VEdit Manual

Screen shot of VEdit editor

 

The VEdit editor is used to edit Alien Cabal GOB files and comes free with the registered version of Alien Cabal. Creating polygons is as simple as point and click to make the vertices, then point and click to connect them. Click on the link above to see the VEdit manual.

 

Want to play around with the VEdit editor? Here is a simple level to experiment with:

SIMPLE.ZIP (850k)

This level will NOT run with the shareware version. But for those with the full version, just unzip this file into your ACABAL directory then run acabal with simple.gob on the command line (i.e. acabal simple.gob). One word of warning - either rename your demo.acg file or don't wait long enough at the main menu for the demo to start up (60 seconds). Since it was made for the original acabal.gob file, it will crash when it tries to load while running the simple.gob file (or any of your own gob files). This will get fixed in the next update.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I make a door that I can open?

Create a trigger by clicking on New in the View-Triggers dialog.

Be sure to give the trigger a reasonable name like "Main Door Trigger" and make the trigger as wide and tall as your door.

Create a vertex centered at the bottom of your door.

View the vertex properties by selecting the vertex then Edit - Vertex Properties

Check the Trigger check box to make the vertex a trigger then select the trigger you defined in step 1 from the list box on the left.

Create a new motion for the door polygons by selecting New in the View - Motions dialog.

Give the motion a name that is similar to the trigger name like "Main Door Motion"

Don't forget to assign the trigger to the motion by clicking on the trigger created in step 1 in the list box on the left.

Also, be sure to properly assign the DZ and Steps values. Use a positive DZ to make the door go up when triggered (if the door is created initially closed). Of course you can make the door open to the left or right as well, just use DX or DY values and line up the door with the X or Y axis.

Create the polygons for the door if you haven't yet. As each is created, edit the polygon properties to make them moving polygons. Do this by checking the Moving Polygon box and selecting the motion defined above from the list box at left.

It's easy to forget one of these steps. I did it all the time when I was creating the first test levels. I did add some checks before I released the program to catch some of the likely errors, but it is still easy to forget to assign the trigger property to the vertex under the door, or forget to assign the motion property to the door polygons. Just be careful and it will work.

 

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