Day/Night System... What's the Easiest way to do it?

[Winston]

I want it to be like a life simulator type of mechanic i.e. working out can increase strength, but time passes.

At the moment, I'm trying to use variables for a day/night system, but I'm not sure if it's the best way. For instance:

Variable X = 0 Means that it is morning

Variable X = 1 Means afternoon

Variable X = 2 Means night

Everytime you do something i.e. go to the gym, variable X increases by 1. When you go to sleep at night, variable X goes to 0.

However, is this the best and easiest way to approach it? I've run into quite a few problems already, for instance, I want some events to occur only during the afternoon (X = 1).

But the event page only allows X is equal or greater than 1, meaning it occurs at night too. I've found a way around this problem, but I also run into others I can't find a way to resolve.

 

[Raider]

The easiest way to implement such a feature would be a script.

For example this here: http://www.rpgmakervxace.net/topic/3225-basic-game-time-nightday/

You can also do such a system with events, but then it gets more time-consuming and complicated for you, though you will better know how everything works and can probably make changes (such as the length of a day or involving certain switches) more quickly.

But the idea you have presented in your post is also relatively simple and depending on what game you are doing it could fit. If you want to make some life simulator which depends on actual actions, than your system could do that, although i would add more steps in between (more variables an such things as "early afternoon" etc.). If you want a real-time system you must do something like a counter.

All in all, I think your basic idea should be enough, if I interpret your game-genre right.

For your problem with the variables, I mean there must be some command X less then or equal to, or even just X equal to.

So you could use just X equal to, or if I'm incorrect you could simply use two commands combined:

X equal or greater to 1 --> conditional branch: X equal or less than 1.

Then the action will only happen if Variable x is equal to 1.

Hope I could help.

Greetings

 

[Winston]

The easiest way to implement such a feature would be a script.

For example this here: http://www.rpgmakervxace.net/topic/3225-basic-game-time-nightday/

You can also do such a system with events, but then it gets more time-consuming and complicated for you, though you will better know how everything works and can probably make changes (such as the length of a day or involving certain switches) more quickly.

But the idea you have presented in your post is also relatively simple and depending on what game you are doing it could fit. If you want to make some life simulator which depends on actual actions, than your system could do that, although i would add more steps in between (more variables an such things as "early afternoon" etc.). If you want a real-time system you must do something like a counter.

All in all, I think your basic idea should be enough, if I interpret your game-genre right.

For your problem with the variables, I mean there must be some command X less then or equal to, or even just X equal to.

So you could use just X equal to, or if I'm incorrect you could simply use two commands combined:

X equal or greater to 1 --> conditional branch: X equal or less than 1.

Then the action will only happen if Variable x is equal to 1.

Hope I could help.

Greetings

Thanks for your reply. 

I will keep in mind to add in more steps in between the variables, just in case I need them.

Also does the script you mentioned allow my sort of game or is it basically an in-game clock that ticks no matter what you are doing? I want it so the time passes only when the player does a specific event. If the script can do that, then that will be a much better option.

 

[Bex]

If you got 3Day Phases give every Event 3Eventpages, than you dont run in your Bug

that the seccond eventpage is shown when your variablex = 3.

And yes its the simplest way to archieve  such kind of Cycle.

 

[Raider]

@Winston:

The script is for a real-time system, so it's not that good for what you are planning.

In fact, for your kind of game the evented system would be the best choice, as you can modify it more easily.

 

[shaynec1981]

I actually am finishing up a script for my own use/practice that sounds like would work for you. It keeps track of time, days, weeks, months, and years as well as keeping track of total days gone by. All you have to do to adjust date/time is change the variables to whatever you want. The script automatically accounts for how many days should have passed and whether it's AM or PM. I could pretty easily add in a couple more variables for it to track phases of night/day (dusk, dawn, night, etc) if that's what you need.

You can also stop and start the time cycle by simply turning a switch on and off. So say you want working out take up 2 hours. At the start of the commands for working out, turn the switch off, add 2 to the hours variable, then turn the switch back on and that's it.