Resources: Sprites

This is the menu where you can customise assets for your needs to be used in your project. Sprites include anything used for actors, such as characters, vehicles, and parts of clothing such as hats, shirts, pants, etc. They can also be used for menu buttons, banners and Interfaces.

The buttons in the far left corner will allow you to add new sprites, copy/paste/delete existing sprites and export sprites.

**General**

Display Name: This is used to identify the sprite in the editor.

Scripting ID: This is used to identify the sprite in scripts.

Category: This option is used to customise which area this sprite belongs to. This means the sprite will appear in the appropriate place on an actor when they have it equipped.

Face: You can use this to import a 128x128 graphic to represent a sprite’s face. This can be used in Interfaces or displayed in dialogue boxes through the use of the ‘Advanced Message Box’ event.

The graphic in the ‘Affected’ box controls which part of the graphic which will be affected by color tints that can be applied when creating a new actor.

The graphic in the ‘Unaffected’ box controls which parts will not be tinted.

Rotate Graphics with Direction: If this is ticked, the graphic will rotate as their direction changes but the sprite will not change unless ‘Individual Directions’ is also ticked. For flat graphics like in topdown perspective games, you can tick this box to make a sprite rotate when the direction is changed. This means you will not necessarily need to add animations for all directions.

Individual Directions: If this box is ticked, you can add in additional directions for ‘Rotate Graphics with Direction’.

Rotate Collision with Direction: If this box is ticked, collisions will rotate along with the shape of the sprite.

**Edit Compression**

Opens the ‘Graphic Platform Compression’ window. This window is used to improve smoothing and blur when sprites are rotated with their direction.

**Body Properties**

Default Color – this option allows you to set the default color of a Body sprite. When you create a new character the default color will be automatically selected.

Edit Valid Templates – this option allows you to specify which Actor Templates are allowed to use this Body sprite. By default all of the Actor Templates are selected.

Edit Connections to Accessories – this option allows you to specify whether other sprite categories can interact with your Body sprite. For example; if you had a zombie sprite and a torn ‘Shirt’ sprite you may set it up so that only the zombie can use the torn up shirt and not other characters such as the main character.

**Accessory Properties**

These options only become available if you've selected a category other than 'Body':

Share Body Color: This option is used to specify whether the sprite uses the same body color as the relating body sprite.

Equipment Exception: This option specifies which category type can be equipped to this specific sprite. This means you can make an exception to other equipment being set on top of this one, such as Hats being used with Hair.

Edit Connections to Bodies: This section allows you to specify which body sprites this accessory sprite can be attached to.

**Pose**

This section allows you to add animations to different actions such as ‘Walking’ and ‘Jumping’.

Add Custom Pose: This option allows you to create your own poses which appear in the list to the right. You can then use the ‘Play Custom Pose’ event in scripts in order to play this pose in-game.

Direction: The direction wheel allows you to select up to 8 separate directions to allow for alternative animations for various directions.

**Graphics**

Add Animation: This is for inserting a new sprite animation in relation to the Pose options. When adding frames, you can specify whether you want to add ‘Blank Images’ (empty frames that you can edit in your graphics program or replace with a graphic from your hard drive), ‘Images Files’ (graphics that are stored on your hard drive) or an ‘Image Strip’ (add a sprite sheet and then specify the height/width of each frame and how many frames are on the sprite sheet in order for it to create the animation).

Name: This is used to change the name of the selected animation.

Layer (Render, Color): This is used to add layers to a sprite so that a single sprite can have multiple colors assigned to it. This means you aren't required to use the clothing system.

Shadow Distance: This is used to set the distance in pixels that the shadow will be displayed away from the sprite.

Additive: When this box is ticked, this option will ‘add’ color to the graphic rather than blending it in.

Smooth Scaling: When this box is ticked, this option will smooth the edges of a sprite when scaled to antialias sharpness.

Color Unaffected: When this box is ticked, the graphics color will be prevented from being altered when the sprite’s color is changed.

Disable Lighting: When this box is ticked, lighting of the graphic will be disabled.

Overlay: When this box is ticked, the graphic in front of everything else will be rendered and it will display it at the original scale.

Billboard: When this box is ticked, the graphic will be drawn upright regardless of the orientation of the camera.

Face Camera (X): When this box is ticked, this option will ensure the graphic is facing the camera by only rotating it in the X axis (left-right).

Face Camera (Y): When this box is ticked, this option will ensure the graphic is facing the camera by only rotating it in the Y axis (up-down).

Face Camera (Z): When this box is ticked, this option will ensure the graphic is facing the camera by only rotating it in the Z axis (on its axis).

Tile Horizontally: When this box is ticked, this option will repeat the graphic along the horizontal (X) axis.

Tile Vertically (Y): When this box is ticked, this option will repeat the graphic along the vertical (Y) axis.

Tile Vertically (Z): When this box is ticked, this option will repeat the graphic along the vertical (Z) axis (applies to Platformer Projects).

**Particle Generation**

* Lifetime (sec): is used to set the minimum and maximum amount of time that a particle effect stays on screen.
* Limit Amount: is used to set the minimum and maximum amount of sprites that will appear on screen during its lifetime.
* Starting Size (%): is used to set the minimum and maximum starting size of your sprite as a percentage (100% is the actual size of your sprite).
* Starting Rotation: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting rotation of your sprite from 0 to 359 degrees.
* Starting Distance X: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting distance your sprite has along the horizontal axis.
* Starting Distance Y: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting distance your sprite has along the vertical axis.
* Starting Distance Z: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting distance your sprite has along the vertical axis (applies to Platformer Projects).
* Starting Speed X: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting speed your sprite has along the horizontal axis.
* Starting Speed Y: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting speed your sprite has along the vertical axis.
* Starting Speed Z: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting speed your sprite has along the vertical axis (applies to Platformer Projects).
* Starting Color: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting color of your sprite.
* Starting Opacity: is used to set the minimum and maximum starting opacity of your sprite.
* Position Relative to Source (no trailing) – when checked, this option will position the sprite relative to where it was created so there is no trailing.
* Frequency (sec): is used to set the minimum and maximum frequency in which new sprites appear during its lifetime. For example; if you have a limit amount of 10 sprites that have to appear within a 1 second lifetime and you set the frequency to 0.01 seconds then all of the sprites will appear on screen in just 0.1 seconds and then stay on screen until the 1 second lifetime has ended.
* Size Change (%): is used to set the minimum and maximum size change of your sprite during the lifetime of the particle effect, as a percentage.
* Rotation Change: is used to set the minimum and maximum rotation change of your sprite during the lifetime of the particle effect, from 0 to 359 degrees.
* Speed Change X: is used to set the minimum and maximum horizontal speed change of your sprite during the lifetime of the particle effect.
* Speed Change Y: is used to set the minimum and maximum vertical speed change of your sprite during the lifetime of the particle effect.
* Speed Change Z: is used to set the minimum and maximum vertical speed change of your sprite during the lifetime of the particle effect (applies to Platformer projects).
* Ending Color: is used to set the minimum and maximum ending color of your sprite.
* Ending Opacity: is used to set the minimum and maximum ending opacity of your sprite.
* Rotate with Direction: when checked, this option will rotate the sprite depending on the direction it is moving in.

**Graphic Scripting**

This section allows your sprite to retrieve specific data such as position, size, rotation, color, etc. and apply them to itself. For example; you could use the ‘Retrieve Position X’ box to move the sprite along the horizontal axis depending on the value stored inside a Global Variable.

**Sequencer**

Sequence Mode: Choose whether a sprite will loop continuously (Loop) or play only once (Once).

Pose Length: This is the amount of frames an animation takes.

Pose sec/frame: This is how many frames play per second.

The sequencer can be used to create smooth transitions between frames.

For example, you can create a tween between frames by placing your sprite on the left side of the preview window, creating a second frame and then moving the second sprite over to the right side. It will automatically create a smooth transition so that the sprite doesn’t just appear over to the right but actually moves over to the right instead.

**Sequence Editor'**

**Insert**

* Animation: is used to place a new instance of your animation that you can then manipulate to create more complex animations.
* Rectangle Collision: is used to create a rectangle collision box around your sprite in order to give it substance in-game.
* Polygon Collision: is used to create a polygon collision box around your sprite in order to give it substance in-game.
* Sphere/Capsule Collision: is used to create a circle or cylinder collision box around your sprite in order to give it substance in-game.
* Holding Point (1-4): these are used to create different holding points for your sprites so that they can carry weapons and other Items. The placement of your holding points is where the Item will appear on the sprite in-game.

**Tools**

* Move: is used to move your sprite around.
* Resize: is used to make your sprite bigger or smaller.
* Rotate on Axis: is used to rotate your sprite in any direction on its axis.
* Free Rotate: is used to rotate your sprite in any direction on any axis.

**Option**

* Show Grid: is used to turn the 32 x 32 pixel grid on or off.
* Snap to Grid: is used to turn snapping on or off (snapping is quite useful for lining up your sprites).
* Background Color: is used to toggle the background color of the preview window to black or white.
* Preview Once: is used to preview your animation once.
* Preview Continuously: is used to preview your animation and then continue to loop until told to stop.

**Preview**

This option is used to see your animation in different camera views. *GG Maker* will automatically select the view that is appropriate to your project.

RPGs will automatically choose the ‘45°’ view.

Platformers will automatically use the ‘Front’ view.

You can also preview sprites on an Interface by selecting ‘Int.’ view.

**Options**

This section allows you to preview different held Items for each holding point you’ve placed, show/hide holding points and collisions on the preview window and show/hide layers from other poses on the preview window as well.