[Morintari]

It all started with a single request 3 years ago. “if pattern drawing could be altered I think we could use it to draw in 3d.” He the creator was captivated that I came up with a totally new direction for his program. So he went to work on it within months he had a working 3d tool. I was ecstatic but he didn’t want to end there he asked if there were other tools id like to see. Of course I said, from there he made the smart copy and clone tools. When it came time to make the viewing tools like anaglyph and passive polarized glasses I went to the best source I knew RunnerPack of PVB. Next it was time to improve the layer system. It took a while but the creator totally rewrote it. Finally it was time to rework the animation system that’s way better too now. Today Pro Motion NG serves the 3d artist as well as the 2d. And were not done! As long as we have more and more subscribers we’ll make better and better tools for future Pro Motions to come!

PS.Pro Motion NG also has 3d fills you just have to check isolated fill on the check box and then the fill will act like you expect it too.
It also has many nice options for better layers and animation to make them easier too.

It’s also great for dithering it’s really strong for that and with the stereo options it’s really powerful.

If anyone has any questions about Pro Motion NG i’ll be glad to answer them in this thread.

• This topic was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Morintari.

[Morintari]

Sorry to bump my own thread but let’s give credit where credit is due. The creator of Pro Motion Next Generation is Jan Zimmerman. He has helped us like Richard Hutchinson. Not quite as much as Richard but well on his way to contributing a bunch.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Morintari.

That sounds really cool… just curious about a couple things. Is this something for a casual user, or is it really aimed at the “professional” (i.e. is it quick and easy to learn, will it help the average VB homebrew programmer, etc)? In the free version, is there anything critical missing for us VB’ers?

What is the “process” to go from drawing to displaying on the VB? Currently, my process is draw (or steal) bmps, convert to 4 colors, then convert to chars and BG maps. Does this program really just accelerate the drawing of animation frames, or are there other optimizations like reducing the number of unique chars, dithering, etc?

Is this program widely used for actual retro game programming (homebrew communities like us), or just “retro” style flash games and stuff. Obviously there are a lot of differences between making something look retro on brand new hardware with practically no limitations, rather than on the old hardware which actually has limitations which forced it to look like that.

DogP

DogP wrote

That sounds really cool… just curious about a couple things. Is this something for a casual user, or is it really aimed at the “professional” (i.e. is it quick and easy to learn, will it help the average VB homebrew programmer, etc)? In the free version, is there anything critical missing for us VB’ers?[\quote]

This tool can accomodate both the professional user and the hobbiest and every one in between it’s as easy as displace and draw.
Unfortuanately I can not answer what is avalable in the free version I know when I went to purchase it the only differance was it would’nt save it would even save in Pro Motion format but would’nt save in PNG’s BMP’s ect. Jan may of changed it from there.

DogP wrote

What is the “process” to go from drawing to displaying on the VB? Currently, my process is draw (or steal) bmps, convert to 4 colors, then convert to chars and BG maps. Does this program really just accelerate the drawing of animation frames, or are there other optimizations like reducing the number of unique chars, dithering, etc?
Is this program widely used for actual retro game programming (homebrew communities like us), or just “retro” style flash games and stuff. Obviously there are a lot of differences between making something look retro on brand new hardware with practically no limitations, rather than on the old hardware which actually has limitations which forced it to look like that.[\quote]

I really can’t answer theese questions I’m not qualified to so I asked RunnerPack if he would.

DogP wrote:
That sounds really cool… just curious about a couple things. Is this something for a casual user, or is it really aimed at the “professional” (i.e. is it quick and easy to learn, will it help the average VB homebrew programmer, etc)? In the free version, is there anything critical missing for us VB’ers?

Like most things, it does have a bit of a learning curve, but not too bad if you’ve used many paint programs. It will take you a while to master the more advanced tools, but the 3D tools are all fairly straightforward.

BTW, I found a list of things you can only do in the paid version.

What is the “process” to go from drawing to displaying on the VB? Currently, my process is draw (or steal) bmps, convert to 4 colors, then convert to chars and BG maps. Does this program really just accelerate the drawing of animation frames, or are there other optimizations like reducing the number of unique chars, dithering, etc?

It is designed from the ground up to support drawing with limited numbers of colors, so the color reduction process is unnecessary. It can save all of the standard raster formats, so it should work with any existing VB conversion tool. It has tile mapping features, but it doesn’t write BGMap data directly. It does have a plugin system, which includes file I/O, but I haven’t explored its full capabilities.

The online help has a good section on using tile maps.

Is this program widely used for actual retro game programming (homebrew communities like us), or just “retro” style flash games and stuff. Obviously there are a lot of differences between making something look retro on brand new hardware with practically no limitations, rather than on the old hardware which actually has limitations which forced it to look like that.

AFAICT, it’s been used for games on “retro” systems back when they were “modern” (it seems to have Game Boy specific support, for example) as well as modern games by companies like WayForward and Ubisoft.

I’ll be able to post more about it after I get a copy of the latest build and have a chance to play around with it. And, hopefully, some of the more experienced artists on the forum will give it a try and post their thoughts, as well.

DogP wrote

That sounds really cool… just curious about a couple things. Is this something for a casual user, or is it really aimed at the “professional

If it helps Pro Motion will remind you of Deluxe Paint on the Amiga.If you’ve used the Amiga and that wasn’t difficult for you then you will find Pro Motion easy.

“What is the “process” to go from drawing to displaying on the VB?

Pro Motion NG has a great tool called cloning. most cloners clone in exactly the same place in a different document. Pro Motion NG lets you clone from your source and displace your graphic into 3d, creating a parallax. Or if you decide to freehand draw your graphics you can displace as you draw creating Parallax on the fly. As far as the rest of the process goes I’m sorry I can’t answer the rest.I’m a artist not a programmer.

Cool… thanks for the info. It sounds like it’s worth at least trying the free version, if even just to give it a quick test drive for fun.

DogP

This reads like a big deal with lots of enthusiasm behind it, but then I visit the homepage and see one line in a change log that lists stereoscopic images as an experimental feature. Perhaps this new feature needs a bit more publication? I remember what DS Game Maker and PALib did for the DS homebrew scene. Both weren’t perfect but they aided hobbyists. This program seems like a tool that will help more people make a VB game or app. I hope more sites pick up on the news.

Lester Knight writes

This reads like a big deal with lots of enthusiasm behind it, but then I visit the homepage and see one line in a change log that lists stereoscopic images as an experimental feature.

I get what your saying about the labeling Lester, However if you are a VB game developer and are sick of cardboard cutouts and want real 3d sprites than this is YOUR TICKET!

I agree with the whole publicity issue, here could someone go on Nintendo age and advertise it. I would do It myself but I’m not even a member there. Having 1 post I would look like a Uber Noob.