// Basic game prototype

 Alright, so we have our engine, our ideas and now we are finally ready to work! time to boot up game maker engine and get to work!

The first thing I want to do is make a square. I know, groundbreaking. Next, I will code a basic movement script. Game Maker studio is a very basic game engine when it comes to coding, allowing for either written code or visual code. Seriously, with GML Code all you need for movement with the arrow keys is:

var move_speed = 4;

if (keyboard_check(vk_left)) {
    x -= move_speed;
} else if (keyboard_check(vk_right)) {
    x += move_speed;
} else if (keyboard_check(vk_up)) {
    y -= move_speed;
} else if (keyboard_check(vk_down)) {
    y += move_speed;
} 
This might look complex but, all this is saying is "My movement speed is 4, when you 
press a movement key, either move me positively or negativity on this axis." 
Thats all there is to it.
If you are still confused on this, trust me its a lot to take in all at once, I highly
recommend the Game Maker Manual as it goes into the details a lot better than I can.
I wont be going into a lot of the code for this prototype, but when is your prototype
done? A prototype for your game should be basic. For example in my alien game I want
to get down movement, shooting, score, and collecting of the UFO parts. Do not worry
about graphics or sounds, that will be our next step. For now, simply just focus on
making the core game play.
It is inevitable that you will be stuck on something. That is ok. You shouldn't expect
to know everything. However it could be hard to find your specific issue. To start, go
to the Game Maker Manual as seen above. If that does not help, there are plenty of
forums, such as the official game maker forums or the reddit page where you could ask
or search for any question you have. By all circumstances, avoid using AI to program
for you. AI Models cannot think, they only predict what sounds like it comes next. You
end up with really bad code you will spend more time debugging than you just spent
writing the thing. 
By the end of this you should have a functioning prototype. Next, we will discuss 
graphics for your game. 
 

 

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