Decompiled Fromage... kinda.

[HDplayer]

are there any updates to report since last time? i'd be sad for the game to die twice (especially after the latest demo teased a chameleon enemy)
did you switch game engines or stayed with HSP?

[VoreFan362]

Wait. What chameleon?

I need to work out the pros and cons of each option.

[HDplayer]

in the latest version, in darkroom with the lamp there is a sign at the very top of the room, you have to get the lamp up there with the broom powerup to be able to read it.
it was an absolute pain and took me like 30 min to do. i had to use google lens to translate the sign... and from what i can tell it was describing a chameleon's hunting tactics, how it would lurk and camouflage itself on walls to wait for a chance to attack it's prey and such.
i first assumed that it would spawn in the darkroom after reading the sign, to make the path back more dangerous, but that didn't happen.
the project likely died before it could've been added.

[Etherthedrake]

in the latest version, in darkroom with the lamp there is a sign at the very top of the room, you have to get the lamp up there with the broom powerup to be able to read it.
it was an absolute pain and took me like 30 min to do. i had to use google lens to translate the sign... and from what i can tell it was describing a chameleon's hunting tactics, how it would lurk and camouflage itself on walls to wait for a chance to attack it's prey and such.
i first assumed that it would spawn in the darkroom after reading the sign, to make the path back more dangerous, but that didn't happen.
the project likely died before it could've been added.

You do know that Vorefan didn't make the original Fromage? It might've teased a chameleon enemy, but that was ASIMOFU doing that, and since then, they've kind of moved on from Fromage altogether.
The chameleon was never real.

..That being said, happy to see that Vorefan is still 'round! Hope you haven't run into too many complications.

[HDplayer]

yes i know that they didn't make the game.
i didn't mean to imply that vorefan would "finish" the enemy. i just mentioned that it was teased and hoped that maybe some assets or some half finished version existed somewhere within the game files. but judging by their reaction it seems that nothing (besides the text box) remains. sad.

and yeah! i'm also very glad that they're around at all and the project isn't completely dead/forgotten.
now i'm mainly hoping that it maybe gets to a point where for one it's in english, and two has some form of API/modding interface so people can add their own maps, events, enemies, etc. without having to fully recompile the whole thing. but as a hobbyist programmer i know that's a pretty difficult task.

[VoreFan362]

It's possible that I'll make an English Fromage with Flash CC. So, that means, not only will we have a customized Fromage, BUT, this customized Fromage will have: New rooms, new Predators/Enemies, new powerups, etc. And, yes, I'll be open to new ideas. For example, the game will be played as it is known, right now. But, in the menu screen, there's going to be a toggle for digestion being lethal. Not only that, but, a willing toggle. So, if the checkbox has a checkmark, the girl will be HAPPY, whenever she gets eaten. I might go a bit more in-depth, and have a section for preferred Predators, so the girl can react appropriately for the Predators of the player's choice. Also, if I feel up to it, I might enable a music option, so the player can listen to custom music (basically, music of their choosing), the default music, or none at all, so the experience is a lot more flexible.

[VoreFan362]

I think the chameleon is called "Vector Stealth", and it sounds like a pretty dangerous enemy. For sure, it would be a challenge to dodge it, and stuff. However, I don't even know how to design and program it. However, at the moment, I'm still brainstorming how to recreate Fromage in Flash, so that, at the end of the day, we'll have a standalone excutable game.

I'm not sure about having the modding interface, as that can make the experience inconsistent, and while I'm all for a unique experience, I'm somewhat torn. Like, if the rooms being put in the game will be simply for having a custom room, sure. But, for the actual game's rooms, yeah, I think it's best that the modding interface not interact with the main game, just so if someone sends their own version of the game, the main game's rooms and stuff remains intact. The modding interface, if implemented, I don't think it should allow custom Predators, since I think everyone should be able to experience the same Predators. The only way I'll agree to the modding interface allowing custom Predators, is if there's a repository available, and people can just download the Predators of their choice. The only issue I can see with the custom Predators, is I don't think they should appear in the main game's rooms. And, what I mean by main game is, well, the game that you play normally. The ability to create custom rooms will have to be separate from the main game, since not everyone's room designs will be the same, and I think it'll be tricky to advance in the game through user-created rooms. I'm not saying I'm against the modding part, I'm just saying, if the main game is a dream, let's just say, the custom rooms will be like a dream within a dream. I don't know if there should be a way to make multiple rooms that can connect to each other (for example: The Bed Room connects to a Frog Room, which connects back to the Bed Room, and connects to a Slug Room, Spider Room, Like Like Room, Worm Room, and EACH connects to each other, as well as the Bed Room, which could, in theory, connect to each of those rooms, which will be identified by either a little sign, a note, or both). If that's something to be expected, I get the feeling that it could seem intimidating, but, it probably won't, since it's really straightforward, as all you'd have to do is make certain the doors are linked to the proper rooms.

Also, I've noticed in the newer versions, the Frog is NOT autonomous, while it WAS in the older ones. Like, in the older versions, the Frog was able to jump on its own, without the player having to cause noise around the Frog. It's difficult to explain in words. But, yeah... just play one of the older versions and one of the newer versions of the game, and you'll see what I mean. Basically, in the older versions, the Frog jumps on its own, and doesn't wait for the player to be seen or heard. Interestingly, the Slugs in the older versions, while they walk and jump, they'll only jump when chasing the player. I haven't seen the Slugs autonomously jump without giving chase.

A major difference between the two games is how the sprites are handled. In the older versions, the player's sprite, for example, consists of simply different sprite frames, which is standard for sprite sheets. The newer versions, on the other hand, basically has to assemble the sprites. For example, each one of the girl's sprites are divided into different sections of the character (body, facial expression, arms, legs), where the Predators just have different parts segmented, and each segmented part of the sprites are on a different layer. For example, the girl's facial expression is on a layer above the one for her head. So, that's going to be difficult on how to handle, unless there's someone who can lend a hand with that.

My apologies for the long post. Feel free to have ChatGPT summarize the post, and, if there's anything unclear from that, I'll be happy to clarify.

[VoreFan362]

Here's a comparison of the two versions of the Normal sprite.

[VoreFan362]

I've made an interesting discovery.

Let's say you have a sword and bow nearby, and you drop your powerup (let's say broom, for an example), each item you can pick up is in its own layer (refer back to my comment about the facial expression being on a layer above the layer for the girl's head for the newer version, if this doesn't make sense). Well, in any case, from what I've seen, say that the sword is on a layer above the one for the bow, the powerup you get if you stack up the powerups depends on the game. For the older version, it's the one on the lower layer, and it's the higher layer for the newer version.

[VoreFan362]

I've made an interesting discovery.

Let's say you have a sword and bow nearby, and you drop your powerup (let's say broom, for an example), each item you can pick up is in its own layer (refer back to my comment about the facial expression being on a layer above the layer for the girl's head for the newer version, if this doesn't make sense). Well, in any case, from what I've seen, say that the sword is on a layer above the one for the bow, the powerup you get if you stack up the powerups depends on the game. For the older version, it's the one on the lower layer, and it's the higher layer for the newer version.

The only time this won't apply is if the powerup that usually wouldn't get chosen over the other is too far away from the powerup capture receptacle. For example, let's go back to the broom and sword example. Now, in the older version, the broom is on the layer above the sword. There might be a broom on a lower layer. I'll have to check. For simplicity's sake, let's just say the broom is on a higher layer than the sword in the room, and the sword is out of reach of the receptacle. In this case, the broom will be obtained, despite the sword being on a lower layer. I guess it's because the game has to figure out which powerup to grant, if there are multiple caught by the receptacle.

Also, this hacked Fromage will have a way to store powerups, and even change them from the storage menu. For example, if you have a Broom Rider powerup, you can store it, grab another powerup, and, whenever you need the Broom Rider powerup, you can just easily swap it with whatever form you have, save for Normal. If you'll want to "swap with Normal", you'll just deposit your current powerup in an empty slot, or just drop the powerup, as it'll be basically the sme thing.

So, yeah. Just so you guys know, I'm not giving up on this here hack. I'm just trying to make not only an English version of Fromage, but, an expanded one with the bells and whistles I mentioned. And, again, I'm open to new ideas. For example, rooms with water, so you have to avoid fish Predators, or even outdoor maps, so you can encounter other Predators that we haven't seen in Fromage. And, hey, we might even include humans, if we so want - it's a hack of Fromage, and that means we can add whatever we want. Right now, the wheels are spinning, and I'll keep you guys posted on when there's an alpha version of the hack.

[Etherthedrake]

I'm glad to see you return! Hopefully this project doesn't give you too much trouble. Best of luck!

[VoreFan362]

I'm glad to see you return! Hopefully this project doesn't give you too much trouble. Best of luck!

Thanks! I'll try to make it as quickly as I can, and feel free to send suggestions.

[bloodle8]

Oooh, very cool to see this in motion again! Can't wait to see your first release!