Tool Assisted
Tool Assisted is a game where you don't directly control the character, you script out their actions frame by frame, like tool assisted speedruns! Still in early development, expect more content soon.
Getting Started
The basics of Tool Assisted are all about running, jumping and attacking. How those actions fit together is where the magic happens. The aim is to get from the entrance door to the exit door in as few actions/frames as possible. Once you get to the exit door, use the "Up" or "Enter" command to enter the door. Level 1 for example, we're going to need to run right for a bit, either attack or jump over the enemy, do some jumps and then enter the door. Let's walk it through. Start by opening the Script Editor (the black and white button in the bottom right), then type in:
right 45 <-- this will get us close to the pig attack <-- bonk him with your hammer right 50 <-- run over to the platforms jump <-- jump up, NOTE: this just jumps straight up, so... right 15 <-- this will get us onto the platform ...
I'll leave the rest up to you!
Commands
- Jump
- Attack
- Left
- Right
- Up/Enter
- Wait
Commands are case-insensitive and can be shortened to their first letter (ie `Jump` can be `j`)
All commands can be followed up with a number, this is the number of frames that input will be pressed for, eg "Left 45" will move you left for 45 frames. A frame number can be ommitted and the input will only be pressed for a single frame. Commands will be executed in order, one command per line.
Sequences
Sequences are different to commands, they allow you to create a list of commands that you can easily play at any point, they work like macros. To define a sequence you'd write something like:
seq ClimbLadder <-- this is the name of the sequence :Jump <-- these are the actions of the sequence :Wait 25 <-- each action needs to start with :
The sequence can then be used simply by writing it's name, with or without a number after, this number will be the number of times the sequence is repeated, like:
Left 45 ClimbLadder 5 Left 20
This can make complex levels that have lots of similar sections much less tedious to write
Script Editor
The script editor is your tool to control how the character moves. Once you've got a script ready to run click Play and it'll show you how the route is working out. White lines are currently running, green lines ran successfully and red lines didn't run (things like trying to jump in midair). At the top of the script editor is a slider to control the speed of the game, this makes debugging long levels less tedious
Tips
- You can't jump in mid-air, so try adding a 'Wait [number]' command if your jumps aren't registering
Attributions
- Art - Pixel Frog (check it out here!)
- Music - Tristan Lohengrin
Status | In development |
Platforms | HTML5 |
Rating | Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars (4 total ratings) |
Author | Manlibear |
Genre | Puzzle, Platformer |
Made with | Unity |
Tags | coding |
Average session | A few minutes |
Languages | English |
Inputs | Keyboard |
Development log
- Level 7 is out... and it's a doozeySep 11, 2020
- Added level selectSep 09, 2020
- Editor feedbackSep 09, 2020
- A sequence of sequencesSep 09, 2020
- Consistency tweaks and speed controlSep 08, 2020
- This fix is a frame perfect trick, except those work nowSep 07, 2020
- Level 3!Sep 07, 2020
- QoL changesSep 07, 2020
Comments
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Hey, from the devlogs I can see development sadly kinda died but I just wanted to add that frame-advance would be a nice feature, thanks for the fun game anyways if you don't feel like coming back to this project
Hey! Yeah I got side tracked and never got back to this, but I'm planning on revamping and remaking it, so I'll let you know if I get round to it!
Work on the projects you wanna work on by all means! And thank you for even replying :D I hope to see more games from you :)
Thanks for the feedback! Yeah I aimed to try and incorporate some tricks like this, requiring pretty tight sequences of input! Sadly the RNG element was not what I had intended, but it just proved too difficult to replicate the tricks each time, physics can be a pretty wafty thing at times it seemed!
Ahh yeah the database expired a little while a go, I'll look into getting to back up and running!
The database is back up and running, you should be able to see the leaderboard and level select now!
Such a fun concept, I love it! Can't wait for more levels.
If you walk 18 frames right, you'll stand on the edge but won't be able to jump :/. Also, it's almost impossible to tell if commands were executed or not, and the behavior for when a command doesn't work is unclear: does it skip a frame and do nothing, or does it go down the list of commands?. Having a frame by frame play option would be nice to see them in action. Moreover, the little monster doesn't reset when you press play, so it makes the whole level even more unpredictable.
Edit: input => command
Thanks for the feedback! The issue with standing on the edge and unclear feedback of dropped commands is something I'm working on, but thanks for picking up on it! If a command (like a jump) gets dropped (because you weren't on on the floor) it will just progress to the next command. When you say the monster doesn't reset, what do you mean? It's going back to the position it starts from
I've added some visual feedback to the script editor to show which commands are being dropped and tweaked the colliders so that if you're on the edge of a platform/wall you can still jump as you'd expect. Would be interested to hear your feedback, thanks :)
Very nice! I still experiment the reset issue sometimes.
Very interesting concept! Enjoyed playing it.
Thanks for playing! Going to be adding more levels over the next few days, keep your eyes out for devlogs!