Having actors as rudimentary functions

[Marby]

If we could call the “On-Touch” events manuelly from other events by using screenplay, we already could use our actors as some kind of user defined functions. We just need a screenplay command in order to call their events manually. It would be probably not very difficult to implement this and it could greatly help us to reduce redundancies of screenplay. Some RPG Makers implemented this similar and I massively used it with RPG Maker 2003.

Btw. together with an exit screenplay command we could create recursive calls in a relatively simple way and use them instead of loops even without having a “real” programming language yet.

 

[Oizo]

I was about to post a question going into this direction.  Instead of “on touch” as the main feature, have “actions” instead of it and inside that , ge the scripting window, with commands like “on touch/contact” (what means on touch? if i click on the actor? or if my character “collides” with it?   “if in sight range (could be defined with a value X like the range for patrol value)”, “if hurt (by hero or by other)” “if followed” etc.

Imagine the complexity and depht this might bring to the way everything interacts.  Eg.  You follow a shady dude and after a while (range X or timespan Y) he turns towards you and says “are you you following me?? can i help you, buddy?” / change music to creepy fx, fade – darken scenery by -5,  resize actor +2  etc etc etc (sorry for the escalation, hahahah, it’s just for the picture! 😉  )

>> i’m new to this and haven’t discovered everything so far – so,  if i refer to eventually existing functions – please don’t mind me.  I just read your post and – if i understood you correctly – I do absolutely agree.  More complexity = more life (ok and also more bugs but thats the challenge)   🙂

[Marby]

For realizing what you mention we probably need a new kind of event. An OnTimer-event for the “are you following me” stuff should do. Additionally, we need the capability to use variables in order to do more complex calculations as well as the capability to read the actor’s and hero’s position coordinates. With this we even can program the “are you following me” stuff rather easy. This all will come someday too and it is already on DeWiTTERS list. But it will be much more work to implement than what I mentioned here.

I just meant to call the screenplay of our Actors’ OnTouch-events directly by using a screenplay command like “Call MyNPC1234.OnTouch()” or something similar. With this, you could implement e. g. a more complex check for every pickup item of the same type without the need to copy that check over and over into every single item’s OnTouch-event. Imagine you would like to change your screenplay afterwards. Up to now you need to modify EVERY SINGLE pickup item!
There could be a much better way:
By just calling an invisible (or even deactivated) actor’s screenplay you merely need to change your screenplay at THAT SINGLE PLACE and the new version will be valid for EVERY SINGLE PICKUP ITEM calling the modified screenplay without the need of changing your item’s screenplay directly.

[deWiTTERS]

I’m planning to implement the proper programming in actions very soon. Right now I’m working on saving games (already know how to do it, just still need to do it;)), then it’s custom graphics, and then I’ll improve programming.

[Author]

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