Android Experiments
Trying out the GMS Android export module was a very interesting process.
On the technical side, the game ran straight away without having to do any change to the code. I was, at that point however, unable to go past the title screen, since I didn't have any touch controls coded.
After some minor headaches with the scale and positioning, I was able to add a virtual dpad and some buttons.
The game is playable, but implementing touch controls for such a complex game is going to be a challenge. All the mobile games I played that have decent touch controls are extremely simple, 2 directions and 1 or 2 buttons.
AM2R not only has plenty of buttons, but one of the main features of the game, the Metroid fights, relies heavily on diagonal aiming. It took me 3 tries to beat the first Alpha with the improvised touch controls, so this feature will require a lot more work than I initially thought.
Besides the in-game controls, the menus should be touch enabled, and the map could use swipe mechanics to scroll around. That translates to a lot of time and effort, so I gave the mobile port a low priority for now.
Area 5 is changing constantly. While the revamped place has most of the contents (not yet properly tiled), the flow still doesn't feel right. I might be adding one or two new enemies, since the existing ones don't pose any threat to Samus with the plasma beam.
Also, a new Wallpaper Pack is available at the Downloads page:
Another fine piece of art by ZimK, who will be present in FanExpo Canada 2015. Be sure to drop by her booth and say hi if you attend.
On the technical side, the game ran straight away without having to do any change to the code. I was, at that point however, unable to go past the title screen, since I didn't have any touch controls coded.
After some minor headaches with the scale and positioning, I was able to add a virtual dpad and some buttons.
The game is playable, but implementing touch controls for such a complex game is going to be a challenge. All the mobile games I played that have decent touch controls are extremely simple, 2 directions and 1 or 2 buttons.
AM2R not only has plenty of buttons, but one of the main features of the game, the Metroid fights, relies heavily on diagonal aiming. It took me 3 tries to beat the first Alpha with the improvised touch controls, so this feature will require a lot more work than I initially thought.
Besides the in-game controls, the menus should be touch enabled, and the map could use swipe mechanics to scroll around. That translates to a lot of time and effort, so I gave the mobile port a low priority for now.
Area 5 is changing constantly. While the revamped place has most of the contents (not yet properly tiled), the flow still doesn't feel right. I might be adding one or two new enemies, since the existing ones don't pose any threat to Samus with the plasma beam.
Also, a new Wallpaper Pack is available at the Downloads page:
Another fine piece of art by ZimK, who will be present in FanExpo Canada 2015. Be sure to drop by her booth and say hi if you attend.
Comments
I think you could apply an auto target system, well, it's just an idea that i have.
Tanks for reading Doctor M64.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BwMHQoM0N8EfQnRQOE96YUxwdlE
Anyway you shouldn't even bother with things that cannot work to begin with, but clearly you're not doing that out of obligation so have fun.
As always thanks for the updates and keep up the great work.
I look forward to the finished product.
That being said, there now exist Android consoles such as the nVidia Shield and controllers such as the Moga Pro, so if you could add support for them in the app, you've found your middle ground. That's what Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath did for its Android port and it worked pretty well.
Implementing touch controls seems far more work than it's worth for a subpar result. Not many games can work with it.
That said, there is probably something to say about it being portable, since it's a remake of Metroid II heavily based on Zero Mission
Please, *please*, do not add an auto-targeting feature. It is only a bandaid on the real problem, which is quite simply that a game this rich simply cannot be played on a mobile device without some sort of controller. In addition, auto-targeting defeats the purpose of the entire original Metroid series -- it's supposed to be a hard game, and i personally think auto-targeting makes shooting too easy. (Yes, i was *that guy* who enables Lock On Free Aim in Prime 3, and it came in extremely handy.)
All the tweaking and porting can be done after V1.0, just try and finish something for pc and polish it up from there. It doesn't have to be perfect from the start. Everyone would be happier with a pretty good game now that get's improved overtime than a amazing game a decade or more away.
Damn, I've been fighting cancer for this for God's sake! At this rate, I'll be dead with this still on my bucket list.
I would also want this game rather to be finished earlier for PC and after that you can experiment with smartphones etc. Of course it's your project but after that many years and Nintendo probably not releasing a proper Metroid game anytime soon, it would be really great to see AM2R to be finished by 2016 or so...then we have at least one great "new" game to celebrate the 30th anniversary. ;)
Also on a side note, and this might make me sound like a critic for saying this. When I last played the latest demo I had an enjoyable experience, but I did notice that every other Area Boss except for Arachnus happens to be giant security/prototype robots, now why is that the case? I was hoping that there would be a fight with a new kind of alien that wasn't a metroid, wither it be a familiar face from Metroid Fusion or a brand new kind of alien, like a large centipede gecko with thick smoldering skin in a volcanic habitat. (And that is something I did imagine up myself!) If you either decide to or not to bring a new alien boss fight into the project, that is totally up to you and your team, in the end it's the presentation of the game as a whole that makes a difference.
Keep up the fantastic work!
I still await the completed project one way or another.
I would be eager to the first one to report bugs (if any) using my JXD s7800b.
Thanks!
(If you need another handy outlet for Bluetooth controllers on Android, see if you can get any notes from the Snes9X EX+ crew, since they were able to pair the phone with the Wii controllers.)
In all seriousness, get the game finished first, THEN worry about the port.
Great work!
Forget the touch controls - this game isn't meant to be overly simplified as others have mentioned. A bluetooth controller or bust lol.
This is the one project I'm waiting for most out of everything I follow, keep at it Doc! :D -cheers-
Then I got a new phone that was only slightly bigger and the most minute change of the position of my fingers made the months of work I'd done feel like a total waste.
Seriously though, why not use the gyroscope for diagonal aiming?
Sorry for coming off as a rude spoiled jackass, but this is honestly anyone who cares about this project thinks.
Basically when I encounter the first gamma metroid (the alpha the transforms into it) The metroid count goes up by 1. Meaning that it is impossible for me to continue on.
Strangely this did not occur on my first playthrough but rather on a second playthrough.
Android version with proper gamepad controls would be great. Touch screen implementation sounds like it's keeping the game from being finished and it's something that would be more frustrating than fun to try and play with.
That being said, I can agree with others that we would certainly love to see your finished project, if possible tinker with the droid ports later, we count the days for a big beautiful "All Done" post from you sometime late this year or early 16'.
If porting the game out to Android is so easy as clicking a button, how about experimental android builds just for the heck of it? :P
For nostalgia sake, I love the idea of playing this on my phone with a gamepad, it just wouldn't feel right on a computer...
Don't be afraid to make the android port gamepad-only, touch controls just don't work very well for action games.
Also, the wallpaper looks fantastic! I'm hoping for a remake of the original Metroid 2 poster tho (ya know, the one with Samus kneeling in an awesome pose with her gun smoking), that would look awesome in the style of the new poster.
Any way... I think that it is better to concentrate on one platform - that is PC. And when final version is released it can be ported more easily.
Le deseo suerte y le envío saludos desde Chile, que en estas fechas son fiestas patrias.
Saludos.
I'm not argue with impossible control on touch screen, saying..
I'm using SNes Emulator + Super Metroid & SM Hacks years now on the Android devices, controlling the SM is kinda easy even the wall jump is piece of cake.
GB version is more easier cause has less buttons.
- Via touchscreen.
- With an external controller, via USB or bluetooth. For phones a gameklipper is a great idea.
- In android handhelds such as JXD, GPDs, Nvidia Shield Portable and so on. These are the best things to happen to gaming in the last 5 years. In this era of IAP, DLCs, patches and cinematic bullcrap the freedom they offer is refreshing and awesome. I just hope the minimum requirements are not insanely high :)