What next for Construct 2?

I've run polls along these lines before, but this time I just want to ask generally as an open question. What is the most important thing you think Construct 2 should get next? Obviously we have a lot of features and things to do in the long run, but we can't do them all at once. So what is the one you miss most or think is most crucial?

If you've used Classic, which features are most painful to get by without? If you've used a different tool before, what do you miss most?

My own personal todo list is looking a bit like this at the moment:

• Hotspot & image points for sprites
• Collision polygons so collisions are a bit better than bounding-box
• Families (will take a long time)
• Physics (not sure if Zack0Wack0 was working on this?)
• Support for the Chrome or Mozilla web app stores - it looks like you can even charge for web apps, so see if that's something that can be added.
• Improved audio engine using Web Audio API (which currently only Chrome supports I think)
• Good support for tilemaps

Let me know what you think is the most important, and I'll get to work on it - I'm trying to get things done in order of importance! If there's disagreement I'll run a poll, consider this a sort of nominations stage.

INB4 EXE EXPORTER! :D

I agree with all of these stuff!

I wouldn't vote on Physics and (Collision Polygons), and I do prefer Hotspot & Image Points over the rest of them!

Personally, here's my list of things:

1- Simple "fill color" on the image editor:

I usually prototype with rectangles and right now my workaround is to have 4-5 full color images of 256x256 where I can import and resize the sprite... Would be nice to just pick a color and fill the sprite with it.

2- Function object (maybe a System option instead of a component?)

This is one of my favourite objects in Construct. With it I'm able to create modular events and schedule them so I can create a chain of events that can be repeated for tons of things.

I'd really like to see a multiplayer object. I know there are more important things, but you asked :)

I hope you don't mind if I decompose your post, I think its better if I do it this way

Hotspot & image points for sprites

Yep. We need those urgently, especially if image points are unlimited. Also, a way to call "imagepoint<i>" via expressions would be nice.

Collision polygons so collisions are a bit better than bounding-box

Not really needed right now, most games can get by with collision rectangles or invisible detectors. The kind of game that would benefit the most from collision polygons takes more time to make (in my opinion) and would need a lot of features that C2 still doesn't have

Families (will take a long time)

Definitely needed

Physics (not sure if Zack0Wack0 was working on this?)

If there's a chance he's working on it, it's better not to do it. Let the community work on it.

Support for the Chrome or Mozilla web app stores - it looks like you can even charge for web apps, so see if that's something that can be added.

Does that bring a lot of revenue? I guess the community can code plugins that work with those - besides, it's not urgent

Improved audio engine using Web Audio API (which currently only Chrome supports I think)

Let browsers mature? I don't know anything about audio APIs, so feel free to disregard my opinion here.

Good support for tilemaps

We're definitely going to need those.

Simple "fill color" on the image editor

Agreed, especially for quick recolors and knocking out transparency.

Also, I'd add a "rotate 90? clockwise" tool there too, as most top-down sprites are drawn facing up, not to the right (as construct 2 likes).

My top 3 choices would be:

1. Families

2. Hotspots & image points

3. Good support for tilemaps

All the other things, while really cool in their own right, feel far less important than the first 2 choices, and the 3rd one is just something that's been asked for by lots of folks on Construct Classic.

Also, is there a "For Each Object (Ordered)" loop in Construct 2 yet? Maybe throw that one in their if it isn't. <img src="smileys/smiley2.gif" border="0" align="middle" />

I really miss shader support, but I know that WebGL is a ways off.

Let's definitely get those hotspots and image points up and running. I also have to agree with Families. I imagine a lot of people still using CC are waiting until they can replicate their work in C2 before taking the plunge.

Can we get the image editor next? It's really annoying to have to go back into your gfx program just to trim off a few unwanted pixels or make the background of a sprite transparent. Other than that, hotspots would be nice.

In order of importance:

Hotspots

Families

Functions

Though that fill with color would be quite handy, as I tend to use squares as well.

Not really needed right now, most games can get by with collision rectangles or invisible detectors. The kind of game that would benefit the most from collision polygons takes more time to make (in my opinion) and would need a lot of features that C2 still doesn't have

Highly disagreed. Right now, as there isn't such a "fine" collision detection, we are designing projects with this limitation in mind and tell ourselves "huh, I can do this in bounding box, no big deal, I'll stylize the sprites".

Bring the polygon collision up it will help a lot in about any kind of projects.

Also, I don't see any "load texture event" (instead of load textures at startup of app) in the todo list.

Did I missed it in r51 and is already doable ?

I would like also a "load texture to frame". This way I could set the texture from an url (gravatar anyone ? ^^) and have "custom" pictures in my app.

An extensible amount of frames (on runtime) for the sprite object, in this same train of thought, would be nice too. It was a "limitation" from CC, could it be workedaround in C2 ?

Else as the others: image points/hotspots , families, function (even if function can be pretty much replaced by groups).

+ Z order as Newt will say later in this topic.

Z order would be greatly appreciated. Especially for the users of the free edition, I think.

Families

Hotspots

Tile Map Tools (Take a look at UniTile for unity for some ideas http://www.vimeo.com/18505893)

Functions

<font size="1">EXE Exporter... I don't think this is really super important at this time but I'm just putting it out there.</font>

Edit : Changed things around a little.

built-in image editor

tilemap support

families

• Fine Collision
• Tilemap support
• Hotspots
• Families

Those are my top four.

In order of importance.

1)Good support for tilemaps

2)Good support for tilemaps

3)Good support for tilemaps

I don't like making games that make levels for my games.

I'll reorder your list and dump things out. Then show you mine.

These two below are definitely needed as soon as possible. Your really sh*t out of luck in doing nice maps without tile maps. Image points for sure. I was wondering why i couldn't add an image point, because my bullet kept firing from the hotspot no matter what i did.

• Hotspot & image points for sprites
• Good support for tilemaps

The rest i don't see why they are important right now.

Now here is my list after the two important ones i left from your todo list.

-Math helpers. The important one for me is point distance.

-Path finding. Pretty damn nice for AI.

-Property to snap an object to viewport, and provide the coordinates. Really would be nice for an in game gui...

These would probably be a opengl thing, but here go's

-Particles. Not that important but would be nice having a particle editor in CS2.

-Basic lights (ambient, spotlight etc)

The rest i don't see why they are important right now.

I think this is because you're not yet used to construct's way (check my answer to your other thread)

Now here is my list after the two important ones i left from your todo list.

-Math helpers. The important one for me is point distance.

Same as above, check in the other thread, I pointed out the system expressions where all the math helpers (and more) you need are.

-Path finding. Pretty damn nice for AI.

I'm working on a path finding plugin, it should be on the forum during this week end, or next week. There's already this thread that deals about pathfinding.

-Property to snap an object to viewport, and provide the coordinates. Really would be nice for an in game gui...

GUI making in construct is done with setting the parallax property from a layer to 0,0 (so it will stick to the viewport)

Coordinates of an object are the X and Y properties that you can get as expression Sprite.X or Sprite.Y (where Sprite is the name of your object)

Unless you mean something else, I'm not sure to follow your idea there.

These would probably be a opengl thing, but here go's

-Particles. Not that important but would be nice having a particle editor in CS2.

-Basic lights (ambient, spotlight etc)

For particles I have it on my todo plugin list, but as you said, it might end up easier in webGL. I don't know yet, but I'll check it at some point in the future.

Note: I'm a 3rd party plugin developper, I'm not part of Scirra's team.

I make plugins for my needs first. (I mean, telling here that I'll check particles out is nothing of a promise or anything. It's just that i thought about it and put it on my todo list)