Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
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- FrankenGraphics
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Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
I think it's SMB:s "fault". It cemented the already present standard, based on that you'd hold fire/run more often/longer on average than jump, so this is how nes gamers learned how to platform from at least then on, even if they don't have a run mechanism. Reverse it and i suspect most NES players will be confused and perform worse.
Options are always good, though.
Options are always good, though.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
I would say neither combination of holding A or B and pressing the other is physically uncomfortable.
Common examples off the top of my head:
* Holding B to run in SMB and pressing A to jump
* Holding A to bounce in Bubble Bobble and pressing B to shoot
I would say that if a game contains both jump and shoot, the most noticeable effect of inverting them (from the common practice of B=shoot, A=jump) is going to be contradicting the muscle memory of most players. The Gamecube version of Megaman Anniversary Collecion is notoriously guilty of that.
However, the option to swap the two isn't a bad idea (are options ever bad ideas?), in particular for obscure famiclone controllers and the like that have unusual button layouts.
Back on topic, I only had a moment to briefly play the demo ROM. Great animation (love the rain, lava death, and reflection on the activated beacons). Will need to play some more as I've only seen the first two rooms.
Common examples off the top of my head:
* Holding B to run in SMB and pressing A to jump
* Holding A to bounce in Bubble Bobble and pressing B to shoot
I would say that if a game contains both jump and shoot, the most noticeable effect of inverting them (from the common practice of B=shoot, A=jump) is going to be contradicting the muscle memory of most players. The Gamecube version of Megaman Anniversary Collecion is notoriously guilty of that.
However, the option to swap the two isn't a bad idea (are options ever bad ideas?), in particular for obscure famiclone controllers and the like that have unusual button layouts.
Back on topic, I only had a moment to briefly play the demo ROM. Great animation (love the rain, lava death, and reflection on the activated beacons). Will need to play some more as I've only seen the first two rooms.
Last edited by M_Tee on Sat Jan 06, 2018 5:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
I play some platformers, particularly Super Mario Bros., claw style: left thumb on Control Pad, right index finger on B, and right middle finger on A.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Thoughts on the demo.
-very nice graphics, nice color choices.
-no music?
-you can't turn while shooting repeatedly. This feels 'unresponsive'.
-I got hit by lots of bats when I was in narrow areas with blocks between me and the bat. I suppose I would learn to deal with this if I played more, but I felt like there was no choice but to lose a life.
-4 shots to light up the block seems a bit slow...maybe try 3? I mean 4 isn't very bad, it just seems like requiring 4 shots does nothing but slow the pace of the game unnecessarily. (but who am I to talk?, since I moved things to opposite ends of the screen in Jammin Honey, just so you can't beat a level in less than 10 seconds).
-bats move kind of awkwardly, not very smooth.
-basic mechanics feel good, other than the turning while shooting thing I mentioned.
-very nice graphics, nice color choices.
-no music?
-you can't turn while shooting repeatedly. This feels 'unresponsive'.
-I got hit by lots of bats when I was in narrow areas with blocks between me and the bat. I suppose I would learn to deal with this if I played more, but I felt like there was no choice but to lose a life.
-4 shots to light up the block seems a bit slow...maybe try 3? I mean 4 isn't very bad, it just seems like requiring 4 shots does nothing but slow the pace of the game unnecessarily. (but who am I to talk?, since I moved things to opposite ends of the screen in Jammin Honey, just so you can't beat a level in less than 10 seconds).
-bats move kind of awkwardly, not very smooth.
-basic mechanics feel good, other than the turning while shooting thing I mentioned.
nesdoug.com -- blog/tutorial on programming for the NES
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Her running animation makes me laugh.
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nesdoug.com -- blog/tutorial on programming for the NES
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
The animation obviously needs to be tweaked
- There will be music.
- I'm in the process of changing the "hold while shooting" dynamics so you can TURN while shooting (but not walk).
- Bats need more animation frames, but I'm getting short of sprite patterns.
- Yeah, you are defenceless against bats in narrow passages. The idea is that you should get rid of them in a "good and safe place" and use the time they take to respawn to act quickly. Also, the first thing to do in a room is get rid of the skulls, which are where enemies respawn, before doing anything else.
I chose 4 shoots to light stones randomly. I'm open to suggestions on how to balance the game better
Thanks for trying.
- There will be music.
- I'm in the process of changing the "hold while shooting" dynamics so you can TURN while shooting (but not walk).
- Bats need more animation frames, but I'm getting short of sprite patterns.
- Yeah, you are defenceless against bats in narrow passages. The idea is that you should get rid of them in a "good and safe place" and use the time they take to respawn to act quickly. Also, the first thing to do in a room is get rid of the skulls, which are where enemies respawn, before doing anything else.
I chose 4 shoots to light stones randomly. I'm open to suggestions on how to balance the game better
Thanks for trying.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Cute! I see Cheril won't be running around stark naked this time...
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
... Almost there. I have to complete a couple of tunes and I'll submit this.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
OP updated with ROM, sources, and stuff. Have fun.
I hope there are no game breaking bugs.
I hope there are no game breaking bugs.
- FrankenGraphics
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Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
I've been dying to play Cheril's next adventure. This is what i'll have for brunch tomorrow.
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Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Very nice.
One problem that I had that I think could be easily fixed was on the first screen of the first dream. It took me a while to figure out how to move the stone, and then I moved it in the wrong direction without thinking and pushed it against a wall, which meant that I could no longer move it where it needed to go. Seeing nothing else to do, I had to restart the game. Obviously since it takes about 5 seconds to get there, this isn't a huge deal or anything.
However, since the placement of non-hostile objects seems to reset on a new screen, I figure there could simply be a mostly empty screen that leads to that first screen, so if you screw it up you can go backwards and re-set the scene. As it is, there doesn't appear to be a way to do that? Just a suggestion.
Nice work!
One problem that I had that I think could be easily fixed was on the first screen of the first dream. It took me a while to figure out how to move the stone, and then I moved it in the wrong direction without thinking and pushed it against a wall, which meant that I could no longer move it where it needed to go. Seeing nothing else to do, I had to restart the game. Obviously since it takes about 5 seconds to get there, this isn't a huge deal or anything.
However, since the placement of non-hostile objects seems to reset on a new screen, I figure there could simply be a mostly empty screen that leads to that first screen, so if you screw it up you can go backwards and re-set the scene. As it is, there doesn't appear to be a way to do that? Just a suggestion.
Nice work!
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Minor design bug: there's a few places where I "fell" into the lava despite, as far as I could tell, entirely being on a diagonally adjacent tile.
Trivial UI flaw: if you somehow acquire more than 9 hearts, you get : and then ⧗ hearts.
Trivial UI flaw: if you somehow acquire more than 9 hearts, you get : and then ⧗ hearts.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
This game looks freaking awesome! It's the tiny little nuances like the lightning and the rain that make this game so cool.
However, I did encounter a couple of bugs that, while not game breaking, are notable:
-If the player jumps while walking into one of the pushable wooden crates from the left or right, and pushes B any time during the jump, then Cheril spontaneously dies like she's fallen into lava. Doesn't seem to happen for all of the blocks, making this bug especially strange. There might be some hidden correlation to something that I'm missing.
-If the player holds down any direction on the D-pad and starts the game while continuing to hold it down, Cheril will stay in her sleeping pose while walking. It's pretty minor and it corrects itself the moment another button is pressed, but it's a bug nonetheless.
However, I did encounter a couple of bugs that, while not game breaking, are notable:
-If the player jumps while walking into one of the pushable wooden crates from the left or right, and pushes B any time during the jump, then Cheril spontaneously dies like she's fallen into lava. Doesn't seem to happen for all of the blocks, making this bug especially strange. There might be some hidden correlation to something that I'm missing.
-If the player holds down any direction on the D-pad and starts the game while continuing to hold it down, Cheril will stay in her sleeping pose while walking. It's pretty minor and it corrects itself the moment another button is pressed, but it's a bug nonetheless.
Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
Thanks for the heads up. I'll correct all the bugs for the cart release, thanks.
The funny thing about the first screen is that it was a last time change I wanted to provide a trivial puzzle as a tutorial but didn't relaize that you can't undo if you get stuck! Oops.
Thanks for playing.
The funny thing about the first screen is that it was a last time change I wanted to provide a trivial puzzle as a tutorial but didn't relaize that you can't undo if you get stuck! Oops.
Thanks for playing.
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Re: Progress Thread - MiedoW (Cheril's Nightmares)
That title screen is lovely, I love the reflections of the light source front and centre.