Pseudo 3D racing games are fun. They have a cool retro arcade feel, with a good sense of speed, and can run on low end hardware. Plus they're pretty straightforward to implement - and satisfying.
There are lots of different ways to write a pseudo 3D racer, but I'm just going to show you how I do it.
This is the method I used for Loose Gravel, and can render corners, hills, tunnels and background sprites in an efficient manner. It doesn't need any 3D drawing hardware, just basic 2D rectangles, lines, scaled sprites and rectangular clip regions. Pico-8 can do all of these.
Defining the road
The road is made out of "corners" (for our purposes we will call straight bits "corners" as well). Corners need to curve in the direction the road turns, so we will simulate this by building them out of smaller straight "segments".
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I just noticed the += shorthand doesn't work the way I expected with comma separated values.
For example:
x,y,z=1,2,3 x,y,z+=10,20,30 |
Sets x to 11 as expected, but y and z are set to 20 and 30 respectively, rather than 22 and 33.
Should the last line be equivalent to:
x+=10 y+=20 z+=30 |
?
Or is there some reason I'm missing?
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I'm sure this has been done dozens of times already, but I thought it would be fun to give it a go.
So here's a simple Wolfenstein 3D style ray-caster.
There's no game-play at all, you can just move around.
You can edit the level in the pico8 map editor (make sure it is always enclosed, otherwise you'll get an infinite loop - rays only terminate when they hit a wall).
Update: Cleaned up & optimised code. Added textured ceiling and floor.
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This is Loose Gravel! A pseudo-3d racer that started as a proof of concept, and gradually grew into something of a game.
If you're curious, you can view the progress here.
Pretty self explanatory. Choose a course and try to overtake the other cars in 3 laps to win.
Courses are randomly generated but have their own unique parameters and feel.
I was planning to add a tournament mode (and some more tracks), but I ran out of cart space (so that means it's finished! :) )
Tip: If you tap the up arrow you will keep accelerating until you hit something or drive off the road. You don't need to hold it down.
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I wanted to share a little work-in-progress I've been tinkering on.
Dungeon guy doesn't know what he's searching for. Maybe treasure? Maybe a way out? Maybe dungeon girl?
All he knows is to keep searching.
Levels are randomly generated and get progressively larger.
The only objective so far is to find the key and the exit door.
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