DizzyAGE Easter Competition 2010 [ENDED]

All very interesting. Is there a gentlemanly policy about voting on your own games? It feels a bit unseemly to be able to. Gentlemanly conduct and all that.

In years past, I have always voted on my own games, based on how I think they compared to the competition. I generally award 10 to the game I consider to be the best (assuming it warrants it), then use that as a point of reference.

I think that as long as you’re honest about the scoring, and how you rate your game in comparison to the rest, then it’s fine.

:smile:

Fair enough. Author ratings are likely to skew above the average anyway, I think, because we try to make the kind of games we like.

With half the voting time nearly gone, I thought I'd do a post detailing my thoughts about the other 10 games in the competition. It's impossible for me to go into acres of detail for each game, but I hope to give my main thoughts and impressions.

I'll use :tup: for things i liked, and :tdown: for things i wasn't keen on, then give my overall impression of the game. I'm not trying to be harsh or unfair, but I feel that honest feedback can only help to improve games in the future. I would invite people in turn to give feedback on my games. :smile:

In the order on the comp page:

Hide & Seek Dizzy

:tup: - the 32bit graphics
- very good music
- scrolling works very well with the 32bit graphics
- very nice game concept
- it's a nice change to play a smaller game
- the Dizzy skeleton! not sure eggs have skeletons though...

:tdown: - no custom game icons
- it's really quite an easy game

Overall Impressions
I really liked playing this game. It's a nice original idea for a game, and not too hard or too large. It's a joy to play, and the game scrolling really works well with the 32bit graphics. Very polished, great fun!

Swampland Dizzy

:tup: - some nicely detailed graphics
- has custom game icons
- very good for a first game

:tdown: - swamps look like normal landscape, causing sudden unexpected death
- some speech in quotation marks, some not
- some shortened room names. what's 'est d'cne wst incline'?
- not easy to see some items in front of scenery
- a lot of the outdoor setting feels very empty, and not really there for any reason

Overall Impressions
This is, like most people's first games these days, a worthy addition to the list of DizzyAGE games, with hints of the graphical style to come in Feverbound. However as with most first games, it isn't as polished as it could be, and the map sprawls in a way that it really doesn't need to. Overall though, it's a good game, and it's good to see custom game icons being used!

Feverbound Dizzy

:tup: - has custom game icons
- Very nice graphics
- I like the train ride
- the game feels smaller than Swampland, with more happening

:tdown: - the game cuts to 'hospital' room when starting, then immediately fades away
- some scaled up graphics don't look too good
- not too keen on the style of music
- not easy to see some items in front of scenery
- some puzzles are very frustrating

Overall Impressions
The second of Matt's games is much improved in pretty much every way. Some of the graphics are among the best in the competition, and the game feels smaller than Swampland, with more to do, and less 'padding' rooms. On the downside, it's still not easy to see items in front of the scenery, and I'm not keen on the style of music. Overall, a much better game than Swampland, and despite being slightly frustrating, it's still good fun to play.

Lost Temple Dizzy

:tup: - the non-item puzzles
- the coin text rising is a good effect
- 4 separate areas
- very good for a first game

:tdown: - no custom icons
- not keen on the font style
- the in-filling of the graphics tiles to work with a blue background doesn't look too good

Overall Impressions
This was another game that I really enjoyed playing. It's the first one that I completed, and has some very original ideas! I liked the 'no-item' puzzles so much that they helped inspire sections in ETD. Some of the effects such as the rising text for the coin items are also very good, even if I did help to code them! I also liked that the game is effectively split into 5 sections, which helps with the difficulty, and also makes it seem smaller than it is. There were a couple of things I didn't like however. The in-filling of the graphics tiles to cope with the blue background gives the game a very 'washed' feel, especially above ground, and I'm really not keen on the font style. Overall though, it's a very enjoyable game, and it also has a custom drawn intro screen, which I like very much.

Heartland Dizzy

:tup: - the colour scheme doesn't clash!
- the waterfall
- some nice graphical touches
- the rooms feel more connected, and the map better tied together
- a large map, but doesn't feel like it

:tdown: - no custom icons
- no quotation marks for speech
- uses the old dizzy 'eating' tile (no soles to his feet)
- lost a life getting to a book in Theo's hut, and Dizzy ate it!
- There's a pickaxe in mid-air way above the water.

Overall Impressions
Every game Meph produces seems to be so much better than the last one, and this one is no exception. The colour scheme is much nicer, and the rooms feel more connected, making the map feel tied together, rather than sections just bolted together. It's a large map, but again doesn't feel too large, and it's enjoyable to play too. There are a few little niggles, such as spelling and grammar (They were mostly sorted with updates, but why wait until after release to get it checked?), and the annoyance of losing a life to reach a 'book' in Theo's hut, only for Dizzy to eat it! Overall though, it's Meph's best game so far, and a very worthy contribution to the competition.

Grogg Island Dizzy

:tup: - the loading screen
- kicking the sandcastle down!
- incredible graphics
- blue sky and sun
- the parrot
- the flowers
- all the different characters
- a really good plot, tying it all together

:tdown: - no custom game icons
- 'one love' by Bob Marley music isn't in keeping.
- can use both crate and keg in the water, but not in each other's positions
- some puzzles are very frustrating
- a small thing, but the water level doesn't match up at both sides of the island...

Overall Impressions
This game is stunning. In almost every way, it's by far the best game in the competition. Not content with a large game map, incredibly detailed graphics, and more puzzles and items than you can shake a stick at, Matt also provides a great story, which really ties the whole thing together, and makes you want to carry on. The use of humour and the feeling at certain points (e.g. the governor's house) that you're almost intruding in people's lives, sucks you in, and doesn't let you go until you've completed it. However I did say *almost* every way, and there are a few things I wasn't too keen on. Chief amongst these was that I really didn't think the music was in keeping with the game, or graphics style. Hence it was the only game I played with the music muted. Also, some puzzles were very frustrating (although I did like that you had to solve a puzzle to get each yolkfolk to the beach, rather than them just going there), and I also noted that the water level doesn't match up at both sides of the island! (a small quibble.) Overall, a brilliant game, and surely a very worthy winner!

Daisy Goes Solo part 2

:tup: - nicer and more detailed graphics than DGS1
- nice use of humour
- I like the invisibility hat
- nice 'extra' speech that didn't need to be included, but helps give the game more depth

:tdown: - no custom game icons
- I sometimes struggled to keep track of where I was
- obsessed with Daisy?!

Overall Impressions
Steve really seems to have found a graphics style he likes with this game. It's a better game than part 1, and more polished too. As with part 1, there are some nice touches, including the invisibility hat, and being able to talk to characters about items other than the one they need to be solved. This helps give the game more depth, and make it more enjoyable, as you feel that there is more to discover than simply completing it. I swear Steve has an obsession with Daisy though, especially in light of his third game! I also struggled a bit to keep track of where I was, due to the different shortcuts; however these were better implemented than in part 1, and it's therefore easier to distinguish between them.

Daisy Goes Solo part 1

:tup: - nice use of humour
- different style of graphics to the norm
- very good for a first game

:tdown: - no custom game icons
- no proper loading or menu screen
- some items blend into the background
- teleport system is too confusing

Overall Impressions
Initially I liked this game a lot. There's very good use of humour, and the style of graphics, although different to the norm, works well in the game. However the main problem I have with the game, as noted elsewhere, is the teleports. They are too similar to each other and there are too many of them, for me to remember which leads where, and I therefore spent a lot of time getting frustrated having used the wrong one. That apart, some items blend with the background, and there isn't a main 'intro' screen. Having said all that, it's a very good first game, and as with all the other first games in this comp, a worthy addition. Overall it's a nicely done game, but the map is just a little too confusing for me to fully enjoy it.

Dragon Valley Dizzy

:tup: - some nicely detailed graphics
- very good for a first game

:tdown: - no custom icons
- game border off-centre
- very minimal HUD
- some non-obvious puzzles, rather frustrating

Overall Impressions
I remember playing this last year and being amazed that it was actually Matt's first game. Sure there are niggles, like the border not being centred, and the HUD being a bit bare, but overall I was very impressed. Re-playing it now (I never completed it before), it doesn't stand up quite as well to the other games, but it's still a very enjoyable game. Some of the puzzles are not at all obvious, but I think everyone is guilty of that to some degree. Some of the graphics are very detailed, hinting towards what Grogg Island would be like, and overall it's a very accomplished and enjoyable first game.

Dizzy Oops!

:tup: - a nice simple original Dizzy feel to it
- a drawn title page
- very good for a first game

:tdown: - no custom game icons
- no quotation marks around speech
- some puzzles not obvious, sometimes with no clues at all, very frustrating

Overall Impressions
on first playing this, it's a breath of fresh air, as the graphics make the game feel much closer to the original Dizzy games than most of the other games, and I very much like the fact that it has a custom drawn intro screen too. However I did get very frustrated playing it, as some of the puzzles were not obvious at all, which stopped me enjoying it as much as I wanted to. Overall though, another great first game, and I look forward to his next one!

What’s this ‘custom game icon’ that people rarely use?

sorry, I mean the icon that the dizzy.exe file uses. Some games have changed it so that it's not the default DizzyAGE icon. All of mine are shown in my signature.

[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

Swampland Dizzy

– swamps look like normal landscape, causing sudden unexpected death

[/quote]

This was actually deliberate as were suppose to be like traps and by their nature swamps can take you by surprise. Also due to being the title name of the game.

– some speech in quotation marks, some not

Obviously doesn't effect the gameplay but all need to be to look & read in that way, unfortunately must have missed some (Hopes to note attention to detail for the dialogue).

– some shortened room names. what’s ‘est d’cne wst incline’?

I may avoid doing this now but that particular room is called East Decline, West Incline, ie depending which side you enter the room you either incline (go up) or decline (go down), thought it was very obvious, but if the characters don't fit which in this case they wouldn't perhaps not to abbreviate room names, just call it summat else even if a bit vague so it fits.

– not easy to see some items in front of scenery

Didn't have Colin tiles set he let me have for the same point you mention in Feverbound.

– a lot of the outdoor setting feels very empty, and not really there for any reason

I think some of the outdoor settings I wanted to have for the swampy areas, again because of the title of the game, and swampy areas don't tend to have a lot there...a bit unsure of anywhere else you may mean but I like a game to have a bit of sceneary, I think some of the official ones do really.

[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

Feverbound Dizzy

– the game cuts to ‘hospital’ room when starting, then immediately fades away

[/quote]

Dunno why that happens unfortunately, doesn't seem owt in the code I can see, but seems the fade runs from the attract mode and not the title screen.
It does on my next game too. Any ideas ?
[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

– some scaled up graphics don’t look too good

[/quote]

As I don't draw tiles from scratch only way I can get to size is to scale, but I think I didn't use as much this time.
[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

– not too keen on the style of music

[/quote]

I used 'Boogiefever' again to fit the name of the game but to be honest only for that reason,
I didn't really like this one myself.

The good news is at least myself im really liking the set of music ive got for my next game, I think much much better, these have been a bit mixed.

[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

– not easy to see some items in front of scenery

[/quote]

This should of been resolved with the tiles Colin sent me to use in the later version, may still have been the odd item possibly
[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70875"]

– some puzzles are very frustrating

[/quote]

Hee hee, don't worry we find that with yours but in all honesty when your not the author I think to some degree you get that with all games in part. But I wanted to make it a bit more challenging than Swampland.

Thanks for comments Jamie.

My next game is coming on nicely but so much to do, its going to be very different, ive tried deliberately to make all three different in their own right. Personally I like it already more than my first two & believe it will be the best of the three. However it's going to take a lot of careful thought to avoid any paradoxes & will take a hell of a lot longer to complete (in part with testing too). It's likely my third would be the last due to amount of time it takes up & I think for me I feel it's a bit of an achievement considering I would never of thought I could of produced any, so to contribute 3 to the community, yep id be pleased with {yolkfolk}:delight:

Dunno why that happens unfortunately, doesn’t seem owt in the code I can see, but seems the fade runs from the attract mode and not the title screen.
It does on my next game too. Any ideas ?

I'll have a look for you.

hmmm i see the issue. I will note though, that because of the long time (approx 14 seconds) that the cover is displayed for, I never realised that there was also a 'jump about' section to the intro screen. That's why it looked odd to me. Anyway, that's another matter.

The issue you have is that the 'cover' screen is being removed before the screen fades out. Once this is realised, it becomes a simple matter to find the two pieces of code responsible, and fix it.

the cover is faded out near the bottom of function MainMenu()

if(ret==1) // start new game
	{
		GameSet(G_COVER,0);	// hide cover
		GameSet(G_PAUSE,0);	// unpause the game
		PlayerSet(P_DISABLE,0);	// enable the player
		PlayerEnterIdle();		// start in idle
		BeginNewGame();		// call user function to begin a new game (set player's position, etc)
	}
}

 the 'BeginNewGame();' part of the above coding then calls the next bit of coding, which includes the 'fade out' code:

func BeginNewGame()
{
      
for(i=0;i<100;i+=5) { GameSet(G_FADE,i); WaitFrames(2); } 	// fade to black

	GameSet(G_PAUSE,0);						// unpause the game
	PlayerSet(P_DISABLE,0);						// enable player
	PlayerSetPos(PLAYER_BEGINX,PLAYER_BEGINY);	// set begin position
	MusicFade(2,0);							// set music fade options
	MusicPlay(START_MUSIC);					// play 

(incidentally, you don't need to include 'PlayerSet(P_DISABLE,0);' and 'GameSet(G_PAUSE,0);' in both functions, as just including them once will work. Probably best to remove the ones before the fade code starts, for reasons i'm about to explain)

The issue here is that the cover is being removed, and then the fade starts. The thing to remember about the 'fade' code is that it includes 'waitframe' code, which means that the game will stay on the fade code until it's finished, and only then move onto the next line. So anything you want to happen after the game has finished fading (i.e. when the player can't see it), needs to go after the fade code. This includes things like re-enabling the player, allowing him to move dizzy, and disabling the cover screen.

(and yes I know that most of my games are quite mucky regarding this area of coding. For example, all of my games up to ETD allow you to move the player while the intro fades out. What can I say, some areas of coding take longer to get the hang of than others)

anyway, all you really have to do is move 'GameSet(G_COVER,0);' from function MainMenu(), and put it into function BeginNewGame(), after the fade code. So then you should end up with each bit looking like this: (compare with above code)

if(ret==1) // start new game
	{
		GameSet(G_PAUSE,0);	// unpause the game
		PlayerSet(P_DISABLE,0);	// enable the player
		PlayerEnterIdle();		// start in idle
		BeginNewGame();		// call user function to begin a new game (set player's position, etc)
	}
}

func BeginNewGame()
{
      
     for(i=0;i<100;i+=5) { GameSet(G_FADE,i); WaitFrames(2); } // fade to black

	[color="Red"]GameSet(G_COVER,0);		// hide cover
	GameSet(G_PAUSE,0);						// unpause the game
	PlayerSet(P_DISABLE,0);						// enable player
	PlayerSetPos(PLAYER_BEGINX,PLAYER_BEGINY);	// set begin position
	MusicFade(2,0);							// set music fade options
	MusicPlay(START_MUSIC);					// play

Hopefully I've explained all that fairly well. :smile:

My next game is coming on nicely but so much to do, its going to be very different, ive tried deliberately to make all three different in their own right. Personally I like it already more than my first two & believe it will be the best of the three. However it’s going to take a lot of careful thought to avoid any paradoxes & will take a hell of a lot longer to complete (in part with testing too). It’s likely my third would be the last due to amount of time it takes up & I think for me I feel it’s a bit of an achievement considering I would never of thought I could of produced any, so to contribute 3 to the community, yep id be pleased with {yolkfolk}:delight:

It is true that games tend to get more complicated the more you do, because you're always trying to go further with your latest game. That's one reason I sometimes did an easy game (WWD, WND), just to make an easy one for once!

[quote data-userid="23" data-postid="70906"]

Hopefully I’ve explained all that fairly well. :smile:

[/quote]

Brilliant Jamie, yes that's done the trick, it didn't bother me initially but I must admit after youd had highlighted it, for my next game in development it was starting to annoy so im glad thats sorted now. I was nearly there, I had removed that bit of code in Menu.gs but wasn't sure then as I was just working in there and not with the game section of coding also.