Osiris37, thanks for the feedback! I too had a soft spot for the old block/tile based line of sight. Might not have even started down this path if there wasn't a collective "meh" over the first tech demo video I made (not anyone here, more of the app-buying public at TouchArcade). The comments that I received there were enough to spur me on. Rather than do what's already been done visually, I would try to mix some more modern effects with the 16-bit era characters and monsters. Now I am glad that I tried... this is very cool in motionosiris37 wrote:Wow CD that's looking really nice, although I have a nostalgic fondness for the Nes like scrolling from your first tech demos, this one adds a hell of lot more 'creepy' atmosphere, and I thing would actually have more of a motivating pull to find the next exit as you feel something could be lurking in the darkness to grab you...
Great work as always
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_e_biggrin.gif)
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New status update (as posted at TA too)- Many smaller bits of progress were made this week:
1) Tweaked cave generation a bit more, and improved the handling of wall torches so their light did not leak into adjacent areas where it should not be visible (unless you happened to have x-ray vision that is). I think the base algorithms and visual representation of caves are finished now. Things are looking great here!
2) Found a stupid bug in my tech demo code that was adding and drawing an extra vertice every frame. This would slowly compound over time until the demo would crash. Good news, it's fixed. Even better news, is the performance of screen updates was unaffected even when thousands of unwanted extra draw commands were being issued by the bug. That means I've got lots of potential for fancy particle effects even after the game logic and AI is running!
![Uber Geek :ugeek:](./images/smilies/icon_e_ugeek.gif)
3) Took my castle & dungeon generation code and threw out most of it, started over fresh. Came up with some new methods that create great man-made layouts, squarish walls, passages and so on. Unlike Rogue Touch (and the original rogue) you will not find "dead end" hallways in Mineko. A hallway will always end in a room of some sort, even if it simply loops back around and connects to the room you came from! Room size and placement is much more varied, no more 3x3 grid of rooms like RT. This algorithm is capable of creating enormous levels, but I am limiting it to a reasonable size for the main game. Maybe the "post-game" bonus dungeons will have some super-sized floors
![Mr. Green :mrgreen:](./images/smilies/icon_mrgreen.gif)
4) Started working on random Forest and outdoor-world level generation. Already, I am surprised and pleased with the results I am getting! This creates some very interesting terrain, looking like smooth walking paths and openings into fields/meadows. Unfortunately my forest tileset is *FAR* from complete, so I have no close-up shots of what it'll look like, but I have included samples using some generic color-blocks below. In the end, there should be a variety of dirt, grass, trees, flowers, and water mixed in.
The picture embedded here is a sampling of how the areas are structurally and visually distinct. An area is not just a series of hallways and square or rectangular rooms... each one has its own feel. Each of the environments in the game will have little hidden and interactive features to them (some of which I have figured out and some I am still defining).
For now, enjoy the terrain sample and please feel free to ask if you have any questions
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif)
![Image](http://www.chronosoft.com/SHM/DungeonSamples480.png)