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Sonic Uno

Discussion in 'Engineering & Reverse Engineering' started by Super, May 4, 2008.

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  1. Super

    Super

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    Yes, I'm still working on it, sorta. After putting it down for a solid year, I gave it some much needed attention yesterday. I polished some art, completed the layouts, and Basically improved all the completed levels(Marble and Green Hill). Now, I am not sure what I'm going to do from here besides my original goals(New Art and New layouts), because I lack the technical skill to do anything remotely amazing by myself.

    That said, I think I can still produce a solid and fun hack without any major gimmicks. My main goal is simple in that I want to make the game play like a Sonic game and not so obviously a hack.

    [​IMG]
     
  2. JcFerggy

    JcFerggy

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    Looking cool, but could you make those screens in 320x224. Shit took abit on dial-up.
     
  3. Super

    Super

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    The reason I made them double was simple. They didn't stretch the page and they gave a more accurate view of the game as how you'd be playing it. Because most people either play at full or double size. I didn't think about dial-up because... I didn't think many people used that crap anymore. Sorry.

    Anyway, Marble Zone has hit a major snag that not I or StephenUK could figure out. The Basaran makes it crash. He researched the code, subtypes, and all manner of different reasons for why the bat-like enemy would cause the game to crash, but he hasn't been successful. If anyone else had this problem and found a fix for it, it'd be much appreciated. Otherwise, I'm going to have to cut the Basaran from my levels(Which is too bad because some Basaran don't crash the game).

    Other then that, I'm working on altering the boss patterns slightly. If anyone is proficient at this and/or is willing to teach me or point to some helpful guides(The former is more appreciated), I'd be much obliged. This also includes allowing spikes to not be messed up garbles of grab and be available for use.
     
  4. Dark Sonic

    Dark Sonic

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    I remember this game had Metal Sonic... at least I think it did. Is he still in the game?
     
  5. Super

    Super

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    Haaaaa... No. No it did not. Not a half bad idea you gave me though, but not as a playable character. Even still, no, as of currently, Metal Sonic isn't in the game. That must be some other game with a sunset themed Green Hill(which is, oh, like fifty?).
     
  6. Dark Sonic

    Dark Sonic

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    Oh wait that was Sonic 65's hack I was thinking of. My mistake. Seeing Metal Sonic as a boss would be pretty cool though.
     
  7. Overlord

    Overlord

    Now playable in Smash Bros Ultimate Moderator
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    For what it's worth, you could just resize the small sized ones with image tags...
     
  8. Super

    Super

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    Alright, a quick update.

    Most of my object placement is done for each level. There are a few out there that are either in a bad subtype, or just in an odd position(Primarily due to a change in a 256x256 tile). When those are completed, I may think about making a small beta of my work so far.

    That said, my main issue these last few days is the unexpected and unexplained corruption of the Basaran enemy. I believe I have stated it before. Something in it's code, when placed near the edge of the level layouts by a range of about two 256x256s, makes the game crash. StephenUK helped me locate the problem, but no matter what we(read: he) tried, there was no saving the unexpected error. So if you see a severe lack of Basarans in the level, it's because of that.

    Anyway, I have been fiddling with quite a bit of the game, and all the thanks go to StephenUK and JcFerggy. Stephen with his help on the unexplained crashes and JcFerggy with his ASM guidance. Out for a year, I realized I knew nothing of ASM anymore, so I'm basically started anew here. Also, JC has hooked me up with a Title Art that stems from the BG of the Death Egg.

    [​IMG]

    It's cool, but as I've told him, it's only temporary until I fix up a new BG that fits the game more then flying through space.

    Anyway, for those who don't know, or those who just can't recall, here are some screens of Mystic Zone.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    As you can see, I very much want to change up the way you play a boss. I am going to try hard to change the way Robotnik moves about as well, in an effort to make the experience more fresh then just changing the turf.
     
  9. amphobius

    amphobius

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    That art is beautiful.

    Seriously.
     
  10. djdocsonic

    djdocsonic

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    Fuck me!! that Marble Zone art is teh Sex!!!
     
  11. Super

    Super

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    Well, the object placement is complete for both levels. Anything else changed would merely be for something unseen or buggy, and at this point, there should not be much of that.

    But speaking of objects, I will admit that I do need to work on Object art, and basically objects in general. Some of the objects that use the main art line(Most of MZ) are not looking so great after the art gets finished, and basically look like a bunch of crap thrown together at the last minute(See: SONIC '06). That said, until I fix that problem, you may see a little bit less in the way of moving objects or just a lot of those green cylinders. Sorry, but until I figure that out, that's the way it's gonna be.

    But not all news is mediocre or bad. I actually worked on the background of Mystic Zone for the day, and I am pleased with what I came up with. If you look in the previous shots, the back ground is simple, generic, and obviously broken in a lot of places. This new background is a spiritual successor to the last, keeping the columns idea, but expanding on it. I really like the way it looks.

    [​IMG]

    Also, DSR sucks. It's horribly limiting in Sonic 1...
     
  12. Thorn

    Thorn

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    ^It's also extremely easy to get rid of in Sonic 1, mind you. The routines in Hivebrain's disassembly are nicely named Resize_X#: with XX being zone name initials (e.g. Resize_GH1:, Resize_M2:). If you know the approximate X coordinates where the locks happen, you can find a similar value in those routines and comment out all of the cooresponding code.

    Personally, I'd keep DSR in mind just to make things look cool. Long horizontal parts look nicer if the ground is near the screen bottom, and using DSR for a vertical camera lock is better than letting the player fall for four seconds from the top of the level into a bottomless pit.
     
  13. Robjoe

    Robjoe

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    That MZ background is looking quite nice, however I still say you should ditch the emeralds shoved in the wall. A bunch of awkwardly clashing colors don't look appealing, especially in a dark, underground area. As for the boss, it does look very nifty, but at the same time, seems like he'd die in mere seconds. Hopefully you can find a way around that.
     
  14. Uberham

    Uberham

    King Of Oblivion Member
    Like you said, those springs don't look great.

    Personally I don't mind a Sonic hack that does nothing overly epic or special, I just want a game that gets progressively harder without being unfair, has a decent level layout, and doesn't make my eyes bleed with crappy palette-swaps.

    Looks like your hack is living up to all these criteria so far.
     
  15. Super

    Super

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    Actually, that is one of the exact things I said about this hack when I started it. Standard, looks good, and is just plain fun. Of course, I went rather wild at some points, but play testing has weeded out my worst ideas and right now I can say Sunset Hill plays like it should. Quick, fun, but plenty of alternate routes and exploration to be had.

    Here's a few things for an update:

    I'm still working on the final art style of MZ, mainly just background details and fixing tubes up. Nothing much left there.

    Radical Highway, my one act level, has had it's layout done forever, but needs just a few technical changes that I need help with. Hopefully, when this is done, I may release a version.

    Waterworks is just started. I have about a fourth of the 8x8 tiles done, and I am working hardest on making a pleasurable background. I'm throwing as much detail as I can in the background I chose. It's taking forever, but I'm confident it will look good.

    And... I haven't even started on Star Light. I loved the level very much in it's original form, and I find it's music the best in all of Genesis Sonic songs, so I want it to fit perfectly and fluidly.

    I have a bunch of ideas for Scrap Brain, and you have to know that I'm going to be putting my all into making the level fair, fun, but challenging at the same time.
     
  16. A background is the icing on my cake :P
     
  17. Super

    Super

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    Nothing much to report as of so far. Progress has been slow due a few complications, such as losing track of where the water palettes are stored in Labyrinth Zone, and suddenly have flashing backgrounds... I went to fix it but I made an error and have to start at the ground floor of the ASM for the hack, which is actually helpful, seeing how the changes I made previously have been less then useful and I spent time just getting rid of the changes I had made previously.

    So sadly, being back at square one in ASM was progress. Go figure.

    I wish I had screen shots to show, but the only background piece I have going isn't finished. Once it is, I'll show you the basic idea of Waterworks zone.
     
  18. Sith

    Sith

    The molotov bitch Member
    Hm, you're still working on this. I thought it was dead.
    I guess real life got to you...
     
  19. Super

    Super

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    Why the hell am I still working on this? Seriously, I have no idea how this project continues to live on, but... well, it does. And it seems to be getting more work done.

    In the meantime, here's to lowdown on our good friend Radical Highway, much heard of, never seen. Well, he's been scrapped. Sort of. I realized the way I was going about it looked nice in the foreground, but clashed and just looked... wrong, with the background. Besides, it was too linear and had absolutely no curves and in the end, I didn't like it. There wasn't a lot of substance either, all around a stage I wasn't proud to call mine.

    So, instead of making real progress towards finishing the game, I've spent the last two weeks fine tuning and fixing Sunset Hill and Mystic Zone. I'm in the middle of throwing around actual custom art for Sunset hill, but as of so far, I can't seem to get it down the way I like it - meaning, it sucks bad.

    So, in this update, I'll tell you what I have done, instead of whine about random crap that I doubt you guys care about - I mean, you guys haven't seen the bloody game released since it was a simple palette and layout hack.

    -Added Route to Sunset Hill Act 2
    -Added multiple changes to Sunset Hill Act 3
    -Changed DSR for all of Sunset Hill
    -Massively fixed DSR problems in Mystic Zone
    -Added alternate routes and hidden shortcuts in Mystic Zone
    -Started adding more varied objects in All 'finished' zones.
    -Still working on DSR for Sunset Hill Act 3, causing some problems

    As of so far, Star Light and Scrap Brain remain largely untouched, and when the time comes, I hope I'm good enough to do all that I plan to do.

    I can provide screen shots if necessary, but this is more of a 'Not another update' post then a 'HAY GUYZ LOOK AT WUT I DID' post.

    But here's a few things to keep you interested:
    -Radical Highway will be returning as a far different incarnation then previous. The level is now inspired by Nolan's two Batman movies.
    -The art is Sunset Hill could be familiar to some, as the style I plan to use was seen in a very nice fan effort.
    -Scrap Brain Act 3 will not be a Labyrinth recolor.
    -Mystic Zone is slowly becoming less monochrome blue. Slowly.
     
  20. Super

    Super

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    Yeah, I might as well say this now. I'll be releasing the first public beta of this humble little hack in years within a couple of days. It's no piece of amazing work, There is still loads of tweaking and little graphical errors throughout, which I'll be trying to fix over the next couple of days. But right now, the Sunset Bluff and Mystic Zones are, for all intents and purposes, completed. They require no more layout tweaking, object placement, or DLE changes(while some can argue that Act 3 of both acts could use a small change in regards to that).

    Both Bosses haven't had their patterns changed, but their arenas have been changed to raise the difficulty. However, in both occurrences, you will die if you think you can just rush and attack. On the same token, both bosses are still easy and can be defeated without even taking a hit.

    Sunset Bluff, in the future, will not be just a minor art change in regards to the checkerboard pattern. In time, fully expect a large chunk of the level to look dramatically different then it's current form.

    In the release, I implore everyone to not use debug or the level select. If you game over, I'd like anyone to tell me where and what they had the most trouble with. I want the game to be challenging, not cheap, like some hacks.

    I will also say that you can get a glimpse of the other levels through the level select, but you will find Star Light and Scrap Brain untouched(sans SBZ3), and I will cut the 'finished' game short in any way I can - be it some help to just bring up a screen and return to the title, or just trap the hedgehog in a little room where you can dick around, but not go anywhere, and have a set of spikes there whenever you want to off yourself. Sonic Uno promotes suicide!

    Other then all that, the tl;dr version is thus: Beta before the New Year.
     
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