New guy here, what's the latest on graphics resolution?
ChaunceyK
Member Posts: 4
Just started with GS for the very first time today. I have no problem searching the forums for info, but I don't know how outdated some of the answers I'm finding are. So can someone please clarify a couple of things (and keep in mind, I'm using the Windows version of GS)...
When it comes to Platform, can I change it at any point without losing my progress? For instance, lets say I want to do my game in both iPhone & iPad formats...can I make my game in iPhone format first, then simply flip a switch & convert it to iPad format?
Do my graphics need to be a specific resolution, or will they be scaled automatically by GS?
And despite my searching, I still cannot get a grasp on what Resolution Independence means. :-B
When it comes to Platform, can I change it at any point without losing my progress? For instance, lets say I want to do my game in both iPhone & iPad formats...can I make my game in iPhone format first, then simply flip a switch & convert it to iPad format?
Do my graphics need to be a specific resolution, or will they be scaled automatically by GS?
And despite my searching, I still cannot get a grasp on what Resolution Independence means. :-B
Best Answers
-
ericzingeler Posts: 334
1. Yes and no. You can change your project type at anytime without breaking anything; actors, rules and behaviors will stay the same. The only thing that changes is the camera size. Now if you want the app to actually be user friendly then you'll need to adjusted screen size as well as actor size and positions as the iPad camera dimensions is 1024x768 and iPhone's is 480x320. I would create for iPhone version first and then simply copy the project adjust for iPad.
2. If you want to support retina display then you'll need retina art. This means you'll need to double the size of the image based on the actor it fits. Example: if actor is 20x20 px, then image must be 40x40 px. Also, in order for the image to scale correctly, both width and height of your images must be divisible by 4 (result must be a whole number). Example: 40/4 = 10 (Good), 41/4 = 10.25 (bad)
3. Resolution independence means that you only need to supply one set of art for both retina and non-retina displays. Supply retina art, and GS will make the art look right on non-retina. Only use retina art if you have this option checked. -
simo103 Posts: 1,331
@ChaunceyK ... personally I design for the iPad first so my graphics are all big (cleaner to resize smaller later) and then use the technique in this thread to spit out an iPhone version:
http://forums.gamesalad.com/discussion/32594/resizing-to-ipad-technique/p1 -
JustMe74 Posts: 542
@ChaunceyK -- Welcome!
As @simo103 just hinted at... graphics scale down nicely, but not so much in the other direction. My advice would be to design/develop for the highest resolution you plan to support first, then scale down to the other platforms. Of course, the aspect ratios are all different; you might have to trim/redraw your backgrounds, but the actors should be easy to just resize inside of GS.
I highly recommend the "GS Project Resizer" application from DBA; it will save you a lot of time. There is also a great thread by @tenrdrmr here in the forum that describes a good technique for resizing.
Just FYI:
iPod / iPhone: 480 x 320
iPod / iPhone Retina: 960 x 640
iPad: 1024 x 768 (also good for generic Android support)
iPad Retina: 2048 x 1536
Kindle Fire, Nook Color: 1024 x 600
Mac (recommended): 1280x800, 1440x900, 2880x1800, or 2560x1600
I personally recommend 1280x800 so you support the widest range of devices.
Hope that helps...
Answers
Regarding graphics, I'm assuming the original artwork size is somewhat irrelevant & that the resizing tool (W & H in the upper right corner of Stage) are the key to making it all perfectly scalable (divisible by 4, as @eezing said)?
You make the background at 2048x1536. When you pull it into GS, set it to 1024x768.