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+--- Thread: About ghost platforms (/showthread.php?tid=1833)
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About ghost platforms - brell - 08-14-2011
In the original MM ghost platforms (both types) were programmed to last for a specified time regardless of whether Jack went between rooms or not.
In MM HD this has changed. Now the thinner platform is always off then Jack arrives a new room but the other one always turn on when Jach arrives a new room. This causes issues in many custom mansions since the builders often depended on that these platform would be on from one room to another.
Vern, why did you change this and is it possible to change it back to the original settings?
Re: About ghost platforms - VernJensen - 08-15-2011
I asked during earlier alpha testing if this would cause problems, and the consensus was it was fine to change it.
The reasoning is that designers can, for future mansions, rely on specific timing of the platforms, knowing that when the player enters a room, the platforms will always be starting at the same value. So they can put skeleton fish, spiders, or other obstacles in the room along with the disappearing floors, knowing that the timing will always be the same each time the player enters the room.
Since this would be a good improvement for the game, I'm wondering how many custom mansions would be messed up if the game is left as-is, and would it be hard to fix them?
Re: About ghost platforms - RobSeegel - 08-15-2011
This isn't as bad a loss when you have the addition of customizable vanishing bricks that were part of MM2, unfortunately it's only a part of MM2.
Would it be possible to have the
extending floorsreset, but not the ghost platforms? (or the other way around). That way there's a richer assortment of behaviors available. Mansions that used an extensible floor in two adjoining rooms could be modified to use the ghost platforms instead. With this change both behaviors would be preserved and it would also serve to differentiate the two kinds of platforms. At the moment, they're basically the same thing but with different graphics.
Designers could plan better with one type, and could use the other to allow Jack to jump between rooms, knowing that if it's currently available in one room, it will available in the next as well.
Just a thought... seems like a reasonable idea.
Re: About ghost platforms - brell - 08-15-2011
7E434E7F49494B49402C0 wrote: This isn't as bad a loss when you have the addition of customizable vanishing bricks that were part of MM2, unfortunately it's only a part of MM2.
Would it be possible to have theextending floorsreset, but not the ghost platforms? (or the other way around). That way there's a richer assortment of behaviors available. Mansions that used an extensible floor in two adjoining rooms could be modified to use the ghost platforms instead. With this change both behaviors would be preserved and it would also serve to differentiate the two kinds of platforms. At the moment, they're basically the same thing but with different graphics.
Designers could plan better with one type, and could use the other to allow Jack to jump between rooms, knowing that if it's currently available in one room, it will available in the next as well.
Just a thought... seems like a reasonable idea.
What do you mean by
extending floors?
Re: About ghost platforms - brell - 08-15-2011
0E3D2A36123D362B3D36580 wrote: I asked during earlier alpha testing if this would cause problems, and the consensus was it was fine to change it.
The reasoning is that designers can, for future mansions, rely on specific timing of the platforms, knowing that when the player enters a room, the platforms will always be starting at the same value. So they can put skeleton fish, spiders, or other obstacles in the room along with the disappearing floors, knowing that the timing will always be the same each time the player enters the room.
Since this would be a good improvement for the game, I'm wondering how many custom mansions would be messed up if the game is left as-is, and would it be hard to fix them?
Thanks for the explanation. I am not sure how many CM's this will affect. The remedy is actually quite simple: Use the thick ghost platforms rather than the thin ones if you want Jack to jump from one room to another and land on such a platform.
Btw. this change created an interesting situation in one room in the grey section of
A Resort for Retired Goldhunters. I'm not sure if it changes the hardiness of the room (propably a matter of taste). I could make the player's life easier by changing the platform from thin to thick type but no. This IS a very hard mansion [smiley=evil.gif]
Re: About ghost platforms - RobSeegel - 08-16-2011
7262757C7C100 wrote:I think it's what you're calling a
What do you mean byextending floors?
thin ghost floor. Probably,
retractable platformis even better, but it doesn't really matter so long as we're talking about the same thing. If you look carefully at the graphics you see that it's actually a retractable platform that retracts/extends from the wall. In custom mansions, designers would sometimes fake a
slotfor it. Now the new graphics include the slot.
It's not really a good replacement - I believe it is also reset when the player enters the room. My suggestion was basically exactly what you mentioned... provided that either the retractable platform (aka thin ghost platform) OR the ghost platform used the old timing scheme.
Re: About ghost platforms - VernJensen - 08-16-2011
Disappearing metal floorsare what I call them. :-)
And
light saber floorsare what you call thick ghost floors.
Re: About ghost platforms - VernJensen - 08-16-2011
Oh, and it sounds like a good solution to make the thin metal retractable floors be reset when you re-enter a room, with the thick ghost ones being the way the used to be (not reset when entering a room). I will do that.
Re: About ghost platforms - brell - 08-16-2011
4774637F5B747F62747F110 wrote: Oh, and it sounds like a good solution to make the thin metal retractable floors be reset when you re-enter a room, with the thick ghost ones being the way the used to be (not reset when entering a room). I will do that.
OK, I think we can live with that. The instances where Jack jump between rooms and lands on the retractable platform can be fixed by using the thick ghost platform in both rooms. The same solution will apply if you don't change anything.
Re: About ghost platforms - RobSeegel - 08-16-2011
4353444D4D210 wrote: The same solution will apply if you don't change anything.OK... I think I see what you're talking about. The timing for the thicker platform is such that it will initially come on in time to catch Jack if he jumps between rooms, regardless of whether it's reset or not. I just did a very simple mansion test to check.
For some reason, I thought you said this case was a problem and latched onto that, but perhaps I misunderstood since you were calling both types of platform
ghost platforms- one thick and one thin. I was only associating
ghost platformwith the one that fades in and out - the one that Vern calls
light saber platform.
Um... so if the
thick ghost platformworks for jumping between screens (it does), then nothing needs to be changed, I guess. That's what you're saying if I understand you right.
The way it works right now (Beta6), Jack could jump from anything: a moving platform, a non-moving brick, the retractable platform (aka
thin ghost platform), and still land reliably on the thick ghost platform in the next room. If it is changed back, the only way Jack could reliably land on a thick ghost platform in the next room over would be if it was on in the room he jumped from, which is how it used to be.
I *think* I finally understand... and I think I feel a headache coming on.