To buy, or not.
by Nick Cliffe · in Game Design and Creative Issues · 05/06/2004 (7:03 pm) · 27 replies
Hello, I'm new to this. I have no experiance making games, but my mind is full of ideas. I am a freshman in highschoo, and me and my friend wanted to start our senior project which is making a game. My question is, should I buy this engine? We plan on making a RPG. I just wanted to know if this engine was good for making RPG type games, and if it was good for a newbie who is willing to learn. It will have a baulders gate type style, although it won't take place in the same 'time period'.
#22
05/09/2004 (12:50 pm)
Why not give a try at 3DGameStudio, it's just 200$ and easiest way to get in the game technology 2D or 3D with anything you need to complete your game, torque is a powerful but hard and lack in documantation for the beginners to learn and start(at least it was for me, and still is...).
#23
If you just want to play around with making games, then 3DGS and co are great. If you want to make a serious product, then Torque is probably the best choice.
05/09/2004 (5:15 pm)
Of course, Torque is $100...If you just want to play around with making games, then 3DGS and co are great. If you want to make a serious product, then Torque is probably the best choice.
#24
If I understand your post correctly, you said you are a freshman in high school, and you are looking to begin work on your senior project with a friend?
Way to think ahead. If you have 2.5-3 years to work on an RPG with a friend, I'd have to agree with the folks in this thread that say Torque would be a good option for you.
It's not like you need to have a ship-able, professional-quality RPG for a senior project (though I understand if that's your goal). So, scale isn't a big problem for you. Two people with two+ years of part-time study is *way* more than enough to produce something interesting. If you want to leverage your senior project as a way to learn a lot and get game-making or programming experience, I would say there is no better way to go. Starting from scratch would be even more work, and going with a click-and-play solution won't teach you as much. Neither would using older technology.
I would say that you are thinking enough in advance that you'll allow yourself plenty of time to do things right. If you decide to go with Torque, you'll have a lot of exciting learning ahead of you.
I would recommend picking up Ken Finney's book, and continuing to check out the growing documentation on this site after you purchase. You'll save yourself lots of time that way.
05/09/2004 (6:51 pm)
Nick,If I understand your post correctly, you said you are a freshman in high school, and you are looking to begin work on your senior project with a friend?
Way to think ahead. If you have 2.5-3 years to work on an RPG with a friend, I'd have to agree with the folks in this thread that say Torque would be a good option for you.
It's not like you need to have a ship-able, professional-quality RPG for a senior project (though I understand if that's your goal). So, scale isn't a big problem for you. Two people with two+ years of part-time study is *way* more than enough to produce something interesting. If you want to leverage your senior project as a way to learn a lot and get game-making or programming experience, I would say there is no better way to go. Starting from scratch would be even more work, and going with a click-and-play solution won't teach you as much. Neither would using older technology.
I would say that you are thinking enough in advance that you'll allow yourself plenty of time to do things right. If you decide to go with Torque, you'll have a lot of exciting learning ahead of you.
I would recommend picking up Ken Finney's book, and continuing to check out the growing documentation on this site after you purchase. You'll save yourself lots of time that way.
#25
05/10/2004 (1:59 am)
I'd say go with Torque, but be prepared for a LOT of work. And read Ken Finney's book - best reference for ANY engine out there, I think. By itself, that book moves Torque up several notches competitively.
#26
the " ... I never finish ... " is the caveat in your statement.
You are just learning the ropes and as a result to you learning the ropes is an end in of itself, which is fine nothing wrong with that but that is not the original posters goal. You are prototyping an education. If you had a real hard deadline your approach would be different.
The original poster has a different end in mind, which ia complete RPG in a limited amount of time with absolutely NO experience whatsoever! completely different goal than hacking around at figuring things out and never finishing them.
It is like saying, I don't know anything about mechanical engineering but me and my friends are planning on building a ForumlaOne for our senior project in three years.
I would say try an RC car first!
05/10/2004 (11:36 am)
Quote:In the process I have created countless little mini-games, that I never finish, and each one has taught me more and more about what making a game consists of.
the " ... I never finish ... " is the caveat in your statement.
You are just learning the ropes and as a result to you learning the ropes is an end in of itself, which is fine nothing wrong with that but that is not the original posters goal. You are prototyping an education. If you had a real hard deadline your approach would be different.
The original poster has a different end in mind, which ia complete RPG in a limited amount of time with absolutely NO experience whatsoever! completely different goal than hacking around at figuring things out and never finishing them.
It is like saying, I don't know anything about mechanical engineering but me and my friends are planning on building a ForumlaOne for our senior project in three years.
I would say try an RC car first!
#27
I think you're right, except that it's not like he'll have a publisher breathing down his neck on a senior project. If it turns out, 6 months from the end of his senior year, that the project is nowhere near a complete game (which, I'd bet it won't be), it's pretty easy to scale the goal back.
High school senior projects don't require professionalism. He could end up with a simple mod, and a write-up about all the things he learned. Even that would be *very* impressive, at least at my old school. ;) Of course, there's nothing wrong with setting the goals higher, but it's not like it'd *have* to end up a complete, pro-quality game. :)
05/10/2004 (2:37 pm)
Jarrod,I think you're right, except that it's not like he'll have a publisher breathing down his neck on a senior project. If it turns out, 6 months from the end of his senior year, that the project is nowhere near a complete game (which, I'd bet it won't be), it's pretty easy to scale the goal back.
High school senior projects don't require professionalism. He could end up with a simple mod, and a write-up about all the things he learned. Even that would be *very* impressive, at least at my old school. ;) Of course, there's nothing wrong with setting the goals higher, but it's not like it'd *have* to end up a complete, pro-quality game. :)
Torque Owner Mark Barner
mbarnatl
Also you can buy a book "Programming Role Playing Games with DirectX" by Jim Adams. It tells you from start to finish on how to make an RPG game. Plus it comes with all the software and demos you need. I would suggest buying these two books and trying them out. That way you can make the choice for what will meet your needs. DirectX SDK 8.0 comes on the CD...it's free.
Another real simple engine to use is Darkbasic pro. Plenty of books written about it. Both Torque and DarkBasic Pro are under $100.
Milkshape 3D and Paint Shop Pro are a good start in the software department to start out with, they are the most widely used tools and low cost. Also pick up an editor like JEdit or UltraEdit-32.
Also plan your game in steps. Sort of building blocks. We made several games that builds on our main project. Each game we make has a certain learning goal and specific feature of our main project in it. Right or wrong way... it is the way it is working for us. You have to find what works for you and your team. So... I would suggest getting those two books and trying them out...you are at least going to get more ideas and some knowledge of how games are put together. Then you can decide if any of these engines will work for your project.