One day as I was switching between build targets in GameMaker: Studio, I noticed that an entry labeled “Ubuntu (Linux) (YYC)” was on the list of targets. I have exported previous projects to Ubuntu before (e.g. Gonna Catcha) and have been building Feast for the Senses with the Yoyo Compiler whenever I go out to show the game and playtest it with other people. But doing both at the same time? Do I dare to cross these categories? The answer was “yes”.
Come to think of it, I don’t even know when this option (and the “Mac OS X (YYC)” target) was released. I must have missed the memo.
Anyway, I was eager to try it out, since I do want to eventually distribute Feast for the Senses on multiple plaforms and tests have shown that it does benefit from being built with the YYC (e.g. it gets a higher max framerate, so less chance of slowdown or needing cap the framerate at 30 on lower-spec machines). First, I tried to build and run it on my Linux Mint virtual machine, but the compile would failed every time. I eventually learned that the YYC wasn’t supported on Mint and that I should be using plain old Ubuntu.
After creating an Ubuntu VM and much “sudo apt-get”ing, I finally got it to work:
I see my game in there, but it’s getting eaten… by some… #Linux or something. #GameMaker #indiedev #gamedev pic.twitter.com/TTw6SRw4M9
— Quadolor Games (@QuadolorGames) October 13, 2015
Full-sized screenshot:
The game seems to run fine, though sometimes it can’t maintain 60fps, but that just might be the fact that it’s running on a low-spec VM.
I also got a bricked SteamOS VM out of the experience, but that’s another story. And by another story, I mean:
Next on the agenda, I’m working on a new tileset, because the grass maze tileset is starting to wear out its welcome. This one uses various layered tiles…
…and animated tiles.
It’s still a work in progress, as the tileset has many clashing elements to its design. (Note to self: get new interior decorator.)
Lastly, I’ve implemented areal dialog triggers. This enables Réiltín to comment on areas she enters: