I've made some progress on the 2D platform gaming goodness also known as Hazardous Hal:


(click to enlarge)

A lot of things were redesigned, including a state system for the player. This means that it's much easier to manage whether they're falling, jumping, standing, etc. It's also very easy to add new states because you just derive from a class instead of checking tiles all the time. So far there's just HalJump, HalStand and HalWalk. Another thing the state system allowed is the ability to do high jumps by just holding down the jump key longer. The effect works very well, and is rather seemless...

The great thing about the system that's setup is that it's all completely exported from Tile Studio. This means I can completely change the level details, graphics, player details, animations, etc all through Tile Studio. If you take a look at the image on the left, you'll get an idea of what I'm talking about. It works really well so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it progresses.

What I need now is a design document and know where to go with it. I'm thinking about implementing Dangerous Dave with the technology, but still have to work on the backend stuff first. I'd have to find all new graphics, or, of course, steal some of Stompy's Goodness. What I have now will work until I get a design document going.

BooGame and Mono

I've decided to postpone work on BooGame until Hazardous Hal is finished. This will allow me to actually complete a game before going back into the grind with making BooGame compatible with Mono. Making BooGame Mono-compatible will be a big job:

1. Port BooGame to Boo
2. Debug BooGame with Mono
3. Get rid of Mono-related bugs
4. Debug some more
5. Tear out hair
6. Debug some more
7. ... etc.

Random Interest