[Android] Lemmings-like game (WIP)

[namida]

Suppose some designers are working on a level together: you want it to be possible for one to upload a partly finished level that the other will download and continue. This partly finished level may not itself be solvable.

Yes, for sure. That's why you shouldn't outright restrict it, but perhaps just flag the level as unsolved, or at most, disallow public release until proven solvable (but even this, I don't know if that's a good idea; I think the flagging is better).

[LJLPM]

Yes, it seems that I have to add a flag in order to ease the management of the uploaded levels (solved/not solved/wip).

By the way, as a nice little exercise, today, I've coded the "Retrieve Level from Online Database" feature in the level-editor.
Enter the database's level_ID of the level you want to load/edit, then click the "Get!" button, and voilà : your level instantly appears in jLevelBuilder, and is ready for editing! It's cool

[LJLPM]

Since I'm hot about this online-database/level-management stuff, I've just finished a rough draft of a new idea I got few hours ago:
integrating -a revised version of- jLevelBrowser into jLevelBuilder, in order to quickly browse & edit levels.

I still have to work a little bit to polish this thing, but, hey, now you can browse your level directories (displaying levels' data + actual images of the levels), and click on a jLevelBrowser's thumbnail to instantly load your level into jLevelBuiler, and work on it.

It seems that the whole project turned into something quite big now: Android game + online database(levels + replays) + level-editing tools. I can't wait to see the game released!!!


--- for more details about jLevelBrowser, see here: ---
http://www.lemmingsforums.net/index.php?topic=1852.0


- below: jLevelBrowser integrated into jLevelBuilder.



- TODO: create a database for the tilesets...

[LJLPM]

today I worked on jLevelBuilder and the database, to improve things here and there. For example, here's a new screenshot of the database: it shows a random level displayed on top (you click on this preview image to reach the level's "Details" webpage). Plus, now, there are level thumbnails for an easy preview of the hosted levels (click on a thumbnail to go to the level's "Details" page, or directly click on the level's name to download the level file).

[LJLPM]

Time for a little update here I keep on working on the "online database + jLevelBuilder" combo.

It works nicely: one was already able to upload single levels from jLevelBuilder (see previous posts) ; now it works with ".zip" packs, too
For example, I used the new "Upload Pack" feature to easily perform a batch-upload of 140+ levels from Pieuw's PimoLems into the online database.

I also remind you that you can directly download single levels right into jLevelBuilder for immediate level-editing: it's a nice feature.

Last words about the database:
- level replays are also stored, now.
- TODO: add the "Tileset" upload/download features.
- TODO: add criteria to filter the levels displayed (author, date, fun, difficulty, packs, etc ...)
- TODO: enable level ratings (fun rating + difficulty rating)


About the game:
Today, I fixed a new bug in the Android game (bugs are quite rare now!) + I turned left+right+top edges into non lethal edges (it is a hot NeoLemmix topic, these days , and I prefer these edges to be non-lethal).
- TODO: keep on working on the graphics. (and that's a lot of work!)


Lastly, be assured that non-frequent updates doesn't mean the project is cold... it's the contrary!


Now, some recent screenshots from the database:
- screenshot #1: online database's homepage. All available levels are displayed and downloadable from here. (random level shown at page's top)
- screenshot #2: click on a pack's name to get detailed infos about this pack + image previews of the contained levels (you can download the whole pack from this page).
- screenshot #3: click on a level (from the homepage or from the pack's page) to get detailed infos about the selected level (you can download any single level).

[LJLPM]

Here's the 1st glimpse of the running game.

• device: smartphone, res:540x960 pixels, 5-inch screen
• OS: Android 5.1.1

[607]

Why didn't you use any skills?

[LJLPM]

Why didn't you use any skills?

because it was the 1st teaser

If you want more , you can check this new full-res 2-minute video !

• level: "One way digging to freedom"
• device: smartphone, res:540x960 pixels, 5-inch screen
• OS: Android 5.1.1  (I also test the game on Android 4.1, and it works)

The new video showcases Lemmings in action, zoom-in (not at full scale! You can zoom-in more!!!), replay running, and instant teleport from one level's location to another location using the map.
With this video, I hope you'll be able to have a better idea of the game's current state, and, when released, I hope the game will meet your expectations!

I find the game to be very enjoyable on a smartphone with a 540x960 pixel resolution, and a 5-inch screen.
Since the video is in full-res, owners of an Android device may play the gameplay video fullsize on their Android device, and see what the game will look like on their Android device (this way, you'll be able to see what to expect from the game in terms of ergonomics and readability).

ps: currently, and for debug purposes, in the game, Floaters are Gliders. And I use small sprites combined with HD graphics for the tiles, hence the size differences between Lemmings and tiles.
ps2: ... of course, there are a lot more things I could show you in the game, but I just can't reveal everything yet

[607]

They sure move quite fast!
How does it display what skills you have selected?

[RubiX]

Its looking great.

Yea things are surely moving fast, but looking at the clock, it seems the replay is going about 1.25x

[LJLPM]

Thanks Yeah, game's speed is quite fast, but one gets used to it (...and we may see at a later time if it needs to be tweaked a little bit).

Anyway, today, I have more great news: as you know, I'm working on the online database, and it could already handle levels, levelpacks, and replays (downloads and uploads).
Today, the game gained a new feature: ... ... the online connection!!!!!
Yes! Now, when you manage to complete levels, your scores and stats go online, straight into the online leaderboard!
(players who want to use this feature, simply register their player name once -it's a free process of course- and that's it: then, the game will automatically send successful scores and stats to the online database, on a per-level basis)
 
This development definitively went far beyond my initial goal, and that's cool

[RubiX]

ooo competitive stuff came, that is exciting.

[LJLPM]

[LJLPM]

a short news to tell you that I'm still working on the Android project: these days, I'm mostly working on improving the level-editor -jLevelBuilder- to suit level-designers' needs for building levels.

Last uploaded version is v1.76, and now I'm almost reaching v1.79 (new features, workflow improvement, and... bug-fixes ).
Of course, there are new features which are only compliant with the Android game + online database, but some new tools/features are compatible with making traditional .lvl files and Lemmini's .ini levels (and, no, jLevelBuilder still does not provide support for SuperLemmini's features).
I could release a newer version of the editor if some interest shows up (which I doubt...).

[LJLPM]

The topic about the text-based files for NeoLemmix's levels made me wonder if it would be interesting to use colored backgrounds for the levels.
I've just made some rough tests, and here are the results with some levels you know well...
(conclusion: I still need to polish this thing, but I think I'll add the colored backgrounds to the game )