Bullet-Eye - v0.12.6b - 7/10/24 - Non-Hefty Update

[Mor'Ladim]

Is official or custom SNES musics sounds good for you? Such as this one;

That is pretty good, but I am trying to use SPC or VGZ files only, so as not to unnecessarily bloat the WAD filesize.

Then making the current sound effects into low quality would be the answer. Since SNES games always had smooth and low quality sound effects.

I could give it a shot once I figure out what filter to use!

Oh, that's fine, just fine. Leave it as it is. I don't even know what kind of SNES games had such an effect on their maps, except cybernator.

I'll look into it! Maybe I can make them appear more pixel-like that what is normally used.

Now i see! But still it's not quite satisfying because again, vanilla bulletpuffs. I actually thought about some powerful effect for it, V-Gun from Wild Guns! It has one powerful and badass gatling gun you should check out!

I actually changed the puffs a bit in this new version! But I think it still needs more. Maybe some ricochet sounds?

You're welcome, thanks for understanding me!

And I am always open to more feedback, so thanks again!

This is a really cool concept, but I have a bug to report - entering Bullet-Eye mode doesn't work properly if "Switch Weapons on Pickup" is switched off in Player Setup. You can press the button to trigger it, but all it will do is give you all three Strike Orb powerups without changing your weapons, which you can do indefinitely...until you change primary weapons, at which point the weapon switches properly.

Now, I seem to recall that the ACS inventory function [wiki]SetWeapon[/wiki] works in Decorate, though I might be wrong. Perhaps that's a better way to trigger the Bullet-Eye weapon swtich?

I actually thought about that a bit after implementing Bullet-Eye Mode, but ended up forgetting about it! I have fixed that problem, and it was actually easier than I thought it would be. Thanks for the tip!

For the next update, I hope to have a system where if you pick up a new weapon, you will still have your previous one. Of course, picking up a new weapon will overwrite it with the one you were just holding. Think Super Mario World or Contra.

I also plan to include an equipment system. I am not sure how I will handle them yet. They will most likely be random drops like the other powerups, but I am not sure if they should be permanent until you grab another, OR if they only last for one level. But they will be quite useful! Here are some examples (with only one item named, because I have to think of what to name the rest):

Medal of Valor: The bonuses from Survivors are tripled.
X - Increases damage of Sub-Weapons by 10%.
X - Duration of Strike Orbs increased by 10 seconds.
x - Kills grant increased Bullet-Eye energy.
x - Energy gains during Bullet-Eye Mode are tripled.
x - Health items heal 50% more when under 20% health.
x - Increases item drop rate from enemies.
x - Activating Bullet-Eye grants invincibility for 8 seconds.
X - Weapons obtained start at level 2.

If you press Reload to open up the info screen, that section in the middle is where they will fit in! Though, I may need to extend it by a small amount.

[Captain J]

That is pretty good, but I am trying to use SPC or VGZ files only, so as not to unnecessarily bloat the WAD filesize.

I think this site has many of SPC files. If you have favorite soundtrack to put into the mod, just credit them and download some of them!

I could give it a shot once I figure out what filter to use!

If you have audacity or goldwave, you can make the sound effects SNES-esq by saving them as low resolution. I think it makes more like SNES style, so.

I actually changed the puffs a bit in this new version! But I think it still needs more. Maybe some ricochet sounds?

Ahh, good! Anyway yes, i'd like to hear some firepower from its puff, please!

[Kinsie]

Here's a temporary fix for the HUD:

Code: Select all

Height 0;
InterpolateHealth true;
InterpolateArmor true;
resolution 400, 300; 

statusbar normal, forcescaled //fullscreenoffsets, forcescaled

[Dr_Cosmobyte]

This is awesome! May i suggest two things?

- Make the health bonuses bright
- Add a SNES/SEGA-ish secret sound. I have some stuff here if you're interested.

Keep the excellent job!

[Lime]

Bullet-Eye is very interesting from the looks of it. I loved the style of it. This is Fantastic!

[Mor'Ladim]

Here's a temporary fix for the HUD

Thanks for that! Seems to be working well.

A small update. Unfortunately, updates will take a bit longer to 'ship out', as I have been off vacation since the 25th. I tend to work nearly all day on this on days off though, so hopefully I can get a weekly update out at least. I REALLY want to get that equipment system out soon. I have different plans for it now, such as each piece having a different 'slot amount' and you have a capacity of 10 slots. For example, if you equip an item with 5 slots, you can then only equip an item that will take up 5 or less slots. As another example, using that 5 slot item, you can equip one 2 slot and one 3 slot item, for a total of three equipped items. You would be able to have up to 5 different items active if you use certain combinations. I just hope I can achieve this system!

11/30/16
-L3 Buster extra shots now explode faster and had their damage increased slightly.
-Health Augments have been given the BRIGHT flag.
-Strike Orbs made more common from enemies.
-You will now drop your previous weapon when picking up a new one. It can be obtained again and levels will be retained. Sub-Weapons to use this system soon!
-Energy Screen shield amount reduced to 150. (Was 300)
-New weapon "Scrap Launcher".

[Mor'Ladim]

Time for another weekly (day late?) update!

12/7/16
-New weapons, "Quick Strike" and "Hunting Laser" have been added.
-Added flight sound to Mag Shurikens sub-weapon.
-Added slash graphical effect to Energy Claw sub-weapon.
-Energy Claw and Cross Mine sub-weapons have been slightly revamped, moving older abilities to different levels, with some being replaced with new ones.
-Energy Claw basic strikes now hits multiple times in one swipe for a better chance at hitting an enemy.
-Energy Claw Sub-Weapon ammo usage reduced to 5 (was 6), and Cross Mine reduced to 6 (was 8).
-Bullet-Eye Mode can now be canceled upon pressing the Zoom key, and doing so will cause you to lose 20 Bullet-Eye Energy. (In order to prevent Strike Orb gain spam)
-Added the beginnings of the equipment system. At the moment, you can collect one of three different helmets and gain permanent enhancements, as long as you have one. They will be drops from stronger enemies, and spawn in place of Blur Spheres.

Hopefully some of the changes to the sub-weapons will make them all seem useful now! Also, I won't be posting ALL weapon data to the main post, as I want there to be some surprises! For the helmets all you have to do is pick them up and they will be equipped, and picking up a different one will overwrite it. I'll add a swap system similar to what the weapons use later, same for sub-weapons. Don't forget to hit the Reload button to see the info on weapons/sub-weapons, and helmets!

Enjoy!

[Deii]

I really like this. The weapons all feel powerful in that classic shmup way, the sound design is spot-on and the only thing missing here are lives - would make for an interesting replacement for the soulsphere, no?

Just a tiny little thing I found to be like...the only glaring issue in this release.

Are you ready? It's quite a big deal!

---

Picking up the scrap launcher will tell you you've picked a scarp launcher. I wasn't aware you could stuff entire geographical landmarks into a gun and shoot them at demons...

Sorry, couldn't resist it. I'll keep playing to see if I dig up any more issues or come up with suggestions.

[Mor'Ladim]

I really like this. The weapons all feel powerful in that classic shmup way, the sound design is spot-on and the only thing missing here are lives - would make for an interesting replacement for the soulsphere, no?

I was thinking lives may be a nice system, but I am not sure how to pull it off. I know Contra Doom does it, so maybe I can take a look at that code and attempt something similar, but without stealing!

Picking up the scrap launcher will tell you you've picked a scarp launcher. I wasn't aware you could stuff entire geographical landmarks into a gun and shoot them at demons...

Now don't give me any ideas, or you may regret it later! But in all seriousness, to me, that is a big deal! Even tiny mistakes like that bother me. This specific issue was enough for me to fix it while I was in the middle of something else! I just couldn't stop thinking about it.

Anyway, thank you for your feedback and glad you liked it! I plan to get in more helmet items and at least two new sub-weapons in the next update, just to name a few things.

Edit: Perhaps I am missing something? I can't find said error!

[Deii]

Yeah, for some reason I can't find or trigger it anymore...I did update and reset my GZDoom earlier today though. Maybe something to do with unstable port releases? I really don't know but I swear that I did see a typo around.

I'll go hunt for it again and let you know if it was some really weird one-off event.

[Mor'Ladim]

I'll have a look through some of the other items to see if I can find any typos there.

I finally got to play my own mod with a map pack. I used 1024 Congestion, and found that I got way too much Sub-Weapon Ammo, and not enough health. Of course, the amount of items in maps will vary from WAD to WAD, but just to be on the safe side, I made some changes with this small update! It also includes some quality of life changes.

12/8/16
-Decreased amount of ammo gained from Sub-Weapon Ammo.
-Increased health gained from health items.
-Fixed bug where the War Visor helmet would not carry its benefit to other levels.
-Added Survivor bonuses to more item spawns.
-New effects added to weapon/sub-weapons and helmets to make them easier to find through corpses or debris.
-Weapon Swap system added to Sub-Weapons. Picking up a different Sub-Weapon will drop your current one, allowing it to be picked up again.
-Helmet Swap system added.
-New helmet "Guard Visor"
-Added STEPMISSILE flag to Hunting Laser to make it slightly easier to hit enemies on platforms.

I also saw it was a problem to traverse narrow corridors with a weapon powerup in the way. You would keep picking up the weapon you don't want, and have to wait for the one you were using beforehand to drop. Therefore, in the next update, I will see about adding some 'destroy' key that will allow you to convert a weapon you are holding into Sub-Weapon Ammo or health. This will be useful for clearing areas of weapons you don't want to pick up repeatedly.

[Someone64]

It would be cool if the mod included monster deaths similar to those found in the mod Never Breaking Orbit which imitates how enemies die in Contra. Maybe you could even ask Vae if you could use the code?

[Tormentor667]

I definitely need to test this as soon as I am back home, it looks very retro - and I love that

[Mor'Ladim]

A small update, mostly with bugfixes! But most importantly, this update makes controls much more responsive. For example, you will find yourself being able to fire a Sub-Weapon after using main fire much faster than before, thanks to A_WeaponReady calls!

12/11/16
-Fixed some weapon powerup bugs, giving the wrong weapon or weapon level.
-Increased Blaze Stream projectile speed.
-Increased damage and firing/projectile speed of Quick Strike slightly.
-Made combat more responsive, such as allowing you to fire again in Bullet-Eye Mode while the weapon is spinning down or being able to use Sub-Weapons after firing a main weapon faster.
-Fixed bug where you can gain an infinite amount of Sub-Weapon ammo by picking up a different sub-weapon and switching back to the previous repeatedly.

I also included a short demo video on the main post!

[wildweasel]

Mmmm, this is pretty solid now, I'm just gonna lobby for there to be multiple sprites for the standard weapons. Actually, I have another suggestion as well, could all weapon and subweapon pickups floatbob? I keep losing them in piles of dead monsters.

[edit] I have a bug to report as well; I understand the Iron Annihilator isn't supposed to fill the Bullet-Eye gauge when it kills something, but if Bullet-Eye is active and you change levels, it starts filling the gauge. I haven't had to chance to test if this is related to the Rage helmet or not.