Messages

1

Showcase / Re: YAGAC updated

« on: March 25, 2019, 03:36:12 PM »

YAGAC got an enhanced port to Sega Genesis / Mega Drive, re-branded "Kromasphere".
It's live on Kickstarter now: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/seconddimension/kromasphere-yagac-md

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition results

« on: March 03, 2019, 04:41:20 AM »

Oh, and a big thank you to all donors.

3

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition results

« on: March 02, 2019, 04:38:49 AM »

Congratulations to all contenders for their effort, and specially to Pitto for making such an amazing game.
It was pretty fun to develop FB Shooter Force, and it helped me improve my engine and my skills for my next games.
Thanks to Lachie for organizing this and pushing us to do our best. Your feedback is very valuable. Thank you!

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Game Dev Competition Community Poll (ROUND 1)

« on: February 14, 2019, 09:23:23 AM »

Great games! I'll play them all by the weekend.

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 11, 2019, 07:17:47 AM »

FB Shooter Force 2019 : https://sourceforge.net/projects/fb-shooter-force-2019/   

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 10, 2019, 04:36:12 AM »

Windows 8.1. Working full screen out of the box!
How much will it change until the deadline?

Niiice! Now that's what I wanted to hear!  
I'm still working on level maps, polishing some graphics and testing the new mechanics. There may be a few changes.

[EDIT]
Hey, I made a sourceforge page for FB Shooter Force 2019:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/fb-shooter-force-2019/
[/EDIT]

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 10, 2019, 04:32:14 AM »

I don't know what's happening but I did some testing by tweaking the .ini.
I turned on showfps and tested different modes;

With only Vsync on, I was getting 60 but frequently fluctuated between 30-60
Without Vsync, I am getting like 150 in-game and it fluctuates from 80-150
With only Timesync on:  I was getting 62 but frequently fluctuated between 30-62
It seems like the FPS fluctuates a lot when I actually play the game regardless of what the fps is; and this is why I'm feeling the jerky gameplay.
It is not related to objects on screen because it happens even when only the horse is on the screen.

Then, I turned off Multithreading and then it ran smoothly at 60 fps 

I have a Core i3-540 3.4 Ghz (2 cores 4 threads with hyperthreading) with 4 gb ram; (running on SSD for good measure)
Game takes about 20% cpu in gameplay.

Hey, thanks for testing.
Weird, I have tried with some much slower cpus and multithreading on, and it didn't happen.
The threads don't do much, they just sort sprites by priority and handle particle movement.
The threaded input was disabled by default a few versions ago, because it was causing problems.
Something might be getting stuck.
Nice to know the workaround is already there.
I'll see what I can do to use the best possible defaults.

8

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 09, 2019, 05:54:52 PM »

FB Shooter Force 2019 update (UNTESTED):
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH
-Many minor fixes and improvements;
-Some gameplay and level design changes;
-Added robotic voice;

I have added a manifest to the windows executable, so display should not scale in windows 8/10. Can anyone check if this works?

9

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 07, 2019, 07:34:22 AM »

Fb Shooter Force 2019 updated:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH
-Added command-line options that override settings from the .ini file. Check the readme for details;
-Some fixes in the gamepad setup;
-Many internal fixes and improvements;

Hey Dr_D, so sorry to hear that. I hope things get better for you.
Let's keep doing amazing stuff and never abandon FB.

10

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 05, 2019, 03:51:07 PM »

landeel,

Managed to beat level 1! (took 15 minutes!)  
Died in Pythonia by those pesky small green snakes  

Gamepad vibration works great! (on Windows 10 with xbox like controller)
Gamepad button bug also fixed;
Personal opinion:
1. I see that you changed amount of powers that spawned; It feels perfect now!
2. Level is/are a bit too long
3. Timesync turned on automatically for me I think; it stutters sometimes when you press buttons especially when you're moving forward or back. It gives the game a sluggish feel.

Hey, thanks for testing.
Nice to know vibration works.
I agree the levels are a bit too long, specially 3. Already talked to Lachie about this. I'll reduce them a bit before the deadline.
I don't think what you describe is timesync's fault.
Some shots will cause you to move slower while you use them, and that's intentional. You must stop shooting to move faster.
Anyway, you can disable timesync completely by setting timesync=0 in the .ini.

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 05, 2019, 03:42:47 PM »

FB Shooter Force 2019 updated:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH
-Power-of-two fbo textures are used by default: can improve compatibility;
-Gamepad and force feedback improvements;
-Game tries to adjust automatically if the requested resolution is not correctly set;
-Many internal changes and improvements;

12

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 04, 2019, 10:45:30 AM »

FB Shooter Force 2019 updated:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH
-Added joystick force feedback (vibration) on Windows, thanks to SDL2 haptic. (Testers needed. Works on wine, fails on winxp);
-Animated starfield background in the intro movie by cycling the palette;
-Fixed a bug in the gamepad setup;
-Many minor fixes and improvements;

13

Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 03, 2019, 09:17:16 AM »

Small update.
SDL 2.0 music bug fixed.
Some minor physics fixes.
Minor cosmetic changes.
Same link.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 02, 2019, 07:09:40 PM »

I will call this a beta, but it's already fully playable:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Alx6zsW3vZ_4eWf53IKYBHpih1AUEuZH


I have made many changes based on the feedback, mostly to the engine:
-Timesync=auto is the new default. Timesync will engage if vsync is not available;
-Added option "showfps" to display the framerate during game. It should always be 60 or close to it;
-Fullscreen=auto is the new default. In Windows with Intel graphics, the game will start windowed (resolution bug);
-Separated threaded input from multithreading. Due to instability reports, threaded input is now disabled by default;
-Can use SDL 2.0 or 1.2 for audio;
-The "select" button/key now rotates the action palette;
-Some gameplay and physics changes based on player suggestions;
-Some other stuff I can't remember;

I have followed some suggestions, and some I didn't.
I didn't want to end up with a regular shootem'up. I wanted something different, and I think I have accomplished that.
The real challenge to the game is to discover what each keyword does, and learn how to survive with them.
You will need multiple weapons, it's impossible to survive using only one kind.
It gets pretty fun and easy once you master them. Just continue playing and you will see. I promise.
It's not nearly as hard as Gradius, Zanac or the airplane stages of Cuphead.
And yeah, I have beaten it twice today.B)

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Competitions / Re: "A Love Letter To FreeBASIC" Competition (Oct 2018 – Feb 2019), 1000 $ 1st prize

« on: February 02, 2019, 09:45:57 AM »

It would help if the sprites gave a hint as to type of power (for e.g. clear is a 'bomb', line is a 'grab', double/goto is 'shot' and so on)

Hey glad you like it, and glad it works.

White is shot, yellow is shield, purple is bomb, green is misc., red is potentially dangerous.