Sum Machina: The Final Weapon

[leofox]

[DarkerLine]

A crane is a machine.

[Apostle]

Okay, got some screens and mocked one up to look like how the finished product should look in my opinion:

The title page, but this has been drastically changed already to be smaller and better in memory. At one point a shade command filled the screen so it looked semi-professional, but I eventually got tired of sitting through it while debugging segments of code.
The Title Screen

Here is the main menu with options for building a mech, training against an AI mech (randomly generated), playing against a friend (via link cable, but I don't know how that will pan out), the missions, and finally the mapmaker and the program exit.
Main Menu

Here is a view of gameplay as I have setup right now. It is missing a few aspects (CI is basically HP and EC is special energy) but is otherwise running smooth. The degrees that the player is facing is not restricted to just within 360 degrees or positive numbers, and that compass next to the map (with a light greyscale-like points indicating your position) was pretty "fun" to develop.
In-Game

This is the last screen, but setup like how I want it to basically look like as a finished product. I guess it isn't much different since all that changed was the EC and CI counters work, there is a cursor in the middle of the screen (not supposed to move), and there is the 2nd and ALPHA words at the top to signify that the corresponding weapon system has been activated (fired in the direction of the number key pressed, for example 7 fires at an upwards angle to the left). Until I can figure out how to clear a specific and large section of the screen (2/3rds, all but the top) I just use a picture file and save and recall it continuously after erasing and redrawing the bottom. Also, for anyone who saw the original raycasting demo, this looks much smoother and due to the use of pxl-test in place of a matrix moves even faster.
Finished Concept

Players check out parts here and then select which they use in the assembler area
Equipment List

My "two-dimensional menu" modified from the rest of the menus in the interface. Notice the funny symbols! Might change, because if I pass it out at school people are going to bug me about how I got simga, alpha, and the like on there.
The Assembler

Only one concept picture now (if I showed you the real ones you'd understand why I can't make them sprites; they are too detailed). In any event, enjoy.

EDIT: Sorry about the pictures, they just came out as .bmp when I made them and I'll try and get them changed into something easier to view shortly.

[axcho]

Nice. How fast does the engine run? Are you erasing the old lines with a Line() command with the last parameter set to zero, or just ClrDraw? Another way you could do it is use plots with the type set to xyLine instead of Scatter. I don't know if that erases the whole screen or just the lines. You could test that out. Also, if it is fast enough (not likely) you could use plots for the scaled enemy sprites! And I would recommend drawing the cursor as a Pt-On of a cross.

So am I going to get a ton of email that people will expect me to reply to? Thanks for the recognition. You don't have to put my whole email address though. Maybe just "AXCHO" or something. I don't know. It's fine I think.

[Apostle]

Well, at the moment I simply draw the initial picture stuff (radar, words, and the lines seperating the top and bottom "hemispheres") and save it as a pic file and then use clearDraw and recall the picture immediately afterwards. Of course using inverse lines would work too, but I haven't gotten around to fully optimizing the modified code yet.

And I don't think you'd get a ton of Email from this, to tell you the truth...

[axcho]

[alexrudd]

[Lunar Wolf Demon]

I'm a newbie.What kind of game is Sum Machina?I'm making a game called Demon Realm.How do i start my on topic?Someone Please tell me!

[leofox]

About Sum Machina: check the first post in this topic.
About Demon Realm: go to the project ideas / start new projects subforum, and make a new topic there.
I like the name Demon Realm! It sounds very much like my own project, Destiny Realm!

[Apostle]

About the screen thing, I actually never knew about "anti-lines" before, so I implemented it and it actually proves to be very useful (I can control movement speeds now!). More importantly it frees up the pic variable.

To tell you the truth, aside from optimizing, there is very little left. I just have to get some sprites (see sprite requests in TI-BASIC section) and get some enemies and a campaign story and all that mundane stuff associated. A recent RAM clear at the hands of a fool (a complete and utter FOOL!) set me back two days, but I had a backup, thankfully, and knew what to fix. So I'm progressing ever so slowly.

In terms of linking for multiplayer, I haven't got a clue what I'm doing, but fortunately my sister has a calc to experiment, er, test with.

EDIT: YES!!! I found an ASM linking program! I guess I didn't look hard enough. http://www.ticalc.org/archives/files/fileinfo/340/34072.html

[necro]

Me taedet. Ego volo ire et vexo meus magistram.

Irata est. Non amat me qoud semper molesto.

[Apostle]

Unfortunately, I do not know very much latin to understand that, but I can pick out a few pieces here and there. :P

I beleive I have strained the engine to the end of it's ability and I'm starting to think that I may require a lib for this or even just write the raycasting code in ASM. The only hurdle, I guess, is that I don't know if ASM does trig functions...otherwise everything on the frontend is complete and the engine is all that is left to modify.

(BTW, since when did I get moderating options? Ah, nevermind. )

[alexrudd]

Everyone gets moderation options for topics they created: how else would you delete a topic?

[necro]

[leofox]

STERCVS STERCVS STERCVS MORITVRVS SVM
FABRICATI DIEM, PVNC
QUANTA CALIGULA ILLA IN FENESTRA

that's enough dog latin for today.

[DarkerLine]

[necro]

I know the Ego is optional but always include them because it makes it faster for me to read, sorry I forgot to put on an infinitive ending but molestus-a-um is a adjetive, vexare is the verb that means 'to anoy' and the her can be inferred and can be omitted. Regardless if the phrase 'to go and to_verb_ "exists, the words fit together to say something to that effect...omit two syntax errors.

[DarkerLine]

[Apostle]

I hope nobody thought I abandoned the project, but I have been redesigning a portion of the content and making some sprites. The pictures I posted before (somewhere) have been 'sprite-itized', and I'll upload them soon enough. The game now consists of 15 missions, each rewarding the player with cash to buy more complex parts (a built-in tutorial, in a sense) and rewards excellent play with hidden parts. Each mech is now built of a chassis (that has either boosters, shields, other anti-weapons, etc.), three weapons (each arm and a back), an energy supply system, and an optional part (the effects are not described, the player must discover the functions). There is a 15 enemy arena, about 30-40 parts, various weapon types, stealth (easy, since it's monochrome ) with a background inverter to spot stealth users, and, of course, linked versus. If I cannot get linked versus to work, I have a new idea, inspired by the idiotic (for the PSP) game, Formula Front, where you program an AI to fight for you on one system.

BTW, the full name has been changed to Sum Machina: Iuramus, or I am the Machine: We swear it.

I'm learning ASM, so that is why you don't see much coding going on right now from me .

edit: sorry, can't spell today.

[Madskillz]

Thats cool, great to hear this project and you aren't dead! Oh and keep up with the ASM, it is hard at first, but you will get the hang of it. I recommend ASM in 28 days if you haven't looked into that already. Oh and other people's source is always good to, when you can see the source and then see the action that it produces, it is a great way to learn...the best in my opinion.