Not a member of Pastebin yet?
Sign Up,
it unlocks many cool features!
- Basically, this is the first serious attempt to rewrite the
- game code to something that's not an unmaintainable and
- unscalable mess, so we can make it properly and start
- focusing on game content instead of the permanent "hitting
- our heads against the wall" style.
- The only parts not included are brothel code and map scene,
- although even for them we have written internal reports
- for the problems that need to be solved after this.
- #==== Overview ==================================
- Systems expanded and moved to xml:
- - Enemies
- - Alter States
- - Items, materials and books
- - Shops
- Preparation for new systems:
- - Achievements
- - Summons
- - Crafting and alchemy
- - Abilities
- - Crafts
- - Editor API
- - Expansion Packs
- - PlayerInfo file and HexCodes
- - Revamped relationships system
- - Alter forms full support
- - New battle system with AI and non-linear battle
- Code restructuring:
- - Battlers (actors, enemies, summons)
- - Items and equipment
- - Cache and XML parsing
- - Combat classes, battle skills
- - Battle actions
- - Party management and access
- - Savefiles
- - Redesign of a couple scenes with new UI
- Codebase extra thingies:
- - Documentation and introspectivity
- - Cacheing
- - Constant modules metaprogramming
- #==== Limitations ===============================
- - Saves breaking
- - Alter states map effects not implemented (they will be in time)
- - Move tactic not implemented (it will be in time)
- - Some UI is not completely developed, because there are many new effects which are not displayed yet
- - Many API methods not implemented
- - Battle hook dialogues are not implemented yet
- - Alter state changing resistances are not implemented yet
- Won't be implemented, features have been deleted:
- - Skillgroups with multiple proficiencies or required skills. Now you only have one proficiency.
- Though you have extra features like locked skills and expanded skillgroups (which inherit
- from other skillgroups and allow "skillgroup expansions")
- - Multi-source weapon growth. Now you can only use proficiency or stat source, not both.
- #==== Additional Details ========================
- - AI and battlers: not only enemies, summons and actors are unified
- to use the same code (which means less bugs, clearer code, easier
- to maintain and scale the system), but AI is included for everyone
- too, allowing not only the creation of much more interesting enemies,
- but also auto-battle for actors, for example during quests.
- - Hooks are a system that allows us to go beyond turn-based battle
- and add reactive and triggered behaviors/battle actions. We also
- have a new battle scripting system and battle counters, which offer
- a system of variables that exist during battle and can be used to
- program complex behaviors in AI and more interesting conditions/
- effects for most battle-related elements. For example, with battle
- skills we can use the variables to make skills with changing effects
- on different uses.
- - Alter state changes fix many shortcomings and allow us to properly
- balance bonuses/maluses and progressive damage alter states. First,
- we can have states like poison become stronger with use. Second, we
- have much more control over how states are applied, and instead of
- just random, we also have accumulators so states can be triggered
- after a few uses. This, besides being helpful for weapon induced states
- like confusion with heavy weapons, is also great for creating items
- with negative effects when overused, to be applied to shop healing items.
- We also get much more control over alter state effect termination, which
- can be used for things like talismans that have effect for a whole day.
- There's also states overriding, which allows for protective and coherent
- multi-tier states, and state opposites, so no more atk+ and atk-. Auto
- states have now full support, and we have many more options in general
- for alter states, due to them being able to use battle behavior hooks,
- expanded modifiers, etc.
- - Items get to XML, so we can finally have drops and add them to the game
- properly, we also get custom item max amount depending on item (equip are
- also items, so all this applies to them too), aliases for items, all the
- benefits that come from proper XML loading (ensure data integrity), and
- regular items are compatible with new alter states and battle actions, so
- pretty much everything that can be done with skills can be added to items
- in the same way. We also get books.
- - Abilities: the new system can be triggered by directly assigning abilities
- to actors, or triggering them dynamically from equipment sets or single
- equip pieces, and their effects include: auto-states and stat modifiers
- (we already had this, now moved here), alter state modifiers, added skills,
- added weapon wieldings, and evasion, hit rate, and other battle modifiers.
- - Editor API: a well documented set of functions that allow game editors to
- have simpler access to more and stable functionality from editor script calls,
- and coders to make changes to the code without having to modify script calls
- in all current maps, making the system much more robust and scalable. Amongst
- the new functionalities, we also include some like the ability to program
- variable or switch changes for a future date, which allows us to have recurring
- or cyclic events (examples: farming herbs/minerals, randomly appearing events),
- or waits in events (can't proceed until the next day, or can schedule a meeting
- for X day/hour, etc.) [still a work in progress]
- - PlayerInfo.sb2r, a file to store player achievements, global options and some
- additional info. Also gives us the possibility to distribute game codes that
- are only usable to that player, generated through HexCodes system.
- - Actors get many things: proper XML loading (<= and this is the most important
- thing in the list even if you don't realize), full alter forms compatibility
- (pretty much all XML information can be set for alter forms too, we get some
- autoform change systems like battle-start/end, direct access to form change
- from menu, and for the other cases we have support in the Editor API and in new
- skill XMLs), better cache compatibility (you can change name folder, actor name,
- stats, source,... you get warned when something can't be changed later, and pretty
- much nothing (except deleting alter forms) can crash now), a new and much more
- expressive, scalable and consistent relationships system. Improved dynamic
- sprite generator, able to handle different size images, faster and with support
- for arbitrary custom body parts (ears, horns, wings, and if you want a pony you
- can too). We also get improved wielding options, and a hand to hand system to
- determine actor/enemy/summon proficiency without weapons. And access to all these
- from code is clear and documented.
- - Massive clean up for codebase libraries. We also significantly expand RGSS library.
- - A new Time system. This might take a bit to be added.
- - New UI. This includes UIStyles (a system that allows players to change the game UI
- style), new windows that are more stable, better looking, but specially easier to
- build and are compatible with UIStyles, many new built-in pop-up windows (to display
- achievements, quest progress, region changes, loading screens, etc.), and many
- rewritten windows, aimed at improving the user experience and fitting all the new
- features that need to be displayed in the game.
- - Balance logs. A system that automates analysis of game content to generate files
- to help with game balance. Everything gets balance logs. Skills, skillsets, classes,
- abilities, alter states, weapons, items, actors, enemies, etc.
- - We get all the groundwork done so after this revamp is stable we can get summons,
- achievements, alchemy, etc. With a couple weeks of work for each (and basically
- because making the new UIs takes at least a week for each one already)
- - Many more things that I don't add here because they are either very technical,
- invisible to most people, or too minor and scattered around to add here, but that
- sometimes take a lot of work and have important effects on future consistency,
- maintainability and scalability for the game's code.
Advertisement
Add Comment
Please, Sign In to add comment