Roadmap for CE 1.1

[WillLem]

Since more than 2 months have passed since the release of 1.0 and there hasn't been much in the way of feedback (and all feedback so far is either in active discussion or has been addressed/resolved), it seems appropriate to start thinking about the next version.

The main thing I'd like to focus on this time around is the replay system, beginning with the following proposed features/updates:

Replay "R" is now clickable to cancel the replay (including during Replay Insert mode). The icon now also animates by blinking on and off every 500ms - should this be optional?.

Add Playback Mode - this can auto-play an entire folder of replays for a selected levelpack, with various playback options

Updated Replay Renamer (now known as Replay Manager in SLX) to include additional replay renaming options (including the ability to append the pass/fail result of each replay) when performing a Mass Replay Check

Added .nxrp Windows-File-Association; when associated, clicking a replay file will open NeoLemmix and load the level & replay, ready to be played back immediately!

Skill Panel - Negative save count is now optional; the alternative is to count upwards from 0 with the number in yellow until it reaches the save requirement, at which point it becomes green

Skill Panel - Add (optional) mouseover hints to all skill panel buttons

Skill Panel - Lemming counts are capped at '999' ('-99' for negative numbers) across the panel to avoid visual bugs when the lem count exceeds this number

As well as any other features/updates that have been requested and accepted since the release of 1.0.

That should be enough to be going on with. Please post a reply with any suggestions/questions/comments you may have. Work on this will likely be very slow compared to my usual rate, but sooner replies are always better than later ones.

[Simon]

Fix the design Reinvestigate all ideas to fix the design of the splat ruler. The ruler confuses newbies and experienced players. This weekend, I'll write a proper post in the existing topic. It's not as easy as I thought earlier today.

Discoverable replay cancelling is good, e.g., clickable R in the panel. Subtle animation for the R is fine, assuming you mean proper animation, not color cycling. I have ideas. Please make a separate topic for this when you have a build that supports this animation.

Small visual bugs such as the 999-cap sound reasonable to fix. Never had it, but sure, squeeze it in.

-- Simon

[WillLem]

Updated the OP.

Community Edition now has the updated Replay Manager, plus .nxrp file association (so, clicking a replay file opens the player, loads the level, and readies-up the replay for playback).

Other features to follow, should have an RC release ready by the end of 2025.

[WillLem]

Updated the OP.

All skill panel updates are complete, next task is to add Playback Mode. I'm also going to aim to fix a few more UI bugs for the next release. RC should be ready very soon.

Fix the design Reinvestigate all ideas to fix the design of the splat ruler.

This one might have to wait until 1.2, progress/feedback has been slow and we want to get it right first time.

Subtle animation for the R is fine

This can certainly be done, but we need to keep in mind that some users wish to run CE and 12.14 from the same directory, and I agree that this should be possible. It may be necessary to add a "panel_icons_ce" image, with graceful fallback to NL's panel icons if absent, in order to support gfx updates. Rather than including additional images, we simply blink the "R" on and off every 500ms in code.


Please do get involved in the discussions now if you have anything to add/suggest/request/ask. All feedback is relevant, valid, and helpful, especially yours!!!

[WillLem]

Updated the OP.

Playback Mode has now been added to NLCE! It's now possible to play back an entire folder of replays in a variety of orders (by level, by appearance in folder, or randomly). Preview and Postview screens can also be auto-skipped (or not). Great for viewing replays of your pack, or for making videos, etc. New actions (skill assignments, etc) can also be added to a replay during Playback Mode without cancelling out of the mode (which must be done either by pressing the dedicated hotkey or clicking the "R" icon in the skill panel).

The feature includes the addition of new cursors for Replay, Replay Insert, and Playback Mode, to help the user keep track of which mode is active:

Replay - Cursor is red to match the red "R" icon
Insert - Cursor is blue to match the blue "R" icon
Playback - Cursor is purple, and "R" icon is hue-shifted to purple

If these cursors are not present in the directory (for example, if the user is running CE from a NL directory), cursor will fallback to default green for all modes.

Note also that the "R" icon is now clickable (to cancel Replay/Playback Mode) and animated (blinks on and off every 500ms).

Question: should we make this animation optional?

The next RC will hopefully be ready in a few days!