Suggestions for a new Cheapo Copycat game

[guest]

You won't be able to see this, but there is an invisible grid of "wind" for every level.

Interesting, is it preparation for wind-driven skills like the parachuter and ballooner in Tribes?

To save memory, I have one "pixel" of "wind" cover an area of 8x8 level pixels. It's impossible to shift the level by 2 pixels and have the wind grid get fixed up correctly. Objects in the level will depend on a consistent wind grid. Now, I'm not actually making objects that affect the wind, but it's an option for the future.

Perhaps if you can reprogram things so that for each level the level designer can choose to enable or disable the wind grid?  Then the restriction won't be an issue for those levels where the level designer chooses not to use wind in any form.  Just a thought.

Actually, can someone remind me what the level shifter actually does?  What is it shifted against?

[guest]

But I still think it's a bad idea to allow level designers to use any bitmap as a background.

Well, since currently you can create custom objects with the style editor anyway, and since you can also use any bitmap as part of the terrain, seems to me there's already plenty of other ways to create confusion that it hardly matters whether the background can be an arbitrary bitmap.  Also, isn't there currently already an option to mark objects as fake?

I also don't like the idea of other skills, at least not initially. If people want to program their own skills, fine, but I don't think it should feel too much like Tribes or even Clones.

Well, for the record I'm more in league with Dragonslover over additional skills.  After all, you don't have to use them in your levels if you don't like them.

Though Essman already mentioned here sometime ago that, the plan is to provide support for additional skills, but he won't be programming any himself.

[guest]

Actually, can someone remind me what the level shifter actually does? &#A0;What is it shifted against?

I think I got it.  The idea is that if you expand the size of the level, you can use the level shifter to shift the stuff you have right now so you can add new stuff to the level properly.

If that's the case though, then I don't see what's the big deal with not being able to shift an arbitrary amount of pixels.  Rarely is it unacceptable to have some blank unused spaces on either side of the level.  Actually, come to think of it, doesn't the current Cheapo only allows you to scroll as far as the where there are still terrain pixels or objects?  If dimwits also does that then it shouldn't matter that you can only shift in multiples of whatever.

[Conway]

Actually, in the current Cheapo you can scroll to the boundaries of the level, despite where the terrain or objects end. I suppose it won't matter not being able to shift a level by individual pixels, or having a few extra skills, like a jumper or swimmer. But please no crazy ones like the ones that can be guided by wind like in Tribes!

[DragonsLover]

I completely agree! Those are exagerated and I won't them!

I selected these that could be interesting to add without having to use a fan!

For the third time: What about my other suggestions: Animated buttons and red flashing screen?

[Essman]

For the third time: What about my other suggestions: Animated buttons and red flashing screen?

All suggestions are noted. I already have animated buttons, so that is guaranteed. The flashing red screen is not guaranteed to happen, but it seems cool.

[Conway]

Flashing red screen? What's that? ::

[guest]

I forgot what DragonsLover said, but it has something to do with nuking if I recall correctly.

Just make sure things like these can be turned on/off by the level designer.  Or better yet, if they are customizable via style editor.  After all, any suggestions of this nature are bound to not work out for some styles.

[guest]

But please no crazy ones like the ones that can be guided by wind like in Tribes!

Hmm, well I thought they were kind of interesting, though I have to agree they are somewhat difficult to carry out with consistent success.  (The twister is particularly annoying.)

Keep in mind though that, at least based on what we have read about Essman's "wind grid", there's also the possibility of actually incorporating fixed sources of wind right into the level itself (ie. there are certain areas in the level that has a particular wind).  Then instead of the wind being part of the solution, it could become part of the problem you need to work against to solve a level.  That might be interesting, who knows.

[DragonsLover]

Flashing red screen? What's that? ::

Conway, this is what I wrote some days ago. I'm feeling that you don't read my posts at all:

More suggestions:

1. Something cool for the "Nuke 'em all" feature: Make the screen flashing in red with an alarm sound instead of nothing...

2. What do you think about animated buttons like in Lemmings 95?

3. I though about to add more tools but not too much. I was looking tools in Lemmings 2 and some could be nice to add and some are so exagerated. Here are these it could be nice to add:

- Runner (where a lemming is faster than the other lemmings)
- Jumper (where the lemming could make a little jump to go higher in front of it)
- Swimmer (lemming that isn't affected by water and swim through)
- Laser Blaster (where the lemming uses a laser to dig a hole over his head, it's like a reversed digger)
- Stacker (could be interesting for climbers and diggers it's when a lemming is building a wall by piling up blocks)
- Platformer (where a lemming could build an horizontally platform over a hole)
- Slider (when a lemming is near a gap, it slides down safely)
- Rock Climber (same thing than a climber, but it is not necessary for the wall to have little holes or bumps for the lemming to fall)

And those where I'm unsure, it depends of you :

- Roller (where a lemming is faster and that falls diagonally without crashing, by rolling)
- Hopper (where a lemming is constantly making high jumps in front of it)
- Diver (where a lemming is diving in front of it)
- Shimmier (the lemming jumps and if it touches the ceiling, it starts to climb horizontally (you know what I mean))

All others are less interesting and some are similar to the normal tools like the Stomper. What do you think about these tools?

[Conway]

I read it, I just forgot about the flashing red screen thing.

[DragonsLover]

That's ok! Everybody can forget!

[guest]

Earlier it was suggested for the new Cheapo to have skill toolboxes that can be picked up by the Lemmings within the level itself.

Here's just an extension of the idea:  have "clocks" that can be picked up by the Lemmings, which will add a certain amount of time (presumably either a fixed value or customizable per timer) to the timer.

This can create interesting "race against the clock" type levels, where your trailblazer needs to pick up certain timers in order to have enough time to get the level solved.  Even more interesting is the possibility that while your trailblazer is working its way towards the exit, you need to also divert and multitask other lemmings to pick up timers elsewhere so that there is enough time.

[Conway]

Oooh! Like in Paintball? That sounds interesting. But it could also lead to some very cheap and nasty levels, such as one hiding a vital timepiece in the terrain. And that's just the beginning.

[Conway]

Nah, I'm just saying what could happen, given some crafty designers. I'm not saying it's not a good idea, but any good idea can be cheaply exploited.