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 (Feature Request 2.3+) Better .swf flash conversion using seqences

Kaliam

Member
Hello!

I am currently doing work for a team which is converting some older flash products to different platforms. As most of you probably know, flash is being phased out of all major web browsers due to adobe ending security updates for the software.

This is where gamemaker comes in, gamemaker has a .swf file importer which is great for importing vector graphics and even flash animations. We are currently working on a project which is full of characters and cutscenes which have sub objects that self animate, like ears, tails, or even additional background characters all done in flash. Because all GM is doing is converting said vector graphic into vertex buffers, GM currently doesn't support nested objects that self animate. However, the new sequences asset does support this kind of functionality and also compatible with imported .swf animations.

This got me thinking, our plan is to import all the self animating sub objects from flash and reassemble them as GM sequences. However, if this functionality could be implemented in an updated .swf importer that would be a godsend. Sequences as far as I can tell support everything .swf does, self-animating sprites with matrix and color transformations done frame by frame, it seems that if GM imported flash objects as sprites, all the flash animations could be imported as sequences which would not only give you the ability to edit them, but also export them to virtually any platform!

This alone would basically make GM the standard for rebuilding flash games and products. My team has tried using other engines like Unity and I Unreal and almost all the plugins for those engines are either outdated or don't support this kind of functionality.

This is all a bit of a long shot request, but as far as I can tell, vector graphics in GM haven't been updated since before the release of GMS2, so it seems to me that an update wouldn't be out of place. It would also be great to get support for other vector file types and maybe even more advanced vector rendering with support for curves and other features. One can hope!
 
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