Help Wanted -- ProSonic Related

Thinking over my social situation and the fact that I've made some promises to people about ProSonic (as well as to myself), I don't wish to put an end to ProSonic. I do feel I need to relieve pressure off my shoulders to allow me to try and "get a life". So I have an idea... not sure how well it'll work, but I'm going to give it a go.

I am posting this for jobs I would like to see filled. The job I have in mind right now is a sprite editor. I don't have the time nor patience right now to design a sprite editor for my engine, but I do need one. So I'm wondering if any of you programmers out there would be interested in designing a sprite editor. The sprite format used by my engine is a custom format I designed myself. Below is a quick outline of the format:

Code (C):

1. ProSonic-NE
2. SPRITE FORMAT SPECIFICATIONS
3. .
4. // The sign bit is a flag bit that can be used for various things.
5. .
6. unsigned short  NumberOfSprites         //
7. unsigned short  NumberOfAnimations      //
8. signed short    SpriteSheetSizeX        // flag: ?
9. signed short    SpriteSheetSizeY        // flag: ?
10. .
11. Data[NumberOfSprites]
12. {
13.     signed short        SpriteSizeXL    // flag: mirror
14.     signed short        SpriteSizeXR    // flag: ?
15.     signed short        SpriteSizeYT    // flag: flip
16.     signed short        SpriteSizeYB    // flag: ?
17. }
18. .
19. Data[NumberOfAnimations]
20. {
21.     unsigned char       NumberOfFrames  //
22.     unsigned char       AnimationSpeed  //
23.  .  
24.     Data[NumberOfFrames]
25.     {
26.         unsigned char   Sprite          //
27.     }
28. }
29. .
30. .
31. .
32. Sprite data (size = SpriteSheetSizeX * SpriteSheetSizeY)
33. .
34. ByteC = 8 bits // if > 0, use color cycler instead of RGB color
35. ByteR = 6 bits
36. ByteG = 6 bits
37. ByteB = 6 bits
38. .
39. Total = 18 bits per color
40. .
41. .
42. .
43. When RGB value is FFFFFF, don't draw the pixel. Otherwise, always draw it.

The format is called simply 'PSF' (ProSonic Sprite Format). Anyone interested in making a sprite editor to create sprites using this format would be spiffy. I have some sprites I created by hand to use as examples. I have attached them to this post.

As far as getting them to work with ProSonic, don't worry about that part because I've already done that. I'll make the stuff work, I just need tools designed! This sprite editor is where I'd like to start.

 

I like the suggestion, but I have to say ProSonic has different goals than Retro Sonic. I know the goals aren't as obvious, but I'm moving in a different direction than him. His is more of a Sonic clone, whereas mine is trying to be the real thing with enhancements.

For example, no Sonic engine out there to date has the physics right. Mettrix, Retro Sonic, nothing out there has the right physics. The physics aren't even close. And I'm not by any means knocking at those projects -- I'm very impressed by both of them. But I'm saying that my engine needs to do things the way the original games did things because my goals are different. I have many formulas already worked up in my old ProSonic engine that was never actually released publically. In it the player has many of the correct physics. This will be applied to the new ProSonic engine once scripting works.

So ProSonic will stay a solo project. You're right I shouldn't feel guilty about giving it up or what people will say. For the most part I don't, but I would really like to accomplish this goal I set out to accomplish. I've wanted to do this, no matter how many months and/or years longer it'll take. But ProSonic is a personal pride of mine, and I think you'll find as development continues that it really IS different than other Sonic engines. It's just hard to see it right now because the differences at this time are detailed in the technical side of the engine which is a side most people don't notice in the beginning.

Oh and Sonicguy, I have to think on the extension. You might be right to suggest that. I mean either way virtually every extension out there is already taken by something else, but Playstation is gaming-related and I don't want conflicts with that. Thanks for informing me.



EDIT: I just saw Rockman's post. That FAQ is very old actually! I have the outline available below
PDF version - http://www.comprosoftware.com/saxman/outline.pdf
DOC version (recommended) - http://www.comprosoftware.com/saxman/outline.doc


Important things not noted in the outline or FAQ would be:

- Each stage can have a tile size of 32x32, 64x64, 128x128, or 256x256. This makes things easy so if you have a team of people doing different levels and they each prefer different sizes of tiles to work with, they have several choices.

- Changed since the outline -- no longer limited to 256 tiles. You can have up to 65535 tiles to work with.

- The PZF file format is basically an archive format designed for ProSonic that stores level data. This format is so flexible that it can literally store 255 different sets of data for things like color cyclers, palettes, tile maps, block maps, filters, etc -- all for just one single zone. Different acts and stages can share data or use different data if desired.

- ProSonic WILL support network play, despite past reportings from other people that I wasn't interested in that. I'm absolutely interested in network play and supporting lots of players. ProSonic currently supports 16 players (up from 8 since the outline). Network code hasn't been thought out yet. I don't know what libraries I'll use or anything like that. I just know that it'll definitely be in the engine.

 

Retro and Mettrix physics aren't close. To many people they're very close. But I've played and studied the original engine for tireless months and I know what's right and what isn't. If you were to play a demo from Sonic 2 Emerald Hill in an Emerald Hill port in Mettrix and Retro, it wouldn't play exactly as it did in the original Sonic engine. And I'm not knocking at the two engines. I've played both of them -- all the old Mettrix and the newer E02 stuff Stealth has on his page as recently as a month ago, and the Retro Sonic 2002 demo. I've also 'seen' the Retro Sonic DC demo. Both projects are impressive. They have a lot of unique features and ideas. All I'm saying is if you think the physics are close, they're not. I can pinpoint a pile of flaws in the physics. The physics in my engine aren't exact either, but that's my #1 goal for my engine -- to become the most accurate engine out there.




GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE EDITOR:

The type of editor I'm looking for is an MS Paint style program. I'd also like to be able to import images from files on the disk (at the very least, I'd like PCX files to be supported, but the more the merrier). I'd like to be able to copy something in something like MS Paint to the clipboard, and then paste it in the editor for my engine. The editor should be able to select areas on the sprite sheet for new sprites, include animation editing (supporting up to 255 frames for a single animation). It should be able to play back the animation.

That's something important I should mention -- speed for animation is measured in 1/60 tics. So if I set the speed to 10, then every 1/6 second, the frame will advance.

Don't worry about color cyclers. I haven't even implemented them into the engine yet, so the color cycler bytes should all be 0.

If you aren't sure if you can do all of that or would like to ask further questions, post them either in this topic, or PM me.

 

All I know is what I tried at his site. I don't remember a rotating special stage, so I probably didn't try that one.

Look I never intended this thread to become a competition thread. I was simply stating that no engine has perfect physics at this point in time. I'm sorry that it has become that.

Just a few months ago, I sent Taxman an e-mail telling him how much I really enjoyed his engine and how impressed I was of his work. So this is not any competition for me. I am as excited about these types of things as the rest of you. But I strongly feel that sometimes my comments are taken the wrong way. I know by the vibe of the comments that I came off sounding like I had a big ego about it and all, but honestly I just don't know how to say things "right". I try, really I do!

BTW: Did you get that e-mail from a few months ago Taxman?

 

I just noticed a flaw...

unsigned "char" Sprite

That "char" should really be a "short". I'll update my engine and these files with the appropriate changes.


EDIT: Done -- new PSF files attached below.


EDIT 2: Also I forgot something else in the specifications. It says FF FF FF is used for transparent pixels. What I forgot was FE FE FE is used for "solid" transparent pixels (it's the color of the transparent pixel, but you can actually see the pixel). You can make the transparent color whatever you want in your program, but Sega tends to use bright green in a lot of games, so that's just a suggestion. Or perhaps allow the user to select what color to display for transparent.