From cf784f77adb68c4b336eb497ebd4727533c307da Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: gurpreetsinghmatharoo Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2023 11:58:24 +0530 Subject: [PATCH 01/32] [general] reviewed 'intro to GM' section --- Manual/contents/Introduction/Debugging.htm | 15 +++--- .../Introduction_To_GameMaker_Studio_2.htm | 14 +++--- .../Introduction/The_Asset_Browser.htm | 4 +- .../Introduction/The_Output_Window.htm | 2 +- Manual/contents/Introduction/Workspaces.htm | 6 +-- .../Settings/Command_Line_Parameters.htm | 46 ++++++------------- 6 files changed, 35 insertions(+), 52 deletions(-) diff --git a/Manual/contents/Introduction/Debugging.htm b/Manual/contents/Introduction/Debugging.htm index d67512904..45802d20e 100644 --- a/Manual/contents/Introduction/Debugging.htm +++ b/Manual/contents/Introduction/Debugging.htm @@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ Debugging - + @@ -16,14 +16,13 @@

Debugging

When programming your game, whether using GML Code or GML Visual, it can be very easy to make mistakes - using the wrong variables, passing the wrong arguments, or using the wrong functions are just some of the most common errors we all make - and these mistakes are not always detected by the syntax checker that is included with the script/action editor. That means that these mistakes will only become apparent when you actually run or compile your game, and even then it can sometimes be difficult to know exactly what is going wrong. It can therefore be of vital importance to know how your game is performing on the chosen device, as well as see what instances are in the room, what global variables have been created and a whole host of other details. Checking these things is called "debugging your code", and any errors or issues you may find are called "bugs".

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Now, you can check a lot of these things yourself by adding in so-called "debug code" to your games to display on the screen the information you require, or you can have it that it shows messages when there is an error, but this is often a lot of work and if you aren't sure where the problem is in the first place then it can be a time consuming case of trial and error to track down your bug. For that, GameMaker has a special test mode called Debug Mode which will start the Debug Module, and there is also a comprehensive error reporting system which displays messages on Compiling to help you track down any problems with your game.

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Now, you can check a lot of these things yourself by adding in so-called "debug code" to your games to display on the screen the information you require, or you can have it that it shows messages when there is an error, but this is often a lot of work and if you aren't sure where the problem is in the first place then it can be a time consuming case of trial and error to track down your bug. For that, GameMaker has a special test mode called Debug Mode which will start the Debugger, and there is also a comprehensive error reporting system which displays messages on Compiling to help you track down any problems with your game.

The sections below cover the different ways that you can debug your game:

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Error Reporting

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When an error occurs during the compiling and execution of a project this is reported with a message in the Compile Errors Output Window, much like the one shown below:

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Compile ErrorsMost compiler error messages follow the same outline, with a message stating the object that the error has occurred in, then the Event along with the line number, and then finally a short description of the error itself. This type of information being provided by the error reporting is very important as it detects and reports the syntax and language related bugs that are going to cause your finished game to crash, but it won't report more subtle bugs, nor does it give feedback on performance. For those types of things you should use Debug Mode (explained below).

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Apart from these compile errors, you can also get syntax errors. These will be detected as you add your GML Visual actions or code and are shown in the Syntax Errors Output Window, similar to the image shown below:

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When an error occurs during the compiling and execution of a project, this is reported with a message in the Compile Errors Output Window, much like the one shown below:

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Compile ErrorsMost compiler error messages follow the same outline, with a message stating the object that the error has occurred in, then the Event along with the line number, and then finally a short description of the error itself. This type of information being provided by the error reporting is very important as it detects and reports the syntax and language related bugs that are going to cause your finished game to crash, but it won't report more subtle bugs, nor does it give feedback on performance. For those types of things you should use Debug Mode (explained below).

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Apart from these compile errors, you can also get syntax errors. These will be detected as you add your GML actions or code and are shown in the Syntax Errors Output Window, similar to the image shown below:

Syntax ErrorsAs with the compiler errors, the syntax errors window will direct you to the object, the event and the specific lines that are giving the issue, and will often be shown with a brief explanation of what the error is.

 

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Debugging

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Note that when you use the Debug Module, you can also add Breakpoints to your code or GML Visual. A breakpoint is a point in the game loop where you want the debug module to pause and let you step through the actual game code a line at a time. You can add breakpoints using the key "F9", and they will be shown in the Output Window where you can enable/disable them as required.

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Note that when you use the Debug Module, you can also add Breakpoints to your code or visual actions. A breakpoint is a point in the game loop where you want the debug module to pause and let you step through the actual game code a line at a time. You can add breakpoints using the key "F9", and they will be shown in the Output Window where you can enable/disable them as required.

 

Additional Tools

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Debugging

Next: The Output Window
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© Copyright YoYo Games Ltd. 2022 All Rights Reserved
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© Copyright YoYo Games Ltd. 2023 All Rights Reserved

Introduction To GameMaker

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GameMaker is a tool designed to empower you and your team to make new and innovative games as well as prototype ideas in the fastest and most intuitive way possible across multiple target platforms. It is intended primarily as a tool for making 2D games - although 3D games are perfectly doable - and comes with a number of tools and editors to help you realize your dreams and ideas, with your final project being ported across multiple platforms from the same initial base resources. The GameMaker IDE

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GameMaker is a tool designed to empower you and your team to make new and innovative games as well as prototype ideas in the fastest and most intuitive way possible, across multiple target platforms. It is intended primarily as a tool for making 2D games - although 3D games are perfectly doable - and comes with a number of tools and editors to help you realise your dreams and ideas, with your final project being ported across multiple platforms from the same initial base resources. The GameMaker IDE

For those that are new to the world of programming or who have never used any game creation tool before, GameMaker offers an intuitive and easy to use GML Visual interface of actions that allow you to start creating your own games very quickly using visual scripting:

GML Visual Example Image

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If you are a more experienced - or less visual - programmer, then you can use the proprietary scripting language GML to create your games:

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You can even combine both and mix GML functions with GML Visual actions, giving you a great deal of flexibility when it comes to how you write things. This is all laid out in an intuitive fashion, with different aspects of your game "chaining" together in the IDE to give you a unique and very visual representation of the workflow.

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GameMaker comes with a number of powerful tools, like a complete Image Editor for creating your own sprites and the ability to use tile sets and you can also import images that you have made in any external editor, including Spine skeleton animations and SWF format vector files. Once you have your images it's simply a question of assigning them to objects in the Object Editor, adding some code or GML Visual actions, and then placing instances of these objects into a game room in the Room Editor. There are also additional tools for creating Paths, Sequences, Shaders and a whole lot more. You'll find the IDE is also incredibly flexible, and it can be customised to your needs, should the default IDE setup not cover something you require, using the different Preferences.

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This help file will tell you all you need to know about GameMaker and how you can create your own games with it. However, please realise that even with a program like GameMaker, designing computer games is not completely effortless - so no "make me a MMORPG" button here! Be aware too that there are many aspects to making games and that they are all equally important: game-play, graphics, sounds, user interaction, etc... But, the most important aspect of all, is patience. While GameMaker is a powerful tool, it cannot do everything for you at the touch of a button so start small with simple examples and you will find that not only is creating games great fun, but that learning to use GameMaker to do it is also very rewarding!

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If you are a more experienced - or less visual - programmer, then you can use the proprietary scripting language GML Code to create your games:

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You can even combine both and mix GML Code functions with GML Visual actions, giving you a great deal of flexibility when it comes to how you write things. This is all laid out in an intuitive fashion, with different aspects of your game "chaining" together in the IDE to give you a unique and very visual representation of the workflow.

+

GameMaker comes with a number of powerful tools, like a complete Image Editor for creating your own sprites and the ability to use tile sets and you can also import images that you have made in any external editor, including Spine skeleton animations and SWF format vector files. Once you have your images it's simply a question of assigning them to objects in the Object Editor, adding some code or GML Visual actions, and then placing instances of these objects into a game room in the Room Editor. There are also additional tools for creating Paths, Sequences (animations), Shaders and a whole lot more. You'll find the IDE is also incredibly flexible, and it can be customised to your needs, should the default IDE setup not cover something you require, using the different Preferences.

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This manual will tell you all you need to know about GameMaker and how you can create your own games with it. However, please realise that even with a program like GameMaker, designing computer games is not completely effortless - so no "make me a MMORPG" button here! Be aware too that there are many aspects to making games and that they are all equally important: gameplay, graphics, sounds, user interaction, etc... But, the most important aspect of all, is patience. While GameMaker is a powerful tool, it cannot do everything for you at the touch of a button so start small with simple examples and you will find that not only is creating games great fun, but that learning to use GameMaker to do it is also very rewarding!

For more information, examples, tutorials, and links to helpful forums and other great resources, visit the GameMaker website.

 

 

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Introduction To GameMaker

Next: The Start Page
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© Copyright YoYo Games Ltd. 2022 All Rights Reserved
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© Copyright YoYo Games Ltd. 2023 All Rights Reserved

The Asset Browser

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The core of your game will be created from assets added to the Asset Browser located by default on the right of the IDE. This is where you can add everything that your game requires to run, including a game room, sprites, objects, paths and a number of other things. A basic game in GameMaker will require a room to run in (new projects will always be created with a room asset already created), and usually at least one object and a sprite, although you'll likely use a lot more!

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The core of your game will be created from assets added to the Asset Browser located by default on the right of the IDE. This is where you can add everything that your game requires to run, including a game room, sprites, objects, paths and a number of other things. A basic game in GameMaker will require a room to run (new projects will always be created with a room asset already created), and usually at least one object to execute code, although you'll likely use a lot more assets of various types!

The Asset Browser Components

The Asset Browser is where you'll create and organise the assets for your game as well as modify certain other aspects like platform specific settings and configurations. Below you can find explanations of each of the different sections.

Search Bar

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Asset Types

  • Assign Texture Group - When you select this option, you will be presented with a list of the available texture groups, and you can then choose one to add the sprite to or create a new one, if required. If multiple sprites are selected in the Asset Browser - or you have selected a group folder of sprites - then all the sprites will be added to the chosen texture group. See Texture Groups for more information.
  • Create Sprite From Image(s) - Selecting this option will open a file explorer where you can select one or more images from which to create a sprite. If you select multiple images, then the sprite will be created with multiple frames, one for each image selected.
  • Open In Image Editor - This will open the sprite in The Image Editor for editing, without opening The Sprite Editor first.
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  • Open in External Editor - This opens the last selected sprite in one of the External Editors for sprites, depending on the type of sprite:  +
  • Open in External Editor - This opens the last selected sprite in one of the External Editors for sprites, depending on the type of sprite: