One deck map is 16 KB of data, so it takes a while to build one from 64*16 byte layout. That's why lift movement between decks is as slow as it is - game builds the deck in advance to avoid delay when you exit the lift.
I modified the lift routine to check if it was allowed to move up/down from the new deck and to pass that info to the deck building subroutine. Deck builder checks halfway through the data if joystick is pushed to allowed direction, and if it is then the routine exits without finishing the deck. Lift routine then sees the return value and moves to next deck if needed. When joystick is finally released or there are no more decks above/below current one, the deck gets fully built.
The end result: lift appears to be twice as fast as before, without affecting the exit time much.
While testing it on real C64, I noticed that a new bug has crept in - sometimes the game pushes player droid inside the wall when it exits the lift. I haven't been able to repeat the bug inside VICE, which makes it "fun" to find. I suspect my new and optimized "keep old position on tile when exit" code. Maybe I will just center the droid on lift tile, as I bet there's "stay away from walls" sign in the lift anyway...
I've also modified player damage calculation slightly. Earlier player droid class didn't affect the amount of damage it received from enemy fire, now higher class droids take a little less damage, especially from single laser. The difference isn't big, but now it's a bit more tempting to use higher class (and faster decaying!) droids instead of 476.
No comments:
Post a Comment