Platform Game
9 Level 2 & Beyond

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Platform games are great to make because they are open-ended and can be based on the most ridiculous plots. As long as there is still a puzzle worth completing, people will play them for hours.

Refine The Game Play

Review the level you have made before moving on to make new levels. Think about the game play. You may need to move some objects around, add more detail, increase or decrease the amount of challenge.

You should also consider the movement of the character, the speed, the height of the jump etc.

New Graphics

There are quite a lot in the tile set, but don't be afraid of finding more. Look carefully at how the tile set is used, read the Game Maker help file on the subject as well. You can find and import sets from all sorts of classic games as well as make your own tile set collections.

More Features

This game will be a lot better if there are new baddies to avoid in later levels. Think about the way they move, the noises they make and be creative. Some might chase a player. How about bees that chase a player if he gets covered in pollen by making contact with a flower?

The puzzle element of the game can be increased if there is more to the jumping around than just picking up the cherries and avoiding the baddies. You could have doors that can only be opened if a special key has been picked up. The key could be guarded by a tricky monster...

Don't forget that rewarding the player can be good too and change the way that people play the game as they actively seek out the rewards. A fire suit could give immunity to fire, a ghost power-up could let the player walk straight through the spikes or you could just have something that the player can do to recharge their health. Weaponry could be collectable too.

Boss Levels

It is quite easy to get good at a platform game very quickly. As well as varying the obstacles, and the scenarios in the levels, extra boss levels can be added between some levels. This can earn the player big points, hold up their progress through the game or cost them their lives depending on the outcome.

A boss level can use the same character graphic as used in the normal game or use an extra large icon in a blown-up simpler game field. Usually the levels require some drawn-out action to defeat a tricky giant monster.

Boss levels are a nice way to use up unfinished game ideas. Using similarly themed graphics to the platform game as a whole, you could add a level of most of the games in these tutorials in between key levels.

The more complex the game structure gets, the more attention you have to pay to making sure the player knows what is going on. Think about how you do this, either in a score panel or in rooms between the levels.

New Game Story

I know there isn't really a game story, just a few ideas. You really should think about starting your next project from scratch now. Use the template and replace the character graphic with a better one you have found or designed. Think about the whole game concept before going any further. Build the story around the character, any quirks in the animations you find or make for it. Design the opening screens to explain the story and controls for the game and the game over screen.

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