Posts by JessBowers

Hey Jeff, I'm glad to see this is out! One question: I noticed that the price of the UWP exporter is twice that of the other exporters ($199 vs. $99). Is that correct and if so why the huge price difference?

render8, great job!

Not sure if this will help much, but here is an old Super Mario World engine that I worked on. I put it together when I was trying to come up with my own custom platform movement. Some parts were designed by different people - credits in the comments on the first level.

Jeff, hope that teaser is a positive one. I can't tell you how happy it would make me.

Are there any plans to create either a CF 2.5 or future 3.0 extension for Universal Windows Platform (UWP)?

Thanks,
Jess

Hey folks,

NOTE: This thread is related to my other post: Pixel Art on the Xbox 360 (Please login to see this link.). Since this is really a separate issue, I've created a new thread for it.

I'm having throuble with platform movement in my MMF2 games once they are exported to the Xbox 360. I've got two examples with two separate issues:

1. Issues using the PMO (Platform Movement Object)

I have an engine that Assault Andy helped me with a long time ago. The artwork assets are all Super Mario Brothers but the purpose of the engine was to get an engine that did platform movement with moving platforms, conveyors, springs, etc. The engine seems to work great on my PC but runs into problems with "jump through platforms" when it's exported to the Xbox 360. In the screenshot below, Mario is standing on a jump through platform. On the Xbox 360, he just falls right through them.

Please login to see this attachment.

Here's the file if you'd like to download it (PMO-Xbox.mfa) : Please login to see this link.

2. Issues with my CPM (Custom Platform Movement) engine

I wrote a custom platform movement engine that has a number of features. Again, it seems to run fine on my PC but it runs horribly on the Xbox 360. It could be that I'm violating some serious programming rules but I honestly don't know what's going wrong. Here's a screenshot:

Please login to see this attachment.

Here's the file if you're like to download it (CPM-Xbox.mfa) : Please login to see this link.

Thanks for your help!
Jess

I'm still testing the resolution but am having some issues with sprite behavior on the Xbox 360. Some of the objects (specifically the Platform Movement Object) don't appear to function exactly the same way on the Xbox 360 as they do on the PC. Since this is a separate issue, I'll create a new thread and then come back to this one with more on the resolution problem.

Patrick, thanks for the quick response! I'm taking the kids to lunch, but I'll try your recommendations later today and report back.

Hey folks,

I'd like to know the best resolution and settings (MMF, XNA, etc.) for Pixel Art games on the Xbox 360. I've browsed the forum topics and have read a few related threads:

• Please login to see this link.
• Please login to see this link.

Here's what I understand so far (and this may not all be right - please correct me if I'm wrong):

• Aspect Ratio
  
  
  • The Xbox 360 aspect ratio automatically changes depending on the type of display:
    
    
    • SDTV - 4:3
    • HDTV - 16:9
  • Development should probably be done for HDTVs as most people will have these (including myself)
• Resolution
  
  
  • The Xbox 360 supports two main resolutions on an HDTV
    
    
    • 720p (1280x720)
    • 1080p (1920x1080)
• Game Resolution
  
  
  • You can set your MMF2 game to just about any resolution and the Xbox 360 will resize or "zoom" it to fit the screen
  • Resizing lower resolution games uses "smooth" scaling - which may cause pixel art to become blurry

Does all of that sound about right?

So, my question again: Since my game is a pixel art game and I'd like to avoid a blurry display - which resolution and settings (MMF, XNA, etc.) should I be using?

The game is currently in the neighborhood of 400x300 but I'm okay with changing that around a little. I can redo the necessary artwork (HUD, etc.) as needed. Here is a screenshot of what I'm trying to accomplish on the Xbox 360:

Please login to see this attachment.

Thanks a lot for any help you can offer!

Jess

Got it all setup!!

I received my XNA Export Module disc in the mail yesterday and finished the installation. There were a lot of moving parts to get everything setup properly but none of it was too challenging. I've explorted and run a few incomplete games and now see I'll just need to better understand the limitations of the export module. Some of the MMF2 extensions I was using won't work (I later saw Jeff's post) but none of them are critical. I'll probably approach this by building a sample platform game from the ground up (using the PMO instead of my custom movement) and then move in my artwork. That may not be completely necessary but it'll help me (of limited mental ability) track changes to the game.

I've got other questions but I'll post them in another thread. Thanks, Clickteam! Great stuff with the export module.

Thanks for the response, Francois. I just installed Visual Studio 2010 last night and patched it. I'll install the XNA Game Studio 4.0 Refresh today and read the "distributing your application" section you mentioned. I may actually try to document and post a complete list of steps for getting an MMF2 game onto the Xbox 360 -- for myself and any other non-programmers like me.

Honestly, if I get my game running on my Xbox 360 (with rumble support) I'd be completely happy. Getting it approved would be great but I'm most interested in just "seeing" and "playing" at home with myself and my two daughters.

As for the phone (and Windows RT for that matter), if it's not too hard, I think it would be fun to do as well. Full disclosure: I work for Microsoft but am in no way related to the games division. Everyone here is incented to create apps for our products but I'm doing this purely because I love making pixel art and want to get my game, Captain Plokey, running on my Xbox 360. If it turns out that getting it ported to the phone isn't that hard, then I'd love to do it. I'd get everyone in my district to download it! Haha. But, that would be second to getting it running on the Xbox.

Hey kind foks!

I just ordered the XNA Export Module and am eagerly awaiting it in the mail. I should have chosen the additional download option as I'm a little impatient for it to arrive.

That said, I should state that I'm a complete n00b when it comes to developing for XNA and the Xbox. Here's what I've done so far:

1. Purchased the Xbox Live Indie Game subscription (to post games).
2. Downloaded Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate (using my new MSDN subscription) - need to install it now
3. Purchased the Clickteam XNA Export Module

I've developed some small games (sometimes with friends) using Multimedia Fusion 2 but this will be my first foray into the Xbox 360.

So, to my question. For someone as "green" as me, is there the equivant to an "Idiots Guide to publishing games on the Xbox 360 using the XNA Exporter Module"?

It's been about 20 years since I've done any sort of programming. Although I'm not against doing some, if someone knows which buttons I need to press and knobs to turn in Visual Studio to get my exported game running on my Xbox 360 I'd be greatly appreciative. Any step by step guides?

Thanks!!!
Jess

Thanks, folks! I appreciate the responses!

Hey folks,

I would have posted this in the XNA Exporter forum but I guess we won't have one until it's released. Fortunately, my question is not really about the exporter (which I'm really looking forward to) but more about the Xbox 360.

My question is this: What is the resolution of the Xbox 360?

Why I ask: I'd like to make a pixel game for the Xbox 360 and want to either double or triple the size of the pixels. A few (old) screenshots of the game look like this:

Please login to see this link.
Please login to see this link.

I'd like to use whatever native resolution the Xbox 360 uses so that the pixels aren't stretched in anyway. Can anyone help me with this question? Thanks!!

Looki, thanks a TON! That CRT shader looks fantastic! It really takes me back to my days in the arcades.

Quote from Yves

Works fine for me, directions 1, 3, 5, 7 work fine. Maybe verify your joystick is correctly calibrated?

Does that include the Xbox 360 D-pad?

I've been working with the Joystick 2 object for awhile, and I cannot get 8-directional support from the D-pad (only the Left Thumbstick - I haven't tried the Right Thumbstick). Using the extension, I can only get 4-directional support from the D-pad.

I believe the D-pad is called the Point of View Hat and does show 8-directions when tested in the Windows Control Panel applet. However, the Joystick 2 object only lets you check the POV for forward, reverse, right and left. Try as I might, I've been unable to perform checks like "both forward and right" (which would equate to the player pressing up and right). While this is possilbe with the Thumbstick, the POV check seems more limited.

I'd like to offer players the opportunity to change their controls between the Left Thumbstick and D-pad but that doesn't appear possible as I need to check for 8 directions. Has anyone been able to get 8 directions for the D-pad?

Hey Mike,

This is a quirky problem, and I've encountered it myself. What is even stranger is the resolution. All you need to do is add an empty layer underneath the layer that you already have.

Here's what I did to fix your file:

• Opened it with MMF2.
• Clicked on Frame 1.
• Pressed Alt+K to open the Layers Toolbar.
• Added an additional layer.
• Dragged the new layer so that it was "beneath" the layer with objects. The objects layer now should be #2 and the empty layer #1.

That's it! You won't need to uncheck "Handle background collisions even out of window."

I've attached a fixed file.

Jess

Quote from Zabooza

also i have added more playable charaters, if someone could help me find a site with most of the mario people and enemies from the oldest to the newest versions, that would be nice.

Go to Please login to see this link.. Then click Sprites and you can narrow your search by changing the Group to Enemies.

Quote from mkj5025

I am curious as to how to create a basic moving platform because as soon as I convert the object to an active object and create path movement for it, I can no longer select platform for the obstacle type and my character just falls through it. What should I do?

mkj5025, I posted an example in the Please login to see this link.. The tutorial comes from Please login to see this link. and was created by Supertoad2k. It demonstrates how to create horizontal and vertical moving platforms for games that use the TGF2/MMF2 default platform movement.

Quote from Raylax

...Anyone know how to do a vertical moving platform with PMO? Mine doesn't work, as described in my last post xP

I just uploaded a sample MFA file Please login to see this link.

Hope that helps!

Hey guys,

Here is another example of a platform engine using the PMO. I created the graphics and Assault Andy did the programming. Andy is a very talented guy and also wrote one of the first Please login to see this link. back in 2003. As this was his first hack at changing my custom platform engine to a PMO-based engine, you'll notice the comments are specifically directed at me. It's also pretty quick for Andy so if you find a mistake - it's probably because he knocked it out so fast.

This includes:

• Jumping
• Moving Vertical Platforms
• Moving Horizontal Platforms
• Conveyor Belts
• Springs
• Doors and Keys
• Ladders (not fully implemented)

The ladder movement is not complete and Andy is still working on it. To exit a ladder, you have to jump off.

Hope this helps!

P.S. This engine is for a game we're creating together. Once we're done, I may have a more complete engine that I can post.