Default value
TOPDOWN_MAP
Possible values
- TOPDOWN_MAP
-
ISOMETRIC_MAP
-
SIDE_MAP
-
TILED_ICON_MAP
-
TOPDOWN_MAP
-
ISOMETRIC_MAP
-
SIDE_MAP
-
TILED_ICON_MAP
This value says how the world will display maps. In a normal overhead tiled map the value is TOPDOWN_MAP for the top-down format. For older games that predate this feature, the value is TILED_ICON_MAP.
If you use a map format other than top-down, the HUD will still use a tile format like it would in top-down display. HUD objects are not projected into whatever map_format you use and they are not affected by changing client.dir. The size of the HUD is rounded up to the nearest number of full screen tiles; the size of each tile is defined by world.icon_size.
Top-down format
This is the default map format. Icons are drawn in a tile form and viewed from overhead. In this layout, the layer assigned to each atom is very important. The number of tiles shown is set by client.view or world.view.
Because this format is familiar and easy to understand, it is the default setting. Most of the vars related to maps and atoms are designed and documented with this format in mind.
Tiled icon format
Deprecated
This format is deprecated. It exists to support older games and allow them to be compiled without causing them to break, until they can be redesigned for one of the newer formats.
Isometric format
If map_format is set to ISOMETRIC_MAP, the map is displayed in isometric form. Isometric tiles are displayed in a foreshortened diagonal perspective, where the “north” direction actually displays as northeast on the player’s screen, and “east” shows up as southeast. The value of client.view or world.view is used to calculate the minimum number of tiles to display, and extra tiles to each side will be shown to fill in the corners.
In an isometric map, the tile width set in world.icon_size is the most important factor. This should be a multiple of 4 for best results. The minimum tile height is half that value, and any extra height is used to show vertical structures that “stick up” off the map surface. When you draw an isometric tile icon, start with a flattened diamond shape at the bottom that is only half as high as it is wide.
Isometric maps behave differently during drawing than top-down maps. In isometric, tiles that are nearer to the viewer’s perspective are drawn in front of tiles farther back, regardless of layer. Layers only count within an individual tile. This means that if you want to have a vertical structure “stick up” to partially hide something behind it, the icon sticking up should always be on a tile forward from the one being partly covered. E.g. if you have a wall taking up part of your tile, it needs to be at the “back” end of the tile to properly hide anything on the tiles behind it.
The pixel_x and pixel_y values, step_x and step_y values, and the gliding that happens when moving between tiles, are based on the width set by world.icon_size. If you set world.icon_size="64x128" to show tall buildings, only the 64 matters for pixel offsets. Use pixel_w and pixel_z to adjust the position of atoms (or the client) horizontally or vertically without respect to client.dir or the map format.
Note
Offsets for x and y also affect the layering order used to draw the icons. Any object with a pixel offset onto another tile is considered part of whichever tile is closer.
If you use an icon wider than one tile, the “footprint” of the isometric icon (the actual map tiles it takes up) will always be a square. That is, if your normal tile size is 64 and you want to show a 128x128 icon, the icon is two tiles wide and so it will take up a 2×2-tile area on the map. The height of a big icon is irrelevant—any excess height beyond width/2 is used to show vertical features. To draw this icon properly, other tiles on that same ground will be moved behind it in the drawing order.
One important warning about using big icons in isometric mode is that you should only do this with dense atoms. If part of a big mob icon covers the same tile as a tall building for instance, the tall building is moved back and it could be partially covered by other turfs that are actually behind it. A mob walking onto a very large non-dense turf icon would experience similar irregularities.
Side-view format
The SIDE_MAP format is like a cross between TOPDOWN_MAP and ISOMETRIC_MAP. It looks very similar to a top-down view but it is intended for more of a 3/4 perspective, where tiles lower on the screen are considered closer to the viewer. Because this impacts the way layers work, most of the layering behavior is the same as with isometric.
In a 3/4 perspective the tiles are often foreshortened, so pixel offsets are adjusted to account for this. For example, you may set world.icon_size to "32x24", but the tile is considered to be a perfect square if you look at it from the top down. Because the width is 32 pixels, the virtual height is also 32, so if you use pixel_y=32 the atom will appear one tile further back than it normally is. (This adjustment doesn’t affect screen objects or pixel_w/pixel_z.)
Changing client.dir preserves the same tile size regardless of orientation.