Should I get the Torque Engine?

#1 Well, TGE is an integrated engine, not an API. So a lot of the functionality is extremely interwoven into the entirety of the engine. This is especially the case with the client/server model of TGE. It is an integral function of the engine which wends its way into the physics response, the timing, how data is sent to the resource manager, etc.

I guess my first question to you would be your level of C++ experience in terms of using large code-bases. The second question would be base points of defining what you mean by messy or controlling or the types of games that you want to make. Torque was created for networked FPS games with large terrains. The hints of that heritage are still there. But it was also designed with modification and extensibility in mind so a number of gametypes are possible (plus it has evolved in extremely significant ways since the Tribes 2 days). There are a number of resources available to accommodate various game types (the Advanced Camera Resource is one of my favorites, though not the holy grail of resources).

What are some of the particulars that you are looking at in your designs? Many gameplay particulars are not engine staples, but some are easier to implement than others.

#2 My main project is a first person shooter/RPG, with what I believe to be a unique health & inventory system. I was mostly wondering if with the Torque Engine I would already have the 3d First Person foundation. On which I could program the rest of my ideas on top of it.

#3 Get it the price is gonna go up soon. If you get it now you get 1.5 upgrade for free when its released.

#4 Press Tab to go into the standard 3rd person mode. The Advanced Camera resource adds god-view and orbit cameras like in Diablo. You would also have to add the click and pick functionality for in-game selection of objects. So at least those pieces are there. I'm not sure how much else is that you will need, though.

And Morrie is right about the pricing structure.

#5 I say Torque is for YOU! get it now and you will get a free upgrade to 1.5 saving 50$

torque has 3rd person view by pressing tab and first pirson by pressing it again plus

it is ultimatley made PERFECTlY for fps\rpg and has pretty good car physics for vehicles in fps games.

#6 Hi Eric Platt,

Will you need any shading effect in future?
If so, you need to pay extra fee ($150) for TSE (Torque Shader Engine).
(ie. TGE 1.5 +TSE = $150 + $150 = $300)
http://www.garagegames.com/mg/forums/result.thread.php?qt=51698
http://www.garagegames.com/products/28

#7 It also depends on your target platform(s). TGE is definetely what you want to use if you're developing for older pc's, that is if you don't mind using a fixed function pipeline as sammy was suggesting. If you're concerned about money though, you should also consider the price of the tools you will need to build your game. TGE has got some support for free modeling tools, but it's just 'some' support. It is possible to make a tge game using e.g. blender and any free .map creation tool, but it's really quite hard and time consuming. Using commercial tools such as 3ds max and GG's constructor (if/when it is released) would make it a lot easier, but that means spending more money.
If you want cool graphics with shaders in your game, then you should consider TSE or other similar engines, which are generally a bit more expensive than TGE.

#8 I'd get it. Ive bought it and have pretty much the same background that you say and it works great for me! Plus right now theres not a whole lot of free content that comes with it but wait till the update comes out!

#9 I'd get it. Ive bought it and have pretty much the same background that you say and it works great for me! Plus right now theres not a whole lot of free content that comes with it but wait till the update comes out!

#10 I'll shoot my mouth off here and say: If you want to learn to write game engines, keep on your present course. If you want to learn to write GAMES, get TGE.

You'll spend way more than $100 of your time in trying to write the engine (not to mention the cost in aspirin, beer, and therapy sessions). If you have additional budget you can get something like Shaper for your character/animated models (inexpensive and made mainly for Torque models), QuARK is free (although maddening to some) for doing interiors, and the GIMP is *acceptable* for texture creation.

I tried doing both the engine, the game design, and the content for a *very* small casual game for a year before I finally realized that there's not enough time in the day to produce something reasonably playable, if you're a one-man band. You end up having to compromise too much, about too many things.

My target market is the casual home user who thinks $100 for a video card is too much (lol), so TGE is *perfect* for me (I also have TGB, which I'm using to make some 2D games while I polish my design and art skills).

There's not a lot of free content but the environment and model packs available will (at a pretty reasonable cost) get you going pretty quickly. They have sure helped me a lot!

Best of luck, whatever your decision!

#11 I to had the same question you did before purchasing. I didn't know if I had the money for a new hobby or quit the old hobby. After purchasing TGE, I found it to be a rewarding one and very professional software. So now I own TGE, TSE, TGB, Adam Pack, Environment Pack, TLK, Frogames Dungeon Pack and Tim Aste Content Pack Combo #2.

Needless to say, I am hooked. Especially after working with other tools in the industry. Oh and this is my new hobby, that's where the money came from. And when Constructor comes out I will find more money for that. (smile)

#12 M8, definately get it. I got TGE, RTS and the TSE. It is a worth while investment you get all the C++ engine code. Also the crew at gg and the forum are a huge help, great community.