View Full Version : Game making engines
Pietersielie
20-06-2009, 04:18 PM
Hello all
I have been wondering what game making engine is the best I know GML a little and pascal and then some web development languages but I like making games and so for fun but which language is the best to make it in? I had XNA but don't know how it works I still need a tutorial for that.
ShadowMaster
20-06-2009, 04:41 PM
Pietersielie it depends on where you want your game to run and to an extent what type of game you want to make. For windows and possibly Xbox 360 game development you can't go wrong with C# and XNA. C# is a brilliant language and XNA a brilliant game engine.
For multiplatform games you can look at C/C++ and SDL or Python and PyGame. In this case I'd suggest going the Python route, as Python is easier to learn and use and as a bonus it's much quicker in terms of development time. I frequently write little python scripts to do things for me, because of how quick it is to write in.
That said, however, why do you not consider learning Game Maker properly and write a game or two in it. If you however start feeling limited, we're always here to help you move up the chain of harder and more unwieldy, but more powerful systems. But to be frank, don't consider jumping up the chain because you want to feel like more of a man. Programming is hard, managing objects is hard, making games is hard. Try Game Maker first, it makes things so much easier and you're so much more likely to end up with a game you can actually play, if you use it and not some other system.
Evolution
20-06-2009, 04:51 PM
The best FREE game making engine that requires no programming knowledge is Game Maker. Also the C++ compiler in Game Maker 8 will give it a better apeal to more experienced game developers. You will need more programming experience if you want to develop with XNA / C#. If you considering using XNA the best advice I can give is to get purchase a book and go through some of the tutorials on the XNA website. As you mentioned above that you wanted to create games for fun, in that case you should stick with Game Maker which handles most of the boring underlying stuff. If you got more time on your hands you can invest it in learning XNA, that's if you want to learn about what goes on under the hood. As for which language is the best... I would have to say C++, but only go this route if you realy plan on making it a job and have lots of spare time to learn the language and the tools required to make a game in it. Depending on how far you want to take this hobey will depend on what game making software you will use.
Pietersielie
20-06-2009, 05:38 PM
Thanks guys for the info I will first stick to GM but I would also really like to learn C++ and XNA
Fengol
20-06-2009, 05:40 PM
If you know C#, already have XNA and just looking for a tutorial Riemers XNA Tutorials (http://www.riemers.net/eng/Tutorials/XNA/Csharp/series1.php) are very good for breaking in 3D development; but I'd recommend Game Maker because it's dynamically typed like Python and has good built in functionality like: frame rate management, collision detection, path finding and sprite animation. It's also built on DirectX 8 and doesn't need prerequisite installs so games are easy to share and finally Game Maker is extensible so you can add your own libraries made in C++ or Delphi if you want to redefine a little more power for the platform.
ShadowMaster
20-06-2009, 07:49 PM
Thanks guys for the info I will first stick to GM but I would also really like to learn C++ and XNA
I'm not saying you shouldn't but if you want to make games stick to GM for a while until you get a solid grasp of the concepts and then you'll find switching to another engine much easier. :)
And a good suggestion for learning C++ or C# is to get a proper book on it. It's much easier than wading through thousands of half-baked tutorials.
Pietersielie
20-06-2009, 08:12 PM
Yeah I will not use tutorials again soon that is how I started javascript until I bought a book it is so much better than tutorials
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