Game Configuration

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title: Game configuration

This page gives an overview over configurable aspects of the game.

YAML Configuration

In this project, a YAML configuration file is used to manage settings and parameters that control various aspects of the game, such as behavior, resources, and environmental constants. The human-readable YAML format allows easy modification of game elements, without the need for recompilation. This approach enhances the development workflow by supporting rapid iterations and testing. The configuration includes:

• Run Mode and Game Settings:
  The configuration begins with a global setting for development mode (run-dev-mode). When enabled, it provides additional functionality for developers, helping to debug specific components.

• Assets:
  Specifies all audio and visual assets for the game.

• Items:
  Configures game items with their attributes.

• Landmarks:
  Defines landmarks, such as the Statue of Liberty or Mount Everest, which act as height references during gameplay.

• Game Constants:
  Includes parameters for in-game mechanics like player movement, health, and environmental interactions. Constants for terrain, item spawning, and physics can be adjusted here, allowing developers to fine-tune gameplay by modifying values such as jump velocity or rock spawn frequency.

Development Mode

A dedicated DevMode is provided, allowing developers to test the game in a controlled environment. This mode bypasses the standard game flow to aid in debugging and fine-tuning specific mechanics.

Items

Items are loaded from the configuration. Each item has the following configurable parameters:

itemName:
    type-id: 0
    autoCollect: true
    useOnPickUp: false
    dropOnUse: true
    spawn-weight: 2

• itemType determines the type of the item.
• autoCollect determines if the item should be automatically collect once the hiker comes in range of the item and can pick it up.
• useOnPickUp determines if the item is used automatically once it has been picked up.
• dropOnUse determines if the item should be removed from the inventory once the item has been used.
• spawn-weight determines the weight that will be considered when items are being spawned. See Spawning Items for more information.

How to add a new Item?

1. Add the item information to the configuration (see how the others are done for examples).
2. Add the new item type to the ItemType enum with the correct item id (located in Item.hpp).
3. Make sure the item can be constructed if the new type is given to the Item constructor (see Item.cpp).
4. Add the desired functionality and effects to the world in World.cpp

How to add a new sound or texture?

In order to add a new sound/texture you will need to do the following.

1. Add the new sound as a .wav ot .mp3 file to the assets/audio directory.
2. Add the sound to the configuration under sound-effects as sound-name: "../assets/audio/yourNewSound.wav"

After these steps you can use the new sound by calling the playSound method with the sound-name as parameter.

How to add a new game constant?

If you want to add a new constant to use in the code base you will need to do the following steps.

1. Add the constant to the configuration in the correct place.
2. Add the new constant to the correct struct in GameProperties.hpp.
3. Add the new constant to the correct struct converter in YamlConversion.hpp.