About Making A Game...

[ianfreddie07]

Ok I have questions about making all sorts of games... (You're speaking to a guy who's only 13, be nice)

1. Do I really have to learn programming languages (C++, BASIC) to make a game?

2. What do you think is a good 3D object maker and animator? I'm leaning to Blender.

3. Do you know any good game engines, or game creators (FREE)

4. Is FPS Creator really buggy?

5. What are the qualities of a good:

a. Simulation Game

b. FPS

Well that's all. Move the topic in case I put it in the wrong places.

[dosraider]

1) No you don't have to if you keep it simple, but if you really want to make more then basicgames you will have to, no pain no gain.

2) There are many, what fits you is usually the best.

3) A simple one to start with is ZZT. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZZT

4) Yes and no, try to push it beyond what it was meant for and you get some probs (as with all progs).

5)
a. Bring new elements whilst the game progress, start basic, not too much, unlock all kinds of interesting stuffies whilst the game advances. That's called a game learning curve.

b. Look@Doom (the first one). Start with a basic map, not too hard enemies in that, let the player discover allmost all he needs to know in it. Make it harder and harder whilst he progress in your game. Adding new enemies, weaps, goodies and traps must be spread over the game. Must have enough ammo, but again not too much, better a bit too sparse than in abundance. How heavier and effective the weap, how sparser the ammo for it. Don't exaggerate the secret areas.
Don't forget multiplay, certainly implement LAN also.

Golden rule for all those who want to create games:
Don't make it too easy, too easy is boring in gaming. Don't make it too hard, too hard is frustrating.
This is the must difficult equilibrium excercise you will have to accomplish, not too easy, not too hard.
Join a forum of gamemakers.(Plenty of them).

[The Fifth Horseman]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dosraider @ Aug 20 2007, 08:02 AM) 305582</div>
Golden rule for all those who want to create games:
Don't make it too easy, too easy is boring in gaming. Don't make it too hard, too hard is frustrating.
This is the must difficult equilibrium excercise you will have to accomplish, not too easy, not too hard.[/b]
Remember that the difficulty should be high enough to pose a challenge and give the player satisfaction for having accomplished something.

And do try to come up with several events/locations with a high "wow-factor" for players who get there for the first time. It always helps. ^_^

[dosraider]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ianfreddie07 @ Aug 20 2007, 05:32 AM) 305576</div>
3. Do you know any good game engines, or game creators (FREE)[/b]
How could I forget the easiest way to start free game creation, even if it's not from scratch.
Level editors for existing games.
Many games comes with level editors, or those can be found on TeH internet.
Think about Unreal, how many good levels/new artworks/mods aren't made for that one?
Give this site a look:
http://zzora.altervista.org/download.html#Zora
You can say they made almost a new game out of it. And to play those maps in COOP is a refference regarding what can be done with an old game.

Another one is (again) DOOM. More specially DEU (MSDos) and WinDEU (Windows) level editors.
Don't think it's an obsolete game, too old to put some effort in it.
All your levels can run in JDoom, DoomsdayHQ and other more modern ports.

And of course most old platformers have those editors. Look around for it, not hard to find, and usually with full manuals.

It's a good begin, creating levels for games, gives you an idea what it really is, making a game.
A long boring process of debugging and frustation.

[The Fifth Horseman]

Come to think of it, Abuse has a pretty extensive level editor - with lots and lots and lots of things you can do.

[Dave]

Did you visit Abandonia Reloaded?
If you have an idea I think you should visit it :ok:

[velik_m]

www.gamedev.net (http://www.gamedev.net) is a place to go.

gamemaker (http://www.yoyogames.com/make) might be of some interest to you.

1. Games are programs. Programing is making programs.

2. Blender is good. But 3d games might be out of your reach for now. Learn Blender, but start with something simpler (2d) as your first game.

3. There are a lot of them (just follow the links up there), but i have no idea if they are any good. I would second the idea to start with level editors. RTS games have some very good editors. Doom (or it's clones like hexen) is not a bad idea as it's simple 2.5D and has some scripting features.

4. no idea.

5. They're fun to play?

[ianfreddie07]

i'm also hanging to Game Maker for 2D games. i know those DooM WAD editors. DeePSea is good, but the shareware version only lets me save maps with 1000 linedefs. Doom Builder is a good alternative but I can't seem to find the texture picker so I can make doom maps easy.

[Blood-Pigggy]

1. Do I really have to learn programming languages (C++, BASIC) to make a game?

This is a question you ask yourself, are you prepared to? I had to learn basic C++ to start scripting with the Torque engine, and that's ALL it was, basic C++, now I'm totally pushing the engine making a traditional RPG with slight action elements in it, along the lines of KOTOR.
This is totally dependent on you, you can stick to the easy stuff and capitalize on other things, I used to like making a lot of platform games, and I was limited by my abilities related to scripting so they were relatively simple, but you work on the art and level design, story and simple gameplay mechanics, and you can make something far better than some nerd who spent 500 hours making his crappy pure C++ programmed roguelike in his basement.
It's not how MUCH work you put in, it's the quality of the work you do put in, therefore, your inquiry as to programming is entirely based on how much you believe you can do with it. When I started using the Torque engine, I found that using simple editors like Game Maker and Games Factory can do the same things with a certain amount of logic (in accordance to 2D games that is).

It's entirely subjective to what you want to do, and what scope you want, you can make absolutely massive games without a inkling of coding.
Just remember that it takes longer to do.

2. What do you think is a good 3D object maker and animator? I'm leaning to Blender.

Blender is nice, but make sure whatever you use has animating tools, I don't really do 3D games, by that I mean I usually don't work on the models and such (I got an outside modeler for the game I'm currently making on Reloaded) but you can make basic and good looking 3D models with a variety of tools out there.

You may look at game development sites and think "OMFG, how did they get such a fantastic model?" but the truth is that a variety of tools come with built in filters and templates that allow you to make Far Cry quality faces in a matter of minutes, it's turning less into skill and just finding a modeler with more features.
You can go that route if you want to make some fancy stuff, but you'll probably have to consider paying some cash or *gasp* piracy.

3. Do you know any good game engines, or game creators (FREE)

The Games Factory is good, for a starter, although getting a registration key is as easy as using Google, so you can have the full fledged version, and you can use Game Maker.
I suggest you try making complex games after you've done a few simple ones. Stay away from FPS titles, their simplicity will dilute you and then that's all you'll be making.
Believe me, it's a lot easier to fool people into thinking an FPS is good when it's not than any other game. It's strange considering games like Half-Life have been released, and people think drivel such as Far Cry is good, but I digress, it's all about the sort of games you make, but at least ATTEMPT to go beyond the boundaries with whatever engine you're using.

Make a Space Simulation game with Game Maker (very hard) or try constructing an RPG with FPS Creator (it is possible) just stretch the boundaries of the engine you're using, you'll find you can make far more high quality and interesting games through this method just because you had to pound your brain to make up some wacky concept to make it work, it's usually better than just some engine that says "here you go, take these tools for morons and make an RPG, all you have to do is the environment".

4. Is FPS Creator really buggy?

Yes it is, even if you're not messing with the scripting or doing anything weird, the engine itself is very buggy, there's clipping and weird irregularities, especially when editing weapons.

5. What are the qualities of a good:

a. Simulation Game

Realism isn't your first goal, neither is the illusion of it. You're first goal should be to create a gameplay model that feels "unusual" to the player, when you play Freespace 2, it feels extremely different from any other sim or any other first person game for that matter.
These types of games are really about style, IL-2 Sturmovik is a huge example, it's very arcadey, but the way its presented gives it a large feeling of realism.
Spend a lot of time figuring out what can make the model different.

Once you've set up flight mechanics for a flight sim, for example, try to make the "drift" feel strange, like it's airy.
I don't know how to explain this exactly, when I'm working on driving mechanics and flight mechanics for my game I always try to make them feel "weird" in a good way, it gives the player a reason to use different methods of transportation, for one thing. Not every vehicle or device feels the same.
Operation Flashpoint is a big example of this, despite the focus on realism, each vehicle feels supremely different, even if its just a truck or buggy.

Variety is the name of the game, if you're flying one model airplane and it feels exactly the same as another, then that's not good.

b. FPS

Anyone who has half a brain will be wary of FPS titles, don't get me wrong, they can be nice, but you can't just make a shooting gallery. Doom is exciting and all, but it's been done to death, especially in the freeware scene.

The advantage of learning some form of scripting is that you can create complex situations in real time. If you're going to do ANYTHING at least try to give it the feel of Half-Life, cinematics are overrated. It may be difficult to do at first, but learning to do these things is key, it can be done with the most simple systems, and once you get the hang of it, it will be addictive to set up scripts and triggers then test them out and see them in action everywhere.

Try to make something that bends the shooter convention a little, start off simple but put in different factors that could affect the final feel of the game. Be it stranger weapons, more recoil from powerful guns, or REALLY loud gun shots, it can all help the gamer identify the game more, instead of it being a generic shooter.

You'd think starting out you'd want to start simpler than making something someone can identify with, but that's not the case, starting out you should immediately attempt to define these things, your first try may be a mess, but you should never let yourself submit to the norm just because its easier. Your game will thank you.


Also, don't give up on projects. My computer has killed many of my previous work, but I saved any trace of them I could, whether it be old versions, or documents, concept art and whatever, some pieces of them still remain on disks and my newer PC, always keep them as reference.
And don't expect a game to be done soon. However simple your game may be, it takes a long time to do this stuff.

[ianfreddie07]

Thanks BP!!! Maybe I just lack patience in doing stuff. that's why I haven't really released or started any project yet. Do you recommend the Torque Game Builder, Game Maker or The Games Factory?

[Blood-Pigggy]

Depends on how much time/money you wish to spend.

The Torque requires some basic programming knowledge, and the cheapest version of the engine is $100.
Game Maker is free unless you want more features and abilities, even then it's only $20, it might require a little scripting (you do need to know some) and the interface is kind of confusing.

The Games Factory can be free if you just look up a registration key online then download the program, it's very old anyway, but it's very good, it's the easiest of the bunch, I suggest you try it and make some simple games, it's only capable of 2D games, and the type of game you make is entirely up to you, I've made some very cool top-down adventure games with it, and side scrolling shooters.

There are HUNDREDS of editors and engines out there, free, trial programs, and purchasable. Remember, Google is your friend.

[verek_22]

If you want to create a simple FPS game, you could try Silent Walk FPS Creator. It was written in Game Maker, and allows you to make simple 3D FPS games. While the free version has all the features, you need to pay $15.00 to get rid of the splash screen, which can be pretty annoying.

[guildie]

AGS is a pretty awesome 2D adventure game creator, although, learning the scripting language can be a hassle if you're not interested.

[verek_22]

You can also try RPG Maker 2000 for RPG games (There are many games created with it on Abandonia Reloaded).

[wq15]

I use a lot of different things for lots of different games. Like for stand alone single player games I use RPG maker 2003 rather than Xp, but for an MMORPG I would use Elysium Diamond