Archives

Twice a month, we revisit some of our readers’ favorite posts from throughout the history of Activetuts+. This tutorial was first published in Dec, 2010. In this tutorial you’ll build an extreme particle system whilst learning how to squeeze mo…

It’s rare, but it happens. Sometimes you absolutely need to extend a class, and that class does not already extend EventDispatcher. At the same time, you absolutely need your class to be an EventDispatcher. Because ActionScript 3 does not allow m…

We’ve looked previously at adding our own tools to Unity’s editor; now, in this short tutorial, I’ll introduce you to handling the assets by script in Unity. We’ll manage paths, create prefab files, generate a texture and save i…

In the previous video I showed you how to implement basic playback controls. Today I am going to talk about using labels to mark and navigate to precise locations in a TimelineLite. Labels in TimelineLite work similarly to how frame labels work in Flas…

The shell game is a cliché of street corners in black and white movies and modern cities: the hustler puts a pea under one of three shells, and swaps the shells around rapidly, challenging you to pick the shell with the pea underneath. The punter will…

We’re excited to let you know that now, in addition to Twitter and Facebook, you can get involved with the Activetuts+ community over at Google+! We’ll be using Google+ to let you know about our latest tutorials, competitions, and Tuts+ new…

It’s that time of month again! If you’re a fan of the Activetuts+ Facebook page, you can now access a new bonus tutorial. In this month’s Facebook Fan Bonus, you’ll learn how to create a dynamic “Accordion” menu. Fin…

Today, you will learn how to remove the background color from a sprite sheet using AS3, and blit the result to a bitmap canvas. Read on to learn more! Final Result Preview Let’s take a look at the final result we will be working towards: Step 1: …

The Starling Framework is an AS3 API that mimics the display list, with one crucial difference: it uses Flash Player 11′s new features to render all content by the GPU. In this tutorial, you will learn to add multiple animations to a sprite using…

In the last tutorial, we introduced FlashPunk and its capabilities. Now it’s time to build a game with it! We’ll build a top-down, mouse-controlled shoot-’em-up, with a title screen and a game over screen. Read on to learn more……

In the previous session I went over how to create a basic TimelineLite. Today I will show you the methods and properties that you will use to control the playback of your TimelineLite. By combining these methods and properties you can extend the built …

Twice a month, we revisit some of our readers’ favorite posts from Activetuts+ history. This week’s retro-Active tutorial, first published in April, is a guide to Euclidean vectors: what they are, why you’d use them, and how to implement them…

I recently bought my first Bamboo, a Wacom tablet that recognises letters from shapes drawn with the stylus. It tickled memories of my first experience with gesture-controlled application: using mouse gestures, web browsers such as Maxthon (and later O…

Have you ever dived right in to developing a game, but found yourself having to constantly change aspects of the design or the gameplay due to a lack of planning? You should consider using a game design document: a guiding vision of the game as a whole…

Today, we’ll review the Orbis Ring Flash a ring flash designed to fit onto any flashgun in order to transform the harsh light into softer and more beautiful light.

What is it?
Orbis is a non-electrical attachment that you simply slip your flas…

In the first part of this series we took a general look at the capabilities of TimelineLite. In this video I’ll show you how to get up and running with your first TimelineLite animation. You’ll learn about the various methods and properties…

TimelineLite is the ultimate tool for creating elaborate and precise sequences of scripted animation. It is an integral part of the GreenSock Tweening Platform that allows you to make the most of TweenLite and TweenMax. This series of screencasts will …

QR codes are everywhere these days: magazine advertisements, billboards, even TV commercials. Chances are you have a phone in your pocket that can read a QR code and decode the URL or message contained within. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how t…

A very common ActionScript error is Error 1120, the “undefined property” error. In fact, this may be the most common compile-time error. Its cause is very simple, but there are a number of ways it can actually be induced. We’ll take a…

In this Quick Tip you will learn how to make a simple points system that can be extended into your own games. This tutorial is for total beginners, and in it you’ll learn how to create a set of buttons that the player can click to add or subtract…

Games are becoming ever more popular, especially casual games on mobile devices and tablets. In these games, the importance of leaderboards is multiplied – and game developers need a simple cross-platform solution for this. In this tutorial we wi…

In this tutorial we’ll introduce scoring with and more complex gameplay with a variety of different pickups to collect, some hindering the player and some providing speed boosts. We’ll also introduce a countdown Timer complete with a HUD di…

In this tutorial you’ll learn how to extend the Unity3D’s editor so you can make better use of it in your project. You’ll learn how to draw your own gizmo, create and delete objects in code, create editor windows, use components, and …

Each month, we bring together a selection of the best tutorials and articles from across the whole Tuts+ network. Whether you’d like to read the top posts from your favourite site, or would like to start learning something completely new, this is…

In the first part of this series, you learned the basics of using JavaScript and the canvas element to make a very simple HTML5 avoider game. But it’s too simple – the single enemy doesn’t even move – there’s no challenge!…

It’s quiz time! This month, let’s see how well you know your acronyms. AS3, OOP, HTTP, OMG! Let’s Get Quizzy Just So You Know… This quiz was built with the jQuizzy Quiz Engine by Siddharth, ace reviewer for Envato. jQuizzy is av…

We love the community of readers we have at Tuts+ and your opinion is incredibly valuable. This week, we’re giving you the chance to have your say about Tuts+, and win a few fantastic prizes at the same time! Read on to find out how to get involv…

For this chapter of AS3 101, we will be diving into the mechanics of the Flash event system. If you’ve been following along so far, you’ll have seen events in use, dating all the way back to the first episode of the series. The editor and I…

In this two-part mini series, you’ll learn how to create a Flash spaceship game, where the main control is via the microphone: shout louder to make your ship fly higher, to try to avoid the obstacles that appear on the screen. In this first part,…

Twice a month, we revisit some of our readers’ favorite posts from throughout the history of Activetuts+. This week’s retro-Active tutorial, first published in October 2010, is an introduction to object-oriented programming in AS3. Don’t forg…

Fans of the Activetuts+ Facebook page can now access a new bonus tutorial – in this month’s Facebook Fan Bonus, you’ll learn how to remove the background color from a sprite sheet using AS3, and blit the result to a bitmap canvas. Fin…

I can’t tell you how many articles and tutorials I have come across on how to use symbols in Flash that immediately dismiss the graphic symbol as having no practical purpose, relegating it as just a step above grouping items. This article will at…

In this Quick Tip, you’ll learn how to construct a reference to a class from a String, and then create an instance of that class, using a built-in AS3 function called getDefinitionByName(). You’ll also learn the best methods for using this …

Hey folks! I’m Jordan McNamara, the Community Manager for Envato and I wanted to share some exciting news with you about the Envato Marketplaces. The 12th of September was an exciting day for me as a member of our thriving Marketplace community. …

Designers vs. developers – it is an argument as old as computers. The truth is, though, neither can live without the other. A brilliant UI design is as worthless without functionality as is the best piece of code with an ugly, unusable frontend. …

In the first two parts of this series, we created two simple types of object, rendered using Flash’s display list. In this part, we’ll see how to extend this to let us create as many different types of object as we want, without our code ge…

Premium members, rejoice! It’s time for another Activetuts+ Premium tutorial. This time, you’ll learn how to use forward kinematics to create a robotic arm – in this case, the example is for an excavator, but you can use the technique…

Twice a month, we revisit some of our best posts from throughout the history of Activetuts+. This week’s retro-Active post as originally posted on the 8th of November, 2010; since then we’ve seen Microsoft announce that Windows 8 will suppo…

We’ll be looking at how to create a XMPP chat application that can be used in many different scenarios. You’ll learn how to integrate an external database with Ignite Realtime’s Openfire Jabber Server and how to use the XIFF library t…

It’s Premium tutorial time! In this tutorial, available exclusively to members of Tuts+ Premium, you’ll learn how to create your own version of the classic Whack-a-Mole game – only, our unfortunate creatures of choice will be worms. Y…

In this tutorial, we will draw a selection rectangle with the mouse (as seen in strategy games such as StarCraft and Command and Conquer), and we will also learn how to select units with the rectangle! Final Result Preview Let’s take a look at th…

We’re immensely pleased to announce that, after months of waiting, a new member of the AppStorm network has landed: Windows.AppStorm! Read on to find out more about what this fantastic new site has to offer… Complimenting Mac.AppStorm, Web.AppS…

Are you an RIA developer? Do you make Flash games or Unity games? Do you know some cool tips or techniques that you’re always surprised your colleagues don’t know? You sound like the perfect person to contribute to Activetuts+! We’re …

ActiveDen’s latest community-organised contest has just taken place. The theme was “Widget/Apps” and we had a number of outstanding entries, with $1,450 prize money up for grabs. We had a lot of fun with the contest and are thrilled t…

Last reminder: These courses start tomorrow! Artificial intelligence is a popular programming topic, with obvious applications in game development, and machine learning is a branch of AI focused on creating code that can learn based on past experiences…

Here’s the concluding part of our tutorial about creating a multi-state car using a finite state machine. In this part, you will see how easy it is to add more states as well as new features to the car. When finished, you’ll know exactly ho…

MAX is Adobe’s annual conference, where they announce their new products and acquisitions, and give us all an idea of their current strategy. Last year they announced Flash’s 3D API, codenamed Molehill (now called Stage3D); AIR for TV; Edge…

Good news, everyone. Everybody who works with arrays and vectors – so, all developers – will enjoy the new opportunities: since the late August 2011 build of Flash, Realaxy ActionScript Editor (RASE) supports the new Collections AS3 langua…

MAX is Adobe’s annual conference, where they announce their new products and acquisitions, and give us all an idea of their current strategy. Last year they announced Flash’s 3D API, codenamed Molehill (now called Stage3D); AIR for TV; Edge…

Each month, we bring together a selection of the best tutorials and articles from across the whole Tuts+ network. Whether you’d like to read the top posts from your favourite site, or would like to start learning something completely new, this is…