LBP Level Creation Discussion

[PA_Kid]

Figured it might be useful to have a seperate thread to just discuss level creation and such.

I'll start it off with a question. I'm not through all the tutorials, but I'm looking for some help with bolts.

I understand how to bolt one item in front of another (like in the tutorial) but how do you bolt two items in the same plane together?

I'm trying to make a set of chattering teeth and I need the top and bottom connected together on a hinge.

thanks in advance for the help!

[BillCable]

I can think of two ways to accomplish that.

#1 - with a winch. Put a chain between the two sets of teeth to move the bottom up and down.

#2 - two bolts. Bolt the top teeth to the face. Bolt the bottom teeth to the face. And set both to oscillate.

I'm not sure if either is exactly what you're looking for, though. You could also have them pop up and down like the Meerkats. So make that three ways.

[bykes]

I was really thinking of getting this game, but I have a feeling the level creation is going to be too complicated. Thats why I'm going to pass.

[Marine Mike]

Originally Posted by bykes

I was really thinking of getting this game, but I have a feeling the level creation is going to be too complicated. Thats why I'm going to pass.

Well, its only as complicated as you want to make it. They already have a lot of pre-made objects and monsters for you to use. The game just allows you to personalize the level to your imagination. Also if you don't want to create a level you can just play someone else's.

[cathexist]

Originally Posted by Marine Mike

Well, its only as complicated as you want to make it. They already have a lot of pre-made objects and monsters for you to use. The game just allows you to personalize the level to your imagination. Also if you don't want to create a level you can just play someone else's.

I agree...the level creation is overpowering to me, but that doesn't make it a less enjoyable game. I've played through most of the story, a couple levels created by other people and I'll most likely EVENTUALLY create my own levels as well (after going through the tutorials...maybe multiple times).

[stockstar1138]

level creation definately has a steep learning curve if you wanna make good levels. however, they have wonderful, mandatory tuturiols to help you through.

im only through the tuturiol of getting things to make animal noises, so im not far, but i consider myself a pretty HC gamer and even I was like, holy bleepidly bleep, this is difficult to do if you don't want it to turn out like crap.

[PA_Kid]

Thanks Bill. Not exactly what I was aiming for, but it gives me some other ideas to play around with.

I'm trying to make Grandma's dentures chase after poor little sackpeople like those wind up toy chattering teeth you can buy.

At this point I think I'm going to angle the bottom teeth a little by doing a bigger wheel in back and a smaller one in front. I think I can solve it by gluing a piece behind the bottom teeth and then bolting the top teeth to that. Addding a pitson to that sould hopefully give me the motion I want.

Though that leads me to two other questions:

1 - Do monsters automatically "threaten" every layer or just the ones they are on? (If it's just the one they are on, that might be problematic for me)

2 - How can we/do we share our objects? Once I get my chattering teeth monster working, I figure it would be worth sharing to at least anyone here who might want to use it.

[PA_Kid]

Originally Posted by Marine Mike

Well, its only as complicated as you want to make it. They already have a lot of pre-made objects and monsters for you to use. The game just allows you to personalize the level to your imagination. Also if you don't want to create a level you can just play someone else's.

Yeah, I want to strongly echo Marine Mike here. If the only reason someone is avoiding the game is complicated level creation I would strongly encourage them to still try it out.

First, and most importantly, you don't have to ever build a level. You can play story mode and then exploge the thousands of levels that other people are going to put out there. If you want to play but not make, it's ok, there will be enough others that generate content.

Secondly, the creation tools are only as hard as you make it. It's very easy to build levels that are similar to what you see in the gardens story levels. There are a lot of premade items to help you out. It's only when you want to generate customized stuff that things get more complicated.

Let me use my level as an example. I had an idea that it would be fun to create a thanksgiving themed level where sackpeople race across a too-long dinner table dodging forks, knives, cranberry sauce, and other obstacles to do battle with the thanksgiving turkey at the end.

It's a little more complicated for me since I want a specific theme and feel, but you don't have to make things that hard. Right now I'm just starting to build up my inventory of objects for it - one of which is going to be Grandma's dentures - which fall out onto the table and chase after you.

[BillCable]

1 - depends on how they're built. If they're 3 planes wide, they threaten all 3 planes. If they're 1, usually you can just walk around it. If you need it to attack all three frames you could stick an electrified rod behind it extending to other planes, or a poison gas cloud, etc.

2 - once you create an object, you can capture it and then offer it as a prize for completing your level, or within an object bubble in the level. I'm not sure if there's a way to share one directly, but there might be through the friends planet.

[PA_Kid]

Originally Posted by BillCable

1 - depends on how they're built. If they're 3 planes wide, they threaten all 3 planes. If they're 1, usually you can just walk around it. If you need it to attack all three frames you could stick an electrified rod behind it extending to other planes, or a poison gas cloud, etc.

Ok, that's what I was afraid of. I didn't want to have to deal with the connector in back getting stuck on something else in the background. Though I hadn't thought about the poison gas cloud or an electrified rod - so at worst at this point I've got a solution that could be 2 levels wide and then I'd just have to adjust for that.

2 - once you create an object, you can capture it and then offer it as a prize for completing your level, or within an object bubble in the level. I'm not sure if there's a way to share one directly, but there might be through the friends planet.

Well at worst then I can create a dummy level that I just share with friends that gives out the items. I just figure that as I build all this stuff I have in my head at the moment (chomping dentures, corncob catapult, monster thanksgiving turkey, etc...), I might as well share it with people here if nothing else.

Once you share something as a prize can they share it as a prize in a level or just the original builder? I can see that slowing sharing if you make some incredibly detailed and complicated object for your level and give it out as a reward, but then others distribute it out on their own.

[Lucy Diamond]

Is it possible to use bitmaps/ jpegs to wallpaper and design items???

[BillCable]

Originally Posted by PA_Kid

Once you share something as a prize can they share it as a prize in a level or just the original builder? I can see that slowing sharing if you make some incredibly detailed and complicated object for your level and give it out as a reward, but then others distribute it out on their own.

You can set an object as sharable on non-sharable for the recipient, IIRC. If it's sharable, then they too can give it out. If not, they can only use it in their levels. That's if I remember the tutorial accurately.

[BillCable]

Originally Posted by Lucy Diamond

Is it possible to use bitmaps/ jpegs to wallpaper and design items???

Not currently. To import images you need to use the EyeToy camera. Reportedly they made that decision to prevent people from importing porn. So now we'll just get grainy, pixelated porn.

I expect at some point they'll allow you to import graphics directly from a memory card.

[hardcore_canadian]

Do you guys Know if there's a way to only let some people see your levels and play them? Reason being, I'm warming up by making my favourite music videos into a level, just the Legends. Thriller, Sweet Dreams... And Like a Prayer, which has burning Crosses in the back, and I don't want somebody easily offended to come across it... I may have to give up on the Idea.

[mikejet]

I want to know the basis behind the Tetris and Calculator that people have made. I can kind of understand the principles to making a calculator but the Tetris one is insane. How do you make the full lines disappear? Is there a simple goal based initiative you can create? Like when the bottom line fills up those blocks dissapear?

[BillCable]

Originally Posted by hardcore_canadian

Do you guys Know if there's a way to only let some people see your levels and play them? Reason being, I'm warming up by making my favourite music videos into a level, just the Legends. Thriller, Sweet Dreams... And Like a Prayer, which has burning Crosses in the back, and I don't want somebody easily offended to come across it... I may have to give up on the Idea.

You can share levels with friends without publishing them. You do it from the planet on the left (after you save the level on the moon on the right).

[PA_Kid]

Originally Posted by BillCable

You can set an object as sharable on non-sharable for the recipient, IIRC. If it's sharable, then they too can give it out. If not, they can only use it in their levels. That's if I remember the tutorial accurately.

Cool, that's what I was hoping - thanks Bill. As you can see I haven't gotten to that tutorial yet.

Originally Posted by hardcore_canadian

Do you guys Know if there's a way to only let some people see your levels and play them? Reason being, I'm warming up by making my favourite music videos into a level, just the Legends. Thriller, Sweet Dreams... And Like a Prayer, which has burning Crosses in the back, and I don't want somebody easily offended to come across it... I may have to give up on the Idea.

Haven't confirmed it myself yet, but I thought the plan was always to be able to share levels with people on your friends list.

I'm guessing you're going to become very popular on PSN soon.
(What's the max friends list limit?)

[hardcore_canadian]

Originally Posted by PA_Kid

Haven't confirmed it myself yet, but I thought the plan was always to be able to share levels with people on your friends list.

I'm guessing you're going to become very popular on PSN soon.
(What's the max friends list limit?)

I have no idea, I have like 6 Friends right now, only 2 of them I've ever actually met.

I hope so.... I think that level will be popular among Music Lovers, and Alternative Lifestyles Men. I wish I could use my own music though... Not to put their songs in, to put my own Music in.

I'd also like to add that the level is not for hate, just for art.

[BillCable]

Originally Posted by mikejet

I want to know the basis behind the Tetris and Calculator that people have made. I can kind of understand the principles to making a calculator but the Tetris one is insane. How do you make the full lines disappear? Is there a simple goal based initiative you can create? Like when the bottom line fills up those blocks dissapear?

The calculator was a difference engine using switches as magnets. It's based on the inner working of an actual difference engine. Not knowing exactly how one works, I can't help much there. But I assume you build it like you'd build any other machine.

For Tetris, I've seen other unusual trigger events. Dropping an X-shaped block into an X-labeled hole made a dissolvable block disappear. Weird stuff like that. I assume it's the same principle. I don't remember seeing anything like that in the tutorials, though. I'd love to see what tool they used to make it work.

[PA_Kid]

Originally Posted by hardcore_canadian

I have no idea, I have like 6 Friends right now, only 2 of them I've ever actually met.

I hope so.... I think that level will be popular among Music Lovers, and Alternative Lifestyles Men. I wish I could use my own music though... Not to put their songs in, to put my own Music in.

I'd also like to add that the level is not for hate, just for art.

Well feel free to add me (it's PA_Kid) or I'll eventually add you when I remember to get off my butt and do it.

I wouldn't worry too much about offending people with that - I'm catholic and completely understand where you're going with the level. Then again the Like a Prayer video never bugged me to begin with.