ZQuest Classic: 2.55 Development Summary

ZQuest Classic has grown by a huge amount between 2.50.2/2.53 and 2.55 versions. There are many new features, for gameplay, editing, UI, ease-of-use, scripting, and really every possible part of the engine you could imagine. We fully support Mac and Linux again, in addition to an experimental web version.

This page details many of the new features added in 2.55. Unmentioned is all the bugs that have been fixed. You can check out the 2.55 alpha release notes for an exhaustive list of what changed.

Updater

You can now quickly update ZC using the software updater. Either run zupdater.exe or use the Update tab in the launcher to check for and grab the latest version. The updater will only grab the latest version of the release channel you are using - so the updater run in 2.55 will only get 2.55 updates, and never update to 3.0 or beyond.

Player

• The maximum saves limit of 15 is no more
• Save files are now saved as individual files in a folder named saves/. You can easily import your old zc.sav file by placing it in the saves/ folder. On start up, ZC will split up your saves and store the original in saves/backups/
• Every time you save ZC will store a backup of the .sav file in saves/backups/
• Play sessions can be recorded and saved to a replay file (.zplay). This is primarily for testing purposes, but you may also use it to share with others you playing your favorite quest, or as a tool for testing parts of your own quest. To record your new games, select the option ZC > Replay > Enable recording new saves. Sending your .zplay files to the developers is a great way contribute to ZC development, because we can turn it into a test that prevents bugs from ever breaking that quest!
• Some wider support for gamepads
• Configurable snapshot image scale (also for the editor)

Editor

GUI Refactor

Previously, the editor had 'Small Mode' and 'Large Mode'. This divide could no longer be feasibly supported, mainly because small mode's base resolution was simply too small to fit the GUI for many of the new features, requiring us to make entirely separate GUIs for small mode, which was simply too much work to keep up. However, numerous users took issue with this from an accessibility standpoint, as the large mode GUI had a lot of spots where text was too small to read for some, among other issues. As such, BOTH of these modes have recieved a giant overhaul, to create a brand new and more customizable GUI.

Pictured above on the left is compact mode, and on the right is expanded mode. The < Expand / > Compact button in the top bar toggles between these modes. Since both modes use the exact same window size, many things can be easily supported between them, including switching without the need to relaunch the entire program. Additionally, there are several other minor toggles that you can use in the GUI.

• The <|> / >|< button above the combo columns allows you to toggle how many columns show. This toggles between 1/2 in compact, and 2/4 in expanded. Obviously, less columns means they have room to display larger, making them easier to read- while more columns gives you more combos usable at once.
• The + / - button near the Favorites functions similarly, allowing more to be shown at once at the cost of being smaller, or vice-versa.
• The < / > buttons near the Favorites allow you to change pages, because there are now multiple pages of favorites. Right-clicking these buttons allows you to jump straight to a specific page.
• The + / - button near the Favorite Commands... also functions similarly, allowing more or less commands to show. Some of the text may be cut off (abbreviated with ...) if it cannot fit, which is more of a problem when showing more commands- though hovering over a command with tooltips enabled will display a tooltip of the full text.
• The X buttons near the Favorites and Favorite Commands respectively, clear all favorites/favorite commands (with an Are you sure? popup to prevent accidental deletion)
• The SWP button, only available in Compact mode, changes the bottom pane to work more similarly to the old small-mode pane, only displaying one set of: 4 warp return squares, item + stairs + green square + flags, or screen's enemies at a time, with up/down arrows to cycle between these 3 panels. (This allows the text here to be larger and more readable, if you find it too small to read otherwise).
• By right-clicking on the minimap, you can zoom in on it, making it much larger. While it is zoomed, any click that is not on the minimap will un-zoom, as will pressing Esc, or right-clicking again.
  
• In Etc->Options, you can change what fonts are used by various portions of the program. The default font is larger than it used to be, to improve readability. NOTE: Some older dialog windows will have overlapping text as a result of this, such sections need to be upgraded eventually to be able to handle variable font size, but just haven't been gotten to yet.

Quest Package Export

Via File->Export->Package, you can now create a 'package', a folder containing a copy of your quest, everything needed to run it, and a executable to quickly launch your quest. This package can be customized in a number of ways, including by providing your own executable icon. See the Quest Packaging docs for more.

This is currently a Windows-only feature.

Test Mode

Via Quest->Test, you can launch your quest in the player in a 'test' mode. This will spawn you on the screen currently being edited (the editor doesn't know what dmap to use, though it attempts to automatically figure it out for you. If it's wrong you may need to select the dmap manually). In this test launch, there is no save select screen- any action that would send you to the save screen just immediately re-loads the same test file. While in test mode, cheats are automatically enabled to maximum. Additionally, test mode can use a separate Init Data, to spawn with specific items. This mode is designed to make testing specific sections of your quest much easier.

Drawing Modes

Previously, you had to cycle through drawing modes one-by-one using the draw mode button in the upper-right. But now, you can simply right-click on the draw mode button to pop up a selector menu.

Additionally, you may notice that the available drawing modes have changed.

• Normal drawing mode, for placing combos just as normal.
• Alias drawing mode is mostly unchanged.
• Pool drawing mode is entirely new; combo pools are weighted collections of combos, and when drawn on the screen, a random combo is selected from the pool for each position. This is useful for randomized decorations, like cracked/mossy/etc floor tiles, or variety in flowers/grass. Actions like floodfill (Ctrl+Click) work as expected, filling each position with a separately randomized combo. Undo/Redo do not re-randomize, though placing the pool again obviously will.
  
• Auto Combo drawing mode has some brand-new features, as well as everything the old Relational and Dungeon Carving modes had, merged into one mode. This allows you to set up specificly-laid-out sets of combos, and chooses which combos to place smartly based on the surrounding combos on the screen. This can be used to automatically draw entire mountains, lakes, etc, automatically handling the edges/corners for you as you draw.
  

Tileset Loading

Via File->Load Tileset, you can start a new quest using an existing tileset. Unlike just using File->Open, this method gives you some help setting up a fresh quest. It allows you to clear some aspects of the tileset (maps to remove example screens, scripts to remove packaged scripts, and the header to clear the title/author of the tileset), and then gives you a dialog that allows you to set some basic things (such as quest rules, the quest header, and map count) for your new quest.

Quest Rules

Quest Rules used to require swapping between a bunch of different tabs to search for the rules you want; but now you can just search for them!

Additionally, Rule Templates have been added. Unlike Rulesets, which set every single quest rule, Rule Templates will leave most quest rules alone, and only set related quest rules.

Tile Editor

The tile editor has been revamped with some new features and options. You can now:

• Hide the grid between pixels
• Show a thick grid splitting the tile into quarters
  • ...and toggle various rotation/reflection modes to simplify drawing
• Toggle the 'X' over transparent pixels
• Toggle between transparent pixels being filled with color 0 or being see-through (showing the dialog color behind the editor pane)
• See what colors (by name) make up a tile (left-hand side)
• Better see what color you are hovering over on the palette (via highlight)
  • ...and see color name of hovered color
• Edit palettes directly from the tile editor

New Subscreen Editor

The entire subscreen editor and backend functionality of subscreens has been rewritten. I won't go over it in too extreme a depth here, but will give a quick overview of what's new.

• Separated types - Active and Passive subscreens used to be shown in a single list, and you could convert subscreens between these two types. This is no longer the case- each type has a separate list now.
• Overlay subscreens- a brand new third type of subscreen. Overlay subscreens are 256x224 pixels large, covering the entire visible screen area. These draw over the passive (and active) subscreens, useful for drawing some elements over the actual play area (like for example a key counter in the lower-left of the screen or etc)
• Better mouse editing - click and drag widgets around the subscreen, finally! (Or swap to how the mouse used to work with a setting, if you'd like)
• Pages - Active subscreens can have multiple separate pages now, allowing much more to be on your subscreens
• Selector freedom - any widget, not just items, can be set to be selectable by the selector.
• Scripts - The new subscreendata script type runs while the active subscreen it is assigned to is open. Additionally, any widget that is visitable by the selector can be given a generic script to run in Frozen mode when a specified button (from A,B,L,R,Ex1-Ex4) is pressed while it is selected.
• 4 Item Buttons - Quest Rules allow new X and Y item buttons (which use Ex1 and Ex2 respectively) in-engine!

Misc. Editor improvements

• The Map preview is no longer limited to using a single palette, and now shows the correct colors for every individual screen
• The "Favorite Command" and hotkey systems have merged, so now all commands can be assigned a hotkey
• A hotkey cheatsheet can be summoned with Shift+/
• Strings can be exported and re-imported into the editor via a .tsv file, which is easily editable in a spreadsheet program or text editor. Example

Scripting

Visual Studio Code Extension

We published an extension for the popular text editor VS Code. With this, you will get warning / error underlines for your ZScript scripts right in the text editor, along with some nice colored syntax highlighting.

Script Types

• Global scripts have some new slots:
  • onContinue was renamed to onSaveLoad to more accurately reflect when it runs
  • onLaunch runs after both Init and onSaveLoad, and can run for multiple frames. The opening wipe will not play until the script exits, making it perfect for things like scripted title screens!
  • onContGame runs when F6->Continue is used
  • onF6Menu allows a custom-scripted replacement for the F6 menu
  • onSave runs when the game is saved by any method
• Hero scripts have specific slots similar to global scripts.
  • Init runs when the player object is reset (such as when the game is launched, or after respawning after death). Runs for only 1 frame.
  • Active works pretty much the same as the Global Active
  • onDeath runs when the player dies, allowing custom death continue/save/etc menus
  • onWin runs when the player wins the quest using the Win Game flag, before the engine credits sequence
• ffc scripts haven't changed much, though now support Waitdraw() (as do most script types)
• dmapdata scripts are assigned to each dmap, and can be assigned to 4 different slots
  • Active slot runs similarly to the Global Active, but only on the set dmap
  • Active Subscreen slot runs INSTEAD of the engine subscreen when Start is pressed
  • Passive Subscreen slot runs similarly to the Global Active, but also has a couple special cases such as running while a Potion item is refilling your health
  • Map slot runs INSTEAD of the engine map when Map is pressed
• screendata scripts are set on each screen, and can Run on Screen Init similarly to ffc scripts
• npc scripts are set in the enemy editor for each enemy (running on the enemy itself)
• eweapon scripts are set in the enemy editor for each enemy (running on each weapon the enemy fires)
• lweapon scripts are set in the item editor for each item (running on each weapon the item fires)
• itemsprite scripts are set in the item editor for each item (running on the item itself when the item is onscreen)
• itemdata scripts were renamed from item scripts (to differentiate them from itemsprite scripts)
• combodata scripts are set in the combo editor for each combo
• generic scripts are extra-special and can do many fancy things (see next section)
• subscreendata scripts are set in the subscreen editor for each Active Subscreen and run while it is open

Generic Scripts

Generic scripts are designed to allow several things that other script types can't handle. There are overall 3 different ways that they can be used.

Frozen Mode

Generic scripts can run in Frozen mode when launched in several ways-

• via script command genericdata->RunFrozen()
• via combo Triggers tab
• via String Control Code
• via button press on a configured active subscreen widget

When a Frozen mode script runs, everything in the entire engine pauses completely except for the one script until it exits. This allows pop-up menus that freeze everything for you.

Timed Active

Each generic script can be set to run similarly to the Global Active, either by having Run from Start checked in Init Data for the script slot, or genericdata->Running being set to true via script for the slot.

By using Waitframe() and/or the special command WaitTo(), generic scripts run this way can wait to many specific timings. This is a replacement for the standard Waitdraw() in this script type.

Event Active

Each generic script can be set to run similarly to the Global Active, either by having Run from Start checked in Init Data for the script slot, or genericdata->Running being set to true via script for the slot.

By using the special command WaitEvent(), the script will wait for a specific game event to occur (from a list that you can either set in Init Data or via genericdata->EventListen[]). Using the array Game->EventData[], these scripts can read details about the event, and even change them. For example, a script that listens for the Hero Hit event will run when the player gets hit by something- it can read what was going to hit them, and how much damage it was going to do... and it can also change how much damage will be dealt, or even cancel the hit entirely. This allows for some quite powerful scripts that would otherwise not be possible.

Quest Features

There are plenty of new features that can be used in your quests. Some used to be popular scripts, but are now in engine; others are brand-new ideas. Altogether the focus when adding new features has been to give questmakers all the options we possibly can. This does have the effect of some systems being more difficult to learn, though in most cases we try to aim for "easy to use, difficult to master".

New Item Types

• Attack Ring items increase the damage of swords/wands/hammers (similar to whimsical ring, but 100% of the time)
• Bottle Fillers / Bottles / Bug Nets work together, allowing bottles that can be filled with multiple different types of potions/fairies/etc.
• The Custom Weapon 01 through Custom Weapon 10 itemclasses spawn a basic customizable weapon of types LW_SCRIPT1 through LW_SCRIPT10 respectively. Especially useful when combined with the new lweapon script type.
• Item Bundle items can give the player up to 10 other items when collected. Useful for bundling multiple items together, such as a Quiver, Bow, and Arrows.
• Lantern items allow the player to give off light in new dark rooms
• Lift Glove items allow picking up and throwing combos (and Bomb type weapons, optionally) based on settings set in the new combo Lifting tab
• Mirrors allow warping to another dmap at the same screen/x/y position (depending on the dmap) to simulate parallel worlds / time travel / environment shifting type warp effects. They can optionally leave behind a portal to return. If the player tries to warp into a solid or other unsafe situation, the warp will 'bounce' them back. The new No Mirroring flag can be placed to prevent using these items in specific spots. Additionally, a dmap can be set to cause a mirror to warp you to the continue point instead of its usual effects.
• Note items can be used to display a message string. Especially useful when combined with String Control Codes.
• Pearls can prevent you from turning into a bunny on certain dmaps.
• Progressive Items can be configured with a sequence of up to 10 other items. They will take on the appearance of the first item in their sequence that the player does NOT currently own, and will also grant that item when collected. Especially useful for items intended to be collectible out of sequence, and 'randomizer' style quests.
• Refiller items refill a counter when used. (This can be used for things like 'healing spells')
• SwitchHooks work mostly identically to hookshots, except instead of grabbing hookable targets and pulling the player towards them, they grab switchable targets and teleport the player and the target, swapping their positions. Enemies with the (None) defense are swapped with the player when hit, as well. (The new Switch w/ Player defense type can be used to cause this effect when an enemy is hit with other weapon types, as well!)

Improved Item Types

• Arrows
  • Being able to pick up items is a per-arrow flag, instead of tied to a QR
  • Can be set to be able to pick up ANY item (instead of just 'dropped' items)
  • Can be set to specifically be able to pick up any Key type items
  • Max number of arrow weapons that can be onscreen at once is configurable
• Bait has several new flags to customize its' use
• Bombs/Super Bombs have customizable radius, can be set to be liftable by Lift Glove items (including optionally having the bomb automatically in your hands when used, instead of placed).
• Books have a couple more flags for how they interact with wand magic, and customizable fire levels
• Boomerangs
  • Similar item pickup settings to Arrows
  • Separate settings for Drags Items and Reflects Enemy Projectiles (shared with Hookshots and SwitchHooks)
  • Customizable fire levels
• Boots can be set as Heavy, which affects some combo types
• Bracelets can have a set use count per screen, instead of once or infinite
• Candles can have a custom fire step speed, max fires on screen, and use count per screen (instead of once or infinite). Also has customizable fire levels.
• Clocks can be set to be active-use (equipped to a button) instead of on-pickup.
• Divine Escape (previously Farore's Wind) can be set to act like F6->Continue when used (which includes the health restore and such)
• Divine Fire (previously Din's Fire) has customizable fire levels
• Divine Protection (previously Nayru's Love) was renamed
• Fairies can be tied to a specific bottle fill type which represents what you catch when using a Bug Net on them
• Flippers can be customized with custom dive duration, cooldown, dive button, and the ability to press dive again while underwater to 'cancel' and resurface.
• Hookshots can (experimentally) shoot diagonally, and have several changes in common with Boomerangs related to item pickup and reflecting enemy projectiles.
• Kill All Enemies can be set to be active-use (equipped to a button) instead of on-pickup.
• Lenses can have their various magical effects toggled separately
• Peril Rings can reduce damage by a percentage instead of a divisor for better fine-grained control
• Rafts can have customized movement speed
• Rings can reduce damage by a percentage instead of a divisor for better fine-grained control
• Roc Items
  • Can be set to a hardcoded button(s) from A,B,L,R,Ex1-Ex4
  • Can have multiple 'jumps', allowing jumping a set number of times in mid-air
  • Configurable Coyote Time
  • Can use jump power of Power / 100 instead of (Power + 2) * 80, allowing for finer jump height control
  • Has options related to altering gravity/terminal velocity while holding the jump button
• Shields
  • can be set to be active-use (equipped to a button) instead of passive.
    • can change player speed while holding shield out
    • can lock player direction (strafe) while holding shield out
  • can protect any combination of the player's 4 sides
    • If set to be active-use, can set separate active and passive sides
• Stomp Boots allow bouncing off of enemies, and can also be configured to bounce off of certain enemy projectiles

New Combo Features (all types)

Combos in general have been improved drastically.

• Each combo type has up to 8 attribytes (0 to 255 values), 8 attrishorts (-32768 to +32767 values), 4 attributes (-214748.3648 to +214748.3647 values), and 16 flags (checkboxes) for custom configuration that is specific to the combo type. Not all of these type-specific features will be covered in this summary, as many of the features are simple small customizations of the type (like damage dealt by damage combos, conveyor speed and direction, etc). Many combo types have a special "Wizard" dialog available via a button in the combo editor which is designed to make these easier to set up.
• Every combo has checkboxes for if they are hookshot-grabbable or switch-hookable, allowing things like chests and signs to be hookable inherently.
• In addition to the solidity square, combos now have a green Effect square. By default this square is filled in, and any section that is NOT filled in acts as though it is (None) type, regardless of its' actual type.
• Every combo has a General tab, which currently has the following neat settings:
  • Speed modification settings (apply to the player when the combo is centered under the player)
  • Sprites / SFX that display / play in various conditions, such as when the combo appears onscreen, disappears from the screen, or is being walked/stood on by the player.
• Every combo has the Triggers tab, which allows for INSANELY powerful customization of the combo through various settings. Due to the sheer number of options on the triggers tab, it may be a bit confusing to navigate, but hopefully the many ? buttons throughout should make it easier to navigate. Creating simple behaviors should be easy; ex. a Step->Next trigger could be created simply by checking the Step-> flag, and setting the Combo Change value to 1. (Step->Previous would be just as easy, instead using -1 for the combo change).
  • Additionally, some combo types support the extra-special ->ComboType Effects flag, which will cause an effect to occur related to the specific combo type. A great example of this is Damage combos, which will hurt the player when their ->ComboType Effects trigger occurs (regardless of if the player is anywhere near the combo or not). (In other sections of this guide, when it is mentioned that 'Triggers tab features' interact with a combo type, this flag is what causes this to happen.)
    • A great use of this specific interaction would be a damaging "Hot Room"- by simply combining a Timer trigger with the ->ComboType Effects result (optionally using an inverted item condition to make it only trigger if you do not have a specific item), you have yourself a ticking damage hot room in any room the combo is placed in.
  • Going over every trigger available would make this summary far too long and complex, so have a look at the options yourself and play around with them! This system was designed with pure creativity in mind.
• Every combo also has a Lifting tab, related to the Lift Glove itemclass which allows the player to pick up combos above their head and throw them. This can be used for things like lifting pots or bomb flowers.
• And finally, combos now have their own script type which can be assigned to each combo.

New Combo Types

• Block Weapon (Custom) can block any variety of weapons as set in the Triggers tab
• Bridge combos can "cover up" combos on layers below them (making the covered combos solidity and type-effects not occur)
• Button Prompt combos can display a prompt (ex. above player's head) when faced
• Cutscene Trigger combos, combined with the Triggers tab features, can enter/exit a "cutscene mode" that can disable various player inputs
• Glass combos allow Light Beams to pass through even when solid
• Icy Floor combos allow customizable slipperiness. Currently, only implemented to be able to slip Pushblocks, though more features are planned.
• Light Trigger combos can trigger secrets as part of Light Beam Puzzles
• Mirror (Custom) combos can reflect weapons/light beams in fancy custom ways based on directions.
• Pitfall combos act as bottomless pits, with falling similar to drowning.
• Push (Generic) combo types allow fancy custom pushblock stuff
• Shooter combos act as turrets. They can fire either automatically at a fixed or variable rate, or via Triggers tab ->ComboType Effects flag. They can either fire friendly (player) weapons, or harmful (enemy) weapons.
• Signpost combos can be read, either by walking into them or via any combination of the buttons A,B,L,R,Ex1-Ex4, configured the same way as chests and lockblocks- including the ability to set up a prompt combo. When read they cause a message string to display. (Triggers tab features can also trigger the string to play)
• Slope combos can create custom diagonal collision. This can be useful for angled mountains in overhead view, or standard 2d sideview slopes. Additionally, in sideview, they can be set to act like optional stairs, which you will walk past by default, unless you are holding up/down as you walk past to indicate you want to go on the slope. Additionally, they can be set to be pass-throughable from specific directions.
• Spotlight combos shoot Light Beams.
• Step->Effects combos can play a sound when stepped on, and act like a landmine (spawning a weapon). (Triggers tab features can trigger the effect)
• Switch combos, when triggered via Triggers tab ->ComboType Effects, can toggle various states usable by Switch Block combos and the Triggers tab.
• Switch Block combos can change based on various either level-based or global states.
• SwitchHook Block combos can be swapped with by the SwitchHook item, and can be customized with some additional settings.
• Torch combos light up New Dark Rooms
• Crumbling combos, for making crumbling floors

Improved Combo Types

• Armos combos can now have either 1 or 2 enemies directly configured to them. They also have a flag which allows multiple statues placed touching to act as a single large statue, when spawning large enemies. (Triggers tab features can cause the statue to come to life)
• Various warp type combos (Auto Side Warp, Direct Warp, Dive Warp, Sensitive Warp, Stairs, Swim Warp) can have a custom warp sound effect set to play. (Triggers tab features can cause the player to warp via the warp)
• BS Grave/Grave combos can now have either 1 or 2 enemies directly configured to them.
• The various Bush/Flowers/Slash (Item)/Slash->Next (Item) type combos can have a custom 'slashed' sprite, custom item dropset or specific item id to drop, and custom 'slashed' SFX configured. (Triggers tab features can 'slash' the bush)
  • Slash->Next is similar, but without the item drop configuration
  • Tall Grass is similar, and also has its 'walking through grass' sprite customizable
• Chest combos are now highly configurable. (Triggers tab features can attempt to open the chest)
• Conveyor combos now can have a custom speed/direction (including diagonals/angles) configured, as well as the ability to:
  • Stun the player to prevent them from fighting the conveyor
  • Force the player's facing direction to match the conveyor's movement
  • Smartly push the player around corners, preventing getting stuck
  • Be disabled by owning a Boots item that has the Heavy flag checked
• Damage combos can have their damage amount as well as whether or not they deal knockback configured. (Triggers tab features can cause the player to be hit by the combo)
• Liquid (renamed from Water) has had many features added now, including being able to passively heal or damage the player, require higher level flippers to swim in, have a custom drown damage/sfx, and can have some corners of it act as 'shallow' based on some flags. (Shallow Liquid was changed from Shallow Water similarly)
• Lock Block combos are now highly configurable. (Triggers tab features can attempt to unlock the block)
• Save Point type combos can be set to restore a percentage of the player's Life and/or Magic when interacted with, in addition to popping up the save menu. (Triggers tab features can 'interact' with the save point)

Fire Types

Previously, there were 4 different types of fire; 'Level 1 candle' (any), 'Level 2+ candle' (red candle), 'Magic' (book), 'Din's Fire'. The exact way some of these worked (such is if Din's Fire fire would trigger 'Magic' fire flags) actually changed several times in the program's history... but now these are all customizable! The system has been slightly tweaked, and now there are 4 distinctly labelled levels of fire (Any, Strong, Magic, Divine). Any Fire type weapon will always trigger Any type fire, but what other types it can trigger are completely configurable on the items (or via scripts). Boomerang items also have these settings, though must be specifically set to trigger Any type fire.

Additionally, via the combo editor Triggers tab, a combo can "ignite" certain weapons that touch it, granting them the property of one or more of these fire types (ex. 'shooting an arrow through a torch'). This does NOT have a graphical effect on the weapon by default, that must be scripted if desired.

New Bottles

The Bottle item type can be set to one of up to 256 separate 'slots'- you usually want at most one item per slot. When either the player picks up an item of the Bottle Fillers item type, makes a purchase in a Bottle Shop room type, or collects a Fairy with a Bug Net, a bottle can be filled with a type of "contents". In Quest->Misc Data->Bottle Types, these contents can be configured.
The effects configured for these contents occur when a bottle item of that type is used, or automatically when the player dies while they have it if that flag is set for the type. Additionally, items of the Bottle itemclass will use different tiles depending on what their contents is. The tile set in the item editor is used when the type is 0, which always represents an empty bottle. It will use the next tile (or set of tiles, if animated) when the type is 1, the next after that for 2, etc.

Bunny Effect

The player can now be turned into a bunny as a status effect. This is script-accessible, and also can be inflicted by the new dmap flag Become Bunny with no Pearl, which will turn the player into a bunny on the entire dmap if they do not have a Pearls itemclass item. While the player is bunnied, a few effects occur:

• Attempting to use any item that does not have the Usable as Bunny flag checked in the item editor will fail. This includes passive effects as well.
• All items that do not have Usable as Bunny checked will no longer apply their Player Tile Modifiers to the player's appearance
• The Bunny Tile Mod, configurable in Init Data->Vars, will be applied to the player's appearance, just like items PTMs normally do.

Real Dark Rooms

Enabled via the Quest Rule New Dark Rooms, this changes from the classic dark room style which darkens the entire palette, and changes to a style which allows circles/cones of light to reveal what's underneath the darkness.

• Lantern itemclass allows the player to cast a shape of your choice of light (from the options that have been implemented, which are currently Circle, Cone, and Square, as well as having a configurable size for the shape.
• Torch combo type functions similarly, but, placed instead of being the player's light.
• Preview dark rooms in the editor via View->Show Darkness (default hotkey L)
  
• Dark rooms can be configured in Init Data->Vars:
  • Dither Type/Dither Arg can be used to configure what dithering effect is used. Changing the 'type' will change the whole shape, such as checkerboard, vertical bars, diagonal bars, seemingly-random static, and more. Changing the 'arg' changes something ABOUT the shape, such as the size of each square of the checkerboard, width of each bar, thickness of the static, etc.
  • Dither Percentage indicates how much dithered light will be cast beyond normal light- ex. a circle of light with radius 32, with a dither percentage of 50, would cast a fully-clear 32 radius circle of light, and a dithered 48 radius circle of light (50% greater radius).
  • Transp. Percentage works similarly to Dither Percentage, except the larger radius that it casts is transparent rather than dithered, giving an alternative to how you want to cast light. Additionally, these settings can combine- if they were both 50% for example, the larger radius shape would be drawn transparently-dithered.
  • Light Radius is a default radius used by some objects, such as Fire type weapons.
  • Darkness Color, which defaults to a hardcoded system-black (will always be pure black in any tileset), is the color to use for the darkness itself.

Pitfalls

The new Pitfall combo type acts as a classic bottomless pit, either dealing damage to you or possibly warping you somewhere (as if 'falling down a level'). The falling works similar to drowning mechanically, though has a separate Falling sprite. Enemies that fall use a sprite from Quest->Graphics->Sprites->Misc Sprites, while the player has a separate animation for this, which regardless of animation style, is 7 frames 10 speed animation, for a total of 70 frames duration. The Hover Boots and Ladder are able to interact with pitfalls.

Paired Switches

Switch and Switch Block combos together form what's needed for basic "red/blue switch blocks".

• You can have up to 32 pairs that are "level-specific" (per level), which can only toggle between on and off states
• You can have up to 256 that are "global" (quest wide), which can either be on/off toggles, or can be timed switches, which toggle on for a set time before toggling back to off on their own.
• You can optionally set switch blocks to allow the player to walk along the tops of them if the player is inside them when they become solid. This additionally adds a "pseudo height layer" to the engine (not used by anything outside of these combos).

New Pushblock Features

Multiple quest rules affect new push block features, of which there are several.

• Moving blocks can have "real solidity" (helps prevent clipping through a moving block, allows the block to push enemies)
• Blocks on layers can be pushed. These will use the undercombo of that layer, which will be placed on that layer. (Push flags must be on the layer, or inherent to the combo on the layer).
  • Blocks on layers have interesting interactions with triggers/block holes. There is a Quest Rule that makes them only interact with triggers/holes on the same layer as them, but if that is off, they interact with layers below them as well.
  • In this way, blocks can be pushed over a block trigger without "clicking into place" the instant it is on a trigger, and a block can "fall" into a hole on a lower layer.
• The Push (Generic) combo type is a new type of pushblock, which does NOT use push flags at all- instead, the ways in which it can be pushed are defined as part of the combo's attributes. These combos can be set to be pushable in many unique ways, such as "down up to 3 times and left up to 3 times, but not right or up", or "left up to 2 times, and you can undo the push by pushing it back to the right, but not past its' starting point".
• Sliding blocks can exist, either via a Push (Generic) with the Icy Block flag checked, or by any block sliding across Icy Floor combos with the Slides Blocks flag checked. (Currently, this is the ONLY use of Icy Floor, though more non-block-related uses are planned eventually)

Music/sound enhancements

Enhanced music (everything but MIDI) and scripted sfx gained some new features.

• Loop points can be set (OGG and MP3 only)
• Crossfading between the old and new music on change
• Various scripting additions
• • GetMusicPos, SetMusicPos, SetMusicSpeed, GetMusicLength, SetMusicLoop, CrossfadeEnhancedMusic, AdjustSound, GetSoundCompletion
• • PlaySoundEx plays a sound with specified volume, pan, frequency, and looping control

See the 2.55 Alpha 117 changelog for an example script.

Light Beam Puzzles

• Light Beams are shot out of Spotlight combos, in any of the 4 main directions, or aimed from the camera at the screen for a true "spotlight" effect. These beams will bounce off of any mirror combos and be duplicated by prism combos in the same way weapon reflection works.
• Beams continue until they exit the side of the screen or hit a solid combo. (Exception: the Glass combo type allows beams to pass through despite solidity)
• The Light Trigger combo type has two states, active and inactive. These combos must be set up in pairs, as the combo changes between the two combos in the pair when hit with a beam or when a beam stops hitting it. Each trigger can be required to either be activated by a beam, or activated by LACK of a beam. When all triggers onscreen are activated, the screen's secrets will trigger, and the screen's light beam state will be set, permanently "solving" the beam puzzle.
• Both Spotlight combos and Light Trigger combos can be given a Trigger Set, as a value from 0 to 32. These can be used for puzzles requiring "different colored beams affect their matching color targets" type logic.
  • Any Spotlight with a Trigger Set of 0 will trigger ANY Light Trigger.
  • Any Light Trigger with a Trigger Set of 0 will be triggered by ANY Spotlight.
  • Trigger Set of 1 through 32 are unique, and only interact with their matching number (or number 0).
• Additionally, the new Mirror (Custom) combo can be configured to create custom reflections, such as "Anything coming from above, below, or the right is reflected to the left; anything coming from the left passes through to the right". You can set which direction out a light beam (or reflected weapon) will go for each input direction, fully customly.

Chests / Lockblocks

• Chests can be given specific items, rather than being set per-screen
• Can use one of 32 "Ex States" instead of the normal chest/lockblock states, allowing up to 32 extra chests/lockblocks that can be on the same screen
• Each of the 4 directions can be set as interactable or not (as opposed to chests only being openable from below)
• Any combination of the buttons A,B,L,R,Ex1-Ex4 can be set as interaction buttons for the combo. If any are set, the chest/block will open when that button is pressed while facing it from a valid side instead of when walking into it from a valid side.
  • You can set a "Prompt Combo" which will display at a given x,y offset from the player (ex. above the player's head) when they are able to interact with it. For locked chests/blocks, you can also set a secondary combo to display instead when you are unable to unlock them.
• Locked chests/blocks can be given various lock settings, instead of just "1 key unlocks it"
• Locked chests/blocks can be given a message string to display when the player tries and fails to unlock it (ex. "You do not have a Small Key!")

Misc.

• Invicibility flicker animation timing and colors are configurable (see Init Data > Vars > Misc 2)