Page 2 of 2   Previous Page

Now we're going to take a look at the windows that can be accessed from the toolbar. These are used for editing a game's interface and status bar, and for assembling player sets, character sets, projectile types, item types, and other objects for use in levels.
  

The Character Sets Window
The Character Sets Window is used to create, modify, and delete character sets, which contain the animation sequences and sound effects used by all characters of a given type. Depending on the complexity of a character set, it may have dozens of animation sequences, or just a few.

Animation frames can be pasted into the Character Sets Window or dragged and dropped from image editing applications like Adobe Photoshop. Each animation frame has an associated grayscale mask, which makes it possible for sprites to have varying levels of opacity.

Characters have sixteen sound effect collections, each of which may have as many or as few sounds as desired. As with animation frames, sounds may be created in a variety of programs and are easily imported into Power Game Factory.		  




The Character Sets Window

The Player Sets Window
The Player Sets Window is used to create the player character's animation sequences and sound effects. The player has dozens of animation sequences for such actions as running, jumping, falling, and climbing. As with the Character Sets Window, animation frames and sound effects can be created in other programs and easily imported into the Player Sets Window.

It's possible to create more than one Player Set, so that the player's appearance can change between levels or when the player collects certain items. Everything in Power Game Factory is flexible without being too difficult.		  


The Player Sets Window

The Interface Window
The Interface Window is used to set up a game's title screen, main menu, introduction movie, and pretty much everything else that shows up as your game launches. Here you can create an icon for your game application, configure the default preferences, import a theme song, and design a selection of available screen sizes from which the player may choose in the game's Preferences Window.

The Interface Window also contains controls for editing small but important details, like the amount of time it takes for the screen to fade out when a level begins, and the width of the progress bar that appears as the game starts up. Everything you need to give your game a unique style is right here. 		 


The Interface Window

The Status Bar Window
The Status Bar Window is used to edit the design and layout of the various displays that keep track of your inventory, score, energy, time remaining, and lives remaining during gameplay.

You can create health bar frames displaying varying levels of player energy. You can design the fonts used to display numbers on the screen, and you can animate the icon of the player that indicates your current location when the level map is visible.

The different parts of the status bar can be positioned in any arrangement on the screen using the controls in the Status Bar Window, and can even be disabled and hidden from view, if for example your game does not need to have a time limit.		  


The Status Bar Window

The Items Window
The Items Window contains all of the animation sequences and sound effects used by ammo packs, power-ups and collectable weapons. These items can be added to levels and when the player walks over them, they are automatically added to his inventory.

There are fifteen ammo pack types; one for each of the fifteen weapons that the player can use. (Each of these weapons is completely modifiable, using the Weapons Window, shown below.) In addition, there are eight types of power-ups: Hit Point Recovery, Full Hit Point Recovery, Temporary Invincibility, Extra Life, Extra Time, Flying Ability, Double Jump, and last but not least, Super Speed.		  


The Items Window

The Weapon Types Window
Each character in a game, including the player, attacks by firing a weapon, and each weapon type fires a specific kind of projectile and may eject a certain type of shell casing. The player can use some of the same weapons as enemy characters, or he can be given unique weapons.

The Weapon Types Window contains controls for specifying different aspects of a weapon's behavior, such as firing speed, the amount of recoil, accuracy, and the velocity at which shell casings are ejected.

When a weapon fires, it may create a puff of smoke, which can be selected from an editable list of contrail types. You can also add icons representing weapons as they appear in the inventory section of the status bar.		  


The Weapon Types Window

The Projectile Types Window
Projectiles are your salvation, as long as they're flying away from you. And they're not just bullets; they can be rockets, laser beams, grenades, and all sorts of other things that can come out of weapons. And when a projectile explodes, it can actually make more projectiles fly out in every direction. These chunks of flying debris can emit smoke trails. And each bit of smoke is itself a projectile.

Each type of projectile has a lot of unique properties that determine its appearance, sounds, behavior, and physicality. All of these properties are assigned in the Projectile Types Window.

Projectile Types have two editable animation sequences, one for when the projectile is flying through the air, and another for when it is detonating. There are also some sound effects and several additional properties that determine the projectile's behavior as it moves through the air. Projectiles can be made to hone in on targets, fade away after a certain amount of time, fall straight to the ground, and much more. 		 


The Projectile Types Window

The Miscellaneous Window
The Miscellaneous Window is a catch-all for any objects that are not complex enough to warrant their own windows. Shell Casings, Contrails, and Music are all managed from within the Miscellaneous Window. Shell casings are droped by the bucketfull from blazing machine guns. Contrails are smoke puffs often found coming out of projectiles and characters. The collection of music tracks assembled in the Miscellaneous Window are available to be used by levels as background music. Prearranged level routines can also play one or more of the tracks collected here.		  


The Miscellaneous Window

Back to main Power Game Factory page		  
Page 2 of 2   Previous Page