Parameters

Parameters allow you to adjust and customize the variables connected to objects in your experience.

Parameters are the elements of Objects, Behaviours, and Components that you can adjust and customize.

Where Behaviours and Components are bundled packages of logic, Parameters are the parts that make up the whole. Adjusting these Parameters will determine how that bundled logic will perform.

For example, you might change the delay time before a message is sent, or adjust what triggers the destruction of an object. These are set by Parameters, variables within the bundled logic.

The Parameters you can edit on each object are dependant on the specific Behaviours and Components added to the object, they don’t exist by themselves and can not be added to other Components or Behaviours.

For example, you can't add the health slider from the Health Component to an Indicator component. You will only be able to edit the existing parameters based on the logic bundle you have attached to the object.

The Parameters you can edit come in a variety of forms, and there are some tips below for identifying what the difference may be, how you can interact with them, and where to look for further options.

Edit Logic

Be aware that some Parameters won’t appear unless you click Edit Logic.

If you are using, for example, the Health Component you will find that the standard view will show only one Parameter - the health slider. However, by clicking Edit Logic you will reveal a further eight Parameters to adjust, and then some more depending on what options you choose when setting those Parameters.

Color & Font

There are two different displays for Parameter names 🎨 to help you identify what level of customisation you are working on.

A Parameter with a white label means that the Parameter doesn't depend on another Parameter within that Behaviour.

A Parameter that’s green & Italicised means that the parameter depends on the last white parameter above it.

For example, you can see here that if the Health Components ‘Death Event’ is set to 'Destroy ', then a green label, ‘Death Delay ’, becomes available below it.

The visibility of the green variable for 'Death Delay' is dependant on having chosen ‘Death Event'. If you set 'Death Event' to 'Game Over', the 'Death Delay' option will no longer be available.

Toggle

A toggle can be used to turn something on or off, which can be thought about as being either true or false.

If we look at the example of a light switch, if the light switch is on 💡, that would be equal to true, if it was off, it would be equal to false. This kind of toggle can be really useful for defining the state of an object.

You can see here on the Health Component the use of a Toggle controls wheather or not this object will be invincible. With a simpe choice of true or false you can drasticaly change how an object will operate.

Slider

A slider can be used to set a number within a predefined range 🎚️. This is done by simply clicking and dragging the slider either left or right to increase or decrease the number.

The range of this slider is usually dependant on external inputs meaning it is not possible to edit the extremes of the number range.

For example, the values on the Health slider within the Health Component are determined by the gems that asset has. If the Asset had a greater number of defence Gems attached to it, which isn’t editable from within the Game Maker, then the slider would also have a greater range.

Drop Down

Some Attributes can be controlled using a Drop-Down menu. This option appears when there are multiple text-based selections to choose from or add to.

Some text-based options will be pre-defined, and some will accept a custom input.

For example, the Speaker Component has a Drop Down from which you can choose either 'Detect Entity' or 'Wait for Message', these are the only two options you can choose from.

If you choose ‘Wait For Message’, you will be able to access a second Drop Down menu to select the default setting ‘Interact’ as well as any existing messages, but you also have the option to manually add a new one by typing directly into the box at the top of the Drop Down menu.

Long and Short Text

Some parameters will allow for custom text 📝. This is can be anything from a simple name change to a complex narrative-driven paragraph.

You’ll find the option to enter both these types of text in a range of Behaviours and Components.

For example, when using the Asker Behaviour, you can change the ‘Speaker Name’ - which is a short text box, as well as the ‘Question’ which can accommodate a longer paragraph.

While you can add more text to the short text section, it won’t display as cleanly.

Menus

Some Parameters will trigger a pop up from which you will be able to select your desired option 🗃️.

You’ll be able to identify these Parameters by the little square with a pencil in the right corner of the box.

For example, when using the Asset Spawner Behaviour, you can click on the field next to ‘Asset to Spawn’ and a window will pop up showing the Asset Library from which you can choose the appropriate asset for your circumstances.

You can then click the Behaviour box below it and, again, a window will pop up showing the Select Behaviour library, and you can choose the Behaviour you would like applied to the previously chosen asset.

Numerical

Some Parameters require numerical entries 🔢 to function, and won’t accept entering any other type of character 🔣.

For example, when using the Asset Spawner Behaviour you can adjust the Spawn Offset to determine where the new asset will spawn in relation to the location of the asset that has the Spawning Behaviour. This requires a numerical input in one or all of the x, y, and z-axis.

Now that you have an idea of where to look and how to interact with different Parameters, it's time to get look at how these Parameters interact, so we can start getting hands-on with adjusting and using these tools.