The Temple of the Pen

Fortunately, I'm so close to being done that this map will be released.

Sooner or later

Have you started the final area?

There is no final zone. It's the ice caves, which are not 100% done. The last place is a rock you have to destroy to beat the level, which is found next to a mini boss in the total north of the level, but you need to beat the other zones to get there.
-FF

@firefalcon, on Feb 18 2007, 05:09 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

There is no final zone. It's the ice caves, which are not 100% done. The last place is a rock you have to destroy to beat the level, which is found next to a mini boss in the total north of the level, but you need to beat the other zones to get there.
-FF

@gray-shirt-ninja, on Feb 14 2007, 04:51 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

624 KB

GSN, have you passed 700k yet? I'm currently weighing in at 715k and the editor is sometime requiring triple clicks now to register a drag on the resize/rotate handles. Do you get the same issues?

Either way, can't wait to try it out you level

g_s_n, I'm really looking forward to see what you have planned for us.

@crono, on Feb 19 2007, 12:28 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

GSN, have you passed 700k yet? I'm currently weighing in at 715k and the editor is sometime requiring triple clicks now to register a drag on the resize/rotate handles. Do you get the same issues?

Either way, can't wait to try it out you level

If you have a three-button mouse, you can use those instead of the handles and that may make it easier for you. Middle (scrollwheel) rotates and right scales.

When's your level going to be released Crono?

716 KB. I click and hold instead of clicking a bunch. I've discovered that if I quit and restart SketchEditor every five minutes or so, things stay manageable I figure the final version will be at least 800 KB.

@cheleball, on Feb 19 2007, 08:09 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

If you have a three-button mouse, you can use those instead of the handles and that may make it easier for you. Middle (scrollwheel) rotates and right scales.

PB G4, I do have two-finger trackpad-scrolling, but I would much rather that scrolled the map I do occasionally plug in the mouse if I get really sick of breaking my TP button try to get the editor to respond to clicks

@gray-shirt-ninja, on Feb 20 2007, 12:14 AM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

716 KB. I click and hold instead of clicking a bunch. I've discovered that if I quit and restart SketchEditor every five minutes or so, things stay manageable I figure the final version will be at least 800 KB.

Hmm, I've tried the click'n'hold approach, and that sometimes works. I'm using a PBG4 though, so not the fastest beast under the sky. However, when I turn it on from sleep (and is very cold to the touch) the editor will have the fans on within about 5 mins of starting it.

One thing that I have found helps is to have an app open with no windows. That way, whenever I'm just looking at a section of map and thinking, I can have a the other program active. The editor seems reasonably well behaved with CPU when it is back-grounded.

@silverwind, on Feb 19 2007, 08:35 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

When's your level going to be released Crono?

When it's done! :laugh:

More seriously, I'll create a thread when I'm feeling moderately like it is worth beta testing and see what people think. I haven't been saying anything about it because it is ages away from completion and might detract interest from the up-coming temple/cathedral levels.

That said, it does have a name, a theme and will (hopefully) be insanely difficult. It won't be for the faint of heart or will-power

And if Mr. Obstacle Course world record holder thinks it's hard, it will likely be all but impossible for us mortals!

I'm afraid I wasn't terribly clear about the button thing. It's a click on the scrollwheel that triggers rotating; rolling the wheel does nothing. The editor treats it exactly like a button.

I also have a (pre-scrolling) PBG4, but when I'm at my desk, I keep it on an iCurve, with an external keyboard and mouse. Much more ergonomic that way, and I never care how hot the top gets because I'm not touching it. I've tried the control-click for scaling, but it doesn't work--the editor demands it be a hardware mouse for some reason.

I have a problem with a mini boss (or two…) bouncing out into the entrance corridor (occasionally). Anyone have some ideas on how to prevent this? It's a spinning drone A.I..

EDIT: Also, Player type walls don't work.

EDIT2: It has come to my attention that in a certain area where you blow stuff up to deactivate an Extra2 link, the game briefly chokes. If you are thrusting, it's possible to get outside the walls. Awesome.

This post has been edited by gray_shirt_ninja : 19 February 2007 - 11:41 PM

@gray-shirt-ninja, on Feb 19 2007, 09:27 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

I have a problem with a mini boss (or two ) bouncing out into the entrance corridor (occasionally). Anyone have some ideas on how to prevent this? It's a spinning drone A.I..

I assume that this is a semi-fake miniboss, one that doesn't use any real doors? If so, I don't know of any way to prevent this problem. The closest I've gotten is placing a layer-ten wall in the doorway, and making it a child of a sprite that doesn't get within culling distance until the player enters the room (see the lake in The Flicker Tree), but I wouldn't trust this method to be consistent across computers or versions of the game.

@gray-shirt-ninja, on Feb 19 2007, 09:27 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

EDIT: Also, Player type walls don't work.

Yep, and it's very annoying. If placed on top of solid objects (if Extra1 is 0 or less), though, they make them intangible for enemies. And if made a child sprite of an enemy, and aligned so that it is larger than the enemy's collision box, that enemy will be able to pass through any wall. If you have any use for that.

@gray-shirt-ninja, on Feb 19 2007, 09:27 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

EDIT2: It has come to my attention that in a certain area where you blow stuff up to deactivate an Extra2 link, the game briefly chokes. If you are thrusting, it's possible to get outside the walls. Awesome.

A known issue, at least by me- any time there are hundreds of sprites on-screen (and/or AIs active?), the game will slow down. In the next version there is apparently something going on to keep collision handling active when the framerate hits 0, but I don't know any details.

Edwards

A suggestion for your problem with the Mini Bosses bouncing away, you could switch their scripts from Spinning Drone to Boss 3. (or maybe it's Boss 4, I can't remember) The spin cycle is much the same on both, although their movements are somewhat different. I had the same problem with Bosses in TCOC and found that after a while Boss 3 is more inclined to back into a corner rather than leave the arena. This is also a problem but at least it doesn't make it impossible to beat like the other. Another way to help get around leaving the arena is to make the entrance narrow with a sharp turn.

Yesssss I see. I'll have to try that. Actually, I haven't had any problems with them escaping for the past ten or so tests.

So whats the status on this plug? i'm really lookin forward to its completion, no rush though

Grey Shirt is currently working on the Ice Section, last i heard. It's pretty cool, and there are some neat puzzles that are hard at first, but then when you get them you're like "OH! Oh, come on. How did i not see that?"

Pi

@pisketch, on Feb 24 2007, 04:07 PM, said in The Temple of the Pen:

Grey Shirt is currently working on the Ice Section, last i heard. It's pretty cool, and there are some neat puzzles that are hard at first, but then when you get them you're like "OH! Oh, come on. How did i not see that?"

Pi

I'm so close to completing the Caverns of Ice, I just need to add the boss and prettify a corridor. I'm glad to hear your opinion on my puzzles. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy

On February 26th, at 9:54 P.M. (PST), I finished the Temple of the Pen. All that's left is to wait for the release of 1.0.1. Then I need to do testing, and release it. Final size: 880 KB.