FAQ: When Should I Use Flash Scenes Instead of Keyframes?

Question: FAQ: When Should I Use Flash Scenes Instead of Keyframes?

When creating navigable content, sometimes it's easier to create each screen of differentiated content in a single frame and use Actionscripting to move between the frames as needed. But when is it better to use a separate scene over a separate frame?

Answer: The answer really depends on the complexity of your content. If the first frame of your Flash movie is a navigation screen with, say, three simple options in which each option doesn't require any additional navigation, you can easily place those options on frames two, three, and four - for example, if you've created a Q&A that requires users to click the right answer before navigating to the next question.

But let's look at a more complex scenario. Let's say you've created a dungeon RPG game, in which each screen is actually a room, and each room gives the user multiple options to choose from - options which will transport them to another room. In this case each screen may contain more complex interactive objects or changing states than one can easily fit in a frame without making a mess of layers and layer folders, especially if there are things that can also be done inside the room beyond choosing a portal to another room. (For instance, if there are monsters to attack or objects to interact with, which change state on interaction.) In this case you'd want to make a separate scene for each room, and then use individual frames to break down user interaction within the room. You'd use ActionScripting to link the scenes.

In the end it's really up to your best judgment and your preferred workflows whether you use frames or scenes when creating interactive navigation - but using scenes for anything with nested navigation or interactivity can save you quite a bit of trouble in the end.