Turn Based Strategy Game - TGE or TGB?

#1 I'd say go for TGB... I may be biased, since I use it and love it. But for a turn based strategy game I'd think TGE would be a bit much. I think the editors for TGB are very high quality and easy to use. Plus TGB has support for 3D objects too... so it's possible to make something like Warcraft3 if you really tried. I'm bouncing around ideas /code for turn based strategy, RPG, and card games and I know TGB can handle all of the above.

#2 Definitely TGB - for the same reasons as Joe, mainly. It's very easy to get a prototype up and running in no time (especially with your programming skills) and 2D art is far easier than 3D for one person.

#3 @Joe - Have you ever played Master of Magic? The feature that I think will be the harderst to do is seperating the Overland map and the combat map. I came across a TGE user who has that done. I worry that I would have to do that in C++ in TGB rather then in TorqueScript. Do you think it couls be done in TorqueScript?

@Tom - If I get stuck doing 2D artwork I will be creating the units in 3DSMax and using the renders as my sprites. My 2D art skills are THAT bad.

Thanks for the quick replies.

Sammual

#4

Quote:The feature that I think will be the harderst to do is seperating the Overland map and the combat map.

My initial response would this would be extremely easy to do in TGB (probably much easier than TGE, much easier)... though I have not played Master of Magic so if you list some more details I can give you a better answer :)

Quote:If I get stuck doing 2D artwork I will be creating the units in 3DSMax and using the renders as my sprites. My 2D art skills are THAT bad.

A very common practice in 2D games.

#5 I actually had never heard of that one, but I just got it for free at www.abandonia.com which is cool, but I have yet to try running it. Anyway, I didn't really see anything in any of the screenshots I found that can't be done in TGB. The thing about TGB is, you can make a ton of "scenewindows" and scenegraphs that can have different displays in them, so it's possible you could draw the overland map in one scenewindow, and the combat map in another scenewindow.

#6 Master of Magic is one of my all-time favs! To answer your question, i'd say you could absolutely do what you need to do with TGB, and probably much faster and more easily than with TGE. Hell, you could probably do a MoM clone without much fuss. If thats your goal, and you end up going with TGB, i'd reccomend the following resources to start you off:

TGB Adventure Kit - Will help bring you up to speed with creating overhead style environments and gameplay. Includes useful code and an invaluable cache of graphics (which are easily the best part of this pack, imho).

A* Pathfinding extension - If you end up going with the Pro version of TGB (which includes the c++ source code), this engine add-on will save you lots of time. It's a well done and easy to use implementation of the A* pathfinding algorithm (generally regarded as the best) into the source code, where it will run much more quickly than if implemented through torquescript.

#7 OK I am sold on TGB. Next paycheck I will buy a Indie License.

First question, will I need the Pro ver?
I have almost no C++ experence and don't want to play with it if I can help it.

Is there any A* in TGB or would I need the Pro ver to add it?

That and dynamicly generated maps would be the two things that might be hard to do in Torque script.

If I have to spend $250 for TGB Pro I go back to leaning towards TGE with the RTS Starter Kit.

Sammual the Newbie (Noob for all you youngins)

#8 Dynamically generated terrains should be no problem in TorqueScript. A* can also be done in torquescript though it will not be as fast. For turn based movements, however, it should probably be fine, given you understand A* and how to implement it.

#9 Understand A* - Only enough to follow some of the A* tutorials on the net and implement them.

As far as speed goes I can always upgrade to Pro at a later date and move some code from TorqueScript to C++ if I need to. The game is turn based so as far as the pathing speed I only have to worry about it on the AIs turns. There should be no more then 5 AI Wizards with < 50 units stacks each and most of them will not be moving each turn.

BTW Thanks for all the info.

#10 Especially in the case of a turn based game, I think you'll be fine without Pro. As you've pointed out, you can upgrade to Pro if the need arises.

One possibility, if the map will be static (no new blocking tiles or obstacles introduced after the map is generated), would be to precompute all of the possible routes during map creation to make a path lookup table. This way, youd already have a list of paths from every coordinate A to every coordinate B. This would help to drastically reduce the speed hit during gameplay by sacrificing speed during map generation.

#11 Corey,
I just looked up your .plan and found out that I have been following your TD Invasion progress. I was upset that there was no contact info on your Google page as I wanted to pick your brain (Like I have been the last 2 days). It's a small world.

#12 Small world indeed! nefariousd at gmail.com, feel free to contact me, we can bounce some ideas.

#13 @Matthew
From Wikipedia;

Master of Magic (MoM) is a turn-based fantasy strategic computer game published by Microprose in 1994 and developed by Steve Barcia (Simtex), who also wrote the better-known Master of Orion. The game has many similarities with Civilization, but is set in a fantasy world and includes tactical battles.


My take on it;

Take Civilization, replace the Tech Tree with a semi-random spell book. Mix in the Magic the Gathering spell system. Change combat to a seperate screen tactical battle. Add hero units that can be equiped with items you create. Mix well, add a few crash bugs and ballance problems and you have Master of Magic.

Age of Wonders was a game that was 90% a clone of Master of Magic. It added Hex movement and a few minor features but took away Item creation / Hero customization / the large selection of units / random maps / and the 'Magic' that made Master of Magic a game I will never forget.

#14 From Joshua Dallman
"TBS was a project around the time the RTS pack was being developed/released (2004-2005). I cannot confirm if it's alive or dead but regardless it's not something coming out in the immediate future (if at all)."

TGB it is. Thanks all!