Minetest_game: Add fireflies mod

[paramat]

Or a variant of it.
https://github.com/Ezhh/fireflies

Fireflies were one of the 4 mobs in Minetest 0.3 http://wiki.minetest.com/wiki/Mobs#Firefly
"Fireflies are currently useless. You can currently only pick them up and release them"

• We want to add mobs to MTGame, i am considering adding a simple Oerkki mob, fireflies would be an ideal 'friendly mob' as the counterpart to the Oerkki, also being suitable for the history of MT.
• This adds a mob in a very lightweight way.
• Although mobs cannot light up the environment, these can because they are decorations.
• While the original fireflies were 'useless', this mod adds a use as a cute light source.
• This light source also adds a use for bottles from vessels mod. The bugnet adds a use for string.

The original fireflies were releasable, maybe we can allow release which will place the free firefly in the environment? Ideal for creating an atmosphere, and gentle illumination, somewhere.

I guess the fireflies should be optional, but by setting or by a future engine feature of being able to disable game mods?

[Ezhh]

The version I've released is 100% MTG compatible with no other depends at the moment, and I'd be happy to look at adding a way to release them from the bottles as well (shouldn't be difficult).

One thing we might consider is looking for an alternative net texture, since though I have direct agreement from tenplus1 to use his in this mod, it would mean using the texture from an item in a very well known mod for something in MTG, so it might be confusing for players on servers.

Happy to take feedback if anything else needs adjusting.

[Fixer-007]

It is not really a mob, but a nice decoration, since it does not really move and can't be acted upon apart from catching, I see a nice use for it, aka configurable light sources - bottles with fireflies (catching more flies with bottle increases its brightness).

[rubenwardy]

Looks very nice! As for optional, I don't see a need for a setting. People can just delete the mod or use another mod to disable them

[Megaf]

https://github.com/Ezhh/fireflies should be make default in MTG.
And rats could get back to MTG too since we are at it.

[Ezhh]

I think as long as something is a separate mod, an option isn't needed.

Since this seems to have some support, I'm happy to work on tidying it up a bit more and will make a PR (probably on the weekend).

[TekhnaeRaav]

This looks amazing, love it! Totally original. :+1:
If this takes any processing it should be readily optional though.

[Ezhh]

@TekhnaeRaav It's designed to be very light. Placement is on mapgen as a decoration. The fireflies themselves are simply a plantlike node with a very basic animated texture.

[JurajVajda]

good idea, simple, nice and compliments MT ..just do it!

[ghost]

@Ezhh's version relies on having waving nodes turned on, however.

[paramat]

It doesn't rely on waving but cleverly uses it for extra movement if it's enabled.

I also see no need for a setting.

I suggest possibly using a 32 frame animation for more vertical movement and movement complexity.

[Ezhh]

@paramat Yes, I can look at adding frames. Would you also be willing to look at the register_decoration part to check if "place_on " or "biomes" should be adjusted? You know the MTG biomes far better than I do. :)

[paramat]

Yes.

[TumeniNodes]

yay, "glow jam"

I love this idea. Would add some life to the current game.
Maybe it could be tied into boosting moral in the future? (who doesn't feel happy seeing fireflies?)

[Ezhh]

I'm predicting a "glow_jam" mod with fireflies sitting in depends.txt somewhere in the future? :)

[C1ffisme]

I like it. The warm glow of the fireflies at night gives off a different atmosphere compared to Minecraft's dark, scary mob infested night.

[paramat]

2034 merged.