Topic: Moving objects

[Master Bait]

Lately I've been (slowly) working on a map for The Addams Family on the NES. Since NES games are no graphical explosion I thought I'd include all enemies to make the maps more interesting and aesthetical.



How do you guys usually do when you include moving objects?



I'm having trouble making up my mind about in which position I should cap the enemies. So far I've just picked moments when it "looks good".



It's hard to combine appeal and consistency.

[DarkWolf]

I usually don't include enemies, but on the maps that I did, I generally just put them as close to where they start as possible.

[TerraEsperZ]

Preferably, I'd put enemies and moving objects in their starting positions if possible. Although personally, I like to snap such sprites to the background grid horizontally, meaning that if a sprites is 16 pixels wide for example, I'll try to position it so that it's aligned with the tiles of the stage, even if on the first frame you see it, it's actually one or two pixels off that mark.



It's a bit tedious, but it just looks cleaner to me. But it does make me prefer to leave at least minor enemies off my maps if possible.



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Current project: Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA)



Upcoming project: Castlevania Legends (GB)

[snesmaster]

I also try to put the enemies as close to their starting point as possible.  If there is a code for the game that freezes enemy movement, then that makes it much easier.

[Will]

You may wish to look at my SMS Addams Family map to get a better idea. Its identical to the NES version game-wise but not graphic-wise.



Enemies are sometimes what I insert or not depending on the complexity. Unique enemies are a piece of cake to insert like the skeleton in the crypt.



Whenever I'm dealing with moving objects like the ripples of water or burning candles I capture frames of the flames and water ripples in their most fancy position you might call it.

[TerraEsperZ]

That's right, I hadn't thought about animated tiles like water. In those cases, I usually choose the frame that looks best. In cases where there more than one type of animated tiles (like water and dancing flowers), I'll choose the best frame for both even if those never appear at the same time while playing (aesthetics over accuracy).



Like Will said, depending on the particular map, you might include enemies or not. I tend to ignore minor enemies but anything special like a mini-boss or a particular minor enemy with special properties (like one which is invincible and requires special actions to defeat) will be included.



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Current project: Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA)



Upcoming project: Castlevania Legends (GB)

[Maxim]

Personally, I want to have every non-random enemy showing on my maps, and usually in the first position you see it. A map without enemies is like one without a background layer.



For animated features I pick one at semi-random and edit them into a separate layer in the image editor. That way, you can easily check how well you've done it by toggling the layer, and you don't overwrite the original pixels.

[Master Bait]

Wow! As always in this forums, quick and informative answers. Thanks.



But how can I determine an enemies starting position if I can't freeze the game?



I've done very similar to how you did there on the SEGA version. It's even striking!

Like in the dining room: I also decided to cap the monster when he was right under the lamp since that's how you defeat him.

Didn't even know there's a SMS-version. Need to get it and try.

[TerraEsperZ]

It depends on the emulator you're using. I use FCEUX when playing/mapping NES games, and it allows you to pause and advance one frame at a time (though I don't remember the default keys for that). That way, when you know an enemy is about to appear, I just move one frame at a time until the enemy appears, take a screenshot and then use that to place the enemy on my map.



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Current project: Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA)



Upcoming project: Castlevania Legends (GB)

[Maxim]

I just hit the pause button as soon as I see an enemy (most emulators have a "hard pause" for games that change the screen on pause) and screenshot that position.

[snesmaster]

I have used the frame advance technique that Terra was talking about to get the starting position for enemies for games I can't find a Freeze Code to use on the enemies.  Also if you find a map editor for a game that sometimes will show the starting point for enemies.  I almost never use the map editor to make the actual map, since they almost never have the correct colors, and there is normally extra stuff in there or glitches in some of the graphics.  However they work great for starting points for enemies.

[Peardian]

For me, I normally just take a screenshot of the enemy in a natural position. If it's one that moves back and forth, I try to get it in the average position. If it's one that just mindlessly moves forward or towards the player, I try to get it as early as I can while charging ahead. I figure that's as close to the starting point as the player will ever see it.



However, thanks to EggVine, the Yoshi's Island level editor, I've been able to position the enemy sprites at their exact starting point, same with items. It's really helpful. Too bad programs like that don't exist for very many games.

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