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2D All the way! / 2D map editing programs

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Shopro
21
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Joined: 15th Sep 2002
Location: Japan
Posted: 18th Feb 2003 14:16
Hello

I was wondering what programs everyone use when they make 2d levels(platform/rpg). Any suggestions?

thank you

-Shopro
Richard Davey
Retired Moderator
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Location: On the Jupiter Probe
Posted: 18th Feb 2003 15:16
Actually I'd quite like an answer to this too. I think we'll probably find "I wrote my own" cropping up a lot though.

Cheers,

Rich

"Gentlemen, we are about to short-circuit the Universe!"
DB Team / Atari ST / DarkForge / Retro Gaming
haggisman
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 18th Feb 2003 18:07
I wrote my own

Specs:- 1GHZ athlon, Radeon8500, 192mb ram, winxp
actarus
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Location: 32 Light Years away
Posted: 18th Feb 2003 18:32
Eraser made a good one,I posted it's link lately on this very board.

Just remember that you're standing on a planet that's evolving
And revolving at nine hundred miles an hour!
actarus
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Posted: 18th Feb 2003 18:35
http://www.southcom.com.au/~eraser/darkbasic/

Just remember that you're standing on a planet that's evolving
And revolving at nine hundred miles an hour!
CloseToPerfect
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Posted: 18th Feb 2003 20:42
wrote my own, could find one with the features I wanted by anyone else, it's very easy to do.

The Scorpion
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Posted: 19th Feb 2003 04:55
Well I wrote one for my company, it's for a game called Worlds we are making and it's a 2D RPG map maker basically. If you would like it I will have to charge you a certain amount due to copyright and such. It's pretty simple to use, comes with a tutorial, and professional grade graphics. But as a reminder it's for the map ONLY, no objects like player characters, weps. Only the first layer of sprites .

Who ever loved that loved not at first sight?
- William Shakespear (genious)
PiratSS
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Posted: 19th Feb 2003 05:13
I wrote my own.

Dual Amd Athlon 2Ghz(1Ghz x 2), 40GB 15000 Rpm SCSI Hard Drive, 640 Mb 266Mhz DDR, 12x8x32 CDRW, ATI Rage Fury Pro 32Mb, 17' Monitor

Shopro
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Location: Japan
Posted: 19th Feb 2003 06:45
Hello, and thanks for all the replies

it looks most people make their own.
Maybe after a few years, there will be a standard map maker for DB users, which everyone uses. maybe not, heh

rich:
you were right

actarus:
thank you, I will certainly try that out, later

MadCat:
thanks for the offer.
I wouldn't mind paying money for a program like that, since I am aiming to complete a 2D RPG. Can I have some more details?

And just a thought, isn't being able to use only one layer kind of limited? I appreciate your offer to let me use the program.

-Shopro

Bluedeep
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Joined: 3rd Feb 2003
Location: Finland
Posted: 19th Feb 2003 09:21
I have good levelmaker, but it only works with my game(it´s not flexible).
it has multible layers, allkind of objects and events(like readable signs, hidden doors, ...)
it has one big level(surface) were you can go sublevels.
I like my levelmaker very very much

PiratSS
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Posted: 19th Feb 2003 19:55
This is what i suggeest since I already got 3 different level makers :

Make your own engine. Then alter it for the game u are making.
That worked for me so well. Next(just for yourself) make like menus and some explanation.

Dual Amd Athlon 2Ghz(1Ghz x 2), 40GB 15000 Rpm SCSI Hard Drive, 640 Mb 266Mhz DDR, 12x8x32 CDRW, ATI Rage Fury Pro 32Mb, 17' Monitor

CloseToPerfect
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Location: United States
Posted: 21st Feb 2003 07:39
If you make one I suggest you do like I did, Mine is 5 layers
1 background, uses images
2 foreground, uses images with transprancy
3 blocking layer tells what flag need2 to be set to cross square
4 monster layer 1 byte to declare which monster list to select random encounters from
5 infomation layer 1 byte to code in what can be found by searching

I didn't use sprites in it because, images are faster and my sprites are interactive images, coded in the program. the player, npc,and such
level 4,5 can have different uses those arnt set, so you can use these to make multiple scrolling layers.
You can make something like this in a week or so.
Plus the experience from doing it will help.
I want to add a image editor to it and a 2d animator to it maybe then I post it.

Killer Sponge
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 26th Feb 2003 14:24
I had made a universal/flexible program, but my hard drive crashed. I might have an old version on a m8's hard drive, it'll b a bit buggy, but ill sort it out and you can have it. You can skin it as well as add your own tiles and stuff, Mines two layers.
1 for Background tiles, and the other for objects (can assign a single number to each object just in case you want to link objects or give an object a parameter) it has a quite nice interface.

EMail me if your interested, and I'll search for it, fix it up, and give it to u.

thx,
K-Sponge

Current Project: Lode Runner Db (Working Name)
AGamer
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Joined: 25th Feb 2003
Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 1st Mar 2003 18:42
HEy well does any one want to give out the info of how to make one as i'm stuck

Is there any point in doing anything as our life is meaningless anyway
Odyssey
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Posted: 2nd Mar 2003 07:56
I just started useing db trial and i needed the same thing
so i got mappy and had a map up and scrolling in 30 min or so.

hope this helps....

k0shi
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Posted: 8th Mar 2003 01:59
im writing my own.

If I could drop dead right now, I'd be the happiest man alive.
---------------------------------
.....:::<>-<K0shi>-<>:::.....
Chaos
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Posted: 22nd Mar 2003 16:29
i would also like some idea on how to make my own level editor

Darkworlds are all around us just open your eyes
Most of us are still half asleep
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 22nd Mar 2003 19:44
I write my game engine and whatever editing tools are needed for it after the engine is in place, however i'm pretty good at generating fractal worlds with solid rules so invariably I do that.

I preffer fractal worlds to designed levels because I hate designing levels... Also i've done so many now that my fractal worlds tend to be fairly solidly constructed.

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Chaos
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Posted: 22nd Mar 2003 20:04
wot are fractal worlds

Darkworlds are all around us just open your eyes
Most of us are still half asleep
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 22nd Mar 2003 21:04
To create a world fractally you use random numbers. By specifying a fractal seed you can use the same sequence of random numbers.

randomize 5
numberOne=rnd(10)
print numberOne

This snippet will generate the same number every time. Change the randomize number changes the fractal seed. If you use random numbers to generate your map you can recall different maps just by choosing a different fractal seed and recall the same ones by giving the same seed.

In a 2D overhead RPG, fractals could be used to create unlimited dungeon designs all linked together with a large outdoor map with fractally placed trees and villages then if you get bored of your game world - just change the fractal seed number and play on a new one

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Chaos
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Posted: 22nd Mar 2003 21:33
so they are just all randomized to create a different world and dungeons each time ? Cool any sugetions or tips for making these if you can post them in another thred

Darkworlds are all around us just open your eyes
Most of us are still half asleep
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 17:00
Well i've been toying today with my take on the dungeon tutorial - I started with a clean slate and fractally generated a 1000x1000 dungeon 10 levels deep I was just adding monsters and about to do combat and magic and put it online perhaps even as open source - but Nik has asked me over to work on our retro entry so I it wont go much further tonight.

Anyway the answer to your question, what do you want to achieve? The techniques for a dungeon are greatly different to what i'd use for an outdoor environment which is different to a coastal game which is different to.....

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Chaos
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 17:11 Edited at: 23rd Mar 2003 17:12
all types mainly if it is an rpg it will have all them features you described but let for argument sake say a dungeon.

Do you have msn messenger

Darkworlds are all around us just open your eyes
Most of us are still half asleep
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 19:15
No, I installed MSN Messenger and two days later reinstalled my system from a virus that mysteriously hit at the same time... It's never going back on my system again, period!

Here's the one I wrote today to fractally generate a 10 level dungeon.

It stores the dungeon in the variable dungeon(dungeonLevel,xPosition,zPosition) in the format:

0 = null space
1 = floor
2 = wall
3/4 = stairs



Now all you gotta do is work out how to texture it!

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 19:20 Edited at: 23rd Mar 2003 19:22
Changeing line 237 from node(n,3)=5+rnd(3) to node(n,3)=1+rnd(3) might actually give better basements.

Line 57 allows you to specify a different dungeon by changing the number in the randomize 0 command. Setting it to randomize timer() will give very random results. Also changeing the dungeon parameters at the beginning of the program (which i've commented for you) will also completely change the dungeon layout.

Run the program in 1280x1024 to fully see the dungeon overview display because it uses 1 pixel per space in the dungeon (1000x1000).

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 19:27
Hehe I was just watching it generate a dungeon and the thought occured to me that if I included a 90% chance that rooms led to corridors the map would start looking a lot like the game Space Hulk.... I don't think i'll be making an RPG with this afterall!...

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.
Chaos
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Posted: 23rd Mar 2003 19:51 Edited at: 23rd Mar 2003 19:53
thanx for the source ill look into it now is it for dbc or dbpro

Darkworlds are all around us just open your eyes
Most of us are still half asleep
Andy Igoe
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Posted: 24th Mar 2003 00:14
I wrote it under DBPro, it should work under DBC I think - I don't think I used any Pro jiggly bits.

Pneumatic Dryll, Outrageous epic cleric of EQ/Xev
God made the world in 7 days, but we're still waiting for the patch.

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