My school laptop came preloaded with Adobe Flash Builder 4 and Adobe Illustrator CS5, where they got the money I don't know. I started playing around with it when I realised I have no idea what I'm doing.
Basicly I want to know how to make a basic platformer with music from Garage Band (or iTunes)
But isn't there like some kind of language or something? What would I type to make the charcter go left when you press "A" or the left key (And same with right) as well as jump with the up key or "W"?
Yup, there is a language, called ActionScript, or AS. The newest version (think of it like a version of a game) is ActionScript 3.
To answer your next questions, you'd have to type a lot of code to make player movment. I suggest you learn the basics of ActionScript before learning about more advanced stuff. I can't give you a complete lesson on ActionScript, but you can always use Google and online tutorials.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or anyone else on the programming forum. Good luck with game making
Educational institutes get most software at ridiculous discounts. I know in Britain the government funds the computers, laptops, peripherals, software and all that other necessary stuff which is even more helpful so it's pretty easy for schools to get bucket loads of expensive software cheaply.
But isn't there like some kind of language or something? What would I type to make the charcter go left when you press "A" or the left key (And same with right) as well as jump with the up key or "W"?
ActionScript is the language, as BeastMode has said and the latest version is ActionScript 3 which is the one you'll want to be practising as it boasts new features and is apparently much easier to learn. To learn a programming language, especially one as advanced as ActionScript, get a book. When going through publishing all the details in the book are verified and edited and books are much more thorough than any online tutorial. My go-to sources for programming books would be O'Reilly and Sams, so check them for ActionScript books.
For online documentation always try and find official guides, made by the developer themselves, these are the most detailed and can tell you about the ins-and-outs of the language. If you can't save up the cash for a book or Adobe aren't doing official documentation, there'll be thousands of guides on the web, that may not explain why things work but you'll get a lot of code to play with.
Be dedicated to a programming language. Programming skills don't come overnight and you'll want to know all the theory (what's a scalar variable? (not sure if that's what they're called in AS)) before starting to mess about with code, which is why books are perfect. Being able to create a game or program is one thing, understanding how it works is a new level of expertise.
To make your character move you'll want to select him (I have no idea how you'll make code for individual items on your screen but find out how to select your character).
if (key.isDown(Keyboard.UP)) _y-- else if (key.isDown(Keyboard.DOWN)) _y++ else if (key.isDown(Keyboard.LEFT)) _x-- else if (key.isDown(Keyboard.RIGHT)) _x++
I've never actually written a running script in ActionScript but that's my understanding of the movement code. If you want me to explain why this code works (or find out it doesn't work and want me to try and explain the real AS3 code) feel free to ask me.
well when you open the thingy, havent ever seen illustrator or builder... just flash 8 and cs3
press ActionScript 2 File and then make a box and then right-click and select Convert to Movieclip and name it and then type this:
onClipEvent(load) { power = 0.8 xspeed = 0; yspeed = 0; } onClipEvent(enterFrame){ if (Key.isDown(Key.UP)){ yspeed -= power } if (Key.isDown(Key.DOWN)){ yspeed += power } if (Key.isDown(Key.RIGHT)){ xspeed += power } if (Key.isDown(Key.LEFT)){ xspeed -= power }
i would explain it all but i has to goez =) but try to read it as simple english(assuming you know what the y and x axis are)
sorry forgot to tell you after you name the MovieClip search for a Actions button or tab if you cant find it than press F9 or look for Window drop down menu and then look for Actions and press it and than click on the movieclip
If you have flash builder, don't even bother with AS2 - work with AS3. Flash builder is fantastic, especially the built in debugger - it will change the way you code in Action Script.
