Autore Topic: Quod Init Exit V1.2  (Letto 37535 volte)

saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #60 il: 08 Luglio 2022, 22:59:24 »
La notizia del giorno è che, dopo più di 2 anni, ho appena rilasciato una nuova - e massiccia - anteprima giocabile di QUOD INIT EXIT IIo!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xod3INRv15A











Scaricatela da https://retream.itch.io/quod-init-exit-iio e buon divertimento!

CHANGELOG (dall'anteprima del 21/03/2020)
Codice: [Seleziona]
* Made Zampo jump only when he is not moving upwards already (before, if Zampo's
  legs were on a solid tile while he was already moving upwards and the joystick
  was pushed up, he would jump again, thus continuing the upwards movement; this
  increased the chances of unwanted double-jumps).
* Changed the portals/teleporting behaviour:
   * when Zampo uses a portal, he is now automatically teleported to the right
     location (this simplifies the gameplay, as before misusing portals was too
     punishing - i.e. it made completing a zone impossible);
   * they are now activated with [DOWN] insted of [FIRE] to reduce the chances
     of activating portals unintentionally (as [FIRE] is used for turbofarting,
     whereas [DOWN] is used for ducking, which is a much less common action).
* Accelerated the relocation of Zampo to checkpoints.
* Worked on the collision detection against the background:
   * made more precise and relative to Zampo's movement and aspect;
   * extended the detection area for some tiles, so that picking up items and
     operating switches is easier.
* Worked on food/drink items:
   * added 3 new types (which affects the gameplay, as it makes the appearance
     of the spinach can and of the Gasorade bottle less likely; this has been
     counterbalanced with the following changes);
   * made the Gasorade bottle restore the turbofart meter entirely;
   * made the cake (one of the new items) restore the belly meter entirely;
   * avoided that they spawn on some tiles where they would be uncatchable;
   * redrawn the spinach can.
* Worked on the PIG-OF-GOLD mode:
   * enlarged the area checked for the activation, so that Zampo no longer
     requires to be placed too precisely;
   * avoided that it is re-activated when it is already active not only because
     conceptually it makes no sense, but also because it could interfere with
     the PIG-OF-STEEL mode.
* Added the PIG-OF-GOLD and PIG-OF-STEEL modes tunes.
* Added a simple sound effect for teleporting (music gets paused in the
  meanwhile; this is the only case where a sound effect is used; the reason is
  that it is the simplest and least memory-hungry way to susped the PIG-OF-GOLD
  and PIG-OF-STEEL modes tunes, when such modes are active a portal is taken;
  anyway, it is quite appropriate as Zampo, when teleporting, is indeed in a
  kind of suspended state).
* Added the zone exit icon (a thumb-up icon that blinks constantly to indicate
  the point Zampo has to reach after collecting all the potties).
* Extended the tile-related events triggering mechanism (and used it for various
  purposes in the existing maps).
* Added a mechanism for making a switch appear with a brief blinking.
* Added a mechanism for making a generic tile blink.
* Added a mechanism for performing real-time, progressive, arbitrary changes to
  memory (and used it for various purposes, especially in the existing maps).
* Sped up the removal of barriers by 1 frame per tile.
* Reworked the handling of Zampo's appearance by implementing a centralized
  mechanism which:
    * takes a few cycles more, but saves memory and makes the code cleaner;
    * allows each tile to have lighting properties;
    * allows checkpoints, portals and portals destinations to be also in places
      where the lighting is shady/dark;
    * solves (elegantly) the clashes between the GOLD and STEEL modes relatively
      to Zampo's colors;
    * provides a centralized way to make Zampo flash.
* Slown down the flashing of Zampo when the PIG-OF-STEEL mode is about to end.
* Made Zampo say: "YEA" when he catches the cake; "WOW" when he catches the
  Gasorade bottle or the spinach can; "YUM" when he catches another food item.
* Ensured Zampo is visible when a game is aborted.
* Slown down the blinking of potties.
* Worked on baddies:
   * added 2-frame animations;
   * added the "explosion" animation.
* Added (support for) dynamic tilesets.
* Made the head-up display taller to make room for the information relative to
  the zone-specific features.
* Fixed Zampo's X speed in couple of places (it was 1/16 off due to an inverted
  sign).
* Fixed the Zampo Y correction relatively to collisions with obstacles above (it
  pushed Zampo 1/32 pixels below the character he was in, instead of keeping
  him in that character by just 1/32 pixels).
* Fixed the baddies X initialization (the spawning code is distributed across
  multiple frames to spread the load, but it defined the X before the final
  position was validated; given that, in the meanwhile, the screen most likely
  scrolled, at the time of spawning the X could have been unsuitable - and thus
  caused the baddies, in some circumstances, to appear out of nothing).
* Fixed the sprites clipping code (the fact that the screen is narrower/shorter
  due to scrolling was not taken into account because of some wrong labels and a
  constant was off by 1).
* Fixed the bug that allowed to use the portals frames to teleport.
* Fixed the horizontal alignment of icons in the head-up display (was off by 1
  pixel to the left).
* Fixed/optimized some instruments in music.
* Extended/improved the intro text.
* Wrote the outro text.
* Changed the design of the 'I' in the logo, to match the font's  (which needs
  that letter to be easily readable).
* Saved some memory by moving some sprites graphics and other data to the unused
  space in the charset.
* Made many speed and memory optimizations.
* Made the [F1] check in the pause routine more robust (the CIA registers were
  accessed continuously, but my C64 did not like it).
* Renamed meters:
   * "belly satisfaction meter" -> "belly meter";
   * "turbofart charge meter" -> "turbofart meter".
* Renamed the FACTORY zone as the TOWERS zone (as now there is an idea of how it
  will play and look like).
* Made a few other minor changes.
* Worked on the FUN PARK zone:
   * started the map;
   * added "FUN" to the name.
* Worked on the CLIFFS zone:
   * added the cross subquest;
   * added 2 checkpoints to make it easier;
   * improved/enriched the map;
   * improved the graphics.
* Worked on the FORTRESS zone:
   * improved/enlarged/completed the map;
   * made the map easier;
   * added the stars & hidden switches puzzles;
   * improved/extended the graphics.
* Worked on the frontend:
   * made it present by default the last item/zone played;
   * inverted the zone selection controls (now: [UP] -> next zone, [DOWN] ->
     previous zone);
   * changed colors of unselected icons.
* Worked on the text reader (used by quickstart guide, intro and outro):
   * rewritten in assembly (it was a mix of BASIC-BOSS and machine language, as
     it was an adaption of the text reader used by MAH);
   * added 0.5 lines spacing for easier reading;
   * compacted the data and reorganized the memory allocation to reduce greatly
     the size of the binaries;
   * made it faster;
   * reduced the rendering glitches as much as possible (without resorting to
     buffering - double buffering would slow scrolling and triple buffering
     seems overkill, although it remains an option for the future).
* Worked on the documentation:
   * renamed the notice as "quickstart guide";
   * improved/updated/extended the quickstart guide and the manual.
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Raffox

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #61 il: 03 Agosto 2022, 12:08:10 »
A che punto sei con lo sviluppo del gioco?
Mi sembra che ormai il grosso è stato fatto. Complimenti, soprattutto per la grafica pulita e bella  a cui Retream ci sempre abituati.

saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #62 il: 03 Agosto 2022, 15:21:51 »
Dal rilascio dell'antemprima a oggi ho fatto quanto segue:
 * scritto la musica della zona 5;
 * iniziato a scrivere la musica della zona 1;
 * aggiunto 4 nuovi nemici;
 * fatto alcune modifiche/miglioramenti.

C'è però ancora una sacco di lavoro da fare:
 * finire design e mappa della zona 1;
 * finire la musica della zona 1;
 * creare le zone 2 e 3;
 * aggiungere altri nemici;
 * fare la musica del finale;
 * rendere le zone selezionabili solo dopo il completamento di quelle precedenti;
 * far attivare la voce del finale nel frontend solo dopo il completamento del gioco.
 
La creazione dei contenuti richiederà tantissimo tempo.
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saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #63 il: 18 Settembre 2022, 16:07:54 »
Lo sviluppo continua lentamente, ma continua. Posterò un changelog quando rilascerò la prossima anteprima (non dovrebbe volerci molto).
Per il momento, mi limito a riportare che ho ingradito le mappe ulteriormente. In particolare, quella della zona CLIFFS è ora 80 linee più alta (per un totale di 2048x928 pixel), e ciò ha permesso di sviluppare la parte sotterranea come una vera e propria rete di tunnel.
Ecco un paio di anteprime visive...



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saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #64 il: 11 Ottobre 2022, 22:04:56 »
Altra massiccia anteprima - e questa volta a soli 3 mesi dalla precedente ::)

Video
Download

CHANGELOG
Codice: [Seleziona]
* Made the game over trigger as soon as the belly meter becomes zero (before
  there was a grace period of about 5 seconds, but the fact that the game
  continued while the belly meter was zero looked plainly wrong).
* Changed the main color of Zampo's dark skin.
* Added 4 more baddies.
* Added a zone-complete transition.
* Made the portals sides graphics unique to each zone.
* Made many speed and memory optimizations.
* Touched up some music instruments.
* Started adding the logic to limit the zones selectable in the frontend to
  those already reached.
* Fixed an off-by-one bug in the cartridge driver that caused an additional page
  to be copied from ROM to RAM when the section size was an exact multiple of
  256.
* Fixed an off-by-one bug in the sprites multiplexer, which caused multiplexing
  to be done one line too early, thus corrupting the bottom line of sprites in
  some cases.
* Fixed/optimized the collision detection of Zampo against food/drinks (a change
  made just before releasing the previous preview could cause the collisions to
  be missed when the objects were flickering before disappearing).
* Fixed the collision detection when Zampo is incorporeal (Zampo could collide
  against food/drinks/baddies as a consequence of the system for handling
  Zampo's skin introduced by the previous preview).
* Fixed the permanent flashing of Zampo when he caught a spinach can while he
  was already in STEEL mode and the mode was about to expire.
* Fixed the portals graphics update and a CPU load peak in the FUN PARK zone (a
  routine was missing a closing jmp, so the portals graphics update was
  triggered also when it should have not been).
* Fixed the abort function (it did not work properly when Zampo was not in
  normal mode and did not zero the belly meter).
* Wrote the FUN PARK and FORTRESS zones music.
* Worked on the FUN PARK zone map:
   * expanded it;
   * improved/extended the graphics.
* Worked on the CLIFFS zone map:
   * made it 80 pixels taller (now it is 2048x928 pixels);
   * extended a lot the underground part;
   * added a portal connected to a new location;
   * added a puzzle related to the new portal (the portal is broken and Zampo
     must repair it after finding the missing piece);
   * changed the design in some places;
   * improved the graphics.
* Worked on the FORTRESS zone map:
   * made it 32 pixels taller (now it is 2048x880 pixels);
   * extended the underground part;
   * touched it up in a few places.
* Worked on the frontend:
   * changed logo design slightly;
   * improved vertical spacing of elements.
* Worked on the documentation:
   * extended/improved the manual;
   * changed slightly the color scheme of quickstart guide and manual.
* Worked on the intro: fixed a couple of things in the text.
* Worked on the zone introduction screen: fixed the initial colors of the
  letters (they were all black).
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wolfrunner

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #65 il: 20 Ottobre 2022, 23:43:46 »
Ottimo lavoro svolto.. complimenti..
soprattutto per aver continuato nonostante il tempo trascorso.

saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #66 il: 21 Ottobre 2022, 01:42:36 »
Ottimo lavoro svolto.. complimenti..
Grazie!

Citazione
soprattutto per aver continuato nonostante il tempo trascorso.
Mai pensato di abbandonarlo ;)
RETREAM  - sogni retro per Amiga, Commodore 64 e PC

saimo

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #67 il: 03 Aprile 2023, 18:14:37 »
Per un certo periodo mi è stato impossibile compilare il gioco perché mi è morta (almeno, così pare), la macchina su cui ho sviluppato i miei giochi C64 (un AmigaOne XE). Ora ho messo una pezza alla cosa (storia completa).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRqxxoW-1Bo

Dovrei rilasciare a breve una nuova anteprima.
RETREAM  - sogni retro per Amiga, Commodore 64 e PC

saimo

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QUOD INIT EXIT IIo - preview 6
« Risposta #68 il: 12 Maggio 2023, 16:12:47 »
Finalmente è pronta un'altra anteprima!

Ecco cosa include:
 * guida rapida
 * intro
 * manuale
 * zone 1 e 4 complete
 * segnaposto per zone 2 e 3
 * zona 5 limitata
 * segnaposto per finale

Ecco cosa non include:
 * zona 5 completa
 * finale

Questo è quanto resta da fare
 * creare le zone 2 e 3;
 * sfruttare i 512 bytes rimanenti nel banco VIC-II per le zone 4 e 5;
 * scrivere la musica del finale.

Il changelog sottostante fornisce la lista dettagliata dei cambiamenti dalla precedente anteprima; evidenzio:
 * completata la zona 1;
 * aggiunti 8 nuovi cattivoni;
 * aggiunto il salvataggio del progresso nel gioco;
 * fatte molte correzioni e ottimizzazioni.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sq50CBSlrJQ
Download: https://www.retream.com/QUOD_INIT_EXIT_IIo / https://retream.itch.io/quod-init-exit-iio

CHANGELOG

* Added 8 new baddies (they are 16 in all now).
* Re-added stopping of food/drinks generation after Zampo starves (found a way to do it basically at no cost).
* Saved 234 to 244 bytes (depending on the zone) by reorganizing a bit the memory map once again.
* Saved 257 to 266 bytes (depending on the zone) by moving the zone-complete transition from the zone program to a separate program.
* Saved a sprite page by reworking the graphics and the logic of the baddies explosion.
* Made a few optimizations.
* Made various other minor improvements.
* Fixed a rare endless wait (due to lack of CPU cycles).
* Fixed the portals graphics update and a CPU load peak (which might even cause a frame skip) in the FUN PARK zone (a routine used the wrong condition code in a branch, so the portals graphics update was triggered also when it should not have been).
* Fixed the handling of collisions against baddies when Zampo is being relocated (if Zampo had been in PIG-OF-STEEL mode, collisions were detected and baddies were killed).
* Fixed the handling of collisions against baddies when the GOLD mode is starting (due to the initial flashing of Zampo's skin, collisions could be detected).
* Fixed the handling of collisions against baddies when the distance from the checkpoint is very large (the quick relocation of Zampo to the checkpoint would cause the immediate disappearance of the baddie, so collisions would not longer be detected until the same or another baddie re-appeared on the screen, thus leaving the collision flag set and causing repeated collision detections).
* Fixed the handling of collisions against slides in the FUN PARK zone (Zampo could get stuck due to a tile index constant being off by one and another tile index constant indicating the opposite tile).
* Fixed the teleporting of Zampo from the left border of the bottommost portal of the FUN PARK zone (he was taken to another portal's destination due to a coordinate constant being off by one).
* Fixed the turbofart flame at the end of the zone-complete transition (it was shown for 2 frames instead of 1).
* Fixed the lighting property of a FUN PARK zone tile.
* Worked on the FUN PARK zone map: made it 64 pixels taller (now it is 2048x912 pixels); completed the layout; added gameplay features; improved the graphics; moved the exit point to a better (and recognizeable) place; fixed some tiles.
* Worked on the CLIFFS zone map: made it 16 pixels taller (now it is 2048x944 pixels); extended the underground part.
* Worked on the FORTRESS zone map: made it 16 pixels taller (now it is 2048x896 pixels); extended the underground part; touched it up in a few places.
* Worked on the frontend: restricted the selectable zones to the first one and any other reached previously; made the outro item activate only upon game completion (so, when the game has not been completed, it cannot be selected and only its silhouette is visible); added auto-selection of the joystick item when [UP] or [DOWN] is pressed; added zones numbers in front of the zones names; made it smaller.
* Worked on the preamble: made it smaller.
* Worked on the documentation: extended/improved/fixed quickstart guide and manual.
* Worked on EasyFlash features: embedded and used EasyAPI to save the game progress permanently and thus have the frontend enable the zones/outro accordingly; ensured the LED is on/off when the cartridge is / is not in use; added cartridge name.
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Raffox

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Re:Quod Init Exit V1.2
« Risposta #69 il: 24 Maggio 2023, 10:58:30 »
Forza SAIMO!  :metal: