Gluing and Best Practices

I'm still just learning and experimenting with the create tools. But let me paint you a picture...

I made a 3-layer deep door that slides up into the wall above it using a winch and a proximity switch. All works very well. Then I wanted to cover up the winch so I made a thin panel and glued it over the wall section above the door. But then the door was glued stuck as well. :( Because the door had to always be at least partway into the wall (otherwise the winch had a tendency to get stuck...) the only way I was able to make the panel was to embed two tiny pieces of dark matter into the thin cover panel. It worked out alright and I know I could have come up with other solutions eventually, but here's the real question for the post:

What are some "best practices" to use regarding gluing down or otherwise securing your levels?

I have continued problems with gluing the main floor down to the ground to keep it from accidentally sliding around. Then I tend to glue other things to it as I go along, very "organic." But I end up with one huge glued mess and I have to detach the whole thing from the floor to make even a minor change to some small attached piece. I'm pretty sure there is a more elegant way to go about level design...

I was getting good results using rods set to stiff and just anchoring the rod to a small piece on the ground. The rods never move or break, no matter what.

I can't help but wonder what processes Mm used. So many of their "set pieces" are their own objects (as shown through all the stuff you can collect). Do you think they develop individual sections, hazards, and other devices of the level independently and then put it all together?

What sort of methods or again "best practices" do you use when assembling your levels?

Well for the door When i want to cover things up, I do what you have done with the thin piece in the front but I make sure its small and does not touch the door or whatever that might move and just edit it. the corner editing tool is great because you just drag it over what you want to cover and it keeps all things working fine. That was a huge problem i had too till i figured this out now no problems and no glued messes :)

Ah! Yet another great use for the Corner Edit tool! That one sure is a winner! I'm curious though. When you're done with a level, is the whole level one big glued contraption? Or is it glued to the ground in smaller chunks somehow?

When I design a level, it's usually a big glued together chunk of mass in the sky. Gluing it to the ground seems to generate problems for me. I like to build my levels as I go, and as I build them I put a medium length piece of antigravity material around the border of the level (very close to touching the level's border, but NOT glued.) I find when I'm gluing objects to the level's surface, I acidentally end up moving the entire structure, and I can never get it back the way I wanted it. The anti gravity material borders keep your level from unintentional movement. Another thing I like to do is save almost every object I make, especially if it's a difficult one. I also save my progress (by hitting "Save Level" on the pause menu) after completing the design of a particularly difficult task, so if my level literally falls apart and dissolves, all I have to do is exit and load it up again.

I hope this info helps, I also find these techniques prevent common glitches, bugs, and pitfalls when it comes to level making.

Can't you just use bolts?

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Originally Posted by THE-FAT

Can't you just use bolts?

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Well for one I don't think you would want every foreground object bolted on (it looks weird unless that's the mechanical effect you're going for). Plus, bolts don't work to join objects on the same plane. And also, you can't use bolts to stick anything to the floor, which is one of the bigger issues with gluing.

2 words: GRID MODE

there you have it it really helps

Cheers!

If you glue something to something, I find the best way is if one of the items is a material, cut a very small section off the top of it, so they're no longer touching.