[OLD] Player Bugs / Suggestions

[namida]

I also finally looked more into the config screen flicker, and depsite trying some insanely complex things that didn't work at first, the actual fix turned out to be as simple as one line of code that should've been run only when the screen is first generated, rather than every time an option is changed. xD So that'll finally be fixed in the next update.

[namida]

Along the same lines as is currently being discussed for Lix:

Would anyone like to have a fixed (probably user-configurable in later versions, but fixed for now) set of keys where "key X = skill X", rather than "key X = the Xth skill on the skill panel"? This should be very simple to implement if people want it; the biggest difficulty is likely to be deciding which keys to map them to.

These could either exist alongside the current positional ones, or as a config menu option to switch between them. In the latter case, one possibility may be to match F3 to F10 to how they are in traditional Lemmix, and 1 to 8 (or perhaps 3 to 0 would be more comfortable) to the eight new skills. This would mean needing to remap 5 (the skip level button when cheat mode is active) to a different key, but that's not an overly major issue.

[Nepster]

I would use the option "key X = skill X" if available. But you don't have to include it just for me. At some point even I might learn to use the current system .

If you include it, I would suggest either:
- Copying the traditional Lemmix hotkeys (as in your post) or
- Waiting for Simon to come up with a final version for Lix and using the same for NeoLemmix.

[Simon]

Even if what I'll be cooking up is justifiable by objective arguments, nobody will be used to it yet. >_> I haven't even tried it seriously myself, expect changes. I'm unhappy with builder on pinky finger.

And Neolemmix has other skills, with other skill usage statistics. The key in-between the directional force keys is precious, that must get a very common skill.

Making things remappable requires time, assuming the application isn't written with that in mind yet. Once some keys are remappable, all of them should be remappable. Every single key. Escape is a key. :-)

Making things remappable is the correct goal.

Neolemmix can generate standalone executables. How would those handle custom keybindings?

-- Simon

[Nepster]

Even if what I'll be cooking up is justifiable by objective arguments, nobody will be used to it yet. ... And Neolemmix has other skills, with other skill usage statistics.

Apart from the missing jumper, the most common skills are more or less the same and once your key system is implemented as the default in Lix, people will hopefully start getting used to it.
As NeoLemmix does not feature multi-player, fast skill selection is not of overwhelming importance. Therefore other arguments may be taken into consideration as well, like making it easy for Lix players to adapt to NeoLemmix and vice versa.

[namida]

At the moment, each seperate EXE has a seperate configuration (it's stored in their save files, which are not compatible between different player EXEs).

I don't know how much overlap there is between other skills, but from what I've heard, the Walker and Platformer are the same in NeoLemmix as they are in Lix, and the Stoner is like a... Cuber, was it? It basically turns the lemming into terrain; with one difference that has been pointed out being that the NeoLemmix ones can be used in mid-air.

The other skills (for those who aren't familiar) are Swimmer (self-explanatory), Glider (basically, "diagonal floater"), Mechanic (disables traps; permanent skill), Stacker (like the L2 one, but creates the stack in front of the lemming, rather than below it) and Cloner (duplicates the lemming, with the clone being identical except facing the opposite direction).

[namida]

From the next update (V1.30n-D or V1.31n, whichever it ends up being), the default setting will be fixed keys. For this, F3 to F10 will match the layout for DOS / traditional Lemmix (ie: F3 = Climber, F4 = Floater, ... F10 = Digger), while the number keys 3 to 0 will be used for the new 8 skills (3 = Walker, 4 = Swimmer, 5 = Glider, 6 = Mechanic, 7 = Stoner, 8 = Platformer, 9 = Stacker, 0 = Cloner). There'll be an option in the Config menu to use the positional keys instead (F3 = first skill on the panel, F4 = second skill, F5 = third, etc, rather than the keys corresponding to specific skills).

[Nepster]

Here are two issues that came up while playing GigaLems:
1) I solved Hot 2 and then wanted to replay it again, because I realized that a simpler solution should work as well. But unfortunately I did not write down the password and each time when I restarted GigaLems and tried to play a Hot level, it jumped to Hot 3 (the first non-solved one). So apart from deleting the .sav-file, I could not see any way to play Hot 2 again?
2) I had Auto-Save replays on. But it seems to me, that Auto-Save saves a replay each time one quits a level. So now I have quite a bunch of useless replays doing nothing, because I quit the level right at the beginning to check save requirements/number of lemmings/... again! I think it would be much more convenient, if Auto-Save only saves a replay, if one has actually solved the level. In the rare cases where one actually wants a replay of a non-successful try, one can still save it by hand, no?

[mobius]

I have a suggestion for the future:

-"dummy lemmings" -basically, sort of like zombie lemmings but they don't infect other lemmings and can exit and count as saved.

-lemmings which can only be assigned a preset number of skills. This number would have to be labeled somehow maybe on or above the lemming

yeah didn't realize this already sort of existed with single skill gimmick. I only started looking at NeoLemmix closely

these suggestions are inspired from the challenges. My favorite challenges in the challenges topic, by far, was 1 skill per lemming and skills on only 1 lem. They made for some real interesting puzzle solving.

there was also the no-turn challenge; but that's an odd one to implement in actual gameplay

[mobius]

I realize this was a poll you asked way back but; I'm in favor of hints.

Sorry for asking more dumb questions but I couldn't find an answer to this; does NeoLemmix player currently support playing MOD music files? If not what kind of files are usable?

[namida]

I realize this was a poll you asked way back but; I'm in favor of hints.

Sorry for asking more dumb questions but I couldn't find an answer to this; does NeoLemmix player currently support playing MOD music files? If not what kind of files are usable?

Yes, MOD files are supported. You'll need to rename them to have an "IT" extension, but apart from that they work perfectly fine. The same is true of any other similar tracker format (such as XM).

Aside from that, it also supports OGG, and can make use of the "LOOPSTART" and "LOOPLENGTH" metainfo tags.

Other formats are not "officially" supported, but may be usable by renaming them to have an OGG or IT extension - all really depends on whether the underlying library (Bass) can play them.

[mobius]

  thanks a lot.

I have a new question/suggestion.
Is there currently a way of notifying the player ahead of time when a level has a gimmick? I realize part of the gimmick "gimmick" [haha] is it's a surprise to the player. But in certain situations it would be better/nice to have something like a message in the title screen. I intend to use some of the gimmicks as proper puzzle elements and it might be annoying to the player if they struggle to understand why a certain gimmick is happening [having no warning]. Sorry if this was discussed before, as you probably know I haven't followed the forum the past few months.

1 other minor suggestion; Enable an option to set a maximum RR. For example the RR starts at 1 and you can't go above 50. This has some implications [like not being able to squeeze the crowd through a trap]

[namida]

You can add a pre-play text to any level, which will be displayed between the usual preview screen and actual gameplay. (For example, see any gimmick level in Lemmings Plus II, or any of the training levels in Lemmings Plus Omega). To do this, create a text file titled "iXXXX.txt", where XXXX is the rank number and level number, eg i0101.txt for Fun 1.

For post-level texts, it's the same, but pXXXX.txt instead of iXXXX.txt.

Each line in these files may be up to 40 characters long, and you can have up to 18 lines.


Some kind of notification on the preview screen that gimmicks are in effect is a feature I was going to do at one point, but never got around to. At this point, since I plan to overhaul the menus at some point (though your guess is as good as mine as to when this'll happen), I probably won't add such a feature before then.

[Simon]

I was browsing through the player source for fun yesterday. Some older ideas came to me in IRC:

• Display the initial count and save requirement during game. These are very important values, much more important than the in/out count. Most players mentally track the small number of lems killed. I don't care how it's done in detail, one idea is OUT: <out>/<initial> IN: <in>/<required>. There's enough space even with the humongous green font.
  
• Don't display leading zeroes in the skillbar, making it easier to glance over. Don't display 0 or 00 on depleted skills; display the white box like L1 did, or even better, leave the field black.
  

namida and I talked about whether Neolemmix would benefit from being open-sourced. I suggested it because ccx has already written patches to Eric's Lemmix, and many people follow these bug/suggestions topics. namida observed how the project would only compile in Delphi 6/7 from 2001/2002, which would severly limit the source code's audience. Entire discussion from IRC.

-- Simon
When I find my code in tons of trouble, // Friends and colleagues come to me, // Speaking words of Wisdom: // "Write in C."

[namida]

Leading zeros in the skillbar can actually be disabled, but this is a graphical setting in the pack's options, not a user-configurable thing. For example, see Lemmings Plus III (or it's bonus pack) or Lemmings Plus Omega.