[TUTORIAL] Pieces: Lava

Review by superpiggy on Saturday, January 22nd 2011

Super's 1st tutorial!

So I Heard You Wanted To Incorporate Lava Pieces Into Your Game...

I have one thing to say to you: Read this review while playing Lava Tutorial. You will then understand this review. Okay? Alright, let's started then.

Part One

Ah, lava. Possibly the most damaging piece in the platformer creator. What's important about that? Well, lava can effect your entire game-play. How? Well, that's what this tutorial is all about.

Okay, so my first piece of advice to you is to make sure you put the lava in the right place! This is crucial to your game because you want to make your game as successful as possible. Below where you are currently standing in the game is lava. This is to add "ambiance" and "effect." This is also known as scenery. Any good lava game should have two well-done things: Game-play and scenery. These two things will make your game very successful, but only if you can figure out a way to make your game stand out over others' by using these factors.

To complete this part of the simulation (Lava Tutorial), simply walk across. That was easy, right?

Part Two

Notice how walking across that part was somewhat boring. Now, to fix this issue, all you need to do is put dangerous pieces (or hazards) to change the game and make it slightly harder. You see, in this part of Lava Tutorial, it's seemingly the same thing you saw in part one. You're wrong. Because here, I placed weak tiles. "Why is this good?" You may ask. Simply because you are giving the player more of a challenge. The audience (the players) usually want this challenge in your games because it makes them more exciting.

To complete this part of Lava Tutorial, quickly walk across before the tiles break and you fall in the lava.

Part Three

Lighting is another important factor you must include in your game. Different lights have different gimmicks. In this case, the torch lights up a small area around you in a flickerish way. The torch also seems to reflect from the walls (there are none in this room, though), the ground, and the ceiling. This adds a neat feel to your game-play.

To complete this part, just walk straight again.

Part Four

Aha! Now we have a couple examples of those walls we saw earlier! These examples of walls are good when placed around lava. You see, each different wall design makes a different atmosphere to the area. When you make your game, remember this: ALWAYS choose different tiles and different walls. This will make your game stand out and it will catch the audience's eyes. Creativity is what the editors look for. And with lava, it is always important to have the right walls.

To complete this part, walk straight.

Part Five

Predicting your audience. While making your game, you must understand that different people think differently. But you also need to know that most game players will take the easy way. Remember: Your goal is to trick them and challenge them. So, if there is a path that is seemingly full of danger, make that the right path to go. Most young users will see lava and think, "Ahh, lava! I can't go that way or else I will die!" You need to teach them your tricks and force them to go that way.

To complete this part in Lava Tutorial, take the left route.

Part Six

The hazards return! Always keep the players on their toes while they play your game. This is key in lava games, because well, if it's lava, there should be hazards everywhere!

To complete this part, walk across quickly before the spikes fall on you!

Part Seven

"Oh no! I can't go through the lava! I'm stuck!" This is not true. Lava will not kill the player immediately, although it will kill fairly quickly without armor or health. What the player needs to avoid is the TOP of the lava. For some reason, the top is what does the most damage. Keep this in mind while you are creating your game, because like in Lava Tutorial, you can just as easily make the player enter the lava from the bottom up, than the top down. As stated before, creativity is key.

To complete this part, break the sand blocks and work your way up to dry land.

Part Eight

Enemies in lava land. Why is THIS important? Well, in your game, you don't want to make it easier for the player to kill an enemy by pushing it into a hazard (as shown in Lava Tutorial). You want to force the player to fight enemies by

1) Being in control of where the enemies move. What I mean by this is make sure they cannot move to a different area by themselves. For example, some enemies can't jump.

And 2) Placing the enemies in a place where the player can't bypass/ignore the enemies. A simple way to accomplish this is by placing the enemy in a compact hallway. (As shown in Lava Tutorial)

Following these two steps will again, challenge the player and it will make your game look better.

To complete this part of Lava Tutorial, hit and push the Native into the lave, work your way up the ladder, and kill the Thug. Keep moving.

Part Nine

VERY IMPORTANT: Make sure the player is TRAPPED when they fall in lava. Make sure that the player cannot escape once they have fallen in a supposed-to-be-fatal lava trap. You can do this by making a deep hole with either hot blocks or melt blocks (so the player can't climb back up with their sword [also shown in Lava Tutorial]) and placing lava at the bottom of the hole. If the player can escape the lava, then you have officially failed at making a trap. And we don't want that to happen, do we? You should also make your own traps and test them to see if they work. Originality is also extremely important to any Sploder game.

To complete this part, turn left from the teleporters, enter the crater, and retrieve the key while dieing. Once you re-spawn, you can then enter the lava pool to your right and continue the game.

Part Ten -- Final Part

The last think I have to say is, when you make your game, have it make sense. I know I said we want originality, but your game should still make sense. The floating lava pieces you will see above are perfect examples of what most DON'T want to see. Because quite frankly, it makes your game look bad. Stick to normal pools of lava, with the top part on top, and the normal part on the bottom/middle. Your game will look much more appealing and cared for.

And That's Just About It.

I hope you liked my first tutorial. You are now one step cl'oser to becoming the next Sploder legend. ;)

Please comment and rate, feedback appreciated!