MaGL X2 Discussion - MaGL X2 Lands TOMORROW. GET. HYPE.

[Hoeloe]

Okay. I think my level is done. Apparently it can get a little choppy towards the end, but still perfectly playable.

Just got to zip it up and send it to Horikawa.

[Rixithechao]

New version of cinematX with the following fixes/improvements:

• cinematX is now a properly local API -- no more need for the loadSharedAPI ("cinematX") call in mainV2.lua (for real this time!)
• Words automatically wrap in dialogue
• Only NPCs with correct message tag formatting will have their messages cleared by SMBX
• You can now specify a qualifier function for actor generation

To elaborate on that last one, you'll now be able to define a function in your lunadll.lua file that takes an NPC instance and returns true or false. This way you can control which NPCs have actors generated for them to help optimize performance (though it probably won't make much of a difference unless you have hundreds of NPCs in your level).

For example:

Code: Select all

cinematX.actorCriteria = function (myNPC)
	if myNPC.id == NPCID.SIGN then
		return false
	else
		return true
	end
end

[swirlybomb]

I was wondering, what's everyone's opinions on water mazes? My level has a small segment with a maze where you go through water and hit buttons to toggle/enable/disable barriers, kind of like a puzzle (to spice things up). Would it be better without the water?

Probably worth considering: does swimming help the player get around easier, or would the maze be more convenient if you could run and jump normally? As well, ensure that there's a purpose to the maze/that it's interesting, rather than just wasting the player's time (that's probably a good way to lose some Fun points).

I'd get rid of the water or use minimal water, but it [the water] is kind of required to keep true to the theme.

I didn't mean it like "no you should not have a water maze", but rather just make sure you design it well.



Is there a way to make a normally-unkillable enemy killable? Specifically

Rinka shooters

, but in general as well. You can use flags to make NPCs invulnerable to damage and stuff, but I don't see a way to do the reverse (removing invulnerability-related flags still doesn't make it killable, from my tests)...

[Rednaxela]

Is there a way to make a normally-unkillable enemy killable? Specifically

Rinka shooters

, but in general as well. You can use flags to make NPCs invulnerable to damage and stuff, but I don't see a way to do the reverse (removing invulnerability-related flags still doesn't make it killable, from my tests)...

I'm not 100% certain, but based on my experiences with npc flags thus far... I'd guess the only way get rid of those besides removing/hiding the layer they're on, is Lunadll/LunaLua trickery.

[Wolfolotl]

how easy is cinematX to use for someone with zero LunaLua experience?

I'm planning on having a boss in my level

but I don't know whether it would be better to use cinematX or

just replace Wart's sprites with something else and give the player a hammer suit or something

speaking of which, any tips for fun boss fights that don't just seem tacked on or drag on and on?

[Rixithechao]

how easy is cinematX to use for someone with zero LunaLua experience?

I'm planning on having a boss in my level

but I don't know whether it would be better to use cinematX or

just replace Wart's sprites with something else and give the player a hammer suit or something

I designed cinematX to make scripting things like cutscenes and custom bosses simpler and more readable. Here's an example of what the cinematX code for a basic cutscene looks like:

Code: Select all

	function cutscene_Calleoca()

		-- Disable interactions with Calleoca
		calleocaActor.isInteractive = false
				
		-- Configure dialogue
		cinematX.setDialogSkippable (true)
		cinematX.setDialogInputWait (true)
		
		cinematX.waitSeconds (0.5)
		
		-- Calleoca speaks
		cinematX.startDialog  (calleocaActor, "Calleoca", "Hey there! I'mma follow you around a bit, hope you don't mind!", 30, 30, "")
		cinematX.waitForDialog ()
		
		-- Calleoca starts following the player; she will move at a max speed of 8, stop 48 pixels from the player and teleport to the player if too far away
		calleocaActor:followActor (cinematX.playerActor, 8, 48, true)
		calleocaActor.shouldFacePlayer = true
		
		-- End cutscene
		playSFX (VOICEID_CAL_03)
		cinematX.endCutscene ()
	end

There's a boss battle included in the cinematX example world included in the devkit if you want to mess around with that and reference its' code for your own boss.

That said, don't feel obligated to use cinematX just because it's included. You don't need to do anything flashy or technologically impressive to make a great boss battle -- it's been done with just re-sprited vanilla SMBX NPCs and a bit of creativity.

speaking of which, any tips for fun boss fights that don't just seem tacked on or drag on and on?

Here's a quick list of general boss design tips (some of these points may not end up applying to your boss, but they're worth noting anyway.)

• An engaging boss battle is one that keeps the player active: the less time the player spends waiting and the more time they spend reacting, the more fun they'll have with it.
• Don't be cruel or confusing -- the battle should be challenging without being unfair. Players should be able to see attacks coming, know how to deal with them and be given enough of an opportunity to respond to them. The player should feel like each mistake they make is their fault, not the game's.
• Don't be relentless with the boss' attacks, give the player chances to rest between intense moments.
• Give the player some level of control over the battle's pacing. Here are a few ways you can accomplish that:
  
  • Require the player to do something to trigger the vulnerable state (a la Zelda bosses)
  • Make the boss always vulnerable, but the method to attack them tricky to pull off (A2XT's Garish battle, Mega Man bosses, Castlevania bosses)
  • Mix up the pattern by having the boss randomize the order, execution or selection of their attacks
  • Provide several ways to damage the boss (give the player different attacks, give the boss multiple weaknesses or weak points, etc)
  • Give the boss a generous but dynamic vulnerability timer -- the player has plenty of time to attack the boss while they're vulnerable but the more damage the boss takes the faster the timer counts down. This way the player is almost guaranteed to get at least one hit in before the boss restarts their pattern, but if the player is quick they can get in more hits.
  The player should be able to burn through the boss relatively quickly if they're good and know what they're doing, but the battle shouldn't take too much longer if they're playing defensively. No matter what, the player should feel like they're making progress at a reasonable rate.

[YelseyKing]

...oh, yeah, there's already sprites in the level source for Ep. 1's cutscenes. EoW1 has Demo, Iris and Sheath, EoW3 has Kood.

Ah, heh. Thanks. I found them.

Just out of curiosity, is the BananaSnake *supposed* to look like it was lazily pasted into a 256-color file? It just looks really... odd to me.

Mm. Man, if there was one instance in which I'd like to have some LunaDLL knowledge, it would be to increase the number of hits Mother Brain takes, so I could put in a crazy battle like the one vs. The World in A2XT. Oh well. The point is how silly the battle will be, not its length, I guess.

[Doctor Shemp]

Man, if there was one instance in which I'd like to have some LunaDLL knowledge, it would be to increase the number of hits Mother Brain takes, so I could put in a crazy battle like the one vs. The World in A2XT. Oh well. The point is how silly the battle will be, not its length, I guess.

You want the "Set Hits" command. Here's the reference of every single LunaDLL command along with documentation: http://engine.wohlnet.ru/docs/Collected ... unaref.txt. If Horikawa's reading this, this would be a useful addition to the OP.

[Kapus]

It's been about two weeks in and I haven't even started on my level due to being busy with work and stuff. I don't even know how to use any of the editors yet, haha. I'm doomed.

Well, better get started now I guess!

[italianspy]

I cannot for the life of me figure out how to set a background in wohl's editor. Can someone help me?

Edit: found the backgrounds, but I am having trouble testing in wohl's editor. When I test, the player is just a blue box and nothing appears except tiles.

[Voltgloss]

Mm. Man, if there was one instance in which I'd like to have some LunaDLL knowledge, it would be to increase the number of hits Mother Brain takes, so I could put in a crazy battle like the one vs. The World in A2XT. Oh well. The point is how silly the battle will be, not its length, I guess.

That's your cue to pop open the Lunadll file for exactly that level and see how it was done!

[Wolfolotl]

Edit: found the backgrounds, but I am having trouble testing in wohl's editor. When I test, the player is just a blue box and nothing appears except tiles.

apparently testing in-editor with wohl's editor doesn't work yet? what works for me is to test in the SMBX editor but not to save in it because if you save in the SMBX editor then wohl's apparently can't work with it anymore

[FusionWarrior]

I'm aiming for a real

World 7-8

feel for my level, partially due to the name I got, do I need to have this mentioned in the stage itself for it to be considered as such when the judges vote? Like a text box that says "

World 7-8: Level Name

", that pops up in the beginning, or would including a .txt file explaining my motives in the .zip be enough? I don't mind losing points for difficulty if I accidentally make it post game, which i'm avoiding... I just want the difficulty to be understood.

[italianspy]

apparently testing in-editor with wohl's editor doesn't work yet? what works for me is to test in the SMBX editor but not to save in it because if you save in the SMBX editor then wohl's apparently can't work with it anymore

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind.

What's the best way to make a completely new NPC based on a different one? (Say I want both a goomba and a dark goomba that act the same but look different in the same level)

[Lukaz2009]

I'm thinking of remaking my level from scratch, and I'm still mulling over if I should or not. But besides that, is the an accepted limit to how big your level submission is? File size that is, including custom sprites and music.

[Fawriel]

Oooooooooooooooooooooooookay. It seems like I have put most of my computer issues behind me, so now I just have to overcome my crippling indecision... So first things first, I'll have to make an attack plan detailing exactly what to do when. Fortunately, the level-building itself is probably rather trivial in my case, a couple of possibly somewhat complex events aside, so I guess I'll just have to put a day aside for graphic replacement busywork...

... That said, my ASMBX doesn't play any sound. I could have sworn I recently saw something about how to fix that, but now I can't remember where. Any help on that, please?

... and while I'm asking questions, is it normal that I keep being logged out from the forums even though I keep telling it to remember me when I sign back in?

[Wolfolotl]

I can't figure out how to pluck things in SMBX is it

a playable character thing

or am I just really oblivious

[Kil]

Edit: found the backgrounds, but I am having trouble testing in wohl's editor. When I test, the player is just a blue box and nothing appears except tiles.

apparently testing in-editor with wohl's editor doesn't work yet? what works for me is to test in the SMBX editor but not to save in it because if you save in the SMBX editor then wohl's apparently can't work with it anymore

Im not sure how that works. Don't you have to save before smbx will let you test the level?

[Wolfolotl]

Im not sure how that works. Don't you have to save before smbx will let you test the level?

just select "no" when the pop-up comes up and you can test it without saving in SMBX

[Rednaxela]

Im not sure how that works. Don't you have to save before smbx will let you test the level?

just select "no" when the pop-up comes up and you can test it without saving in SMBX

And to clarify, hitting "no" on that doesn't just mean it won't save, it in fact means it'll re-load whatever's in the file (not just for testing but in it's editor too).

[SAJewers]

I can't figure out how to pluck things in SMBX is it

a playable character thing

or am I just really oblivious

Set "Buried" to Yes when placing the NPC.

[Wolfolotl]

I can't figure out how to pluck things in SMBX is it

a playable character thing

or am I just really oblivious

Set "Buried" to Yes when placing the NPC.

no but I did that I just don't know how to pull them out in testing

[SAJewers]

Oh. You hold Down and press the Run (or Alternate Run) key.

[Wolfolotl]

thank you!!

[Rednaxela]

Man, I'm now reminded of MaGL X1, where my entry "Bowser's Oldest Fortress" required plucking buried things that didn't use that default SMB2 sprite for buried things. I was somewhat worried that either judges or raocow might not realize they were pluckable, but that worry turned out unfounded.