Tools and Resources

Code Editor

Code editors let you write code more efficiently than a normal text editor. While you can use Windows notepad, you really want something with line numbers and integrated access to the file system. The specific code editor you use doesn’t really matter, but my recommendation is Visual Studio Code.

Syntax highlighting

Naturally, you probably want pretty colors for your code editor. If you’re using VS Code, you can use my vsc-catspeak extension, which is also used by this site. TabularElf has a highlighter for Notepad++ if that’s better for you.

global.hello = fun(msg) {
  show_message(msg)
}
global.hello("Howdy!")

Undertale Mod Tool

Undertale Mod Tool (UTMT or UMT) is a tool for inspecting the source code of Rusted Moss (and other GameMaker games). While you can use Undertale Mod Tool to make mods, we don’t need to (and there are boring technical reasons why we can’t). I recommend reading my docs for more information.

GameMaker Long Term Service

Rusted Moss runs on an older version of GameMaker (2022.9.X), which is very similar to the current long term service version. Instead of accessing the normal monthly version of the manual, you’ll want to use the LTS manual. It’s not significantly different, but there are functions that aren’t available.

I highly recommend installing GameMaker as a way to verify behavior. Because of boring technical reasons, it can be useful to sanity-check GameMaker functionality in a more isolated environment.

Catspeak Documentation

Catspeak is slightly different than GML, so I recommend skimming over the language documentation at least once. Also, Catspeak has a handy list of every GameMaker function we have access to. This is especially useful since some variables, like room, are function calls (room_get()) in Catspeak.

I highly recommend installing Catspeak in an empty GameMaker project if you’re running into weird behavior. There are a lot of abstraction layers between the mod code we write and the engine; having an environment that removes a few of those layers is valuable.

Official Discord

The official Discord is probably the only English-speaking place on the internet where you can find other Rusted Moss modders. If you want to download mods, either for playing with or modding examples, this is the place. Mods are in the # mod-share channel.

Rusted Moss Mod Loader

Rusted Moss Mod Loader (RMML) is a tool built by me. It solves a few technical issues with modding and generally makes everything easier. You can also use RMML as a working example of how to bypass the normal mod loading system.