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Visit the SonicX messageboard to comment about sonicX, or qbasic.
News August 17th 2005 It has been quite some time in the making, but the final qb version of sonicX is here. Sporting a new improved rendering system, better collision detection and an unreal basic scripting system, SonicX is much better than I ever imagined it could be. It isn't 100% finished, but this is the last release made using Qb. This is because I intend to port SonicX to the win32 compatible language Freebasic. Freebasic is virtually 95% compatible with quickbasic code, and it compiles programs which will work on all windows systems. The problem with using Quikbasic, is that I need to use things like EMS memory, and most modern windows systems can not handle EMS. So, SonicX will no longer be coded in Quickbasic. This final SonicX release for qbasic features enemies, and is thus a major step forward for this project. It also features background music and sound FX. The level editor has also been upgraded significantly. It has been integrated with the script editor, so that basic scripts can be attached to objects by level designers (see Pic below). All up, this is a quality qb platformer. Download SonicX version 10(beta) now.
News March
11th 2005 I haven't updated the site in a while, so I thought I would let the QB world know that SonicX is still in production. The main reason it hasn't been finished yet is that I have been playing around with V1ctor's excellent Freebasic compiler. The other reason is that I have been building a compiler for the scripting language which sonicx now uses. This has taken a long time, as in sonicx, the scripting language processes numbers, not words. So, each script which is written in English has to be compiled into a set of numbers that SonicX can understand. This script editor is finished now. So, sonicX is getting some attention. One of the things I have done recently is to create a layer for underwater worlds, like in the labryinth zone of Sonic 1. Check out the following pic:
Notice
the bubbles. They make use of the scripting language I made. Only half
of the water surface is showing because of a graphical effect which
shows the whole surface every two frames. When seen from within the
game, it produces a shimmering effect. Sonicx version 10 will be
released soon, but while you wait, you can still download SonicX version 9. New SonicX level
Wow, I am seriously impressed by
sonicx users. Every so often, levels land in my inbox that defy the
limits of the SonicX graphics engine, and Mushroom is one such level.
The terminator has made one of the best levels I have ever seen, and it
uses the mushroom zone tileset from sonic and knuckle, and in the
process won a gmail invite. This level is pretty huge, with heaps of
loops and insane traps, and it also has a nice flow to it to.
The level can be downloaded
here News September 29th 2004 The SonicX level making tutorial
has been revamped The
previous
level making tutorial was pretty crap, so I have updated it so that it
now makes sense and reflects the current release of SonicX. It clocks
in at just under 12, 000 words, so it is rather comprehensive. Read the online
level construction tutorial as soon as you can. it will be well
worth it. News September 17th 2004 Sonic X-treme final release delayed.
SonicX was all set for a March 2004 release, but at the last moment I decided that I didn't want the 'Sonic the hedgehog' Clone to be completed without support for moving enemies. With no such support, I would have been abandoning the game, not completing it. As a consequence of the elevated nature of my ambitions for the project, it was not possible to put forward a release date anytime before next year. This delay reflects the difficulties involved in adding features to a long running quickbasic project. Basically, I have reached the code size limit for qbasic. To add any new features, and ensure that the project compiles, I have to remove entire subs, or rewrite them economically. This takes time. Right now, I have finished the system which deals with moving enemies. It is working nicely, but now I have a few other niggling things to finish. So a release isn't likely until eraly next year. It is worth waiting for though, as the screenshot pictured above shows. This screenshot is basically a test of the enemy system. There are around 50 'claws' and a couple of bats on screen, but no slowdown. When sonic rolls on them, they are destroyed. I haven't finished the enemy explosion animations yet, so it uses the exploding expbox animation instead. But all things will be dealt with in time.
Site redesign for Qbasic Central Qbasic central was looking a little tired, so I revamped the look by removing the frames. Frames aren't really very popular anymore, and they can cause problems with links and search engines. With google in mind, I have arranged the design such that a navigation bar appears on every page. This way, searchers can access the full site no matter what page they came across.
New SonicX level Elimon, a sonicX user, has submitted a level he has named Egg Doom Haven. It's pretty cool in that it pays homage to the early days of sonicX by relying soley on simple hand drawn graphics (no bitmaps). He's done a good job with the level design, especially in a section where four loops are following each other in a row. It's a touch on the difficult side, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The level can be downloaded here
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