ZxZ
04-20-2007, 11:50 AM
If you are perfectly new to Flash, then start reading and don't skip anything. If you already have Flash, then skip past the section teaching how to get Flash. From there, just find the topics that best suit you and your needs.
Step 1- Acquiring Flash
Obviously, to make Flash games and movies, you will need some sort of computer program for this. Ta-da! Here's Macromedia Flash. Now, for those of you who already know about Flash know it IS expenisive. Luckily, Macromedia offers a free 30 day trial so you can see if you would like to stick with Flash.
So, now, just visit http://www.macromedia.com/software/flash/ and click the 30 Day Free Trial link. Fill out all the info and download it.
Note- This guide will not share info on how to obtain Flash illegally. If you wish to have the full version, you must pay for it
Step 2- Learning Flash
This should be a simple, yet long process. For some reason, people don't like to make it so simple. Listen to me carefully
When you first begin Flash, use the tutorials the Macromedia offers both on their website(http://www.macromedia.com/support/do...tion/en/flash/) and in Flash (Help>Using Flash)
Yes, you heard me...use Macromedia's tutorials. Some are interactive and most of them are geared towards the most beginners of beginners.
Flash is a skill that you can never master. It will take a good while for you to learn how to make basic things, but when you get good, you will be glad you stuck with it.
When you feel comfortable with your basic knowledge of Flash, go through this checklist and make sure you know a good amount of information on each thing:
-Flash's Interface
-Changing Colors
-Using Different Tools
-Changing Preferences
-Opening the Actionscript Panel
-Frames
-Key Frames
-Motion Tweens
-Shape Tweens
-Library
-Importing Objects
-Saving .fla's
-Exporting As .swf's
-Layers
If you can describe all of those things in your head, you are ready for slightly more advanced stuff.
Step 3- Making Simple Movies
Before you can start on games you need to know all of the elements of making movies. This is essential to moving up the ladder. When you experiement making movies, you will learn your own techniques and short cuts that will be of TONS of value later on in your Flash career.
By the beginning of this step, you should know how to make Tweened movies that look like crap. If so, PERFECT! Youre right on track. I don't want you to read many tutorials in this step. I want you to make short movies with different styles everytime. Find what looks best to you and get better at it. If you try to move on to games when you have no artistic backround, no one will want to play your games.
If you are one who likes to get ahead and move fast, look into Frame By Frame animating. This is more advanced than Tweening and should only be used once you feel you are absolutely ready to move on. FBF involves moving your characters and objects on your own. There are different techniques for this (such as redrawing every frame or just modifying one little section) so find what appeals to you and stick with it.
If you have seen a noticable improvement in your skills since you started and you have experiemented successfully with FBF you are ready to move on to Basic Actionscripting.
Basic Actionscripting
Actionscript is the code that makes Flash interactive and assigns different actions to different objects. AS is what makes Flash, Flash
At this stage is when you need to check out the tutorials:
www.kirupa.com
www.flashkit.com
www.actionscript.org
Make sure you just go through very simple things. Don't just look at the code and take it. Read through the whole tutorial and make sure you understand what makes the AS work in that example.
What I suggest you do at this point is make simple play and stop buttons for the animations you made in the previous step. Then, maybe advance by coding a ball to move around the screen by using the arrow keys.
It is now important to point out when and when not to ask AS questions on the Xgen Forums. Make sure you have looked around on all the Flash sites you know, you have searched Google for different phrases that have to do with your problem, and you have thoroughly searched through the Flash Game Dev. before posting a question. I can assure you that if it has anything to do with:
-Buttons
-Key Movement
-Quality Settings
-Menu Buttons
-Frame Skipping
It HAS BEEN ANSWERED BEFORE
If you now know the correct syntax for most AS, you can make simple buttons and simple (with no objective) games, and you can use buttons to skip frames, you are ready to move on.
Beginning A Game/Movie
By now, you should be ready to make a very amateurish production, which is alright, believe me. Don't expect for it to look like all the movies or games you love online, because it wont. It should look pretty bad. But that's not important. The important part is the learning that goes along with this. You will learn how to apply the AS you've learned and make a game that works. Also, during game/movie production you will start to pick up drawing tips by hit and miss, basically. So, now we begin....
You need to decide on a simple game with not much difficult AS to worry about. Maybe a simple RPG, or a Platformer. Whatever type you want, you can pretty much do, just make sure you think out what it will take in advance.
This tutorial isn't going to be detailed enough to teach you how to make your game/movie, so youre on your own at this point, but if you followed the instructions leading up to this, you should be fine. If you ever have any questions or problems, search flash tutorial sites for tutorials on the subject. If you still can't find it, sift through posts on different forums. If you still can't find it, then it mush be a difficult question, so THEN you may ask about it on Xgen or another forum.
Publishing Your Game
Ok, it's done. You've finished your first game and you want people to see it, how do you get it out there? Easy! There are many sites out there that let you send in or upload your flash work and it will get rated by other people.
-www.newgrounds.com
-www.flashplayer.com
Those are the most popular, but there are tons others. Just make sure you know the site your submitting to first. NG is lenient on what makes it through, but viewers have to vote it a certain score or else it gets deleted. FP has admins who view the work before placing it on their website. They are more strict about it and require better work. So, submit your work accordingly.
Getting Better!
If you've saved all of your old work, go back and watch it, always good for a nice laugh, seeing how much better you are now. Now that you've been working hard and made new material I bet you're noticing how much faster you are picking new concepts up. Now it's time to start on the more advanced concepts Flash has to offer. Now, the problem is, I don't believe there are quite as man advanced Flash tutorials as there are beginner, but that doesn't mean they aren't out there! You just need to search around a little more.
Actionscript.org- This is geared towards the coding spectrum of Flash, but that's pretty much what you're looking for after you have all of your art down. Head down to the intermediate and advanced sections, looking for tutorials with the green "Mx 2004" text next to them. This shows that these tutorials are the most up to date with your current version (currently Flash Cool
Flashkit.com- When looking here, it's usually best to have in mind what you want to do, seeing as it is harder to find good tutorials on a big site like this, divided up into several different categories. If you don't know what you are looking for, then search around in the Math-Physics, Actionscripting, Interactivity, and Dynamic Content sections. It is important to note that Flash kit still has all the tutorials for the ancient Flash versions. So, when you go to a certain section, head to the pages in the back, because the tutorials are in version order. Right under the dividing line and to the left it says the Flash version. Look for Mx, Mx 2004, and 8 when getting good tutorials, everything else will be super out of date.
Xgen- Now is the time to start asking the resident experts on Xgen. Most likely, now that you're more advanced your questions haven't been asked before and will require alot more help to get you the answer.
Time To Hit The World Wide Web
So, you think you might have a potential fan base and you want a website for them? Well, this is the best time to start. Now that you're committed to the cause why not take it further? You pretty much know what you're doing and you are constantly impoving, someday you might be the next Xgen. But, first, you need to assess your current knowledge.
Is actionscript the only programming language you know? Or do you know CSS, HTML, and PHP? This is something you need to take into account when creating a site. If you enjoy learning new languages, then sit down for a few weeks and search all over the web (a good place to start is www.w3schools.com) for tutorials on those 3 languages. If you don't want to take that time, you can still just stick with Flash to create your site. Also, you need to think of the future. If you plan on this just being more of a practice site to learn what is involved, then stick with Flash, as it is what you know. If you think that by launching this site you are really going to hit big time, then it will benefit you later to learn these languages.
Pros and Cons of Flash- On the pros side, it is what you know, and if used correctly, the interactivity will look appealing. On the cons, with a webpage, it is easy to screw up and go overboard. Also, everytime you want to make an update, you have to edit it in Flash then export it, then upload it, then change the HTML file with the correct version. Takes alot longer.
Pros and Cons of other alternatives- With these languages, it is ALOT easier to make updates to your site, just a matter of typing in new text. However, if you don't know these languages yet, it's like starting over with Flash.
If you are taking the Flash route-
All you need to do is make each keyframe a different page on your website and make the navigation buttons link to the corresponding frame.
If you are taking the non-Flash route-
Make an interesting animated header, or some interactive menus in Flash, then just put them in place with your other scripting
Step 1- Acquiring Flash
Obviously, to make Flash games and movies, you will need some sort of computer program for this. Ta-da! Here's Macromedia Flash. Now, for those of you who already know about Flash know it IS expenisive. Luckily, Macromedia offers a free 30 day trial so you can see if you would like to stick with Flash.
So, now, just visit http://www.macromedia.com/software/flash/ and click the 30 Day Free Trial link. Fill out all the info and download it.
Note- This guide will not share info on how to obtain Flash illegally. If you wish to have the full version, you must pay for it
Step 2- Learning Flash
This should be a simple, yet long process. For some reason, people don't like to make it so simple. Listen to me carefully
When you first begin Flash, use the tutorials the Macromedia offers both on their website(http://www.macromedia.com/support/do...tion/en/flash/) and in Flash (Help>Using Flash)
Yes, you heard me...use Macromedia's tutorials. Some are interactive and most of them are geared towards the most beginners of beginners.
Flash is a skill that you can never master. It will take a good while for you to learn how to make basic things, but when you get good, you will be glad you stuck with it.
When you feel comfortable with your basic knowledge of Flash, go through this checklist and make sure you know a good amount of information on each thing:
-Flash's Interface
-Changing Colors
-Using Different Tools
-Changing Preferences
-Opening the Actionscript Panel
-Frames
-Key Frames
-Motion Tweens
-Shape Tweens
-Library
-Importing Objects
-Saving .fla's
-Exporting As .swf's
-Layers
If you can describe all of those things in your head, you are ready for slightly more advanced stuff.
Step 3- Making Simple Movies
Before you can start on games you need to know all of the elements of making movies. This is essential to moving up the ladder. When you experiement making movies, you will learn your own techniques and short cuts that will be of TONS of value later on in your Flash career.
By the beginning of this step, you should know how to make Tweened movies that look like crap. If so, PERFECT! Youre right on track. I don't want you to read many tutorials in this step. I want you to make short movies with different styles everytime. Find what looks best to you and get better at it. If you try to move on to games when you have no artistic backround, no one will want to play your games.
If you are one who likes to get ahead and move fast, look into Frame By Frame animating. This is more advanced than Tweening and should only be used once you feel you are absolutely ready to move on. FBF involves moving your characters and objects on your own. There are different techniques for this (such as redrawing every frame or just modifying one little section) so find what appeals to you and stick with it.
If you have seen a noticable improvement in your skills since you started and you have experiemented successfully with FBF you are ready to move on to Basic Actionscripting.
Basic Actionscripting
Actionscript is the code that makes Flash interactive and assigns different actions to different objects. AS is what makes Flash, Flash
At this stage is when you need to check out the tutorials:
www.kirupa.com
www.flashkit.com
www.actionscript.org
Make sure you just go through very simple things. Don't just look at the code and take it. Read through the whole tutorial and make sure you understand what makes the AS work in that example.
What I suggest you do at this point is make simple play and stop buttons for the animations you made in the previous step. Then, maybe advance by coding a ball to move around the screen by using the arrow keys.
It is now important to point out when and when not to ask AS questions on the Xgen Forums. Make sure you have looked around on all the Flash sites you know, you have searched Google for different phrases that have to do with your problem, and you have thoroughly searched through the Flash Game Dev. before posting a question. I can assure you that if it has anything to do with:
-Buttons
-Key Movement
-Quality Settings
-Menu Buttons
-Frame Skipping
It HAS BEEN ANSWERED BEFORE
If you now know the correct syntax for most AS, you can make simple buttons and simple (with no objective) games, and you can use buttons to skip frames, you are ready to move on.
Beginning A Game/Movie
By now, you should be ready to make a very amateurish production, which is alright, believe me. Don't expect for it to look like all the movies or games you love online, because it wont. It should look pretty bad. But that's not important. The important part is the learning that goes along with this. You will learn how to apply the AS you've learned and make a game that works. Also, during game/movie production you will start to pick up drawing tips by hit and miss, basically. So, now we begin....
You need to decide on a simple game with not much difficult AS to worry about. Maybe a simple RPG, or a Platformer. Whatever type you want, you can pretty much do, just make sure you think out what it will take in advance.
This tutorial isn't going to be detailed enough to teach you how to make your game/movie, so youre on your own at this point, but if you followed the instructions leading up to this, you should be fine. If you ever have any questions or problems, search flash tutorial sites for tutorials on the subject. If you still can't find it, sift through posts on different forums. If you still can't find it, then it mush be a difficult question, so THEN you may ask about it on Xgen or another forum.
Publishing Your Game
Ok, it's done. You've finished your first game and you want people to see it, how do you get it out there? Easy! There are many sites out there that let you send in or upload your flash work and it will get rated by other people.
-www.newgrounds.com
-www.flashplayer.com
Those are the most popular, but there are tons others. Just make sure you know the site your submitting to first. NG is lenient on what makes it through, but viewers have to vote it a certain score or else it gets deleted. FP has admins who view the work before placing it on their website. They are more strict about it and require better work. So, submit your work accordingly.
Getting Better!
If you've saved all of your old work, go back and watch it, always good for a nice laugh, seeing how much better you are now. Now that you've been working hard and made new material I bet you're noticing how much faster you are picking new concepts up. Now it's time to start on the more advanced concepts Flash has to offer. Now, the problem is, I don't believe there are quite as man advanced Flash tutorials as there are beginner, but that doesn't mean they aren't out there! You just need to search around a little more.
Actionscript.org- This is geared towards the coding spectrum of Flash, but that's pretty much what you're looking for after you have all of your art down. Head down to the intermediate and advanced sections, looking for tutorials with the green "Mx 2004" text next to them. This shows that these tutorials are the most up to date with your current version (currently Flash Cool
Flashkit.com- When looking here, it's usually best to have in mind what you want to do, seeing as it is harder to find good tutorials on a big site like this, divided up into several different categories. If you don't know what you are looking for, then search around in the Math-Physics, Actionscripting, Interactivity, and Dynamic Content sections. It is important to note that Flash kit still has all the tutorials for the ancient Flash versions. So, when you go to a certain section, head to the pages in the back, because the tutorials are in version order. Right under the dividing line and to the left it says the Flash version. Look for Mx, Mx 2004, and 8 when getting good tutorials, everything else will be super out of date.
Xgen- Now is the time to start asking the resident experts on Xgen. Most likely, now that you're more advanced your questions haven't been asked before and will require alot more help to get you the answer.
Time To Hit The World Wide Web
So, you think you might have a potential fan base and you want a website for them? Well, this is the best time to start. Now that you're committed to the cause why not take it further? You pretty much know what you're doing and you are constantly impoving, someday you might be the next Xgen. But, first, you need to assess your current knowledge.
Is actionscript the only programming language you know? Or do you know CSS, HTML, and PHP? This is something you need to take into account when creating a site. If you enjoy learning new languages, then sit down for a few weeks and search all over the web (a good place to start is www.w3schools.com) for tutorials on those 3 languages. If you don't want to take that time, you can still just stick with Flash to create your site. Also, you need to think of the future. If you plan on this just being more of a practice site to learn what is involved, then stick with Flash, as it is what you know. If you think that by launching this site you are really going to hit big time, then it will benefit you later to learn these languages.
Pros and Cons of Flash- On the pros side, it is what you know, and if used correctly, the interactivity will look appealing. On the cons, with a webpage, it is easy to screw up and go overboard. Also, everytime you want to make an update, you have to edit it in Flash then export it, then upload it, then change the HTML file with the correct version. Takes alot longer.
Pros and Cons of other alternatives- With these languages, it is ALOT easier to make updates to your site, just a matter of typing in new text. However, if you don't know these languages yet, it's like starting over with Flash.
If you are taking the Flash route-
All you need to do is make each keyframe a different page on your website and make the navigation buttons link to the corresponding frame.
If you are taking the non-Flash route-
Make an interesting animated header, or some interactive menus in Flash, then just put them in place with your other scripting