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1121

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 20, 2010, 08:20:27 pm »

That's correct. It is one of the items I'm adding myself and it is to be read as "Rod once belonging to Medu". Much like the fire and ice rods it shoots magic projectiles, but I'm not going to spoil what type of magic (=not electricity). Well, I'm not going to tell you too much also because I'm still working out how feasable it will all be to program. The name Medu may give you a small hint as to what direction I'm thinking in.

Out of the three I hope to have two rods fully programmed in, in the next two months. Hopefully all three. That includes the statuseffects for the enemies (possibly the character himself) and effects on enviroments. Depending on life, work and studies offcourse.

1122

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 20, 2010, 01:36:25 pm »

There's an idea. I like little nods like that, so who knows.

One more piece of progress since there weren't any trains to bring me to work today (from 08:00 all the way till around 13:30. WTF):
+ I found a glitch where you are almost instantly drained of life if you touch the buzz blob with your body. That's fixed in the next demo.

1123

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 20, 2010, 10:30:00 am »

Progress made in the last two weeks:
+ Finished the AI for the Buzz Blob enemy
+ Fixed glitch of Pol's Voice jumping through the air
+ Had another lovely date with the girl of my dreams
+ Made coding improvement to the startingscreen and item menu to save resource
+ Recoded some older code behind the credits

In case anybody was wondering why I'm less active lately with PotM and my project.

1124

Updates / Project of the Month - November 2010

« on: December 17, 2010, 07:48:25 pm »

Project of the Month: November 2010
The legend of Zelda: Chiming Bell


Forum Topic

Developer: King Tetiro

Language: Gamemaker 8.0
First Posted: 10 October, 2010
Last Update: 14 November, 2010


Interview:

Q: Could you tell us a little about your previous experience creating games?

A: Well seeing as half of my game developing experience has been here, Im going to say that I've been working on Fangames. First attempt was meant to be about two worlds tied together by the fabric of magic itself which became threatened when Ganondorf acquired the magic mirror. This attempt died (This was actually my first game). The second attempt is Chiming Bell (first version). And the third is the second version of Chiming Bell. As for the other half of my experiences, me and my team have been developing RPGs. Although we have nothing finished to show, we are always improving them. We've fully completed redesigning the stories and the world itself. The graphics are getting a MAJOR upgrade. Something I wanted for a long time.


Q: What was your drive to create this particular fangame and story?

A: Well that's pretty simple by defining what the game's about. It will show the true colours of the triforce by the end of it.
(Plus I owe it to ZFGC to make 1 fan game with my GM skills now)


Q: Was the use of gamemaker a natural step for you?

A: All those years ago, nope. Now, too damn easy. Good thing Im learning C++ as a challenge (Stuck on an error but waiting til next year to solve it). Im thinking of trying GM's 3D one more time before I consider C++ as my permanent language.


Q: You obviously spend a good deal of time into the project already. Can you describe some of the challenges you've had to tackle to come to this point?

A: Well the most noticable is how to compact the sheer size of the OOT hyrule into GB style. It wasn't easy but I think its done alright. Another problem was getting the damage collision script working. Something wouldnt work properly there til I looked at it another way. The hugest screamer was the pit collision script. I whacked my head on the table once. That hurt. The rest were teeny tiny factors like "calls the wrong variable" or "uses the wrong function" errors. So apart from those 3, pretty easy.


Q: What can you tell us about the new items you are adding? Was it hard to come up with original ideas?

A: Well let's start with the Spring. This idea came from this video (Notice the keyblade front flip attack)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7L0Gmc-VXc (Watch from 2:00 onwards) and the Roc's Feather. I thought it was high time to make a jump that can stun. So the idea of a Spring came to mind. And once I finished the overworld, the Spring will be upgraded to have movement too.

The next is the Gravity Boots. I loved the Hover Boots as a kid. I almost always wore them on OOT. Thing I wished it had was permanent use. Though there had to be a limit to it. So thinking about it like that, I looked at the Hookshot in LTTP and how it's 4 way direction limited it. I used that and activation pads to limit the boots.

The Wingshot is up next. Four words explain what I wanted. Hylian Styled Machine Gun. Yup a Machine Gun. But of course, getting that into a game would be hard. At first, it was meant to be Rito Styled Machine Gun in the first version but as time progress turned to Hylian. I used the Hookshot as the basics for this as for it to be able to power a chain and drag Link from one place to another must be powerful enough to fire rapid knives. That's the Wingshot basics. Still pending whether to make it have limited ammo.

Finally is the Spinner. The problem I found in ALL the 2D zeldas was the time it took to travel the lands. I thought about this for a while. My first attempt tried a horse system to make it work but that failed due to "How to summon the horse" problem. I thought about this and realised it had to be an item. Something like the Bunny Hood (Best item ever! Makes you fast and an outfit for easter!) Now I liked the Spinner except like the Hover Boots, the not permanent thing. Hence the Spinner!


Q: Is there any way for others to help you with your project if they wish to do so?

A: Well at this moment in time, Im needing the sounds from the Spirit Train, the Spinner when attached to the wall, both in GB style. I also need help with thinking up puzzles. So puzzle ideas are appreciated.


Q: Do you have any advice for others who also wish to create a (fan)game?

A: Just keep at it. If someone knocks you down, get up and move on. And put your effort in it!

1125

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 12, 2010, 09:32:16 pm »

Let's hope this video can make people on other forums think the same thing. The people on the gamemaker forum in particular give little attention to anything other then a screenshot or video, so this seemed like a smart thing to do. With a little luck it may even entice one or two people to come over here afterwards

1126

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 12, 2010, 08:44:17 pm »

Yeah, like I said. Not much progress this weekend. Just felt like uploading something. Showing one or two things people probably hadn't found while I was at it.

I'm aware of the issues you mentioned and believe I actually made comments about them in the video.

Edit: Oops. Sorry. I forgot to publish the comments I made.

1127

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 12, 2010, 05:30:58 pm »

Not much progress this weekend (I had some interesting diversions) so you'll have to do with a new youtube video.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9Gt1xfOLjI" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9Gt1xfOLjI</a>

1128

Updates / Re: Nominations - November 2010

« on: December 10, 2010, 04:03:53 pm »

Ooh, my own demo came in a close second. Nice. That's a nice complement.
I'll take the time this weekend to send over some questions King Tetiro.

1129

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 05, 2010, 08:27:55 pm »

Worked on the game again this weekend:
+ Improved the AI for the Pol's Voice further (can now jump over various other objects / no more unwanted jumping over ledges / better response to getting hit / etc).
+ Fixed a nasty glitch (the detection of the terrain you stand in had one tiny imperfection which led to a nasty visual glitch in an entirely different object during screen redraws. Took me hours to hunt it down :'( )
+ Partially redid old coding behind the item menu, cutting a couple dousand objects
+ A couple of tiny tweaks

Most of it is refinement, but taking time for that is also important.

Edit: one more fix before going to bed.
+ Fixed glitch of getting stuck in action objects through pushing blocks
(one location where this can occure is in the basement with the pitfalls if you move the left most block of four)

1130

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 03, 2010, 03:57:23 pm »

ok. if you can give me any map that is not finished and I will attempt to terminate (room design) or any idea to complete a map (sprite + designer). For example overworld map, Soldier Shrine overworld design, dungeon maps or Other sprites (npc's, enemies...). I show the map made and I give the tiles used. Pass the map reference or ideas by mail if you want. I do not know another way to help, tell me exactly where you want to help. I do not know how to help.

I do not try to correct anything in your game or change your game, just try to do better and more varied (New sprites, new things from Other zelda games and new mechanics not seen in ALTP), not always the same mechanical ALTP and same graphics, but without losing the style ALTP.

Thanks for answering questions and forgive me if I was rude.

You're not rude. I just meant you effort would be better spend working on things you know I'm looking for.
I'll send over a mail with some idea's when I find the time, okay?


The boy: A puzzle like that is seen in more game, but that's okay. I like that room. Looks fresh. I just can't use it right now because I already have the first dungeon all planned out.

1131

Feedback / Re: Resource storage suggestions

« on: December 03, 2010, 03:53:25 pm »

First up. It's a suggestion for improvement. Those things you mention are already great to look forward to. The thing I mentioned, and I still miss in your post, is this: http://www.spriters-resource.com/snes/zeldalinkpast/index.html (example).

Just a clear and simple grouping that every retard from every age group would understand. The example shows groups like Friendly Characters and Enemies, but that's beside the point (as grouping towards game would be more effective for zfgc). I'm talking about the way the viewer sees the resources in a grouped fashion.

Let's say I want to look through the zfgc database to see if there are lttp sprites. Just a common example. I don't know what I'm looking for so I can look through all the resources or use your search functionality and look up "alttp". I scroll through the results, check out the results linked to those and so on. Doing this I probably will not find all the lttp resources available, simple because not everybody has the same ideas about what labels are appropriate for there individual sprites. The kid adding Gohma might just have labeled it "Gohma" and "boss" and not "OoT".

The situation above is a usefull way to check out specific resources. The point I'm trying to make is there are cases where "I" (the lazy pimpled 16 year old viewer) would be better helped if I would be able to scroll the results when grouped like the example link above. I also believe things will become less clutered. Your solution is elegant but requires more effort from the user. In short, it would complement what you are already planning.

1132

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 03, 2010, 06:35:09 am »

Room A:
-Change statues in the walls (custom statues, not the typical)
-Change big chest --> small chest (Like the original)
-Change Symbol in the soil

Room B (Posible New Room):
-Puzle of statues, to open the door (You will have to programme if you want to add it in your game)

Mini boss room (Other posible room):
-Miniboss: Poe with sword and Poe with lantern (mising in the pic). You will have to programme...
-Dark Room



*A couple of questions about this game:

  -The Soldier Shrine will have some boss / miniboss?
  -Is Soldier Shrine the first dungeon?
  -That item will obtain in the Soldier Shrine? (Roc feather, Pegasus boots, boomerang...)
  -Where Soldier Shrine will be located?
  -Which is the aim in the history of Soldier Shrine?

I appreciate your attempt to help but I'm not going to use this.
- There already is a subboss room and concept (though I might remember your idea for a different dungeon)
- The puzzle room can't be used because all the rooms in the dungeon are already thought out (though I might remember your idea for a different dungeon)
- The changes to the treasure room I don't like.

If you really wish to help then it's better to work WITH me, rather then try to correct me. Some specific rooms still need to be filled in and there is also the overworld, hyrule castle and 2nd dungeon that I've started designing (highover for now).

To awnser your questions:
-The Soldier Shrine will have some boss / miniboss?
A: Yes, both. I'm still thinking out the details before I start programming.

-Is Soldier Shrine the first dungeon?
A: Yes. It's the first official dungeon.

-That item will obtain in the Soldier Shrine? (Roc feather, Pegasus boots, boomerang...)
A: The boots. They can already be collected in the current demo (regardless of which savefile you use).

-Where Soldier Shrine will be located?
A: In the south east mountains.

-Which is the aim in the history of Soldier Shrine?
A: Warriors and the king of the nearby kingdom are buried here. The shrine's first room is a ... well a shrine really. A puzzle will later need to be solved to see any more.The rest of the dungeon is a combination of traps, maze-like design and other dangers to protect the king's grave. You encounter various more soldierstatues inside. In life, these where the closest to the king and there presence is symbolic in that they still "gaurd" the path to him.

1133

Updates / Re: Topic: Nominations - November 2010

« on: December 01, 2010, 07:39:40 pm »

Man, that took forever. And I'm not even done yet. Maybe I'll finish it tomorrow.

My vote goes to chiming bells. I haven't played the demo but the screens look really nice.
The rest of my votes I'm saving till I've also see all the concept, graphics and music topics.

1134

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: December 01, 2010, 06:59:37 pm »

This is a welcome surprise. I'll take your suggestions into consideration.
- The lights look better then the pots I placed there, though I'll probably use the default sprites.
- The entrance looks normal, not at all as if you're entering a dungeon. I like that. That was what I was going for. I like the ground there better also.
- The triforce ground symbol doesn't match the story, but it's very cool non the less. I'll probably keep it. You made this?
- The gravestone doesn't really fit. Also because the stairs on the right will only appear after you solve a little puzzle later on. I do know of another location where I could be more suited though.
- The stair I'll have to check the rest of the dungeon for first. I value consistency so I'll have to see what the rest of the dungeon would need changed to match this.

If you want to do more then feel free to tell me (again ). I'm pretty much teamless right now so the help would be welcome.

1135

Updates / Nominations - November 2010

« on: December 01, 2010, 06:39:27 pm »

First up. I will not be doing another PotM later this month for obvious reasons. If anybody is willing to take my place then feel free to step up.

Rules:
- Projects to vote for will still be pre-selected as usual. Your project will be pre-selected if it has shown some form of relevant progress during the current month. Think along the lines of a new demo, screenshot, video etc.

- Normally selection only applies to the projects in the topics: Sponsored, Completed, WIP, WIP other and Concepts. We now expand the range to also include projects from Templates, Graphics and Audio. The projects also need to have shown some form of relevant progress. There are added rules for them though: they will need to contain more then just one sound/picture or template (whichever applies). It may not be a request topic. Basicly the aim is to only nominate continued projects.

- You now have the option to vote in the poll. (If one is not yet present when you read this, then one will be added shortly). Posting a comment explaining why you voted for one project over another is no longer needed, but it is still highly encouraged. I will obviously do creator's good to read some friendly feedback, but it will also make the difference in case of a tie. If there is a tie and no relevant comments are present then I'll have to favor one over the other personally and I'd rather avoid that.

- Every project to get votes in a month will have earned a place in the Sponsored section for the month that follows. If a project does not get any votes during month then it will not be in Sponsored in the following month. This also happens if the project was not nominated due to lack of progress. The project with the most votes is crowned Project of the Month. The creator will receive a message from me in regard to a short interview and the creation of a PotM topic.

- You all gets the option to vote for multiple projects a month (if they so please). As each voted project moves to Sponsored you could use your votes for moving various interested topics as a sign of support. Or you could vote for just that one topic you really favour for PotM. And if you're always torn up between multiple topic then this is the sollution for that too. Just vote for both. Just remember that each vote hold equal weight. If for you vote for more projects, but really only favor one in particular for PotM then you can always add a comment and explain. It'll make a difference in the case of a tie or it could convice others to vote for your favourite as well.

- Attempts at faul play (like having lots of outsiders come here just to vote for your game) will result in your project getting disqualified. Do it more then once and you are risking a ban.

- Voters must have made a minimal of 10 (meaningfull) posts for there vote(s) to be considered valid.


This month's nominations (you have 5 days to cast your vote):
* I did not go through the concept/graphics/music sections yet because I don't have the time right now. Missing your game? Just reply and I'll add it right away.
Tech demo - Horn of Balance
The Legend of Zelda: Chiming Bell
Ocarina of Time 2D
VBA-M Ripper
Pokemon MMORPG - PokemonCraft
Sonic X-treme GM8
Phantasy Blade - Alpha 4
Gladiator
Mario & Luigi - The Hunt For King Boo
GMare
TLOZ: Chaos Rising
The legend of Zelda 3D Flying Rooster
LoZ: The Awakening of a Shadow

1136

Feedback / Re: Resource storage suggestions

« on: December 01, 2010, 06:20:35 pm »

Sorry for the late reply. Sound like little will have to be changed. The only thing I still find could work better is the grouping. Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but if a visitor is looking through the graphics section and the first screen does not contain (the option for) grouped results then it is not user friendly. I would suggest showing the available resources grouped at all times. Or adding in something like a dropbox on the mainscreen (in the graphics section) listing all available tags which you use to go straight to the group of your choice.

Tags will need to ordened by the moderators in all three scenarios since one might label alttp and another lttp. That would really clutter up the place. Maybe it's an idea to present several pre-made options at the inputscreen to cover some of the most common sections. If the visitor has something else he wants to share (like a yoshi sprite or whatever) then he can create a custom group/tag.

1137

Feedback / Re: Resource storage suggestions

« on: November 27, 2010, 08:48:32 am »

If it's going to change to something like the new WIP layout then that already is a nice improvement.

I still wish to suggest the following:
- A grouping aspect to distinguish between styles/games/etc. Preferably something that can be changed by the moderators so it can be managed as the database grows. Seems a waste to have it clutter.
- Currently when you want to see a sheet fully you have to click the icon, then make it to the download and actually download to be able to view it fully. Is it a possibility to fully display the image directly after the first click. On his screen I mean: http://www.zfgc.com/index.php#?action=resources&sa=view&id=214
- Can it be possible to link images from the database to the forum? Like when we upload to imageshack a deticated link is created to be used on forums. If the first suggestions is not possible then we could still use the forum idea to present it alternatively.

1138

Feedback / Re: Resource storage suggestions

« on: November 22, 2010, 09:20:44 pm »

Okay, I wasn't trying to rush you 4Sword. Just interested to hear what your first reaction would be.
Judging by what you're saying it seems you're leaning towards the forum approach. It would als work as a crossingbridge to change the main site at a later date, so I wouldn't mind setting it up. Given I have some freedom in how I orden it obviously. I could start by creating a topic for it and then that can be moved over to it's own child section? Just opting a workable approach to keep the ball rolling.

The grouping I mentioned for ordening the sprites was just a quick rundown on how I pictured it might end up. Starting with just one topic to collect everything will do quite nicely as a start. When someone has to turn to the next page or scroll too far, then it becomes time to maybe split things up.

I fully agree that non-zelda work should also be featured in the database! All graphical work is welcome (if good enough - as Theforeshadower hinted at).

I would have to insist there be a seperate submit topic for people to present graphics.
I will not be actively looking for content (doing that for the PotM is taking plenty of time as it is). People will need to present it (directly or by linking the topic) to keep things manageable. I forsee no problems with this once a little collection has been gathered and people realise I'm for keeps. Using a (tiny) "form" and submission topics (next from the database topic) also help keep things clear and getting resources ultimately userfriendly.

To also repond to Niek's idea. We could make the request that people presenting resources also upload them to the site, but I do not wish to make it mandetory. Asking to present and describe graphics on the forum already takes some effort. Let's not push our luck on that one. It would hurt to request on the side though.

1139

Feedback / Re: Resource storage suggestions

« on: November 22, 2010, 06:04:16 pm »

Waiting on the response from 4Sword

1140

Other Projects / Re: [Demo] Tech demo - Horn of Balance (working title)

« on: November 21, 2010, 08:12:39 pm »

This weeks progress:
+ The hud now moves along with the item menu when it appears
+ Masks for overlaying bridges have been removed and replaced by a different system
+ The body of a headless skeleton no longer continuesly drifts away after taking a hit
+ Skeletons no longer jump out of the way from your actions if they are on a different floor
+ You now have a short recovery time after falling into an endless hole
+ Added a new system to determine the level of depth for items created by flying skulls
+ Fixed graphic errors with shadows during pause (FINALLY )

All of this took a whole lot longer then I first thought it would so I did not have time to implement the new skeleton sprites. Guess I'll wait till those are fully finished then. It would make more sense anyway.

I also worked on the Ctrl+Alt+Del problem a little, but I'm not going to continue with it. This is because I have yet to think up one solution for all possible problems that might occur with that combination. Maybe I'll take it up at a later date.

I'm also looking for at least one good tester. The changes made this week required several changes to the engine's code so it would be good to check if nothing got broken because of that. If anybody is interested then feel free to respond. I will not present a general new demo because the changes made so far are too minor to warrant it.