Editing Custom level creation/Getting started

{{Breadcrumbs|Alpha Branch|Custom level creation}}
== Preparation ==
# Use your favorite <code>git</code> tool to fork the main <code>tc_campaign</code> repository from https://github.com/Stuffe/tc_campaign.
# Make sure the game is closed and that Steam has completed it's cloud sync (if enabled).
# Navigate to your game installation directory in your OS' file system (eg: Explorer in Windows, Finder in MacOS).
#* In Steam, you can right-click Turing Complete in your library list and select Properties → Installed Files → Browse.
# Delete the existing <code>campaign</code> directory.  You can back it up first if you like, or just trust Steam's ''Verify integrity of game files'' functionality to repair everything if needed.
# Clone your fork: <code>git clone https://<your repository>/tc_campaign.git campaign</code>

You should now be able to start Turing Complete with your newly-cloned campaign files.

{{note|type=warn|It is highly recommended that you push changes to your repository regularly in order to avoid Steam updates overwriting files unexpectedly, or otherwise conflicting with your work.}}

== Getting started ==
The easiest starting point is to copy an existing level that is similar in style to what you're trying to create.

Each level is stored in a separate directory containing several files:
* [[circuit.data|<code>circuit.data</code>]] is the default level layout, allowing the inclusion of locked (red) components, suggested components, etc.
* [[meta.txt|<code>meta.txt</code>]] contains the bulk of the level metadata including the level's display name, level log text, level dimensions, default assembly ISA, default assembly code, and several other bits of data.
* [[ui.txt|<code>ui.txt</code>]] contains metadata regarding images and text properties (font, size, etc.) used in the display panel at the bottom of the screen.
* [[test.si|<code>test.si</code>]] is the code the game will run to initialize and perform testing of the player's circuits.

== Naming conventions ==
Your new level directory should be named in all lowercase, with words separated by underscores (<code>_</code>), a style known as "snake case".  This is to ensure maximum compatibility across platforms.

The level's display name (from [[meta.txt|<code>meta.txt</code>]]) does not have to be related to the directory name (for example, the ''Storage Cracker'' level is located in the directory <code>binary_search</code>).  It is of course more convenient for everybody if the display name and the directory name are correlated in an obvious manner.

== The console ==
Several steps throughout the level creation process will require you to input commands into the game's console.  To access the console, first open the main menu by clicking the "hamburger" icon (☰) in the upper left corner and then press <code>q</code>.  A small console window will appear int he upper right where you can enter any required commands.  More details about the console can be found at [[The game console|The game console]].