coming from gamemaker, some questions

[.xuxu.@.muzic.]

hey all~
been using gamemaker befor yoyo was a thing.
on and off and mostly just small 'inner circle' projects.
some even going as far as having a full on RNG system with chances for a breakit clone.

so my biggest issue with gamemaker to date is it somewhat weird collision detection.
starting with this,

how is the collision detection with this maker at 60FPS?

how indepth can i go without going all greentext?
(hardcoding tons of functions, im lazy~)

how hard would it be to create a stats heavy RPG where the player character and the party change their sprite depending on it?
(influenced by poisen -> have a different sprite, being influenced by heighten strenght + the poisen -> buffed/bigger sprite BUT having the poisen effect on top? (can i combine the sprites or will i still have to do sprites for every possible combination? (wow that went out of hand))
another example, character grew a tail -> can i 'add' a tail sprite on the sprite that is used at the time? (suppose layers might work)

how fast are values / variables calculations?
(example: add 4 values, multiplie the outcome with a variable - if thats even possible)
stutters with multiple stat calculations where also an issue with game maker befor...

does the engine render graphics outside of the camera view, or is it even toggleable?
(if it does not render -> will it stutter when loading in 'a lot' of graphics? (semi transisions on the same level/room/plain)

can the engine upscale / downscale?

how are rooms / levels / plains scaled?
(will a lower resolution as its made in -> pixelated AF | higher resolution -> blurred AF)

may or may not add more questions as a post below~
thanks for your time :)


#edits: typo + made it less 'wall o text'

[Slash0mega]

how is the collision detection with this maker at 60FPS?

I would assume that higher framerates cause collisions to work better than lower framerats, as collision is calculated per frame.

how indepth can i go without going all greentext?
(hardcoding tons of functions, im lazy~)

not sure what you mean here...

how hard would it be to create a stats heavy RPG where the player character and the party change their sprite depending on it?
(influenced by poisen -> have a different sprite, being influenced by heighten strenght + the poisen -> buffed/bigger sprite BUT having the poisen effect on top? (can i combine the sprites or will i still have to do sprites for every possible combination? (wow that went out of hand))
another example, character grew a tail -> can i 'add' a tail sprite on the sprite that is used at the time? (suppose layers might work)

stat heavy is very doable, even more so with the introduction of static variables in items (basicly you can add any flags you want, like fireDamage=5, burnStatus=true)

adding visual based on status conditiuns is possible, depending on how you set it up. you can play a animation on top, change colors, change glow, change scale, and probably others that i am forgetting,

and it would be REALLY easy to add a tail sprite to somehone, just add a new clothing slot, and make the tail a actor that can be placed there

how fast are values / variables calculations?
(example: add 4 values, multiplie the outcome with a variable - if thats even possible)
stutters with multiple stat calculations where also an issue with game maker befor...

not really sure, you can download the demo and run a bunch of test calculations, it has a built in framerate counter as well.

does the engine render graphics outside of the camera view, or is it even toggleable?
(if it does not render -> will it stutter when loading in 'a lot' of graphics? (semi transisions on the same level/room/plain)

there is a processing distance option that changes how far away things draw/work. not sure if it hides anything behind 3d camera.

can the engine upscale / downscale?

yes

how are rooms / levels / plains scaled?
(will a lower resolution as its made in -> pixelated AF | higher resolution -> blurred AF)

not sure entirly what you mean, but ill try to answer
unless you use actors, maps are made 32x32 unit tiles. normally its a pixle per unit, but you can use costom resolutions on tiles now, mainly its for 3d stuff but if you intend to zoom in on your map a lot you can use a higher resolution tile set to make it look better.

[.xuxu.@.muzic.]

Originally posted by Slash0mega:

[Slash0mega]

ok, 2 thing, one, i may have missunderstood the upscale, downcale part.

i was thinking a smoothe scaling of sprites.

if you mean game resolution then no.

the way it draws is 600 pixles is always 600 pixles, like how terraria handles window mode.
however, you can "upscale/downscale" the map with a simple calculation and the zoom event. though. and you can make versions of interfaces for deferent resolutions if you need too. (or if you don't mind manually setting up hud elements with scripts, you can scale depending on resolution too)

so no. nothing will get stretched/blurred



as for not using a lot of events, many things are engine coded. there is a built in movment system, collision system, actor system, item systems, ect.

so you can get a simple game without doing much scripting, but anything beyond a simple top down rpg will start needing scripts.

[Whoacoder]

On the plus side, you never actually have to code anything, you just fill in blanks in the nodes. There is no advantage to the text scripting in 001, as you can do exactly the same things with the visual nodes!

[ld-airgrafix]

001 probably has stronger nodes over GM, however GM is way more powerful if you learn scripting. I stopped using 001 when a developer told me I couldnt even program to pick up an item ingame by clicking on it, not sure if they made any changes but besides a forum overhaul, not much is happening with this software
Also there are barely any tutorials for this engine, while GM has lots. 001 does have a used friendly interface.

[Slash0mega]

you can pick up a item by clicking on it. not sure if it works with the built in "dropped item" system, but its trivial to create a actor proxy to add any physics and controls to dropped items you want including click to pick up.

i have no idea when you stopped using 001, but within the years of me using it it has improved by leaps and bounds.

[Whoacoder]

A lot of the built in systems are just there for convenience, as you are never actually forced to use them. Instead of using the built in item drop, you can spawn items or actors wherever you want, however many you want, with individual IDs, etc. You could create your own loot tables given you know how to use the collections/tables even. You can design your own combat and damage calculations, and definitely don't have to use the built in AI at all. You can use nodes and triggers to set up behaviors, weapon and item use, custom movement, without ever touching the default AI system.

I personally have created phrase generators for character dialog, mission generators that have random rewards and descriptions/types, reputation systems, unique NPC Attitudes to the player, mining and resource gathering, turn based systems, and more!

It's definitely more powerful once you get the hang of which nodes do what!

[ld-airgrafix]

Originally posted by Whoacoder:

A lot of the built in systems are just there for convenience, as you are never actually forced to use them. Instead of using the built in item drop, you can spawn items or actors wherever you want, however many you want, with individual IDs, etc. You could create your own loot tables given you know how to use the collections/tables even. You can design your own combat and damage calculations, and definitely don't have to use the built in AI at all. You can use nodes and triggers to set up behaviors, weapon and item use, custom movement, without ever touching the default AI system.

I personally have created phrase generators for character dialog, mission generators that have random rewards and descriptions/types, reputation systems, unique NPC Attitudes to the player, mining and resource gathering, turn based systems, and more!

It's definitely more powerful once you get the hang of which nodes do what!

But how do you learn which nodes to use, there are so many, and tutorials available are only simple ones anyway.

[Whoacoder]

Well practice, mostly! I spent a lot of time just getting to know the program and where things were located by using it, dissecting the example files, etc. I don't think I ever once used a tutorial, and I can't say were many videos of someone else making something in 001, but I spent some time searching through the forums and speaking with people on Discord if I ran into a particularly troublesome issue. Even I still sometimes forget there is a node for something even though I have been using 001 for years now. You don't have to remember every node, and just about every node is covered somewhere in the Wiki! There are also helpful tooltips in almost all of the nodes if you hover over the blanks to remind you what it does. There is also a search function that lets you just type the first few letters of a Node to narrow them down! Eventually, you will find yourself just bumping into an issue, typing a word like "Move", "Find", "Table", "Direction" and bringing up the nodes that may apply to your situation. It's really great!

A number of people seem to give up rather quickly because they may have thought 001 was a game generator (I have even seen people get frustrated that they put a 'whole ten hours' into their project, while I am looking at literally thousands of hours put into mine), but like any engine, it takes time to learn and get used to the workflow to produce something worthwhile. It would be the same in Game Maker, only you still have to use GML to get the most out of it, while in 001, you can simply use the node system for everything!

You aren't incorrect about the tutorials, as most of them were user submitted and lacked clarity.. I personally found the forums to be a much more valuable resource when I was learning 001. Sadly, it has been taken down and archived, but can still be found here: http://archive.engine001.com/forum/

We are also currently working on some ongoing video tutorial series covering almost every aspect of 001, from Resources to Game Completion, that should help a lot!

[ld-airgrafix]

Im an artist, and although I have tried learning coding, its just not for me. Thats why 001 seemed so appealing to me, no coding needed. However, the nodes can be just as confusing, especially with lack of tutorials. The previous forum was abandoned, and Steam forum, although you get some help, isnt very lively either.
As for not putting hours into learning the engine, can you really blame us, I dont even know what this engine is capable of. So far all I know is, its a simpler substitute to RPG maker. Yes there are 3D capabilities, but I mainly came here for the isometric capabilities, but with lack of any iso tutorials, I asked questions which never got answered, so you can see why I gave up.
Please do not take this as an engine bashing post. I might post on Discord, look for someone who can guide me with nodes, but looking forward to the tutorials, thanks

[Whoacoder]

No worries man!! I am also just a keyboardist/musician, I don't have any coding experience! I am basically garbage with math and programming escapes me for the most part. 001 Was able to get me where I wanted with a game idea I had for many years growing up, and I tried making it in several different game engines prior, but with no luck.. Sadly, there are no isometric tutorials because no one ever made one! But the set up would be about the same as any other game, although the isometric 'grid' in 001 is not exactly true isometric grid. It is instead just an orthographic camera orientation, so you would have to make all of your assets to fit this (Which could be a bit of work.. You would either need to use 3D models or you have to make 2D isometric tiles and rotate them so they are in line with the camera) It is totally understandable why some would move on without some clear tutorials, since it can feel like swinging in the dark sometime. Check out Vlastan's "Ravenswick Chronicles" for an idea of what you can do with Isometric in 001!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOUZyNDGYfs

To see what the engine is capable of, there are tons of game showcase screenshots on our Instagram, some demo videos on youtube, and an active Show-Off channel on the Discord where people regularly post their projects (Flight simulators, real-time AI vehicles and traffic controls, open world RPG/Exploration games, Space Trading Sims, minecraft-style Survival games, entire randomly generated/procedurally generated worlds and terrain, etc.) But sadly you won't find tutorials on these because they are incredibly complex games produced by our users that would take months and months to explain haha. It's a shame you weren't able to find what you were looking for in 001, it really is a fun engine to work with once you get the hang of it! I'm just saying, don't give up man!

As far as capabilities versus RPG maker, I would not call it a 'simpler' version of RPG maker in any sense haha. As RPG maker is already limited/lesser by comparison in that it doesn't have 3D, it also doesn't have built in particle effects (typically have to use a plugin for this), Tables/Collections and Data Manipulation, Networking TCP/IP/Online and Local Multiplayer, built in image editor, animation sequencer, physics engine, Normal Mapping for tilesets and sprites, File Writing/Management, a Lighting system, etc. It really is MILES ahead of RPG maker in terms of flexibility. You would have to come up with a lot of custom systems and plugins to alter the core of what RPG maker can do, while 001 is immediately open ended to make space shooters, action rpg games, 3d adventures, top down dungeon crawlers, simulation games, physics games, basically whatever you can come up with, all with 100% zero coding or plugins required.

The Discord is FAR more active than the forums nowadays, while the forums may have taken a while to get an answer.. And there are usually at least one or two of us Support Staff Members on at any time to try answer any questions you might have!