Pests is a game developed by [Your Name/Studio Name] for the OneGameAMonth contest in 2012. This document provides an overview of the game, its features, and how to play.

Pests is a fast-paced 2D arcade shooter. The player controls a character navigating a tile-based map, battling waves of enemies that spawn from pipes.

Core Mechanics:

• Combat: Players use a gun (fired in 4 directions) and bombs to defeat enemies. Contact with enemies results in player death.
• Collectibles:
  • Pills: Collecting pills can trigger a screen-clearing effect, eliminating some enemies on screen. The primary score is based on the number of pills collected.
  • Energy: Dropped by defeated enemies, though their exact function isn't fully detailed in the available code.
• Enemies: Various enemy types exist, with some actively pursuing the player.
• Levels & Progression: The game features multiple levels. A "reality increase effect" seems to influence when new pills appear on the map.
• Scoring: Performance is tracked, and high scores are recorded. Achievements are available for platforms like Newgrounds and Gamejolt.
• Visuals: The game incorporates dynamic lighting and visual effects like screen glitches.

• [List current features if known, otherwise remove this line]
• Planned features:
  • Improved rocket mechanics (Bezier path)
  • New enemy types:
    • Following enemy
    • Firing enemy
    • Sinusoidal enemy
    • Tower-style enemy (not moving)
    • Target enemy
  • Graphical improvements for the floor
  • Ship improvements:
    • Loop attack
  • In-game help system:
    • Out of fuel simulation
    • Initial energy boost

Navigate the levels, defeat enemies, and collect pills to achieve a high score!

Controls:

• Movement:
  • W or Z: Move Up
  • S: Move Down
  • A or Q: Move Left
  • D: Move Right
• Shooting:
  • Arrow Up: Fire Up
  • Arrow Down: Fire Down
  • Arrow Left: Fire Left
  • Arrow Right: Fire Right
• Bomb:
  • E: Use Bomb

Objective:

• Survive as long as possible.
• Collect pills to increase your score and trigger helpful effects.
• Defeat enemies to clear the path and collect energy.
• Avoid contact with enemies, as this will result in game over.

This project is an ActionScript-based game developed with the FlashPunk library. To build and run it, you'll generally need an ActionScript development environment and the Apache Flex SDK.

Prerequisites:

• Apache Flex SDK: Download and set up the Apache Flex SDK, which includes the mxmlc compiler needed to compile ActionScript code.
• Flash Player: You'll need a Flash Player environment to run the compiled .swf file. This could be a web browser with the Flash plugin (though support is largely deprecated) or a standalone Flash Player projector.

General Build Steps (using mxmlc from the Flex SDK):

1. Set up your environment: Ensure the Flex SDK bin directory is in your system's PATH or call mxmlc using its full path.

2. Identify the main application file: This is likely src/Pests.as or src/Preloader.as.

3. Compile the project: You would typically run a command similar to this from the root of the project:

   # Example command (paths and main class might need adjustment)
   mxmlc src/Pests.as -library-path+=lib/as3corelib.swc -library-path+=lib/NewgroundsAPI.swc -source-path+=src/ -o Pests.swf

   • src/Pests.as: Replace with the actual main application file if different.
   • -library-path+=lib/as3corelib.swc: Links the as3corelib library.
   • -library-path+=lib/NewgroundsAPI.swc: Links the Newgrounds API library.
   • -source-path+=src/: Adds the src directory to the source path so the compiler can find all .as files.
   • -o Pests.swf: Specifies the output file name.

4. Asset Handling: The game uses an Assets.as file (src/game/Assets.as), which likely uses [Embed] meta-tags to include graphics, sounds, and fonts directly into the SWF. The compiler should handle these automatically. The level files (.tmx) are also likely embedded or loaded at runtime.

Alternative: Using an IDE:

• You can import this project into an IDE like FlashDevelop, IntelliJ IDEA (with Flash/Flex support), or historically Adobe Flash Builder.
• These IDEs would typically allow you to configure the Flex SDK and manage the build process through their UI, simplifying the compilation. You would need to set up the main class, library paths, and source paths within the IDE's project settings.

Running the Game:

• Once you have the Pests.swf file, you can open it with a standalone Flash Player projector or embed it in an HTML page and open it in a browser that still supports Flash (increasingly rare).

Note: Without a specific build script in the repository, these are general guidelines. You may need to adjust paths and compiler options based on your specific Flex SDK setup and the project's exact configuration.

• FlashPunk: The primary game development library used for this project.
• as3corelib: A library containing common ActionScript utilities.