Painless Fonts~

How'd it go?

Finally something without hidden complications!  Fonts are a breath of fresh air.  Making them and using them is too relaxing! 

On a side note, I cannot recommend the Surface Pro 2. That probably doesn't matter much since the 4th version is what people are looking at now.  Still.  STILL.  Don't buy a Surface Pro 2.  The number of random issues is greater than the number of random perks.  

  - The track pad mouse on the keyboard will randomly get 'sticky' on some location and snap back to it like a rubber band.  

  

  - Sometimes disconnecting the keyboard causes a hard reset

  - Home and end keys stopped working for some inexplicit reason.  Probably because I need them.

  - The screen pen accuracy varies from one end to the other.  As an artist this is a mojo destroyer level 99.

  - Sometimes the mouse will wobble uncontrollably and taunt you.  You know that disconnecting the keyboard could reset the computer, but it won't stop wobbling.  Like right now. 

  - Want to use your fingers?  Sorry those buttons are too small, not going to happen.

  - Waking the Surface up from sleep mode teaches me to be thankful to my mother for her patience when she used to get me up for school.  MUST BE VERY PATIENT WHEN TURNING ON SURFACE PRO 2.

  - Windows 8.1

  - Peeling paint.  Seriously what?
  

  - The dissatisfaction of knowing you're already 2 generations behind.  

  - Ridiculously quiet speakers.  Do Microsoft executives employ mice to design this shit?


Anyway now that you've been suitably warned, back to the font!

This could not be any less quick and painless if it were  _______.  Be creative.

And that is entirely thanks to this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxPf1M7YORU

With a voice on par with Ben Stein, he walks you through every minute detail and after 15 minutes you have the POWER to unleash your CREATIVITY on the UNSUSPECTING citizens of the DRASTICALLY overwhelmed CITIES.

I dunno where this is going.  Trying to do everything on the Surface Pro 2 has driven me insane? Or packing? Moving to a new country?  A little nervous to be going to Dubai.  Hope it goes well, just lots of things to be OCD about. Everything is all packed up, waiting to be re-packed once I've procured a scale.  I've got desktop withdrawal.  All the art is over on it..  Okay enough excuses, let's finally figure out how to draw on this tablet.  

Here's the code for the font scene2d label above:

public void addScore(int value){
    bottlesBroken += value;
    bottleLabel.setText(String.valueOf(bottlesBroken));
}

Constructor:

chunkFont = new BitmapFont(Gdx.files.internal("chunkfive-export.fnt"));
bottleLabel = new Label(String.valueOf(bottlesBroken), new Label.LabelStyle(chunkFont, null));

What are you working on next?

I've been thinking a lot about how to make the level useful, ways to use the space.  The problem is the original intent of the game.

The intent was to be a precursor.  Not a full game.  A taste of a game.  The game I really wanted to make was a Megaman/Blaz Blue combination.  A nice big 2d side scrolling world.  Dialogues, beautiful character effects, attack skills.  But I knew that game would take a long time and people said not to shoot too high for a first game.  

The Megaman/Blaz Blue game is itself just one of the games I want to make.  I've got an idea I'm excited about for an educational RPG.    

So the problem is that breaking bottles and dodging obstacles doesn't really need a big huge world.  We've got to come up with a way to use the space a level provides.  Here are some ideas:

• Player can collect energy bottles to fill up their special attack bar
• Run from some attacks that are big  
• Dialogue trigger points, as the player walks across dialogues will pop up
• Terrain assisting, like being able to jump off a spot to see higher, see a bottle more clearly
• Hiding under some parts of the terrain to escape bottles

Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated ^_^

I'm also ready to start mocking up a full Hud with background pictures for the health bars, buttons, etc.. but.. need a real computer to do that..  Arrrr using photoshop on the SP2 feels like I'm doing surgery on the head an angsty pin.