Pyskool 0.2.2 is ready. Visit the download page to grab a copy.

Version 0.2.2 contains several bugfixes and new features, and is a highly recommended upgrade. Chief among the new features are:

• Eric is paralysed and expelled after jumping out of the top-floor window
• Albert alerts Mr Wacker if he spots Eric trying to escape
• Mr Wacker shadows Eric after being alerted by Albert
• Mr Withit does assembly duty
• Miss Take chases Eric out of the girls’ skool if she spots him there when it’s not playtime

These things add up to make Back to Skool mode functionally complete. I think. I encourage everyone to try it out and see if they can spot anything I’ve missed.

So if Back to Skool mode really is done, what’s next? From an end-user perspective, mostly boring stuff, probably. Tidying up the code. Documenting the code. Moving what data is currently embedded in the code out into the ini files (where it should be, so you can easily change it). Optimising the code (especially the sprite-drawing routines). Oh, and fixing bugs found along the way, of course.

I do also have a couple of ideas for simple ready-made example customisations; they might find their way into the next release, or possibly the one after. I am also considering adding features such as an in-game menu, a demo mode, and the ability to save and restore games, but that stuff could be a long time coming. If you have any interesting new feature ideas, let me know.

For now, please put Back to Skool mode through its paces and smoke out the bugs. (The cheat keys are still operational, by the way; see the previous post for details.) Let’s make Pyskool a solid platform for developing new Skool-based games!