The best way I found to implement the touch controls was to have each side of the screen correspond to left and right respectively. this means the whole screen is a button. I did experiment with many different control methods, all of which worked OK for movement, but when I tried to add the jump button as well everything quickly fell apart. Turning the game into a nightmare to play!
So, after much consideration, I've decided to completely remove jumping all together. I know what you're thinking, how can a platformer not have a jump button? That's where the different powerups come into play.
I've come up with a few new ideas to make it more fun and less frustrating to play on a touch screen. By less frustrating I do not mean simpler, just easier to control. So don't worry, some of the later levels will still pose a considerable challenge!
The first new power up, and the one that will be replacing the jump is the "Bouncy Donut" This makes the player super bouncy for a short time, meaning that you can jump off a ramp and bounce considerably higher than before, meaning there can still be some platforming sections. It will be hard to refine this style so its still controllable but I'll give it my best shot!
The second power will be a flying power which will make the donut follow your finger as you move it around the screen. It will last for a few seconds then he will fall back down to the ground. This will be a great way of letting him move vertically through the levels as long as they are designed well enough to use this method of moving.
After you collect a power up for the first time it will get added to a list at the top of the screen which you can click on once per level to use the power up in any stage.
Some points in the level will also have objects you can interact with by clicking on them such as moving platforms or switches which control something in the level. hopefully having interactive areas of the level wont affect the movement controls...
one possible object could be a magnet of sorts which propels the donut towards it.
A new power up which gives your donut a metal coating which not only makes you invulnerable to enemy attacks but also lets you gravitate towards magnets which could be placed around the level.
I wrote this the other day, and now i'm thinking it might be good to just scrap the game as it is now, and start a fresh, clear out everything that isn't used, fix all the problems with the powerups not working properly, start with some proper menus and levels...
I'm just rambling now... So i'll stop... enjoy some photos of the game running on my phone!
