GarageGames to Release T3D as Open Source
by Eric Preisz · 09/10/2012 (9:05 am) · 159 comments
Torque 3D to be Released on Github under the MIT license!
Eleven years ago, The GarageGames founders did an incredibly innovative thing when they sold a full source game engine for $100. We are excited to continue in their footsteps by announcing that we will be releasing Torque 3D as the best open source game technology in the world. Once again, GarageGames will be changing game development.
Why are we doing this?
Nine months ago, we realigned the goals of GarageGames; making Torque 3D available via a permissive open source license is a strategic move towards fulfilling the company vision. Our first goal was to use iTorque to build a new product we call 3 Step Studio. We envisioned a game development tool that requires no programming at all and began to build it. This product is available today for free, but it’s very, very, early in development and we expect to iterate many times before it is a commercially viable product. Our second goal was to build a service division. I’m happy to say that we’ve already booked our first million dollars in service work and we expect the growth trend to continue as we make Torque 3D more accessible. You can visit our services site at services.garagegames.com. We are very well prepared and staffed to provide support, training, and custom development.
Our long term plans are to focus on innovative uses of game technology. Currently, all GarageGames employees have the option to work on any project on Fridays. We are working on some really great projects under the initiative and it’s our hope that we will be able to invest in several of these projects as they evolve. We’ve encouraged our developers to open source these projects. If you think you have what it takes to be an innovative developer using game technology, consider applying for one of our open positions.
Dave Wyand will be leading the T3D open source effort and he has posted a blog describing the details around how we will run the development process. But before you dive into the details with Dave, I’d like to leave you with answers to some expected questions:
Is this version different or a subset of T3D?
We've split off some modules as separate downloads and we've removed some art to bring down the payload size. Other than those changes, the versions are the same.
Is this just a way for you to dump Torque 3D?
No. We've been using T3D internally for service projects and we expect that to continue. In some cases, our service work will directly benefit the core code base.
I recently bought your engine, I feel ripped off.
We will be offering refunds for T3D purchases that happened on or after Sept 1st but before this announcement.
What about other GarageGames engines?
We are starting open source efforts with T3D and learning from this experience. For now, the other engines/products are not available via the MIT license.
About the author
Manager, Programmer, Author, Professor, Small Business Owner, and Marketer.
#2
09/10/2012 (9:15 am)
Outstanding. Now this adds some perspective! 
#3
Hopefully a permissive Open Source license will attract more (experienced) developers to the community, as well as allow those looking to get their feet wet in cpp to not be put off by the initial cost on an engine.
So, personally, I'd say ... good decision. We'll see how it goes.
09/10/2012 (9:18 am)
T3D's low "indie pricing" point did rather get blown out the water by other engines "fail for free" product versions - considering that 99% of would be projects never ship. Note: percentage totally made up on the spur of the moment, rather like Ubisoft's 93% piracy claim :PHopefully a permissive Open Source license will attract more (experienced) developers to the community, as well as allow those looking to get their feet wet in cpp to not be put off by the initial cost on an engine.
So, personally, I'd say ... good decision. We'll see how it goes.
#4
All in all, probably a very good move on GG's part. Kudo's guys! :)
09/10/2012 (9:32 am)
WOW! While I know this is a bitter pill for some of us to swallow, I'm still trying to get it down myself, in the end I really can't see anything negative coming from it. A much larger community with more experienced devs, as Steve said above, could'nt hurt.All in all, probably a very good move on GG's part. Kudo's guys! :)
#5
09/10/2012 (9:34 am)
Holy wow, this is just about the last announcement I ever expected to see. Thumbs up! 
#6
09/10/2012 (9:39 am)
Awesome! This is the kind of gutsy move I was hoping for from you guys. 
#7
09/10/2012 (9:40 am)
Good move :) Look forward to seeing where this goes..
#8
Especially I hope this is gonna benefit the IPS $.$
Seriously tho, I think this is a great opportunity for all of us to earn money on selling scripts, assets, code snippets, and just about anything else. And I especially hope to see some community improvements alá the CE so alot of the improvements being made can be found in the stock code!
I might even drop in to write some tutorials aswell!
On a side note, this might be a good moment to pull myself together and fixing that T3D Product library! Seems like it could be put to good use!
09/10/2012 (9:54 am)
I really hope this is gonna help the people selling assets on the side!Especially I hope this is gonna benefit the IPS $.$
Seriously tho, I think this is a great opportunity for all of us to earn money on selling scripts, assets, code snippets, and just about anything else. And I especially hope to see some community improvements alá the CE so alot of the improvements being made can be found in the stock code!
I might even drop in to write some tutorials aswell!
On a side note, this might be a good moment to pull myself together and fixing that T3D Product library! Seems like it could be put to good use!
#9
09/10/2012 (10:11 am)
So, this means that all further acceptance of the licence means that any distributed product must be open source as well -or do I misread that one? 
#10
That's the beauty of the MIT license, you can close off the source for your end product if you so choose. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT_License
09/10/2012 (10:17 am)
@ChristianThat's the beauty of the MIT license, you can close off the source for your end product if you so choose. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT_License
#11
opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php
Edit: Hi-five to Scott!
09/10/2012 (10:18 am)
@Christian - Yes, you've misread. MIT is permissive...take a look at the license, it's five lines long and doesn't have any requirement for you to redistribute your derivative works. opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php
Edit: Hi-five to Scott!
#12
09/10/2012 (10:18 am)
Thank you for a swift reply Scott & Eric -GL with the path chosen ;) 
#13
09/10/2012 (10:21 am)
Congratulations on a brave move! Just make sure the news spreads like wildfire and gets to everyone who would be interested! :) 
#14
Bold move, GG; I'm at a loss for words. Teary-eyed, too :)
09/10/2012 (10:22 am)
Out of all the possibilities, I would never have dreamed of this.Bold move, GG; I'm at a loss for words. Teary-eyed, too :)
#15
Edit: can you also package untouched MIT code using software like Molebox, or do you need to leave it in its raw format? If you do, could cause a few headaches with hacking your game.
Need to research this a bit more..
09/10/2012 (10:28 am)
Under MIT, do you need to leave non-modified source in its raw (not compiled format) - where as modified works that you have created can be compiled and need to be copyrighted as your own work, under your own licence to prevent CopyLeft ? Edit: can you also package untouched MIT code using software like Molebox, or do you need to leave it in its raw format? If you do, could cause a few headaches with hacking your game.
Need to research this a bit more..
#16
09/10/2012 (10:28 am)
Amazing move guys, cant wait to see how it plays out. 
#17
anyway, a very bold move. best of luck on the battlefield!
09/10/2012 (10:32 am)
sweet! the best defense is a good offense. I think I'm making sense. :Panyway, a very bold move. best of luck on the battlefield!
#18
For those who haven't worked with Open Source code before, note that the MIT license is amazing! Check the link above for the full wording but, in short, it says "do whatever you want with the code, just don't sue us if it breaks". ;)
It's good to be free!
09/10/2012 (10:34 am)
I just have to say I'm proud of the company I work for, and I'm happy to see so much positive feedback here. :)For those who haven't worked with Open Source code before, note that the MIT license is amazing! Check the link above for the full wording but, in short, it says "do whatever you want with the code, just don't sue us if it breaks". ;)
It's good to be free!
#19
09/10/2012 (10:36 am)
S2P@ "Copyleft refers to whether the license perpetuates to derivatives based on the licensed work. For example, GPL license requires programs that use material from GPL licensed software to be licensed under the GPL. MIT does not have this requirement."
#20
09/10/2012 (10:41 am)
@Jeff - got it.. so you're well within your right to create modified code and sell it as your own produced game/pack providing that the MIT parts retain a copy of the license.... I think. 
Torque Owner Nathan Martin
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