Beta 2 Level Editor Feedback
by Mike Lilligreen · in Torque Game Builder · 03/24/2006 (2:34 pm) · 7 replies
First off - wow. I shunned the previous version of the level editor and stuck with doing everying in script, but this is some serious coolness. Thanks for the huge improvement. And while the editor still appears to be in a work in progress state, I'd like to add a bit of feedback based on my first impressions.
1. Background color defaults - first thing I did was change the scene view background color to black. Unfortunely I can't find an option to do the same for the thumbnails on the create tab. The gray background makes it hard to see quite a few of the particle effects. Could we get an option to change the background color on thumbnail previews?
2. The blue border around a selected preview is a bit too light in my opinion, makes it sometimes hard to see what I previously had selected. Again, perhaps an option or just darkening it a bit. Probably could have just changed this in the script myself but no .cs files were included. ;)
3. Left/right clicking the static sprite previews to switch frames seems to be broken, but I'm sure you know about that. ;)
4. For particle effects - the settings/effect emitters area seems to have hide all set as a default when placing an emitter in the scene view. Have to either click show all, deselect and reselect, or reclick it in the object tree to get the emitters to show.
5. This one should go under bug reports too, but I'll add it here as well. I can get TGB to crash reliabily by double clicking to bring up the image editor between the linkedImageMap and tileImageMap. Ok, it's not exactly typical for a user to constantly double click between the two, but I somehow managed to stumble upon that.
6. Huge thanks for the nice code the level editor generates, especially not printing out every default variable. Bit curious why the physics and mass/intertia stuff is default on, but with collisions default off I guess that's just nitpicking.
Anyway, great work on this, even if you did keep the beta 2 availibility a bit secret. :)
1. Background color defaults - first thing I did was change the scene view background color to black. Unfortunely I can't find an option to do the same for the thumbnails on the create tab. The gray background makes it hard to see quite a few of the particle effects. Could we get an option to change the background color on thumbnail previews?
2. The blue border around a selected preview is a bit too light in my opinion, makes it sometimes hard to see what I previously had selected. Again, perhaps an option or just darkening it a bit. Probably could have just changed this in the script myself but no .cs files were included. ;)
3. Left/right clicking the static sprite previews to switch frames seems to be broken, but I'm sure you know about that. ;)
4. For particle effects - the settings/effect emitters area seems to have hide all set as a default when placing an emitter in the scene view. Have to either click show all, deselect and reselect, or reclick it in the object tree to get the emitters to show.
5. This one should go under bug reports too, but I'll add it here as well. I can get TGB to crash reliabily by double clicking to bring up the image editor between the linkedImageMap and tileImageMap. Ok, it's not exactly typical for a user to constantly double click between the two, but I somehow managed to stumble upon that.
6. Huge thanks for the nice code the level editor generates, especially not printing out every default variable. Bit curious why the physics and mass/intertia stuff is default on, but with collisions default off I guess that's just nitpicking.
Anyway, great work on this, even if you did keep the beta 2 availibility a bit secret. :)
About the author
#2
I frickin' love the new editor. I haven't used it much but I can't find much fault with it yet. Except for the script sources being kept secret :(
03/24/2006 (10:46 pm)
*1) I did the same thing! With green grid lines too.. matrix style!I frickin' love the new editor. I haven't used it much but I can't find much fault with it yet. Except for the script sources being kept secret :(
#3
03/25/2006 (2:53 am)
Strange to give the full cpp engine source, but hide the level editor cs files.
#4
Server:Start/Join/Disconnect/Load Chat
this Server menu is missing from the Beta 2 downloaded last night.
Well at leat it should mean a server related menu may make it at one point in the level builder.
The EDIT (especially), Project and Create task panes are going to be awesome time savers!
03/25/2006 (8:01 am)
Did you notice the Level Builder Getting Started.pdf file shows a Server menu on the menu barServer:Start/Join/Disconnect/Load Chat
this Server menu is missing from the Beta 2 downloaded last night.
Well at leat it should mean a server related menu may make it at one point in the level builder.
The EDIT (especially), Project and Create task panes are going to be awesome time savers!
#5
We need to be able to edit the level editor so we can build isometric levels.
Also, how do you go about adding tile maps to a scene using the new editor?
03/25/2006 (5:05 pm)
Is there a reason for not including the script source for the editor?We need to be able to edit the level editor so we can build isometric levels.
Also, how do you go about adding tile maps to a scene using the new editor?
#6
Anyway, as an update to number 4 in my list above, if I click and drag a particle effect into the scene view it will show the effect emitters. It is only if I click on the thumbnail then click in the scene view that the emitters are hidden in the edit window.
03/26/2006 (4:27 am)
Guessing in the rush to get this ready for GDC the level editor cs files simply got forgotten.Anyway, as an update to number 4 in my list above, if I click and drag a particle effect into the scene view it will show the effect emitters. It is only if I click on the thumbnail then click in the scene view that the emitters are hidden in the edit window.
#7
But thats only a intermediate beta (seems like the GDC beta? :) ), so I would not make myself the work to get something in that comes in with a better workflow in a future version anyway ...
Too much is changing in TGB at the moment to justify the work ...
At least for me.
03/26/2006 (4:30 am)
At the moment, it seems like you can't.But thats only a intermediate beta (seems like the GDC beta? :) ), so I would not make myself the work to get something in that comes in with a better workflow in a future version anyway ...
Too much is changing in TGB at the moment to justify the work ...
At least for me.
Torque 3D Owner Marc Dreamora Schaerer
Gayasoft
7. Effects that are rotated are reset to their original direction if they are mounted to a path.