2016-05-13 02:54:03

In a prequel to the Lunimals game, you will use your puzzle solving skills to maneuver a robot arm to perform various tasks.  Place tracks and switches to direct the arm to where you want it to go.

I think everyone will be very happy with the sound work Kai has put together for this game.

Download link (36MB):
http://www.kaldobsky.com/audiogames/Preludeamals.zip

Changes from 0.7 to 0.7b

- Fixed a few typos scattered around the game.
- Fixed a bug with the switch when set to "toggle" mode.  After raising a lowered piece, the switch would stop working.
- Locked tool exchange tiles were not having their name read, when players encountered them on custom made challenges.  That has been fixed.
- When assigning a switch to control another switch, the menu will no longer list itself as an option.  It was rather confusing... and so is this sentence.
- Levels 22, 23, and 24 added.

Changes from 0.6d to 0.7

- Correct a game bug that broke level 21, making the switches fail to work.  This bug may also have affected some challenge maps.
- Delete is a quick way to clear track.
- L is a quick way to toggle a track piece between being raised or lowered.
- When selecting switches, additional information is now listed, letting you know what the switch is already set to do.

Changes from 0.6c to 0.6d

- Q toggles debugging mode.  For an extra bit of help on complex maps, enabling debugging mode causes the game to pause and read out exactly what the arm is doing at each step.
- After failing or winning a level, a file called Summary.txt will be created in your Preludeamals folder.  This file will list every action that took place as the arm made its run around the room, and may be helpful in finding where your design went wrong.

Changes from 0.6b to 0.6c

- Levels 19, 20, and 21 added.
- Bugs fixed that were preventing challenge maps from displaying descriptions and victory messages.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 03:23:50

Awesome!! Can't wait to try this!! Thanks Aprone and Kai!!

Kingdom of Loathing name JB77

2016-05-13 03:50:48

It would be helpeful to know which path the arm went. If not for the game but for practicing.

Kingdom of Loathing name JB77

2016-05-13 04:05:16

Jeffb, the arm travels in the direction designated by its start position, which you can always examine with X, and jump to with Shift + X. It will continue in that direction until it encounters an obstacle. If the arm is blocked from moving further by that obstacle, be it a track block tile or the edge of the map, it will reverse direction. If it encounters a turn, it will change directions according to the designation of the turn tile. For example, if the arm is traveling east and hits a southwest turn, the arm will move south, since it approached the turn from the west. A southwest turn will always try to angle the arm, so that if the arm is approach a southwest turn from the west, it will be turned south, and if the arm approaches the same arm from the south, it will be turned west.

The arm never travels at angles or diagonals, and it can never skip over tiles. (so it will never jump directly from A3 to D3).

Kai

Spill chuck you spots!

2016-05-13 04:06:53 (edited by keyIsFull 2016-05-13 04:16:39)

I always liked these kinds of games, level 3 is giving me trouble. I just can't get to that second rat.
Edit: I just did, I was trying forever to reach the one at d4 first and then go back to b4 but realized that it was more efficient to go b4 d4. I feel like the track blocker and recharge stations are really hard to use on smaller maps because oyu just can't fit enough switches to raise and lower them correctly though
funny, that level 5 shows you how switches work, I couldn't find a way to solve level 3 and 4 without using switches.
Suggestion make it so that you can't play missions until you unlocked the previous ones, level 16 looks super super crazy

I like to sleep, Sleep is good,
This is how I do it: Lie on a nice warm cozy bed, and dream dreams about how to rule the world!
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2016-05-13 04:27:42

Key, the maps were actually supposed to start out locked until you had beaten the one before it, and I forgot I had disabled that during testing.  ROFL!

There is a debugging list that the arm creates as it moves through the room.  The code for it has been in place since the game was in its earliest stages, and yet somehow I keep forgetting to actually code in a way for the player to view it!  Once again I forgot, haha!  I'll add it in on a game update probably tomorrow.  That isn't in any way required to play and beat every level, but it may help some people figure out where their designs are doing wrong.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 06:30:02

I'm getting the hang of this and I find it adicting! The onlything I don't get is the story line between the levels although funny I am not sure where it fits in with the game.

Kingdom of Loathing name JB77

2016-05-13 06:46:53

Hi aprone
I am downloading it now!
surely I play it.
Thanks
Ishan

life's battle do not always go to the stronger and faster man,
But sooner or later who win the one who thinks he can!

2016-05-13 08:22:43 (edited by stewie 2016-05-13 08:35:27)

I'm on mission 10, this game is awesome so far. One thing I notice is that the audio pans really weirdly, with the audio pan increasing to the right as the vertical position changes. Why is the game's audio laid out in a parallelogram?

I tried creating a challenge. It consisted of a 2 by 5 map with a few rats, a mouse and a victory message. All saved, but attempting to run the map yielded nothing. After I failed to load it, none of the other challenges in the menu loaded until I reopened the game.

I attempted another challenge, a simple 4 by 4 map. This one worked, however upon completion the victory message I set for it did not appear in the text field, however it is still set in the level editor.

Deep in the human unconscious is a pervasive need for a logical universe that makes sense. But the real universe is always one step beyond logic.

2016-05-13 09:18:57

Jeffb, your comment about the story made me chuckle.  When the idea got tossed around that the ending to each level could be some sort of story, I loved the idea.  It would be a great way to add more personality to the game, while also giving me a chance to toss in some fun easter eggs.  When I actually sat down to write a few dozen story pieces, somehow about the work being done on the robotic arm, I drew a blank.  I could write a few things, but after like level 3 there would be nothing new to add.
Instead of giving up on the story idea, I started telling the story of 3 random workers at the Lunar-tech research facility.  I don't know why it's funny to me that the story has nothing to do with the game, but when I think of how it will confuse people it makes me laugh.  I seriously don't know why it's funny to me, because when I think about it, it just seems stupid.  smile
More levels are in the works, and more story has already been either written or planned to go along with those additional levels.  It's entirely possible that this seemingly random story actually ends up being about the work on the robot arm.  It might also just continue to be random.  I guess you'll just need to beat every level to know for sure.  big_smile

Stewie, the audio pans like that because the code treats the room as though it's laid out on a table in front of the player.  The further away you go, the smaller the angle is between the player and the sound.  I've actually thought about changing that, and I may end up doing so in an update.

Thanks for spotting those editor bugs.  In the morning I'll work on fixing those and posting a game update.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 11:17:34

A new version has been posted.  This one (hopefully) fixes the bugs people found, and it adds 3 new levels.

Changes from 0.6b to 0.6c

- Levels 19, 20, and 21 added.
- Bugs fixed that were preventing challenge maps from displaying descriptions and victory messages.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 11:19:38

Downloading this now, thanks Aprone! smile

"I've learned that this life's not just a game, just a line, between the pleasures and the pain." - Aaron Lewis

2016-05-13 15:56:02

great game aprone.....makes you really put on your thinking cap which I like.....at the moment stuck on level4......maybe we can have a leader board of some sort that's really my only suggestion

question are there multiple ways to beat each level?
for example maybe completing a level in 3 moves instead of 4

can i get a peace double harmony burger? no chaos

2016-05-13 16:20:52

Yeah, I agree, a nice game indeed. Just a doubht, how can I set a switch to lower a track?
Best regards, Haramir.

The true blind is the one who refuses to see.

2016-05-13 17:39:46

Find the track, that you want to lower then You have to press enter on where it says that the switch will raise the track, it will let you toggle between raising, lowering and toggling.
Level 8 looks really hard i have to think aobut it heh.

I like to sleep, Sleep is good,
This is how I do it: Lie on a nice warm cozy bed, and dream dreams about how to rule the world!
Follow @TheGreatAthlon5 on twitter for humorous facts and game updates!
If you like my posts, thumb me up!

2016-05-13 17:43:27

I get this error immediately when launching the game :


Run-time error '429': ActiveX component can't create object


What should I do ?

There are 10 kinds of people : those who know binary, and those who don't.

2016-05-13 17:59:34

I would doownload castaways and run checkup.exe I think

I like to sleep, Sleep is good,
This is how I do it: Lie on a nice warm cozy bed, and dream dreams about how to rule the world!
Follow @TheGreatAthlon5 on twitter for humorous facts and game updates!
If you like my posts, thumb me up!

2016-05-13 18:21:27

I love games like this. It reminds me a little of the math game you made a while back where you had to follow certain rules to come up with the correct values.

The universe is a rain storm. We are droplets sent to quench the problems of the world, yet we are blown sideways by the winds of distractions.

2016-05-13 18:21:59

Aminiel, I think KeyIsFull is right that checkup.exe will solve that error, and fortunately it should have already come in the Preludeamals zip so you don't have to download Castaways 2 to get it.  If that doesn't work, let me know and we'll figure out what's going on.

Smoothgunner, there are indeed multiple ways to beat each level.  During testing, it actually seemed rare for other people and myself to even solve them the same way at all.  Whenever someone did tell me anything about how they solved a particular puzzle, it was never how I had done it.  I enjoy games where you aren't locked into a single correct answer.

As far as high scores, I did originally plan on having each level track the lowest number of redirections you had solved it in.  I forgot to actually implement that, and also code to keep levels locked until you had beaten the one before it.  When it comes to locked levels, I'm rethinking my stand on that.  Part of me is now seeing the benefit of letting people skip a level they're stuck on, and come back to it later.

I imagine community created challenges will be the best place for bragging rights, where players can try to win with the least redirects.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 18:38:01 (edited by keyIsFull 2016-05-13 18:40:48)

Oh this actually reminds me of tiny tools and greenies escape. I love this stuff!
A bug I think, if you set a track to be toggled, the sound of the track being lowered doesn't play, only the raised sound. THe lowering sound plays correctly if you set the switch to lower the track though.

I like to sleep, Sleep is good,
This is how I do it: Lie on a nice warm cozy bed, and dream dreams about how to rule the world!
Follow @TheGreatAthlon5 on twitter for humorous facts and game updates!
If you like my posts, thumb me up!

2016-05-13 18:49:27

Key I was going to say I hadn't heard of tiny tools or greenies escape, but when I looked up the greenies thread I see I was mistaken.  Apparently I was an active poster on that thread, haha!  That must be from a long time ago because I can't remember it.  I guess Preludeamals will be another addition to that style of puzzle game.  smile

I'll check on that toggle sound, thanks.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 18:54:06

hi.
as always, you did a brilliant job aprone, this game made me really think hehe. i'm on level 14 now and the challenges are getting harder and harder. thanks for this amazing game.

“Get busy living or get busy dying.”
Stephen King

2016-05-13 19:05:52

People, can You explain me It please, this game?
For example, at first level, there arm travelled from C1 to south and how It get to A3, when rat is, for example?
What was happened, when I get at C2 south-west turn?
Thank You!

Ja volim samo kafu sa Rakijom.

2016-05-13 19:31:58

Giovani, if you put a north-west track down in the corner, it will change the arm's direction.  If the north-west track is sitting down at C 3, the arm will be approaching it from the north.  The angled track will then turn the arm to head west.  Once the arm is moving west, it will go from C 3 to A 3.  The game may seem confusing at first, but once you figure out how it works, I think you'll have fun.  smile


I've just posted a new update.  I forgot to list it in the change log, but I corrected the sound bug for the toggle switch.  I also added in debugging mode which may prove useful.

Changes from 0.6c to 0.6d

- Q toggles debugging mode.  For an extra bit of help on complex maps, enabling debugging mode causes the game to pause and read out exactly what the arm is doing at each step.
- After failing or winning a level, a file called Summary.txt will be created in your Preludeamals folder.  This file will list every action that took place as the arm made its run around the room, and may be helpful in finding where your design went wrong.

- Aprone
Please try out my games and programs:
Aprone's software

2016-05-13 19:45:55

OK, I see.
It means, about turn north-west for those arm, that If comes from north, It must go east.

Ja volim samo kafu sa Rakijom.