OK, let's imagine a new SNES "sound novel" as they are sometimes called, but using the 8bpp mode for some gorgeous imagery

[Kirk_Johnston]

Since I just mentioned 8bpp palette cycling in passing in another post as well as just the other day shared the beginnings of the idea for a real SNES "sound novel" project like this with a SNES programmer, I might as well post something on that here now, as it's just one more thing to think about creating on the SNES in modern times--get the creative juices flowing.

 

The attached PresenceTest.zip file shows a single "page" of how I'd start thinking about doing that with lovely 8bpp images (you can press F4 to go fullscreen and the spacebar to turn text on/off).

 

So, hopefully you can imagine a full SNES novel like that, which I'd personally base on this story if it were my project (or at least the first most basic version of this idea anyway): https://t.co/l0qrvhKEi6

 

And you can even combine that with the 8bpp palette cycling method I previously proposed too, which was later very well demonstrated by the talented Brad Smith, plus a few other little tricks to turn it into something even more exciting.

 

What else do you think could be done there on SNES with something like this. . . .

PresenceTest.zip

Edited December 19, 2023 by Kirk_Johnston

[KulorXL]

Please don't take this the wrong way or like I'm hounding you or something, but this would be an awesome project for a beginner to SNES coding. You can code, you're posting Game Maker stuff right here, and if you can do that, I promise you could pull this off on the real SNES. You should really consider this as a gateway to SNES coding.

[+Biff Burgertime]

Man... I wish I was super interested in a subject & got supportive replies like this, especially from someone who's been making not just interesting but meaningful contributions to the community like Kulor's thread detailing all that Mode 7 info, plus that cool Shmup project. Not just any ol' faceless scrub popping up saying "cmon you can do it!" but like, a respectable name.

 

Shame it'll fall on deaf ears. Even after all the dumb shit we've seen posted over the past... what, ~1.5years here at AA now? I would still happily cheer Kurt on if he shifted gears and started showing some real effort, successful or not. I'd welcome such a shift in attitude, if he struggled then I wouldn't be mocking him. Many of us have had passion projects over the years and can relate, and nearly everyone loves to cheer on the underdog.

 

Sadly he's made up his mind for good that he simply can't and won't. "Try" is outside the realm of what could be considered.

[jeffythedragonslayer]

1 hour ago, Biff Burgertime said:

Kurt

Cobain 

[+Biff Burgertime]

1 hour ago, Biff Burgertime said:

Kurt

Propane

[Austin]

Zero downloads.

[+Biff Burgertime]

They can't fit through Kurt Porpane's narrow urethra, I guess.

[roots.genoa]

14 hours ago, Austin said:

Zero downloads.

Don't worry, word of mouth will soon prevail! 😤

[Kirk_Johnston]

Well, the download link certainly works, so that's not the problem, but here's what it currently looks like anyway (just grabbed screenshots of the demo running fullscreen):

 

Note: I used an AI tool to generate the image above that looks pretty close to the actual scene as I pictured it for this beginning section of the story.

 

Note 2: Nothing about this is meant to be final, but just representative of the way I might approach it and the kind of visual quality you could get on SNES.

 

And, since I'm uploading images, here's a few more of the kind of quality something like this could have, although these would be more suited to a fantasy adventure type of story (I think these were possibly generated by AI too, but I just got them from a quick Google search):

 

You can definitely get some truly lovely images with that 8bpp mode on SNES, which is perfect for this kind of visual novel idea.

 

And, you may or may not have seen the video below before, but you can get an idea of how you could also scroll some of these fullscreen 8bpp images too just to make some parts of such a visual novel a little more dynamic (with actually still more possible there as well):

 

Again, I originally mentioned all of this in my SNESdev posts from 2022, so I'm really just demonstrating some of that a bit further in here.

Edited December 21, 2023 by Kirk_Johnston

[Tanooki]

At this point I think we have the revelation that ChatGPT could make a better program, a representation that actually could work.

[TrekkiesUnite118]

As I told you previously Kirk, if you are truly dead set on using an 8bpp color mode and doing a visual novel then you should probably take a look at things like Sakura Wars. This would probably be a pretty good set up for Mode 3, maybe even Mode 5. Basically have your 8bpp layer be the background image of the scenery the player is in, then the 4bpp layer can be the character the player is interacting with. Then you can use sprites for all the facial animations and details, etc. Limiting it to a window can save VRAM space and allow you to use the rest of the screen for your UI, text box, etc.

 

 

[Cris1997XX]

Or...you know, just make a game for the Sega Saturn. I think it would be a console better suited to his "ambitions" 🤣

[jeffythedragonslayer]

52 minutes ago, Cris1997XX said:

Or...you know, just make a game for the Sega Saturn. I think it would be a console better suited to his "ambitions" 🤣

I'd rather develop for the Saturn than Uranus.

[TrekkiesUnite118]

Honestly the Saturn is probably easier to get into at this point since it's all C and all of Sega's libraries will still compile with modern GCC.

[CapitanClassic]

3 hours ago, jeffythedragonslayer said:

I'd rather develop for the Saturn than Uranus.

The trifecta....

[Boschloo]

On 12/21/2023 at 11:14 AM, TrekkiesUnite118 said:

As I told you previously Kirk, if you are truly dead set on using an 8bpp color mode and doing a visual novel then you should probably take a look at things like Sakura Wars. This would probably be a pretty good set up for Mode 3, maybe even Mode 5. Basically have your 8bpp layer be the background image of the scenery the player is in, then the 4bpp layer can be the character the player is interacting with. Then you can use sprites for all the facial animations and details, etc. Limiting it to a window can save VRAM space and allow you to use the rest of the screen for your UI, text box, etc.

 

 

You must play Sega Saturn!

[Razzie.P]

1 hour ago, Boschloo said:

You must play Sega Saturn!

C'mon dude... Kirk has already done a great job leaving a massive shitstain on SNES around here.  Please don't do the same for Saturn by feeling like you have to reply to every thread on AA (even some 20 years old that you're digging up) with some reminder that Sega Saturn exists.  I promise you most of us already know about it, many of us already do play it, and that sort of thing only proves to be annoying.

[jeffythedragonslayer]

16 hours ago, Razzie.P said:

Kirk has already done a great job

Amen.

[Cris1997XX]

1 hour ago, jeffythedragonslayer said:

Amen.

Damn, are you his personal lapdog or something?

[jeffythedragonslayer]

3 minutes ago, Cris1997XX said:

Damn, are you his personal lapdog or something?

Are you dogfood?

[Tanooki]

On 12/23/2023 at 1:31 PM, Razzie.P said:

C'mon dude... Kirk has already done a great job leaving a massive shitstain on SNES around here.  Please don't do the same for Saturn by feeling like you have to reply to every thread on AA (even some 20 years old that you're digging up) with some reminder that Sega Saturn exists.  I promise you most of us already know about it, many of us already do play it, and that sort of thing only proves to be annoying.

He already crossed that barrier and I started laying into him for it, so he pulled a kirk and hit the ignore button saying I was the problem.   Started nice, then got far less nice, but not rule breaking not nice.  I hope we all learned a lesson, so far it seems so, as NO ONE IS REPLYING TO HIS THREADS.  Thanks!  Maybe he's Kirk jr, broke off from some Inceptional moment.

[Kirk_Johnston]

Here's something else that 8bpp mode can be used for too, as nicely demonstrated by Rare with its animated 8bpp logo and highlighted by Brad here:

 

I wonder if [along with everything else I'd be using the 8bpp mode for in the game idea above and other ideas] I could also do a nice animated iNCEPTIONAL logo at the start of any SNES games I'd like to make using a similar technique to the one Rare used above. Guess I'd need to talk to a programmer about how such a thing might be approached to get it to look lovely as it animates and technically work properly. Reckon you could get some real sweet and indeed pretty dang complex looking animated effects at almost not cost there, just by cycling some proper high-colour palettes.

 

Nice to know the SNES' 8bpp palette cycling method can really be used for so many effects (and just how versatile the 8bpp mode is in general). And, as per the usual, I don't think we've even sniffed the full potential there at all.

Edited December 24, 2023 by Kirk_Johnston

[turboxray]

20 minutes ago, Kirk_Johnston said:

....

Nice to know this 8bpp palette cycling method can really be used for so many effects (and just how versatile the 8bpp mode is in general). And, as per the use', I don't even think we've sniffed the full potential there at all.

Quote

don't even think we've sniffed the full potential there at all.

Quote

we've sniffed the full..

Quote

.. sniffed ..

... okay what???? That's a hell of a Freudian slip hahah. I'm not kink shaming, but let's keep it decent, yeah? FYI.. it's "scratched".. "scratched the full potential".

Edited December 24, 2023 by turboxray

[Wayler]

But we have certainly have sniffed the full and only potential that Kirk has to offer. 

[jeffythedragonslayer]

9 hours ago, Tanooki said:

I hope we all learned a lesson, so far it seems so, as NO ONE IS REPLYING TO HIS THREADS.  Thanks!  Maybe he's Kirk jr, broke off from some Inceptional moment.

Except for me, cause I had my tray table up and my seat back in the full upright position.