Time Wizard - a game for ABBUC Software Contest 2023

[amarok]

22 hours ago, MrFish said:

I create graphics in Photoshop, import them into Graph2Font, then open the resulting font in FontMaker for final manipulations.

Yes, I know that Graph2Font is a powerful tool dedicated to creating graphics by artists like you.

 

Initially, I considered using G2F but I realized that for me the tool is too sophisticated.

I am just a software developer without any experience and skills with graphics creation tools.

Besides, title and final screens are not designed for character mode but for bitmap mode because of the limited size in RAM.

 

I am not sure if G2F is suitable for designing of bitmap graphics, the name suggests font based images. But of course, I might be completely wrong.

[+MrFish]

42 minutes ago, amarok said:

Initially, I considered using G2F but I realized that for me the tool is too sophisticated.

I am just a software developer without any experience and skills with graphics creation tools.

Yeah, understood... there is a learning curve.

 

42 minutes ago, amarok said:

Besides, title and final screens are not designed for character mode but for bitmap mode because of the limited size in RAM.

I was referring to your tiling that's done in FontMaker. There is a straightforward method for turning your graphics into a font (and not allowing Graph2Font to make it a jumbled mess of pieces).

 

I could do a demonstration for you. It basically amounts to prearranging the graphics in your graphics editor (Photoshop or whatever) that you want to put into a font. Then forcing Graph2Font to keep them in that order by using "Standard" (non-optimized) conversion. Once they're in there, you just export the font data only and it's done. You can then open the font in FontMaker to work with for designing your screens (although you can design screens in Graph2Font too). You can also convert more than one font worth of graphics at a time.

 

42 minutes ago, amarok said:

I am not sure if G2F is suitable for designing of bitmap graphics, the name suggests font based images. But of course, I might be completely wrong.

You can do both in Graph2Font. Your bitmap can become a font-based image, which will possibly afford some more color use by using the 5th color of Antic 4. All your PMG's and DLI's can be added once your image is in Graph2Font, to create a final image. It can be saved out in various formats including XEX, ASM, etc. Use of all facilities takes some learning, but the basic graphics to font for tiles that I describe in my previous comment is not complex at all.

 

You can also export a Graph2Font image as a bitmap. This won't include any 5th color information (for Antic 4), of course.

 

Graph2Font can also work in other modes than Antic 4, including GTIA modes, Antic F, Antic 2, Antic E, etc., and mixed modes as well.

 

Anyway, it might be helpful to learn some bits and pieces, to start. Like I say, you can save a lot of time for certain simple tasks.

 

[ivop]

48 minutes ago, MrFish said:

although you can design screens in Graph2Font too

Would it be possible to design screens/levels with 4x4 character tiles of which each row (4 characters) is from a different 128 character font? The end result would be 32 possible tiles of 4x4 characters. If so, that'll save me a huge amount of time for an idea I'm having.

[_The Doctor__]

4 sets of 128 character fonts to flip in and out of?

[+MrFish]

44 minutes ago, ivop said:

Would it be possible to design screens/levels with 4x4 character tiles of which each row (4 characters) is from a different 128 character font? The end result would be 32 possible tiles of 4x4 characters. If so, that'll save me a huge amount of time for an idea I'm having.

Should be possible. Want share an example of what you're working with, so I can do a test? (You can send to PM if you don't want to post here)

 

[pps]

 

7 hours ago, ivop said:

Would it be possible to design screens/levels with 4x4 character tiles of which each row (4 characters) is from a different 128 character font? The end result would be 32 possible tiles of 4x4 characters. If so, that'll save me a huge amount of time for an idea I'm having.

Yes this can work. But your tiles have to be within one screen as you can just save, what is visible. So 192x240 is most possible resolution to create for 5 colors gfx.

You can define this behavior by using the jgp+ option. 

[ivop]

Thanks. It's a pity it can't work with larger maps, like 128x64 characters for an overworld map.

 

@MrFish I have not drawn any tiles yet, so I cannot send you any sample material.

 

Perhaps I can use Tiled with some conversion scripts. (https://www.mapeditor.org/ )

[+MrFish]

1 hour ago, ivop said:

Thanks. It's a pity it can't work with larger maps, like 128x64 characters for an overworld map.

I don't use them myself, but I think Envision & EnvisionPC can work with large maps.

 

Macro Edit (EdMac) works with large maps too (and definable tile/macro sizes), but can only use a single character set at a time.

 

1 hour ago, ivop said:

@MrFish I have not drawn any tiles yet, so I cannot send you any sample material.

Ah, ok. I thought you might have been working with some existing graphics that just needed converting to Atari, or something like that; then I would have just done a rough conversion for an example.

 

[ivop]

2 hours ago, MrFish said:

I don't use them myself, but I think Envision & EnvisionPC can work with large maps.

Yes, I use EnvisionPC all the time for designing fonts. It does support multiple fonts, but unlike the native Envision, there's no tile editor or map editor which makes it hard to design tiles larger than 1 character. I might have a look at the native version again under emulation, although I doubt it supports multiple fonts switched by DLI's.

 

[ivop]

21 hours ago, _The Doctor__ said:

4 sets of 128 character fonts to flip in and out of?

Yes, and also repeat the screen memory four times, which reduces the memory requirements. You show four times for example ABCD, but the contents on screen differ according to which font is selected, creating a full 4x4 tile.

[+MrFish]

9 minutes ago, ivop said:

I might have a look at the native version again under emulation, although I doubt it supports multiple fonts switched by DLI's.

 

From the native Envision manual:

 

<SELECT A> - Assign Font

This command allows you to have more than one font on your map. On the 800/800XL machines, you can select from either your redefined font, or the Atari ROM set. On the 130XE, you can choose any of the 16 fonts, or the ROM set. When you select the ASSIGN FONT command, you will be asked for a font to assign to the row that the cursor is on. Press <R> to assign the ROM set. On the 800/800XL, press <F> to use your redefined font. On the 130XE, press a letter in the range <A> through to <P> for one of the 16 fonts. After selecting the desired font, it will instantly be used by the row of your map that the map cursor is on.

 

[ivop]

Just now, MrFish said:

 

From the native Envision manual:

 

<SELECT A>-Assign Font

This command allows you to have more than one font on your map.On the 800/800XL machines, you can select from either your redefined font, or the Atari ROM set. On the 130XE, you can choose any of the 16 fonts, or the ROM set. When you select the ASSIGN FONT command, you will be asked for a font to assign to the row that the cursor is on. Press <R> to assign the ROM set. On the 800/800XL, press <F> to use your redefined font. On the 130XE, press a letter in the range <A> through to <P> for one of the 16 fonts. After selecting the desired font, it will instantly be used by the row of your map that the map cursor is on.

 

LOL, I literally just read that this second and was about to post it

[+MrFish]

24 minutes ago, ivop said:

It does support multiple fonts, but unlike the native Envision, there's no tile editor or map editor which makes it hard to design tiles larger than 1 character.

I just had a quick look, and there is a map editor mode <m> in PC Envision and it does support tiles; although I don't know about the details of working with it, since, as I said, I don't use it.

 

[Irgendwer]

4 hours ago, ivop said:

Perhaps I can use Tiled with some conversion scripts. (https://www.mapeditor.org/ )

Sure, that works very well. I really have a hard time to understand that many productions include creating an own map editor with limited functionality.

Why not using the "Pro"-tools when available?

Conversion of the output to match own needs is quite easy...

 

See also:

 

[ivop]

29 minutes ago, MrFish said:

I just had a quick look, and there is a map editor mode <m> in PC Envision and it does support tiles; although I don't know about the details of working with it, since, as I said, I don't use it.

Thanks. I was completely unaware of that mode.

[+MrFish]

3 minutes ago, ivop said:

Thanks. I was completely unaware of that mode.

Download the manual from my site that I linked to above: it's bookmarked to get around in easier.

 

[ggn]

Well, I just got this on my monior:

I guess that I'm progressing through the game?

 

Jokes aside, massive kudos to @amarok for pulling this project through. People like him really bring the Atari 800 close to the top 8 bit platforms (if not the absolute top) when it comes to modern games (along with releases like Adam Is Me, Gravity Worms, Ridiculous Reality, and so many others).

 

There are so many things to praise: The very sensibly graphics (pretty much everything is clear and is easily "readable" so there is no ambiguity of their function), the music selection, the Braid inspired mechanics. I really hope many people will make progress and discover the surprises the game has to offer. There are no powerups or new abilities to earn: everything is there from the beginning of the game, but there are so many ways to exploit the rewind mechanics in order to finish some levels. It certainly is satisfying when an "a-ha!" moment comes and then you know how to finish a seemingly impossible level.

 

It is also very interesting to notice how most of the modern gameplay ideas could have been implemented from the early 80s, but nobody was experienced enough in game design to actually go and implement them. (as another example check out Zachtronics' "Dungeons and diagrams" https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2831798266, it is so straightforward that literally any 8bit machine could have handled it in the 80s, but the games of that genre back then simply lacked the sophistication in game design we have these days).

 

I now hope that the author will allow me some nitpicks/criticism/etc: My biggest complaint while playing the game were a few levels that included the pressure pad. Not that there is a problem with the mechanic per se, but it was used in a way that was very bothersome, i.e. pressing a pad would activate/deactivate something off-screen which was really hard to know beforehand (or try to remember what each pad does). I think some slight alterations in the levels could have fixed this and the game would have been more enjoyable, however I did eventually preservere and finished those levels. And then when I would come across other levels with pressure pads, my reaction was "Oh no..." :).

 

There are some other minor points, like (if I'm not mistaken) when you were killed the time would be moving forward still, so when it was time to rewind I had to go back several seconds as my brain had to pause and reflect for a bit and get ready for another go. This would sometimes make me miss the point where I wanted to stop the rewind (and especially since there is no forward movement in rewind), I would end up having to play some part of the level again. Sometimes it would be parts I thought I was done with and had to solve the puzzles again. But again, no biggie, I toughed it out and moved on.

 

Anyway, I guess I'll stop here before I get super rambly and get wildly off topic :). tl;dr - fantastic game, thank you so much for making it, I had a blast playing it!

[amarok]

@ggn, thank you very much for your comprehensive review of the game. I'm glad that you like the game enough that you decided to go through all the levels. By the way, big congratulations! You are the third person I know who has accomplished this :).

 

Thank you for paying attention to the details that appeal to you, such as the graphics, music and game mechanics in general. However, I am definitely more grateful to you for your valuable comments on what could be improved. I am aware that some levels could be redesigned to make the game more rewarding. I think that if I could spend more time than 5 months to create the game, I could refine many elements. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find the balance between family, work and hobbies that take up a lot of time.

 

You mentioned that time can only be rewound and not pushed forward. It may not be so obvious at first glance, but in Time Wizard you can move the saved history forward as well. Please let me explain how it works.

 

When you press the fire button then time stops. While you have the button pressed and move the joystick to the left it will start rewind the time at speed x0.5. As you move the joystick to the left again it will speed up the reversal to x1, then x2 and x4. Remember to keep fire pressed all the time.

 

When rewind is on, you can move the joystick to the right and reduce the rewind speed, i.e. from x4 to x2, from x2 to x1 and from x1 to x0.5. If you rewind at speed x0.5 and move the joystick to the right then you start a pause. If you move the joystick to the right again then you start moving forward through the stored history. You can also adjust the speed by successively moving the joystick to the right. In this way you can move forward and backward through the entire saved history to find the right moment for you.

 

At any time as you release the fire button you stop replaying the stored gameplay and you can move the hero again. Everything that you have done in the past is still saved and you can press the button again and rewind time. However, if you release the button the future is overwritten with new actions and you can no longer retrieve it. Therefore, it is important to keep the button pressed as long as you need to back to the future.

 

I hope the above description is not too confusing. If necessary, I can make a short video to illustrate what I wrote :).

[pps]

@amarok: Even if I have not finished the game, I wnat to say some words about my impression.

 

I really like the concept of this plattformer. Turning time around is a really nice option to play with. All the levels are well created and difficulty seems to be correct. I was able to get thru some levels really easy, but there are some levels, that are not so easy. Graphics, animations and sound combines together to a very well atmosphere.

In short words: Well done! Thank you very much for this high grade game for our little machine.

[patjomki]

On 10/6/2023 at 4:19 PM, ggn said:

Well, I just got this on my monior:

 

@amarok

 

Why is noone able to use spoiler tags these days? 😪

[ggn]

On 10/12/2023 at 10:33 PM, amarok said:

@ggn, thank you very much for your comprehensive review of the game. I'm glad that you like the game enough that you decided to go through all the levels. By the way, big congratulations! You are the third person I know who has accomplished this :).

 

Thank you for paying attention to the details that appeal to you, such as the graphics, music and game mechanics in general. However, I am definitely more grateful to you for your valuable comments on what could be improved. I am aware that some levels could be redesigned to make the game more rewarding. I think that if I could spend more time than 5 months to create the game, I could refine many elements. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find the balance between family, work and hobbies that take up a lot of time.

Fully agreed. Braid took 3 years to finish, and it was a full time project. And even then one can criticise the level design. On one hand, I hope I didn't come across as really snotty :). On the other hand, being compared against a game like Braid is in itself a great achievement, and for me drawing parallels between the two games is almost unavoidable.

On 10/12/2023 at 10:33 PM, amarok said:

 

You mentioned that time can only be rewound and not pushed forward. It may not be so obvious at first glance, but in Time Wizard you can move the saved history forward as well. Please let me explain how it works.

 

When you press the fire button then time stops. While you have the button pressed and move the joystick to the left it will start rewind the time at speed x0.5. As you move the joystick to the left again it will speed up the reversal to x1, then x2 and x4. Remember to keep fire pressed all the time.

 

When rewind is on, you can move the joystick to the right and reduce the rewind speed, i.e. from x4 to x2, from x2 to x1 and from x1 to x0.5. If you rewind at speed x0.5 and move the joystick to the right then you start a pause. If you move the joystick to the right again then you start moving forward through the stored history. You can also adjust the speed by successively moving the joystick to the right. In this way you can move forward and backward through the entire saved history to find the right moment for you.

 

At any time as you release the fire button you stop replaying the stored gameplay and you can move the hero again. Everything that you have done in the past is still saved and you can press the button again and rewind time. However, if you release the button the future is overwritten with new actions and you can no longer retrieve it. Therefore, it is important to keep the button pressed as long as you need to back to the future.

 

I hope the above description is not too confusing. If necessary, I can make a short video to illustrate what I wrote :).

No, I got it, no worries. I realised I must have done this pleny of times while playing but I didn't fully realise. My problem was mainly that when I let go of the fire button, the redo buffer was immediately gone, and I happened to do this many times out of instict (that's my only guess).

Just to remind myself, I installed Braid and played a bunch of it just to remind me how that game implemented undo/redo. Apparently once you hit the undo button, time starts rewinding immediately, and then you can change speed or freeze, etc. So maybe I was trying to replicate that in some way. In other words, this is probably a "me" problem :). (Also, I understand whey you want the time frozen when you press the fire button in Time Wizard).

 

5 hours ago, patjomki said:

 

Why is noone able to use spoiler tags these days? 😪

Well I can't brag about my gaming behind spoler tags, can I?

[patjomki]

2 hours ago, ggn said:

Well I can't brag about my gaming behind spoler tags, can I?

 

🙃

I only meant the ending screen.

[Wilheim]

Great!

 

I think this game could be a great candidate to make it work on the FlashSRAM I’m designing. That way the game would work on 64k ram

machines.

Edited October 17, 2023 by Wilheim

[TheNameOfTheGame]

On 10/15/2023 at 2:55 PM, patjomki said:

 

🙃

I only meant the ending screen.

I'll probably never see it 😁 so I didn't mind personally, but yeah, it is good practice to put ending screens in spolier tags.

[amarok]

On 10/15/2023 at 12:20 PM, pps said:

In short words: Well done! Thank you very much for this high grade game for our little machine.

Thank you very much for your kind words. Our little beloved computer definitely deserves to keep making new games :).

 

On 10/17/2023 at 3:44 AM, Wilheim said:

I think this game could be a great candidate to make it work on the FlashSRAM I’m designing. That way the game would work on 64k ram

machines.

I don't know the technical details of the device. Is it a sort of cartridge or something completely different? How fast it can read/write the data into its memory?

Anyway, it would be really great to make possible to run Time Wizard on a stock 64kB Atari.

 

On 10/15/2023 at 12:41 PM, patjomki said:

Why is noone able to use spoiler tags these days? 😪

Concerning the ending screen... I am affraid I will have to draw another picture in this situation .