Sprites Resources - ClanLib Game SDK

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## Sprites Resources

### Resource options

The sprite resource options is a plethora of possibilities to tweak a sprites looks and behaviours, but all of them have default values. In most cases you will only need to use the basic options.

Each sprite can have the following properties:

    <sprite
    	name="my_sprite"
    	description="resource_containing_shared_description_data"
    	pack_texture="[yes,no]"
    	base_angle="angle"
    	id="id">

    	<!-- Frame image loading: -->

    	<image file="filename" />

    	<image file="filename">
    		<grid
    			pos="x,y"
    			size="width,height"
    			array="tiles_x,tiles_y"
    			array_skipframes="skip_count"
    			spacing="width,height" />
    	</image>

    	<image file="filename">
    		<palette
    			pos="x,y" />
    	</image>

    	<image file="image4.png">
    		<alpha
    			pos="x,y"
     			free="true"
    			trans_limit="limit" />
    	</image>

    	<!-- Sprite render and animation states: -->

    	<color
    		red="red_component"
    		green="green_component"
    		blue="blue_component"
    		alpha="alpha_component" />

    	<animation
    		speed="speed"
    		loop="[yes,no]"
    		pingpong="[yes,no]"
    		direction="[backward,forward]
    		on_finish="[blank,last_frame,first_frame]" />

    	<scale x="scale_x" y="scale_y" />

    	<translation
    		origin="[top_left, top_center, top_right,
    		         center_left, center, center_right,
    		         bottom_left, bottom_center, bottom_right]"
    		x="offset_x"
    		y="offset_y" />

    	<rotation
    		origin="[top_left, top_center, top_right,
    		         center_left, center, center_right,
    		         bottom_left, bottom_center, bottom_right]"
    		x="offset_x"
    		y="offset_y" />

    	<frame
    		nr="frame_number"
    		speed="frame_delay"
    		x="offset_x"
    		y="offset_y" />

    </sprite>

Only the name attribute of <sprite> and at least one <image> element is required to construct a sprite. The remaining elements and attributes are optional.

### Using the <image> element

The first step in setting up a sprite is telling the resource loader where it should get the images for all the frames. This is done specifying one or more <image> elements. Each <image> element specify an image from where one or several frames should be extracted:

- If there is no child element in <image>, it will simply take the entire image and add it as one large frame.
- If the child element is <grid> it will use the grid cutter in CL_SpriteDescription to extract a set of frames placed in a grid in the image file.
- If the child is <alpha> the alpha cutter will be used instead. The alpha cutter uses the alpha channel to find frames separated with pure alpha (within trans_limit).
- Then there is the <palette> child element. This method adds frames separated with palette-colours defining the boundaries.

If you have many sprites that are using the same frames for its animation, you can use the description attribute on the <sprite> element to use the frames from an other sprite resource.

### Setting up render and animation

The remaining elements <color>, <animation>, <scale>, <translation> and <rotation> alter the default values of the CL_Sprite render and animation properties.

<frame> sets up properties for a specific frame.

### Sprite resource options reference

<sprite>

- Attribute name: Name of resource.

  Valid values:
  Default value: None, MUST BE PRESENT.

- Attribute description: Resource identifier of other resource to use as base for this sprite.

  Valid values: "string" - Resource ID of other sprite resource
  Default value: Don't use any other sprite resource as base.

- Attribute pack_texture: When pack_texture is enabled CL_Sprite will pack as many frames as it can into the same texture object.

  Valid values: "yes, no" - Enable or disable texture packing
  Default value: yes

- Attribute base_angle: Defines what direction the sprite is in. All other angles are relative to this one.

  Valid values:
  Default value: "0"

- Attribute id: Sets the sprite identify retrievable via CL_Sprite::get_id().

  Valid values:
  Default value: "0"

<image>

- Attribute file: Image filename.

  Valid values:
  Default value: None, MUST BE PRESENT.

<grid>

- Attribute pos: Position in image to start grid-cutting.

  Valid values: "integer, integer" - x-position, y-position
  Default value: "0, 0"

- Attribute size: Size of each grid-tile.

  Valid values: "integer, integer" - width, height
  Default value: "1, 1"

- Attribute array: Grid-size.

  Valid values: "integer, integer" - width, height
  Default value: None, MUST BE PRESENT.

- Attribute array_skipframes: How many frames to skip at end of last gridline.

  Valid values: "integer" - frames to skip
  Default value: "0"

- Attribute spacing: Space between each grid-tile.

  Valid values: "integer, integer" - x-spacing, y-spacing
  Default value: "0, 0"

<palette>

- Attribute pos: Position in image to start palette-cutting.

  Valid values:
  Default value: "0, 0"

<alpha>

- Attribute pos: Position in image to start alpha-cutting.

  Valid values: (integer,integer)
  Default value: "0, 0"

- Attribute free: Use the "Free Alpha Cutter".

  The default alpha cutter finds columns of sprites, all of which have the same height and variable width. The "Free Cutter" identifies all rectangular non alpha blocks of pixels and puts them on a single frame. The algorithms starts at the top left corner (or the specified position) and scans the image line by line, from top to bottom.

  Valid values: blank, true
  Default value: blank

- Attribute trans_limit: Transparency limit.

  Valid values: "float" - between 0.0 and 1.0
  Default value: "0.05"

<color>

- Attributes red, green, blue, alpha: Color.

  Sets the red, green, blue and alpha color components of the sprite.

  Valid values: "float" - between 0.0 and 1.0
  Default values: 1.0, 1.0, 1.0, 1.0

<animation>

- Attribute speed: Default frame delay.

  This sets the delay between each frame. You can override separate frames using frameX_speed (see below). Value is in milliseconds.

  Valid values: integer
  Default value: 50

- Attribute loop: Loop the animation.

  Set it to loop if you want the animation to loop after it has reached end of of the animation.

  Valid values: "yes, no" - Enable or disable looping.
  Default value: "yes"

- Attribute pingpong: Pingpong the animation.

  Set it to pingpong if you want the animation to play back to start once it has reached the end of the animation.

  Valid values: "yes, no" - Enable or disable pingpong.
  Default value: "no"
- Attribute direction: Direction of animation.

  Set it to backwards if you want the animation to play backwards - starts at last frame, and plays forward to first frame.

  Valid values: "backward, forward" - Play the animation backwards or forwards.
  Default value: "forward"
- Attribute on_finish: What to show when animation is finished.

  Specify what is shown when the animation is finished. Blank shows nothing, last_frame shows last frame in animation, first_frame shows first frame in animation. If you use looping, this option has no effect.

  Valid values: blank, last_frame, first_frame - one of the 3 options
  Default value: blank

<scale>

- Attributes x and y: Scale.

  Sets the x and y scale of the sprite. A value of 1.0 is the normal size, 2.0 is double the size, etc.

  Valid values: (float, float)
  Default value: (1.0, 1.0)

<translation>

- Attribute origin: Hotspot/alignment for translation operations.

  This is which pixel will go at the location specified with CL_Sprite::draw. So if your sprite has origin=top_left (the default), and you call, say, my_sprite.draw(50, 100), the very top left hand pixel will be placed at (50, 100) and the rest of the sprite drawn around that. If you have origin=center then the centermost pixel will be placed at (50, 100) and the rest of the picture drawn around that.

  Valid values: top_left, top_center, top_right, center_left, center, center_right, bottom_left, bottom_center, bottom_right
  Default value: top_left

- Attributes x and y: This is how far from the origin the picture should be placed.

  x=50 will draw the picture 50 pixels right of where it would normally go. Note that this does take into account the value of origin.

  Valid values: integer
  Default value: 0

<rotation>

- Attribute origin: Hotspot/alignment for rotation operations.

  This is the pixel that will stay where it is when you rotate the image. By default this is the center, so any rotations will leave the center pixel where it is and rotate the rest of the image around it. If you want to rotate about the top left corner set this to top_left, etc.

  Valid values: top_left, top_center, top_right, center_left, center, center_right, bottom_left, bottom_center, bottom_right
  Default value: center

- Attributes x and y: This is how far to offset the hotspot from the origin.

  Valid values: integer
  Default value: 0

<frame>

- Attribute speed: Override default speed for this specific frame.

  Value is in milliseconds.

  Valid values: integer
  Default value: play_speed

- Attributes x and y: Offset to display this frame.

  This let you set a position-offset on a frame, finetuning its position relative to the other frames.

  Valid values: (integer, integer) - x-position, y-position
  Default value: (0, 0)

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