Zool: Taking It to the N Dimension - The Game Maker's Companion: Game Development - page 49

The success of the original Zool game on the Amiga meant that it was ported to numerous
other gaming platforms as well. Each new version had a slightly different interpretation of the
game's controls and core mechanics. We will actually take the SNES/Mega Drive versions as our
main reference point, as they were the later versions of the game. Yet we're not aiming to be
completely true to the original, so we will mix and match to suit Game Maker's strengths as well.
So in our version of the game, Zool will have the following behaviors:
• Standing , Walking , Skidding , Slipping , and Kicking while supported by a platform.

• Jumping , Falling , and Spinning under the influence of gravity.

• Shooting at the same time as any of the above.

• Clinging to and Climbing vertical surfaces.

Dying , Invulnerability, and Object Collection at the same time as any of the above.
We will concentrate on Zool's movement-related behaviors to begin with, as they are central
to creating a core mechanic that is fun to play. But before we get down to work, let's get an
overview of the job ahead.

•

Long-Term Challenge
Making a complex game like Zool is not an easy task—even in Game Maker. It took a team of
professional programmers, artists, and designers many months to create the original game. Of
course, they didn't have Game Maker, but it would still be impossible to try and explain the
development of the whole game in just a single chapter. That's why we have split the game into
four chapters that divide it into more manageable chunks. Unless you have super-human powers
of concentration, then you shouldn't expect to create the whole game in a single sitting, either.
Example games like those found in The Game Maker's Apprentice were designed so that they
could be made in just a few hours, but this is very unusual in game development. This time we
are recreating a professional game that was sold in high-street stores all around the world, so it's
undoubtedly going to be more of a challenge. It's going to require your full concentration to
succeed and we recommend that you reward yourself with a treat (and a break) at the end of each
chapter. We've even included our own little reward for you, in the shape of a new page from the
Zool comic strip at the beginning of each new chapter.
Nonetheless, we think you'll agree that the finished product is well worth the time and effort
and you might even want to play it first to see what the pay-off is. You'll find it in the Finished
directory on the CD.

Short-Term Challenges
The four chapters detailing the development of Zool will be broken down into the following areas,
gradually progressing toward the finished game:
•

Chapter 3: Zool: Taking It to the Nth Dimension
Getting to know the resources and making Zool walk and jump around the test level.

• Chapter 4: Empowerment: Sliding Ninjas

Adding Zool's full range of movement abilities and making them as slick as a whistle.

• Chapter 5: Kroole's Forces: Sweetening the Challenge

Bolstering the challenge of the game by adding a range of Krool's evil minions.

• Chapter 6: Fighting Talk: The Empower Strikes Back

Giving those minions what's coming to them—ninja style!