My GM shmups - Last Chance,MEGATANK, Flying V, XYX, ZPF

[Rozyrg]

ZpUltra
**Updated 8/22/09**

Demo, more info : http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/96998#

My first GM project (which probably shows.) I haven't worked on it in ages, dunno when I'll get back to it.
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Flying V

**Updated 10/25/11**



Demo, more info (Download for the latest version.)
Video (somewhat older version)

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XYX
**Updated 5/28/10**


3 level demo, includes (unfinished) level editor. Docs for that coming later.

Video
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ZPF
**Updated 1/7/11**



DEMO- 3 levels, 2 (mostly) done,1 getting there. Features some awesome original music by Raigon.
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MEGATANK
**Updated 1/18/12**


HTML5
EXE
Video

Simple arena/shmup hybrid built with GMHTML5. Runs best in the latest version(s) of Firefox, Chrome and Opera, taking some sound quirks into consideration. Windows EXE version is free now.

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LAST CHANCE



1 level demo (EXE)
HTML5 version (old)

Simple, somewhat stripped down vertical shmup, this time with a unique (for me at least) mouse control scheme. I included the "Dual" control schemes strictly if anyone wants to try this with a fancy X-Arcade trackball or something (please mention if you do, btw!) You can still use keys of course and you may reconfigure them however you like. TATE is in there too (F11/F12 as always); but be warned, it does mangle the gfx just a bit.

The full game (Win/EXE version) will have more ships and will be at least 4~5 levels long.

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FIRE ARROW
**Updated 3/30/13**



Beta

Single stage timed survival/caravan shooter, started as a GM tutorial for a friend.

[agustusx]

any chance at some screenshots? I can't youtube at work

[Rozyrg]

snip... (put images in the first post)

[Rozyrg]

New one!
Updated video (sounds goes really out of sync though... oh well.)

-New ship added (press left or right again on the select screen)
-Each ship starts with a different weapon now
-Hold shift when you choose Start to skip the select screen (you'll start with the last ship you picked)
-Combo bonuses are now based on an individual enemy's value

I'm still feeling out the scoring (I'm not sure I like having everything hinge on combos); but getting over 1 million should be possible now at least.

[Dokken]

I like this game. Its wayy better than what ive made so far. The only things i kinda dont like are that its hard for me to see the bullets and not being able to pick up power-ups while flashing. The gfx are awesome.

[Rozyrg]

Thank you.

The bullet visibility thing has been the most persistent problem so far... makes me kinda regret not going the usual route of a simple dark or light background. I might try giving the bullets a nice, bold outline next.

As for the other thing, I totally agree.. except I think I still want it so that you won't be able to collect medals in that state. I think it's a good way to reinforce the idea that you blew it.

[Dokken]

One thing ive noticed in my game is when the bullets flash, its harder to see em. I made them just single sprites, and it is easier on the eyes, ya know? Plus they look like they move more fuildly. Then you could keep the backgrounds just the way they are cuz theyre really good. Just an idea..

[Aru-san]

It may just be me, but I sort of have trouble pulling off diagonals in this shmup. This has caused me countless deaths in this game because I could only move one direction at a time.

[Rozyrg]

Hmm.. I hadn't noticed any problems with diagonals before; but I see how it might be an issue if you just wanted to move diagonally in small increments.

I'm interested in anything that will make my game smoother, so is there anything in particular you'd suggest? Do you usually write code specifically for simultaneous button presses? Granted what I have is pretty much the bare minimum (i.e. move x spaces as long as you're on the screen.)

[Dokken]

This is what i use:

{
if y>20 {if (keyboard_check(vk_up)) y -= 6 if (keyboard_check(vk_shift)) && (keyboard_check(vk_up)) y += 3} else y=20;
if y<385 {if(keyboard_check(vk_down)) y += 6 if (keyboard_check(vk_shift)) && (keyboard_check(vk_down)) y -= 3} else y=385;
if x>85 {if (keyboard_check(vk_left)) x -= 6 if (keyboard_check(vk_shift)) && (keyboard_check(vk_left)) x += 3} elsex=85;
if x<315 {if (keyboard_check(vk_right)) x += 6 if (keyboard_check(vk_shift)) && (keyboard_check(vk_right)) x -= 3} elsex=315;
}

Im not good at coding, so im sure theres a cleaner way to do what i did.
Basically it checks if the ships within view( i have side frame things), then moves the "direction" at normal speed "6". If shift is pressed, it moves slower "3". Then if its at the edge of view, it just stops.

I havent noticed any problems with two keys pressed at once on your game, sometimes its a hardware problem (keyboard, not coding). But i may be wrong

[Rozyrg]

New one

Well, I added some 8-way button code (pretty much what Dokken posted, except for the 'slow movement' stuff)... I want to say it feels a bit smoother; but I really dunno.

Also, Level 2 is simply level one repeated, just with different music. I do have some stuff ready to go for it, I just wanted to make sure the level transitions worked first.

[Rozyrg]

Updated!

Added a decent amount of stuff this time.. Level 2 is actually different for one thing. >_>

Still curious about the controls, though... they feel fine to me; but if there's some way they can be made smoother, I'm open to suggestions.

[null1024]

The bullets are practically invisible. They flash, but honestly, the bullets need to be dark with that light background. Also make their depth -99999 or something, I could have swore that an explosion appeared over a set of bullets.

The graphical style of the game did look bloody epic. Seriously, it looks good, I just need to see what I'm dodging.

PS: Why the low framerate [it felt like 30, but the game was running at what also felt to be full speed]?

[Rozyrg]

Well, glad you enjoyed the art at least.

Yet again I see that that damn visibility issue just..won't...DIE. Back to drawing board again I guess. *sigh*

As for the framerate, yep, it's 30. The reason being that before this was anything resembling a game, it was my first stab at GM and I left a lot of the basic settings and stuff alone. Now I'm far enough in that I don't want to change a billion and a half alarm settings.

I *might* decide to do it later on; but it'd be pretty far back in the queue. Any particular advantages other it being slightly smoother?

[Rozyrg]

Updated.

I added a black outline to the bullets.. it might be a bit severe; but I really want to squash the visibility problem. Let me know what yall think.

[agustusx]

I gave this a shot and i would say that the bullet visibility is still an issue. Its definitely the flashing. The graphics look nice, but since the background, player, enemies and bullets all share the same colors its really hard to make out what is moving on the screen at any moment.

If you could reserve a color, for bullets that you never used elsewhere it could help. I'm sure it would take a bit of work though.

[Rozyrg]

No doubt it will. Thanks for giving it a shot, though.

I have a feeling I'll have most of the game done before I finally squash this thing. *sigh*

[Rozyrg]

Updated Flying V!

http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/95432

Added new enemies, different weapon types, a new wave-based combo system (thanks again monkeyman!) and other stuff.

[monkeyman]

RE Flying V

I'd say you've got the same problems with bullet visibitlity. When not much is going on on-screen there's no real problem as the background is nice and dark, however, it's hard to see bullets over explosions and your bullets. Maybe if your own bullets were a little more low key some of the problems would be alleviated.

I also feel the basic enemies should die quicker (though that's a taste thing) and that everythings a little too big.

Outside of that, the presentation is great and I love your graphic style (what do you use to make those sprites?), and everything seems stable enough.

If you can get this visibility problem nailed then this could get more interesting.

[emphatic]

RE Flying V

I'd say you've got the same problems with bullet visibitlity. When not much is going on on-screen there's no real problem as the background is nice and dark, however, it's hard to see bullets over explosions and your bullets. Maybe if your own bullets were a little more low key some of the problems would be alleviated.

I also feel the basic enemies should die quicker (though that's a taste thing) and that everythings a little too big.

Outside of that, the presentation is great and I love your graphic style (what do you use to make those sprites?), and everything seems stable enough.

If you can get this visibility problem nailed then this could get more interesting.

I agree about the enemies are a bit too hard to kill, they fire very fast and aggressively towards you (great) but as they're so tough to put down, this makes the game feel a bit Euroshmup:y. And the game itself look very awesome IMO.

[Rozyrg]

Thanks for the input, guys! I'm not really surprised the visibility thing cropped up again. Oh well... I'll figure it out eventually. Glad yall like my art... it's all made with love in Adobe Illustrator 9.

Eventually I might break out the tablet again and try some more organic stuff; but PS is on my Mac (lost the disc for the PC version I had) and I hate moving stuff back and forth... especially when there's no cross compatibility, etc. etc.

everythings a little too big.

Well, I can at least say the bigness is intentional (mostly.) Maybe I'm just losing my vision, I dunno; but 'stuff being too small' is a common annoyance of mine with other people's games. I just usually don't say anything because I know it's only my quirk in most cases. >_>

a bit Euroshmup:y.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! *weeps bitter tears*

I did actually beef up a few enemies at one point... I thought it felt right at the time; but I think I know what you mean. The frustration of colliding with an enemy at the bottom of the screen right before you destroy it is definitely part of the Euroshmup experience. Time for some tweaking.
I personally think it's ok for mid/large size enemies to take a lot of punishment, though... gotta maintain that Toaplan tradition of big, tough bastards at regular intervals.

I'm pleased you liked the aggressiveness, too... high praise from a fellow shmup lover IMO. Especially now, too as I dont expect to hear much other than 'it's too hard!' in the near future. That's all I've heard from my friends so far...lol.

[null1024]

Flying V:

You took the first release, which was hard, but after a few runs became bearable, and decided to make it harder, raping you the moment you see a free space in a bullet pattern. I've been point-blanked [from behind even!], smashed in by enemies that come in so fast that you can't avoid them by the time you see them [same goes for the bullets], and then, debris is flying EVERYWHERE [wasn't a problem in the first release, but when you're getting shot at 2.5x more... and this seems to be most of my problems here, it obscures everything, because the bullets are actually visible in this game normally]! And this is only the first level!

WHY DO YOU HATE US SO?!


I do say, I like the bigness though.

[Rozyrg]

Maybe because people kept telling me my Blast Works levels were too easy and I was planning my revenge? >_>

Nah, just gotta unbreak a lot of stuff. The sneaky back shot for instance... the tanks aren't even supposed to be able to fire past a certain latitude; but the buggers still do anyways. The arrangement's pretty slapdash, too; but that's because all it really does is loop and repeat certain stuff every other time with minor changes and the like. Not a problem to amend, just gotta figure out some better stuff and then gut the filler.

Anyways, great to get feedback.

[Rozyrg]

Uploaded a new one with mostly minor changes today...including my first sad attempt at additional difficulty modes.

(Just in case those bullets weren't fast enough for ya already!)

[null1024]

Tone down the pyrotechnics. They're hiding the bullets in plain sight!

Also, noob mode is, well, just as easy as it says. It's also the first time I got to level 2 in this game.

[Rozyrg]

Yeah, I know I probably went overboard with it; but I *am* a firm believer in a game's visual feedback... just not sure when to stop I guess. >_>
(Truth be told, Raiden ][ and all it's debris spewing mayhem made a pretty big impression on me as a kid, too...)

I think it's a little better now that I've recolored the bullets (this sounds familiar...*sigh*); but if it's got to go, it's got to go...

[emphatic]

Both of your games has very appealing graphics. They do look kinda unique as well.

[Rozyrg]

Thanks a lot! Illustrator lends itself to a unique look anyways I think.

I did a quick update for ZpUltra today. I made another stab at the visibility problem and did some other minor stuff (like get a long dead bullet script working finally.) But yeah, opening it up now... wow, that's going to be *quite* a mess to clean up....ugh. I think I'm just going to put it to rest for awhile.

[Rozyrg]

Updated Flying V this morning.

Aside from cleaning up and reorganizing a bunch of stuff, I added a third wave. It's incomplete, of course; but it does show off several new enemies.

**edit.. apparently I missed a nice fat glitch. If you hit the second extend (3mil), your lives will increase indefinitely...yay. That's what I get for leaving out one little line of code.

[Rozyrg]

Updated Flying V today. Added waves 0 (quickie intro with some easier enemies) and 4(boss section)... and that marks the end of the first cluster of stages/waves. If I can get another one of these done, I'll be quite happy with myself.