Wonky

People are still making stuff for the Sinclair related machines. Tell us about new games and other software that runs on the Spectrum, ZX80/ZX81, Pentagon and Next.
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

Post by Ersh »

I went through it again a couple of times also recorded a RZX, you can download it here. I struggled a bit on the third stage but you can always fast forward that bit in the emulator ;)

Think the difficulty is spot on really, you've only got the 'time' as your opponent, so just keep at it. :)
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Re: Wonky

Post by dfzx »

Ralf wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 12:17 pm I've just only tried it.

Simple to learn, hard to master ;)

The game mechanics are simple but very original in their simplicity.
The game engine is all right, everythings moves smoothly
Thanks, good to hear. :)
Ralf wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 12:17 pm Unfortuantely it's too hard, as other say. Probably redesigning the levels would help but I guess the levels remain as they are.
Yes, OK, I think the lesson here, and it is a lesson because I keen to learn, is that if the author feels it's "about right", or maybe "a bit of a challenge", which is what I felt with this game, then it's probably too hard. Probably best to err on the side of too easy to prevent losing the interest of the player too early. I'll definitely take that on board.

Ralf, before you lose interest entirely, try it in an emulator at 50% speed. :)
Derek Fountain, author of the ZX Spectrum C Programmer's Getting Started Guide and various open source games, hardware and other projects, including an IF1 and ZX Microdrive emulator.
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Re: Wonky

Post by dfzx »

Ersh wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 12:38 pm I went through it again a couple of times also recorded a RZX, you can download it here. I struggled a bit on the third stage but you can always fast forward that bit in the emulator ;)

Think the difficulty is spot on really, you've only got the 'time' as your opponent, so just keep at it. :)
I am utterly blown away that someone played it, mastered it and finished it at full speed, and even made a recording of it. You're right, that 3rd level is far too difficult, especially the left side near the start. Lesson learned, I assure you.

What I wasn't quite ready for is the feeling of elation caused by a handful of people I don't really know having a few minutes of fun playing something I created. It makes the project hugely worthwhile and rewarding. What it must have been like, back in the day, to have created a game tens of thousands of people enjoyed...

Thanks to everyone who gave it a try. Made my day. :D
Derek Fountain, author of the ZX Spectrum C Programmer's Getting Started Guide and various open source games, hardware and other projects, including an IF1 and ZX Microdrive emulator.
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

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dfzx wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 1:00 pm I am utterly blown away that someone played it, mastered it and finished it at full speed, and even made a recording of it. You're right, that 3rd level is far too difficult, especially the left side near the start. Lesson learned, I assure you.
I wouldn't say it's too difficult, if you pick up the pills in those two parts in stage 3 then it's pretty easy to tackle. Though I found that picking up pills could end up screwing you when time sped up in other places, so I just avoided them all together. ;) Helps to have an even rhythm to platforming.

Thanks for the game mate! (more please).
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Re: Wonky

Post by R-Tape »

My eyes! I am blinded by the celestial light emitted by the game finale!

This is a great game, and it joins Dave Infuriators in the 'one key' genre.

It seemed impossible at first, but after I saw how Ersh completed level 2 (IMO the hardest level by far), it was manageable after that. I liked the in-game music, but the charm wore off pretty quickly and I went for the 'M' key!

This is annoyingly good for a first project. Well done Derek. Don't stop!
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Re: Wonky

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Ersh wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 1:32 pm Thanks for the game mate! (MORE PLEASE).
FTFY.
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Re: Wonky

Post by majikeyric »

Great concept ! :)
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

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Been playing some more on ZXDS trying to get a better time, works remarkably well on there even though the DS' LCD isn't the best for fast (50hz) moving objects. :)

Stumbled upon a bug though, I failed on the 5th and last level and got sent back to the title screen, when I started a new game the pill on the left platform (shortcut to the goal) wasn't there anymore. Thought nothing of it and continued on, made it to the final level but there I couldn't pick up the first key, the graphic was there but it would not get collected when walked past so I couldn't complete it. Had to reload the game.

It appears that if objects are 'collected' and not 'respawned' when one finishes a level, they won't appear if the player starts over. Try collecting the 'shortcut-pill' and then finish the first level, let the timer run out on the second level and start a new game. The pill is gone. Same goes for the key on the last level (most likely all other objects), the key is there but can't be collected.
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Re: Wonky

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Ersh wrote: Sun Feb 24, 2019 4:13 pm It appears that if objects are 'collected' and not 'respawned' when one finishes a level, they won't appear if the player starts over.
Ooh, good spot. The game restart code isn't resetting objects which have gone into that un-displayed state. Easy fix, thanks for the report. :)
Derek Fountain, author of the ZX Spectrum C Programmer's Getting Started Guide and various open source games, hardware and other projects, including an IF1 and ZX Microdrive emulator.
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Re: Wonky

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Had a great no-pill (5 bonuses) run, only lost a couple of seconds on the first level, had a flawless 2nd and only one tiny mistake on the third (which to me is the toughest if you're going for speed). Naturally I missed the pixel perfect jump twice(!) on the fourth level, first jump was one pixel early, second jump one pixel late so I lost around 10 seconds there. No mistakes on the last level. Total time around 3:30. :) It's not perfect, those two missed jumps on the 4th level pains me, but I've submitted the recording to the RZX-Archive nonetheless. You can download it from here in the meantime.
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

Post by Ersh »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-HMD0nuSk8
Daren has uploaded the recording to the RZX-Archive as well as their youtube channel. Here's the video. :)
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Re: Wonky

Post by djnzx48 »

Finally managed to complete this without using snapshots, but man it's hard. The jumps on the third screen require some insane reactions, and it doesn't help that you need to leave the music on to keep the game at a playable speed! The most frustrating parts are the jumps where you bounce off a wall and have to quickly change direction. Nonetheless the design is quite good and it would be great to see more games from you.
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Re: Wonky

Post by djnzx48 »

I tried improving my time and this is the best I could manage - it's around 2:40. I just can't do the right-hand section of level 3 reliably.
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Re: Wonky

Post by equinox »

Pretty cute. The one-key gimmick is original (at least on the Spectrum -- I may have seen some browser games that did this). And I really like the man's little animation, and the varied use of colour in the levels. Also it's a platformer that doesn't use AGD/PGD, so +1000 points there. (Sorry Jonathan.)

Regarding difficulty: is there no way to tell which teleporter will take you to which other one? That is quite savage, considering you immediately run out of the other end. How about a little beaming animation or a flashing indicator of where you are about to appear? Or even just use different colour schemes or patterns on the matched teleporter pairs.

Having moving "baddies" might be nice, but they definitely wouldn't be needed or wanted on the first few levels. If the learning curve is too steep, people will quit in frustration; if it's too shallow, they will just think "YEAH I'm great at this game!", or in the worst case just feel minor boredom, but will probably continue to the tricky stuff.

The music is totally, ear-destroyingly out of tune, but I see someone has explained the mathematics behind this, and I suppose awful music follows the grand tradition of Manic Miner's horror piano.
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Re: Wonky

Post by djnzx48 »

The music does sound a lot better if the offending notes are POKEd to the correct values. I actually thought the main sprite was from Lemmings, but after looking at that game they are completely different. It's a nice looking sprite anyway.
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Re: Wonky

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djnzx48 wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 11:07 pm ...it doesn't help that you need to leave the music on to keep the game at a playable speed!
Um, does it? There's a HALT at the bottom of the main loop to lock to game to 50fps, and I was careful to ensure there are no dropped frames so it doesn't slow down. It should run at the same speed regardless of whether the music is on or not.

Only, I just got a stopwatch out and checked how long he takes to run from one side of the screen to the other with music on and off, and I think you might be right. That definitely stands investigation since it was a design goal that the music shouldn't affect game speed.

But now I have to go to work and I likely won't be able to look at this or tweak the levels until the weekend. Life isn't fair.
Derek Fountain, author of the ZX Spectrum C Programmer's Getting Started Guide and various open source games, hardware and other projects, including an IF1 and ZX Microdrive emulator.
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Re: Wonky

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djnzx48 wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 3:51 am The music does sound a lot better if the offending notes are POKEd to the correct values.
Yes, it does. I put your suggested values in the code last night and even to my totally uneducated ear it's clear it's an improvement. Before doing a version release I'm going to see how I can update level 3 to make it a bit easier, or at least a bit less frustrating, and look at the other suggestion people made. Oh, and close the silly cheat points I managed to leave in. :)

My education continues! Thanks for all the feedback, I really appreciate it. :D
Derek Fountain, author of the ZX Spectrum C Programmer's Getting Started Guide and various open source games, hardware and other projects, including an IF1 and ZX Microdrive emulator.
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Re: Wonky

Post by Jodo »

This is a great game! Very addictive. I haven't managed to get past level 2 yet but I will persevere. And, in all honesty, I don't think it needs baddies, it's difficult enough already :D
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Re: Wonky

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djnzx48 wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 12:42 am I tried improving my time and this is the best I could manage - it's around 2:40. I just can't do the right-hand section of level 3 reliably.
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Nice job! :) Tried turning off the music and it was like the game was on turbo, very enjoyable! Managed to get my time down to around 2:31 with music off and that includes one missed jump on level 4 and a couple of small mistakes along the way. Also thanks for the shortcut to skip the pill on the first level. That right section of the third level is a challenge but I found a setup that works most of the time though. Without music the fourth level got a bit harder, not only the first jump but the shortcut as well. My best attempt so far here.
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Re: Wonky

Post by stupidget »

Well I'm very glad that you've all finished it as I can't even get past the first screen :lol:
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Re: Wonky

Post by Ersh »

Had a great run! :D Only one tiny mistake on level 4. Used some safe strats on level 3 and 5 and the time could be further improved with optimal movement, but I'm pretty satisfied with this; around 2:24! Check it out here.

Fantastic game! :)
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Re: Wonky

Post by R-Tape »

Tsk—1 missed jump on level 4. Disappointed :-p

You've made me realise how lucky I got to finish any of the later levels. I didn't really know where I was going to appear next.

Peter, where are the P?s? jars? It's time for Ersh's drug test.
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

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R-Tape wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 1:06 pm Tsk—1 missed jump on level 4. Disappointed :-p

You've made me realise how lucky I got to finish any of the later levels. I didn't really know where I was going to appear next.

Peter, where are the P?s? jars? It's time for Ersh's drug test.
:lol: and probably the easiest jump in the game as well! Just glad I'm beginning to nail that first pixel perfect jump on level 4 though, lost a lot of good runs there.

I hope [mention]dfzx[/mention] doesn't change the levels too much. The shortcuts require some skill to take so I think they should be there as an option. As for the rest of the game, there's nothing random, only a timer and your own skill to hold accountable, nothing I would consider unfair. It requires practise and for such a short game I think the difficulty is spot on. :)
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Re: Wonky

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Ersh wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 1:36 pm I hope @dfzx doesn't change the levels too much. The shortcuts require some skill to take so I think they should be there as an option. As for the rest of the game, there's nothing random, only a timer and your own skill to hold accountable, nothing I would consider unfair. It requires practise and for such a short game I think the difficulty is spot on. :)
Ersh, I think we have to consider you a bit of a outlier. :) The fact I've never completed it at full speed myself, when I've had months to practise, probably tells you something. Some people are clearly good at this type of game - it's about timing and coordination, as opposed to puzzle solving or anything else. I think we can assume you're good at these things. :)

It was always my intention that the game was deterministic. I've seen frequent irritated comments on SC forums from players who get frustrated when randomness is added to a game which makes completion or claiming a highest score come down to chance. So I was always happy that the player should need to memorise the level and learn where teleporters, etc., take you. I think that's part of the "one more go and I'll do a bit better" sort of ethos. I don't intend to change the levels other than closing the shortcut holes and making level 3 slightly easier, hopefully just by adding or moving a block or two.

I do intend to work out why the game is faster with the music off though. Given that I use a HALT to lock it to 50fps, and there are no dropped frames, that's a bit of a mystery.
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Ersh
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Re: Wonky

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dfzx wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 2:20 pm Ersh, I think we have to consider you a bit of a outlier. :) The fact I've never completed it at full speed myself, when I've had months to practise, probably tells you something. Some people are clearly good at this type of game - it's about timing and coordination, as opposed to puzzle solving or anything else. I think we can assume you're good at these things. :)

It was always my intention that the game was deterministic. I've seen frequent irritated comments on SC forums from players who get frustrated when randomness is added to a game which makes completion or claiming a highest score come down to chance. So I was always happy that the player should need to memorise the level and learn where teleporters, etc., take you. I think that's part of the "one more go and I'll do a bit better" sort of ethos. I don't intend to change the levels other than closing the shortcut holes and making level 3 slightly easier, hopefully just by adding or moving a block or two.

I do intend to work out why the game is faster with the music off though. Given that I use a HALT to lock it to 50fps, and there are no dropped frames, that's a bit of a mystery.
I don't think I'm particularly gifted with timing and/or coordination, just got some patience and if it's a fun challenge I usually stick to it. :)

Adding a restart key would also be a nice idea!
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