244 replies to this topic

[PainkillerAlice]

Update: All that's left is the mission scripting and the table will be released.

[PainkillerAlice]

Redesigning the mission and scripting for them. Made things a little too complex for me to script well, but am going to do my best to make the gameplay fun just the same.

[PainkillerAlice]

I am still working on that table but the good news is that I should be able to go with the original intended gameplay design AND incorporate multiball into the table once again. Due to my computer programming studies, I have learned a few more techniques that should make it all possible.

I am creating a test table to try out a few things and see how to get some things working that way I want them to.

[PainkillerAlice]

Missions and Multiball scripting done. Just have to do some minor effects scripting and the table should be finished.

[PainkillerAlice]

Having a slight problem on some syntax. When I complete the first mission I egt an error code dealing with a string that I coded in. Not sure what I need to do so am releasing the link for the table for anyone to play the table and see what I am referring to to see what I need to do. Thanks in advance for the input!

Tron WIP

[PainkillerAlice]

Thanks to rascal for helping me the snafu I ran across! Now back to finishing the coding.

[faralos]

does this mean the problem has been fixed? woohoo! How much longer until you release this heavily awaited pin?

[PainkillerAlice]

Gonna be gametesting today, and if all goes well, will finish the odds and ends coding and the table will be released.

[s1500]

I'm gonna give this a whirl tonight. I'm interested to see how the mission coding works. With the way tables are scripted, I don't know a generally good approach to overlay mission code to an otherwise individual-event based script setup for a table.

My ideas were to modify hit events to branch off to mission-specific things. So if you're in a mission, a hit event for a ramp, etc does one thing, and if you're doing regular playing, it does the normal scoring/sound.

[PainkillerAlice]

Oh boy. After that fact that I advanced my training on Visual Basic, I realized how sloppy my code writing for my table was. Deleted a bunch of code that wasn't necessary and fixed some more to get things running right. Currently working on the Mission 3 (out of 6 missions) gameplay (gametesting). Things are going well in spite of my revulsion of my previous noob coding.

[PainkillerAlice]

Fixed the snafu I was having (was discussing it earlier today in video chat). The rest of the script seems solid. Doing more playtesting tomorrow. Very real possibility that the coding may be finished by tomorrow night.

[faralos]

oh hot dang! That's tonight! Okay I'll even give ya' until tomorrow, but any more time, well...with each passing day a toad dies!
Can't use puppies, people get angry for some reason

[PainkillerAlice]

Due to others having some difficulty with loading my Tron WIP I went ahead and de-beautify (I know this isn't a word ) my table a little by replacing the pretty blue plastic posts with metal ones. The table loads faster, and I am having a select volunteer with a lowbie computer test this out.

Here's a screenie:

[PainkillerAlice]

I think I am screwed on my table. I created a timer and put it in the middle of the table to remind me of what it does so I can get some scripting done on it and it ended up going corrupt. I now noticed that each new timer I put into place has gone corrupt after I exit and restart the table. I may end up making a new table and try to copy over everything that I can to it to reconstruct the table. With the timer in the middle of the playfield, I can't copy over all the playfield objects at once.

This has not been a good day. : (

Edited by Practicedummy, 07 September 2011 - 01:21 AM.

[PainkillerAlice]

All is not lost, worst case scenario is that I will have to copy all I can to a new table and set things up. Gonna take a couple of days off from table creation to plan things.

[PainkillerAlice]

Ok here is the plan: 1st I am going to create a new table with the table size equal to the Tron table and copy over what I can to salvage the project, 2nd I will continue to use the 'new' posts to cut down the size of the table and possibly change from using metal ramps in favor of plastic alpha ramps (if I learn how to make transparent alpha ramps that is). 3rd am going to go ahead a redesign the gameplay itself. I was going to do this anyways after the initial release because the missions I put into the table were generic to begin with.

All this I will start on sometime in the near future, gonna work on my Algar table for now for a change of pace.

[PainkillerAlice]

Big sigh of relief! Managed to salvage almost all the playfield objects and two-thirds of the timers. Have to rename some of the objects as they were named in the original and set a lot of object properties, but other than that, things are in good shape.

[faralos]

out of curiosity, why not just script in the timers and get rid of them littering the pf? I never really understood the need for both options
anyways, but if they work in the coding just use them there and keep them off the pf. no?
and Tron still does not run at all it crashes on table rendering all the time, locking up vp forcing me to use cntrl alt dlt to exit out of vp too

[PainkillerAlice]

I am gonna scrap some of the timers, but since I already coded in the animated Sark target timers, I am going to leave those particular ones alone (saves me some work).

Still feeling the pain of the salvage job. >:

[PainkillerAlice]

I am gonna scrap some of the timers, but since I already coded in the animated Sark target timers, I am going to leave those particular ones alone (saves me some work).

Still feeling the pain of the salvage job. >:

Correcting myself here faralos. You suggestion has some merit.

Can do away with almost all the timers that do with the Giant Sark animation. Can get the job done with one timer and a large Select Case statement. Started up a new table and did an experiment with my current level of computer programming knowledge.

Also want to thank SteveOz for his input on how to use the built in timers on objects. This will reduce the amount of objects on my table quite a bit.

Edited by Practicedummy, 09 September 2011 - 02:25 AM.