Level Editor
The level editor is a tool that allows for constructing and generating game levels within the game, thus speeding development time. Below is a Class Diagram, showing the different components of the level editor and how they are linked.
Levels are saved in the /assets/levels directory as JSON. The level format is as follows:
"terrain": {
"mapLayer": [
{
"class": "Java class of object, i.e. com.deco2800.game.files.LevelFile$PositionedTerrainTile",
"x": x position of object, i.e. 45,
"y": y position of object, i.e. 20,
"def": "object definition, i.e. TILE_FULL_MIDDLE",
"rot": rotation of object in degrees,
"flipX": is the object flipped along x,
"flipY": is the object flipped along y
},
... This is repeated for the number of objects
]
},
"obstacles": {
"obstacleEntities": [
{
"def": "object definition, i.e. PLATFORM",
"size": object size, i.e. 18,
"x": x coordinate,
"y": y coordinate
},
],
... This is repeated for the number of objects
}
To allow for us to efficiently build the level, we developed a level editor interface. In the level editor, tiles and obstacles could be placed down on the tile grid, the layout of which can then be saved to a file, level.txt which is located in the assets directory and loaded the next time the game is run. Below is listed the keys for various actions in the level editor.
- Tile Map Editor Tool
- Scroll -> Tile Selector
- L Click -> Place Tile
- R Click -> Delete Tile
- R -> Rotate Tile
- UP -> Flip Tile in Y direction
- RIGHT -> Flip Tile in X direction
- Obstacle editor
- L Click -> Place Obstacle
- R Click -> Remove Obstacle
- Scroll -> Size Selector
- Z, X, C, V, B -> Obstacle Selector
- W, A, S, D -> Move camera
- P -> Save level design to file (DO NOT FORGET TO SAVE BEFORE EXITING)
- tab -> switch between Tile Map and Obstacle editors
The following will show some parts of the map in the level editor.
