags

// Automatically converted interaction variables
int IntVar_Global_1 = 0;
export IntVar_Global_1;
// main global script file

#sectionstart game_start  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function game_start() // called when the game starts, before the first room is loaded
  {
  }
#sectionend game_start  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE


#sectionstart repeatedly_execute  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function repeatedly_execute() {
  if (player.ActiveInventory == names_numbers){
    player.ActiveInventory = null;
  }
}
#sectionend repeatedly_execute  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE


#sectionstart on_key_press  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function on_key_press(int keycode) // called when a key is pressed. keycode holds the key's ASCII code
  {
  if (keycode==17) QuitGame(1); // Ctrl-Q
  if (keycode==363) SaveGameDialog(); // F5
  if (keycode==365) RestoreGameDialog(); // F7
  if (keycode==367) RestartGame(); // F9
  if (keycode==434) SaveScreenShot("scrnshot.pcx");  // F12
  if (keycode==9) // user presses TAB
    {
    if (menu.Visible == false) menu.Visible = true; // turn on GUI
    else menu.Visible = false; // turn off GUI
    }
  if (keycode==19) Debug(0,0); // Ctrl-S, give all inventory
  if (keycode==22) Debug(1,0); // Ctrl-V, version
  if (keycode==1) Debug(2,0); // Ctrl-A, show walkable areas
  if (keycode==24) Debug(3,0); // Ctrl-X, teleport to room
  }
#sectionend on_key_press  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
 

#sectionstart on_mouse_click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function on_mouse_click(MouseButton button) // called when a mouse button is clicked. button is either LEFT or RIGHT
  {
  if (IsGamePaused() == 1) // Game is paused, so do nothing (ie. don't allow mouse click)
    {
    }
  else if (button == eMouseLeft) 
    {
    ProcessClick(mouse.x,mouse.y, mouse.Mode);
    }
  else // right-click, so cycle cursor
    {   
    mouse.SelectNextMode();
    }
  }
#sectionend on_mouse_click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE


#sectionstart interface_click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function interface_click(int interface, int button) 
  {
  }
#sectionend interface_click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE;




#sectionstart dialog_request  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function dialog_request(int parameter) {
  
}
#sectionend dialog_request  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE

#sectionstart save_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function save_Click(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  SaveGameDialog();
}
#sectionend save_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE

#sectionstart look_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function look_Click(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  mouse.Mode = eModeLookat;
}
#sectionend look_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE

#sectionstart inven_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE
function inven_Click(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button) {
  InventoryScreen ();
}
#sectionend inven_Click  // DO NOT EDIT OR REMOVE THIS LINE

function iInventory1_Look()
{
Display("The page contains the following information. Melinda 8456 Gordan 8481 Lewis 8507 Hannah 8521");
}

function ShowScore(int score_to_add) // replacement for GiveScore()
{
  GiveScore(score_to_add);
  Display("You now have %d points[out of a possible %d",game.score, game.total_score);
}

function gMainbar_OnClick(GUI *theGui, MouseButton button)
{

}

function Button1_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  RestoreGameDialog();
}

function exit_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  QuitGame(1);
}

function walk_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  mouse.Mode = eModeWalkto;
}

function touch_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  mouse.Mode = eModeInteract;
}

function grab_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  mouse.Mode = eModePickup;
}

function talk_OnClick(GUIControl *control, MouseButton button)
{
  menu.Visible = false;
  mouse.Mode = eModeTalkto;
}

function cWife_AnyClick()
{

}

How about this?

Code: ags

function repeatedly_execute() {
  if (player.ActiveInventory == iYOURINVITEM){
    player.ActiveInventory = null;
  }
}

I tried to apply it to my room script but even after altering it a bit it still comes up with errors.

Code: ags

// room script file

function painting_Look()
  {
    character[0].FaceLocation(0, 0);
    DisplayMessage(3);
  }

function Notepad_Look()
{
  DisplayMessage(11);
}

function windows_Look()
{
  DisplayMessage(5);
  if (Game.DoOnceOnly("bedroom windows"))
  {
    ShowScore(1);
  }
}

function Notepad_PickUp()
{
DisplayMessage(12);
player.AddInventory(names_numbers);
if (Game.DoOnceOnly("take first page of notepad"))
  {
    ShowScore(4);
    (function repeatedly_execute() {
  if (player.ActiveInventory == names_numbers){
    player.ActiveInventory = null;}
}


function paper_Look()
{
DisplayMessage(0);
if (Game.DoOnceOnly("player name"))
  {
    ShowScore(2);}
}