Well, a few people have brought up Prof. Layton in the DS wishlist topic, and I've been looking for a game I personally enjoy to attempt my first TAS, and it seemed like a fair one to start with.
I haven't ran through the whole game yet, but an optimal run is basically just completing the minimum number of puzzles with the minimum amount of movement from screen to screen. I don't think there's any luck manipulation, just lots of text skipping and super speedy puzzle completion.
My main worry is the animated cutscenes, which besides being unskippable, also seem to lag DeSmuME. Basically the sound plays fine, but the video lags, so it's kinda messy looking.
I'll try and post a WIP at some point soon so you can see what I mean, and maybe get a few pointers for anything I might not be thinking of as a TAS newbie.
Speaking of, I do have one question regarding skipping text. You can skip with either stylus taps or A button presses, and it takes 2 separate inputs to skip, once to bring up the full window of text and once to move onto the next screen. I'm guessing that the fastest way to skip text is to alternate between A taps and stylus taps, but I don't think there's any way to set the stylus to a turbo mode, is there?
Anyway, thanks in advance for any input/advice!
I don't remember anything worth tasing in this game... Watching puzzle walkthrough would be somewhat boring, I guess.
I don't suppose you actually read my post? Not really doing this with publishing it in mind, just doing it to mess around with basic TASing. If you've really got nothing positive to say to a new person on these forums, you really should just say nothing because it's very frustrating to get a worthless reply like that. :/
nifboy wrote:
I wouldn't mind seeing a TAS of the Princess in a Box puzzle, mostly because I despise it.
Haha, I remember when I first played through the game some of the puzzles really had me stumped, even with the hint coins. Can't wait for Diabolical Box to come out in August though.
Made a WIP up until the end of puzzle 001: http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=80a1321dd10abd7f5bf1f12f1ff3f30adbe44f27ecf7905fb8eada0a1ae8665a
Most of it is a cutscene and text skipping, but I think the puzzle is as good as I can get it.
I started making a TAS of this game not long ago too, and I have this so far: http://host-a.net/Scepheo/Layton%20TAS.dsm
Don't know why, but I'm done with the first puzzle about 100 frames earlier than you are. Any idea why?
Joined: 8/1/2004
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Honest question: what is the source of entertainment for this run? Sure, you will have the speed from planning which puzzles are fastest/giving the answers immediately, but why is that good to watch?
Honest question: what is the source of entertainment for this run? Sure, you will have the speed from planning which puzzles are fastest/giving the answers immediately, but why is that good to watch?
Frankly, nothing. But I'm relatively new to making TASes and I thought this would be fun to do and would make good practice. But that's just me.
Sure, I have no problem with that. And sometimes, a TAS you think will be boring when you start out turns out to have a lot more cool stuff in the end, so don't get discouraged!
put yourself in my rocketpack if that poochie is one outrageous dude
I started making a TAS of this game not long ago too, and I have this so far: http://host-a.net/Scepheo/Layton%20TAS.dsm
Don't know why, but I'm done with the first puzzle about 100 frames earlier than you are. Any idea why?
Well, one thing that I stupidly forgot is to try getting passed the opening screens quicker. I have you being 49 frames faster than me by the time Luke talks for the first time, just because you tap the stylus during the Act Imagine Codec screen. D'oh.
As for the rest, looks like you're able to skip the text faster than me, not sure why your stylus taps go faster.
I think maybe I found a couple of spots where I go a frame or two faster, but I'm not 100% on that.
Zurreco wrote:
Honest question: what is the source of entertainment for this run? Sure, you will have the speed from planning which puzzles are fastest/giving the answers immediately, but why is that good to watch?
I give you the same answer as Scepheo. I'm a total newbie and this is the best way to learn how to TAS, by trying, right?
I started making a TAS of this game not long ago too, and I have this so far: http://host-a.net/Scepheo/Layton%20TAS.dsm
Don't know why, but I'm done with the first puzzle about 100 frames earlier than you are. Any idea why?
Well, one thing that I stupidly forgot is to try getting passed the opening screens quicker. I have you being 49 frames faster than me by the time Luke talks for the first time, just because you tap the stylus during the Act Imagine Codec screen. D'oh.
As for the rest, looks like you're able to skip the text faster than me, not sure why your stylus taps go faster.
I think maybe I found a couple of spots where I go a frame or two faster, but I'm not 100% on that.
I didn't count the 49 frames faster, cause that also mean my input starts earlier, and thus the final time will be longer. I'm gonna cut that from the final video if I decide to submit.
Anyway, text skipping is awfully weird in this games. Sometimes it doesn't work at frame 465, but it does at 459. Usually the difference is only 2/3 frames but still. And I'm not sure who's puzzle solving is faster. Yours takes less frames to draw, but it seems it accepts mine as a circle earlier.
Anyway, text skipping is awfully weird in this games. Sometimes it doesn't work at frame 465, but it does at 459. Usually the difference is only 2/3 frames but still. And I'm not sure who's puzzle solving is faster. Yours takes less frames to draw, but it seems it accepts mine as a circle earlier.
I'm just autofiring A to skip text. It felt like I was skipping text as fast as possible if I autofired beginning at a certain point each time (first frame with textbox onscreen), but I guess not.
I'm thinking maybe because autofire skips every other frame, the frames with no input are sometimes the best frame to press A on. Fun!
Anyway, text skipping is awfully weird in this games. Sometimes it doesn't work at frame 465, but it does at 459. Usually the difference is only 2/3 frames but still. And I'm not sure who's puzzle solving is faster. Yours takes less frames to draw, but it seems it accepts mine as a circle earlier.
I'm just autofiring A to skip text. It felt like I was skipping text as fast as possible if I autofired beginning at a certain point each time (first frame with textbox onscreen), but I guess not.
I'm thinking maybe because autofire skips every other frame, the frames with no input are sometimes the best frame to press A on. Fun!
I'll tell you more, autofiring A isn't fastest for another reason. It appears that using the stylus to skip is the way to go. Not sure though, I'll do some more testing and then edit.
EDIT: Well that was done fast. Anyway, I've confirmed it, using the stylus you can skip the text faster than is possible with A. As you can't autofire the stylus, all text skipping will have to be done manually.
Bleh. Is it at least somewhat consistent in when you input the stylus taps?
I have been able to find a tiny tad of consistency. In the beginning though, when they speak the text you're skipping, it's a truly random hell. No rules govern this, mostly due to the sound playing. I'll come back on this after the following:
Later in the game, when they don't speak, the following applies:
- When a person starts speaking: for fast-forwarding (making the text instantly appear rather than be "typed out", let's call if FF), no idea... just try I'd say...
- Going to the next text: Usually 2 frames after you've FF'ed the text. Usually, because sometimes you can do it after 1 frame. 3 frames never though.
- When a person continues talking, without the text box disappearing: you can skip the coming text 1 frame after you've "cleared" the last text.
And what I was going to get back to, when they're speaking in the intro, sometimes, if you're fast enough, the next text box does appear, but it stays empty. If you click though, you'll get the next text. It allows you to skip very fast, but I don't have a clue as to why and when it happens.
Alright, here's what I got so far(I will update as I make more plan):
1:Tap "New Game"
2:Make a tiny scratch for your name(game will think its a letter)
3:Skip text until you reach Puzzle #1
4:Circle top left town, tap "Submit"
5:More text
6:Tap the dude by the drawbridge, more skipping text
7:Tap "1" for the answer to puzzle #2
8:More text
9:I'm pulled on if you should do puzzle #3 and/or puzzle #113, but in order to proceed you have to:
10:Talk to Stachen, tap the barrel by the inn(barrel right next to him might work)then skip even MORE text, move to plaza, skip text to start Chapter 1.
Maybe in some puzzles we can pull a Brain Age so sacrifice frames in order of entertainment. From what I played, the game has a writing recognition system with funny effects.
Reviving a dead thread after over a year is always a great idea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kux0j8cbBRs&feature=youtu.be
I've started a new TAS for Curious Village, using the Japanese Friendly Version, as it has some puzzle changes that make it a faster version to run on
The movie will most likely go into Vault, so I'm aiming purely for speed, as opposed to messing around with shapes/pictures during the puzzles
Wow what was posted here looks really fun so far I just love how fast the puzzles get destroyed really makes me want to play it again :) is this project still going on or not? ^^
Restarted work on the TAS, finished the route which is a decent amount faster than the route I was using before, thanks to better testing of all the puzzles.
Hardest part about TASing this is coming up with quick shapes for writing letters/numbers, as the detection system in this game is sometimes great and sometimes broken.
