Integrator
Release type: Retail (Game-Maker suite)
Release date: 1991 (original release)
Author: G. Andrew Stone
Related tools: Graphics Image Reader, Palette Designer, Block Designer, Character Maker, Monster Maker, Map Maker, Sound Designer, Xferplay, Deluxe Paint, Neopaint, Autodesk Animator, Metamorf
Let’s say you have two maps, Map1 and Map2. In your .GAM file you can click twice to plop down two boxes. In the first box, select your first map file; select a tile set; select a monster, character, and sound set. Define an entry and an exit point on the map. Do similarly for box 2.
Then you can draw a line from the game's title menu to the first box, a line from the first box to the second box, and a probably a line from the second box to your “game over” sequence, if any. Click on the starting point, and add a title graphic or animation; change the text at will. Do similarly for the ending point. And then export.
There’s your game. Simple, but functional. The title menu leads to the entry point in Map1; the exit to Map1 leads to the entry to Map2; the exit to Map2 leads to the game over screen.
Programmed by Gregory Stone.
Tips[edit]
Nodes[edit]
- You can place up to 200 nodes in a given .GAM file (after which the file becomes unreadable -- so watch out!), but you can only place 30 in a given session. Solution: place your 30 nodes, save your .GAM file, exit Integrator, and then load it all back up again. Presto: you may continue your node placement.
- Any given node can only support 20 exit links; if you need more exit points, try splitting them across several related levels.
File integration[edit]
- Remember that as of Game-Maker 3.0 you can open any ASCII text editor and write a .LST file, containing a sequence of multimedia elements (.GIF images, .FLI animations, .TXT documents). Put each element on a new line, in the intended order. You can also set how long to display each element, by following the filename with a space then a numeral corresponding to the number of engine ticks that you want to pause. If you set zero, the element will flick by the moment that it renders. Remember, in Game-Maker 18 ticks equal one second.
- For any given level, if you leave the character and character block fields blank the engine will carry over the character files from the previous level. For games with a choice of characters, therefore, you need not make copies of the same levels for every character instance.
Version history[edit]
1994 - Version 3.00
Links[edit]
- The Making and Unmaking of a Game-Maker Maker (Gamasutra)
