Project+Platformer



= **The Classic Platform Game** =

Do you remember the old days when Mario was about the best game you can find? Guess what, that type of game is called a **platformer**. These games have the following characteristics:
 * 2D
 * side-scrolling
 * basic physics
 * checkpoints
 * a timer
 * able to save score

Now the platform game that we will make will be more of a puzzle involving moving platforms and a goal at the end of the map. (Similar to Maplestory's jump quests.)

What has to be done:

 * basic physics engine (1 week to teach)
 * player + movement animations (3 days to teach)
 * moving obstacles to avoid (1 week to teach)[[image:platformer.jpg]]

More details for those who are in IB: You are intelligent people, your creation is not limited to these guidelines.
 * 1) set FPS to **50**
 * 2) draw your **basic** player without the walking/jumping/crouching animations
 * 3) draw basic horizontal platforms all over the map (even off the screen)
 * 4) group them all and convert to movie clip
 * 5) from this movie clip, you will run the entire game at 50 FPS
 * 6) the following instructions has to do with code in the control box
 * 7) implement physics
 * 8) make the player **accelerate** downwards constantly (set the maximum absolute value for speed to be 12)
 * 9) the basic concept of acceleration:
 * 10) variable for "speed" initialized as 0
 * 11) constant movement at "speed"
 * 12) any action increases or decreases the "speed" variable
 * 13) get the map to hitTest the player's x, y coordinates
 * 14) if it hits, vertical acceleration is set to 0
 * 15) have a boolean variable testing for a jump by the player
 * 16) if the player jumps, have acceleration upwards for a period of time
 * 17) you can measure time via the FPS setting of 50 frames per second
 * 18) implement screen panning
 * 19) when the player approaches the edge of the screen, move **everything** the **opposite direction** via a for loop
 * 20) implement moving platforms
 * 21) talk to the leaders when working on the following (does not apply if you know it):
 * 22) implement checkpoint
 * 23) implement timer
 * 24) implement restarting mechanism

Feel free to add the following:
 * 1) traps
 * 2) breakable platforms
 * 3) multiple checkpoints
 * 4) anti-gravity
 * 5) multiplayer race (1st to fall behind loses)
 * 6) ever play Dinorun? Imagine 2 players on that.

Here is an example by Zelin: media type="file" key="platformer4.swf" width="540" height="540"


 * requires flash player 8+

Controls- Left-up-down-right = movement Space bar = fireball Down while in air = ground smash

**Random Ideas Recorded Here:**
Check out Contra, a brillant platformer game. For Chinese people, the name is "魂斗罗". We can make a game like that, but instead of shooting bullets, we will shoot hearts. Instead of blood and death, we will have flowers and angels or something. The background colours will not be black and red like Contra, but pink and orange and all other comforting colours. So that no one can say this is a violent game because it contains no scenes of violence.


 * made it already =D* over the summer school days... when there was nothing to do at lunch except spend time in the library