+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ GameMaker Docs Typed up by: The Crusader and Gnarly McNasty +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Call Delta House 10meg 206/232-1155 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Authors note: This file is a very-much abridged version of the Game Maker docs - Most of the important stuff is here, without the "computer illiterate" garbage... i.e. "to boot: insert disk in drive with label up.. close drive door.. turn computer on" etc.. Have fun... Gamemaker is made up of 5 separate parts. 1) The Scene Maker, which lets you draw background scenes for the games 2) The Sprite Maker, which lets you create characters 3) The Sound Maker for sound effects 4) The Music Maker, for background music, and 5) The Gamemaker Editor, which ties them all together. The Gamemaker Editor Main Commands: Menu (back to main menu) File (Load, Save, Init, Delete) Make a Disk (write the game to disk) Prnt (prints out listing of game) Clr (clears program area) Run (run the program in program area) Ins (insert blank line at cursor) Del (delete line at cursor) Find (places cursor next to given label) Copy (copies chunks of program) Move (move lines around) Watch the Message line at the top for questions and comments... (i.e. Delete (y/n) ? ) The Command window (in the middle) displays all of the commands available to you when programming. The list can be scrolled forward and backwards, and the window itself can be expanded (using the 'tab' at the bottom right corner) To place a command, place the cursor in the programming area (bottom) where you want the command to go, and press the button or space bar. Next, scroll through the command list until you find the command you want, and hit the button. The command will be copied into the program area. The Program area (at the bottom) like the Command area, can be scrolled up and down (by pushing the button while the cursor is on the up or down arrows). You can change the information in the program area, select the line you want to change, go to the command box and select the new command, and hit the button. The Scene Maker The Scene Maker has 4 sub-parts. The Scene Maker Commands, The Scene Maker Paint Box, the Drawing Modes, and the Drawing Board. Scene Maker Commands: File (see previous section for file commands) Quit (back to editor) Undo (undo last operation) Clear (clears the drawing board) The Paint Box: To choose a color, move the cursor onto the respective color, and hit the button. The Drawing Modes: Draw (Free drawing) Circl (draws circles - set the center and radius) Line (between 2 points) Box (2 points) Fill Zoom (magnifies area) Copy (cut & paste) View (hides the commands to view full screen) Move You can erase parts already done by drawing over with a different color, or eliminating the dots one-by-one in the Zoom mode. The Sprite Maker In the Sprite Maker, you have 3 sections: Sprite Maker Commands Sprite Drawing board (where you draw the sprites) Sprite Positioning Area (where you position the different sprite pictures when making an animated character) In the command area are 6 commands - Quit (exit to main), File, Setup (to start new sprites), FR (frame #, for animated sprits), SPR (sprite #), and Cmd (editing commands - flip, animate, shift, quit, clear, copy) To start a new sprite: First, go to Setup, and select how many small sprites are going to make up one whole shape ('sprites' command). Then you will be asked to "position" your sprites, which means to place the component sprites on the sprite positioning area, in the order that they make up the large sprite. Next, select the color that you want to draw with (by moving to color & hitting the button twice), then move to the Drawing Board, and place the dots in the order you want. If you are drawing more than one sprite, go to the "SP=1" box and move the joystick to change it to "SP=2", and so on until you are finished. If you are animating a sprite, you use the "FR=1" box (frame=1), to select another frame, and re-draw the sprites. Sprite Editing Commands: ("cmd" box) Flip: Turns the sprite in the direction indicated Anim: Animates the sprite from Frame x to Frame y. Button stops the viewing. Shift: Moves the graphics in the area of the current frame. Quit: Exits to previous commands Clear: Erase the entire sprite Copy: To copy frames from sprite to sprite. Sound Maker There are three sections to Sound Maker - the Sound Maker Commands, the Knobs, and the Slides. The Commands: Save, Load, Init Quit (exits to main) Delete (deletes current frame) Insert (inserts frame) Copy (copies sounds from frame to frame) Clear (clears the entire screen) Knobs: To move a knob, press the button while on the knob, then move joystick until it has the correct setting you want. Reps: Will repeat sounds (you must also set the Number of times to repeat, and the Delay between reps) Frm: Indicates which frame you are working on (1-63) Wave: Chooses between 3 different sound types- Slide, Pulse, or Noise (turn the Pulse knob to change pulse) Frq: Frequency (pitch) of sound Spd (knob): Speed of sweep Sliders: (push button on, and move it up and down) Spd: Speed of sound Dur: Duration of sounds Other commands: Hear Sound: Plays whole sound effect Hear Frame: Plays selected frames Constant: Repeats sound or frame until turned off Quiet (or ESC): Stops playing Music Maker Commands: File Quit Insert (use arrows to move to note to insert before) Del (use arrows to select note to delete) Top (takes you to beginning of music) Play (playes music) Clr (clears all notes) Stop (ceases playing song, CONT continues) To enter a note: Put marker in note selection box, and hit the button. Move joystick until the note you want is in the box, then hit the button. Move the pointer onto the music sheet and hit the button. Channels- there are two different voices that can play at once, one on the top staff, one on the bottom. When selecting a note, it is specifically for one channel or the other (depending on wether it is red or blue, which can be changed by moving the joystick). To change the channel, select it with the pointer. Instruments- There are many different instruments which can be played, to select a different one, move the pointer down to the box (right next to the channels) and select which instrument you want. Tie: To tie together notes, to smooth out the music. Tempo: (speed of music) Can be set on slow, med, fast. Game Maker Programming Commands Add [x] to score [a] - adds x points to score of player a. Clear Scene - clears the screen and resets the colors to black. Clear score [a] - resets score a to 0. Clear sprite - Clears a sprite's graphics and removes it from the screen. /comment - like a REM, holds up to 24 chars of information Data table at x - tells the computer the location of the data table (at line x) Data values 000 000 - The data table; two variables read per instruction Endif - the end of a logical IF function. If... Then - the beginning of a logical IF function (If can be used in the following ways) If a = 000 If a > 000 If a < 000 If button 1 is on If joystick is right If keyboard = "J" If score 1>000 If score 1>score 2 If sprite hit sprite then Jump to label 1001 - jumps to designated label (up to 255 labels) Jump to subroutine at 1001 - jumps to designated subroutine until a "Return from subroutine" is executed. Otherwise - like an ELSE in a logical IF statement. Pause for x units - waits for x time periods before resuming operation. Plot a dot at x=000 y=000 - Plots a pixel at coordinates x,y. Plot color 0 - Designates color of plot 0 = Black 1 = White 2 = Blue 3 = Red 4 = Violet 5 = Green Print - Prints up to 20 chars at current position. Print at row 00 column 00 - sets current print position. Print character of x - prints the character of ascii value x. Print color 00 on 00 - selects foreground and background colors of next characters to be printed. Print value of [a] - prints numeric value of letter a. Scene is [ ] - loads scene into memory. Score x at row 00 column 00 - Selects position of score x. Score x color = 00 on 00 - Selects color to print score x in. Set - like LET Set a = 1 Set a = 1 * 4 Set a = a - a Set a = rnd number from 0 to 100 Set a = sprite x position Set a = value at data + [a] Set a = value at ram + [a] Skip next if... - Skips next instruction if following expression is true. Song is [ ] - loads song into memory. Sound = [ ] - selects sound effects. Sound Off, Sound On Sprite x is [ ] - selects sprite. Sprite animates always, Sprite animates once - selects how to animate sprite. Sprite animation speed = 000 - selects how fast to animate sprite Sprite color set = (red/blu) or (vio/grn) - selects new color for selected sprite. Sprite Dir = 000 000 - Sets direction of sprite (2nd number = degrees) 000 = 000 degrees (up) 064 = 090 degrees (right) 128 = 180 degrees (down) 192 = 270 degrees (left) Sprite movement speed = 000 - sets movement speed of sprite. Sprite x position = 000, Sprite y position = 000 - sets sprite x and y position. Stop program Trace of [a] on (or off) - sets trace mode on or off. S - step through instructions V - cycle through variables up or dn arrows - slow-motion (speeding up) lf or rt arrows - slow-motion (slowing down) T - start or stop trace mode Error Messages Out of memory - you have filled the memory area.. watch the FREE at the top Out of Labels - you have used all 255 labels Too many files - you have tried to load more than 255 files (sprites, sounds, songs and pictures) File too large - the file you are trying to load is too big to fit in available memory. Too many if thens - there are more than 128 if...then statements If then logic error - Each if must have an endif, or there are two Otherwises. I/O error - error in trying to disk access.