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NeoLemmix Levels / Re: Lemmings Plus Alpha - Release topic
« on: Today at 02:00:59 am »
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- April 23, 2019, 02:09:40 am
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NeoLemmix Levels / Lemmings Plus Alpha - Release topic
« on: Today at 02:00:53 am »
So, my latest pack is here. A small pack, at only 45 levels, across three ranks, that revisits the official graphic sets. A few of my spare levels have been re-used for this (including some that were remade into suitable graphic sets for this pack), but the majority are brand new.
This is another one of my really hard packs, so it's not for the easily-frustrated... or for that matter, for those of you who value their sanity full stop.
Download link (V12.00): https://www.neolemmix.com/download.php?program=51
Special thanks to IchoTolot and joshescue18 for pre-release testing.
Mutilation
Mutilation 5 "For That's The Way Of The Lem"
The first rank... and this should already be no pushover, though most of you will be able to complete it.
Decimation
Decimation 7 "Expedition"
Expect things to get much nastier here. You might make progress through it, but do you have what it takes to complete it...?
Obliteration
Obliteration 9 "Aquadynamics"
The final stand, and it's a tough one. Prepare for unique tricks, extreme precision, clever distractions... only the best players will complete this rank!
This is another one of my really hard packs, so it's not for the easily-frustrated... or for that matter, for those of you who value their sanity full stop.
Download link (V12.00): https://www.neolemmix.com/download.php?program=51
Special thanks to IchoTolot and joshescue18 for pre-release testing.
Mutilation
Mutilation 5 "For That's The Way Of The Lem"
The first rank... and this should already be no pushover, though most of you will be able to complete it.
Decimation
Decimation 7 "Expedition"
Expect things to get much nastier here. You might make progress through it, but do you have what it takes to complete it...?
Obliteration
Obliteration 9 "Aquadynamics"
The final stand, and it's a tough one. Prepare for unique tricks, extreme precision, clever distractions... only the best players will complete this rank!
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Bugs & Suggestions / Re: [Suggestion][Player] show different cursor when in directional select mode?
« on: April 22, 2019, 10:19:10 am »
Commit 3c869d1 moves the cursor graphics to external PNG files (with the following commit removing the old source BMP files). It also implements directional select graphics.
The current code could theoretically be exapnded to include a special icon for "select walkers", other combinations, etc. It could also be used to add a customized menu cursor, if we decide we want mouse support there (which might not be a bad idea). However, it has its limits when adding various special cursors - currently, while it can assemble a cursor graphic from multiple images, it has to pre-generate every possible combination (including with every possible zoom level), which could quickly end up being too slow or using too much memory. I can probably modify this so it at least generates the different zoomed versions on the fly - this might be fast enough to achieve what we want.
The current code could theoretically be exapnded to include a special icon for "select walkers", other combinations, etc. It could also be used to add a customized menu cursor, if we decide we want mouse support there (which might not be a bad idea). However, it has its limits when adding various special cursors - currently, while it can assemble a cursor graphic from multiple images, it has to pre-generate every possible combination (including with every possible zoom level), which could quickly end up being too slow or using too much memory. I can probably modify this so it at least generates the different zoomed versions on the fly - this might be fast enough to achieve what we want.
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Bugs & Suggestions / Re: [BUG][EXP-PLAYER] Lemming position not indicated in clear physics mode
« on: April 22, 2019, 03:06:57 am »
Commit 4128379 fixes this.
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Bugs & Suggestions / Re: [BUG][PLAYER] Pressing F12 on menu screen starts level in glitched state.
« on: April 22, 2019, 02:59:19 am »
Removed the hotkey in commit d6a3b0b.
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Bugs & Suggestions / Re: [BUG][PLAYER] Outline on skill panel buttons is "sticky" if skillset empty.
« on: April 22, 2019, 02:48:42 am »
Have pushed a commit 786f4ef which fixes this bug.
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In Development / Re: Lemmings Plus Alpha - Development Topic
« on: April 20, 2019, 07:47:07 pm »
Obliteration 10, "Dirty Joke"
Save 16 of 20, SR 75 (Locked), no time limit
1 bomber, 7 builders, 5 stackers, 3 diggers
This is one of the last remaining stragglers among backroute-prone levels - and to be fair, that might be because this level was added much more recently than any other. The original Obliteration 10 had a backroute that seemed unfixable, so I replaced it with this as a new level. (That removed level later got put back, with the backroute intact, at an earlier position, since the tester who found the backroute mentioned that it was still pretty challenging to even find that. In place, a different level - probably the worst one in the pack - got removed.)
This is also the second-widest and second-largest level in Lemmings Plus Alpha, at 1016 pixels wide (x 240 tall), beaten by a level of 1296x200 (259,200 pixels total, vs 243,840 total for Dirty Joke). Both these levels fall well short on tallest level though, as one level is 400 pixels tall (though only 160 pixels wide). Despite the size, Dirty Joke's intended solution replay solves in under 3:30 - and I'm almost certain this could be brought under 3 minutes, and maybe even under 2:30, with some optimization.
Save 16 of 20, SR 75 (Locked), no time limit
1 bomber, 7 builders, 5 stackers, 3 diggers
This is one of the last remaining stragglers among backroute-prone levels - and to be fair, that might be because this level was added much more recently than any other. The original Obliteration 10 had a backroute that seemed unfixable, so I replaced it with this as a new level. (That removed level later got put back, with the backroute intact, at an earlier position, since the tester who found the backroute mentioned that it was still pretty challenging to even find that. In place, a different level - probably the worst one in the pack - got removed.)
This is also the second-widest and second-largest level in Lemmings Plus Alpha, at 1016 pixels wide (x 240 tall), beaten by a level of 1296x200 (259,200 pixels total, vs 243,840 total for Dirty Joke). Both these levels fall well short on tallest level though, as one level is 400 pixels tall (though only 160 pixels wide). Despite the size, Dirty Joke's intended solution replay solves in under 3:30 - and I'm almost certain this could be brought under 3 minutes, and maybe even under 2:30, with some optimization.
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In Development / Re: Lemmings Plus Alpha - Development Topic
« on: April 18, 2019, 09:28:40 pm »
Decimation 12, "A Lot Of Lemming Going On Here"
Save 28 of 30, SR 90, no time limit
1 Floater, 1 Bomber, 1 Platformer, 4 Builders, 2 Bashers, 1 Miner, 1 Digger
This one seems to be the worst offender backroute-wise so far. I've just sent out the 15th test version (yes, even more so than White Noise, which actually seems to be quite solid now!). This level first showed up in the 5th test version, and almost every update since has included a backroute fix to this level. T_T The two most recent updates have consisted solely of fixes to this level.
Save 28 of 30, SR 90, no time limit
1 Floater, 1 Bomber, 1 Platformer, 4 Builders, 2 Bashers, 1 Miner, 1 Digger
This one seems to be the worst offender backroute-wise so far. I've just sent out the 15th test version (yes, even more so than White Noise, which actually seems to be quite solid now!). This level first showed up in the 5th test version, and almost every update since has included a backroute fix to this level. T_T The two most recent updates have consisted solely of fixes to this level.
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Bugs & Suggestions / [BUG][PLAYER/STYLES] Silhouette style objects / lemmings invisible in C.P. Mode
« on: April 17, 2019, 08:10:56 pm »
(CP Mode = Clear Physics Mode)
Clear physics mode defaults to a black background. However, the objects and lemmings in the Silhouette style are pure black, meaning they become invisible (aside from trigger areas / positioning dots, where applicable) in clear physics mode. Terrain is fine, because it changes to the checkerboard grey.
Lemmings could perhaps be fixed by always using the default sprites in clear physics mode. Though this would require a bit of revision of the code to always keep the default sprites in memory in addition to any custom ones, and switch between them when using clear physics mode.
Objects could perhaps have a flag added to their metainfo, that if active, inverts the object's colors in clear physics mode. This would resolve the issue, but would rely on honesty (and more significantly, awareness) by any style designers.
An alternative option could be to, similar to what's done with terrain and trigger areas, ignore the normal colors and draw objects / lemmings in a single fixed color when in clear physics mode. This way they could even combine colors with other important details.
I don't think "rely on people not to do this" is a valid approach here, because the Silhouette style was - as far as I know - not created with the intention of making clear physics mode difficult to use, but simply with the intention of producing a neat artistic effect (which it does very well IMO). Furthermore, an approach like the ones above both prevent intentional abuse and deal with any cases where this happens as an unintended side effect, as well as perhaps helping with a few less-clear cases even in "normal" styles.
Clear physics mode defaults to a black background. However, the objects and lemmings in the Silhouette style are pure black, meaning they become invisible (aside from trigger areas / positioning dots, where applicable) in clear physics mode. Terrain is fine, because it changes to the checkerboard grey.
Lemmings could perhaps be fixed by always using the default sprites in clear physics mode. Though this would require a bit of revision of the code to always keep the default sprites in memory in addition to any custom ones, and switch between them when using clear physics mode.
Objects could perhaps have a flag added to their metainfo, that if active, inverts the object's colors in clear physics mode. This would resolve the issue, but would rely on honesty (and more significantly, awareness) by any style designers.
An alternative option could be to, similar to what's done with terrain and trigger areas, ignore the normal colors and draw objects / lemmings in a single fixed color when in clear physics mode. This way they could even combine colors with other important details.
I don't think "rely on people not to do this" is a valid approach here, because the Silhouette style was - as far as I know - not created with the intention of making clear physics mode difficult to use, but simply with the intention of producing a neat artistic effect (which it does very well IMO). Furthermore, an approach like the ones above both prevent intentional abuse and deal with any cases where this happens as an unintended side effect, as well as perhaps helping with a few less-clear cases even in "normal" styles.
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Lemmings Main / Re: Assigning function vs lemmings' crowd
« on: April 17, 2019, 07:54:53 pm »
I also feel the need to mention:
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "tweaked playtime" here, do you mean time limits? If so - I'd point out, the general community standard these days is to only use time limits if the level really needs them (either because the time limit itself is the main challenge or at least part of it (eg. levels like Just A Minute), or because the time limit is there to prevent backroutes or excessively-inefficient routes, or occasionally for thematic reasons (eg. All The 6's, which has a 6-minute time limit for thematic reasons rather than anything relating to the actual gameplay)). If all the time limit achieves is requiring more-precise execution or for the player to RR99 earlier, it's better not to have a time limit at all. Indeed, probably only about 5% of NeoLemmix levels these days - at most - have time limits.
Quote
(especially after I've tweaked playtime and available functions to absolute minimum for sake of final version)
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "tweaked playtime" here, do you mean time limits? If so - I'd point out, the general community standard these days is to only use time limits if the level really needs them (either because the time limit itself is the main challenge or at least part of it (eg. levels like Just A Minute), or because the time limit is there to prevent backroutes or excessively-inefficient routes, or occasionally for thematic reasons (eg. All The 6's, which has a 6-minute time limit for thematic reasons rather than anything relating to the actual gameplay)). If all the time limit achieves is requiring more-precise execution or for the player to RR99 earlier, it's better not to have a time limit at all. Indeed, probably only about 5% of NeoLemmix levels these days - at most - have time limits.
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NeoLemmix Levels / Re: [NeoLemmix] Lemmings United
« on: April 16, 2019, 08:53:07 pm »
Solved up to 26; 27 has me stumped again. I think I've figured out one of the major tricks on it, but still can't see how the rest of the solution fits together.
Already given feedback on 21 and 22; for the rest:
Already given feedback on 21 and 22; for the rest:
Individual level feedback (click to show/hide)
Probably the hardest, too. And I know you didn't really want comments on the music but I have to say, this level's music was awesome too and was definitely part of what made it so great!